"Alright, hand the phone to Director Qin."
Qi Lin smiled as he spoke.
Hearing that Qi Lin actually agreed, Jiang Lei's face lit up with joy, thinking that this brother-in-law was truly reliable.
"Director Qin, my brother-in-law wants to talk to you."
Jiang Lei handed over the phone.
"Mm."
Qin Hanliang responded indifferently.
However, when speaking with Qi Lin, Qin Hanliang's tone beca notably enthusiastic. "Brother Qi Lin, we really have a fated connection. I didn't expect us to be talking again so soon, and I certainly didn’t expect the first business I sealed off today to belong to your brother-in-law."
"Who said that guy was my brother-in-law?"
Qi Lin chuckled lightly, saying sothing that left Qin Hanliang utterly shocked.
"He's not your brother-in-law?"
Qin Hanliang asked in surprise.
"To be honest with you, Brother Qin, I'm an only child—I have no siblings, let alone a brother-in-law. That guy is a fraud. He must have seen saving your son at noon and tried to take advantage of the situation."
Qi Lin said with a faint smile.
Upon hearing this, Qin Hanliang was furious. "I knew it! I didn't even see this guy at noon! Even if he was nearby, he did nothing to help my son when he was in danger—what kind of person does that? I even checked his business records."
"Brother Qin, since this was just a misunderstanding, I’ll hang up now so I don’t disturb your work."
Qi Lin said with a smile.
Qin Hanliang nodded and laughed. "Brother Qi Lin, I’ve already inford your school about your brave act. We also prepared a banner and so monetary rewards for you. I hope you don’t mind making this decision on your behalf."
Qi Lin had already been aware of this. He thought to himself that Qin Hanliang, despite everything, was actually quite decent—a man who knew how to repay kindness.
"Then I’ll thank you in advance, Brother Qin."
Qi Lin said with a smile before hanging up the call.
anwhile, on Jiang Lei’s end, the mont he saw Qin Hanliang end the call, he eagerly asked, "Director Qin, what did my brother-in-law say?"
Qin Hanliang sneered. "You sure have so guts! Pretending to be Brother Qi Lin’s brother-in-law? Let tell you, not only is your training center getting shut down for good, but you can also forget about ever getting a business license again!"
"You lie all the ti. If I let you run a business, wouldn’t the custors suffer?"
Leaving these harsh words, Qin Hanliang and his subordinates walked away.
Jiang Lei was left standing there, completely dumbfounded.
"How… how could this happen?"
"I have such a good relationship with Qi Lin! Why did he tell Qin Hanliang that he doesn’t know ?"
Jiang Lei was in shock, unable to accept what had happened.
Seeing him looking so lost, Qi Xueyao bit her lip and said, "He’s just a spoiled rich kid with no morals and a petty heart. He’s been toying with you from the very beginning, but you were too naïve to see it."
The training center was shut down, and all of Jiang Lei’s efforts had gone to waste. Now, on top of that, Qi Lin had deceived him. His emotions completely collapsed.
"Qi Xueyao! If you knew he was playing , why didn’t you tell earlier? Are you in on it too? Were you just watching make a fool of myself?"
Jiang Lei roared at Qi Xueyao.
Qi Xueyao had always held the upper hand in their relationship. Now that Jiang Lei dared to yell at her, she imdiately felt wronged.
"You're a grown man, and instead of solving the problem, you're just taking it out on ?"
"I live under Qi Lin’s roof. If I exposed him on the spot, do you think he’d let off easily? Besides, he’s a smooth talker—he had you completely fooled. If I had badmouthed him right away, what would you have thought? That I was so backstabbing gossip?"
Jiang Lei was at a loss for words.
At this mont, he finally realized that when Qi Lin had convinced him that they were brothers-in-law, he had been utterly swept up in it. Even if Qi Xueyao had warned him afterward, he probably wouldn't have listened.
"I finally see what kind of n you all are—always pushing won around. I don’t want to run this training center anymore. Do whatever you want with it!"
Feeling aggrieved, Qi Xueyao wiped away her tears and turned to leave.
Seeing her cry, Jiang Lei panicked.
He didn’t dare to bla Qi Xueyao anymore and quickly ran after her.
"Xueyao, I’m sorry. I was too impulsive and said hurtful things. I apologize."
"The training center was our hard work, and we were so close to success. We can't give up now!"
But Qi Xueyao was still furious. Her expression turned cold, and she walked in the opposite direction.
Seeing this, Jiang Lei clenched his teeth.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
He suddenly started slapping himself repeatedly, saying as he did, "Xueyao, I was wrong! I was really wrong! If you don’t forgive , I’ll keep slapping myself until you do!"
After all, they had been together for four years. And as a woman, Qi Xueyao's heart eventually softened.
She sighed and turned back to look at Jiang Lei. "Stop hitting yourself. I forgive you. Let’s figure out how to deal with the crisis at hand."
…
After dinner, Qi Lin escorted Wang Siling ho.
Aside from taking advantage of a few small things today, he hadn't done anything too excessive.
Winning over Wang Siling’s heart required ti—like the gentle nourishnt of rain on soil.
Perhaps within a month, poor Yu Chen would realize that even the last shred of affection his childhood sweetheart had for him was gone. She would have completely fallen into Qi Lin’s embrace.
…
"Uncle Wang, I took Siling to my place for a while today. I hope you don’t mind?"
Qi Lin knocked on Wang Siling’s door. Wang Dongcheng answered, and Qi Lin smiled as he spoke.
"No problem, no problem, it’s just a small thing. By the way, Qi Lin, have you eaten yet? Do you want to stay for dinner?"
Wang Dongcheng smiled warmly, waving his hand to show he didn’t mind at all.
Why would he mind? He was actually hoping the two kids would confirm their relationship soon, maybe even get engaged.
"I’ve already eaten. Now that Siling is safely ho, I’ll be heading off."
With a friendly wave, Qi Lin left.
Watching Qi Lin's retreating figure, Wang Dongcheng sighed with admiration. "Rich kids really are different—so polite, so well-mannered. Not like my brat, who only knows how to cause trouble."
Saying that, he turned and glared at his son, Wang Cheng, who was eating dinner.
Seeing his father’s look of disdain, Wang Cheng felt utterly miserable.
Damn it! Ever since Qi Lin ca to their house twice, not only had he stolen his sister Siling, but even their father was starting to like him more.
If this went on, would he even have a place in this family anymore?
"Siling, what exactly did you do at Qi Lin’s house? Did he bully you?"
Wang Cheng asked his sister, hoping to hear sothing bad about Qi Lin so their father would finally see his true nature.
Wang Siling’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she shook her head. "Brother Qi Lin didn’t bully . He took to the piano room to practice. He said he’ll make practice every day. After that, I ate at his house and then ca back."
Wang Cheng: "…"
Hearing this, Wang Cheng felt completely defeated.
He didn't believe for a second that Qi Lin had just taken his sister ho to play the piano. But judging by her expression, she wasn't lying.
"Piano? That’s great! Siling has loved piano since she was little, but our family conditions weren’t great, so she had to give up. Qi Lin's family is rich, and he has the resources. Since he’s willing to teach you, make sure you study hard and don’t let him down."
Wang Dongcheng was overjoyed.
The piano was a noble instrunt. If Qi Lin was patient enough to teach Siling, it ant he genuinely cared about her—perhaps as a little sister or even as a future wife. How could Wang Dongcheng not be pleased?
…
When Qi Lin returned to the villa, Qi Xueyao was still not back.
Qi Lin could already guess the reason.
Qi Xueyao probably didn't want to fall into his hands again, so she was desperately trying to find a way to get the business license. But the trap he had set was so deep—how could two fresh college graduates possibly find a way out? That was simply laughable.
Just wait. It wouldn't be long before Qi Xueyao ca begging him for help.
Feeling bored, Qi Lin turned on the TV.
"Garden City, the hotown of crayfish! The first China Crayfish Food Festival is waiting for you!"
Coincidentally, as soon as he turned on the TV, an advertisent for crayfish appeared. The background image was none other than his hotown, Garden City, and on it was the slogan he had co up with a while ago.
"Did you take your girlfriend out for crayfish today?"
After watching the ad, Qi Lin couldn't help but laugh.
"I didn't expect Mom to act so fast. She already settled the advertisent deal with Jianghan TV."
After Fang Yuanyuan and Qi Feng left ho, they split up to handle different tasks.
Fang Yuanyuan was responsible for launching the advertisent and organizing the first China Crayfish Food Festival.
Qi Feng went to Xuyi to acquire and integrate the local crayfish industry, as well as coordinate the stockpiles and transport them to Jianghan City to prepare for the festival.
Tap, tap, tap...
Qi Lin was about to call his mother to ask about the situation when he suddenly heard the sound of high heels.
He smiled slightly. He knew it had to be Qi Xueyao coming back.
Without turning around, he continued flipping through the TV channels.
Qi Xueyao, her cheeks slightly flushed, sat down beside him.
Just as Qi Lin had expected, Qi Xueyao wasn't willing to admit defeat. She and Jiang Lei had spent half the day brainstorming a way to escape this situation.
Unfortunately, there was no way out.
There had been a slim chance, but Qi Lin had completely ruined it by making Jiang Lei look like a fraud, offending Director Qin in the process.
Only the one who tied the knot could untie it.
If she truly wanted to get back the training center, the money, and secure the business license, she had no choice but to ask Qi Lin for help.
"Qi Lin, I have a question. How did you know that the child's father was the director of the Administration for Industry and Comrce?"
Qi Xueyao couldn't help but ask.
Everything just seed too coincidental.
Jiang Lei had just been about to save the child when Qi Lin stopped him.
And then, in the afternoon, Director Qin himself showed up for a surprise inspection of their training center.
The more she thought about it, the more terrifying it felt.
It was as if she and Jiang Lei were trapped in an invisible net, completely unable to escape.
Seeing the hint of fear in Qi Xueyao's beautiful eyes, Qi Lin couldn't help but laugh.
Afraid?
Good.
When a woman fears you, it's easier to control her.
She wanted to know how he figured it out?
Of course, he had read her diary.
She was the one who wrote it down herself.
Thinking about it, he should actually thank her.
"Sister Xueyao, I don't know what you're talking about. I just have a kind heart—I couldn’t bear to see a life disappear before my eyes, so I went down to save him. That's all."
Qi Lin said lazily with a smile.
If Qi Xueyao wanted to overthink things, he would let her. The more she feared him, the better.
Seeing that Qi Lin refused to answer, Qi Xueyao beca even more convinced that he had known everything from the start.
"This bastard is terrifying… It looks like trying to get information out of him won’t work."
Qi Xueyao bit her lip, then suddenly did sothing unexpected.
"Qi Lin, as long as you're willing to talk to that director and have him process our business license, return the training center, and give back that money, I'll agree to one condition of yours, okay?"
Qi Xueyao wrapped her arms around Qi Lin’s arm, her face blushing slightly.
She had already given him her first kiss. A few more kisses wouldn’t make a difference.
And once the business license was secured, she could turn against him again.
Under Qi Lin's influence, Qi Xueyao had already started to change.
The old her would never have done sothing like this.
"Agree to one condition? Alright, go take a shower and wait for in my room. Tomorrow morning, I'll go talk to Director Qin."
Qi Lin pinched her chin and smirked.
Hearing this, Qi Xueyao’s face turned pale.
Giving him a few kisses was one thing, but giving herself to him? That was impossible.
"No! That condition is out of the question, Qi Lin! Can't you just kiss like before? I already agreed to let you do that."
Qi Xueyao looked at him with pleading eyes.
She had always been proud and stubborn.
It was rare for her to show such vulnerability, clinging to his arm and begging.
But Qi Lin was no longer the naive boy he used to be.
Sothing this valuable couldn’t be exchanged for a simple kiss.
This wasn’t how business worked.
With an indifferent expression, he pulled his arm away and glanced at her.
"Qi Xueyao, do you think too highly of yourself?"
"Do you really think you're the only woman in the world?"
"Let tell you the truth—at school, there are countless beautiful girls waiting for to tease. They're younger, prettier, and more obedient than you. Other than the fact that you're my distant cousin, what else makes you stand out?"
"You're just an old woman, you know that?"
"I've already laid out my conditions. Yet, you're still trying to negotiate? Do you think this is a marketplace?"
Qi Xueyao was different from Lan Yuxi and Wang Siling—those innocent girls could be won over with gentle tricks.
But a strong, independent, and stubborn woman like Qi Xueyao?
If he didn’t completely break her pride, he would never truly have her.
"I… I’m an old woman?"
As expected, Qi Lin’s words hit her like a slap in the face.
Her face turned deathly pale.
He had actually called her an old woman. But she was only…
Why was a woman her age suddenly not as good as those younger girls?
What did he an?
Was her only value to him the novelty of being a distant cousin? If not for that, he wouldn’t even care about her?
"Qi Lin, you're humiliating !"
"Ugh… ugh… ugh!"
A wave of unbearable grievance overwheld her, and tears stread down her face, falling onto the expensive carpet.
She wiped her tears and ran toward the door.
Her emotions had completely collapsed.
She wanted to leave.
She never wanted to see Qi Lin again.
But as she was about to rush out, Qi Lin grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.
"I don’t need your innocence. But aside from that, I want everything else. That’s my bottom line."
His dark eyes glead with amusent.
Qi Xueyao didn't even know why she blurted out, "Didn't you just call an old woman? Then why are you holding back? Let go!"
Qi Lin knew this was the mont when her emotions were most fragile.
And that was exactly the best ti to strike.
If he waited any longer, he wouldn’t get another chance like this.
Without hesitation, he scooped her up in his arms.
Qi Xueyao pounded his chest with her fists, but he carried her up the spiral staircase without stopping.
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