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“Still pretending not to care, not forced, all just an illusion...”
A male voice, barely staying on key and trying to keep a straight face, filled the private room.
The microphone was no longer in Jiang Chengyu’s hand. It was the person who had just requested and switched the song, singing energetically while squeezed between Jiang Chengyu and Shen Tang.
He looked at the lyrics on the big screen, performing with effort.
After the man finished his part, he lightly nudged Shen Tang with his foot, signaling it was her turn.
Given the situation, Shen Tang had no choice but to play along, throwing herself into the singing.
Her first duet with Jiang Chengyu was unfinished.
However, credit was due to this childhood friend. While he had enjoyed the show earlier, at the crucial moment, he still firmly sided with Jiang Chengyu.
Afraid that Xie Yucheng would see through it, he implicated himself.
On one sofa, Jiang Chengyu, his friend, and Shen Tang sat in order, while Lu Zhifei was squeezed onto the armrest of the sofa.
Jiang Chengyu picked up a glass of red wine and raised it slightly towards Xie Yucheng, as a greeting.
Xie Yucheng smiled, downing the wine in his glass in one gulp, not a drop left. He seemed to guess what had happened in the private room before he entered.
Shen Tang and her friend’s duet ended, and the music stopped.
The friend, with actor-level acting skills, said, “Brother Xie, Sister-in-law’s singing is really something. She just beat me, Zhifei, and Brother Jiang.”
“Before singing, I boasted that I was the ‘Prince of Love Songs’ back in the day, and no one could out-sing me.” He laughed, placing the microphone on the table. “If you hadn’t come, I really don’t know how I would have ended it.”
After that, he reached for a cigarette on the table and tossed it to Xie Yucheng.
“Brother Xie, come sit here. Do you usually karaoke with Sister-in-law?”
He offered his seat, and as he got up, he put a cigarette in his mouth, lighting it as he walked out.
There was no trace of acting throughout.
Someone who frequented various venues could easily cover for his brother.
He went outside, biting his cigarette, and picked up the moral principles he had left at the door earlier.
Xie Yucheng sat between Shen Tang and Jiang Chengyu. He usually listened to English songs and not many Chinese songs, so he momentarily forgot the name of the song they had just sung.
“What did you just sing?” he asked Shen Tang.
Shen Tang: “‘Coolness’.”
Xie Yucheng held back a laugh. What a situation.
Jiang Chengyu picked up the microphone from the table and turned it on.
He chose a song himself, the unfinished “Because of Love” from before.
He didn’t specify who he wanted to sing with.
But the other microphone was with Shen Tang.
The familiar prelude abruptly began.
Everyone else exchanged glances.
What was Jiang Chengyu doing?
Shen Tang knew he was really going to sing, and with her.
Lu Zhifei sat close beside her, whispering, “Do you need help?”
Shen Tang stared at the prelude on the screen, not even looking at her. “No, I’ll sing it myself. Thank you.”
Lu Zhifei unhurriedly ate sunflower seeds. Xie Yucheng’s sudden arrival tonight had pushed Jiang Chengyu’s pride into a corner.
Xie Yucheng was sensible. He silently got up to pour more wine, holding his empty glass. With the obstacle removed, Jiang Chengyu and Shen Tang, separated by an empty seat, were drawn closer by the song.
Jiang Chengyu had never sung so genuinely in public. Every word he sang was about him and Shen Tang.
Shen Tang’s voice revealed a tremor. Even at Huo Teng’s concert, she hadn’t been this nervous singing live. Emotions truly were an unpredictable thing.
Jiang Chengyu sang the line, “Still ready to go crazy for you at any time.” She wouldn’t have believed it before, but last night, when he picked her up and kissed her in public, she believed it.
Lu Zhifei sat on the armrest, her line of sight higher than theirs. She looked past Shen Tang at Jiang Chengyu, his profile hidden in the dim light.
Suddenly, the intense colors on the screen projected onto him, illuminating his distinct, deep features. A rare tenderness on his face, so focused on the lyrics on the big screen.
He had shed his identity as the Second Young Master Jiang. At this moment, he was just an ordinary suitor singing a love song for the woman he loved.
Men who sing well are often more alluring.
Once a woman falls into such a voice, she doesn’t want to come out.
At the end, their voices merged, “I still love you.”
Xie Yucheng released a shower of fireworks in the comments section.
Lu Zhifei generously applauded.
The friend who had requested the song earlier completely lost his sense of propriety. He suddenly wanted to break up Xie Yucheng and Shen Tang to fulfill Jiang Chengyu’s deep affection.
“Zhifei, let’s sing a song together too. I don’t believe we can’t beat Brother Jiang and them.”
He was still trying his best to cover for Jiang Chengyu.
Lu Zhifei didn’t expose him. She put down her sunflower seeds. “Alright.”
Jiang Chengyu and the others moved to the card table. With the experience of playing cards in Haitang Village, Shen Tang was completely accustomed to being in the same card game as them.
Jiang Chengyu habitually ordered a fruit plate for Shen Tang. “More kiwis,” he specifically instructed the waiter.
Shen Tang’s heart, which had been racing from singing, slowly settled back. The heartstring, which had been drowned by a pile of hatred, was unexpectedly plucked tonight.
While drawing cards, her gaze would always glimpse Jiang Chengyu’s wrist, still wearing that couple’s watch.
Her fruit plate arrived.
Shen Tang didn’t stand on ceremony. She hadn’t eaten dinner, so she forked a piece of kiwi into her mouth.
She couldn’t help but frown. “So sour.”
Jiang Chengyu glanced at her and, as if no one else was there, said, “Leave that for me to eat. You eat other fruits first.”
“...”
The atmosphere became so awkward that people watching the game on the sidelines wanted to crawl under the carpet.
Jiang Chengyu was openly provoking the legitimate owner now.
Xie Yucheng stacked his cards with one hand, drinking the unfinished red wine with the other.
His friend, who had just finished singing, came over and tried his best to smooth things over. “Brother Xie, you might not know our Brother Jiang, but he can’t stand waste. He eats any fruit we don’t finish, he even eats my leftovers.”
Wine sprayed from Xie Yucheng’s mouth. “Sorry.” He choked and finally laughed.
His friend quickly grabbed a towel for Xie Yucheng, thinking, This guy has such a big heart. Can’t you tell Jiang Chengyu is poaching your girlfriend?
Jiang Chengyu genuinely thanked this usually frivolous and unreliable friend. “Anyway, thank you for all your help and for covering for me.”
He raised a toast.
His friend looked at Jiang Chengyu with a look of utter despair. Well, his whole night’s effort was for nothing.
Jiang Chengyu put down his wine glass. Taking advantage of Xie Yucheng and Lu Zhifei’s presence, he said, “Mr. Xie and Shen Tang have been friends for many years. The video that was exposed was when Mr. Xie was helping Shen Tang out of a bind.”
He briefly and clearly explained the whole story of what happened at the appreciation banquet that night.
“Lu Zhifei was also present.”
All eyes focused on her.
Lu Zhifei nodded. “If it weren’t for Mr. Ge’s harassment back then, none of those things would have happened later. Now it’s impossible to explain, which is annoying enough.”
His friend sat down, making a belated comment: “I knew it! Our Brother Jiang has such a righteous worldview, how could he possibly...” He suddenly remembered, “Brother Jiang, I remember one night you asked for Mr. Xie’s phone number in the group chat. Was that the night?”
“Yes,” Jiang Chengyu said, giving Shen Tang an advantage while playing cards. “I wanted Mr. Xie’s help, but before I could send the message, Mr. Xie arrived in the private room.”
Shen Tang looked at Jiang Chengyu. So, he hadn’t stood by idly that night.
Before she could avert her gaze, Jiang Chengyu looked over.
Their eyes met.
Lu Zhifei beside them pretended not to notice. The caramel-flavored sunflower seeds only had a caramel taste; she didn’t know where the sugar had gone. Suddenly, she frowned, having bitten into a bad seed.
Bitterness spread in her mouth.
Tian Qinglu used to say that if you swallowed a bitter sunflower seed, no one would know. At the time, she scoffed.
It turned out to be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
In the early hours of the morning, Shen Tang left the venue early, and Jiang Chengyu followed her out of the private room.
In the clubhouse courtyard, Shen Tang’s bodyguard drove up to pick her up.
Jiang Chengyu passed by her and opened the car door for her.
Shen Tang placed her hand on the car door. “I’ll come to Jingxu to see you tomorrow.”
Jiang Chengyu nodded. “You’re welcome anytime.”
Shen Tang teased, “Your tone instantly changed to ‘Mr. Jiang’.”
Jiang Chengyu: “It’s Mr. Jiang, and it’s also your Jiang Chengyu.” Shen Tang couldn’t resist such flirtatious words and got into the car.
The night was gentle. Shen Tang leaned against the car window, feeling intoxicated.
________________________________________
Shen Tang went to Jingxu first thing the next morning. She put away her usual fairy-like dresses and wore a business suit, her makeup also different from before.
Yuanyuan had done her makeup. Yuanyuan was even more excited than her when she heard she was reporting to Jingxu.
Her drastic change in attire, plus her not being photogenic, meant that the Jingxu employees didn’t connect her to Shen Tang.
In the past, she had passed by the Jingxu building many times, always looking up. She didn’t know the office layout and couldn’t imagine what he looked like working.
Today, it was as if her wish had come true.
The office decor matched his personality: aloof and proud.
Jiang Chengyu looked at her a few more times and handed her a stack of documents. “Basic information on the target company.”
Shen Tang opened them, reading carefully from the beginning.
Jiang Chengyu sat back down at his computer. He opened the electronic version. “Their company currently has debts as high as over 20 billion, with a broken capital chain and a financial crisis. The senior management decided to divest shares.”
Shen Tang put down the materials and listened to Jiang Chengyu’s analysis.
“The M.K team is responsible for analyzing the M&A risks this time, to identify all the traps we might encounter during the acquisition.”
Shen Tang looked at him. “Xie Yucheng’s team specializes in finding traps, and your team looks for profitable acquisition points?”
Jiang Chengyu nodded. “That’s right. The target company fell into financial crisis because a company they previously acquired went bankrupt, dragging down their group headquarters.”
He was always cautious about acquisitions. One careless mistake falling into the seller’s trap could lead to irreversible disaster. “You know how many multinational companies have been dragged down by acquisitions, ended up in a quagmire, and eventually were forced to declare bankruptcy.”
“It’s like seeing a busy shop for rent on the street. If it’s really a profitable shop, why would they be renting it out?” He used the busy shop as an example: “Xie Yucheng is currently responsible for analyzing why that busy shop is for rent. I’m responsible for analyzing whether I have the ability to revitalize it if I take it over.”
The target company was highly valued, so he and Xie Yucheng were extra cautious. They had commissioned an intermediary consulting firm, but their own team also conducted due diligence.
Jiang Chengyu asked for her email address. “I’ll send you some data analysis. You can take your time reading it when you get back.”
Shen Tang had only focused on acting these past few years, completely disconnected from the business world. With Jiang Chengyu’s pointers, she suddenly had an idea, and her vision cleared.
She messaged Xie Yucheng: [Take out ten million USD from the money I invested with you, for standby.]
Xie Yucheng: [What are you going to do?]
Shen Tang: [Find someone to do some work.]
Putting down her phone, Shen Tang continued to look at the documents.
“It’s been sent to your email,” Jiang Chengyu informed her.
“Okay, thank you, Mr. Jiang.”
Jiang Chengyu glanced at her. From her attire to her posture and her address for him today, she was completely in business mode.
Shen Tang took out a notepad and a pen from her bag, noting down points she didn’t understand while reading the documents, marking the page numbers.
She looked up again; it was already 11:46 AM.
She had read about a third of the documents.
Jiang Chengyu was leaning back in his chair, gazing at her.
Shen Tang capped her pen. “Have you had your meeting?”
“...” Jiang Chengyu: “I came back almost half an hour ago.” And then he had been sitting there watching her, while she hadn’t looked up the whole time.
“Shen Tang, you can’t just treat me as a tool.”
“...Didn’t I say I came back to learn from you?”
Jiang Chengyu didn’t ask for much. “Besides talking about work, please talk to me a bit too, appropriately.”
Shen Tang saw a mini fan on his desk. “Did you buy this?”
“Zhengzheng’s Father’s Day gift for me.” Jiang Chengyu handed her the small fan to play with. “When we have our own children later, she won’t need to give me gifts anymore.”
It was still cold in these seasons, so Shen Tang held the small fan and blew it at herself.
He said, when we have our own children later.
________________________________________
Days spent with Jiang Chengyu always flew by. Shen Tang marked April 30th on her calendar; another day ended.
She had been in Beijing for two months.
It was night in Beijing, while Manhattan welcomed morning.
Two hours later, her phone rang as expected.
It was Lu Zhifei’s call. Shen Tang swiped to answer.
“Shen Tang, you actually stabbed me in the back!”
Lu Zhifei’s fury could be felt across the Pacific Ocean.
Shen Tang was eating supper at the dining table, glutinous rice balls in fermented rice wine, soft, sticky, and sweet, prepared by Yuanyuan.
She smiled. “Ms. Lu, it’s a shame you’re not in Beijing. Otherwise, I’d personally send you a bowl of glutinous rice balls to calm your anger.”
Lu Zhifei pressed her temples, giving herself a psychological hint not to fall for Shen Tang’s tricks.
She couldn’t lose momentum against Shen Tang. This was just the first round; winning or losing wouldn’t affect the overall situation later. If she panicked, that would be fatal.
“Are you looking at my investment feasibility analysis report?” Shen Tang gently bit into a small glutinous rice ball. “Ten million USD wasn’t enough, so I added another six million USD. A report worth over a hundred million, a gift specially customized for you. You should feel honored.”
Lu Zhifei couldn’t bear to read it. She knew the situation of her own company very well.
She had been careless, neglecting the due diligence detail, and hadn’t expected Shen Tang to attack from this angle.
She had previously sought more powerful partners to invest. Shen Tang seized the opportunity, commissioning an investment consulting firm in Manhattan, hiring a professional team with a high consulting fee to secretly conduct due diligence on her company.
The real data obtained was enough to be fatal.
“What do you want to do?”
Shen Tang scooped up some fermented rice wine and asked in return, “What do you think?”
“Do you really think if you give this data to Ning Yinchen, he’ll withdraw his investment?” Lu Zhifei laughed. “I didn’t get that investment based on pretty financial statements; Chairman Xiao was willing to support my company’s development, it had nothing to do with anything else.”
Shen Tang lightly said, “If that’s the case, then why were you angry just now? Anyone who didn’t know would think I swallowed your company whole.”
Lu Zhifei had calmed down quite a bit now. Why was she angry? She was angry that Shen Tang had found an opportunity to strike at her.
She had thought Shen Tang would settle down in Beijing and have a steady romance and marriage with Jiang Chengyu.
But she had never given up on retaliating against her.
“Shen Tang, don’t overplay your hand in life. Be careful.”
“Ms. Lu, this investigation report is just the appetizer, in fact, it’s not even an appetizer, just a glass of plain water after ordering. I’ll serve you the appetizer in two days.”
Shen Tang was about to hang up when Lu Zhifei’s voice came through again, “Are you going to involve Ning Yinchen?”
“He’s already in it. How can he remain aloof and uninvolved?” Shen Tang finished a small bowl of glutinous rice balls. “Ning Yinchen isn’t a child. I think he should have the right to know. What do you say, Ms. Lu?”
Lu Zhifei felt that Shen Tang was a lunatic; there was nothing she cared about.
“If he can’t even handle this minor setback, how can he take control of the Xiao family’s industries in the future?” After saying that, Shen Tang hung up the phone.
“Yuanyuan, give me another bowl.”
Yuanyuan was tidying up the kitchen, thinking she misheard. “Sister Tang, aren’t you afraid of getting fat?” She pointed to the clock’s hands. “It’s almost 10:30.”
“It’s fine. I’m going to London tomorrow. I’ll have jet lag there, so I’ll naturally lose weight.”
“Going to London?” Yuanyuan smiled. “Is it a date with Mr. Jiang?”
“Little gossip,” Shen Tang pushed her head aside. “I’m going to meet an old friend. London is so big, I won’t run into Jiang Chengyu.”
Jiang Chengyu had also gone to London on a business trip, having been gone for almost a week. She didn’t know when he would return.
Shen Tang was in a good mood tonight, eating two small bowls of glutinous rice balls.
Early the next morning, she boarded a flight to London.
This time, she was specifically going to see Ning Yinchen. It was a private matter, and she didn’t tell Xie Yucheng or Jiang Chengyu. It was also the May Day holiday, so she treated it as a trip.
When the plane landed in London, it was afternoon local time. Ning Yinchen came to pick her up.
Shen Tang only brought a small suitcase, which her bodyguard pushed. She carried her bag and walked out alongside Ning Yinchen, hands in her trench coat pockets.
“You finally came back to see it,” Ning Yinchen said with great emotion.
“There’s nothing here worth seeing for me besides you. I originally wanted to meet you in Manhattan, but I was afraid of disturbing your work.”
Ning Yinchen now understood her background and why she didn’t like it here.
“How many days will you stay here?”
“I’m going back tomorrow.”
Ning Yinchen wanted to keep her, but couldn’t find any reason. “How are things in Beijing?”
Shen Tang looked at the hurried pedestrians. “Not bad. Working on a project with Xie Yucheng, the days fly by. I don’t have time to think about whether it’s good or bad.”
Ning Yinchen occasionally glanced at her profile, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Back in the city, Ning Yinchen took her to her favorite restaurant from before.
Ten years had passed. Apart from the people, the restaurant was still the same as it used to be.
He knew Shen Tang was here to see him probably for important business, unrelated to feelings, and they couldn’t go back to the past. So he wasn’t in a hurry to ask her what it was about.
They still chose the seats they used to sit in.
The tables and chairs seemed like a time tunnel, taking her back ten years.
And the Ning Yinchen in front of her, besides being more composed, still looked like the young man in her eyes: sunny and warm.
Shen Tang took out an envelope from her bag. “These are all the true data and information about Lu Zhifei’s company.”
Ning Yinchen was startled. “You know I invested in her company?”
Vaguely, he felt that this matter was not so simple.
Shen Tang laid everything bare. “My relationship with you back then, and the video of me and Xie Yucheng, were all exposed by Lu Zhifei. Her company hit a bottleneck, so she set her sights on me, using my background to get investment from Chairman Xiao. Chairman Xiao, to keep me in check, convinced you to invest somehow.”
Ning Yinchen first apologized. “I didn’t know I caused you so much trouble.” As for why he readily invested, “Chairman Xiao said he wanted to pave the way for you in the fashion industry, but you definitely wouldn’t accept it if it was in his name.”
Ruthless, that was Chairman Xiao.
Ning Yinchen regretted it deeply. “Then why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“That company is your hard work. When you invested, you not only signed a gambling agreement, but Lu Zhifei also added such harsh conditions. Once you breached the contract, the equity would be transferred to Lu Zhifei.”
Shen Tang motioned for him to look at the documents. “The evidence here is enough to prove that she concealed the company’s true operating conditions from investors, constituting fraud. You can terminate the contract and claim compensation from her.”
With a stack of materials, if he claimed compensation, Lu Zhifei wouldn’t be able to deny it.
Shen Tang didn’t force him to do anything. “If you need to consider Chairman Xiao and your grandfather, I can understand. After all, you didn’t invest because you liked her embellished operating conditions. I got these materials only so you can smoothly terminate the contract without any loss.”
She had done what she needed to do and no longer felt guilty towards anyone.
“Next, I’m going to take the step of acquiring her company. Innocent parties will inevitably be hurt then.”
Ning Yinchen understood what she meant. “I’ll hand it over to my legal team to handle when I get back.”
If he didn’t withdraw his investment, her acquisition would be very difficult.
The ordered dishes arrived, and Ning Yinchen put away the documents.
They could no longer speak freely and without reservations as they used to.
Shen Tang looked at him. “Yinchen, I’m doing really well now. You don’t need to worry about me anymore. You should move forward too, okay?”
Ning Yinchen didn’t want to make her sad, so he said lightly, “Don’t worry, I’m doing well too now. I’ve basically got the hang of work. When I have time, I’ll go to Beijing to visit. I’ve never been there before. You can be my tour guide then.”
Shen Tang lowered her head to eat, nodding.
Her phone vibrated. A message from Jiang Chengyu: [I’m outside the restaurant. After you’re done eating, take my car back to the hotel.]
Shen Tang: “...”
After eating, they settled the bill and left the restaurant. She said goodbye to Ning Yinchen outside.
Ning Yinchen offered to take her back to the hotel, but Shen Tang politely declined, saying she wanted to walk around.
“Then I’ll go back to the company to work overtime.” Ning Yinchen never forced her. Since Jiang Chengyu was on a business trip here, she was probably going to see him.
After Ning Yinchen’s car left, Jiang Chengyu’s car slowly pulled up. The window rolled down. Shen Tang turned her face away from him, walked to the other side, and got in.
Jiang Chengyu looked at her. “You knew I was on a business trip here.”
Meaning, You came but didn’t tell me, and went straight to your first love.
Shen Tang simply explained, “I had something to discuss with him; it’s related to Lu Zhifei.”
She had told him not to interfere in this matter, so Jiang Chengyu didn’t ask further.
Shen Tang leaned back in the seat, resting her forehead on her hand, continuing the previous topic. “Mr. Jiang, you’re the one pursuing me. I don’t need to report my itinerary to you.”
“I wasn’t asking for a report. I just wanted to see you.”
“...”
Before reaching the hotel, Shen Tang received a call from Lu Zhifei.
Five minutes ago, Lu Zhifei had received the “appetizer” Shen Tang sent her: Ning Yinchen’s lawyer called her, inviting her to discuss matters related to contract termination.
“Ning Yinchen is withdrawing his investment. Don’t think you can win just because he withdraws.”
Shen Tang: “I have plenty of time. I’ll accompany you to the end.”
Just as she hung up the phone, Jiang Chengyu handed her his own phone. The headline on the news page read: #M.K Crown Prince to get engaged on May 20th#
The accompanying picture was of her and Xie Yucheng.
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