My Queen, My Rules - 65
Concern
To Cen Yuanchao, his daughter-in-law's stint on a reality show and the subsequent trending topics was nothing more than young people's nonsense. So-called public opinion was the sort of problem that could be solved with the flick of a finger.
It never even crossed his mind that Cen Sen would abandon a business negotiation before every last detail was secured over something so trivial. In his eyes, Cen Sen simply wasn't the type to lose his head or misjudge priorities.
That was precisely why he couldn't understand Cen Sen's actions this time.
Unfortunately, the older Cen Sen grew, the less inclined he became to explain himself.
Truthfully, Ji Mingshu also didn't believe Cen Sen was that kind of person.
And yet this time, his overnight flight home really did seem to be because of her “trivial matter.”
Even though the online tide had already turned in her favor by the time he returned, hadn't he still… personally consoled her wounded heart and gifted her an island with aurora views?
While Ji Mingshu was distracted by those thoughts, the conversation in the study had already drifted to another topic. Holding her breath, she quietly slipped away.
She remained absentminded all the way back to her room. After staring blankly at her desk for a while, she pushed open half of the lattice window and watched the snow fall.
Heavy flakes drifted down in thick, feather-like clusters. Beyond the narrow covered walkway, icy winter wind poured inside. Resting her chin in both hands, she gazed into the snowy courtyard, her thoughts wandering farther and farther away.
"...Borui's restructuring won't be completed until after the New Year at the earliest. Whether it can relist on the A-share market in the first half of the year is still uncertain. Even after the restructuring and share reform, there's no guarantee their relationship with Haichuan will be any closer than it is now. Besides, haven't several other companies with strong synergy already expressed interest in injecting capital?"
"That's true, but if they won't be close with Haichuan, they're certainly not going to be close with us either. Since Haichuan managed to intercept this investment away from us, cooperation between us is practically impossible now. Even if they were open to it, the chances of them making exorbitant demands are very high."
The headquarters of Nanwan Development occupied the eleventh floor of Huadian Tower.
The project investment from the French-born Chinese investor Vincent had been intercepted by Haichuan Capital, where Cen Yang now worked. The funds were being redirected toward Borui's post-restructuring new energy division, leaving a significant funding gap for the Phase Two Nanwan ring bridge project. For several days in a row, the project's key decision-makers gathered here to discuss possible solutions.
It wasn't that there were no alternative plans. But compared with Plan A, which relied on securing Vincent's investment and allowed the project to proceed exactly as intended, every alternative was simply less than ideal.
More importantly, every yuan had to be squeezed from somewhere else, and any redistribution of funds would inevitably affect everyone seated around the conference table. Over the past few days, nearly all of their negotiations had centered on how to divide those competing interests.
In truth, Nanwan's long-term prospects and potential returns far exceeded Borui's new energy project. However, Borui held a clear advantage when it came to investment cycle and short-term profitability.
Someone suggested approaching Haichuan Capital about a partnership, but neither the representatives of the Cen family nor the Ji family supported the proposal.
They knew the head of Haichuan Capital's Greater China division all too well. Today's situation existed because Cen Yang had orchestrated it himself. There was little point discussing "cooperation."
After the meeting ended, Cen Sen checked the time, planning to return to Junyi to sign several documents that needed to be issued before the New Year.
Just then, Zhou Jiaheng called from half a step behind him. "Boss, you have a call."
Cen Sen stopped and glanced back.
Zhou Jiaheng stepped forward to hand him the phone, then quietly retreated to his previous position before clearing his throat. "It's... Mr. Cen Yang from Haichuan."
Looking down at the caller ID, Cen Sen answered without expression.
There were no pleasantries on the other end. "The New Year is almost here," Cen Yang said calmly. "I've prepared gifts for Grandpa, Grandma, Dad, Mom, and Xiao Shu. I'll deliver them to Nanqiao Hutong in a couple of days. I hope President Cen won't mind."
Cen Sen didn't respond.
"Though I suppose President Cen not in the mood to mind right now. My apologies about the Vincent situation.”
Cen Yang possessed a clear, refined voice, as smooth as polished jade. Spoken in that voice, words like those always left people uncertain whether they were hearing genuine remorse or carefully veiled mockery.
"No need to send anything to Nanqiao Hutong," Cen Sen replied casually, as though discussing tomorrow's weather. "Take them straight to the cemetery instead. Give them all to Mom."
After a brief pause, he added with faint sarcasm, "Thank you, Mr. An Yang."
Ever since his recent string of mistakes, Zhou Jiaheng's survival instincts been at an all-time high lately. Sitting quietly in the passenger seat, he mentally noted another important reminder: Don't call him Cen Yang. President Cen calls him An Yang. So An Yang it is.
After Cen Sen finished speaking, silence lingered on the other end for several moments. Perhaps the mention of “the cemetery” stirred memories, or the name "An Yang" itself had struck a nerve.
Cen Sen didn't particularly care, he continued coolly, "I used to think that at least you wouldn't drag a woman into your schemes. Looks like I overestimated you."
His voice grew even colder. The slight upward lift at the end of each sentence carried unmistakable contempt. Without waiting for a response, he decisively ended the call.
People who survived in the business world rarely believed in coincidence.
The moment Vincent's investment changed hands, Cen Sen had already uncovered exactly how Cen Yang had manipulated events behind the scenes.
On the surface, Ji Mingshu's malicious editing incident simply looked like the result of Yan Yuexing working together with the production team to choose the perfect day to commit career suicide.
But when Ji Mingshu had a meal Cen Yang earlier, she'd casually mentioned some of her experiences during filming, including the production team's occasional disregard for her and her unpleasant interactions with Yan Yuexing.
Cen Yang was a calculating man. Following those casual remarks, he quietly dug deeper. Before the program aired, he nudged events along with a few discreet moves of his own. In the end, the production team and Yan Yuexing shouldered all the blame while he remained completely invisible, his hands perfectly clean.
Originally, he'd only intended to provoke another conflict between Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen. Like Cen Yuanchao, he'd never imagined Cen Sen would actually return early to China because of it.
But when Cen Sen personally handed him an opening, he saw no reason not to seize it.
He had never wanted to return to the Cen family. Nor had he ever wanted anything from them again. But a family as cold-blooded as the Cens didn't deserve a single moment of peace. Not on his watch.
Not since the year Cen Sen declared, “It's him or me”; not since the year Cen Yuanchao sent him away without offering so much as a single explanation; not since the moment Cen Yuanchao learned the blood in his veins wasn't truly the Cen family's, and chose not to save him.
However much he had once loved this family, he now hated them tenfold.
Whether Cen Yang's gifts ultimately ended up at the cemetery or at Nanqiao Hutong was of no concern to Cen Sen. As long as Ji Mingshu never received them.
Before Lunar New Year's Eve, Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu returned from the suburban estate to Mingshui Manor.
Even then, Cen Sen remained busy from morning until night. Several times, Ji Mingshu tried to ask him about the intercepted investment, but either a phone call interrupted him at exactly the wrong moment, or she lost her nerve and changed the subject herself.
No matter how she framed the question, question, it seemed to boil down to one thing: Why did you do that?
He could have finished everything before coming home…If he'd rushed back impulsively for her sake, she'd feel guilty.
But if he'd had another plan all along, and his return wasn't an impulse for her... somehow that answer wouldn't make her happy either.
Trapped in this loop, she never managed to ask.
Around the New Year, many wealthy young men and women living overseas returned to the capital. The city was livelier than ever. One gathering followed another without end.
The twenty-ninth happened to be Vivian's birthday, so both Ji Mingshu and Jiang Chun brought presents to celebrate at her birthday party.
Vivian was an avid star-fangirl. More than ten years ago, she'd even lied to her driver just so she could meet her favorite Korean idol at the airport. Over the years she'd chased celebrities from both China and abroad, and her tastes were astonishingly broad. Singers, painters, pianists, athletes. If reality hadn't imposed limits, she probably would've become a fan across both history and geography.
This resulted in an exceptionally eclectic birthday party. One moment a rock singer took the stage, the next a concert pianist performed a world-famous masterpiece. Then came an idol group's dance performance, followed by an athlete putting on a freestyle football show. It was lively, bizarre, and somehow all worked together.
Noticing Ji Mingshu's distracted mood, Jiang Chun asked between bites of cake, "What's wrong with you?"
Resting her chin in her hand, Ji Mingshu sighed. "Nothing."
Jiang Chun guessed casually, "You're not pregnant, are you?"
"What nonsense are you talking about..." Ji Mingshu looked at her as though she'd lost her mind.
Completely convinced her theory was perfectly logical, Jiang Chun began citing her recently pregnant sister-in-law as evidence, describing the poor appetite and constant lethargy she'd been showing.
Ji Mingshu quickly cut her off. "Forget that. Let me ask you something. Do you ever buy Tang Zhizhou gifts? Like... if you've done something… not great, or if he's been working really hard and seems exhausted... would you get him something? Or try to comfort him somehow?"
“What could I possibly do to Tang Zhizhou that's ‘not great’? Jiang Chun's eyes widened. "Wait did you do something to Cen Sen? You cheated on him? With that childhood sweetheart of yours?"
Jiang Chun exclaimed loudly, her eyes widened. She was so worked up, she didn't even notice frosting had smeared across the corner of her mouth.
Ji Mingshu closed her eyes in defeat. She grabbed a napkin, slapped it gently over Jiang Chun's face, and waved a hand to signal this clueless goose to enter silent mode immediately so she could have a moment of peace.
Jiang Chun fell silent.
The party, however, most certainly did not.
Watching everyone else recording videos of the performances, Ji Mingshu pulled out her own phone on a whim and filmed several short clips before sending them to Cen Sen.
Afterward, she spent quite a while deciding what to write.
Ji Mingshu: [I'm at a friend's birthday party. Are you still working at the office? It must be exhausting. Want to watch some performances and relax for a bit?]
A short while later, Cen Sen replied: [The performances could stand to be a little less revealing.]
She replayed the videos she'd sent.
Oh.
She'd accidentally captured the moment the male idol lifted his shirt.
Ji Mingshu: [We're cutting the cake soon, then I'll leave. You're still at the office, right? Want me to bring you a slice? Or is there something else you'd like to eat? I passed a soup restaurant on the way here, it should still bel open.]
Several times, the words ‘Typing…’ appeared at the top of the chat window. But no message ever arrived. Ji Mingshu was puzzled.
Cen Sen was even more bewildered. For a grown man, few things were more frightening than his wife's sudden unexplained concern.
He thought for a long moment and finally replied: [Did you find something you want to buy that's exceeds your spending limit?]
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