Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lin Wu casually glanced at the bodyguard lying on the floor.
The man shuddered violently and scurried out, rolling and crawling.
Nobody outside dared to come in.
If anyone in the meeting room were to go out now, they would witness a horrifying scene—many bodyguards and security guards were sprawled on the ground, all of whom had tried to stop Lin Wu as she insisted on coming up, yet none had even managed to touch the hem of her clothes before being beaten to the ground.
Lin Wu withdrew her gaze and scanned the surroundings of the meeting room, noticing an empty chair nearby. She walked over, hooked the chair with her foot to pull it behind her, sat down, crossed her long legs, rested one hand on the armrest, and dangled her sunglasses from the other hand.
"I have something to discuss with you, send everyone out," Lin Wu said.
Lin Shenghai was incensed by her somewhat arrogant sitting posture.
On top of that, before the meeting started, he had received a rare call from the old Lin Family patriarch, only to end up arguing with him on the phone—the patriarch had even hung up on him, which further infuriated Lin Shenghai.
"I have nothing to say to you. Leave now, or else, I'll have the security come up and throw you out!" Lin Shenghai declared.
Lin Wu nodded slightly, speaking in a rather casual tone, "Sure, try and see if you can call anyone up."
Lin Shenghai immediately took out his phone to call his personal assistant.
However, before he could get through, someone else entered the door—it was the very assistant he was trying to contact. The person was both shocked and dismayed as he said, "President Lin, someone has broken into the Lin Family, and our security and bodyguards have been beaten! I checked the surveillance and found this person had come to the meeting…"
Before he could finish, he met Lin Wu's pitch-black gaze.
The assistant suddenly stopped speaking, exclaiming in a lost voice, "It's... it's her!"
Lin Shenghai could hardly believe what he was hearing. As he looked back at Lin Wu, he felt his molars grinding to dust.
The other executives in the room didn't dare to breathe too loudly, fearing they might become collateral damage.
Lin Wu spoke unhurriedly, "If you don't want them to leave, fine with me, I don't care whether they listen or not. Long story short, let's talk about how you, the great President Lin, neglect your own father, who is seriously ill in the hospital, and haven't paid even a cent towards the medical bills…"
"Shut up!"
Lin Shenghai's face turned livid as he barked.
Lin Wu languidly twirled her sunglasses in her hands.
Lin Shenghai closed his eyes and suppressed his rage, ordering, "Everyone get out! Without my permission, no one is allowed in!"
All the executives were stunned, quickly sensing that this unfamiliar girl was speaking of President Lin's private family matters. Not daring to listen any longer, they hastily shrank their necks and rushed out.
At the gesture of Lin Shenghai, the personal assistant also tightly closed the door of the meeting room.
Now it was just the two of them, and the atmosphere grew even tenser.
Lin Shenghai took a deep breath and asked darkly, "Did the old patriarch send you to ask?"
Not paying the medical bills was actually Lin Shenghai's decision. But so much time had elapsed, and the old patriarch had never inquired. Wasn't it evident that he had his own assets?! Looking at Lin Wu, and thinking of the morning's events, Lin Shenghai couldn't help but feel suspicious.
This Lin Wu was clearly no longer a member of the Lin Family, yet she persistently sought to win the old patriarch's favor, causing him to despise his own family. Could it be that she knew about the patriarch's inheritance and was just waiting to curry favor so it would be left to her?
Even though Lin Wu was the one sitting, the way she looked at the standing Lin Shenghai bore an air of superiority.
She said indifferently, "It's not Grandpa. On the contrary, Grandpa has always believed that you all were filial to him. But were you really?"
"What do you mean by that?" Lin Shenghai asked, displeased.
Lin Wu pulled out the wooden box from her pocket, opened it with one hand, and placed it in front of Lin Shenghai.
Lin Shenghai took one look and recognized what it was.
His complexion changed slightly for a moment as he reached out to snatch it away.
Lin Wu quickly withdrew the object from his reach.
Lin Shenghai glared at Lin Wu and directly accused her, "Look at what you've done, you heartless, unfilial thing! The old man has always favored you, even abandoning his own family for your sake. And you still steal from him?!"
Lin Wu lifted her eyelids and looked at him, "This was given to me by Grandpa."
"Impossible!" Lin Shenghai refused to believe it, "This is the Peace Pendant that I specifically sought from a master, invaluable! You, you're not even worthy to glance at it. How could the old man possibly give it to you?"
Lin Wu snapped the wooden box shut with a click, "Remembering what this is will make things easier."
Seeing that Lin Shenghai was about to attempt to snatch it again, Lin Wu put the wooden box back into her pocket and swiftly stood up.
Lin Shenghai was startled by her sudden movement and asked warily, "What are you doing?"
Lin Wu enunciated each word deliberately, "This item, from which master did you obtain it? What's his name, and what is the use of the pendant?"
On hearing this, Lin Shenghai's expression became unnatural and he said, "Why should I tell you? Lin Wu, is this the way you speak to me?!"
"You don't like this attitude? Fine, I'll change it."
Lin Wu suddenly laughed, her hand reaching behind her back to draw out a folded knife. With a flick of her wrist, the blade snapped open, causing Lin Shenghai's face to change drastically.
"Lin Wu, don't be presumptuous! I warn you, if you do anything rash, today you definitely won't make it out of the Lin Family's main entrance..."
Before Lin Shenghai could finish speaking, Lin Wu suddenly stepped forward.
Lin Shenghai was truly frightened by the knife this time, staggering backward until he hit a chair and fell onto it, with nowhere else to retreat to.
Lin Wu suddenly said, "Do you still remember, when I was at the Lin Family, the first time you locked me in the basement, what it was for?"
Lin Shenghai was startled for a moment, but then he recalled the incident.
It was when Lin Jiangchuan took a fancy to something Lin Wu always carried on her person. Lin Wu wouldn't give it to him, and Lin Jiangchuan in a fit of anger smashed it.
At that time, young Lin Wu's expression was dark and gloomy; her stare at others was unnerving.
She demanded an apology from Lin Jiangchuan.
Naturally, Lin Jiangchuan refused.
Then she pushed Lin Jiangchuan, causing him to knock his head on the coffee table, bleed, and lose consciousness. Both he and Fang Ruling were terrified, hurrying to send Lin Jiangchuan to the hospital.
Afterwards, in a fit of rage, Fang Ruling ordered people to lock Lin Wu in the basement. They kept her there for three full days without food or water. It wasn't until the old man found out that he adamantly forced them to release her.
"I remember that you said at the time, I was ruthless and brutal, a bad seed from a young age." Lin Wu looked at Lin Shenghai, pulling at the corner of her mouth, her delicate features sharp and straight.
"—You were right."
As she spoke, Lin Wu suddenly kicked away the chair under Lin Shenghai.
The unexpected loss of support caused Lin Shenghai to cry out in shock, falling backward, but he was grabbed by the collar and dangled half a meter above the ground.
The chair clattered to the floor.
Lin Shenghai, on instinct, clutched at Lin Wu's hand as if grasping a lifeline, his eyes wide with fear.
Lin Wu bent down, her knuckles white as she gripped his collar, "I'm giving you one chance to tell me what I want to hear."
With calm demeanour, she pressed the knife she was holding against Lin Shenghai's throat.