Chapter 197 The Phantom Spirit Theft Incident!
range.In the office at the Southern Suburbs Urban Management Team, Hu Mingli was sitting with his legs crossed and smoking, his mind filled with thoughts of how to take revenge on that little eatery.H...Chapter 197: The Incident of Stolen Phantom Spirit Crystals!
In the following days, Wang Zheng brought Song Ziyè to Fantawild. The two rode roller coasters, did bungee jumping, wore couple outfits, ate cotton candy, held hands while watching movies, and thoroughly enjoyed their private world where no one could recognize them.
Sitting in the Ferris wheel, Song Ziyè closed her eyes with both hands resting on her chest.
"What are you doing" Wang Zheng asked.
"Making a wish." Suddenly opening her eyes, Song Ziyè put both arms around Wang Zheng's neck and kissed him fiercely for a long time without separating.
"You know, according to legend, kissing at the highest point of a Ferris wheel means this person will be with you forever," looking at Wang Zheng, Song Ziyè's eyes were exceptionally clear and sincere.
"Do you still believe in that" Wang Zheng found it hard to believe these words were coming from Song Ziyè.
"I used to not believe, but now this is my wish." With a smile, she sat down and said, "Of course, it might just be a wish."
Wang Zheng was speechless. He did not know what to say that would comfort the woman who had become his first love.
Of course, Song Ziyè wasn't someone greedy for affection; being able to experience these heart-stirring moments already felt like a luxury to her, given her decision to remain single.
"If I marry someone else in the future, will you be jealous" Suddenly, Song Ziyè threw out an unanswerable question to Wang Zheng.
Wang Zheng was taken aback and then nodded.
A stunning smile spread across Song Ziyè's face.
"What The exclusive Phantom Spirit Crystal counter has been robbed" Zhang Mingqi jumped up upon receiving the phone call: "Did you report it to the police"
"Yes, we did. However, the police responded too slowly and now they are investigating the scene. But by the time they arrived, the robbers had already vanished without a trace," said the anxious voice on the other end of the line.
"Are there any injuries" Zhang Mingqi forced herself to remain calm and asked.
"No one was injured, but all the jewelry has been stolen."
"Okay, you protect the scene. I'll be right over." After hanging up the phone, Zhang Mingqi quickly tidied herself up and instructed her secretary, "Tell the security chief to bring two people with him as we head there."
Just as she was about to leave, Zhang Mingqi's phone rang again.
After glancing at the number, Zhang Mingqi frowned, with a bad premonition passing through his mind.
"Mr. Zhang, three armed thugs robbed our specialty store of Illusory Spirit Crystal Jewels on Wangfu Road. The shop manager was stabbed twice and has been sent to the hospital!"
Without saying anything more, Zhang Mingqi hung up the call and said coldly, "Contact Chief Ge from Pingjiang District Bureau for me."
This kind of robbery actually happened in broad daylight, right in the capital city! Moreover, the thugs even dared to stab the shop manager!
Sitting inside his car, Zhang Mingqi's eyes were fixed on the window but his mind was analyzing this series of incidents.
Two specialty stores for Illusory Spirit Crystal Jewels had been robbed simultaneously. Both stores were also the two with the highest sales volume. This couldn't have just been a coincidence.
The losses amounted to millions, which didn’t seem like a big deal to Zhang Mingqi, but what mattered was that this brand would soon be facing a sales crisis due to this robbery.
During the robbery, dozens of customers were still selecting diamonds at the counters. When the robbers appeared and stabbed the shop manager severely, this scene would remain in their minds, causing them significant psychological trauma. These people were potential buyers for Illusory Spirit Crystal Jewels, but after this incident, it was unlikely that those who originally planned to come to Illusory Spirit to buy diamonds would still do so.
After all, compared to diamonds, one's life is more important. If someone had been stabbed by the robbers while selecting a diamond, wouldn’t that be too much of a loss
To knock down a brand's popularity was really very simple; just expose some negative news. In this era when people are suspicious and fearful, it would be difficult for the brand to regain its footing.
Zhang Mingqi gave a cold laugh. If everything went as expected, the news would appear in tomorrow’s newspaper. Tonight's Capital Television News would certainly broadcast about the robbery of Illusory Spirit Crystal Jewels. At that time, it would also be when Illusory Spirit’s popularity hit rock bottom.
Someone must have been pulling the strings behind the scenes.
This move was too obvious and reckless. Could it be that they couldn’t compete openly, so now they were resorting to underhanded tactics Moreover, these underhanded tactics seemed rather brazen.
Zhang Mingqi took out his phone and dialed a number before saying, "Please contact the CEO of Langxin Network for me. I’m inviting him to dinner tonight."
After hanging up the call, Zhang Mingqi flipped through the numbers in his phone and saw a name that made her lips curve into a bitter smile.
Where was this man right now
Zhang Mingqi knew that Wang Zheng had gone to Ningxia, but she didn’t know where he was specifically. She hadn’t asked about him because she understood that Wang Zheng’s trip was to accomplish an important mission and might encounter some danger. Zhang Mingqi did not want Wang Zheng to be distracted by her.
How many times had Zhang Mingqi's hand hovered over the dialing keys, perhaps all it would take is a phone call for her to hear Wang Zheng’s voice, but she always gave up in the end. In Zhang Mingqi’s view, since Wang Zheng hadn’t contacted her proactively, there must have been his reasons.
Looking at this familiar number now, Zhang Mingqi really wanted to make that call and listen to that reassuring voice on the other side of the line.
Zhang Mingqi had a feeling that something subtle was changing in Beijing since Wang Zheng wasn’t here. Even though she couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was, sometimes women's intuition could be quite terrifying.
For example, in the recent incident where Phantom Spirit Diamond was robbed, Zhang Mingqi always felt that someone was manipulating things from behind the scenes and that this person had finally begun to act.
The question of who it could be seemed obvious.
It was clear that the promotion campaign for Phantom Spirit Diamond in Huaxia was unprecedentedly massive, quickly capturing a large portion of the market share. Such an event would naturally upset someone, wouldn't it
Evidently, it would be the established diamond brands in Huaxia.
Tongling, Aigle, and Suzhou Charm had once monopolized the high-end jewelry market in Huaxia, reaping huge profits annually. However, with Phantom Spirit Diamond's entry into the market, these three brands' monopoly was shattered overnight, propelling Phantom Spirit to become a new player in the diamond industry. This move certainly would have irritated these three brands.
Behind these brands stood the venerable Su Family, known as the top family in Huaxia.
Pondering over and over again, Zhang Mingqi concluded that only the Su Family had the motive to make such a move. But she found it hard to believe that someone like Su Tianran, who was always courteous and gentlemanly, would resort to such low tactics
In reality, as a woman, Zhang Mingqi didn't understand that in his eyes, what seemed like underhanded tactics were often far more effective than any carefully plotted schemes.
True enough, just as Zhang Mingqi predicted, the news was already being broadcast on the car radio.
"Dear listeners, half an hour ago, Phantom Spirit Diamond's flagship store at Wangfu Road and Park Road was robbed by bandits. A customer was stabbed seriously injured. We advise everyone to stay away from Phantom Spirit Diamond stores for your safety."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Mingqi sneered coldly. As expected, the moment she thought of it, they had already begun their move.
The traffic radio should merely report news impartially without suggesting listeners' behavior, but advising them to stay away from Phantom Spirit was an outright provocation. Moreover, with the injured being the store manager, not a customer, this news report was clearly malicious.
Upon arrival at the scene, Zhang Mingqi found out that things were even more severe than she had imagined.
The police had cordoned off the area to protect the crime scene. Inside the counter, it was in complete chaos; all counters were smashed, and the sparkling diamonds had been stolen by the robbers. The beautiful staff members stood tremblingly on the side, some even whispering while crying, truly frightened by what happened just now.
On the ground was a pool of blood left behind by the seriously injured store manager.
The chaos at Wangfu Road's flagship store had attracted countless bystanders who were filming with their phones. The traffic around Wangfu Road nearly came to a standstill. Several TV reporters were already on-site reporting, and if everything went as expected, these reports would be broadcasted on television that night, undoubtedly casting a shadow over Phantom Spirit Diamond in people's minds.
Zhang Mingqi stood there for a moment, then turned around and got back into the car.
…………
Capital Railway Station.
Wang Zheng and Song Ziyue walked out hand in hand.
Originally, Wang Zheng wanted to take Song Ziyè by plane, but Song Ziyè firmly insisted on taking the train, and even requested the slowest type of train because it would allow her to spend more time with him. For this simple request, Wang Zheng could only agree.
"Let's part ways here." Song Ziyè wrapped a scarf around her neck and put on sunglasses; Wang Zheng held her hand, which felt cold.
Wang Zheng squeezed Song Ziyè’s hand tightly, unsure of what to say.
The next time they met, they wouldn't know how to face each other as they would have different identities.
If one day Wang Zheng raised a knife against the entire Song family, how would Song Ziyè handle herself
With so many contradictions entangled together, it was impossible to untangle them or make sense of them.
If he couldn't figure it out, then there was no point in thinking about it further. He should just let things develop naturally and allow time to provide the answers.
Seeming to understand what Wang Zheng was contemplating, Song Ziyè tiptoed lightly on her feet and whispered softly into his ear, “Don't feel that you owe me anything; I don't regret it.”
I don’t regret it.
Wang Zheng had no words to respond and tightly hugged Song Ziyè in his arms.
…………
After watching Song Ziyè leave by taxi, Wang Zheng’s mood was unusually low for a rare moment.
He aimlessly wandered around the square before turning around to look at the big screen on the square. His gaze suddenly turned cold and calculating.
"The Illusory Spirit Crystal Cabinet suffered an attack by robbers this morning, resulting in severe losses and one of our staff members was critically injured."
Wang Zheng smirked slightly: "Su Tianran, have you finally lost your patience"
"Such tactics are indeed the simplest and most effective. But it seems like you forgot something."
"Because I'm back."
Wang Zheng removed his sunglasses and a fighting spirit flashed in his eyes.
At this moment, inside a room at Lixin Manor, Su Tianran slammed the table with a fierce slap, sending a teacup he was holding crashing to the ground!
"Who did this"nt down to put the shoes on him, he just happened to look inside her neck opening and saw half a snow-white mountain peak and a deep valley."It's so late, did you eat" Sheng Fei smiled gently as she l...