The Billionaire's Hidden Affection-Chapter 543 - 540: Wretched Maid, Give Up Hope 4_1

"Old Zhou’s brother left behind many unresolved problems, and product homogenization is a very serious issue. According to reliable sources, this was the underhanded work of a tycoon with a competing product... Some time ago, the company underwent restructuring. When the market caught wind of it, the share prices plummeted. Many well-informed minority shareholders voiced strong complaints. This is no small matter. It could spell grave danger for the entire industry..."

Yan Xixi was secretly, deeply shocked. No wonder Wan Donglin would rather lie and risk offending Old Zhou to cancel his engagement with Zhou Ting—this was bound to happen sooner or later. If the business failed, who knew how many people would be affected. As their son-in-law, he would be the first to bear the brunt.

Considering Liu Daqing’s shrewdness, how could she allow her family to continue the marriage alliance with theirs? There was no chance Wan Donglin would marry Zhou Ting.

She felt a sense of relief.

So, it really wasn’t because of me after all.

Wan Donglin noticed her holding her chopsticks, staring blankly. He asked her, "Miss, what are you thinking about?"

"Heh, I actually thought you called off your engagement because of me back then."

"Oh, please. Flattering yourself, aren’t you?"

"Humph!"

He looked at her curiously. "What? Disappointed? HAHA, Miss, did you really think I wouldn’t marry anyone but you? To be honest, if Zhou Ting’s family business wasn’t in such dire straits, I might really have married Zhou Ting. Yan Xixi, don’t overestimate your own importance."

Life sure loves to kick you when you’re down, Yan Xixi thought. No wonder Empress Dowager Liu didn’t immediately toss me into the trash bin. To put it bluntly, if Wan Donglin had married Zhou Ting, he would have essentially been putting a noose around his own neck—courting death! As for me, even if I couldn’t bring any glory to his family, at least I wouldn’t bring any danger.

Yan Xixi gave a bitter smile. "Fortunately, I didn’t fall for you either."

His eyes widened. "You didn’t fall for me? If you didn’t fall for me, why are you eating my food?"

She, too, was amused. "Weren’t you the one who practically begged me? Would I have come if you hadn’t asked so insistently? I’m busy studying every day and have no time to go out at all. Accompanying you to this meal delayed my schedule. You should be glad I didn’t charge you an appearance fee."

Wan Donglin burst out laughing.

What a little swindler, she never lets herself lose an argument.

Suddenly, Wan Donglin remembered something. "Oh, Xixi, when my mother came to see you the other day, she didn’t scare you too badly, did she?"

"What do you think?"

"What did Lady Liu say to you?"

"Your mother, the Empress Dowager, had me say ’husband’ backward three times."

"What does that mean?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"Why don’t you try saying it backward three times and see for yourself?"

"’Husband’ backward... what could that be? ’Bloating’? ’Clapping’? ’Pay the bill’? HAHAHA, ’pay the bill’... ’pay the bill’..." Wan Donglin roared with laughter, thoroughly amused. That was so like Lady Liu Daqing. Only she could come up with something like that.

"HA! You definitely don’t know Lady Liu well enough yet. Lady Liu has always been a trendsetter. When she turned sixty, she suddenly started learning how to use a computer because she realized the world was changing too quickly, especially economic development, which was advancing by leaps and bounds. Pagers were all the rage for just two or three years before mobile phones completely wiped them out. Kodak, once an unbeatable giant, was decimated by digital technology. Mobile carriers thought they’d be local overlords forever, but they’re about to be rendered obsolete by the internet and new information services. And banks? Just when they thought they could rest easy, they’re about to be overturned by services like ’Yu Ebao’..."

"Lady Daqing noticed this trend and, ever since, has been fascinated by all sorts of high-tech products. She lives a simple life, but her computers and mobile phones are always state-of-the-art. She’s more fluent in internet slang than we are and constantly warns us to keep learning and adapt, or we’ll be quickly left behind..."