"I did my best." Men Chao turned and walked out, his expression inscrutable.
He was the intelligence chief of the Xu Family, a man Mr. Xu trusted immensely, known for his calm demeanor. Rarely did his emotions show on his face.
As Mr. Xu had said, if he were a son of the Xu Family, Mr. Xu wouldn’t have to work so hard strategizing for the family.
"Men Chao," Xu Xuezi called him, walking over and placing her hands on his shoulders, "will you work for me in the future? Don’t worry, you’ll definitely benefit from this."
Men Chao remained motionless, utterly unmoved by Xu Xuezi’s approach: "Young Lady, just give the orders, and I will follow. There’s no need for this."
"Quite the upright one, aren’t you?" Xu Xuezi lifted his chin: "Look at me."
Men Chao looked at her.
"Are you moved by me?"
Men Chao shook his head: "Young Lady, please have some self-respect."
Saying this, he put down Xu Xuezi’s hands and strode out.
Xu Xuezi, furious at his reaction, her face flushed with anger. This Men Chao, unaffected by her beauty, truly infuriated her.
Next time he came, she wouldn’t believe she couldn’t win him over.
Xiaofeng examined the mobile phone Ye Cheng had brought her, a smile lingering on her lips: "You actually brought it, must have cost quite a bit."
"It’s alright," Ye Cheng said, wrapping his arms around her from behind, "This gadget is pretty good, you can carry it around, and I can call you anytime you can pick up."
"It’s quite bulky, and not light either. Who could bear carrying it all day?" Who said that when a woman needed to act delicately, she should?" she wondered, playing the part of a delicate woman.
"Indeed, it’s a bit large. I’ll look for something lighter later," Ye Cheng said, weighing it in his hand; it certainly wasn’t light.
"You come here every day, don’t your family say anything?" Xiaofeng flipped the huge mobile phone, its charging unit very large, probably the size of two modern cell phone batteries combined, and it probably only lasted a day on a charge.
"My own matters, what can they say?" Ye Cheng rested his chin on Xiaofeng’s shoulder, his hands caressing her stomach, "If you really can’t stand me running back and forth, come back to the Imperial Capital with me."
"I heard that in major wealthy families, they arrange betrothals from childhood. Tell me the truth, do you have a fiancée at home?" If Ye Cheng really was from the Imperial Capital’s Gu Family, that door was too big to enter.
Such a prestigious family background, according to the script, would definitely involve a fiancée or similar.
"Su Xiaofeng," Ye Cheng turned her to face him, "who did you register our marriage with?"
She’s now his wife when she was worried about other women.
"You could be called Ye Cheng, or Gu Yecheng, or maybe even other names, how would I know which name I registered our marriage under?"
Ye Cheng narrowed his eyes, gazing at her, her red lips, and the gloss that shone upon them.
He had to show her what his name really was through his actions.
"What’s my name?" during intimate moments, Ye Cheng whispered in Xiaofeng’s ear.
"You just need to remember, my name is Ye Cheng," he said.
"I understand, even if we divorce in the future, you, Ye Cheng, will still be my Su Xiaofeng’s ex-husband." The thought was somewhat thrilling.
"Right, that’s the idea."
With Ye Cheng around, the supermarket renovation was primarily left to him, Zhao Xi, having interacted with Ye Cheng, was extremely respectful.
From his experience, this Ye Cheng was definitely not an ordinary person, but since the other party did not mention it, he surely wouldn’t be foolish enough to ask.
The renovation went ahead in a haphazard manner, employee recruitment, goods inflow and outflow, shelving issues—Zhao Xi had experience with all of these.
In his words, it was just short of salespeople, offering more self-service, which made shopping more leisurely for everyone.
Except for the cash register, which he did not handle, he could manage everything else.
That meant Xiaofeng just needed to ensure proper training for the cashiers.
Ye Cheng got into the car, glancing at the building across: "Wife, it looks like you have a competitor."
Apparently, the competitor also planned to build a shopping center. The emergence of two shopping centers in one place would surely pressure his wife.
"Exactly," Xiaofeng didn’t mind: "But business is all about each doing their own thing, and it’s a matter of who can keep the customers."
She was not a local bigwig who could suppress others from opening businesses here; success depended on one’s own abilities.
"I’m looking forward to seeing my wife’s skills too," Ye Cheng said with a light smile.
"Let’s go eat on Qilas Road. I heard the food there is quite good." Xiaofeng was now familiar with the city.
"Okay." Ye Cheng turned to help Xiaofeng fasten her seatbelt. "I guess there’s only one pregnant woman in the world who wanders around all day with a belly, busy as a bee."
"I’m just moving my lips, not doing the physical work myself." By then, she was essentially a female CEO in modern times, competent in managing affairs. "Director Niu even said it’s healthier to move around more. Staying at home all the time might not be the best strategy."
"You always make sense," Ye Cheng said, smiling, his demeanor as pleasant as a spring breeze. "After these two months, you should really stay home. We don’t want the baby to suddenly come on the way."
"Haha, that’s a good reminder," Xiaofeng said, realizing she should be more cautious.
The restaurant was quite unique, somewhat like a hotpot place, and quite crowded at that time.
Xiaofeng got out of the car and Ye Cheng went to park nearby.
To save time, Xiaofeng decided to go in and find a seat first.
When they left the restaurant, it was already dark.
Next to Qilas Road was the renowned Xiaojiang River of Xiaojiang City, which traversed the entire city and connected to several counties downstream, essentially the mother river of Xiaojiang City.
"The nighttime scene is pretty good; let’s take a walk by the river." The banks of the Xiaojiang River were well greened, and being summer, there were quite a few people walking along the river.
Ye Cheng held Xiaofeng’s hand as they walked along the river. They sat down on a stone bench.
People passed by, and the sound of flowing water, chirping insects, and the distant noise of chatter made for a peaceful atmosphere.
Not far away, a couple began arguing for some reason, and their quarrel intensified as if about to lead to a physical fight.
The peace was disrupted, causing Ye Cheng to frown slightly.
Pulling up his wife’s hand, he said, "Let’s walk over there."
Xiaofeng had no interest in watching the spectacle.
Just as they got up, a woman emerged from nowhere, holding a brick, apparently seeking the aforementioned man to settle a score.
"You bastard, you dare to bully my sister, I’m going to settle the score with you," she shouted, lifting the brick to throw at him.
Perhaps she was too anxious, or maybe she stumbled, but she fell to the ground, and the brick flew directly towards Xiaofeng and Ye Cheng.
"Master, danger." Xiaoqi’s safety warning sounded.
Just as Xiaoqi’s voice fell, Ye Cheng reached out and caught the brick in his hand.
It was too dark to see how Ye Cheng managed to do that.
The quarreling couple fell silent. The woman who was ready to fight was stunned.
Ye Cheng gently tossed the brick into the Xiaojiang River, his voice cold as he looked at the woman still lying on the ground, "You should be grateful that you didn’t hurt my wife, otherwise it wouldn’t be the brick going into the river; it would be you."
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry," the woman on the ground quickly stood up. "I didn’t mean it, I just wanted to teach that man a lesson for my sister."
She was too nervous and hurried, almost harming someone by mistake.
Ye Cheng did not look at her again and left with Xiaofeng.
Whether her actions were intentional or someone else had intended it, he would find out.
"It’s okay, you look frightened, but am I not fine?" Xiaofeng comforted him, looking at his stern face all the while.
"Do you realize how dangerous that was just now? If that brick had hit, do you know what could have happened?" Ye Cheng said sternly.
"I’m not foolish; I was going to dodge, but you reacted faster and grabbed it, so I didn’t need to run," she said.
Something occurred to Xiaofeng, looking at him, "You don’t think she did it on purpose, do you? Logically, there’s no chance. I’m just a decent businesswoman. I haven’t offended anyone; no one should be targeting me."
"You’re overthinking it," Xiaofeng felt it unlikely. "It was just a coincidence."
"From now on, try to go out with your brother as much as possible. No matter what, go out less alone and always have someone by your side." That moment had really alarmed him.
"I am conscious of that. You see, every time I go out, I’m with my brother. By the way, did you bring my dad’s medicine? He said it works quite well, so I want him to keep taking it."
"I’ll make it fresh for dad, the recipe isn’t complex," Ye Cheng knew the formula, which were merely herbs for strengthening the body and invigorating the blood: "Dad’s condition isn’t very optimistic."
"That may not be the case; maybe dad’s body will respond well to it," she suggested.
Ye Cheng recalled the last accident at the mine when his father was injured like that, but they eventually turned out to be superficial wounds. Perhaps there really was a chance for recovery.