At that moment, Shen Zui, having eaten to his heart’s content, glanced up and happened to catch sight of the chat avatar on Lou Boyu’s phone screen.
…Jiang Songyue.
Shen Zui: “Tsk.”
He hadn’t expected the two of them to start chatting so quickly, and at such a pace. However, he tactfully pretended not to have seen anything.
Before the meal, Shen Zui had already sent his location to Xiao Li, who had now arrived.
With a smile, Shen Zui spoke up, “President Lou, I must thank you again for yesterday’s matter. I heard that the Lou Family previously intended to venture into the energy industry. Our company happens to have considerable experience in this area. Perhaps we could collaborate more in the future.”
After all, according to the plot’s development, Lou Boyu would later suppress Shen Group and ultimately seize precisely this sector. Rather than waiting for the other party to make a move, he might as well take the initiative and invite the wolf through the door.
Lou Boyu set down his phone, a flicker of suspicion passing through his eyes.
How could Shen Zui know about his plans?
He hadn’t truly begun working on this matter yet; it was merely a preliminary idea in his mind, something even Xiao Zhang was unaware of.
Lou Boyu raised an eyebrow slightly. “Oh? CEO Shen is this generous? Aren’t you afraid that once the Lou Family enters the industry, we’ll become direct competitors?”
Shen Zui waved his hand dismissively, completely unconcerned. “What’s there to fear? I still believe in President Lou’s character.”
Lou Boyu narrowed his phoenix eyes slightly, his gaze fixed on Shen Zui’s face as if scrutinizing him carefully.
A moment later, he suddenly let out a soft laugh.
The smile was faint, yet its emotion was inscrutable. However, as his eyes lingered on Shen Zui, his interest only grew stronger.
“That’s a fresh perspective.”
Shen Zui’s eyes were sincere and bright. When looking at him, there was no fear, no hatred, no dread, and now not even a hint of calculation.
It almost seemed as if he truly believed, just as he said… in his character?
Lou Boyu spoke slowly, “In that case, let me wish us—President Shen and myself—a pleasant collaboration in advance.”
As he spoke, Lou Boyu extended his hand.
Shen Zui also smiled cheerfully and shook it, while Lou Boyu deliberately rubbed Shen Zui’s hand. “Pleasant collaboration, pleasant collaboration.”
As soon as the words fell, Shen Zui suddenly frowned, his shoulders giving a slight shudder.
For some reason, he felt a chill run down his spine. The sensation was like a cold, venomous snake slowly coiling around his skin, sending shivers down his spine.
“What’s wrong, CEO Shen?”
Lou Boyu’s tone was gentle.
“Are you feeling cold? My apologies, I usually dislike sunlight. If you’re cold, I’ll have someone draw the curtains.”
Shen Zui shook his head. “Ah, it’s nothing. It just so happens that my secretary has arrived, so I’ll take my leave now.”
Lou Boyu looked at him, his dark eyelashes lowering slightly.
As if suddenly remembering something, he said, “Hmm, by the way, CEO Shen, since you’ve already expressed your sincerity, I’ll also give you a gift in return.”
With that, he gave a light wave of his hand.
A servant behind him immediately stepped forward, carrying an exquisite small box. When the lid was opened, inside lay a warm, smooth white jade pendant.
Lou Boyu’s tone was indifferent. “This jade pendant can detoxify. Consider it a gift for your protection, so you won’t encounter such situations again in the future.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Zui’s eyes instantly lit up. There was actually something this good in the world?
Curiously, he picked up the jade pendant and examined it carefully under the light. The warm jade color emitted a soft glow between his fingers. His beaming expression caused Lou Boyu’s lips to curve upward involuntarily.
“Then thank you, President Lou.”
After speaking, Shen Zui decisively hung the jade pendant around his neck. Lou Boyu watched this scene, a hint of satisfaction flickering in his eyes.
Once Shen Zui had left, the servants began packing up. After all, this location had been exposed and was no longer suitable for staying.
Xiao Zhang quickly approached Lou Boyu, lowering his voice to say, “Mr. Lou, the GPS positioning software has been installed on your phone.” Lou Boyu responded with a faint “Hmm.”
A moment later, as if suddenly remembering something, he turned his head to look at Xiao Zhang.
“Speaking of which, do you think Shen Zui… has changed at all compared to before?”
Xiao Zhang thought for a moment, carefully choosing his words: “There definitely have been changes; he seems more radiant now. In the past, Mr. Shen always fiercely protected the Shen Group’s assets, never taking the initiative to propose cooperation, and even getting upset if outsiders asked too many questions. But today, he actively brought up the energy sector to discuss collaboration.”
“I also found out that Mr. Shen has invested in quite a few things over the past six months, though it’s less like investing and more like giving money away.”
“Moreover, Mr. Shen has donated a significant amount to orphanages, the lower districts of City A, and other support projects. Although the Shen Group has always engaged in charity, it was never as flamboyant as it is now—building roads and constructing buildings for free, which essentially brings no profit, only empty fame.”
Most businessmen are profit-driven, yet the public perception of the Shen Group hasn’t changed. After all, Shen Zui’s charity targets the Betas in the lower districts, which has no impact on the upper districts, so it doesn’t seem like he’s doing it for fame.
“Also, since Mr. Shen got married, he’s been implementing some reforms in the company, requiring all Shen Group employees to avoid overtime and leave work promptly at 5 PM every day. He also introduced a monthly employee welfare lottery called the… Dream Fulfillment Plan.”
“One employee said they wanted a villa, and Mr. Shen actually gave them one.”
After finishing, Xiao Zhang couldn’t help but show a flicker of envy in his eyes.
Lou Boyu chuckled upon hearing this, “He really does treat his people well, and he’s generous enough.”
Xiao Zhang continued, “And…”
He paused here.
“It feels like…”
“Like what?” Lou Boyu asked calmly.
“Like he doesn’t care as much anymore,” Xiao Zhang whispered.
He no longer cared about the Shen Family’s assets or the gains and losses of profit, exuding a more detached, fame-and-fortune-averse demeanor.
Upon hearing this, Lou Boyu began to slowly rotate the white jade prayer beads in his hand.
“He’s indeed not the same as before.”
He recalled Shen Zui’s cheerful expression earlier, his eyes overly clear, without a hint of concealment.
He had only seen such eyes in two types of people: children and those who had been well-protected and had never experienced hardship.
Yet, the more this was the case, the more it intrigued him.
Lou Boyu slowly picked up his phone, the screen displaying the newly installed positioning interface. A small red dot was moving slowly across the map. He gently tapped the red dot with his fingertip.
“However…” Lou Boyu murmured, “If a person changes suddenly, there’s always a reason.”
Xiao Zhang remained silent.
Lou Boyu’s gaze fell on the screen, his phoenix eyes narrowing slightly, a meaningful smile curling at the corner of his lips.
“I’m a bit curious as to why.”
Could it be because of Jiang Songyue?
No… that’s not right. The tone Shen Zui used when speaking to Jiang Songyue on the phone earlier didn’t sound like someone who liked her.
At this moment, he thought of Su Ran again.
Even if Shen Zui didn’t speak of yesterday’s events, he could guess most of it. The only question was why Su Ran had drugged Shen Zui.
He had heard before that several years ago, Su Ran had started acting erratically—building temples everywhere and worshipping ghosts and deities. Businesspeople believing in such things wasn’t unusual, but Su Ran had taken it too far.
It was no longer belief; it was obsession.
Could it be that Su Ran had actually found some method and placed a mountain and wilderness spirit on Shen Zui?
Otherwise, there had been no interaction between Su Ran and Shen Zui all these years—drugging him made no sense at all.
The more Lou Boyu thought about it, the more he felt such an absurd thing might actually be true.
Especially given how Shen Zui looked now—he really did resemble a child.