「In the Ferrari.」

Zhou Yufei had applied exquisite makeup, but it still couldn't hide her red, swollen eyes. She stared out the window, refusing to say a word.

Chen Yang knew she was still sulking and couldn't help but tease her, "Fairy, this must be the first time you've cried over a man, right?"

"Yes!"

"Then I'm truly honored!" Chen Yang laughed.

Zhou Yufei glared fiercely at him. "Just tell me, how did you survive?"

"By reasoning with them, of course! They knew they were in the wrong, so how could they dare to do anything to me?" Chen Yang chuckled.

Zhou Yufei rolled her eyes, speechless. Would a person who believes in reasoning resort to violence at the drop of a hat? Just look at the state Ning Qiang was in!

"Do you take me for a fool? I heard a gunshot!" Zhou Yufei stared intently at Chen Yang. "Tell me the truth!"

"I just hit it off with the guy holding the gun, so I borrowed it to try out. And I have to say, firing a gun is quite a thrill!" Chen Yang grinned broadly, spouting complete nonsense.

Whether she believed him or not, that was his story and he was sticking to it.

Zhou Yufei's forehead darkened as she gritted her teeth. Is this guy even trying to be convincing when he lies?

"So, what you're saying is, after you two hit it off, Extreme Sea Pharmaceutical just naturally decided to resume supplying us with raw materials?" Zhou Yufei sneered.

"You're so smart, Fairy!" Chen Yang gave her a thumbs-up. "That's exactly what happened!"

Zhou Yufei fumed, "If you don't start telling the truth, I'll bite you to death!"

「Qin Corporation, Sales Department.」

A group of people was gathered together, buzzing with excited discussion, their previous gloom and dejection completely gone.

Seeing Zhou Yufei walk in, Hou Qiang approached her with a beaming smile. "Manager, our Qin Corporation is safe! You won't believe it, but Tao Gong himself came to our company just now.

"Not only did he apologize to our Chairwoman, but he also spun off Extreme Sea Pharmaceutical's entire raw material production department and handed it over to us, a gift to the Qin Corporation!" he continued. "From now on, no one will ever be able to hold us hostage over raw material supplies again!"

Zhou Yufei was completely stunned. She stood there frozen for a long moment before slowly turning her head to look at Chen Yang.

This... could it really be just a coincidence?

Hou Qiang also glanced at Chen Yang and added, "It's said that our Chairwoman has a powerful benefactor backing her!"

"I wonder who this benefactor is. They must be incredibly capable!"

"Tsk, tsk, it seems our Chairwoman is quite fortunate!"

The group erupted into another round of discussion.

Feeling his skin crawl under Zhou Yufei's scrutinizing gaze, Chen Yang quickly ducked into the office. He waved to the crowd and said, "Since everything is fine now, let's all get back to work. Let's strive for even greater success!"

"Mr. Chen is right! We should be shamed into courage!" Hou Qiang immediately chimed in, then instructed Lv Haihuan, "Huanhuan, hurry and pour Mr. Chen some tea!"

Hou Qiang was all smiles, acting as if the earlier unpleasantness had never occurred. Since the company was saved, the Chairwoman's husband was someone he needed to curry favor with.

Although the others hid their feelings well, their eyes flashed with a peculiar light that was part mockery and part pity.

Zhou Yufei blocked Chen Yang's path, demanding, "Was it you?"

"I don't think so!" Chen Yang replied earnestly. "After all, I don't have a habit of peeping at women while they're bathing!"

Zhou Yufei: "..."

Chen Yang chuckled, bypassed Zhou Yufei, and walked to his desk.

After work, Chen Yang picked up Qin Qiu and headed straight home.

「In the car.」

Chen Yang said with a smile, "Honey, your birthday is tomorrow. How about taking the day off?"

"My birthday is tomorrow?" Qin Qiu raised an eyebrow. She seemed to recall it, then shook her head. "What's there to celebrate? I'll go to work as usual."

"Then let me treat you to dinner in the evening!" Chen Yang said. "It's the first time I'm celebrating my wife's birthday, so you can't refuse, okay?"

Qin Qiu looked at Chen Yang. She had intended to refuse directly, but for some reason, her heart softened. "We'll see tomorrow."

"Alright!" Chen Yang was overjoyed. Since she hadn't refused, it meant there was still a chance.

「Back at home.」

As soon as they got out of the car, Luo Sulan stormed over, pointing an accusing finger at Chen Yang. "You useless jinx!" she spat viciously. "You nearly brought down the Qin Corporation! Get out of here right now!"

"As long as you're here, my Qin Family will never know a day of peace!"

Qin Qiu said, exasperated, "Mom! How many times do I have to tell you, this had nothing to do with Chen Yang! Can't you be reasonable for once? Besides, the company is fine now, isn't it?"

"That's only because a benefactor helped us, allowing the Qin Corporation to weather the storm!"

Chen Yang asked with a chuckle, "What benefactor?"

"What does that have to do with a good-for-nothing like you? Get out of my sight!" Luo Sulan shot Chen Yang a cold glare before turning to her daughter. "Xiaoqiu, tomorrow is your birthday. Some relatives from my side of the family are coming over for dinner at our house. Make sure you leave work early and come home."

"But..." Qin Qiu glanced at Chen Yang, but Luo Sulan cut her off before she could finish.

"No buts. I've already arranged it with them!" Luo Sulan then pointed at Chen Yang. "You're in charge of cooking tomorrow!"

With that, she turned to Xiang Yang with a smile. "Xiang Yang, my relatives are all business people too. You should talk with them tomorrow. Who knows, you might find some areas where you can collaborate."

"Thank you, Auntie!" Xiang Yang replied.

"We're all family, there's no need for thanks!"

The two of them walked toward the villa, chatting and laughing.

Chen Yang shook his head with a hint of regret. "Honey, since I'm cooking anyway, it's all the same! We can go out to eat another day."

"Chen Yang, my mom is probably planning to use her relatives to humiliate you. You'd be better off staying away tomorrow," Qin Qiu said, seeing right through Luo Sulan's intentions. Otherwise, why would they have deliberately chosen to come on her birthday?

"It's my wife's birthday. What kind of husband would I be if I wasn't there?" Chen Yang waved his hand dismissively, utterly unconcerned. "Besides, it's just a little humiliation. I'm used to it!"

Used to it?

Qin Qiu shook her head silently, a wave of disappointment washing over her. He'd actually gotten used to matters involving his pride and dignity as a man? Any man with a shred of ambition or aspiration would do everything in his power to change his circumstances. Even if his efforts were futile, at least others would see him trying and respect him for it. But Chen Yang... he had chosen to get used to it. Was he just giving up on himself?

With a self-deprecating smile, Qin Qiu turned and walked into the villa.

As if he hadn't noticed Qin Qiu's dissatisfaction, Chen Yang stepped aside and dialed Yang Hu's number.

"Boss, what are your orders?"

"Tomorrow is my wife's birthday," Chen Yang said. "I need you to prepare some things for me."

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