Every night was supposed to be the peak hours for Mingge Bar, but today, he closed the shop early.

Outside, the weather was dry and cold, and he watched the nightfall, unsure if it would rain again tonight.

There were two guests coming tonight.

After ten o’clock, footsteps could be heard outside.

Ming Ge opened the door, and the first to enter was a tall young man in a black windbreaker, accompanied by a young man with a baby face who looked to be around twenty, with small tiger teeth, giving off an intellectual vibe.

“Quite punctual,” Mingge muttered as he opened the door.

He didn’t recognize the baby-faced one and gave him a few more glances.

“Here to help the boss out,” the baby-faced one introduced himself, “My name is Fang Deng. I’ve known the boss for a long time. Oh, I’m also from Ancheng.”

“I haven’t seen you before,” Ming Ge murmured, feeling amazed at the network this kid had.

He had no idea what Qin Si had been up to these years.

Qin Si had completely vanished, even cutting off contact with Ming Ge. It wasn’t until he returned to Ancheng this time that they reconnected.

He had left in a hurry back then, without any explanation.

Ming Ge sometimes worried about him being in danger outside.

It wasn’t until Qin Si came back that Ming Ge was worrying about expanding the bar and having trouble finding a good location.

Qin Si simply took care of it the next day without Ming Ge having to intervene.

Ming Ge only realized belatedly that Qin Si must be doing quite well now.

At least the old Qin Si didn’t have this ability.

But Ming Ge wasn’t surprised.

He had long thought that Qin Si would have a bright future.

Fang Deng wasn’t much of a drinker.

He had his laptop with him and was tinkering with it in the corner, not interrupting their conversation.

Ming Ge glanced at Qin Si and said, “I heard that Nian Nian’s engagement party is the day after tomorrow?”

“It will be canceled,” Qin Si said, putting down his glass.

“Canceled?” Mingge was surprised. “If it’s canceled, what are your plans afterward?”

“She will move in with me,” Qin Si said.

Move in together?

Mingge thought that Qin Si had left so abruptly back then, and it was obvious that Lu Nian was unaware of it.

Now, she was willing to forgive him so quickly and even agreed to live together.

Nian Nian’s temper had become too good, hadn’t it?

He then asked, “How did you tell Lu Nian about it?”

“To Lu Zhihong,” Qin Si said briefly.

“His company can’t do without us now.”

Ming Ge took a while to react, his eyes widened. “Damn, aren’t you going there to threaten them? Threaten them to give their daughter to you?”

Qin Si fell silent again.

His silence basically confirmed it.

Ming Ge couldn’t say anything for a while. “Is this how you pursue someone?”

“For several years, you didn’t come back, ignored her completely, and then suddenly popped up, forced her to cancel the engagement, and live with you. Is this something a decent person would do?”

The young man tightened his grip on the cup, not saying a word in response.

He had always been stubborn like this since he was a child, with high self-esteem and sensitivity.

Sometimes his thoughts were so extreme that Ming Ge found them frightening.

“What have you been doing these years?” Ming Ge tried to calm his emotions. “Why didn’t you care about her for so many years?”

Qin Si was someone he had watched grow up.

Minggl Ge had always cared for him and basically treated him as family.

However, when it came to Lu Nian, he had always treated her as his own little sister.

Ming Ge’s thought process was simple; he just thought that what Qin Si did was unfair, very unfair.

Fang Deng couldn’t bear it and closed his laptop. “Bro, there’s no other way.”

“Qin Ge didn’t ignore her,” he said.

Mingge said, “Then give us an explanation.”

Fang Deng could only say, “It’s related to our internal affairs. It’s something you wouldn’t understand.”

“Oh, only you cultured people understand, huh?” Ming Ge said sarcastically.

Ming Ge looked at Qin Si. “This method of chasing someone is ridiculous. If you like someone, you should try to show yourself more to them, make them like you, make them love you. Forcing her to marry you like this, what’s the point?”

“I know you’re used to this,” Ming Ge softened his tone a bit, “but this isn’t the same as when you fought for territory as a kid or when you negotiated business in the market.”

Coercion, manipulation, and using various means and tactics to achieve your goals.

He also knew that Qin Si had always been a person with a strong sense of insecurity, especially in front of Lu Nian, always loving her in a humble and restrained manner.

But, being in love is not the same thing.

He pressed his lips together, “I can only do it this way.”

He didn’t expect Lu Nian to have deep feelings for him.

He could only rely on these methods to plan everything and keep her by his side.

He endured these few years.

When he came back and saw her standing hand in hand with Zhao Yayuan, he almost lost all his self-control, but managed to restrain himself.

He told himself to calm down, just one step away from the end.

Fang Deng said to Ming Ge, “Brother, there are many things we don’t understand in this. It’s not as simple as you think.”

For these years, every week Fang Deng would tell him how Lu Nian was doing, her daily life, what she needed, if there was anything he could help with, he would tell him.

Not once in these years did he miss a single update.

For Lu Nian, Qin Si indeed disappeared for so long.

But for Qin Si, she never left.

Lu Nian liked the little deer in “Star Strike”. Every year, he would collect limited edition merchandise from various places and send them as gifts from fans, asking Fang Deng to mail them to Lu Nian.

Fang Deng said she received them, liked them very much, and even replied earnestly to the gifts.

Fang Deng kept all those small gifts and sent them to Qin Si.

He had carefully preserved them until now.

“Qin Si, I don’t know what your reasons are, but I know one thing, the way you’re handling this isn’t right.”

“You’re hurting Nian Nian sister.” Ming Ge said, “I’ll leave my words here, they won’t change.”

Qin Si didn’t say anything in response.

His youthful face, pale yet calm, had a faint shade of dark circles under his eyes, hidden by thick eyelashes.

The gloominess was all hidden beneath his eyes.

The wine glass was empty.

“We have a meeting in our company tomorrow morning.” Fang Deng also stood up with him, “I won’t stay any longer.”

During this time, because of the turbulence caused by the Lu family, they had been particularly busy.

…

The internal meeting of Ning Sheng had only four attendees.

The agenda naturally revolved around the recent uproar caused by the Lu family case.

Qiu Fan said, “The Lu family has been rotten to the core for a long time. Lu Zhihong has been reckless and arrogant in recent years, and the internal factional struggles within the company have never stopped.”

“Whether they’ve done something illegal is another matter,” Ming Hong said, “but Lu Zhihong’s current situation is worth pondering.”

“It’s said that it was reported by someone from within the company,” Qiu Fan said, “Betrayal from within, huh.”

Ming Hong chuckled, “With the Lu family’s affairs, unless you dive in and stay for a while, you won’t understand.”

Fang Deng glanced at Qin Si, who was quietly listening, wondering what he was thinking.

This upheaval in the Lu family was not caused by Ning Sheng, but by someone else.

However, Fang Deng knew that Qin Si had interned and worked at the Lu family before, in both the branches and the headquarters.

He had spent almost a year there and thoroughly understood the internal workings.

Later, when they invested in the Lu family, they were able to penetrate smoothly, which was also related to his experience during that time.

Ming Hong laughed, “Little boss, how did you manage to slip away? I heard that Lu Zhihong highly appreciated you.

With so much knowledge, letting you go doesn’t seem like their style.”

“The people from the Lu family have been looking for me since then,” Qin Si said.

He twirled a pen with his slender fingers, his brows casting a faint shadow, his expression unreadable.

Fang Deng was stunned.

“Ming Ge was also approached,” Qin Si looked up, his tone light, “except for you, because no one knows we’re connected.”

“Then I was still at Ande University,” Fang Deng’s mind, after all, was sharp, and he quickly caught on, “I thought it was because you found me reliable.”

The other two didn’t understand these two sentences.

Fang Deng organized his thoughts for a moment, feeling somewhat amazed.

At that time, he was only twenty.

Having such courage and ruthlessness, completely erasing all traces of his past existence and starting anew in another place.

But, he didn’t seek fame or profit. Even now, with Ning Sheng being so big, Qin Si rarely showed himself.

His life was so simple that it was almost maddeningly plain, as if besides work, he had no other interests.

Ming Hong and Qiu Fan had already gotten used to him like this, but only Fang Deng knew what his ultimate goal was.

Now, the Lu family was basically under the control of Ning Sheng.

After looking at the information Fang Deng provided, Ming Hong’s brow furrowed more and more.

Ming Hong said, “Their internal discord is quite serious.”

He gestured, “Little boss, you want to save the Lu family, then all the rotten flesh must be removed. Otherwise, no matter how much money you invest, it’s just like throwing it into a bottomless pit.”

He pointed to the name on the screen, Lu Yang’s name.

Looking at that name, the young man’s slender fingers moved, erasing that name from the screen.

“Zhao Tingyuan,” he said calmly, “they’ve been in contact all along.”

Fang Deng was purely a technical person and didn’t understand anything about the company’s internal affairs, so he just listened to their discussion.

Ming Hong was the public face of Ning Sheng, but they all knew that the real decision-maker behind Ning Sheng was someone else.

Finally, a decision was made, and the meeting ended.

“Alright, it’s basically settled now,” Ming Hong said, “Little boss didn’t waste these past few years for nothing.”

As long as they follow the plan afterward and thoroughly clean up the Lu family, it’ll be okay.

For these years, Lu Yang’s accumulated power, collusion with Zhao Tingyuan, and the intricate entanglement of various factions within the Lu family.

“It’s time for a change.”

Endurance and patience were things he never lacked since childhood.

……

The engagement banquet was just two days away.

Lu Nian had never been engaged before, and she didn’t have a mother since childhood, so naturally, she didn’t understand this process.

However, there had been no movement from the Zhao family’s side either.

Zhao Yayuan was even less diligent than before.

It seemed like he was very busy. Lu Nian heard from her classmates that he had been taking leave and staying at home these past few days.

In the past, Lu Nian’s birthdays would be arranged extravagantly, inviting guests in advance and customizing dresses.

However, the current situation of the Lu family was different.

Lu Zhihong was even still in the hospital.

Lu Nian would visit him every day.

She temporarily held up this large household.

She handed over all the clues related to the incident and the people involved to the police, and negotiated with the doctors for Lu Zhihong’s medical treatment.

In just a few days, she felt exhausted to the point of collapse every day.

Luckily, the money was still enough for now.

Lu Nian was once again immensely grateful that she had foreseen this situation and started accumulating wealth years ago.

After returning home, Lu Nian washed up and went to sleep.

These days, Qiao Li also moved back home, hoping to share some of her burdens.

Confirming that Lu Nian had fallen asleep, Qiao Li walked to the balcony and dialed Zhao Yayuan’s number.

His voice was slightly heavy, “Yayuan, how’s it going on your side?”

Zhao Yayuan’s voice sounded rare and somewhat tired, “I’ve been out all day today, lobbying.”

No matter how deviant Zhao Yayuan was, his current identity was still just the youngest son of the Zhao family, not the one in power.

He couldn’t completely ignore the wishes of the elders.

As for this engagement banquet.

There were also quite a few dissenting voices within the Zhao family, or rather, the majority were opposed.

Because of the Lu family’s situation, most of the elders in the Zhao family didn’t support Zhao Yayuan’s engagement to Lu Nian, especially with Zhao Tingyuan’s strong opposition.

He even gave examples, saying that Lu Nian didn’t like Zhao Yayuan at all, and if they got married, it would only be a loss for the Zhao family.

Qiao Li fell silent for a moment, “The engagement banquet is only two days away. Are you sure you can handle it on time?”

Zhao Yayuan forced a smile, “You don’t trust me?”

Qiao Li said, “I’ve been keeping it from Nian Nian all this time. She still doesn’t know anything.”

But even if they succeed, will Lu Nian have to endure endless grievances in the future after marrying into the Zhao family?

Zhao Yayuan said, “She’ll be my wife in the future. Who dares to treat her badly?”

Qiao Li shook her head gently, “Xiao Ya, I don’t want her to suffer.”

Zhao Yayuan was a little impatient.

He rubbed his long fingers through his hair, unable to help but curse, “Damn, a bunch of old fogeys.”

The time for the engagement banquet was approaching.

Most of his family still disagreed with this matter.

Zhao Yayuan couldn’t do anything about it.

These past few days, he didn’t even dare to contact Lu Nian anymore, so he could only try his best to persuade at home.

That day, as soon as he left the house, he met Zhao Tingyuan head-on.

He seemed quite pleased, “Yayuan, grandpa wants to see you in the study.”

Zhao Yayuan frowned at him.

He went to the study and saw Zhao Quan.

He was already over eighty years old, but he was still spirited and upright.

“Grandpa,” Zhao Yayuan stood in front of him, “I’ve been very busy these past few days. Is there something urgent you want me for?”

Zhao Quan looked displeased, giving him a stern look, “Unfilial child.”

He said, “Are you still blindly busy with your engagement banquet?”

Zhao Yayuan said, “Is it not allowed?”

Zhao Quan said, “Look at how many people in the family agree with this. Until now, what have you achieved?”

Zhao Yayuan said, “As long as you agree, isn’t it enough?”

Zhao Quan frowned, “Nonsense. Let me tell you, just now, I received a call from Lu Zhihong. He’s no longer willing, it just so happens.”

Zhao Yayuan said, “Did you treat the Lu family badly before this?”

Zhao Quan said, “Is this how you talk to your grandpa?”

He didn’t deny it either.

Zhao Quan was straightforward.

If he disagreed, he disagreed.

Zhao Yayuan was his favorite grandson, so naturally, he wanted to find a good wife who could benefit him in the future.

He had heard Zhao Tingyuan talk about Lu Nian, and the more he heard, the more dissatisfied he was, vehemently opposing Zhao Yayuan’s decision.

So, Lu Zhihong called.

As the current practical manager of the Zhao family, Zhao Quan’s words were sometimes a bit unpleasant to hear.

But Lu Zhihong could endure it.

No matter what, he pretended not to hear anything.

Just waiting for their engagement.