Chapter 770 Disaster
The Sima family members present raised their wine glasses and toasted Sima Yun.
Then, hearty laughter erupted.
"Let's all raise our glasses together to celebrate this wonderful night! Celebrate this wonderful moment!"
"We should thank our Patriarch! Long live the Patriarch!"
Each member of the Sima family, in order to get a larger share of the assets under their names, lavished praise on Sima Hongtu. Especially Sima Yun's father, who was a master of flattery. He even knelt down before Sima Hongtu with a "thump" and kowtowed three times.
His pretentious posture invited disdain, yet also earned a round of applause.
Disdain, because Sima Yun was truly shameless.
Applause, because they admired Sima Yun's father's ability to be so shamelessly brazen, something they themselves couldn't achieve.
Whoosh—
Just as the glasses clinked, the door was suddenly pushed open, and a gust of cold wind blew in.
"Bad news! Terrible news!"
A servant of the Sima family, pale-faced, stumbled in. Upon reaching Sima Hongtu, he knelt down with a "thump."
"What's with all this rushing and disorder?"
Sima Hongtu's expression turned displeased. With so many people watching, a servant acting so out of line was embarrassing him.
"Patriarch, something truly major has happened!"
"Oh? What is it?"
Sima Hongtu was unconcerned.
Now that the Li family and the Fang family were allied with the Sima family, their future was boundlessly bright!
What major issue could there be?
"The 'Hongtu' cruise ship was inspected by customs as soon as it entered the harbor! Ten kilograms of drugs were found onboard!"
Sima Hongtu shot up, his face instantly darkening.
"What?"
The surrounding area fell silent, and everyone exchanged uneasy glances.
Previously, the Sima family's shipping business had been investigated, but it was only for smuggled goods. At worst, they would be fined, and later, with their connections, the matter was settled. But drugs were different. If relevant personnel were found guilty, they would face imprisonment!
"How can there be drugs inside? Didn't I explicitly forbid the transportation of such contraband?" Sima Hongtu roared in anger.
If this matter were not handled properly, the consequences would be severe.
"I don't know..." the Sima family servant stammered, avoiding eye contact.
"Whoever did this, step forward immediately, or don't blame me for being harsh!" Sima Hongtu's gaze swept across the crowd, his tone chilling.
Everyone Sima Hongtu's gaze fell upon felt their scalps tingle.
Not a single person from the Sima family dared to speak.
Sima Yun's father, eager to impress Sima Hongtu, grabbed the servant and slapped him across the face. "I ask you, who exactly put the drugs inside!"
"It was... Young Master Yun."
The Sima family servant, frightened by the blow, stammered.
"Ah?" Sima Yun's father was completely stunned.
He had intended to show his initiative, but he never expected the culprit to be his own son...
"You bastard, don't slander my son! Believe it or not, I'll beat you to death!" Sima Yun's father roared.
"It's absolutely true, the drugs were arranged by Young Master Yun."
Upon hearing this, Sima Yun's father turned ashen and looked towards Sima Hongtu.
"Look at what your son has done!" Sima Hongtu cursed.
Sima Yun's father dared not utter a sound. "This... there might be some misunderstanding."
"Where is Sima Yun? Bring him out here at once!" Sima Hongtu commanded coldly.
Someone said, "Sima Yun did not attend the banquet. We don't know where he is."
"Call him!" Sima Hongtu immediately ordered.
The Sima family members quickly tried to call Sima Yun, but his phone went unanswered.
"Patriarch, the call won't connect..."
Sima Hongtu became anxious and kicked Sima Yun's father in the stomach. "Where is your son? I'll give you three minutes to contact him, or I'll expel you from the family!"
"I'll contact him now, I'll contact him now!"
Sima Yun's father, clutching his stomach in pain, squeezed out the words from between his teeth.
He quickly took out his phone to contact Sima Yun, but the call still wouldn't connect. He then rushed to find someone to look for him, but he still hadn't been found.
Many people mockingly watched Sima Yun's father, showing no pity.
Weren't you being shamelessly flattering just now? And now you're finished?
This is the cold reality of human relationships in wealthy families.
"Patriarch, we haven't found him, we don't know where he is."
Sima Yun's father looked at Sima Hongtu and said tremblingly.
"Useless!"
Sima Hongtu kicked Sima Yun's father to the ground, and the latter cried out in agony.
But it wasn't over yet. Sima Hongtu lunged forward and stomped on Sima Yun's father's face, kick after kick.
"It is the father's fault if the son is not taught properly, I'll kick you to death, you bastard!"
The living room was immediately filled with wails. In the blink of an eye, Sima Yun's father was bruised and swollen.
Because Sima Yun's father had disregarded his dignity to curry favor earlier, he was now the object of jealousy. No one stepped forward to speak on his behalf, and who would dare? This matter had crossed a line.
"I was wrong, I was wrong!"
Sima Yun's father knelt on the ground begging for mercy. "Patriarch, the priority now is how to resolve this matter."
Sima Hongtu, panting, withdrew his foot. If he hadn't been tired, he would have beaten Sima Yun's father to death.
He took a deep breath and said, "Quickly contact the head of the Anti-Drug Association! This会长 is an old classmate of mine!"
"Patriarch, we've already tried to contact him, but they won't even answer the phone."
The Sima family servant said with a distressed expression.
Sima Hongtu's heart sank.
A bad premonition welled up in his chest.
The head of the Anti-Drug Association was Sima Hongtu's university classmate, even his roommate back then. Their relationship had been very close, but now, not even a phone call would be answered. This indicated that the tide had turned.
Just then, another servant rushed in as if his pants were on fire. "Patriarch, terrible news!"
"What is it?"
Sima Hongtu frowned and asked.
"Ten ships of oil we imported from the Middle East are suspected of tax evasion and have now been seized by the customs and tax departments!" the servant said urgently.
"Who is in charge of those ten oil tankers?" Sima Hongtu's gaze, sharp as lightning, swept across the scurrying figures in the hall.
"It was me..."
A balding, stout man stepped forward, trembling, his lips pale.
"Sima Hang, did those ten oil tankers evade taxes?"
"Yes..."
"Tell me why?"
"Everyone does it this way. Otherwise, the profit is too little!"
"Damn you!"
Sima Hongtu kicked Sima Hang to the ground.
This guy was really too much of a liability!
"Call the tax department!"
Sima Hongtu looked at the servant and said, "I want to speak directly with their boss!"
"We tried calling them, but they didn't answer either."
"What?" Sima Hongtu cried out in disbelief.
"Furthermore, they returned all the antique calligraphy and paintings, as well as the cash, that we had sent them previously!"
Upon hearing this, Sima Hongtu's face darkened to the point where it seemed water could drip from it.
At first, he thought it was nothing, just minor issues. But he never expected that even the things they had sent would be returned. This meant something big was happening, indicating that a powerful force was preparing to move against the Sima family.