Chapter 18: Setting a Grand Trap

"Beep, beep, beep—"

Sheng Zerong had just wanted to ask "Why?", but a busy signal came from the other end.

He could only offer a bitter smile at the phone and mutter to himself: "Second Brother, oh Second Brother, why did you have to provoke anyone? Why did you have to provoke Big Brother? This time, no one can save you; you're on your own!"

Second-floor bedroom.

Shi Youxuan curled up in the corner of the wall, frowning as she stared at the words on the computer screen, not understanding a thing!

Jian Yining asked: Are you Sheng Hanyu?

After no word for many days, then suddenly making contact, and starting off with a sentence like this?

Shi Youxuan typed two characters on the keyboard and sent them over: Not.

Jian Yining: Where are you? Who are you? Tell the truth.

In the five years they had been working together, this was the first time Jian Yining had asked Shi Youxuan such a blunt personal question, a complete reversal of his usual grinning, joking manner; he was serious and stern.

I am not Sheng Hanyu, and I don't want to tell you who I am.

She was a little angry; Shi Youxuan usually played the fool and acted innocent in front of others, but in reality, her temper was not good, and she did not have much patience.

She was a person who clearly distinguished between gratitude and grudges; she remembered that Shi Yucheng was good to her.

Her adoptive father was not cut out for business and had failed in several investments; if not for Shi Youxuan helping in secret, the Shi Family would have gone bankrupt long ago and would never have lasted until now!

Shi Youxuan also remembered that her adoptive mother had embezzled her biological parents' assets and pension when she was a child.

Over the past two years, the businesses under Jiang Yadan's name had long since been cleverly reclaimed by Shi Youxuan, who had also tricked her into taking out many high-interest loans, leaving her buried in debt.

If the Sheng Family hadn't suddenly intervened and temporarily disrupted Shi Youxuan's plan, Jiang Yadan's secret high-interest loans behind Shi Yucheng's back should have been exposed by now, and what awaited her would have been endless trouble and pursuit.

And then there was Shi Yuke, who held the title of the greatest beauty in Jiangzhou but had failed several times in her attempts to marry into a wealthy family; all of this was Shi Youxuan's doing, only they didn't know it!

The reason she was still able to patiently talk to Jian Yining now was that she didn't just treat Jian Yining as a partner, but as a friend.

Soon, a message popped up in the chat box: Are you sure you aren't Sheng Hanyu?

She quickly realized where the problem lay; Jian Yining had gone offline after she sent her location last time. It turned out Jian Yining knew Sheng Hanyu and had mistaken her for him.

Of course not!!!

She sent the words over, feeling righteous and confident.

Jian Yining sent back a row of grinning emojis, showing that he was in a very good mood!

Soon, another line of text came: Short the Sheng Family's stocks, three consecutive days of limit-down, and Top Sheng will agree to cooperate with us, with whatever terms we want. OK.

Shi Youxuan closed the chat box, then opened the stock market, her ten fingers flying as she operated the computer.

The Sheng Family's stocks hit the limit-down for consecutive days, and the Old Chairman only discovered it on the third day; he had someone call Sheng Yukai over to ask clearly what was going on.

The person sent out soon returned: "Chairman, the Second Young Master... is not in the office."

"Where did he go?" Sheng Runruo's expression was very ugly.

Neglecting his duties was one thing, but with such a serious crisis occurring at the company, Sheng Yukai, as General Manager, was actually not there? It was clear he didn't take the company to heart.

The Secretary dared not hide it and answered tremblingly: "The Second Young Master went, went to the Shi Family."

"Bastard, what is he doing at the Shi Family?" The Old Chairman's temples throbbed violently; he said to the Secretary: "Call him, tell him to roll back here immediately. If he is unwilling, you go to the Shi Family yourself and drag him back to me."

"Yes."

The Secretary agreed and left.

Sheng Runruo sat in his executive chair, shakily taking heart medication from a drawer and popping a few pills into his mouth; it took a long while before he felt better.

The Shi Family had married a fool to his most prized grandson; he hadn't even had time to settle the score with Shi Yucheng over that matter, and his second grandson, Sheng Yukai, had intervened, taking it upon himself to bring reporters to the Shi Family to cause trouble, turning a situation where they were in the right into one where they were in the wrong!

He had severely reprimanded Sheng Yukai for this and repeatedly emphasized that he was not allowed to go to the Shi Family to cause trouble, yet it had only been a few days, and he had gone again.

This was clearly not taking his words to heart at all; the Old Chairman was furious!

A good-for-nothing; he didn't care about company matters, but was better than anyone at infighting. Sheng Runruo was extremely disappointed in Sheng Yukai.

In the past, when his eldest grandson Sheng Hanyu was General Manager of the company, he basically didn't have to worry about anything, and he, as Chairman, could spend his days fishing and playing with birds, completely carefree.

He had originally been prepared to retire, but everything changed because of a fire!

Sheng Yukai had made a date with Shi Yuke for a meal; this time, going to the Shi Family wasn't to look for trouble, but to pick up a beauty for a date!

No matter how beautiful Sheng Hanyu's woman was, she was still a fool, and in the end, he had set his sights on Shi Yuke.

He had asked her out twice, but she had pushed him off both times, saying she was busy; he only managed to get a date on the third try, but before he even arrived, he received a call from his grandfather's secretary, telling him to return to the company immediately, saying there was an urgent matter!

Urgent, my foot.

Right now, no matter what it was, nothing was more important to Sheng Yukai than a date with a beauty.

He agreed profusely, saying he would turn around immediately, but then turned off his phone and told the driver to keep driving toward the Shi Family!

The Shi Family.

Shi Yuke sat in front of the vanity mirror, satisfied with her makeup, but disgusted by the jewelry on her ears, neck, and wrists.

She turned around and grabbed her mother's arm, acting spoiled: "Mom, the Second Young Master will be here in a while; I'll be laughed at if I wear such shabby jewelry... You go talk to Dad and have him take out the jewelry he bought for that fool and lend it to me to wear first."

Shi Yuke was furious just thinking about those things.

When Shi Youxuan married Sheng Hanyu, her father had clearly given her a bank card as a dowry, but he still felt he had wronged her and prepared many precious pieces of jewelry and items to send to Shi Youxuan.

She coveted them greatly, but those things were all locked in a safe by her father, and she couldn't get them at all!

Jiang Yadan dotingly stroked her daughter's head, feeling pained but helpless: "Silly daughter, your father is not only guarding against you now, but even against me; he changed the password to the safe, and I can't get into it at all."

"Then what should I do?"

Shi Yuke disgustedly took off the gold studs from her ears and threw them into the jewelry box: "Are you telling me to wear this junk to go on a date with the Sheng Family's Second Young Master? Forget it, I'm not going."

Jiang Yadan knew her daughter was just sulking and saying things out of anger; it was impossible for her not to go.

Ever since her chance encounter with Sheng Yukai, her daughter had been captivated by the second young master of the Sheng Family.

Sheng Yukai had asked her out several times; she declined not because she didn't want to go, but to play hard to get so she could firmly hook the man.

Before the second young master of the Sheng Family appeared, Shi Yuke's biggest goal was Jian Yining, but now that Sheng Yukai had suddenly popped up, Jian Yining's position in Shi Yuke's heart immediately dropped.

Although the Jian Family was also a wealthy household, it was still a bit inferior compared to the Sheng Family.

Moreover, although Sheng Yukai and Jian Yining were both "second young masters," Sheng Yukai was currently in charge of the entire Sheng Family, while the rumors outside about Jian Yining's Tianma Company were very impressive, but Shi Yuke did not know exactly how impressive it was.

Shi Yuke thought, if a fool could get so much dowry and benefits by marrying a Xiazi who had lost power in the Sheng Family, wouldn't she be able to have whatever she wanted if she became the mistress of the Sheng Family?

The scales in Shi Yuke's heart easily tilted toward Sheng Yukai, but she understood men's psychology—that which is easily obtained will not be cherished.

Therefore, she refused once or twice, and only after Sheng Yukai sent an invitation for the third time did she pretend that it was hard to refuse such kindness and reluctantly agree!

Shi Yuke kept her contact with Sheng Yukai hidden from her father, but her mother knew she had been meticulously preparing for this date for a long time; now that he was about to arrive, her daughter was annoyed because her jewelry was not to her liking.

Jiang Yadan hugged her daughter in her arms and comforted her, "Be good, the second young master of the Sheng Family likes you for who you are; he won't look down on you just because you aren't wearing expensive jewelry. Perhaps if you dress more simply, he will feel even more affection for you..."