```Stay... stay and keep me company?
Upon hearing Zhuang Jingwen's such ambiguous request, Ye Fan stopped in his tracks, his body tensing as a bold idea formed in his mind.
If he didn't leave tonight, wouldn't it be a case of a man and a woman alone together?
Could it be that Sister Jingwen was suggesting...
Before Ye Fan could think further, Zhuang Jingwen spoke with flushed cheeks, "I'm scared being alone, how about you stay and keep me company tonight? I know it's not right, but I want someone to talk to!"
She had been lonely for ten years, and Ye Fan's arrival tonight stirred a myriad of emotions inside her, especially since she felt a long-missed sense of safety from him, an emotion that deeply fascinated Zhuang Jingwen.
"Alright, Sister Jingwen, I'll give Ruo Xue a call!" Ye Fan hesitated for a moment but ultimately did not refuse.
He understood that Zhuang Jingwen was greatly frightened tonight, and with two injuries on her body making it inconvenient for her to move, it made sense for him to stay and take care of her.
The most important thing was that if someone came to cause trouble during the night, he could protect Zhuang Jingwen right away.
"Mm!"
Hearing Ye Fan's response, Zhuang Jingwen blushed, her heart rippling with emotions.
Ye Fan stepped outside and called Su Ruoxue, telling her he had something to do and couldn't come home tonight. Su Ruoxue didn't think much of it and reminded him to be careful outside.
He did not tell Su Ruoxue that he would spend the night at Zhuang Jingwen's place. If Su Ruoxue knew, even if she trusted him completely, knowing that he was spending the night at another woman's house would probably make her overthink.
When Ye Fan returned to the room, he was surprised to find that Zhuang Jingwen had already fallen asleep with her eyes closed.
"Sister Jingwen!"
Ye Fan called out softly twice, but Zhuang Jingwen did not respond. He knew she must be exhausted from the escape, so after covering her with the quilt, Ye Fan went to lie down in the living room.
The next morning, as the sky was getting light, Ye Fan awoke and proceeded to boil another medicinal herb in the kitchen.
Around seven o'clock, Zhuang Jingwen slowly opened her eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "Ye Fan, are you making medicine? Such a strong fragrance of medicinal herbs!"
"Yes, Sister Jingwen, you have a severe Qi damage, you need to replenish!" Ye Fan smiled.
After Zhuang Jingwen drank the medicine, Ye Fan prepared a simple breakfast. After breakfast, which was around eight, Ye Fan said slowly, "Sister Jingwen, I need to head out for a bit, I'll be back by noon. If you need anything, call me any time!"
"Mm!" Zhuang Jingwen nodded gently, this time she didn't ask him to stay.
Watching Ye Fan's departing figure, Zhuang Jingwen had a complex expression, and thinking that Ye Fan already had a family, she let out a deep sigh, "Fate is toying with us!"
...
After leaving Tianhu Mountain Villa, Ye Fan scanned a shared bicycle to get to Su Corporation.
"Ye Fan!"
The sight of Ye Fan made Security Captain Xu Qinghu shiver in fright.
"Was the last lesson not enough, still intending to stop me?" Ye Fan looked at Xu Qinghu. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvelƒire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
```
Xu Qinghu hastily waved his hands and said, "No... I wouldn't dare! I just wanted to tell you that Old Madam Su has arrived, and she seems to be quite unhappy!"
Last night, Ye Fan gave him a good beating, causing him to lose eight teeth, and even after he summoned his cousin, Lei Hong from Wan Hong Commerce Association, the Number One God of Killing, it was of no use. Now, encountering Ye Fan again, Xu Qinghu was like a frightened bird, filled with immense reverence for Ye Fan.
"She'd be surprised if she were happy!" Ye Fan sneered and walked towards the interior of Su Corporation.
Last night, Su Tianhao had sought Xu Qinghu to deal with him, but his plan backfired, and he probably found himself lying in a hospital bed right now.
Upon entering Su Corporation, he saw several figures standing in the lobby of Su Corporation. These figures were Su Ruoxue, Old Madam Su, Su Yue, and another person Ye Fan didn't expect to see—Cao Xuan, the young master of the prestigious Cao Family.
"How did this guy pop up again?"
Seeing Cao Xuan, Ye Fan was utterly surprised.
A while ago, during Old Madam Su's seventieth birthday, Cao Xuan brought a fake painting to fool Old Madam Su. After being exposed, Cao Xuan slapped Su Yue in anger and left the Su Family after a falling out.
In Ye Fan's view, Cao Xuan would probably never have anything to do with the Su Family again in his life. Unexpectedly, not long after, Cao Xuan popped up again.
Upon hearing Ye Fan's words, Cao Xuan said with an annoyed expression, "What do you mean by popping up again? Ye Fan, what are you implying? Am I not supposed to appear here?"
"Ye Fan, mind your language. Cao Xuan is my boyfriend. Why shouldn't he be at Su Corporation?" Su Yue said, her face full of anger.
Ye Fan scoffed, "Su Yue, didn't you two have a falling out during Old Lady Su's birthday banquet last time? What? You've made up?"
"Even old couples have their conflicts, let alone us who are dating. What do you know? The fight between me and Yue Yue last time was nothing but love taps and sweet nothings!" Cao Xuan said arrogantly.
Su Yue nodded, "That's right, love taps and sweet nothings!"
"The two of you are really something!" Ye Fan mocked endlessly.
Little did they know, since the incident at Old Madam Su's birthday banquet, Cao Xuan had already broken up with Su Yue. However, surprisingly, not many days after, the Su Family successfully collaborated with Tianba Group, signing a deal worth three billion, thereby becoming a Quasi-First-Tier Clan, which caused his father, Cao Bin, to change his attitude towards the Su Family.
Nowadays, with people's income having increased, they were willing to spend more on cosmetics. The Cao Family's business had hit a bottleneck. If the Cao Family wanted to advance further, it would need to expand into other businesses, and so Cao Bin set his sights on the cosmetics industry.
Tianba Group dominated the industry alone in the Mainland. Although the Cao Family had substantial capital, it was impossible for them to invest a large sum of money into cosmetics at once, so Cao Bin sought out Li Changhong, explaining his intentions but was ruthlessly rejected by him.
It's worth mentioning that, within Central Plains, a family with assets over three hundred million can be called a Third-rate Family, over five hundred million as a Second-rate Family, over one billion as a First-Rate Clan, over ten billion classified as prestigious families, and over thirty billion regarded as noble clans. Stay tuned for updates on M V L
After all, this is the Mainland, which is not as affluent as the coastal areas; big family foundations are naturally much weaker compared to those in the coastal regions.
With just barely over ten billion in assets, the Cao Family was the weakest among the prestigious families in Central Plains. Currently, the Cao Family could only affords to invest one billion in cosmetics at most, but Li Changhong, chairman of Tianba Group, simply did not entertain them.
To know, Tianba Group's market valuation was over a hundred billion, and ordinary prestigious families didn't even qualify to collaborate with Tianba Group.
In order to promote cooperation with Tianba Group, Cao Bin asked his son, Cao Xuan, to humble himself and reconcile with Su Yue, hoping to leverage the Su Family's connections to successfully bridge with Tianba Group.
Su Yue's greatest dream was to marry into a prestigious family, and when Cao Xuan sincerely apologized, she naturally accepted it without hesitation, while Old Madam Su watched but said nothing.
Although Cao Xuan made a fool of them on her seventieth birthday, the Cao Family was still prestigious, and even if it was the least among them, it wasn't a family the Su Family could afford to offend. If Su Yue could truly marry into the Cao Family, it would only accelerate the Su Family's rise to a First-Rate Clan, something Old Madam Su was very much looking forward to.
At this moment, Old Madam Su's aged eyes were filled with coldness. She looked at Ye Fan and spoke in a chilly voice, "Ye Fan, last night Tianhao was beaten and broke four ribs in his chest. Are you going to give me an explanation for this?"
Upon hearing this, Ye Fan's heart missed a beat. He knew that what was inevitable had finally come.