Once they got into the car, Yang Feng absentmindedly asked her, "Shall I make their stock worth nothing or bankrupt the company overall?""Why not both?" She responded in an apathetic manner as she stared out the window. It was strange. When she saw Zheng Tianyi today, she did not feel anything. She was not scared to see him nor did her heart feel a painful jab.
"Okay." He easily said, surprising her.
She thought he was joking. "Don"t do both. It"ll be suspicious." She said, turning to face him. She saw that he was already on his phone to send out the orders.
"Drop the value of their stock. You can bankrupt him when there is a valid enough reason. If not, the public will severely criticize you." She wisely advised him.
"The media companies will not dare to report this, but Zheng Tianyi will have his way and use smaller sources to broadcast what happened. When he does, it will not look good for Yang Enterprise." She worriedly said, grabbing his phone, something he could"ve easily prevented her from doing. He wanted her to give him attention and it seemed this little plan of his worked.
"Okay, I"ll completely ruin him once the reason is valid enough." He smiled the slightest bit upon seeing the panic in her eyes. It warmed his heart to see her be so fearful about the public"s opinion of Yang Enterprise.
- - - - -
By the time the two finished their delightfully aromatic and delicious meal, word of what happened at Yang Enterprise had spread like wildfire. With Yang Feng paying out the media companies and journalists to amplify the flames, it did not take long for Zheng Corporation to suffer another fall. The public criticized Zheng Tianyi for his behavior and many more even mocking him.
Of course, Zhao Lifei"s name was completely left out of it — something Yang Feng wholeheartedly ensured. There were even a few people that spoke about how they sympathized with her because she had spent years chasing after such a worthless man.
Back home, Yang Feng had just entered the master bedroom when he realized something was missing from his nightstand. He loosened his tie and tossed it on the couch, unb.u.t.toning the top half of his dress s.h.i.+rt to reveal the slightest sliver of his muscular chest.
He smirked when he saw her staring at it, then quickly averting her eyes upon being caught. "What happened to the lamp?" He asked her while unb.u.t.toning the rest of his dress s.h.i.+rt, then taking off his suit.
"I broke it." She mumbled, like a sullen child who was caught red-handed trying to steal from the cookie jar.
"Why?"
"I don"t know." She responded, placing down her purse and walking into the closet to put everything back where it belonged. She chastised herself for this morning"s behavior and prayed she would not repeat it. But then again, it was not a guarantee, for she was the type to not think clearly when angered and hurt.
"Is that how you hurt your finger?" He gently asked, following after her and hugging her from behind, one arm coming over her stomach and the other holding her delicate fingers.
"Yeah…" She trailed off, her body easing into his. She could feel the muscles in his chest contract when he hugged her tighter.
"I"m sorry, I should"ve told you about my plan sooner." He sighed, kissing the side of her head.
She felt her heart skip a beat at his gestures. He was so kind to her, she did not know how to respond to it…
"The lamp must"ve been expensive." She turned around and took him by surprise when she hugged him back. "It was really beautiful too." She added on, raising her head to look at him.
"There is an auction coming up soon. I"ll see if they"re auctioning a stained-gla.s.s lamp." The lamp itself was extremely expensive as it was beautiful, but to Zhao Lifei, nothing in this world was pricey. All of it boiled down to how easily obtainable it was. And currently, the lamp was hard to get.
"You don"t have to." He brushed a few strands of her hair to the side, "I"ll get one by tomorrow."
Zhao Lifei sighed at his doting behavior before pinching his nose. "I broke it, so I"ll pay for it." When he opened his mouth, she stood on her toes and kissed it. "Stop arguing with me."
Dazed by the short kiss, he nodded and tightened his arms around her. "Kiss me again and I"ll think about it."
Zhao Lifei laughed at his words before saying, "You"re too tall." She tried to leave his arms, but he would not let her.
"Yang Feng!" She gasped when he suddenly picked her up again, for the second time today, and took her to the enormous bed fit for five people. He gingerly placed her down and climbed on top of her, but placed all of his weight on his arms.
"Now I"m not." He leaned his face down, waiting for her kisses.
"Fine, close your eyes." She said, watching as he obediently did so. Then she laid back down on the bed, watching as his brows furrowed together when the seconds pa.s.sed and she still did not kiss him.
When his eyes flew open in anger, she giggled. He felt his heart being squeezed upon hearing her laughter, sweet and gentle, warming his entire body.
"Ha. Ha. Very funny." He sarcastically replied, shaking his head. Just then, his phone rang.
She pushed his chest. "Go answer it." She watched as he reluctantly stood up, answered the phone, and then sat back down on the bed. His back, wide and tense, his daunting muscles visible from being freed from the s.h.i.+rt. She admired his shoulder blades, the way it moved when he s.h.i.+fted the phone to his other ear.
"I"ll be there, mother." He nonchalantly answered, his voice rigid and professional, as it always was. It was hard for him to be warm around his parents or anyone in general. He never opened his heart up to anyone aside from Zhao Lifei...perhaps that could change in the future if there were mini-hers running around the house.
Fan Jielan glanced around her to make sure her husband was nowhere in sight, then she said, "Will you bring that woman of yours?"
"Her name is Zhao Lifei."
"Yes, yes, of course, my dear son. Will you be bringing Zhao Lifei?"
"Are you going to antagonize her?"
"You should worry about your father instead!" Fan Jielan did not like the way her son criticized her. "I am actually quite fond of her. Both of us were not…" She paused mid-sentence. She did not want to even fathom that hateful thought anymore. "Your father still does not like her."
"He doesn"t have to. He"s not the one marrying her."
Zhao Lifei blinked, finally realizing he was talking about her. She leaned on his shoulders, feeling his body become tense before relaxing when she wrapped her arms around him.
"Don"t sa.s.s me, young man." Fan Jielan frowned, "It"s not good to have that mentality. You youngsters these days are so bold. The blessing of your family when it comes to marriage is very crucial. It is the basic principles of—"
"Grandfather has given his blessings."
Fan Jielan was stunned to the core. She was tongue-tied. That incredibly hard-to-please man did what?!
Even when she got married to Yang Qianlu, it took a while for her to get Elder Yang"s blessing. In the end, they had to get married without it. Even so, it took years for him to eventually see her as Madam Yang, and that alone was not an easy feat. She had to sacrifice her firstborn son to get the t.i.tle.