C16 Run away

Upon witnessing Zhao Sheng kneel, Du Chen let out a cold laugh. "Mr. Zhao, as the CEO of a publicly traded company, do you think it's fitting to kneel before me?"

Drained of his earlier vitality, Zhao Sheng simply knelt in defeat. "Uncle Du, I'm begging you, please give me another chance to go back to work."

There was a secret Zhao Sheng had told no one: he had secured his CEO position by pandering to a wealthy woman for a year, performing all sorts of vile acts for her. If he were to be fired now, not only would he lose his current lifestyle, but if his deception of Zhou Yali came to light, he'd never recover.

"Here's the two hundred yuan you once tossed my way. I'm returning it to you now," Du Chen said, flinging the money at Zhao Sheng before icily adding, "You've brought this on yourself. You're reaping what you've sown." With that, he turned and entered the shop.

Zhao Sheng remained kneeling, his pleas for mercy echoing in desperation.

Inside the shop, Zhou Yali glanced at Zhao Sheng, who was still outside, kowtowing and begging. "Du Chen, what's going on with Zhao Sheng? I saw him pleading with you, asking for another chance?"

Lin Ying'er watched Zhao Sheng with visible revulsion. "Regardless of the reason, a man who stoops so low is utterly contemptible."

"It's nothing serious," Du Chen replied nonchalantly. "I've just uncovered his scheme with Liu Xiong and Lu Guang to defraud you, isn't that right, Liu Xiong?"

Liu Xiong's face turned pale with shock. "You know about Lu Guang? Zhao Sheng, run! Our plot has been unraveled!"

He took off running.

Zhou Yali was still processing the situation when Du Chen commanded the security guards, "Stop him!"

The two guards, previously eager to pursue Du Chen, now watched passively as Liu Xiong made his escape. It wasn't a matter of collusion; they simply had an instinctive reluctance to heed Du Chen's orders.

But in the next instant, Zhou Yali, no fool herself, realized she'd been duped. She erupted, "What are you doing, you imbecile guards? After him!"

The two security guards snapped to attention and hurried off with looks of confusion. They were still baffled as to why the boss was so concerned about what Du Chen had said.

After the guards had left, Lin Ying'er turned to Du Chen and sighed, "It turns out these two were in cahoots all along, deceiving us. I should have believed you from the start. Actually..."

"Actually what? It's all because of this loser!" Zhou Yali pointed at Du Chen and berated him, "You good-for-nothing! If you knew they were con artists, why didn't you speak up sooner? Are you waiting for me to grovel and apologize? Or perhaps you'd be thrilled to see me lose millions?"

Du Chen was at a loss for words; his mother-in-law was being completely irrational.

Lin Ying'er felt awkward. "Mom, that's not fair. Du Chen is the one who helped us. Without his timely intervention, we wouldn't have been able to reveal Zhao Sheng's true nature!"

"It's none of his business. Didn't you read the contract? The boss of Golden Age Entertainment fired Zhao Sheng. Clearly, it was the Golden Age boss who uncovered Zhao Sheng's deceit, not Du Chen, who just swooped in to claim the glory!" Zhou Yali said with scorn.

Du Chen sighed, "You sure have a wild imagination."

Mistaking his comment for an admission, Zhou Yali scoffed, "Can't keep up the act? I had already considered reaching out to the boss of Golden Age Entertainment for help."

"Ying'er, what's the boss of Golden Age Entertainment like? He not only lavished money to woo you with Creekside Bistro but also acquired Zhao Sheng's company to expose their fraud. Could he be an old suitor of yours? Maybe you should get in touch?"

Du Chen's patience with Zhou Yali had reached its breaking point. He retorted icily, "I'm still here, and you're already looking for a new man for Ying'er? Rushing into things will only lead to disaster. Besides, in this world, only I can give Ying'er the happiness she deserves because my love for her is genuine."

"Love? We have no use for your penniless affection! Just leave!" Zhou Yali, preoccupied with thoughts of the Golden Age Entertainment boss, looked down on Du Chen with disdain. "Don't think you're anything special just because Zhao Sheng bowed down to you. You'll never measure up to the boss of Golden Age Entertainment, not in this lifetime!"

"Du Chen, head on back for now. I'm just not up for sorting out our issues today. Plus, I need you to take a couple of days to think about how we should handle our relationship," Lin Ying'er had expected Du Chen to seize the chance to ingratiate himself with her mother, but his defiance caught her off guard. He really had no sense of propriety or timing.

On top of that, there was still the unresolved issue of Du Chen deceiving her about the Creekside Bistro, not to mention the credit he claimed wasn't even his to take.

He merely gave a warning without any solid proof, inadvertently tipping off Liu Xiong, who managed to make a clean getaway!

Du Chen hadn't anticipated such a swift betrayal from the mother-daughter duo. While Zhou Yali was of no concern to him, he turned to Lin Ying'er with a tender gaze and said, "You've got ten million yuan worth of goods on your hands. I can help... well, I can get a friend to help you deal with it. Let me go home for now; I'm worried you won't eat well these next few days."

Zhou Yali let out a derisive laugh. "Don't fret over us. Daughter, later we'll head over to Golden Age Entertainment to meet the boss and have a serious talk, see if he's interested in taking off our hands the merchandise."

Lin Ying'er, reluctant to discuss seeking help from another man in front of Du Chen, resisted, "Mom, it's late. Let's go tomorrow."

Du Chen chimed in, "Yeah, let's head home for now."

"Home? You can go wherever you please. If Ying'er won't go to Golden Age Entertainment, then I'll go alone!" Zhou Yali declared, striding off with Lin Ying'er, as if she were already the mother-in-law to the entertainment giant's owner.

Du Chen was left speechless. He couldn't even begin to imagine his mother-in-law's reaction if she knew he was actually the owner of Golden Age Entertainment.

As he watched Zhou Yali and her daughter drive away, Du Chen made his way back to Golden Age Entertainment. Even without revealing who he was, he figured he could still improve Zhou Yali's attitude toward him.

But just as he was about to set off, a van suddenly barreled toward him, and several figures jumped out, quickly encircling Du Chen.

"Who are you people?" Du Chen asked, his hand instinctively reaching for his waist.

Previously, the old butler had equipped him with a custom-made belt, complete with a panic button. A single press would alert the butler to come to his rescue. The belt also featured a recording device, allowing the butler to stay informed about any incidents occurring around Du Chen.

The ringleader of the thugs let out a cold laugh. "Listen up, kid, Mr. Kui wants a word with you. Come with us!"

Du Chen, taken aback, responded, "Wang Kui? I thought he'd turned over a new leaf?"

"Turned over a new leaf my ass! You asking for a beating? Get in the car!" the thugs shouted as they advanced on him.

"Fine, I'll get in," Du Chen said, his expression chilling as he made his decision.

He wasn't scared; he simply wanted to find out what Wang Kui was up to. Was he feigning reform to lure Du Chen into a business trap?

If that were true, Wang Kui needed to be dealt with. Otherwise, who knew what damage he could do to Du Chen's reputation?

The thugs looked at Du Chen with contempt, the leader hurling insults. "Just like Lu Feng said, you're nothing but a coward!"

Du Chen's face flickered with recognition. So, Lu Feng was involved too?

Could this have something to do with the class reunion?

The van soon pulled up to Wang Kui's establishment, the Big East Foot Bath City. The yellow-haired thug led Du Chen into the lobby, which had been cleared out except for Lu Feng and a group of classmates enjoying foot massages.

Upon seeing Du Chen, Lu Feng's face twisted into a malevolent sneer. "Du Chen, you don't have your wife's lover to hide behind now. Kneel before me, or I'll have Mr. Kui break you!"

Lu Feng was eager to settle a score from a past humiliation and was pressing Du Chen to kneel.

Du Chen surveyed the room. His so-called 'good classmates' stood by, watching with cold indifference, some even reveling in his misfortune.

Wang Kui's henchmen were also there, grinning menacingly as they clutched their weapons. A few toyed with butterfly knives, looking ready to attack at the slightest provocation.

"It's quite the spectacle!" Du Chen said sternly, his face expressionless. "Who is Wang Kui?"