Chapter 628 - 628: Things Are Not as Imagined

Ma Hui had no idea that disaster was about to strike.

Just a moment ago, he and his two underlings had been questioned by the security guards at the Cao Tang Peninsula District. Since they hadn't done anything to cause actual harm, the guards couldn't do much to them. They had to let them go with a warning.

Ma Hui, however, felt the security guards had made him lose face. As he walked toward the Land Rover SUV parked by the road, he cursed through gritted teeth, "A bunch of bastards throwing their weight around because of who they work for. Sooner or later, I'll make you all pay!"

His two underlings followed behind, chiming in with agreement. They were quite competent in their roles as cronies.

Once in the car, Ma Hui immediately started driving back to his company and gave an order. "Call the building material suppliers in Rongcheng City. Warn them that under no circumstances are they to sell any decoration materials to Liu Xiaoya. Otherwise, they can forget about ever getting another contract from Ying Real Estate!"

If it were just a matter of Ma Hui's Fuqiang Decoration Company, the material suppliers in Rongcheng City probably wouldn't have paid him much mind. But he had cozied up to a manager at Ying Real Estate, allowing him to throw their weight around and use the company's name to pressure people.

The material suppliers in Rongcheng City might dare to ignore Ma Hui, but they would never dare to ignore Ying Real Estate! After all, many of them relied on Ying Real Estate for their business.

It was precisely because he had such a powerful backer that Ma Hui had the guts to boast that he could prevent Zhao Yuan from buying a single piece of construction material in all of Rongcheng City.

In fact, if Zhao Yuan had been an ordinary person, he really would have been rendered helpless by this tactic, with no choice but to compromise. And at that point, Ma Hui would have moved in for the kill, gouging him for every penny he was worth.

He had used this same method before to ruin and poach several of Liu Xiaoya's jobs, which was why she hadn't been able to land a single project since going independent.

This time, he planned to use the same tactic on Zhao Yuan. And he was certain it would work.

One of his underlings, however, was a little worried.

The man hesitated before speaking. "Boss, should we really be doing this? Liu Xiaoya's client this time... he's not like the ordinary folks from before."

Ma Hui snorted. "Anyone who can afford a house in the Cao Tang Peninsula District is obviously not an ordinary person. But so what? No matter how capable he is, can he be more capable than President Ying? With President Ying backing us, what's there to be afraid of? Even if that kid's a dragon, he'd better coil up and behave for me. Besides, I've already made it known that I'll never let Liu Xiaoya close a single deal. If I back down now, I'll be a laughingstock in the industry. How could I show my face in Rongcheng's decoration and construction circles after that?"

The boss's attitude was resolute. What could his two underlings say? They could only obediently pull out their phones and call the major material suppliers in Rongcheng City to relay Ma Hui's message.

Since Ma Hui was using a powerful name as his banner, the suppliers had no choice but to comply, even if they were unhappy about it.

Ma Hui sneered and muttered to himself, 'You dare go against me? You'll be crying soon enough! Just you wait. When you come crawling back to me, begging, I'm going to rip you off for everything you've got! You won't agree? Fine! Then your villa can just sit there and rot. Forget about ever finishing the renovations, and forget about ever moving in!'

Just as he was gloating, his phone suddenly rang. He glanced at the caller ID. It was his powerful backer, the relative from a branch of the Ying Family.

Ma Hui didn't dare to delay. He quickly answered the phone, his voice as sycophantic as could be. "President Ying, what can I do for you?"

He never imagined that the man on the other end would immediately unleash a torrent of abuse. "Do for me? Do for me my ass! I ought to kill you right now! Ma, I don't think I've ever treated you unfairly, have I? Is this how you repay me?"

Ma Hui was completely baffled. "President Ying, what do you mean? I don't understand."

The man on the other end snarled, "You don't understand? Keep pretending! Go on, you motherfucker, keep pretending!"

"Did I do something wrong? Did I make you angry?" Ma Hui asked cautiously.

"Me, angry at you? How could I dare? You're so high and mighty, I wouldn't dream of offending you." The man's tone was dripping with sarcasm.

Before Ma Hui could ask another question, the man continued, "Listen here, Ma. If you want to go looking for death, I won't stop you, but don't you dare drag me down with you! As of today, Ying Real Estate has no connection whatsoever with your Fuqiang Decoration Company. And you and I? We have nothing to do with each other! I'll have accounting settle whatever we owe you. As for the jobs you're currently working on, stop everything. I'll find someone else to finish them!"

Ma Hui panicked. The renovation jobs outsourced by Ying Real Estate were all huge contracts; they were the lifeblood of Fuqiang Decoration Company. If that connection was severed, even if the company didn't go under, it would be a devastating blow!

He had no idea how he had offended the man and scrambled to ask, "Wait, President Ying, what is all this—" He had barely started the sentence when he heard a dial tone. The man had hung up on him.

Ignoring the fact that the man was furious, Ma Hui tried to call back, only to find the call wouldn't connect.

'He blocked me!' Ma Hui's face turned ashen. After a moment of shock, he declared, "This won't do. I can't lose the Ying Real Estate contracts, no matter what! If President Ying won't take my call, I'll go to his office and demand an explanation in person!"

He immediately changed direction and sped toward the Ying Real Estate headquarters. But just then, his phone rang again.

This time, it was one of his employees.

Ma Hui was in no mood to answer, but the caller was persistent, dialing him again and again without pause.

With no other choice, Ma Hui answered the phone and roared, "What the hell do you want? Why do you keep calling?! Did the office catch fire or did your mother explode?"

The employee was stunned silent by the outburst before finally managing to say, "Boss, you need to get back here, quick! There are a bunch of people at the office demanding payment."

Ma Hui's brow furrowed. "Demanding payment? For what?"

Just then, a different voice came on the line.

"Boss Ma, this is Li Qiang from Lihong Cement. When are you getting back? I'm waiting for you to settle your account."

A sudden sense of unease crept into Ma Hui's heart. He demanded, "President Li, what's the meaning of this? Our agreement is to settle the accounts every six months, isn't it? I just paid you before the New Year. Why are you suddenly here demanding payment again?"

The man replied, "Boss Ma, I don't want to be doing this, but it's a demand from my company. I have to follow orders. Oh, and by the way, it's not just me here. President Wang from the lighting company is here, so is President Lin for the tiles, President Sun for the sand and bricks, and President Chen from kitchen and bath fixtures. We're all here at your office, waiting for you to come settle up. You'd better hurry back."