The Wang Family, though not native to Lingjin City, possessed financial resources and influence that rivaled the city's four great super-clans.

Born into such a family, Wang Han was accustomed to a life of luxury and held everyone else in contempt. The women eager to get involved with him were as numerous as carps crossing a river.

But Zheng Xiaoman was an exception.

After a year of fruitless courting and ardent advances, a bitter frustration had been building inside Wang Han. Now, it was time to unleash it.

"Young Master, should we call Zheng Xiaoman now?" the middle-aged man asked.

His name was Jiang Yihai. He was Wang Han's personal assistant and bodyguard, handling all affairs for the young master of the Wang Family. In fact, Jiang Yihai was often the one to procure the women Wang Han fancied, delivering them right to his hotel bed.

"Call her for what?" Wang Han lit a cigarette, his voice cold. "Doesn't that bitch Zheng Xiaoman love acting so high and mighty? This time, I want her to come to me on her own. I want her to kneel before me and beg!"

"Haha, the Young Master always knows how to play the game! I'm truly impressed!" Jiang Yihai gave a thumbs-up, a wide grin splitting his face.

Wang Han walked back to the floor-to-ceiling window and said indifferently, "Wouldn't it have been better for you to just accept my advances and be my woman? Sure, I'd kick you to the curb once I got tired of you, but at least you would have gained countless benefits!

"But no, you had to go and exhaust my patience! Well, look at you now. You've forced my hand, and in the end, aren't you the one who suffers?"

…

The once-thriving Huarui Group was now shrouded in gloom, a stark contrast to the day before. From the front desk receptionist to the senior executives, everyone wore a heavy expression, their minds weighed down with concern.

The scene was strikingly similar to when the Qin Corporation had faced its raw material supply crisis, a situation Chen Yang understood all too well. Everyone has their own pressures. Everyone wants a stable job to support themselves and their families. Who would want to face unemployment, especially with the holidays approaching?

Walking through the halls of Huarui Group, Chen Yang couldn't help but sigh.

「President's Office.」

Dressed in a black suit, Zheng Xiaoman sat in the large chair behind her desk. She cradled her head with one hand, her once-limpid eyes now vacant and spiritless, completely lacking their usual fiery vigor.

Hearing someone enter, she said coldly, "I said, no one is to disturb me!"

"It's me." Chen Yang walked over and placed his hands on her desk. "President Zheng, what on earth happened?"

"Oh, it's you." Zheng Xiaoman glanced at him, her face an emotionless mask. "I'm sorry, but we can't supply your order for now. And of course, the matter of my sister becoming your apprentice is off the table. You should go back. As soon as this problem is resolved, I'll prioritize your supply."

She waved a hand dismissively, her expression downcast and utterly exhausted. Her face was tinged with a helpless, pale white.

However, Chen Yang didn't leave. Instead, he pulled a chair up and sat across from her. "President Zheng," he said calmly, "has someone been targeting you?"

"That's none of your business! Get out now!" Zheng Xiaoman snapped impatiently.

"You should tell me anyway. I have some influence here in Lingjin City."

Zheng Xiaoman shot him a surprised look. You?

"Yes, me," Chen Yang nodded. "Right now, targeting Huarui Group is the same as targeting the Qin Corporation. I can't just sit back and do nothing."

Zheng Xiaoman scoffed and shook her head. She wasn't mocking him for being useless, but for overestimating his own abilities. In a city like Lingjin, teeming with powerful families and financiers with deep, tangled roots of power, who could possibly blot out the sky with one hand?

"It was Wang Han, wasn't it?" Chen Yang guessed.

Zheng Xiaoman nodded, then shook her head again. "First, Mr. Huang from Hongli Machinery cut off my parts supply. Without his components, I can't produce a single piece of equipment! Then, Tianhe Pharmaceuticals terminated all of our contracts and froze all payments. With our working capital cut off and facing breach-of-contract penalties for being unable to deliver, my Huarui Group is finished."

At that moment, she finally revealed her true feelings. Her earlier promise to resolve the issue was clearly just words of comfort.

"Of course, there is a solution," Zheng Xiaoman laughed self-deprecatingly. "I could agree to that bastard Wang Han's terms and become his woman. To be more accurate, his plaything. After all, no woman has ever lasted more than three months with him."

She gave a bitter laugh but didn't state her decision. It was clear she was hesitating—for the company she had poured her heart into, for the thousands of employees who depended on her. Her tough exterior hid a far more vulnerable heart, something one could glimpse from the way she doted on Zheng Xiaoduo.

"I knew he was a scumbag!" Chen Yang cursed angrily. The man looks decent enough, acting all high and mighty, but the things he does in secret are worse than any animal.

"Just go," Zheng Xiaoman said again. "Let me be alone."

Ignoring her, Chen Yang took out his phone and dialed a number. As soon as the call connected, he said bluntly, "Yang Hu, go to Hongli Machinery right now and have them immediately resume supply to Huarui Group."

After hanging up, he smiled. "President Zheng, you can rest assured. It's a small matter."

"Chen Yang, it's useless! The Wang Family's influence and power in Lingjin City are comparable to the four great super-clans. Do you really think you can challenge them?" Zheng Xiaoman shook her head, a bitter smile on her face. "Don't waste your effort. You'd be better off trying to find equipment from another region."

"And what about you?" Chen Yang asked pointedly.

Zheng Xiaoman startled. Is this guy actually concerned about me?

"Don't get me wrong," Chen Yang explained quickly. "I just can't stand to see people act so outrageously." Since I've stumbled into this, and it now involves the Qin Corporation, I can't just stand by and do nothing.

Zheng Xiaoman turned to look out the window, her gaze hollow. "I will do what I have to do."

"Become a plaything for that animal Wang Han?"

She remained silent.

Chen Yang sighed to himself. Even though she's still hesitating, I can see that she'll eventually go to Wang Han herself. That spirit of self-sacrifice is... admirable.

He said nothing more, simply walking to the window to light a cigarette and wait quietly.

About half an hour later, Zheng Xiaoman's phone rang.

Hm? Seeing the caller was Mr. Huang from Hongli Machinery, she raised an eyebrow and answered.

Before she could utter a word, a wailing, horrified voice burst from the speaker. "President Zheng! I was wrong! I never should have listened to Mr. Wang and cut off your supply! I'll arrange for a delivery right now! Please, be the bigger person and spare my worthless life! I don't want to die! I really don't want to die!"

CLICK.

The call ended.

Zheng Xiaoman was stunned, staring blankly at the phone in her hand.

What... what just happened? Wasn't this the same Mr. Huang who had been so resolute and uncompromising just a short while ago?

She suddenly looked up, her eyes fixing on the man standing by the window, quietly smoking.

Could it be... him?!

Chen Yang turned around, a casual smile on his face. "President Zheng, interested in taking a trip to Tianhe Pharmaceutical Group with me?"

Zheng Xiaoman was left speechless.

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