Chapter 1433 You’re a Cross Academy Student?!
Long Tengfei didn't understand why his daughter would withhold such an important achievement from the public. If it were any other normal person, they would have already bragged about it long ago. And yet his daughter kept it a secret for so long.
Despite his inner thoughts, he didn't persuade her any further. He knew long ago that his youngest daughter was the most willful among his children.
Nobody could force her to do anything that she didn't want to do. She was like a bulldozer who would trample upon anyone who dared to stand in her way, even if they were her own parents.
Looking at her now, he knew that there was no changing her mind about whatever she had decided.
She had her plans. But since he already acknowledged her as his successor, then he could only try to minimize the damage and outrage that would certainly occur to the already hostile relationship between his eldest son and his other children.
"You can continue being Long Industries' brand ambassador, but I'll still arrange an official position with actual power in the company for you," he promised her. "I can do this much as the head of the company and as a father. You'll face more criticism compared to your two older brothers because you didn't start from the bottom like them."
She shrugged at his warning. "I don't mind criticisms. I eat them for breakfast."
"You!" He sighed again and shook his head. He didn't bother responding to her witty quip. Instead, he said, "Xiulan, I know that you have a grudge against your eldest brother, but he's still your blood-related sibling. Can you…can you just…leave him a little leeway without being too ruthless?"
"You still remember what he did to your eldest grandson, right? Even if you don't care about Jiang Ying Yue, you must still consider Little Jun in your heart. And don't forget about his now ex-wife, Mao Qiyue, that vicious woman! Not only did she slander Jiang Ying Yue but she almost harmed my godson! Even now, the Maos are still so vindictive despite already suffering retribution for their actions. They have no remorse at all! If not for my husband's tight security team, then the Maos would've already harmed your eldest grandson and his mother many times over!
"So, President Long, if you want me to stop being too ruthless to your eldest son, then you must also educate him first to conduct himself and the people closest to him properly. He's the one who didn't want to play fair first. I'm only retaliating. I'm not a saint or a martyr. I'm not going to smile and turn the other cheek when somebody is treating me and my loved ones poorly!
"And to be honest, I'm not even that ruthless to him yet. I'm still leaving it to the law to punish him according to the level of his misdeeds. If I were to be really ruthless to him, then he wouldn't even have the time and energy to scheme against anyone ever again because he'd be too busy just trying to survive. You understand what I mean, President Long?"
The conversation between the father and daughter didn't end well.
They might technically not have quarreled, but the tension between them was almost too much to bear for Cai Guang and Phantom Dragon Funds' CEO.
There was no satisfactory conclusion about Long Tengfei's plea for her eldest son to his youngest daughter in today's meeting.
Long Tengfei might have already chosen his youngest daughter as his successor, but he didn't feel at ease. Not at all.
He knew that his eldest son's misdeeds had piled up too high that it was already justifiable for him to negate Long Hui's qualifications as the successor of Long Industries. But Long Hui was still the son that he had painstakingly groomed as his successor for so many years.
These conflicting emotions had already caused him indecision so many times when it came to his children's battle for succession.
With a heavy heart, he bid goodbye to his youngest daughter and left with Cai Guang. Silence filled the vehicle as they made their way back to Long Industries.
"Will everything be fine in the end?" he asked no one in particular.
His long-time loyal assistant, Cai Guang, thought that his boss was speaking to him. He replied, "Young Miss Xiulan might be temperamental but she has already proven to be an excellent business leader. I believe that she'll do what's best for the company after she takes over and that includes how to deal with Eldest Young Master Hui and Second Young Master Jian. I'm sure that she'll still remember them as her biological brother no matter what."
Long Tengfei sighed, closed his eyes, and tried to calm his restless mind and heart. "I hope you're right. I really hope that you're right."
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After Long Tengfei left, Iris noticed that the eyes of Phantom Dragon Funds' CEO were shining while looking at her.
"Is it true that you're a Cross Academy student?" he asked, unable to contain his excitement.
She nodded, not bothering to conceal it. It was true, anyway. There was no need to hide it from him, especially since she already considered him as one of her people after becoming the new CEO of Phantom Dragon Funds.
"Awesome!" The usually cool and competent man now looked like a giddy teenager who had met his idol in person for the first time. "I always dreamed of being admitted to Cross Academy after watching an unauthorized documentary about it when I was a kid. Unfortunately, I don't quality."
"You graduated from an Ivy League business school just like my husband," she said. "Many people also dream of being admitted to your alma mater. There's no need to feel envious of me. You're already impressive in your own right."
"I know, boss. I'm not belittling my own achievements, I worked hard for every single one of them. But it's Cross Academy! The legendary Cross Academy!!! It's the highest level among the world-class schools in the world. The top among the top! Do you know how many people would kill just to set foot in there?!!! Cross Academy!"