401 Not an Enemy (2/2)

And now Iris had acquired 5% shares of Long Industries, surpassing what he owned. Before he even realized it, his youngest sister who he didn't think much of years ago had now become his biggest rival.

If he defended her now and sang her praises in front of the elders and relatives, he was certain that he would lose more supporters. Long Meng was the second most powerful elder in the clan, and he couldn't afford to lose her support.

So he remained silent, not daring to defend Iris from the barely veiled insults in fear that he might really lose his position as successor to her. He surely would never reveal that she was a Cross Academy student and that her fiancé was the most powerful man in the country's business world of his generation.

Jin Liwei certainly had a higher status than Lu Zihao. Almost everyone knew that he was the current head of Jin Corporation.

In contrast, nobody really knew what Sir Lu Jianhong's flesh and blood grandson did for work. All they knew about him were the rumours that he was a happy-go-lucky fellow who liked dangerous and thrilling stunts. In fact, they already wrote him off as a good for nothing especially after the incident when he almost died in a mountain skiing accident. People assumed that he just lived off of the wealth of the Lu family built by his grandfather.

If Long Meng and the others learned that Iris' real fiancé was Jin Liwei, they would certainly support Iris because she would immediately become the wife of Jin Corporation's current head once they were married. Her children would become the direct successors of the number one company in the country. This kind of connection to Jin Corporation would just be too irresistible for the elders and relatives.

Long Hui's eyes darkened. The threat of Iris' growing influence within the Long clan weighed heavily on him. His emotions were warping, starting to treat Iris as an enemy.

Then an image of Iris doting on his son Little Jun flashed in his mind. She was always loving of Little Jun and a good friend to Jiang Ying Yue.

Guilt immediately flooded him.

We're siblings. She's not an enemy, he told himself.

She's not an enemy…yet, a small part of him whispered.

The conversation continued while Long Hui was preoccupied with his own thoughts. The elders asked Long Tengfei many questions about Iris' purchase of the shares. Long Tengfei answered as best as he could.

Fortunately, nobody really insulted Iris other than Long Meng. The most powerful elder, Long Jufang, had already changed his tune and was now obviously championing Iris.

As a result, nobody dared insult Iris in front of him, lest they anger Long Jufang. There weren't many people in the clan who had the courage to go against him, except for the next powerful elder, Long Meng, who clearly supported Long Hui.

Iris' purchase of the 5% shares made Long Jufang want to support her even more. Despite this, he also didn't believe that Iris bought the shares using her own money. He had the same thought as Long Meng that Sir Lu Jianhong must've given Iris financial assistance. Nevertheless, Long Jufang didn't think this as a negative. In fact, he was delighted because it meant that Sir Lu Jiahong cared enough for her that he was willing to spend a fortune to buy shares just for her.

Long Jufang had no love for Iris. He certainly didn't like her. Then why was he suddenly so adamant in supporting her? He had his own ulterior motives for doing so.

After the meeting, Long Jufang and his allies were in great spirits. In contrast, Long Meng and her allies were clearly displeased. Long Hui also wasn't in the best of moods. As for the other relatives who were supporting other people besides Iris and Long Hui, they also began really feeling the pressure of Iris' recent rise to prominence in the clan.

When the elders, the relatives and Long Hui were gone, Long Tengfei and Yang Jiahui were the only ones left in the master study. They sighed in relief after the meeting was over.

”Tengfei, who do you want to succeed you? Your eldest son or your youngest daughter?” Yang Jiahui suddenly asked.

Long Tengfei was caught off-guard by his wife's question. However, it made him think deeply.

Who did he personally want to succeed him? Before, he would've immediately replied that he wanted his eldest son to succeed him. After all, he spent so much time and effort training Long Hui to become the next head.

But now?

He couldn't give an answer right away.