After Sun Qi’s wedding, more than a month passed, and Sun Qi shared a surprising piece of news with Yi Wei: he was expecting twins. Yi Wei thought to himself, no wonder his own pregnancy had been relatively easy while Sun Qi had been having such a hard time. While some of it could be due to differences in physical constitution, carrying twins must also be contributing to Sun Qi’s discomfort.
Yi Wei comforted Sun Qi, telling him to rest well and reassuring him that once the babies were born, they could work out together to regain their strength. He joked that next time Sun Qi got pregnant, it wouldn’t be so hard. Sun Qi, with a weary tone, replied that carrying two at once was more than enough and that he didn’t want to go through it again. His exasperation made Yi Wei laugh.
Because of his physical discomfort, Sun Qi spent most of his time resting at home, rarely going to school or the Gu family academy. Bored out of his mind, he frequently visited Yi Wei to chat.
Yi Wei’s schedule hadn’t changed much, except that he had recently started taking on some work. Otherwise, his routine remained the same.
However, Yi Wei’s practice of personally selecting students for recommendation had finally drawn dissatisfaction and concern from some at the academy and the foundation. They decided to send representatives to speak with him about it.
After receiving word that these individuals wanted to talk, Yi Wei thought to himself that it was about time they acted. He made his way to the academy’s administrative meeting room, prepared to see how they would approach the situation.
Upon entering the meeting room, Yi Wei glanced at the gathered representatives, then sat down and asked, “What do you want to discuss?”
“We’re not here to accuse or argue with you. We just want to calmly and rationally analyze the situation. We believe you’re a reasonable person, and after hearing our perspective, we think you’ll understand where we’re coming from,” said Gu Yuesheng, a man with a gentle demeanor who was the foundation’s vice-chairman and the representative leading the conversation.
Yi Wei smiled slightly after hearing this, then said, “Go ahead, let’s hear it.”
Gu Yuesheng began explaining that Yi Wei’s personal method of selecting students for recommendation was problematic. He argued that it could lead to perceptions of unfairness among the students, create disappointment, and erode trust in the academy’s system. His words sounded reasonable and well thought out.
Yi Wei listened attentively without interrupting. Once Gu Yuesheng had finished, Yi Wei finally spoke: “What you’re saying sounds logical, but you’re avoiding the real issue. And frankly, you’re being a bit too subtle about what’s really bothering you. I’m using my own personal connections to recommend students for further education and internships, and I’m handling all the networking myself. So why shouldn’t I be able to choose whoever I think is best? You say you’re worried about the students’ disappointment, but what you really want is access to my connections for your own purposes, isn’t that right?”
Yi Wei didn’t follow the academy’s formal recommendation process, preferring to select students based on his own criteria, which were stricter than those in the academy’s formal processes, which had allowed for corrupt cases like Sun Yu’s to happen.
“That’s not fair at all. We’re not trying to use you,” Gu Yuesheng replied earnestly. “You’ve misunderstood us, and it’s disheartening to hear you say that.”
“You don’t have to be offended by my bluntness,” Yi Wei continued. “Since you came to talk to me, I believe it’s best to lay everything out in the open. Otherwise, what’s the point of this discussion? Let me be even more direct: Is the academy’s so-called recommendation process really fair? You know better than anyone that it’s not. I understand that absolute transparency can create problems, and that’s why Gu Yueshan has turned a blind eye to certain things over the years. As his legal spouse and his assistant, it’s my duty to ease his burden. If you think my actions infringe on your interests and must stop, then we can take this issue to Gu Yueshan and debate it there.”
The others exchanged uneasy glances. They had hoped to make Yi Wei compromise, but his stance was far more assertive than they had anticipated. It wasn’t clear whether Yi Wei was speaking for himself or whether this signaled that Gu Yueshan intended to clean house at the academy and foundation sooner than expected.
After a brief silence, Yi Wei stood up. “It seems like you have things to discuss amongst yourselves, and my presence is making it difficult for you to speak freely. I’ll leave now and get back to my classes.”
For many years, the Gu family academy had invested heavily in cultivating talent, both to build a strong network for the Gu Group and to enhance the family’s reputation and influence. Talented individuals would often be funneled into the Gu Group’s various companies, helping to sustain its growth and reach.
Naturally, some of these individuals were placed there by those who had ulterior motives, seeking to gain influence within the Gu Group. When these people rose to important positions, they naturally favored the interests of those who placed them.
However, these individuals were always careful not to overstep, knowing full well the power and influence of Gu Yueshan. Gu Yueshan had turned a blind eye to these matters for years, recognizing that this kind of behavior could never be fully eradicated. But that didn’t mean he would allow it to continue indefinitely. In fact, he had always planned to clean house at the academy and the foundation eventually. While his original plan had been to wait a few more years, Yi Wei’s willingness to step in had accelerated the timeline, which was fine with Gu Yueshan.
What worried these individuals wasn’t just Yi Wei’s personal connections but the fact that his involvement would likely prevent them from continuing to place their people in key positions. Yi Wei had been tactful enough not to call out their real motives directly.
Within a few days, the issue escalated and landed on Gu Yueshan’s desk. He convened all the relevant parties and held a decision-making meeting. Some opposed Yi Wei’s continued involvement in the academy’s affairs, while others supported him, even advocating for his promotion to a management role.
Those opposed were the ones worried about losing influence within the academy and foundation. Those in favor were people seeking to curry favor with Yi Wei and remove their rivals. Both sides fiercely debated, citing various examples to bolster their arguments.
In the end, Gu Yueshan decided to help Yi Wei establish a new foundation, which would allow Yi Wei to create his own recommendation system. The new foundation would fund its own activities, creating a competitive but healthy relationship with the existing structure.
With that, Yi Wei became the head of the Gu family academy’s new recommendation division and the president of the new foundation. Deng Song was appointed as vice president, and Yi Wei also brought in Gu Chang, who became another vice president. By doing so, Yi Wei gained the support of Gu Chang’s faction.
On the surface, this seemed like just the rise of a new faction within the Gu family academy, but in reality, it affected the interests of many within the Gu family. It was seen as a contest between the younger and older generations. However, no one dared underestimate Yi Wei’s group, knowing that he had Gu Yueshan’s backing. Without that support, the older generation wouldn’t have even allowed this competition to play out.
There were still many positions to fill, and while Yi Wei selected some people himself, he also accepted recommendations from Gu Chang and Deng Song. Following the principle of “trusting the people you employ,” Yi Wei accepted their recommendations without hesitation.
Before choosing Gu Chang as his deputy, Yi Wei had spent a great deal of time researching Gu Shangqin’s background and actions, particularly the events surrounding Gu Yueshan’s kidnapping. Based on his analysis, Yi Wei believed it was unlikely that Gu Shangqin had been the mastermind behind the kidnapping. This was evident from the way he had raised Gu Chang.
Gu Chang, honored by Yi Wei’s trust and recognition, was eager to prove himself. He hadn’t expected to be given the opportunity to become vice president of the foundation at such a young age, and he was full of energy and enthusiasm for the work ahead.
His grandfather, Gu Shangqin, and his father, Gu Yueming, were also proud of him and encouraged him to seize this opportunity. They believed that if he performed well, given what they knew about Gu Yueshan, Gu Chang would undoubtedly be entrusted with even greater responsibilities in the future.
Those who had backed Gu Chang, like Ye Feng, were also satisfied with their decision.
“Even if Gu Chang is no longer in the running to be heir, this is still his chance to step into the center of power within the Gu Group,” Ye Feng told her relatives. “We may have lost out on the inheritance, but by supporting Gu Chang, we’ve found a new path forward.”
“Indeed. If Gu Chang makes the most of this opportunity and proves himself, he’ll be closer to the center of power in the Gu Group than anyone else in his generation—except the heir, of course.”
“This way, we won’t need to reconsider our choices. We can continue supporting Gu Chang while also supporting Yi Wei. Our Ye family will likely end up with even stronger ties to the Gu family than the Xu family.”
“Exactly. Gu Heng had a falling out with Yi Wei after their engagement was broken off. Even if they reconcile, the trust will never be the same. There’s no way Yi Wei would trust Gu Heng the way he trusts Gu Chang,” Ye Feng said with a smile. “Unless Xu Hua is willing to give up on Gu Heng and stop opposing Yi Wei for the sake of the Xu family, but I doubt she’ll do that.”
While things were looking bright for Ye Feng and her camp, the Xu family was facing the opposite situation, enveloped in gloom.
Xu Hua, deeply troubled, furrowed her brow. She had an uneasy feeling that things were spiraling out of control, but she couldn’t bring herself to call it quits. Two voices clashed in her mind—one urging her to continue, the other telling her to stop. She didn’t know which one to follow.
Gu Heng was seething with anger, unable to bear the fact that Gu Chang was now being valued more highly within the Gu family and was closer to the Gu Group’s power center. And it was all thanks to Yi Wei’s favor.
“What is Uncle thinking?” Jiang Shuqin, Gu Heng’s mother, vented her frustration to Xu Hua. “No matter what, Gu Heng is his own nephew! Yet his uncle doesn’t show him any care at all. It’s just heartbreaking! I’m going to ask him directly—after all these years, does he feel no sense of guilt toward his brother or father?”
Though Jiang Shuqin had the urge to confront Gu Yueshan, she lacked the courage and could only complain to release her emotions.
In truth, Gu Yueshan could have extended more support to his only nephew, Gu Heng. But in the past, Gu Heng and those backing him had relied too heavily on his status as the sole nephew, acting too boldly for Gu Yueshan’s liking. What’s more, Gu Yueshan was well aware of their current schemes. The only reason he hadn’t already cut them off was because he was giving them a chance to change course. If they continued on their current path, however, Gu Yueshan wouldn’t hesitate to deal with them—harshly and without mercy.
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