Chapter 4: Zhang Yunjie Comes Calling

At the dining table, Su Qianqian frequently picked dishes and poured wine for Lu Yeqing, chatting away as if they were family. Lu Ye himself was quite surprised; Su Qianqian was only using him to break free from her arranged marriage with the Zhang family, yet she was willing to humble herself and coax her father into such delight. This touched Lu Ye a little—setting aside the mission assigned to him by his organization, marrying a wife like Su Qianqian wouldn’t be so bad after all.

After a satisfying meal, Lu Ye drove Su Qianqian home. He had hoped to stay the night at her place, but Su Qianqian showed him no mercy and sent him packing.

The next morning, as soon as Lu Ye stepped through the company doors, he was met with countless strange and curious stares.

Su Shiming, his future father-in-law, had announced Su Qianqian and Lu Ye’s engagement the previous day. Invitations had been sent out; the marriage was set for Sunday.

This was explosive news that shook the entire city. The most beautiful woman in Pearl City was actually going to marry an ordinary security guard named Lu Ye?

Countless young men were left clenching their fists in frustration, wishing they could throttle Lu Ye and take his place.

“My god, is the goddess’s standard for a husband really this low?”
“Why didn’t she say so sooner? Wuwuwu!”
“If I’d have known, I wouldn’t have become a programmer. I’d have joined Yiren Group as a security guard—or even as a stray dog—maybe the goddess would have picked me!”
“Kill Lu the mutt, take President Su, chop that bastard Lu Ye to bits!”

In just one night, Lu Ye became the public enemy of all Pearl City…

Meanwhile, in a private room at the Guangdong Tea House, Zhang family patriarch Zhang Boquan looked extremely displeased.

“Old Su, you promised so adamantly that you’d marry Su Qianqian to my son. What exactly is the meaning of this spectacle now?”

The old man sitting opposite Zhang Boquan was Master Su of the Su family, Su Shanglin. The wrinkles on his face were deeply etched, and it was clear he hadn’t foreseen this sudden change.

Su Shanglin explained awkwardly, “President Zhang, I just learned about this myself. It must be Su Shiming acting behind my back.”

“Don’t worry. In the end, who Qianqian marries is up to me. I’ll go deal with Su Shiming right away!”

With that, he stood up with the help of his assistant, leaning on his dragon-headed cane as he strode out of the tea house.

Watching Su Shanglin’s retreating figure, Zhang Boquan’s gaze grew darker.

“That old man can’t be relied on. Yunjie, during your lunch break, go to Yiren Group in person and propose to Su Qianqian directly. If she dares reject you, she’ll be slapping the Zhang family’s face. I don’t think she has the guts!”

A wicked smile curled at Zhang Yunjie’s lips. “Got it, Dad. I also heard Su Qianqian wants to marry some security guard from her company. Should I give that punk a warning too?”

Zhang Boquan nodded. “Handle it however you see fit.”

…

“Su Shiming, are you deliberately defying me?” Su Shanglin stormed into the general manager’s office of Su Group, pointing at Su Shiming’s nose and unleashing a fierce tirade.

Su Shiming calmly closed the file in his hands and said, “I can’t just stand by and watch Qianqian be used as a pawn for a marriage alliance.”

“You fool, do you have any idea what you’re doing? If you anger the Zhang family, can you bear the consequences?”

Of course, Su Shiming understood the potential fallout. Zhang Boquan was the richest man in Pearl City; if he took offense and launched commercial retaliation against Su Group’s businesses, the Su family might not survive the blow.

Even so, Su Shiming couldn’t bear to sacrifice his daughter’s happiness for the sake of compromise.

Su Shanglin’s tone turned commanding. “I hear her fiancé is a security guard at Yiren Group? Fire that boy immediately, and warn him to stay away from Su Qianqian!”

Su Shiming replied leisurely, “Yiren Group is Qianqian’s own company and has nothing to do with the Su family. I have no authority over their personnel decisions.”

Enraged, Su Shanglin sneered and threatened, “If Su Qianqian refuses to marry Zhang Yunjie, you and your daughter can get out of the Su family and brace yourselves for the Zhang family’s revenge!”

He just needed an excuse to transfer all family assets to his illegitimate son.

Su Shiming sighed, pushed the folder in front of Su Shanglin, and smiled. “Here is my resignation and all the relevant handover documents. Please keep them.”

With that, Su Shiming picked up his coat from the chair and walked out.

He had never cared for the Su family’s business. With his daughter’s Yiren Group, he could still live comfortably for the rest of his days without toiling for Su Shanglin’s illegitimate child.

On another note, Yiren Group had just announced two new personnel changes.

First, Lu Ye had been promoted to security team captain.

Second, Lu Ping, the former deputy manager of human resources, had been demoted to security guard.

Now, the employees all turned into green-eyed monsters, and the office was thick with jealousy.

The morning’s gossip still seemed like a rumor, but these two personnel changes confirmed it: Su Qianqian really was going to marry Lu Ye. Otherwise, why would she demote a senior manager to the security team just to serve under Lu Ye?

“What right does that guy have to marry our city’s number one beauty? Why him? Ugh, I’m so envious I could cry!”

At noon, during Yiren Group’s lunch break, a commotion erupted in the main lobby.

A fleet of more than ten Mercedes S-Classes lined up outside the main entrance, blocking everyone’s way, forcing the departing employees to stay inside and watch the drama unfold.

In the center of the lobby’s gleaming floor, dozens of burning candles had been arranged in the shape of a heart. Zhang Yunjie stood at the center, holding a bouquet of roses.

Following his father’s instructions, Zhang Yunjie was about to propose to Su Qianqian in front of everyone!

A growing crowd gathered in the lobby, buzzing with speculation.

“Whoa, isn’t that Young Master Zhang from the Zhang family? The richest man’s son in Pearl City!”

“He’s so handsome! I wonder which lady in our company is lucky enough to catch his eye?”

“Who else could it be? Of course it’s President Su!”

“But I heard President Su is going to marry the new head of security, Lu Ye?”

“Lu Ye? He’s nothing compared to Young Master Zhang. Clearly, Zhang Yunjie is here to steal President Su away. We’re in for a show!”

“Exactly!”

Most of these sour comments came from the male employees. After all, Lu Ye was about to marry their dream goddess. They were dying for Zhang Yunjie to humiliate Lu Ye, to soothe their bitter envy.

Such a spectacle naturally reached Su Qianqian first. She knew well this was a public ploy by the Zhang family; Zhang Yunjie wanted to force her hand in front of everyone. In a hurry, she rushed to the security office and pushed open the door, only to find Lu Ye lounging with his legs on the desk, playing games on his phone. Her anger flared.

“How can you be playing games at a time like this? Zhang Yunjie is already here!”

Lu Ye glanced up at her and grinned. “I know!”

“Then why aren’t you out there dealing with him?”

“Relax, what’s the big deal? Let me finish this round—I’m about to win.”

With a sharp slap, Su Qianqian knocked the phone out of his hand. She pointed at the door and shouted, “Get rid of him from the company right now!”

“Yes, ma’am! At once!” Lu Ye, seeing his wife truly angry, hurriedly nodded and bowed, picked up his phone, and dashed out of the office.

“Idiot! But can he really send Zhang Yunjie packing? What if he gets beaten up instead?” Su Qianqian cooled down and decided not to follow. She stayed behind, watching the lobby cameras, ready to step in if things went south for Lu Ye—this was a good chance to see if he was really as useless as everyone said.

When Lu Ye appeared in the lobby, his colleagues cast him gloating looks, as if expecting to see him trampled under Zhang Yunjie’s feet at any moment.

Unexpectedly, Lu Ye strode straight toward the fire control panel…

“What the hell is Lu Ye doing?”
“Stop, you idiot!”

Snap!

A dozen or so fire sprinkler heads on the ceiling simultaneously activated, blasting high-pressure streams of water at the heat source. In an instant, the heart-shaped candles were extinguished, and Zhang Yunjie was drenched from head to toe!

The onlookers were all dumbfounded. Did this hothead really not know who he was dealing with? That was the richest man’s son in Pearl City—he could crush a security guard like him without breaking a sweat!

“Lu Ye, turn off the water now or you’re finished!”
“Not even President Su can save you this time, moron!”

Lu Ye ignored their threatening warnings. Only when Zhang Yunjie’s expensive suit was soaked through and his bouquet of roses reduced to a soggy mess did he finally switch off the water.

Swaggering over, Lu Ye laughed loudly. “I thought some idiot was playing with fire in our building. Turns out it was Young Master Zhang! Didn’t your father ever teach you not to play with fire? Careful you don’t wet the bed tonight!”

Zhang Yunjie, seeing Lu Ye in his security uniform, flew into a rage. “So you’re Lu Ye?”