A drama of a live-in son-in-law taking the fall for a rich wife?
That comment immediately caught the attention of netizens.
【Who’s his wife? Waiting on some tea.】
【Famous real estate company — keyword: famous!】
【LMX, that’s as far as I’ll go.】
【Why the abbreviations? Can’t you say the name outright?】
【She’s a big shot in the capital and real estate world — could crush us like ants. Abbreviations are for survival.】
【That just makes her more suspicious! Think about it — what gives a live-in husband the guts to commit such crimes unless someone had his back? Or maybe he was just a pawn with no choice. Why would he take such risks otherwise?】
【These days, isn’t it common for capitalists to find scapegoats? What’s the surprise?】
【What’s the big deal? LMX is Lou Mingxin. I said it. Let her come for me through the internet cables if she dares. Hmph.】
…
The Meng Zhiru incident had started in a niche forum, quietly spreading to social media among the urban white-collar circle. Eventually, some meddlesome soul posted it on Weibo — by then, night had already fallen.
After a few hours of build-up, the situation exploded near midnight.
Not long after, the name Lou Mingxin began quietly climbing the trending charts.
At the time, most office workers were sound asleep. The wealthy elite were either winding down with their wellness routines or indulging in nightlife. In any case, none of them had a clue what was happening online.
Result:
The boardroom was silent.
Lou Corporation’s PR team had zero response prepared.
No one worked to suppress the trending topic — Lou Mingxin was left fully exposed across the entire internet.
Meanwhile, the person at the center of it all was soaking in a hotel’s massage bathtub, sipping wine in leisure.
After leaving the police station, Lou Mingxin had quickly regained her composure.
To her, Meng Zhiru was now a useless pawn, no longer of any value.
His overseas assets had been frozen by the authorities. All he had left was an empty shell of a company — vacated within a day.
As for the upcoming trial, Lou Mingxin had no plans to intervene. Meng Zhiru was doomed anyway, and she had no reason to fear retaliation.
Now that things were already out in the open, she figured — might as well be ruthless.
As long as the news didn’t leak to the shareholders or board, the whole Meng Zhiru situation would leave her untouched.
“President Lou, are you done bathing?”
A man’s gentle voice floated from outside the bathroom.
Lou Mingxin took a lazy sip of red wine.
“Come in.”
…
The next morning, Lou Mingxin woke up naturally.
The silk blanket had slipped to her chest, revealing one smooth shoulder.
“You’re awake?” The man beside her propped his head on his hand, gazing at her with infatuated eyes.
Just as the heat between them began to rise, her phone’s ringtone shattered the mood.
It was her secretary.
“Hello?” Lou Mingxin sounded annoyed.
“President Lou, something’s happened!”
Fifteen minutes later, Lou Mingxin stormed out of the hotel.
She wore sunglasses and a scarf, her usual polished image in disarray — hair unkempt, collar wrinkled.
The driver was already waiting.
“To the company. Now.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
On the way, she pulled out her phone and checked Weibo.
The top trending search was her name. Scrolling down, she found #Lou Corporation also trending.
Her hands trembled. Her entire body shook.
The driver asked, worried,
“Miss, are you alright?”
A long pause — then a barely steady voice from the backseat: “I’m fine.”
But she had seen it all.
All the insults and accusations, the mockery and contempt — they were aimed squarely at her.
People were even saying Meng Zhiru was taking the fall for her?
Absurd!
But it wasn’t just one or two people saying it. As the voices grew louder, they started shaping public opinion — dragging more people in.
Before long, fiction could become fact.
No. She couldn’t let this spiral any further.
Lou Mingxin ended one call, then immediately dialed PR.
“What the h*ll have you people been doing?! This mess has been brewing all night and you’re only finding out now? What’s the point of even having you?!”
She rained down curses first, then barked orders: “Listen carefully, I’ll only say this once. Get that trending post taken down — no matter the cost. Suppress all the nonsense online immediately. Then, draft a public clarification to post on our official website when the time is right. If necessary, get Legal to issue a statement. And tell Risk Management to keep a close eye on the company’s stock price!”
“But—”
“No buts! Do as I say!”
The PR director could only grit his teeth and agree.
He wanted to say: the public sentiment was already set. Trying to suppress it might only make things worse.
But Lou Mingxin never gave him the chance to speak.
He could only hold it in and carry out her orders.
Let’s hope it works…
At 10 a.m., the car arrived at Lou Corporation headquarters.
By then, Lou Mingxin had tidied up and regained her usual poised, powerful appearance.
But that only lasted ten minutes.
The moment she stepped into the boardroom and faced the stern, silent board of directors, her composure crumbled.
“Uncles, elders, I—”
Clang!
Before she could finish, a teacup flew at her.
If she hadn’t dodged quickly, it would have drawn blood.
But shattered glass still scratched her foot, leaving two bloody lines.
“You still have the gall to speak?”
The board member who threw the cup stood up, face grim and eyes fierce. “As soon as the market opened today, the stock price hit rock bottom. Look at the mess you’ve made!”
“Director Wang! Meng Zhiru committed crimes — that wasn’t my fault! Don’t take it out on me!” Lou Mingxin bit out each word.
“Not your fault? Then tell us — is Meng Zhiru your husband or not? Is he not the Lou family’s son-in-law?”
“…He is.”
“Then as CEO of Lou Corporation, you had the duty to keep him in line — every word and deed, every move. Yes, he committed the crimes, not you. But in the public’s eyes, you’re a couple. Do you really think you can wash your hands of this?”
Lou Mingxin had no reply.
“Two months ago, your failed negotiation with Jufeng Group already caused losses. Now this? Are you trying to ruin Lou Corporation completely?”
“Director Wang, that’s unfair. I made it clear before that deal was a long shot. I never guaranteed success. So why am I the only one being blamed?!”
Director Wang shook his head, disappointment flashing in his eyes.
“Even now, you’re shirking responsibility. You hated it when we mentioned your predecessor. But I’ll say it plainly — not only do you not measure up, you fall short of Lou Mingyue by miles in leadership and accountability!”
“Director Wang!” Lou Mingxin snapped. “Mind your words! Lou Mingyue has been dead for twenty years! No matter how much you revere her, she’s not going to come back and fix things for the company!”
“I’ve worked hard for years. Even if I haven’t achieved greatness, I’ve toiled faithfully. Your words are ungrateful!”
Another director slammed the table.
“Shouldn’t you be cleaning up the mess you made? Or do you expect us to thank you?!”
Lou Mingxin looked around in disbelief.
“You all think this is my fault alone?!”
“Failing to control your husband and protect the company’s interests — that’s one fault!”
“Failing to detect and manage the public fallout — that’s two!”
“And instead of reflecting and correcting course, you argue and deflect blame — that’s three!”
“Lou Mingxin — what more do you have to say?!”
Director Wang spoke coldly: “I move to dismiss the CEO.”
Lou Mingxin felt as if struck by lightning. “No… You have no right! No right!”
“We do — your repeated failures have endangered the company. You’re now mired in scandal. As the board, we’re exercising our right to vote on your dismissal.”
“Wait!” Lou Mingxin forced herself to stay calm. But if one looked closely, they’d see her trembling all over.
“I’m a shareholder too. I disagree with this dismissal!”
Director Wang sneered: “Your shares don’t outweigh ours. And according to majority rule—your objection is overruled!”
“I have Lou Mingyue’s shares too! She was part of the Lou family — she’d never agree to losing the CEO position…”
