Cen Xi did not expect to run into Shang Hanzhou here. Wasn’t he supposed to be on an inspection visit?
Just as she was thinking this, Fang Nian beside her also noticed her and greeted her with a friendly smile.
“Good evening, Madam.”
Cen Xi returned a polite smile.
“Don’t worry. With President Shang here, nothing will happen,” Fang Nian whispered to her.
But Cen Xi still felt a bit nervous. It was not for any other reason—if she had to be honest, she was not in the right here. Anyone could see she had deliberately tricked Zhu Xinyao.
It was understandable that Zhu Xinyao was so angry.
Shang Hanzhou was famously rational and calm. He would not take sides.
She remembered that in the first year after Shang Hanzhou took over the Yasen Group, a relative of the Shang family had used his name to gain private benefits. In the end, the matter was brought directly before him.
That very night, the relative was taken away by the police for investigation and sentenced to three years.
After that, no one in the Shang family ever dared to take advantage of his name again.
“Brother Hanzhou.”
Naturally, Zhu Xinyao recognized Shang Hanzhou. After all, the original engagement partner of the Shang family had been Cen Ning, and Zhu Xinyao had often followed Cen Ning, becoming somewhat familiar with him.
Shang Hanzhou looked down at her with a cold gaze.
“I don’t remember having a younger sister.”
His tone was almost cutting.
Zhu Xinyao froze, her face burning with embarrassment.
“I didn’t mean that…”
“Hanzhou.”
At that moment, a gentle voice came through the phone Zhu Xinyao was holding—it was Cen Ning.
Through the video call, Cen Ning saw him.
Zhu Xinyao suddenly remembered and quickly lifted her phone, pointing the screen toward Shang Hanzhou.
“President Shang, look, it’s Ningning.”
On the small screen, Cen Ning’s face was slightly blurred, but Shang Hanzhou only glanced at it indifferently for a second and did not respond.
Cen Ning pushed away the breakfast in front of her. Even though she knew he probably could not see her clearly from such a distance, she still smiled gently in his direction.
“Xinyao didn’t mean to trouble Xi Xi. It was Xi Xi who tricked Xinyao into spending seven million yuan on a bunch of outdated clothes. Xinyao just couldn’t swallow it and chased after her.”
She stated it word by word, deliberately using the word “tricked.”
She understood Shang Hanzhou’s personality well—he was always strict about right and wrong and disliked unethical behavior.
If Cen Xi had done that, it would certainly make him dislike her.
Cen Xi bit her lip. Since it was her doing, she would admit it—but she had not forced Zhu Xinyao to spend that seven million yuan.
“I did not force her to buy it,” she said aloud.
“Exactly. She bought it voluntarily. What does that have to do with my Xi Baby?” Lin Xingyou immediately chimed in, nervously watching Shang Hanzhou.
If he dared to side with Cen Ning today and say even one word in Zhu Xinyao’s defense, she would make sure he regretted it.
On the video call, Cen Ning let out a faint, cold laugh.
Whether it was voluntary or not did not matter. If Cen Xi had truly deceived Zhu Xinyao into spending seven million, that alone would be enough for Shang Hanzhou to look down on her.
Yet Shang Hanzhou’s expression remained unchanged. His features stayed cold and composed.
Zhu Xinyao spoke again.
“President Shang, if Cen Xi hadn’t tricked me, how could I possibly have spent over seven million on a pile of old items?”
A faint chuckle slipped from his throat.
Then Shang Hanzhou said in a low, cold voice, “Are you lacking a brain?”
“What?”
Zhu Xinyao froze completely, thinking she had misheard.
Everyone in their circle knew that although Shang Hanzhou was cold, he rarely humiliated people publicly—especially not like this, with a single sentence that made someone feel utterly embarrassed.
Zhu Xinyao opened her mouth to speak again, but his voice turned even colder.
“The money is in your hands. You spent it yourself. What does it have to do with my Madam?”
His meaning was clear: she was making trouble out of nothing.
In the video, Cen Ning’s certainty that Shang Hanzhou would disapprove of Cen Xi completely collapsed. Instead, he had calmly defended her.
This was not the man she remembered.
Cen Ning clenched her teeth, unwilling and unsettled.
Was it only because Cen Xi was his wife that he defended her like this?
But that position… should have been hers.
The mall was crowded, and the commotion attracted attention. People gathered to watch the scene unfold.
Zhu Xinyao’s face turned from pale to red, and finally she burst into tears.
Everyone was watching her humiliation.
It was all Cen Xi’s fault.
But Shang Hanzhou had never cared about tears. He glanced at her indifferently before shifting his gaze back to Cen Xi.
His eyes paused on the small shopping bag in her hand.
“You only bought this little?”
Cen Xi snapped back to reality, looking at his striking face. A strange, sour feeling rose in her chest.
It was unbelievable.
He had defended her.
Fortunately, Lin Xingyou nudged her and she quickly replied, “Mm, I already bought what I needed.”
It was obvious that Shang Hanzhou was here for work, so she did not want to disturb him further.
She waved at him and turned to press the elevator button.
Shang Hanzhou raised his brow slightly, watching her enter the elevator. Then he glanced at Fang Nian.
Fang Nian immediately understood and followed after her.
“Madam, I’ll send you off.”
……
In the elevator going down to the parking level, Lin Xingyou could not hold back.
“Xi Baby, your husband is seriously handsome!”
The moment they stepped out, she started praising him endlessly.
Just from how decisively he had confronted Zhu Xinyao, President Shang’s image in her heart had become even more impressive.
“Take him down! Xi Baby, you have to take President Shang down quickly,” she whispered.
A man like that—handsome, wealthy, protective of his wife—would be snapped up instantly if he ever entered the market.
Cen Xi could not help laughing. Although she had been surprised at first, she now understood.
He had simply been fulfilling his role as a husband.
“Madam,” Fang Nian caught up with them, car keys in hand.
“President Shang asked me to send you both.”
Lin Xingyou immediately waved her off.
“You just send me. Xi Baby can go back with your President Shang.”
After all, they were going back to the same home anyway.
Cen Xi wanted to leave with her, but Lin Xingyou pushed her aside and hurried off to find the car.
Fang Nian looked at Cen Xi.
“Madam, President Shang’s inspection will end soon. He will come down shortly. Would you like to wait here?”
This mall belonged to the Yasen Group, so there would be no issue even if he drove Lin Xingyou away first.
Cen Xi knew she could not refuse, so she nodded.
“Alright. Thank you for sending my friend.”
“My Madam’s friend is my friend,” Fang Nian said confidently. “I will make sure she gets home safely.”
The car lights flashed as it drove out of the garage. Lin Xingyou rolled down the window and made a phone gesture, meaning she would message once she got home.
Cen Xi nodded.
Then she stood alone, quietly waiting.
Would Shang Hanzhou know she was here?
She looked down at her clean shoes, thinking absently that maybe she should send him a message.
Just as she lifted her phone—
Ding.
The elevator doors opened.
The sudden sound startled her slightly.
She turned.
The doors slid open, and a tall, imposing figure stepped out.
Light blurred across his shoulders, making his sharp features even more defined.
Shang Hanzhou walked toward her with long strides.
His voice was calm and low.
“Let’s go home, Mrs. Shang.”
He had known she was waiting for him.