Although she also felt that what Ye Nan said was unreliable, for Wang Qian and Yang Rui to speak so viciously was simply going too far.
"Watch your language! Ye Nan was just joking!"
"A joke? Ha, this joke isn't funny at all!" Wang Qian sneered, "Lin Qingrou coming to find him? I'll eat this table right here on the spot!"
"Count me in!" Yang Rui also mocked, "I'll help you sprinkle some cumin!"
Unrestrained laughter filled the air.
Xu Dongyue's face had already turned somewhat pale with anger, and utterly unwilling to stay here a moment longer, she reached out to pull Ye Nan away.
At that exact moment, Lin Qingrou outside had already walked up to the café entrance and pushed the door open.
In that instant, the entire café fell silent.
Wang Qian and Yang Rui never imagined that Lin Qingrou would actually walk into this café.
Could she be here on business?
Not even if they were beaten to death would they believe Lin Qingrou came looking for Ye Nan.
Yet the truth of the matter was often this cruel...
Clicking her high heels, bringing a rhythmic sound of footsteps against the floor, Lin Qingrou walked step by elegant step toward the direction of Ye Nan and the others!
At this moment, Yang Rui felt as though he could no longer control his own breathing!
As that breathtaking face drew closer and closer, his heart beat faster and faster.
In that instant, a delusion even arose within him.
Could it be... the goddess is here looking for me, Yang Rui?
Because of my outstanding performance and soaring reputation at Zhao Group, the goddess has specially come to poach me?!
In under three seconds, Yang Rui had already mentally completed the ensuing storyline.
Agreeing to jump ship to Haiqing, turning in stellar work performance, and winning the goddess's favor with his exceptional ability...
With mutual affection, marrying a wealthy beauty and reaching the pinnacle of life...
What should he name the kids?
Yang Rui began to fret.
What? His girlfriend Wang Qian?
Who was that? Sounded vaguely familiar...
Within a few short seconds, Lin Qingrou had reached their table.
Amidst everyone's incredulous gazes, Lin Qingrou looked at Ye Nan, and after struggling for a moment, squeezed three words out from between her teeth.
"I'm sorry..."
After leaving Shen Mengyan, she had searched for Ye Nan for a long time.
She went to the employee dormitory, but it was completely empty, and an inexplicable panic overwhelmed Lin Qingrou's heart.
She felt hollow inside, as though she had lost something vital.
She had never been like this before.
Then, as if she had lost her mind, she got into her Lamborghini and drove frantically in circles all around Jiangling.
As long as she was within a range of about 50 meters, she could hear Ye Nan's inner voice!
She had to find him!
After driving in circles for over an hour, she finally heard that annoying yet familiar inner voice nearby.
Ye Nan naturally knew why Lin Qingrou was apologizing; he hadn't cared to begin with, so he just gave a faint smile. "It's nothing, a minor matter."
The simple two-line exchange dropped the jaws of everyone nearby!
The goddess... really came looking for this stinking security guard Ye Nan!
How could this be!
Wang Qian's mouth was open so wide she could have stuffed two duck eggs into it!
Yang Rui's dreams were shattered into a million pieces...
Marrying a wealthy beauty and reaching the pinnacle of life... it was all an illusion!
What was even more infuriating was, why?!
Why that stinking security guard!
The goddess really came looking for him, and even humbled herself to apologize to him?!
Had he gone crazy, or had the entire world gone mad?!
Xu Dongyue also stared at Ye Nan in absolute shock, her gaze deeply complex.
So... he really knew President Lin...
Her intuition really hadn't been wrong; she'd felt all along that Ye Nan was quite capable and not ordinary...
Yet this level of excellence truly frightened her.
Especially when faced with Lin Qingrou's brilliance, Xu Dongyue inevitably felt inferior, her heart filled with immense dejection.
At this moment, Lin Qingrou also noticed Xu Dongyue standing beside Ye Nan.
"And this is?"
A thought stirred in Ye Nan's mind, and he blurted out, "Oh, my girlfriend, Xu Dongyue."
As soon as those words were spoken, Xu Dongyue's mood instantly blossomed like spring in March with the returning warmth, making the entire world light up.
"P-President Lin, hello, I'm a team leader in Haiqing's logistics department..." In her excitement, she even began to stutter.
Upon hearing the three words "my girlfriend," Lin Qingrou's clear pupils instantly constricted.
For some reason, she felt a sudden twinge in her heart...
[Sigh... This old woman is such a nuisance. You misunderstood me, fine, but why did you suddenly figure it out!]
[Don't you dare drag me back to be a live-in son-in-law!]
[I've got no choice but to use this girl Xu Dongyue as a shield!]
[Though I feel a bit sorry for her, but... I helped her out today too, so we're even and owe each other nothing!]
Ye Nan calculated his little schemes internally.
Of course, he had no idea that these little schemes had been heard crystal-clear by Lin Qingrou.
Well, if you aren't something, Ye Nan!
I've already lowered my pride and personally came to apologize to you, yet you're still putting on airs with me!
And you're actually using this trick to fool me!
No one has ever looked down on me like this in my entire life!
"So she's an employee of our company. No wonder she's so pretty!"
Not a trace of abnormality could be seen on Lin Qingrou's face; against all odds, she even smiled, appearing very amiable and approachable.
That smile was simply breathtaking, causing even Ye Nan to lose his focus for a second, let alone Yang Rui and Wang Qian nearby.
"Um... President Lin, hello! I'm Yang Rui, a department supervisor at Zhao Group! I had the honor of meeting you once a year ago!"
Yang Rui had some brains and slickness to have made it to his current position, and he quickly adjusted his attitude and strategy.
First offering a humble self-introduction to Lin Qingrou, he then turned to Ye Nan with a warm, gentle smile.
"Brother Ye, this is uncalled for!"
"Qianqian and your little Yue are as close as sisters, so by relation, aren't we brothers-in-law?"
"You know a VIP like President Lin, yet you kept it such a deep secret—you don't regard us as your own people, do you!"
With that, Yang Rui even affectionately threw an arm around Ye Nan's shoulder, making the two of them look like long-lost best friends.
Ye Nan was instantly struck dumbfounded...
What the hell kind of bizarre approach to cozying up was this?!
Close as sisters? Brothers-in-law?
Not sharing the same father, yet sharing the same mother?!
On the other side, Wang Qian's brain was also working fast, filled with overwhelming regret.
Who could have guessed this stinking security guard had such immense pull?
Still, when it came to human relations, the most important thing was knowing how to bend and stretch, to rise and fall, to butter people up and kiss their feet...
"Yueyue, is it because I spoke bluntly that you're mad at me?!"
Wang Qian targeted Xu Dongyue with pinpoint accuracy, knowing Xu Dongyue had a soft heart and was easy to crack.
"Oh, we've been good sisters for so many years, how could you really have the heart to blame me!"
"Can't a person apologize to you!"
Ye Nan had not a shred of fondness for these two wretches, and fearing Xu Dongyue would soften, he spoke up first with a chuckle, "It's fine, it's all minor stuff!"
"So, brother-in-law, right? Do me a favor and go get your woman a bottle of cumin; she seems ready to eat a table."
Yang Rui and Wang Qian's complexions instantly turned uglier than if they had swallowed shit.
"Brother Ye, listen... it was all a misunderstanding before. Another day at Jade Garden Hotel, I'll host a table, what do you say..."
Yang Rui was an old hand at social circles, laughing it off with a cheeky grin.
"Sorry." Ye Nan brushed the arm off his shoulder, saying indifferently, "I'm still an employee of Haiqing at the moment, and dining privately with a supervisor from Zhao Group requires asking for President Lin's opinion."
Lin Qingrou was no fool; she had naturally already seen through the relationship between these few.
"Was bullying my person Zhao Chuanping's idea?" Lin Qingrou cast a cold glance at Yang Rui.
This remark scared Yang Rui so badly he almost suffered a hormonal imbalance, and he hurriedly wiped his sweat as he explained, "No, no, no! President Lin, it's all a misunderstanding! Please, you and Brother Ye, let bygones be..."
With the Zhao Group currently in a crisis, their business relationship with Haiqing must not run into any snags whatsoever.
If President Zhao found out he had offended Haiqing's goddess because of him, his meal ticket wouldn't be safe either!
Caring to deal with him no longer, Lin Qingrou turned to Ye Nan. "I'll wait for you in the car."
With that, she turned and left.
Ye Nan smiled helplessly and took Xu Dongyue's hand. "Let's go!"
"Yueyue, don't go!" Panicking, Wang Qian grabbed Xu Dongyue's arm. "We're good sisters of many years, you can't really stay mad at me!"
Xu Dongyue was kind-hearted, but she was no pushover.
She coldly shook off Wang Qian's hand. "Good sisters? I don't have that kind of blessing!"
Having said that, she walked out of the café with Ye Nan.
Left behind, Yang Rui and Wang Qian were completely dumbstruck.
It was over!
Yang Rui was covered in cold sweat, his face pale as paper.
Having managed with great difficulty to climb to a supervisor position at Zhao Group and living the life of an "elite class member" for a few days, he was now on the verge of being beaten right back to where he started.
"Slap!"
Driven to fury, Yang Rui lashed out and dealt Wang Qian a hard smack across the face.
"Bitch! This is all because of you messing around and stirring up trouble!" Yang Rui cursed through clenched teeth.
Though she took a slap, Wang Qian didn't dare show the slightest temper.
She had originally just been a shopping mall counter sales clerk, and it was only by latching onto Yang Rui that she got her currently glamorous-looking lifestyle.
"A-Rui, I'm sorry, I was wrong..." Covering her face, Wang Qian pitifully tugged at Yang Rui's sleeve, acting coquettishly. "I beg you, don't be mad! Today... I'll serve you properly, okay..."
Normally, when seduced by this little vixen, Yang Rui's blood would rush straight to his head; yet right now, he was in no mood for that...
"Get lost!" Shoving Wang Qian away, he said viciously, "I'm warning you, you'd better serve Ye Nan and Xu Dongyue well for me! I don't care what method you use, even if you have to kneel and lick their shoes—otherwise, humph!"
Wang Qian stood there foolishly, a look of utter despair on her face...
...
Stepping out of the café, Ye Nan glanced at the Lamborghini parked not far away and let out a sigh.
After briefly bidding farewell to Xu Dongyue, Ye Nan got into the car's passenger seat.
"Not bad, found your next stop so fast!" Lin Qingrou snorted coldly.
"Nonsense," Ye Nan said indifferently. "There wasn't even a previous stop to begin with, so where would a next stop come from."
Hearing the implication in his words, Lin Qingrou felt a chill run through her heart.
After a long silence, she finally spoke. "The girl is nice. You can tell she really likes you."
"Thanks for the compliment." Ye Nan replied with lukewarm indifference.
[Xu Dongyue is indeed nice!]
[Good-looking, and a good character too.]
[The key is, I'm a security guard, she does logistics—we're a match in status!]
Hearing Ye Nan's inner voice, a wave of inexplicable irritation washed over Lin Qingrou.
A match in status...
Thinking of how she had previously called him a stinking security guard at every turn, Lin Qingrou felt somewhat guilty.
"Still planning to work at Haiqing?"
Ye Nan was silent for a moment before smiling. "If President Lin doesn't mind, I wouldn't mind milking a bit more salary. After all, romance burns through money!"
[I don't have a choice about staying here anyway!]
[The old woman is in a dangerous situation right now; rather than leaving and protecting her from the shadows, staying put makes things more convenient.]
[Sigh... I'm still too soft-hearted. How come I didn't learn a single shred of that old bastard's ruthlessness!]
Lin Qingrou's mood instantly brightened up.
It was very odd; even she didn't know why.
This fellow still cared about her after all...
"Then let's get to work. Come with me to the Qi family." Lin Qingrou started the car.
"The Qi family?"
Ye Nan remembered that before the takeout poisoning incident, Lin Qingrou had mentioned going to the Qi family.
"Is that the Qi family that rivals the Zhao family?" Ye Nan asked, harboring a slim hope.
Lin Qingrou nodded.
Ye Nan sighed helplessly.
[Damn it!]
[Talk about enemies crossing paths!]
[I really fucking don't want to see that Qi Jingyao!]
[That woman is even more arrogant than the old woman.]
Hearing his inner voice, Lin Qingrou froze.
He actually knew Qi Jingyao?
Then, realization suddenly dawned on her.
Listening to this jerk's inner voice this morning, he said he tossed and turned all night with a woman surnamed Qi...
So it turned out to be Qi Jingyao!
Lin Qingrou was both shocked and angry.
You bastard, of all people to hook up with, you just had to hook up with Qi Jingyao!
Wait!
That little vixen with legs smoother than her own whom he mentioned in his inner voice—was that Qi Jingyao?!
Lin Qingrou almost lost her mind and blew a fuse.
She desperately wanted to shout and question Ye Nan: Are you blind or what?!
In all of Jiangling, she had topped the charts for years, and Qi Jingyao was always stuck in eternal second place, alright!
"Why are we suddenly going to the Qi family?" Ye Nan asked.
With a bad expression, Lin Qingrou gritted her teeth and forced down her anger. "Qi Jingyao suddenly came down with a strange illness."
"Huh?" Ye Nan furrowed his brows.
[She was fine just last night!]
[When she threw that hundred grand at me, she had plenty of energy!]
[How did she suddenly get sick?]
Lin Qingrou almost passed out from rage!
A hundred thousand?!
A hundred thousand was all it took to buy you?
Could you be any cheaper, you bastard?!
The clothes I bought you cost more than that amount—do you have any conscience left?!
"Do you know what the symptoms are?" Ye Nan pressed further.
"How would I know!" Lin Qingrou snapped back irritably. "We're on our way to check right now, aren't you annoyed with all your questions! Am I the boss or are you the boss?!"
Ye Nan was baffled.
[This old woman is so hard to serve, changing moods faster than once a minute during her period!]
[If I weren't afraid something happening to you would leave me with no way to report back, ghost if I'd take this abuse around you!]
Ye Nan wasn't without a temper either, so he immediately stopped talking, leaning back against the seat to rest his eyes.
Yet Lin Qingrou grew even more angry, and deeply aggrieved as well.
As a fiancé, you go fooling around with other women outside, and you still act righteous?!
Afraid something happens to me and you have no way to report back...
So it turns out you weren't caring about me...
Hah, fine, Ye Nan, you're something else!
Harboring their own grievances, the two maintained silence all the way.
Half an hour later, the car stopped in front of the gates of the Qi family's estate.
The moment Ye Nan stepped out of the car, he sensed something was amiss.
Such heavy foul energy!
The surroundings of this estate were actually permeated with a thick miasma of foul energy, utterly dead and lifeless.
Foul energy was different from yin energy; it could lean toward yin or yang depending entirely on the source of the foulness.
Living in a foul energy environment for a long time led to misfortune and clouded spirits at best, and lingering, bed-ridden illnesses at worst.
Someone was manipulating things from the shadows again!
Ye Nan narrowed his eyes.
Lin Qingrou followed him out of the car, looking shocked and bewildered.
She had heard Ye Nan's inner voice the entire way and couldn't help feeling somewhat terrified.
Naturally, ignorance bred fear when it came to these mysterious and eerie matters.
Fortunately, this guy was still around...
Lin Qingrou cast a complex glance at Ye Nan, her curiosity deepening all the while.
Just how many skills did he actually have?
Grandpa said his master was a Daoist priest...
It was normal for a Daoist priest to know a bit of feng shui and medicine, though...
Led by a guard, the two entered the Qi family's reception hall.
"President Lin, sorry to trouble you to make this trip in person. It's much appreciated!"
Qi Jingyao's father, Qi Kang, and mother, Li Ruomei, both wore expressions of deep worry.
However, there were also two unexpected guests in the reception hall.
"President Lin, you're here too?" Zhao Chuanping greeted with a beaming smile, acting as if nothing had happened.
"Zhao Chuanping?" Lin Qingrou's delicate brows furrowed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Why, to cure Ms. Qi of course!" Zhao Chuanping smugly pointed to a middle-aged man dressed in Daoist robes beside him. "This is Daoist Master Xuanyi, a high master I specially invited down from Taiping Mountain. He will definitely be able to cure Ms. Qi!"
Lin Qingrou pondered in silence.
It wasn't surprising for Zhao Chuanping to come to the Qi family to suck up and curry favor at a time like this.
After all, with the Zhao Group currently plunged into crisis, he would naturally rack his brains to rope in connections and pull himself out of the mire.
Yet what was strange was why he would directly bring a Daoist priest when Qi Jingyao fell ill.
Lin Qingrou had only learned from Ye Nan's inner voice that Qi Jingyao might have fallen ill due to metaphysical causes.
Could it be...
Lin Qingrou merely held suspicions in her heart.
While Ye Nan was certain.
The very first moment he laid eyes on the Daoist priest beside Zhao Chuanping, he recognized him from the aura the man was emitting.
[It's this fellow!]
[The aura on him is unmistakable—he's the one who set up the Yin-Gathering Formation at Haiqing's construction site!]
[The foul energy filling the Qi family's house is also his handiwork!]
[Ha, what a guy, self-directed and self-acted! First making Qi Jingyao sick, then coming in to play the savior so the Qi family owes him a colossal favor.]
[Young Master Zhao, nice script you've got there!]
Hearing Ye Nan's inner voice, Lin Qingrou's pretty face grew cold inch by inch, turning as frosty as ice.
She had previously thought Zhao Chuanping was merely coveting her and acting like an annoying pest.
She never imagined he could be such a despicable wretch!
"President Zhao, does this Daoist priest... really have a way? Yaoyao's illness... is a very strange one indeed!" Li Ruomei said with a worried expression.
"Auntie, just call me Chuanping!" Zhao Chuanping coaxed with a flattering smile. "Don't worry, Daoist Master Xuanyi possesses profound Daoist arts and miraculous methods. I've witnessed it with my own eyes!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Lin Qingrou spoke up coldly, "Uncle Qi, Auntie, don't be fooled. Zhao Chuanping and this Daoist priest harbor malicious intentions and cannot be trusted!"
Qi Kang and Li Ruomei exchanged glances, their expressions very subtle.
"President Lin, I know you have some grievances with the Zhao family." Qi Kang's face cooled. "My Qi family doesn't wish to get involved. But with my daughter's current condition looking grim, please refrain from arguing with President Zhao here."
Taken aback, Lin Qingrou immediately felt a pang of regret.
Her impulsive anxiety had made her look petty instead.
Zhao Chuanping smiled with the arrogance of a villain who had gotten his way. "Qingrou, I know you have prejudices against me, but let's save those matters for after we've treated Ms. Qi!"
With that, he turned to Qi Kang and Li Ruomei. "Uncle, Auntie, please have Daoist Master Xuanyi take a look at Ms. Qi first!"
Qi Kang nodded. "Please follow me, everyone."