My Queen, My Rules - Chapter 65

Chapter 65

In Cen Yuanchao’s eyes, his daughter-in-law Ji Mingshu going on a show and getting on a trending search were just minor trifles of children at play; the so-called public opinion was nothing more than something that could be resolved by a flick of a finger.

He never even considered that Cen Sen would return to the country immediately because of such a trivial matter without even finalizing the cooperation to one hundred percent certainty. In his eyes, Cen Sen was simply not the type of person to act on impulse or fail to distinguish between the priorities of matters.

Therefore, he was quite puzzled by Cen Sen’s recent actions.

Yet, the older Cen Sen got, the less he was willing to offer him any explanation.

In truth, Ji Mingshu also felt that Cen Sen wasn't that type of person, but this time, his overnight rush back really seemed to be solely for her little affair.

Although the tide of public opinion had already shifted by the time he rushed back, hadn't he also personally comforted her wounded heart and presented her with an island where one could see the aurora?

During the brief moment that Ji Mingshu was slightly distracted, the conversation in the study had already shifted to topics unrelated to Cen Sen. She held her breath and tiptoed away.

All the way back to her room, Ji Mingshu was somewhat absent-minded. She sat at her desk, lost in a daze for a while, before she pushed open half of the latticed window to admire the snow.

The snow of midwinter fell as thick and dense as goose feathers. Through the narrow bend of the corridor half a zhang long, the clear, piercing wind poured in. She rested her chin on her hands, lost in thought, her mind drifting far, far away.

"…The asset restructuring of Borui will not be completed until after the New Year at the earliest. It’s hard to say if they can return to the A-share market in the first half of the year. After the restructuring and share reform, their relationship with Haichuan may not necessarily be closer than it is now. Aren't there several other companies with synergistic effects interested in injecting capital?"

"That’s what’s said, but if Haichuan isn't close to them, can they be close to us? If they can steal this round of investment, then basically there is no possibility of cooperation with our side. Even if there is an intention to cooperate, the possibility of them opening their mouths like lions is also very high." Another person refuted as such.

The headquarters of the Nanwan Development Company was located on the eleventh floor of the Huadian Building.

The project investment of the French-Chinese Vincent had been intercepted by Haichuan Capital, where Cen Yang worked, to be used for the development of new energy business after Borui’s restructuring. As a result, a massive hole appeared in the budget for the construction funds of the Nanwan Phase II ring-island overpass. For several days in a row, the persons in charge of relevant projects gathered here to hold meetings and discuss.

It wasn't that the Nanwan Phase II ring-island construction lacked a Plan B or Plan C, but compared to Plan A—which would go smoothly if they successfully secured this investment—the remaining options were not the optimal solutions.

Moreover, squeezing money meant it would inevitably have some impact on the interests of everyone present, affecting the whole situation. The games played over the past few days were mainly centered around the distribution of benefits from the remaining plans.

In fact, the development prospects and return potential of Nanwan were more than a level higher than Borui’s new energy project, but compared to the investment cycle and short-term rate of return, the latter had obvious advantages.

Someone proposed negotiating cooperation with Haichuan Capital, but the representatives from both the Cen and Ji families in attendance did not seem to approve of this idea.

—They were all too familiar with the head of Haichuan Capital’s Greater China region. That things had reached this point was something Cen Yang had deliberately brought about, so why bother talking about the word "cooperation."

After the meeting ended, Cen Sen checked the time, planning to return to Junyi to sign some documents that needed to be issued before the New Year.

But Zhou Jiaheng suddenly called out to him from half a step behind: "Boss, there’s a call."

Cen Sen paused and looked back slightly.

Zhou Jiaheng stepped forward and handed the phone into Cen Sen’s hand, then quietly retreated to his original position, clearing his throat: "It’s… Mr. Cen Yang from Haichuan."

Cen Sen lowered his eyes to look at the caller ID and answered with a calm expression.

On the other end of the line, Cen Yang didn't bother with subtle greetings and went straight to the point: "The New Year is almost here. I have prepared some gifts for Grandfather, Grandmother, Dad, Mom, and Xiaoshu. I will send them to Nanqiao Hutong in a couple of days, I hope President Cen won't mind."

Cen Sen did not respond.

"But President Cen doesn't seem to be in the mood to mind right now. About the matter with Vincent, I am truly sorry."

Cen Yang’s voice was clear, warm, and moist. When some things were said in that resonant, melodious voice of his, it always made people feel confused, as if it were hard to distinguish whether it was sarcasm or a genuine apology.

"There's no need for Nanqiao Hutong. Just send them directly to the cemetery, give them all to Mother." Cen Sen’s tone of voice was very casual, as if he were discussing tomorrow’s weather, and then he added with a hint of mockery: "Thank you, Mr. An Yang."

Zhou Jiaheng had been bursting with a desire to survive lately. Sitting in the passenger seat, he didn't forget to silently jot down a new "knowledge point": from now on, you can't call him Cen Yang; you have to call him An Yang. Yes, even President Cen calls him An Yang.

After Cen Sen said this, there was a long silence on the other end of the line. It was unclear whether the mention of "sending to the cemetery" had stirred up his memories or if the name "An Yang" had stung him.

Cen Sen didn't care much, just adding: "I originally thought that you wouldn't go so far as to attack a woman. I really overestimated you."

His voice grew colder and colder, the tail end curling slightly upward, filled with utter contempt and indifference. Before Cen Yang could respond, he cleanly hung up the phone.

Those who battle in the business world do not believe that anything is an accident or coincidence. The moment the change occurred on Vincent’s side, Cen Sen had already investigated the tricks Cen Yang had pulled behind the scenes.

The incident where Ji Mingshu was maliciously edited looked, on the surface, like Yan Yuexing and the production team had cooperated to pick a "good day" to commit a grand act of self-destruction.

But earlier, when Ji Mingshu met with Cen Yang, she had inadvertently mentioned some things that happened while she participated in the show, including the occasional slights from the production team during recording and the unpleasantness that occurred between her and Yan Yuexing.

Cen Yang was a calculated person. He followed those things she inadvertently mentioned and dug deeper. Before the show aired, he used some methods to add fuel to the fire. In the end, the production team and Yan Yuexing divided the blame clearly; he left no trace, and his hands were completely clean.

In fact, his original intention was merely to have Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen have another row. Just like Cen Yuanchao, he never expected that Cen Sen would return to the country early because of this matter.

But since Cen Sen had served the mistake up on a silver platter, there was no reason for him not to pick it up.

—He had never thought about returning to the Cen family, nor did he want to get anything more from the Cen family. But such a cold-blooded family like the Cen family did not deserve a moment of peace, and they never would.

It started from the year Cen Sen decided it was either "you or me"; from the year Cen Yuanchao sent him away without offering half a word of explanation; from the moment Cen Yuanchao knew the blood flowing in his bones was not from the Cen family line and refused to offer a helping hand.

He had once loved this family deeply, and later, he hated them just as much.

Whether Cen Yang’s gifts were finally sent to the cemetery or to Nanqiao Hutong, Cen Sen did not care; as long as Ji Mingshu didn't receive them, it was fine.

Before New Year’s Eve, Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu returned from the suburban villa to the Ming Shui Mansion.

However, Cen Sen remained busy every day. Ji Mingshu tried several times to ask him about the project investment being intercepted by Cen Yang, but she was either interrupted by his sudden phone calls, or she would lose her nerve and change the subject.

Because no matter from what angle she asked him, it seemed she couldn't escape the question: "Why did you do this?"

He could have handled everything completely before returning… if Cen Sen had acted on impulse because of her, she would feel a bit guilty. And if Cen Sen had other arrangements and it wasn't an impulse for her, she wouldn't feel happy about that answer either. So she was very conflicted, going around in circles, and never managed to ask the question aloud.

During the New Year, many young socialites developing abroad would take the time to return to the Imperial Capital. The city was even more lively than usual, with one party after another occurring in succession.

The 29th happened to be Vivian’s birthday, and both Ji Mingshu and Jiang Chun brought gifts to attend the birthday party.

The young girl Vivian was a fanatical fan of celebrities. Ten years ago, she had already performed the heroic feat of lying to her driver so he would take her to the airport to greet a Korean celebrity. Over the past few years, she had chased them all over the country and abroad. She was even very cross-disciplinary, chasing painters, pianists, and athletes alike. If not for the limitations of objective conditions, she probably would have chased after figures from ancient to modern times, both foreign and domestic.

This led to the birthday party scene being particularly mixed. One moment a rock singer would come to belt out a song, the next a pianist would appear to play world-famous melodies, followed by boy bands dancing, or athletes performing freestyle football, making the scene lively and fragmented.

Seeing Ji Mingshu absent-minded, Jiang Chun asked while eating a cupcake: "What’s wrong with you?"

Ji Mingshu rested her chin on her hands, sighed, and said dejectedly: "Nothing."

Jiang Chun guessed casually: "You’re not pregnant, are you?"

"What nonsense are you spouting…" Ji Mingshu looked at her with the eyes one might use for someone intellectually disabled.

Jiang Chun still felt her guess was very reasonable, using her young sister-in-law’s recent symptoms of pregnancy—lack of appetite and lethargy—to give Ji Mingshu examples.

Ji Mingshu promptly called a halt and changed the subject: "Wait, let’s not talk about that for now. Let me ask you something. I mean, do you usually prepare any gifts for Tang Zhizhou? For example, if you did something to wrong Tang Zhizhou, and Tang Zhizhou was relatively tired and exhausted, what would you give him or do to comfort him…"

"What could I possibly do to wrong Tang Zhizhou? Wait, you didn't do something to wrong Cen Sen, did you? You cheated? With that childhood sweetheart boy of yours?"

Jiang Chun was boisterous, her eyes wide, unaware that cake was smeared all over the corner of her mouth.

Ji Mingshu closed her eyes, then picked up a tissue and covered Jiang Chun’s face with it, waving her hand to signal this little "earth goose" who was never on the same wavelength as her to enter "mute" mode immediately—to let her have some peace.

Jiang Chun was muted, but the mixed performances on stage wouldn't be. Seeing that many people were recording videos of the stage, Ji Mingshu, without knowing why, took out her phone to record a few short videos and sent them to Cen Sen.

After sending them, she deliberated over her text.

Ji Mingshu: [I’m attending a friend’s birthday party. Are you very tired at the office? Do you want to watch a performance to relax?]

A little while later, Cen Sen replied: [The level of the performance needs to be tightened.]

She looked back at the video she recorded. Oh, it turned out she had just happened to record a male idol pulling up his shirt.

Ji Mingshu: [I can leave after the cake is cut in a bit. You’re at the office, right? Do you want me to bring you a piece of cake? Or is there something else you want to eat? There’s a soup shop nearby that I saw was still open when I drove by.]

The top of the chat interface displayed "the other party is typing" several times, but no content was ever sent over. Ji Mingshu was a bit puzzled.

Cen Sen was even more puzzled than her. For a mature man, the thing he feared most was likely the sudden concern of his wife.

He thought for a long while before finally replying: [Has the item you want to buy exceeded your limit?]