Volume 1, Chapter 42: Not Believing He Would Starve Himself for Six Years
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Qiao Nian’an saw the smile reaching all the way to his eyes, and the corners of his lips rose even higher.
“Nian’an, I’m heading home to take care of the kids, so I won’t see you off. Just ride back with President Fu!” Shen Niwu said, displaying remarkable tact.
She very sensibly handed the opportunity over to Fu Yunzhen.
Seeing that Shen Niwu was so perceptive, Fu Yunzhen turned to Assistant Lin and said, “Give her a raise.”
Shen Niwu’s eyes lit up at once.
She threw her arms around Qiao Nian’an. “Nian’an, you’re my money tree, my lucky star! The reason I’ll enjoy a life of comfort is entirely because I met you! You’re a little blessing in human form! Look at me—even after getting divorced, not only am I not going to end up destitute, I’m getting a raise!”
“Nian’an, you’d better hold on tightly to President Fu’s golden thigh. He’s our cash cow! We can go without anything, but we absolutely cannot go without money!”
Qiao Nian’an laughed. “I admit President Fu was a tremendous help, but we could have handled it ourselves. No matter how powerful or well-connected President Wang is, he still can’t put himself above the law.”
Shen Niwu’s vision nearly went black. “Can’t you at least give the God of Wealth a way to save face? Otherwise, how is he supposed to shower us with money?”
She lowered her voice and gestured with her eyes toward Fu Yunzhen.
His tall, slender figure cast a shadow over Qiao Nian’an.
With a beaming smile, Shen Niwu turned to Fu Yunzhen. “President Fu, I’ll leave Nian’an in your hands, then.”
Fu Yunzhen nodded, though his eyes narrowed slightly as he watched Qiao Nian’an, waiting for her to thank him.
Qiao Nian’an noticed the expectation in his eyes. All she could do was nod and smile. “Thank you for coming all this way to help me deal with this mess, President Fu. I really couldn’t have managed without you.”
“Mm. As your employer, it’s my job to solve problems for my employees.” Fu Yunzhen smiled back.
Shen Niwu watched the two of them exchange polite words and felt that something was off.
She suddenly thought of all those divorce-and-win-back-your-wife videos that had been appearing everywhere lately.
Fu Yunzhen and Qiao Nian’an seemed to maintain a certain distance and clear boundaries, yet when they stood together—with his nearly six-foot-two frame beside her five-foot-six one—their presence was so perfectly matched that they looked like a real married couple. An absolutely flawless pair.
Still smiling, Shen Niwu said goodbye and drove away.
Watching her leave, Fu Yunzhen turned to Qiao Nian’an. “Even your friend understands this simple truth. Why don’t you? Right now, I’m the only one who can protect you.”
The more he spoke, the more enthusiastic he became. His eyes deepened as he gazed at her.
“Nian-nian, you really do have an eye for potential. You picked a stock with tremendous promise. Now I’ve conquered the world for you—are you pleased?”
Qiao Nian’an shook her head helplessly at his arrogance. “I don’t have that much foresight. I only chose you because of your face. I’m a complete sucker for handsome men.”
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When Qiao Nian’an put it that way, Fu Yunzhen was secretly delighted.
His gaze remained fixed on her, charged with ambiguity, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.
He looked thoroughly pleased with himself.
“Baby, then keep enjoying me. I’ll let you have as much as you want.” Fu Yunzhen arched a brow at Qiao Nian’an.
His deep, magnetic voice brushed against her ear. For no apparent reason, her body gave a slight shiver, and she immediately cursed him under her breath.
“You shameless pervert!”
“Baby, what were you thinking? What did you think I meant by ‘enjoying’?” Fu Yunzhen knew exactly where her thoughts had gone, and the amusement in his eyes grew even stronger as he stared straight at her.
Qiao Nian’an frowned. Seeing the probing smile on his face, the tips of her ears turned red. She instantly realized she had fallen into his trap.
She stalked away in a huff.
Fu Yunzhen followed close behind.
After Assistant Lin finished dealing with President Wang, he turned around and saw his own boss trailing after Qiao Nian’an like an eager puppy.
It was like watching a loyal dog follow its master.
Who would have thought? Assistant Lin had always believed his boss was calm, decisive, ruthless, and merciless. He had never imagined that the man was actually hopelessly love-struck.
The moment he returned to the country, he had searched everywhere for Qiao Nian’an.
And once he found her, it was as if he had completely unleashed his true nature.
Like a stray dog that had lost its owner and wandered outside for years, only to be reunited with them by some twist of fate—the joy of that reunion was written all over him.
Assistant Lin no longer knew how to react. He could only wait quietly for President Fu to summon him.
Fu Yunzhen followed Qiao Nian’an to the entrance of the police station, where she scanned a shared electric scooter.
Seeing this, Fu Yunzhen reached out and caught her by the wrist. “You have a car, yet you refuse to take it? It’s scorching hot, and you’re riding an electric scooter? You have every blessing within reach, yet you insist on making yourself suffer.”
Ever since Fu Yunzhen had built his own empire, conquered the North American market, and become a new-generation technology tycoon, he had realized just how absurdly wrong he had been in the past.
“I like it. Why do you care? Do you think I’m like you, worth trillions…” Qiao Nian’an had already climbed onto the scooter. She picked up the helmet and put it on.
“Exactly. You’re just like I used to be, treating money as dirt. That was a terrible mistake!”
Fu Yunzhen gave her a profound self-critique. “As the saying goes, when you meet a good man, marry first; when you meet a benefactor, build your career first; and when you meet a wealthy woman, you can achieve both marriage and success!”
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“Back then, I was unbelievably foolish. I already had a mountain of burdens on my shoulders, so I should have taken advantage of my youth and let a woman support me. But when I was young, I didn’t understand the pleasures of being kept. I threw away my youth for nothing. I’ve tasted every delicacy under heaven, yet nothing warms the stomach like being financially supported by a woman.”
Listening to him, Qiao Nian’an was speechless. “You’re already so rich that you’re the wealthiest man in the country, and you still want to attach yourself to a rich woman and live off her?”
She simply couldn’t understand how his mind worked.
What exactly was he trying to say?
She looked him up and down. “As long as a man is handsome, how could he possibly lack the love of wealthy women? There’s a saying that goes, ‘When the rain falls, dreams awaken; a rich woman is your final destination, and she is the light in the darkness. You may not believe me, but you must believe in the light.’”
Her gaze eventually dropped to his lower body.
“And by the way, living off a woman takes real hard skills.”
Fu Yunzhen’s expression darkened at once. He was furious.
After a moment, he reached out and pinched her chin, his deep black eyes fixed intently on her shimmering gaze.
“Whether I have the hard skills or not, don’t you know?”
Qiao Nian’an slapped his hand away. “After all these years, once a man turns twenty-five, all he’s good for is conversation.”
Fu Yunzhen was so infuriated that his liver ached, yet he laughed in spite of himself. “Where did you learn that? Have you dated a lot of men over twenty-five?”
Qiao Nian’an replied, “I’ve never paid attention to men over twenty-five.”
“I only date young men under twenty-five.”
Fu Yunzhen’s expression darkened further. Whether or not she was telling the truth, she had trespassed on his territory.
He gripped her chin and forced her to look at him. “Am I still not enough for you? You’re looking for other men outside?”
Qiao Nian’an frowned at him. “A man as insatiable and lustful as you—would he really let himself go hungry for six years? I don’t believe you’d torment yourself like that.”
That man was like a starving wolf.
He wanted it day and night, every single day.
That was why she couldn’t believe someone like him would willingly deprive himself.
And yet, for some reason, her heart felt faintly sour.
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