“Yan Qiu, let’s go. Our children will have their own fortunes!” Yao Jianyong took the opportunity to grab Zhou Yanqiu's hand and led her toward the door.

“Jingjing, you must think carefully. Mom is doing this for your own good! You think I would harm you as your mother?” Zhou Yanqiu said affectionately at the door. At this moment, she had changed her strategy because Lin Zhiming's earlier words had made her feel fearful. She had a premonition that if she continued to rage, the consequences would not be good.

“I know what I’m doing,” Yao Jing said.

“Alright then, Mom believes in you!” Zhou Yanqiu said, opening her arms to hug Yao Jing briefly before patting her on the back and turning to leave.

Yao Jing closed the door and sat down across from Lin Zhiming.

“Why won’t you divorce me?” Lin Zhiming asked a question he had always wanted to ask.

“Maybe I’m just a bit stubborn. The more they push me away, the less I want to leave,” Yao Jing replied lightly.

Lin Zhiming frowned at her. He certainly didn’t believe Yao Jing’s words, but she seemed unwilling to tell him the truth.

“Are you really not going to leave?” Lin Zhiming asked.

“Mm-hmm.” Yao Jing nodded.

“Then… can we sleep together tonight?” Lin Zhiming asked again.

“Did I ever stop you from sleeping with me?” Yao Jing asked.

“Well, no,” Lin Zhiming said with a smile, scratching his head. “It’s better to sleep separately.”

“Zhiming, come here for a moment,” Yao Jing beckoned him.

Lin Zhiming got up and walked in front of her, squatting down to ask, “What’s wrong?”

“You’ve changed,” Yao Jing said, looking directly at him. “Since yesterday, you’ve changed. You’re no longer submissive, you’ve become smooth-tongued, and you speak more domineeringly than before. You’re not like you anymore.”

“People change, especially after gaining enough power,” Lin Zhiming replied.

“Then tell me, is there anyone behind you?” Yao Jing asked.

“No,” Lin Zhiming shook his head.

“You still don’t consider me your wife!” Yao Jing sighed, then got up and walked back to her room.

Lin Zhiming smiled helplessly. If he were in Yao Jing's position, he certainly wouldn’t believe he could casually come up with ten billion.

That’s ten billion, not ten bucks.

Dingling!

At that moment, Lin Zhiming’s phone rang.

He picked up the phone and held it to his ear.

“I just received news that Shen Hongyue has submitted some dirt about the Lin Group to higher-ups,” Dong Jian’s voice came from the other end.

“That woman… does she want to increase the fines against the Lin Group?” Lin Zhiming asked.

“Looks like it,” Dong Jian replied.

“What a foolish woman,” Lin Zhiming said with a slight smirk, mocking her. “The dirt on the Lin Group is just the dirt on Lin Zhi X ing. She thinks she has solid connections and can ignore this bit of dirt, but she doesn’t realize that any bit of dirt is pushing Lin Zhi Xing toward a dead end. It’s not me who will kill him; it’s his mother!”

“Do you want me to call Minister Xu and have him inform the business department in Haixia City to reduce the fine?” Dong Jian asked.

“If the Lin Group has done something wrong, it should be fined. It’s unnecessary to call Old Xu over that little bit of money. Let that woman continue to make a scene; the good show is about to begin,” Lin Zhiming replied.

“Understood!”

Downstairs at Lin Zhiming's building, Zhou Yanqiu walked out of the building with a cold face.

“No matter what, we must get Lin Zhiming to divorce Jingjing as soon as possible, and then have Jingjing find Li Shao. Only then can Jingjing regain her position as Executive President!” Zhou Yanqiu said.

“But Jingjing is dead set against it. What can we do? That Lin Zhiming seems to have changed his temperament and doesn’t seem as easy to bully as before!” Yao Jianyong said helplessly.

“Isn’t he just relying on having a backer, which is why he’s so fearless? Just wait; as soon as his company goes bankrupt and his backer abandons him, he’ll return to being the same as before! Hmph, a guy who lives off others, and he really thinks he’s got some strength now!” Zhou Yanqiu said fiercely.

In the afternoon, outside the Encounter Café on Zhongshan Pedestrian Street.

Yao Jing and Song Siqing were sitting under a brown umbrella outside the café.

The pedestrian street was bustling with people, full of beautiful women.

Haixia City is a city famous for its beautiful women, with the number of beauties ranking among the top in the entire Long Country.

However, among the many beautiful women on the pedestrian street, Yao Jing and Song Siqing were undoubtedly boss-level figures.

Anyone passing by who spotted the two of them found it hard to look away.

Yao Jing and Song Siqing both wore business suits, but their styles were completely different. Yao Jing had her hands resting on the armrests of her chair, one leg crossed over the other, exuding a cold and domineering CEO aura. In contrast, Song Siqing had her legs together, her hands propping up her chin, facing Yao Jing, chatting non-stop with bright, lively eyes.

“Jingjing, what happened this morning? How come after you left, the company announced your dismissal?” Song Siqing asked, puzzled.

“Maybe they think I’m not suitable to be Executive President anymore,” Yao Jing replied calmly, showing no signs of having just lost her job.

“Let that Yao Shanchuan be the Executive President? Have they lost their minds? What kind of person is Yao Shanchuan? He’s into all sorts of vices and likes to harass female employees. With someone like him as Executive President, I don’t see any hope for the company’s future,” Song Siqing shook her head and sighed.

Yao Jing remained silent, watching the people coming and going nearby, seemingly lost in thought.

“By the way, I heard a joke just before we finished work. Someone said that Lin Zhiming actually spent ten billion to buy the Lin Group. Hahaha, can you believe that? That Lin Zhiming, he probably can’t even come up with a hundred thousand, let alone ten billion! Hahaha!” Song Siqing laughed.

“You also think he can’t possibly come up with ten billion, right?” Yao Jing asked.

“Of course! That’s absolutely impossible!” Song Siqing affirmed.

“Then there must be someone behind him,” Yao Jing murmured softly. She rarely cared about Lin Zhiming’s private affairs, but this time was an exception.

“What did you say?” Song Siqing asked curiously, not having heard Yao Jing’s words.

“Nothing,” Yao Jing shook her head.

“By the way, do you remember He Shuhui?” Song Siqing asked.

“Yeah, I remember,” Yao Jing nodded. He Shuhui was their high school classmate, quite attractive. In any other class, she could be the class beauty, but in their class with Song Siqing, she could only be considered a supporting beauty. If she was unlucky enough to be grouped with either Yao Jing or Song Siqing, she could only be a desk flower.

Because of this, He Shuhui always competed with them during high school.

“That woman married a rich man from the neighboring Tianlu City and has recently returned to Haixia City. She’s organizing a class reunion for us high school classmates, so you’d better watch out. That woman was overshadowed by us in high school, and now that she’s married a rich man, she’s probably just trying to show off!” Song Siqing said seriously.

“Don’t think of her as such a horrible person. Maybe she just genuinely wants to meet up with classmates. After all, it’s been years since we’ve seen each other,” Yao Jing said.

“Yeah, right! Anyone organizing a class reunion is doing it to show off how well they’re doing! Absolutely! Plus, He Shuhui has never gotten along with us, so she will definitely flaunt her husband, especially since you’re married to someone like Lin Zhiming. If she finds out, she wouldn’t be able to resist showing off,” Song Siqing asserted.

Yao Jing smiled, about to say something, when suddenly her phone rang.

Yao Jing picked up the phone and glanced at it, noticing an unfamiliar number with the area code for Tianlu City.

Tianlu City?

Yao Jing felt a sense of foreboding and answered the call.

As she suspected, a somewhat familiar woman’s voice came from the other end of the line.

“Is this Yao Jing?” the woman asked.

“Mm-hmm, it is. Who are you?” Yao Jing asked.

“It’s Shuhui, He Shuhui, our high school classmate. Do you remember me?” the woman on the other end asked.

“Oh, Shuhui… I remember, I remember,” Yao Jing replied.

Song Siqing’s eyes brightened at this and she whispered, “Class reunion.”

“Here’s the thing, Yao Jing, I just returned from Tianlu City and was thinking that we haven’t seen our high school classmates for a long time, so I’m planning a class reunion tomorrow. You were our class beauty and vice class leader, so you must come!” He Shuhui said cheerfully on the other end.

“I… might not have time,” Yao Jing glanced at Song Siqing, who looked pleased.

“Are you worried that your husband will get jealous? Don’t worry; family members are welcome at this gathering. I’m planning to bring my husband along too! Wouldn’t it be great for them to learn about our school days?” He Shuhui said.

“I’ll think about it,” Yao Jing said. Although she didn’t like to judge others maliciously, she felt that Song Siqing was probably right. He Shuhui was likely organizing this reunion to show off, and it might even be to provoke her.

Therefore, she didn’t want to attend such a gathering.

She wasn’t afraid of being mocked by others because of Lin Zhiming, but she certainly didn’t want to put herself out there to be humiliated.

“Don’t think about it; you have to come. I’ll send you the address for the reunion. I can’t wait to see you… Alright, I’ll talk to you later. I still have to call other people… By the way, please let Song Siqing know. I know you two are close friends, so I won’t call her,” He Shuhui said before hanging up the phone.