Chapter 545: 100 Million Security Deposit

Chapter 545: Chapter 545: 100 Million Security Deposit

Xi Minglan’s expression darkened. The Pei Group was a client of their He Group, and what’s more, President Pei was handsome, successful, and in the prime of his life.

’Zhixuan is actually calling off the engagement?’

’She really doesn’t know how good she has it!’

However, because He Zhixuan’s parents had passed away at a young age, Xi Minglan had always doted on her and couldn’t bring herself to scold her.

Xi Minglan mulled it over for a moment before asking, "Zhixuan is dating someone in Luocheng? How have I never heard her mention it? Zhirou, is it possible you’ve made a mistake?"

He Zhirou said in a cloyingly sweet voice, "Grandma, there’s no way I’m mistaken! Zhixuan’s best friend, Liu Ruyan, told me herself!"

Xi Minglan frowned. "Tell me about Zhixuan’s new boyfriend. What’s his family situation?"

He Zhirou sighed helplessly. "Grandma, her boyfriend’s family is very ordinary. His father’s a taxi driver, and his mother is a part-time municipal worker. I could almost overlook that, but what I find intolerable is that this boyfriend of hers also served a few years in prison for assault! He was just released."

He Zhixuan’s aunt, He Ningna, paled. "He’s an ex-con? How could Zhixuan be so foolish?"

He Guosheng’s tone was even harsher. "Mother, if Zhixuan really marries an ex-con, she’ll be a complete disgrace to the He family! We absolutely cannot allow her to act so recklessly!"

Xi Minglan struck her cane hard against the floor. "Reckless! Is this not the very definition of reckless? It seems I have been far too lenient with her! Where is Zhixuan? Why isn’t she home yet? Eldest, call her. Tell her to get home immediately!"

"Yes, Mother."

He Guosheng quickly called He Zhixuan, but she hung up on him immediately.

This infuriated He Guosheng.

He Guosheng sent He Zhixuan a text.

[Zhixuan, your grandmother is furious. Get home now! Otherwise, we will disown you from the He family today!]

He Guosheng’s mention of Xi Minglan made He Zhixuan’s hardened heart soften slightly.

In the entire He family, the only person who truly cared about her was her grandmother.

If not for her grandmother’s protection, she might not have even survived to adulthood.

For her grandmother’s sake, He Zhixuan sent a text in reply.

[On my way.]

Seeing He Zhixuan’s message, He Guosheng breathed a small sigh of relief. If she didn’t come home today, the engagement party would become an absolute joke.

As they were speaking, a servant of the He family led Pei Yuanbin through the front door of the villa.

Beaming, the servant bowed and announced, "Elder Madam, Master Guosheng, your future son-in-law has arrived."

Normally, Pei Yuanbin was of a younger generation, so there was no need for Xi Minglan to personally rise to greet him; He Guosheng’s welcome would have been sufficient.

But the Pei Group was a major client of the He Group, after all, so Xi Minglan dared not show any disrespect.

Xi Minglan unsteadily got to her feet and went to welcome him personally. She enthusiastically grabbed Pei Yuanbin’s large hands, looking him up and down with a fond expression.

"Excellent! Wonderful! The He family’s future grandson-in-law is as dashing and distinguished as they say! Zhixuan is so lucky to be marrying such an outstanding young man!"

Pei Yuanbin awkwardly withdrew his hand.

No matter how unwilling he was to let He Zhixuan go, Pei Yuanbin had to give up. After all, Zheng Longxiang was someone he absolutely, positively could not afford to offend.

Pei Yuanbin cleared his throat. "Ahem, well, Elder Madam Xi, I’m terribly sorry, but I’ve come to call off the engagement. As of today, my marriage contract with He Zhixuan is canceled!"

Everyone in the He family was dumbfounded. They couldn’t understand why Pei Yuanbin’s attitude had changed so drastically.

After all, until now, he had always seemed so sure of himself, completely set on the marriage.

Amid his shock, a deep sense of dread washed over He Guosheng.

If the wedding between Zhixuan and President Pei was called off, President Pei would surely revoke their distribution rights for the Lingxi Health Beverage.

And he had just invested all of the He Group’s liquid capital into building out the sales channels!

If they lost the distribution rights, the He Group’s entire line of funding would be cut off!

They would collapse in an instant!

He Guosheng quickly forced a laugh. "President Pei, you have a great sense of humor. You’re so devoted to Zhixuan, why would you be the one to call off the engagement?"

Pei Yuanbin’s heart was bleeding. He didn’t want to call off the engagement either!

But he had no choice!

He had originally thought he could get the distribution rights back if he just handled Zheng Longxiang.

But then, Cheng Yuan had to go and beat up Zheng Longxiang!

Worried he’d get caught in the fallout, Pei Yuanbin was already planning to flee.

Last night, he had worked through the night to sell off his shares in the Pei Group. This trip to the He family was just a chance to squeeze them for one last huge payout before he skipped town.

Pei Yuanbin’s expression turned grim. "President He, I never joke. I am being completely serious about calling off the engagement!"

As he spoke, Pei Yuanbin pulled the engagement agreement he had signed with He Guosheng from his jacket.

RIP! RIP!

Pei Yuanbin tore the engagement agreement to shreds!

Any last sliver of hope He Guosheng had was gone. He stared at Pei Yuanbin, his face taut with anxiety.

"President Pei, even if we don’t become family, our business partnership doesn’t have to end! The He family has already built the best sales channels in the city! We can definitely do a great job with the distribution!"

Pei Yuanbin raised an eyebrow. ’The more the He family has invested, the better my chances of swindling them.’

"President He, since we’re no longer going to be related, if you want to continue distributing the Lingxi Health Beverage, you’ll have to give me a one-hundred-million-yuan security deposit. Otherwise, I’m revoking the distribution rights."

’A hundred-million-yuan deposit?’

A bitter expression crossed He Guosheng’s face. "President Pei, can the deposit be any lower? The He Group can only squeeze out twenty million from our accounts at most!"

"No. It has to be one hundred million. You can borrow it, or you can take out a loan against your assets. In any case, I need to see the money this morning. Otherwise, I will be revoking the distribution rights for sure."

He Guosheng was absolutely furious with He Zhixuan. ’She must have done something to provoke Pei Yuanbin. Why else would he show up at our door to call off the wedding?’

"President Pei, please wait a moment. Let me see what I can do."

He Guosheng turned to his relatives and said in a strained voice, "Everyone, you heard President Pei. The company can come up with twenty million at most. That leaves a shortfall of eighty million. How about we all pitch in and cover the rest?"

To He Guosheng’s disappointment, the moment they heard money was involved, all his relatives began shaking their heads.

"Eldest Brother, it’s not that we don’t want to help. We just bought a large apartment and a new car. We truly don’t have the cash."

"Eldest Brother, you know my situation. All my money is tied up in the stock market. I can’t pull it out."

"Eldest Brother, we can’t even make payroll for our own workers. We were thinking of asking the Group for a loan ourselves."

...

He Guosheng was furious. Over the years, this pack of relatives had taken at least five hundred million from the He Group!

Yet now that he asked them to scrape together eighty million, they were all making excuses!

’If I manage to save the distribution rights, I’ll be damned if I let them take another cent from the Group!’

Just as He Guosheng was reaching his wit’s end, Xi Minglan spoke. "Eldest Son, get my nest egg. We must save the distribution rights for the Lingxi Health Beverage!"

"Thank you, Mother!"

He Guosheng was overjoyed. He quickly grabbed a laptop, typed for a moment, then placed it in front of Xi Minglan and said respectfully, "Mother, please enter your account number and password."

Just as Xi Minglan was entering her account information with trembling hands, a clear female voice suddenly called out from the villa’s entrance, "Grandma, don’t transfer any money to the Pei Group!"