Charles Cheng looked at Allen Ju, still wearing a smile on his face.
Gloria Rong and the others all looked wary.
"Why should we?"
Allen Ju didn’t answer. Calvin Zheng turned to Charles Cheng and spoke in a low voice: "If I remember right, you’ve never had any real connection with us."
"Sure, we all grew up in the same compound, but back then you went up against us plenty of times. What, just a few years out of sight and now you’re that forgetful?"
Calvin Zheng has been doing business all these years. He’s given out plenty of favors and helped others make money, but he’s never been some saint who takes just anyone under his wing.
Besides, Charles Cheng’s character is questionable, and right now he’s got zero value to offer.
If he brought Kyle Liu along before, part of it was for Allen Ju’s sake, and a bit because the Liu Clan hadn’t collapsed yet—so there was still some leverage to borrow.
But honestly, Charles Cheng basically has no shot at a comeback now—not even as much as Mason Duan.
Even the Duan family, for all its troubles, still has Harold Duan as chief secretary to Victor Li in Jiang-Zhe. But Charles Cheng? No ability, no backing, and as a person, he’s a total wild card.
You never know, halfway through a deal he might just flip and sell you out.
If things really go south, odds are it’ll be another massive pitfall.
"Why should we?"
Charles Cheng heard that and smiled, squinting as he stared at Calvin Zheng, letting out a cold laugh: "Calvin, you still haven’t figured out the situation, huh?"
"I’m not talking to you right now. I’m asking Allen Ju, asking Third Young Master Ju. Why are you butting in out of nowhere?"
Charles Cheng stared coldly; Calvin Zheng raised an eyebrow.
Allen Ju was about to refuse, but Mia Liao suddenly sat down on the sofa right in front of him, poured herself a glass of water, took a sip, then looked at Allen and smiled: "Allen, Charles is still our friend. We all grew up together—even if there were real issues back then, that’s ancient history now."
"Now we’re all grown up. If he’s in trouble and we can help, of course we should. I know you’ve always had a soft heart, so you’re not going to turn him down, right?"
Mia Liao blinked and smiled, looking utterly bold and carefree. Her tone was pure big-sister energy, not hiding it at all.
Nearby, some people who knew Allen Ju but not Mia Liao were all watching this side. When they heard what Mia said, they couldn’t help showing surprise.
Plenty of people in this crowd had put in serious effort trying to get close to Allen Ju, but none had succeeded.
To outsiders, Third Young Master Ju always seemed hard to talk to—maybe even hard to approach at all.
Even if you sat face-to-face with him, he’d be polite, but that didn’t mean you could say whatever you wanted—or that you’d get any benefit from it.
Mia Liao spoke loudly, almost on purpose.
Whenever she spoke to Allen Ju, she could feel all kinds of envious looks from the people around them.
They envied that she could talk to him like this—and that he didn’t get mad. They also envied her power to speak in front of him.
Those looks from every direction made Mia Liao really enjoy herself. Before this, whenever she wanted Allen Ju’s help, she’d always pick a spot with lots of people.
That way, riding Third Young Master Ju’s reputation, Mia Liao always got plenty of vanity out of it.
"Why do you want to help him?"
As soon as Mia Liao asked, Allen Ju paused for a moment, sighed, and said, "There has to be a reason."
The conversation loosened up.
Hearing that, Calvin Zheng clenched his fist and angrily gulped down a glass of water.
Wanwan Sun shook her head, Leon Lu and Gloria Rong leaned back in their chairs in silence, Frank Bi wanted to say something but Calvin Zheng stopped him.
Grace Liu let out a dissatisfied hum, but didn’t dare make it too loud.
Selina Wu sat beside Evan Lin. She glanced at him and quietly grabbed his wrist, worried he might stand up and do something right now.
"Allen’s never turned down anything Mia Liao’s asked for."
Selina Wu quietly said to Evan Lin: "Don’t make things harder for Allen right now."
It was a reminder.
Selina Wu brought Evan Lin over purely to catch up with him.
Allen Ju had mentioned Evan Lin more than once before, and Selina’s family sometimes called home, saying they missed him too.
Back then, Evan Lin left a deep impression on them—and what’s rarest is, he even got Leonard Liu’s approval.
Now Leonard Liu is far off in Bainam, but back when he was in Beijing, his influence was huge.
After all, the Liu Clan being able to marry into the Ju family meant real power. Leonard Liu was once a high-ranking official—if not for bad luck, he’d be in a top position now.
Leonard Liu had mentioned more than once that getting closer to Evan Lin was a good idea, and they should keep in touch.
"The reason’s simple."
Mia Liao listened, then patted Charles Cheng’s shoulder: "We’re friends. If a friend’s in trouble and comes to me, of course I’ll help out."
"Besides, Allen, you don’t know—Charles has a lot of pride. Even when he was desperate, he refused to ask for help. If he’s finally speaking up this time, it must mean he’s really out of options."
"So, just help him out a bit. No need to give him too much."
At this point, Mia paused and pulled Kyle Liu over: "Just treat him like Kyle. If they make too much, it wouldn’t be fair for your side, right?"
"And it’s not like they’re getting something for nothing. Whatever you need them to do, just tell them."
Mia Liao was as bold and carefree as ever.
The second half of her speech was basically just polite filler.
And just like that, she was asking for Charles Cheng to get as much as Kyle Liu. All told, we’re probably talking tens of millions here.
As for her talk of "fairness," it really made Calvin Zheng’s anger surge inside.
"Guess we’ll be counting on Third Young Master Ju from now on."
Charles Cheng smiled, face steady, but looked over at Tyron Tai and said sincerely, "This time, I really have to thank you, Tyron."
"Next time you’re free, let me treat you to a meal. Whatever you want, just say the word. If you want to go out, just tell me—the tab’s on me."
Charles Cheng laughed heartily.
As soon as Charles said that, Gloria Rong and the others’ faces changed.
Meanwhile, Mia Liao was still laughing and chatting with Tyron, Tyler, and the others, as if she’d just solved a big problem.
Tyron Tai was about to make small talk, say something polite.
But as Charles Cheng shifted his gaze, everyone watching immediately turned their attention to Tyron.
Among them, plenty started calculating how to get close to Tyron and Mia Liao—hoping it would give them a shot at Allen Ju.
Some, not quite understanding, felt that since Third Young Master Ju seemed to listen to Mia and Tyron, maybe their backgrounds were even more impressive than his.
So, Frank Bi and the others on Allen Ju’s side suddenly lost a lot of status in everyone’s eyes.
Everyone had their own agenda—and Tyron Tai, for no reason, suddenly became the center of attention.
"Third Young Master Ju stands up for you, and you thank Tyron Tai? Did a donkey kick your brain?"
Right after Charles finished speaking, an angry voice rang out: "If your brain’s been kicked, I’ll kick it back for free."
"Seriously, you’re just throwing your dignity on the ground. Are you trying to live backwards or something?"
Everyone looked over to see a man with a dark expression heading this way.