Chapter 167: Yelena: I'm going to take the city by storm!

Upon hearing Chen Luo’s familiar voice and taking in the studio’s background, Yelena genuinely had not expected Chen Luo to step into the fray personally.

"You are, after all, the vice president of a major conglomerate. To defeat me, you’ve actually resorted to becoming a live streamer yourself."

"By exposing yourself so blatantly to the public, is Wen Wan really okay with this?"

Yelena sighed with emotion, then continued watching the video.

This was not a live broadcast, but a clipped segment of one, commonly known as a highlight reel. The most high-energy portion of Chen Luo’s live broadcast had been directly extracted and distributed across major platforms.

Looking at the view count, likes, and comments, the video had already surged into the top three trending searches on the platform.

Purely in terms of data, the video and the live stream could already be considered mega-hits.

However, with Yelena’s vision and understanding, she saw far beyond the superficial publicity and view counts.

At that moment, Ye Linqian walked out of the lounge, drying her hair with a towel. Glancing forward, she saw the remarkably grim expression on her older sister's face.

"Sis, what’s wrong?"

"The people you went to capture earlier were probably just another of Chen Luo’s smoke screens."

Ye Linqian watched the video of Chen Luo passionately discussing college entrance examination counseling, with countless viewer comments scrolling past.

"His real fatal blow was this college application live stream."

"This broadcast doesn't just carve out a completely new track; it also funnels traffic directly and amply into their educational brand."

"Using himself as the starting point of the brand’s effect rather than simply hiring a celebrity endorser to add value—how on earth did he come up with this concept?"

In fact, it was completely normal that Yelena couldn't foresee this at the time; after all, the internet influencer economy was a trend that would only emerge on a large scale at least eight years later.

"Sis, although I don't understand the ways of business, I can sense that your current state doesn't seem right."

Yelena smiled self-deprecatingly and lowered her head slightly.

"Indeed, one could say Chen Luo has seized the initiative this time. Under his series of maneuvers, we have already been forced into a passive position."

"Even I have to praise him as a hero born of his youth."

"From the initial promotion of online courses and the chaos-inducing all-out offensive, to deliberately throwing out a smoke screen to disrupt our operations, and finally revealing his sharp blade with this unprecedented live stream—"

"Every single move was intensely aggressive, yet tightly interlocked, leaving people with no way to defend themselves."

"I have to admit, in this opening skirmish, I have lost."

Hearing these words, Ye Linqian’s pupils dilated in shock.

Ever since she was little, when had her older sister ever displayed such a dejected expression?

Even during years of fierce business warfare in the capital, clashing with all kinds of business giants and brilliant minds, she had never lost, let alone admitted defeat.

Could this Chen Luo truly be some sort of peerless prodigy?

"Sis, are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

Yelena’s tone shifted. She slowly stood up, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes as an astonishing fighting spirit erupted from her body.

"Chen Luo, I lost this round, but the overall battle is far from over!"

"Seizing the initiative does not equal victory! His early advantage hasn't yet converted into a winning momentum. We still have a chance!"

"Only in adversity does true heroic character shine!"

Yelena turned around, pushed open the office door, and looked at Assistant Lin, who was standing by outside.

"Assistant Lin, notify all corporate executives to gather in the conference room. I have crucial instructions to issue!"

"Director Ye, what crucial instructions?"

"As the art of war says: the highest warfare is to attack the enemy's strategy, the next is to disrupt their alliances, and the lowest is to attack their cities!"

"You mean..."

"Your boss is going to attack the city!"

...

In the eastern district of Hangzhou, inside a residential apartment.

Bai Shiya was tightly bound to a chair, completely unable to move.

Mo Ye stood guard behind her personally, remaining constantly vigilant against any sudden moves from the woman.

Before long, the front door opened, and Wen Wan and Chen Luo walked in hand in hand.

As soon as they entered, Chen Luo and Wen Wan saw Bai Shiya in the center of the living room and couldn't help exchanging a glance.

"How is it her?"

Both of them remembered that she was the beautiful woman who had tried to strike up a conversation with Chen Luo at the restaurant earlier.

Mo Lan pulled over two chairs, and Chen Luo and Wen Wan sat down.

Wen Wan took a photograph and several documents handed to her by Mo Lan and looked Bai Shiya up and down.

"Wen Shao’s confidante, one of his women—Bai Shiya, right?"

"Oh? You found my dossier so quickly? I should say, as expected of the Sixth Young Mistress capable of standing up to the Young Master; your subordinates' intelligence-gathering capability is truly second to none."

Bai Shiya remained calm, showing no trace of fear. After all, having fallen into the enemy's hands, she hadn't expected any good outcome for herself.

"This time, I was double-crossed by that bitch Tang Xiwei and fell into your hands. I'll just chalk it up to bad luck."

"You certainly keep your composure under pressure. You know what it means for Wen Shao’s confidante to fall into my hands, don't you?"

"The formidable reputation of the Sixth Young Mistress is something I've long heard of. There's no need to try to scare a weak woman like me. Torture me or kill me as you please."

Bai Shiya smiled contemptuously and glanced at Chen Luo.

"However, if you're hoping to get information about the Young Master out of my mouth, you'd better save your breath."

To be honest, Bai Shiya still felt a certain degree of fear toward Wen Wan, who was known as the Mad Empress. Ever since Wen Wan entered the business world, very few of her mortal enemies ever met a good end.

However, her mother had always been recuperating in a hospital run by Wen Shao. If she truly turned traitor, her mother would be in grave danger.

A fleeting trace of guilt appeared in her eyes as she looked at Chen Luo—though it was just a flicker, Chen Luo caught it completely.

"Wan'er, since Miss Bai doesn't wish to speak right now, let's wait a moment and let her calm down first. I believe she will eventually choose to cooperate with us."

Seeing Chen Luo nod at her, Wen Wan noticed a profound meaning in his eyes.

"Very well. Mo Lan, place her under house arrest here. Treat her well with good food and drinks, and see when she's finally willing to talk."

"Understood!"

Mo Lan dragged her off to a room with sealed windows. Wen Wan and Chen Luo walked out the front door and stepped into the elevator.

"Babe, how are you so confident that this Bai Shiya will betray Wen Shao?"

"No, I know nothing about her. However, I have absolute confidence in the scapegoating skills of Tang Xiwei, who managed to escape by the skin of her teeth."

...

"Ring! Ring!"

At midday, a phone ring jolted Wen Shao awake from his sleep.

With a rough kick, he shoved aside the naked, alluring woman who had been resting against his shoulder and slowly picked up his phone.

He pressed the answer button, and Tang Xiwei’s voice came through from the other end.

"Young Master! It's bad! Our stronghold has been wiped out by Wen Wan! Bai Shiya has been captured by them!"