“That will be 5,678 yuan, sir. Will you be paying in cash or by card?” The hotel receptionist asked politely, her face slightly reddened.

Though the man before her looked disheveled and downcast, his rugged appearance gave him an inner coolness, and his occasional refined demeanor suggested a noble air, like a prince lost in the world.

This kind of aura could stir the imagination of many women with romantic dreams.

Unfortunately, this “prince” was now a bona fide broke guy.

Zhang Qingyuan pulled out his WeChat payment code and said, “Just scan with WeChat.”

“Alright, just a moment.”

The receptionist quickly processed the payment.

What was once a four-digit balance in his WeChat wallet was now reduced to a three-digit figure, and the glaring number was 666.

That was all he had left.

He hadn’t expected his brother to be so ruthless, cutting off his financial support completely.

If it weren’t for the 10,000 yuan that had been transferred into his WeChat account unexpectedly, he would have been sleeping on the streets and eating nothing but wind these past few days.

But it seemed sleeping on the streets was just a matter of time.

Today, he couldn’t even afford to stay in a hotel.

He might as well spend 600 yuan on a good meal and enjoy it before he faced even worse.

Zhang Qingyuan chuckled at his own grim humor.

He picked up his luggage, left the hotel, found his car in the parking lot, and tossed the luggage inside before taking the driver’s seat.

He looked at the flashy logo on the steering wheel and thought that he could still sell the car for a few hundred thousand.

If it really came to selling the car, his group of so-called friends would probably laugh at him for half a year.

No, his brother freezing his cards was already enough for them to laugh for a year.

His original plan was to toss his burdens aside and live the carefree life he once enjoyed with Ji Weiliang, with his elder brother handling the finances while he indulged in extravagance.

Later, when that woman had finally given up, he would start a business, make some money, and live happily.

The idea was beautiful, but in reality, before he could even take the first step, his brother had already crippled him, and to make matters worse, had blacklisted all his contacts, refusing to answer any unknown calls.

The coldness of his brother made Zhang Qingyuan want to cry but had no place to vent.

The key issue was that he had lost money and hadn’t won back his girlfriend.

It was truly miserable.

The woeful second young master Zhang Qingyuan gave a self-deprecating smile, started the car, and drove off, heading straight to Ji Weiliang’s small apartment.

Ji Weiliang should be arriving home soon from her early flight back to A City today.

At the same time, in the chairman’s office of Zhuo Sen Group…

This was the first time Zhan Qingyue had come to the office after waking up.

This office, which he used to spend the most time in each week over two years ago, had been completely redecorated.

Zhan Qingyuan is a true hedonist.

He transformed the office into a low-key luxurious and comfortable space.

The most eye-catching feature is the large wine cabinet next to the bookshelf, filled with various high-end red wines.

It’s a major highlight of the office and even makes one imagine Zhan Qingyue enjoying a glass of wine while gazing at the city view through the floor-to-ceiling windows—a real pleasure.

“Wow, is this the kind of hundreds-of-square-meters office that every CEO has in novels?” Jingjing, who had never seen such a lavish office before, widened her eyes. “So cool, so flashy, so awesome.”

Zhan Qingyue shifted his gaze away from the wine cabinet. “Do you like it?”

“No, no, no, no, no. This kind of place is too extravagant for someone like me. It’s definitely for someone like Mr. Zhan, a son of the heavens, to deserve this kind of office,” Jingjing flattered excessively.

However, this flattery didn’t seem to please Zhan Qingyue.

Jingjing read the room and decided to try again!

Recalling Zhan Qingyue’s interaction with Ning Qiuxiu earlier that morning, Jingjing quickly thought of something and said, “Of course, it’s also fitting for someone like Miss Ning, a stunning and extraordinary boss, to be on par with you.”

This flattery hit the mark.

Zhan Qingyue’s expression visibly softened. “If you weren’t so good at flattery, you’d be wasted here as my caregiver.”

“……” Jingjing realized he meant she was too good at flattery and hurriedly waved her hands. “No, no, I’m not wasted. I really like being a caregiver. Just thinking about leaving once your health improves makes me sad and want to cry. Especially since Miss Ning is such a great boss. I’ll never meet someone like her again.”

Zhan Qingyue raised an eyebrow. “Especially since Miss Ning, such a good boss, is someone you won’t meet again.”

Jingjing: “……”

Knock knock.

Just as Jingjing was about to protest, the office door was knocked twice.

Zhan Qingyue looked toward the door to see a man around 30 years old, dressed in a suit.

He was Zhan Qingyuan’s “chief assistant”—Song Qiao.

“Mr. Zhan, you called for me.”

Zhan Qingyue nodded slightly, indicating that Jingjing, who was caught off guard and almost suffocated by the injustice, should leave first.

Once the door was closed behind her, he maneuvered his wheelchair to the boss’s position behind the desk and gestured for Song Qiao to sit.

Song Qiao sat down with some apprehension.

“How long have you been with Zhuosen?” Zhan Qingyue asked.

“Two years and three months.”

“Responsible for official duties?”

This question…

Song Qiao secretly looked up at Zhan Qingyue but found that Zhan Qingyue’s gaze was fixed on him, making him tense up.

—Even though Zhan Qingyue seemed more gentle and restrained than Zhan Qingyuan, he gave Song Qiao a strong sense of pressure.

Dealing with the second young master Zhang was challenging on the surface, but it was even more so in the heart.

He didn’t understand why this person, who had just started at the company and had ignored a large number of senior executives who wanted to see him, had specifically summoned him.

As the top subordinate of Zhang Qingyuan, was Zhang Qingyue planning to make an example of him?

Thinking of this, Song Qiao couldn’t help but shiver. He didn’t dare to lie and said honestly, “There are also personal matters.”

“Alright then,” Zhang Qingyue threw a stack of papers at him. “Tell me about the transactions exceeding seven digits that you know the destination of.”

Song Qiao took a look and saw it was a personal… bank statement from Zhang Qingyuan.

He didn’t know where Zhang Qingyue had obtained it, but considering he had managed to freeze Zhang Qingyuan’s bank account, it wasn’t surprising.

Even though he had been hiding for over two years, he was still a wolf and wouldn’t turn into a husky.

The large expenditures from Zhang Qingyuan’s account included investments he made himself.

After all, money in a bank account doesn’t grow on its own, so he would invest to make money work for him.

Song Qiao wasn’t involved in these investments, so he didn’t know their destinations.

But he did know about another part, which was used to support Ji Weiliang.

This included establishing Xinding Film Investment Company, a marketing studio, various marketing expenses, and the private investment into Ji Weiliang’s personal studio a few months ago, allowing her to be her own boss.

All these were commissioned by Zhang Qingyuan and handled by Song Qiao.

Since the statement had specific dates and amounts for expenditures, Song Qiao could match up the expenses he had managed.

In the past, when handling Zhang Qingyuan’s affairs, Song Qiao felt that his boss was generous with money for his girlfriend and even felt a bit resentful that he wasn’t a woman himself—he had clearly worked several generations less!

But now, seeing the total amount spent, he couldn’t help but be shocked.

It was far too outrageous.

“The drama ‘Drifting’ hasn’t aired yet,” under Zhang Qingyue’s calm gaze, Song Qiao felt his neck growing cold and explained awkwardly, “The drama is a big production, and the viewership will definitely be high. The investment should be recouped by then.”

Zhang Qingyue looked at the number and fell into deep thought.

It seemed that the amount he had spent on Ning Qiuxiu was less than one-fifth of what his brother had spent on Ji Weiliang.

Ahem.

Was he being too inadequate?

The reason was still that Ning Qiuxiu was too worry-free.

She managed to find her own roles, advertisements, and variety shows without him needing to worry about anything.

Moreover, with his health just recovering and his limited energy, he hadn’t paid much attention to her career, only giving her a push when she needed help.

“Have they broken up?” Zhang Qingyue asked. Before Song Qiao could speak, he added, “I know you know.”

“…” Recently, Zhang Qingyuan had indeed maintained contact with him to gather information about this side.

He knew that the second young master had suffered a big setback and hadn’t yet managed to win her back.

Song Qiao replied, “They haven’t reconciled yet.”

“Alright then,” Zhang Qingyue’s fingers tapped lightly on the desk. “Withdraw all investments from Ji Weiliang’s studio, stop all services from the marketing studio to Ji Weiliang. How to proceed further will be decided later. For the film investments… have their boss come to see me.”

Song Qiao: “… This doesn’t seem right.”

Other things are fine, just extra touches.

Jìn Weiliang already has some resources and has secured a drama to shoot next spring.

After the broadcast of “The Wandering,” which is expected to be a big hit, her career should be smooth, and she doesn’t really need additional investments or marketing from us.

However, the studio only started a little over two months ago.

If they withdraw their investment, the studio will collapse.

“After a breakup, valuable items need to be returned and are protected by law. So,” Zhan Qingyue looked at him, “what’s wrong?”

Song Qiao felt like he was about to burst from the pressure of Zhan Qingyue’s intense gaze. “But this is the second young master’s money…”

“I can manage his bank cards, but not his money?”

Song Qiao: “…”

Facing Zhan Qingyue’s unreasonable stance, Song Qiao dared not argue.

However, he was quite familiar with Jin Weiliang and thought that with Zhan Qingyue’s harsh methods, the outcome wouldn’t be good for her.

Feeling bolder, Song Qiao said, “The second young master likes Miss Jin and is trying hard to win her back.

What you’re doing is like sabotaging their relationship.

The second young master will surely hold a grudge against you.

Even though he made a mistake by leaving Zhuosen for Miss Jin, he worked diligently during your coma and didn’t do anything harmful to the Zhan family or you.

But now you’re cutting off his future and forcing him—don’t you have a conscience?

You don’t have someone you love deeply, so you can’t understand the madness and loss of reason that comes with loving someone.”

Zhan Qingyue was amused by the logic and smiled.

To say that Zhan Qingyuan’s efforts for Zhuosen were like his own efforts?

Everyone has worked hard for the Zhan family.

When he took over Zhuosen, the situation was even worse than when Zhan Qingyuan took over.

He silently shouldered the burden.

In contrast, Zhan Qingyuan, despite his warnings, ran off for a woman without considering if Zhan Qingyue could handle things while still recovering.

Who is forcing whom? Who should really be blamed?

Zhan Qingyuan isn’t a child.

He should always bear responsibility and not just abandon his duties whenever he feels like it.

If he chooses to act impulsively, he must face the consequences.

And that Jìn Weiliang.

From the moment she approached him privately, Zhan Qingyue knew she was trouble.