84: Chapter 84 Back to SM Entertainment

Winter had finally passed, and even the air began to carry a hint of warmth.

Liu Zijun was nestled on the sofa of his duplex apartment, boredly watching the Korean variety show "Running Man," which was one of the few Korean shows he was relatively familiar with.

The wound on his right chest still throbbed with a faint pain, but he didn't care much about it.

Over the past few days, he had been kept under strict supervision by those two girls.

Choi Sulli would show up punctually every day without fail to supervise his dressing changes and make sure he drank his tonic soup.

Even when she stayed over, she would nag him to be careful of his wound whenever he so much as turned over.

Im Yoona, meanwhile, would take advantage of gaps in her schedule to bring over light, nutritious meals and conduct random checks to see if he was resting properly.

Having been idle for several days, his wound was gradually healing. He would wander around every day, but he was still somewhat bored.

That day, Liu Zijun changed into casual clothes, his black top completely concealing the wound, and stepped out with his phone in hand.

He did look quite handsome all dressed up.

His destination today was, naturally, SM Entertainment.

The taxi pulled up in front of the SM Entertainment building. As Liu Zijun walked toward the entrance, he was stopped by the security guards at the door.

The two young security guards looked at him warily. One of them reached out to block him and said, "Hello, do you have an appointment? Non-staff members are prohibited from entering."

Liu Zijun raised an eyebrow, recognizing the other guard as a senior from the former security department. He smiled and said, "Brother Kyung-seok! Don't you recognize me?"

Although they both belonged to the security department, their responsibilities were different.

Liu Zijun and his group were bodyguards, while Seo Kyung-seok and his colleagues were security guards.

Seo Kyung-seok had recognized him long ago, and a troubled look appeared on his face. "Ji-Jun, I'm really sorry. When you left last time, the company gave instructions that you weren't allowed to enter here again. Please don't make things difficult for us."

Liu Zijun nodded, not wanting to put them in a difficult position.

Just then, a familiar female voice came from behind them, tinged with a bit of playfulness.

"What's going on? Our SM security is even blocking guests now?"

Turning around, he saw Jiang Hongshao wearing a sharply tailored white suit, her burgundy curly hair pulled back into a bun. She was holding da lei and looking at Liu Zijun teasingly.

Two assistants followed behind her, her aura in full force.

Seeing this, Seo Kyung-seok and the other guard quickly bowed and greeted her, "Hello, President Jiang!"

Jiang Hongshao waved them off, signaling them to step back with her eyes, and then walked over to Liu Zijun's side.

After intentionally leaning in close, she lowered her voice and teased, "BOSS, you've only been behaving for a few days, and you already can't resist coming to the company to find your little lover?"

Liu Zijun glanced at her. "Cut the nonsense."

Jiang Hongshao raised an eyebrow and led him straight toward the private elevator.

"It just so happens that President Lee Soo-man is upstairs holding a high-level meeting. I was planning to see him anyway. Come with me, it'll save me another trip."

The elevator went straight to the top floor. Stepping out, they entered a spacious corridor with nameplates of high-level executives hanging on the office doors on both sides.

Familiar with the way, Jiang Hongshao led him to the conference room door. The secretary at the door was about to stop them, but upon seeing Jiang Hongshao's gaze, she swallowed her words.

With a "bang," Jiang Hongshao pushed open the conference room door. The people inside mid-meeting fell silent instantly, with a dozen gazes shifting in unison toward the doorway.

Lee Soo-man, sitting at the head of the table, frowned the moment he saw Liu Zijun behind Jiang Hongshao, his eyes filled with confusion. "President Jiang?"

Jiang Hongshao pulled Liu Zijun to the conference table and looked down at everyone, her tone calm yet carrying an unquestionable authority.

"Let me formally introduce everyone. This is Liu Zijun. I imagine quite a few of you here know him."

"I can tell you all now that he is also the investor behind me, the actual controller of JS Investment."

As soon as these words were spoken, the conference room erupted into an uproar.

The executives looked at each other, their eyes filled with shock.

No one had expected that the owner behind JS Investment, which had injected capital into SM Entertainment and suddenly become the company's second-largest shareholder, would be him.

Lee Soo-man's face darkened instantly, his fingers lightly tapping the tabletop.

"President Jiang, and this Mr. Liu Zijun—or should I be calling you Chairman Liu now?"

"You certainly have impressive methods. Not only have you become the second-largest shareholder of our SM Entertainment, but you've also completely taken control of CCM Entertainment!"

"I'd really like to know, what exactly is your objective?"

Liu Zijun pulled over a chair and sat down, looking directly at Lee Soo-man, his tone calm yet filled with an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"President Lee, don't be nervous. I'm not here today to interfere with the company's operations."

He paused and continued, "I know the rules of SM Entertainment over the years, and I understand the survival laws of the entertainment industry."

"I only have two requirements. First, all schedules and resource allocations for f(x) must be fair and just. No one is allowed to suppress them for any reason, nor are they to be forced into activities they are unwilling to participate in."

"Second, regarding those dirty dealings within the company, I won't say more. I don't want to see that kind of situation happening in SM Entertainment again. If anyone dares to cross this line, well..."

Lee Soo-man's gaze became sharp.

Liu Zijun looked at him and sneered, then said, "President Lee, the evidence of the company pushing its female artists to chaebols for resources, and the fact that there were shadows of high-level approval behind Choi Jae-ho's approach to Sulli last year..."

"If these things were to be exposed, I don't need to tell you what the impact on SM Entertainment would be, do I?"

Lee Soo-man's expression grew increasingly grim.

"These shares in SM Entertainment are optional to me, but I don't want to see those kinds of dirty things happening in the company anymore."

Jiang Hongshao smiled charmingly and said, "President Lee, JS Investment now holds 18% of SM Entertainment's shares. While it's not a controlling interest, it's enough to influence the company's decisions."

"We're not here to cause trouble. My BOSS is just here to look after his sweetheart."

Liu Zijun stood up, ignoring the attention of everyone present.

His gaze swept over the executives present. "That's all I have to say. From now on, regarding Girls' Generation and f(x), I will return to being a security personnel and follow them personally."

"As for other matters and other artists, as long as they aren't being mistreated, I won't interfere much."

Having said that, he no longer looked at the reactions of the crowd and turned to walk toward the conference room door.

"The things behind SM Entertainment are very complicated. There are some people we cannot afford to offend!"

Suddenly someone spoke up.

Liu Zijun didn't look back and kept walking!

The representative of SD Group suddenly stood up. SD Group was now the third-largest shareholder of SM Entertainment.

He said, "SD Group will handle this issue!"

Jiang Hongshao nodded to Lee Soo-man and quickly followed after him.

Leaving behind a group of SM Entertainment executives looking at each other in bewilderment.

Walking out of the conference room, Jiang Hongshao couldn't help but tease, "BOSS, my office is over there. Want to come over and have some fun? You must have been cooped up lately, right?"

Liu Zijun didn't respond, only asking, "Where is f(x) now?"

One of Jiang Hongshao's assistants quickly pretended not to hear her boss trying to seduce the big boss.

She hurriedly said, "They're in their practice room filming a teaser for a variety show. They're going to New Zealand to record 'Amazing f(x),' departing on April 8th."