Chen Yang repeatedly assured her, but the forced smile on his face and his eyes, squinted into thin slits, spoke volumes of his unreliability.

Qin Qiu was already lying facedown on the bed; otherwise, she might have kicked Chen Yang out.

Afterward, Chen Yang began to massage her neck.

About half an hour later, Qin Qiu fell into a deep sleep.

Chen Yang's movements became gentle. His gaze, fixed on Qin Qiu, was filled with love and heartache. As a woman, she shouldered responsibilities and a mission that even a man would find difficult to bear. Her life was truly not an easy one.

Another half hour passed. Chen Yang tucked the covers around Qin Qiu, placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, and then quietly left the room.

「The next day.」

It was another brilliant, sunny day.

Due to an urgent matter at the company, Qin Qiu didn't even have time for breakfast and rushed to the office.

Chen Yang frowned. What could be so urgent?

However, before he could give it much thought, the phone in his pocket rang. It was an unknown number. Chen Yang hesitated for a moment before answering. A middle-aged woman's indifferent voice came through the line, "I'm Yu's mother. I want to talk to you in person."

Chen Yang was taken aback. Huh? After a moment of surprise, he gave a polite greeting. "Hello, Auntie."

"I'm at the Huaqi Teahouse. Come over." After saying this, she immediately hung up.

Chen Yang was left speechless.

Though speechless, Chen Yang could roughly guess why she wanted to see him. Perhaps talking with her would be for the best.

...

The Huaqi Teahouse was located in the southern suburbs, nestled against Toad Mountain. With its tranquil environment, far from the city's hustle and bustle, it was an excellent place for sipping tea and having heart-to-heart conversations.

The teahouse itself was a five-story octagonal building with a retro exterior. It fully showcased the essence of mortise and tenon construction, featuring carved beams and painted rafters that exuded an ancient, classical charm. Judging from its appearance alone, this teahouse was clearly high-class. The lack of crowds at its entrance only served to confirm this.

This was as it should be for a proper teahouse. If it were constantly bustling with people, it would be nothing more than a mahjong parlor masquerading under the name of a teahouse.

Sure enough, as Chen Yang reached the entrance, he was stopped by two tall hostesses wearing red, floral-patterned qipaos.

"Sir, welcome to the Huaqi Teahouse. Please present your membership card," one of the sweet-faced hostesses said with a polite bow.

"Is a membership card absolutely required to enter?" Chen Yang frowned. The woman on the phone hadn't mentioned this, and it seemed she hadn't informed the staff to expect a guest either.

"Yes, sir. This is a members-only establishment. You are not permitted to enter without a membership," the hostess explained earnestly.

Chen Yang nodded. "How do I get a membership?"

"The most basic option, the Platinum Card, costs five hundred thousand. Sir, shall I sign you up for one?"

Chen Yang was speechless again.

Five hundred thousand… That's probably enough to bar ninety-nine percent of Lingjin City's population from entry, isn't it? Then again, considering the teahouse's caliber, such a high barrier to entry wasn't entirely unreasonable. This made it almost certain that Sun Yuli's mother was deliberately making things difficult for him. If he couldn't even get through the teahouse doors, what right did he have to meet her? And what right did he have to be friends with Sun Yuli? Furthermore, after being humiliated like this, he would be forced to understand her status, his own standing, and the immense gap between them. Even if he did manage to get in, it would only be a begrudgingly granted opportunity to speak with her face-to-face.

Chen Yang shook his head and smiled wryly. This sort of seemingly clever ploy is a new one on me. This utterly disrespectful behavior also reveals just how low her character is. She was the one who called, the one who wanted to talk, yet she pulls a stunt like this. To put it bluntly, this is a deliberate insult.

"Fine. Sign me up for a Platinum Card," Chen Yang finally said with a nod. He had considered just turning around and leaving, but this was Sun Yuli's mother, after all. Besides, the matter truly needed to be settled once and for all to prevent endless trouble down the line.

"Of course, sir. Please follow me," the hostess said with a smile, leading the way.

On the way, Chen Yang called Yang Hu. He asked him to transfer five hundred thousand and then said, "There's a teahouse in the southern suburbs called Huaqi. It looks quite impressive and should be very profitable. Find the owner and make an offer to buy the property outright."

"Got it, Boss!"

Aside from founding the charity clinics, all of Chen Yang's money was invested in acquiring high-quality assets. Only by having his money make more money could he afford to support so many clinics.

「Meanwhile.」

On the top floor of the teahouse, inside A No. 1 Box, an opulently dressed woman was leisurely sipping her tea. Seated across from her was a young man, about twenty-five or twenty-six, who was engrossed in a game on his phone.

The young man was in the middle of a game. After getting killed with a headshot, he swore violently, tossed his phone aside, and said impatiently, "Mom, it's been almost an hour. That good-for-nothing definitely can't get in. Let's just go home!"

"Seriously, Mom! You know he's a nobody, so why lower yourself to meet with him? If he dares to keep pestering my sister, I'll just find some guys to beat the crap out of him!"

As he said this, the young man scoffed and curled his lip in utter disdain.

The richly dressed woman waved her hand and said confidently, "Dealing with someone like him is simple, of course. But he is your sister's friend, after all. We're civilized people, how could we resort to crude violence?

"It seems he can't get in, which is for the best. This will make him understand his own standing and realize that our Sun Family is far beyond his reach."

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