Rebirth and Conquest

After the start of the new school year, Wen Mu stopped coming to school altogether.

The internal power struggle within the Wen Group has intensified, with Wen Qian's 35% stake becoming the biggest target. A shareholder named Wen Hongxuan has even proposed a new election for the chairman of the board.

Speaking of which, with Wen Qian's passing, there is no one left in the Wen's Jewelry Store who can be considered a true member of the Wen family. This Wen Hongxuan was originally a distant relative of the Wen family, but because the Wen family is small, they would acknowledge anyone with even the slightest connection as a relative. So this Wen Hongxuan has always considered himself a member of the Wen family. According to seniority, he should be considered Wen Qian's cousin.

Wen Hongxuan holds the same 20% stake as Zhou Shaocheng. When Wen Qian was alive, he had no chance of competing with Zhou Shaocheng. But now that Wen Qian is gone and left behind such a will, if Wen Qian's shares do not end up in Zhou Shaocheng's hands, then it is not impossible for him to control the Wen family from now on.

At this moment, a board meeting is being held at the headquarters of Wens Group.

"Wen's Jewelry's philosophy is not merely about decoration, but rather an expression of art. It extracts elements of society, culture, and fashion, and then uses these elements as appropriate means or forms to express these ideas."

Standing in this huge conference room, Wen Mu was speaking eloquently. Today was an important day for him to enter the Wen Group. In order to successfully acquire Wen Qian's shares, Zhou Shaocheng wanted him to enter the Wen Group as soon as possible. In any case, only by participating in the group's affairs could he more effectively fight for those shares and prove that he was capable of managing those shares well.

Of course, it wasn't so easy for Wen Mu to get in. Putting aside his ability, Wen Hongxuan's opposition alone was a huge obstacle. Wen Hongxuan, who was vying with Zhou Shaocheng for the position of chairman of the board, would never easily let Wen Mu into the Wen Group.

The topic of discussion at this shareholders' meeting was whether Wen Mu could join the company's management team.

Just as Wen Mu was speaking, Wen Hongxuan, who was sitting in front of him, suddenly interrupted him: "What you're saying is all theoretical. To actually run a business, especially a century-old jewelry store like ours, is simply a joke if you think you can manage it well with just this little bit of theoretical knowledge." Wen Hongxuan was probably in his fifties and looked very shrewd and experienced. He didn't hold back at all when he said this.

"Uncle Wen, please don't be in a hurry." Wen Mu wasn't angry and remained gentle. "I was just sharing some of my understanding. Of course, compared to you, it's nothing. However, you are an important director of the Wen Group and my elder. I believe you will give this junior some time to express my thoughts, or at least let me finish what I have to say, right?"

Wen Hongxuan gave an almost inaudible snort, his face showing a hint of contempt. He actually looked down on Wen Mu, not only because of Wen Mu's abilities, but more importantly because Wen Mu was not Wen Qian's child. In his eyes, Wen Mu was simply the illegitimate son of a prostitute and had no right to inherit the Wen family business. Moreover, Wen Mu was currently an obstacle preventing him from taking control of the Wen Corporation.

Seeing that Wen Hongxuan remained silent, Wen Mu continued, "What Uncle Wen said earlier makes a lot of sense. Running a business well certainly requires an excellent leader, but I think that a charismatic and prestigious leader is not enough. It also requires collective wisdom and the support of the team. I think Uncle Wen certainly doesn't approve of autocratic rule either."

At this moment, no one noticed that Wen Mu was wearing a small earphone, from which sound was continuously emanating.

In a room not far from the Wens Group, a huge screen hung on one wall, displaying the proceedings of the Wens board meeting. Chen Yan stood before the screen, staring at the images. Wearing a small earpiece, he calmly spoke: "Wens' development must focus on the future, not be complacent. Only by keeping pace with the times can this century-old company avoid being eliminated by the tides of history. Relying solely on experience and seniority, clinging to old age, and judging success by lineage—that would likely be the biggest obstacle to Wens' development."

Chen Yan's words were transmitted to Wen Mu's ears through this ingenious communicator, and then Wen Mu relayed them to the nitpicking board members.

"Uncle Wen, I know your opposition to my joining stems from your concern about my abilities, which I completely understand. However, depriving me of the opportunity to join the Wen Group because of this would be too timid. Besides, my mother's will clearly states that she will only leave these shares to me if I am capable of managing them well. I think the reason she made such a will is because she had high hopes for me and wanted me to do better. If she were still alive, she would definitely give me more opportunities to develop my abilities, rather than completely depriving me of the opportunity to grow. If you insist on not letting me join, I'm afraid she wouldn't be at ease either."

Wen Mu's words were neither humble nor arrogant, but firm in their gentleness, and upon closer listening, they carried an undeniable air of conviction.

Even after the meeting ended and Wen Mu left, some of the directors were still somewhat taken aback. Who would have thought that this usually gentle and harmless young master of the Wen family, who was almost invisible, would be so cunning and resourceful? Indeed, throughout the meeting, Wen Mu's words were methodical and progressive, as if he had dug a pit in advance, leading them step by step into his verbal trap. Even when they made some rather demanding requests, he resolved them one by one, and every word he uttered was seamless, just like someone who had been in the business world for many years.

After leaving the Wen family, Wen Mu went straight to Chen Yan. As soon as he saw Chen Yan, he threw himself on her. He didn't say anything, but just hugged Chen Yan's shoulders tightly.

"What's wrong? Wasn't it going well?" Chen Yan asked gently as Wen Mu hugged him and stroked his hair.

Wen Mu buried his head in Chen Yan's shoulder, nuzzling her shoulder and nodding. Only now did Wen Mu realize how nervous he had been. He had completely forgotten what he had said in the meeting; the only thing he remembered was Chen Yan's voice. The feeling of being watched by everyone in the meeting made him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles, extremely uncomfortable and tense. If it weren't for Chen Yan supporting him, he wasn't sure if he would have escaped from there.

"I succeeded, I really succeeded," Wen Mu said in a muffled voice, his tone trembling slightly. "The board of directors has approved my proposal to join the Wen Group."

"Yes, this was expected. I've always believed in you."

Wen Mu didn't say anything more. After a while, he got up from Chen Yan, a little embarrassed on his face: "I... thank you."

"Are you still going to tell me this?" Chen Yan smiled. "If you say something like that again, don't bother me again."

"No, no." Wen Mu quickly shook his head. "I just think you're amazing. If it weren't for you today, I don't know how I would have gotten through this."

“However, they only gave me one year.” Wen Mu said, her face darkening. “If I can’t accomplish anything in this year and don’t achieve anything, they will consider taking back my shares. If I can’t get those shares, I’m afraid I won’t get my father’s share either. Then our future at Wen’s will be like this.”

"Don't worry," Chen Yan interrupted Wen Mu, reassuringly saying, "I'm here for you."

"Hmm." Wen Mu relaxed a little.

“Actually, I don’t want those shares.” Wen Mu thought for a moment and then said, “But I must get the position of director of Wen’s Group. I’m afraid that if I don’t even have that, I’m not good enough for you.” Wen Mu lowered his head, his tone revealing a hint of inferiority.

"This was originally yours." Chen Yan lifted Wen Mu's face, looked into his eyes, and said in a very serious tone, "No one can take away your right to it. Also, you are not allowed to say whether you are worthy or not anymore, understand?"

"I remember, I remember." Wen Mu's face flushed as Chen Yan pinched her chin, and she nodded obediently.

"Alright, let's go back. You've just joined the company, so there's definitely a lot you need to learn," Chen Yan patted Wen Mu on the shoulder, offering a reminder.

After separating from Wen Mu, Chen Yan went to see another person, who was Wen Mu's father, Zhou Shaocheng.

Zhou Shaocheng was actually a very refined person. He wasn't particularly enthusiastic about business matters, nor was he as shrewd and calculating as the average businessman. Chen Yan only found this out after her investigation. When Wen Qian, the eldest daughter of the Wen family, married him, it could be said that she was marrying down. Zhou Shaocheng was an connoisseur who was very knowledgeable about calligraphy, painting, and antiques. What Wen Qian admired about him was his talent.

Over the years, the Wen family business had enjoyed stable growth without any major incidents, so Zhou Shaocheng didn't need to expend much effort managing it. Naturally, his abilities weren't readily apparent. However, the recent internal strife within the Wen family immediately exposed Zhou Shaocheng's weaknesses. He's truly unsuitable to be a businessman; he can't handle the cutthroat competition and power struggles of the market. If it were any other shrewd and capable person in this conflict with Wen Hongxuan, they would have already crushed Wen Hongxuan. How could he be in such a sorry state, struggling even to get his son into the company? Nevertheless, having held that position for so many years, he still possesses some ability to manage the company, provided no one interferes.

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