At this moment, Ye Cheng's phone began to vibrate. When the call connected, he heard Chen Chen's panicked voice.
"Young Master Chen, someone tampered with our plan regarding Song Ning. I'm sorry, this is all my fault. I..."
Ye Cheng interjected, "Forget it. This is probably Cheng Che's work. It's not your fault."
Chen Chen remained silent, too afraid to speak.
Ye Cheng sensed something was amiss so he asked, "What is it? Tell me."
"Young Master Cheng, I found out that the Ning Group's clothing orders in Europe had fallen drastically. Apparently, the reason given was their clothes are too old-fashioned and that they show no signs of keeping with the time. Apart from that, many of their recent designs resembled those from international brands. For that reason, those designs have pulled off the shelves since they could be accused of plagiarism."
Upon hearing this, realization dawned on Ye Cheng. "So that's why Ning Zhe is so anxious to recognize Song Ning as his daughter. His target is Zhuang Ji…"
"That's what I think as well. Otherwise, why would he suddenly take an interest in the daughter he had ignored for so many years? I also found Ning Zhe had met Mu Chen in private a few times now…"
Ye Cheng could not help but feel alarmed when he heard these words. "They plan to cooperate?"
"It doesn't seem like it. If they're going to cooperate, Ning Zhe wouldn't have resorted to such a method to acknowledge his daughter," Chen Chen said albeit with slight uncertainty.
"You have a point." Ye Cheng nodded. "Chen Chen, investigate everything about divorce in the Ning family ten years ago. Investigate the Fu family as well. I want to know apart from the trademark, what other treasure is Zhuang Ji hiding…"
"Understood!"
"We need to evaluate everything and see which side will bring us the most benefit," Ye Cheng muttered.
"Yes, Young Master Cheng," Chen Chen replied.
After Ye Cheng disconnected the call, he drove away from the Ye family house. He decided to go to a bar so he could have a drink and relax. He did not want to think about his mother and his sister anymore. It was better to leave them to his father.
In the end, Ye Cheng decided to go to Cloud Bar. The bar was popular among second-generation rich kids.
Ye Cheng had just parked his car and alighted the car when he heard a commotion from the alley next to him. His heart raced in his chest as he slowly walked toward the alley. As he drew closer, the conversation grew clearer and clearer.
"So what if you're a rich kid? Aren't you just an illegitimate child? You're nothing but a bast*rd!"
"Aren't you embarrassed to use the surname Ning?"
"I heard you caused a pregnant woman to miscarry when you were six or seven years old. How vicious! Hey, get up and fight me!"
"Big brother, look! This coward is crying!"
"How embarrassing for the Ning family! Is he really a member of the Ning family?"
"In my opinion, the Ning family is done for if this coward is the heir!"
At this moment, Ye Cheng said in a deep voice from the entrance of the alley, "Stop! What are you doing? The police are here!"
"Brother, let's go! Let's not dirty our hands by touching this coward!"
Someone spat and said, "Don't let me see you again. Otherwise, I'll beat you up every time I see you!"
The group of people scattered like the birds and the beasts.
Following that, Ye Cheng slowly approached the person who was curled up on the ground. He squatted down and said gently, "Get up. They're gone."
Ning Dong, who was curled up on the ground, held his head and whimpered.
"Can you move? Are you hurt badly? Do you want to see a doctor?" Ye Cheng reached out and patted Ning Dong.
Ning Dong finally removed his hands from his head before he slowly got up.
Ye Cheng reached out to support him. "I'll take you to the hospital to check for injuries…"
Ye Cheng's warm voice made Ning Dong feel at ease. He did not refuse Ye Cheng and followed Ye Cheng into the car.
Ning Dong, who was sitting in the passenger seat, turned to look out the window at the streets as tears fell uncontrollably down his face.
Upon seeing this, when the car pulled to a stop at a red light, Ye Cheng handed Ning Dong a piece of tissue paper before he said with a smile, "Look at you. You're a young man now; why are you crying? It's okay. I was beaten up a lot when I was young as well. Once you learn how to fight back, you won't be afraid anymore. If you're interested, I can help you look for a martial arts coach. What do you think?"
Ning Dong turned around and looked at Ye Cheng with red eyes as he said sincerely, "Thank you, brother."
Ye Cheng was slightly stunned by the frail and gloomy young man's sincerity. After a beat, he smiled and said, "You're welcome. Let's be friends. My name is Ye Cheng. You can treat me like a brother. From now on, I'll protect you."
Upon hearing Ye Cheng's words, Ning Dong's face flushed. Then, he hurriedly said, "Big brother, my name is Ning Dong…"
"Nice to meet you, Ning Dong!" Ye Cheng smiled. He knew Ning Dong was the Young Master of the Ning family and the heir to the Ning Group. Naturally, that was before Song Ning's identity was revealed.