Chapter 27: You beat my people and think you can just walk away? Huh?

After lunch, Zhang Fan spent the afternoon scrolling through short videos online, looking for potential overseas projects to pursue.

Suddenly, Xu Wanying and Xiao Li walked in, their faces flushed with the distinct red marks of slaps, looking deeply aggrieved. Seeing them struck, Zhang Fan’s brows furrowed, and a surge of intense irritation flared within him.

"Wanying, Xiao Li, what happened? Speak!"

He wondered if the rival business owners who had been secretly plotting against him had finally decided to cause trouble.

Xiao Li, still somewhat frightened, recounted the incident: "A rich second-generation heir, claiming to be the eldest son of the Lin Group, arrived in a sports car and called us down. As soon as we met him, he had his bodyguards slap us."

The Lin Group? Zhang Fan recalled that they were the largest internet conglomerate in the country. He hadn't expected his policy of paying employees exceptionally high wages to attract their attention.

Xu Wanying, a fresh graduate, was roughly the same age as Xiao Li, but Xiao Li had been working since the age of twelve or thirteen and had far more life experience. While Xiao Li was merely terrified, Xu Wanying was so wronged that she burst into tears, her voice choking.

"Boss, that man is completely unreasonable. He even told us to tell you to crawl down and meet him. No matter what, you can't just hit people like that! Wuwu..."

Zhang Fan was on the verge of exploding. He was usually mild-mannered, but he was fiercely protective of his own. He remembered a time when a delivery customer had refused to come downstairs for half an hour, then left a malicious review and filed a complaint, costing the then seventeen-year-old Xiao Li three hundred yuan. The customer had even called to berate her. At that time, Zhang Fan had marched dozens of delivery riders to her door, forcing her to kneel, apologize, and film a public apology video. He had been fined and warned by the police for that, but he hadn't cared in the slightest.

*Damn it,* he thought, *why should we working-class people be bullied by you rich snobs? Being rich doesn't make you superior! I have money now too, and I am going to stand up for the workers!*

Zhang Fan rose abruptly, his face dark with fury. "Let's go. Take me to him! Right now!"

The two led the way, and the other three employees and nine students, seeing Zhang Fan’s menacing aura, followed behind. A dozen of them squeezed into the elevator and headed downstairs. Sure enough, a Lamborghini was parked in a spot right outside the office building.

A rich heir in an expensive suit, wearing an arrogant, slouched posture, was chatting with his bodyguards. As Zhang Fan approached, Lin Ruozhi opened his mouth to speak, but Zhang Fan cut him off with a roar.

"Was it you, you idiot, who hit my employees?"

Lin Ruozhi was stunned. Born in 2004, he had been raised as the son of Lin Changfeng, a man whose company was already worth a hundred million by the time Lin Ruozhi was one. Never in his life had anyone dared to call him an idiot; he was the one who did the insulting. Infuriated, he glared at Zhang Fan and shouted, "Are you tired of living, you bastard?"

Zhang Fan sneered and rolled up his sleeves. "Don't think you're so tough just because you have four bodyguards with you. I’ll tell you this: if you don’t apologize to my employees right now, we’re all coming for you! And as for your four bodyguards, I’ll make sure they regret it!"

The four bodyguards looked on with disdain. They were outnumbered, but they were experienced fighters, and they carried telescopic batons. However, in the next second, the dozen employees grabbed chairs and stools, their eyes blazing with rage.

"Messing with our boss means messing with us!"

"That’s right! We’re just ordinary people struggling to make a living, but we aren't anyone's punching bag!"

"Come on! Let’s fight! I’d rather go to jail than let you push us around!"

The bodyguards' expressions shifted, their hearts pounding. They didn't dare commit murder, but they had no doubt that these employees would stop at nothing if a fight broke out. Seeing his security team lose the psychological upper hand, Lin Ruozhi felt humiliated. Biting his lip, he muttered, "Fine, I apologize! You, and you... I'm sorry."

After apologizing to Xu Wanying and Xiao Li, a dark look crossed Lin Ruozhi's face. *If my father hadn't insisted that I acquire this company to crush the trend of high wages, I would never apologize to a bunch of poor trash like you. Damn it!*

Suppressing his anger, he maintained his composure and sneered, "Zhang Fan, our Lin Group is willing to pay thirty million to acquire your company. Our investigations show you only invested three million into your sole project. Since it hasn't even been fully developed yet, you should be happy to take this deal! So, when do we sign?"

He figured that someone who had spent his life delivering food and working construction would surely jump at the chance to make such a profit. To his surprise, Zhang Fan laughed with disdain.

"Who wants your dirty money? You just want to acquire my company to ruin my reputation, right? You want everyone online to mock me for breaking my word for money after promising to build this company into something great."

Lin Ruozhi was shocked. He hadn't expected Zhang Fan to turn down thirty million. That was a massive sum—many flashy bosses living in mansions worth hundreds of millions would struggle to produce thirty million in cash.

Lin Ruozhi gritted his teeth. "Zhang Fan, don't push your luck. My father is willing to pay to get you out of the internet industry. If you dare to anger him, there will be consequences."

Zhang Fan remained unimpressed. He had chosen this path, and he would see it through to the end. Even if he failed, he would fight for his employees as long as he could. If he persisted, perhaps he could become the next "Pang Donglai," or even help millions of people earn wages that could rival those in the West.

Seeing Zhang Fan unmoved, Lin Ruozhi grew indignant. "Just you wait! Let's go!"

The bodyguards boarded their vehicle, and Lin Ruozhi climbed into his Lamborghini, ready to leave. But just then, Zhang Fan and his group swarmed forward, surrounding the supercar.

Lin Ruozhi frowned. "Zhang Fan, since you won't sell, why are you blocking me? Get out of the way!"

Zhang Fan’s expression was calm. "You think you can just hit people and walk away with a simple apology? Do you think the world works like that?"

Lin Ruozhi grew increasingly impatient, his hands gripping the steering wheel. He wasn't reckless enough to run them over, so he snapped, "Then what do you want!"

Zhang Fan pointed at Xu Wanying and Xiao Li, smiling coolly. "It's simple. Let them hit you back. Otherwise, you aren't going anywhere. Understand?"

At these words, Lin Ruozhi began to shriek like a madman.