Xu Wan told Shen Xiying a great deal, and Shen Xiying held a pastry from the glass table.
She nodded while eating, her voice muffled as she said, “Mom, I know all of this.”
“You’ve said these things eight hundred times already.”
Xu Wan looked at her, smiling helplessly, her tone especially doting: “You.”
Only after the servants had served all the dishes did the group head to the dining room.
Many dishes were set out, and Shen Xiying gave them a rough glance.
Almost every bowl of food had cilantro in it.
Because she loved it.
She had forgotten to mention it to Shen Jieyu when she came—Shang Ruzhou hated cilantro the most.
So during the meal, Shang Ruzhou barely touched his chopsticks.
Shen Jieyu, sitting to the side, only glanced over a few times without saying anything.
Shen Xiying pressed her lips together and quietly rotated the round table.
She turned the only dish without cilantro to face Shang Ruzhou.
Midway through, Shen Jieyu tried to rotate the table.
Shen Xiying began picking up food with her chopsticks.
When Shen Jieyu stopped, she stopped.
The moment Shen Jieyu moved, she started picking up food again.
In the end, Shen Jieyu took a deep breath and set down his chopsticks.
He turned his head and looked at Shen Xiying.
A smile instantly bloomed on Shen Xiying’s face as she asked softly, “Dad, what’s wrong?”
Shen Jieyu: “…”
The moment she smiled, all of Shen Jieyu’s anger dissipated.
Then Shen Jieyu picked up his chopsticks again and didn’t rotate the table anymore.
He resignedly began eating the dishes in front of him.
Just as the meal was finishing, Shang Ruzhou’s phone rang.
He walked to the courtyard to take the call.
The dappled light and shadows in the courtyard fell across him.
Whatever it was, after the call ended, his expression between his brows had darkened slightly.
Shen Xiying noticed. After he finished the call, she walked over to his side and asked quietly, “Did something happen?”
Shang Ruzhou nodded and replied, “There’s an issue at the company. I need to go check on it.”
“Then I’ll go back with you,” Shen Xiying said.
Shang Ruzhou lowered his head to look at her.
Her eyes were round and soft, the corners gently upturned.
A few strands of loose hair at her forehead carried a faint curl, resting quietly beside her brows.
When she looked up at him, her gaze was calm.
His breath paused for a moment before he answered, “Alright.”
Shen Xiying told Shen Jieyu and Xu Wan.
Xu Wan was a bit reluctant to let her go, and Shen Jieyu wanted them to stay a while longer.
But he figured Shang Ruzhou truly had no time, so he didn’t say anything more.
After the two left, the smile on Shen Jieyu’s face slowly faded.
His expression turned somewhat grave.
Sitting on the sofa, it was a long moment before he said, “I’m not at ease with Yingying by Shang Ruzhou’s side.”
Xu Wan looked at Shen Jieyu and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Shen Jieyu glanced at the things Shang Ruzhou had sent over.
That fishing rod was one he’d wanted to buy for a long time but never managed to get.
There were only fifteen of them in the entire world.
The other gifts needed no further mention.
When Shen Xiying agreed to the marriage, he’d already calculated it in his heart.
Even if she and Shang Ruzhou ended up at odds in the end, he would stake the entire Shen family to protect her.
But back then, he hadn’t known.
The assets under Shang Ruzhou’s control were not to be underestimated.
Especially those three years abroad—the industries he’d accumulated were likely enough to rival the entire former Shang family.
If that were truly the case, if Shen Xiying ever fell out with Shang Ruzhou, could he really protect her?
Moreover, the Shang family counted as the top-tier wealthy clan of Jianglin City, with so many eyes watching.
If Shang Ruzhou didn’t protect Shen Xiying, and something truly happened, Shen Jieyu couldn’t bear it at all.
She was his only daughter.
With that thought, Shen Jieyu sighed and scratched his head. “Of all the people she could have set her sights on, it had to be Shang Ruzhou.”
“It’s all because I’m useless.”
Xu Wan listened to his words, grabbed a throw pillow from the side, and tossed it into his arms.
“Oh, give it a rest,” Xu Wan said. “Instead of complaining here, think about how to pave a path for Yingying.”
“Maybe she’s just caught up in the novelty right now, thinking Shang Ruzhou is handsome. When the novelty wears off and she wants a divorce, you need to be well prepared for that moment.”
Shang Ruzhou had someone take Shen Xiying back to Zhongyu Palace while he returned to the company.
For several days in a row, aside from seeing Shang Ruzhou at night when they slept, Shen Xiying barely saw him—he was at the company almost all the time.
The Lin Group was exceptionally good at promotion. Over the past two days, the content strategy had already been finalized—they just needed to ride the trending topics, and raising Fuying’s visibility in the short term would be easy.
If she wanted to further boost Fuying’s profile in the short term, she could consider a non-heritage collaboration.
The plan took initial shape in her mind, and she called a meeting with the company’s management.
Fuying’s company wasn’t large.
It was like a young seedling, always swaying in the wind and rain.
“The initial plan is just like this. For this collaboration, we’ll directly connect with inheritor Teacher Pei Chunrun. The planning department will give me a standard proposal within two weeks.”
“The marketing department should coordinate well with the Lin Group’s work during this period, ideally maintaining a 24-hour rotating shift system. We can’t afford a single mistake.”
Shen Xiying sat in her chair, her expression faint and her tone unusually calm.
“I’ll personally reach out to the inheritor. This collaboration is very important to our company.”
As Shen Xiying spoke, the others jotted down notes with their pens.
It wasn’t until the meeting ended that Shen Xiying stepped out of the office.
Lu Tingwei followed behind Shen Xiying, holding a stack of organized documents in her arms.
“Xiying, Teacher Pei Chunrun hasn’t participated in this kind of collaboration since last year. This time, we might not be able to persuade him.”
As Lu Tingwei spoke, she handed the documents to Shen Xiying.
Shen Xiying took the documents and flipped through them, furrowing her brows slightly before saying, “It’s fine. We have to try at least.”
“Mm, alright.”
Lu Tingwei nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
That afternoon, Shen Xiying found an acquaintance to make a connection.
Pei Chunrun had stopped attending any events or public appearances since last year.
The only way to reach him was through his assistant.
The assistant’s response was equally formal: “Thank you for your recognition of Teacher Pei, but he’s currently in seclusion. Even if you go to see him, he may not agree to meet you.”
Shen Xiying refused to take no for an answer.
She prepared for two days.
Pei Chunrun lived on the outskirts of Jianglin City, in a place that was exceptionally quiet, surrounded by mountains and water.
It was perfect for a reclusive life.
Shen Xiying brought Lu Tingwei along for three days.
Three consecutive days of being turned away at the door.
But Shen Xiying was stubborn by nature—three days meant nothing to her.
For half a month straight, she was turned away every single day.
She finally gave in.
Sitting in the passenger seat on the way to Zhongyu Palace, Shen Xiying weakly made a video call to Meng Zhiqing.
Meng Zhiqing picked up quickly.
“Oh my god, what happened to you?” Meng Zhiqing’s surprised voice came through the phone. “You look like all your energy’s been drained. What did you go through to end up like this?”
Shen Xiying slumped feebly in the passenger seat, mustering the last of her strength to say, “After being turned away at the door for half a month straight, how could I not end up like this?”