When Yina Yin spoke to Shawn Yan with a bright, flattering smile, Miles Gu felt as if his eyes were being stabbed.
Yina Yin had never been so cautious when talking to him!
Yina Yin had never tried to please him!
Angry, so angry! Absolutely furious!
Miles Gu instinctively grabbed a blooming rose on the windowsill and crushed it over and over!
In just a few seconds, his hands were covered in rose sap!
Yina Yin, completely unaware of Miles Gu's stare, reluctantly let go of Shawn Yan's hand, thinking that someone as beautiful as Shawn deserved to be protected from the world's grime.
"Yina, you're here?" Gavin Gao called out from the side. "You two really know how to find peace—there's hardly anyone here and the view is great. Good choice."
Gavin Gao swaggered over, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Shawn Yan was his rival.
Gavin's arrival instantly broke the sweet atmosphere between Yina Yin and Shawn Yan.
"The banquet was too dull, so I came out for some air," Yina Yin replied. "You snuck out too?"
"If I didn't, I'd have to listen to my mom nag!" Gavin Gao exaggerated. "Her nagging is like a magic spell—there's no escape."
"You're exaggerating! Auntie's actually pretty nice," Yina Yin said with a laugh.
"My mom says you're great too! You women have this mysterious vibe—us men can't get a word in," Gavin joked, turning to Shawn Yan. "It's been a while, Shawn."
Shawn Yan smiled gently. "Just call me Shawn."
"Alright, no need to be formal then! Shawn, you're such a homebody—you never come out with us. It's like you've quit the scene!" Gavin said warmly. "You should hang out more. With so many of us, there's always someone to connect with."
Shawn Yan smiled quietly, nodded, and stayed silent.
The banquet ended quickly. The parents all said their goodbyes, while the young talents were invited by Cherry Miller to stay a few more days, using any excuse to linger.
Of course, there were a few families who really weren’t interested in Yina Yin and didn’t want to cling to the Yin Family’s wealth, so they chose to leave.
Basically, anyone who stayed was interested in Yina Yin and the Yin Family.
With that, this matchmaking event was pretty much set.
As Mr. Yan was leaving, he gave his youngest son a meaningful look and asked, "Have you made up your mind?"
Shawn Yan blushed and nodded lightly.
Shawn hadn't wanted to come at all, but couldn't refuse his father's request. He'd only planned to show his face and leave.
But when Yina Yin held his hand and treated his injury, Shawn's heart was instantly moved.
Shawn actually admired Yina Yin's bold and generous personality. Being introverted himself, he was all the more attracted to her sunny nature.
Especially since Yina Yin was not only confident and capable, with a boyish straightforwardness, but also had the meticulous care and thoughtfulness of a girl.
You could say Yina Yin was the best of both worlds—having all the strengths of both men and women.
Looks, talent, character, background, ability, connections—she had it all.
In the past, Shawn always thought girls should act like girls—quiet, refined, and not draw attention, just like a proper young lady.
But after meeting Yina Yin, he realized girls could live in a completely different way.
Both the Yin Family and the Yun Family raised her well.
Even if she always dressed in a neutral style, looking like a tomboy.
It was only after getting to know her that people realized just how gentle she really was.
So, Shawn Yan was unknowingly drawn to her.
This time, he stayed of his own free will—no reluctance at all.
Mr. Yan saw his youngest son's blushing face and smiled knowingly.
A marriage alliance with the Yin Family would be ideal.
Even if it didn’t work out, at least his son would get out and make some friends.
So Mr. Yan patted his son's shoulder and headed home.
After all the parents left, Cherry Miller did a quick headcount—forty-nine guests remained.
That meant Yina Yin had forty-nine suitors.
Wow, what a lucky number.
With so many people, competition was bound to be fierce.
So, on the second day of the banquet, everyone showed off their skills, pulling out all the stops to impress the Yin Family.
That morning, Yina Yin had just woken up when she saw Gavin Gao warming up in a sleeveless sports outfit.
"Morning!" Gavin called out before Yina could speak. "Are we running or boxing today?"
"Running," Yina Yin said, stretching her limbs. She glanced at Gavin. "You're running too? I thought you hated running."
"Well... that was before. Now I'm a celebrity, gotta keep up appearances! The company wants me to lose weight and stay fit, so I have to run, like it or not!" Gavin looked a bit guilty. Truth was, he didn't care about the company's rules—if he wanted, he could just buy out the company. Who'd dare stop him?
Yina Yin nodded. "Take your time running, then..."
"Hey, wait, let's run together?" Gavin asked, eager.
Yina Yin gave Gavin a long look. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely," Gavin replied with mock seriousness.
Yina Yin tried not to laugh and nodded. "Alright."
Yina Yin turned to Sherry Yuan and said, "You don't have to come with me today. Senior Gavin's got me covered."
"Yes," Sherry Yuan replied coolly, stepped back, and left.
Yina Yin waved to Gavin. "Come on, let's run two laps around the hill."
With that, Yina Yin took off first.
Gavin Gao quickly followed after her.
At first, Gavin Gao figured, come on, he's a guy—how could he lose to a girl in stamina?
But Gavin barely made it halfway before he had to admit defeat!
Ahhh, Yina! How is your stamina so good?
You're making us guys look bad!
Gavin watched as Yina Yin ran tirelessly ahead, then plopped down on the curb, out of energy.
"I... I can't run anymore..." Gavin panted. "I'll wait here and join you next lap."
Yina Yin just left a trail of cheerful laughter as she ran off.
After her run, Yina Yin wiped off her sweat and came back.
She'd barely taken a few steps when someone hurried over. "Miss Yin!"
"What's up?" Yina Yin asked, wiping her sweat. "Is there trouble at the company?"
The visitor was the secretary general of one of Yina Yin's companies, who usually dealt directly with Cherry Miller and rarely came to Yina herself.
So when she did approach Yina Yin, Yina assumed something was wrong at the company.
This company wasn't huge—assets in the hundreds of millions, not publicly listed, but still a standout among mid-sized businesses.
"No, no, Miss Yin, it's just that there are a few documents that need your urgent signature." The secretary hurriedly explained, "Assistant Miller's been swamped these days, so she asked me to bring these for you to sign."
Yina Yin nodded.
Cherry Miller really had been insanely busy lately.
She had to handle the banquet at Sunset Manor, oversee the Yin Consortium headquarters, and even help her mom manage Danni Cosmetics.
It was like she’d split herself into several people just to keep up.
If it wasn’t something really important, it wouldn’t even make it to Cherry Miller’s desk.
So, she ended up being the boss with the lightest workload.
"What documents? Bring them here." Yina Yin tossed her towel to a servant, took the papers, and opened them. Her brows furrowed as she read.
"Miss Yin, these are proposals just submitted by the planning department. Please take a look..." The secretary trailed off.
"Who in the planning department wrote these?" Yina Yin flipped through them casually and immediately spotted a problem.
"It was... Minister Fang." The secretary replied, voice a little low.
Yina Yin sneered, "Minister Fang's been with the company seven or eight years, right? He was here from the start?"
"Yes."
"The company has always treated him well, hasn't it?"
"Yes."
"Then what's his deal?" Yina Yin said coldly. "Does he think I'm the kind of boss who doesn't care, so he can just slack off?"
"Miss Yina..." The secretary hesitated, wanting to say something.
"If you have something to say, just say it." Yina Yin brushed her short hair back with a hand. In the morning light, her face looked even more striking and handsome.
"Minister Fang is the nephew of the Fang General Manager at the Yin Corporation's subsidiary." The secretary kept it brief.
Yina Yin's brows furrowed instantly. She picked up the proposals again, flipped through them, pulled out a few sheets, and tossed them to the secretary. "Show these to General Manager Fang and let him see for himself what kind of person his nephew is. What era are we in? Still using such outdated marketing tricks? If he can't do the job, he should step aside and let someone better take over!"
"Uh..." The secretary hesitated. General Manager Fang was a senior figure at the Yin Corporation. Was it really okay to embarrass him so openly?
"Do as Miss Yina says." A voice sounded from behind Yina Yin.
Yina Yin turned around and saw it was Fan Wuling.
Yina Yin nodded to Fan Wuling in greeting.
Fan Wuling smiled and said, "I wasn't eavesdropping on purpose. I was coming to invite you to breakfast and happened to overhear your conversation."
Yina Yin laughed easily. "It's not some big business secret. Important matters wouldn't be discussed here anyway."
Fan Wuling raised his hand like a gentleman. "May I take a look at these proposals?"
"Of course, here you go." Yina Yin handed over the proposals without hesitation.
There was no business conflict between the Fan and Yin families, so Yina Yin wasn't worried about Fan Wuling seeing anything confidential.
Honestly, Yina Yin thought these proposals were junk. She didn't care for them, and neither would Fan Wuling, who was already a CEO.
After reading them, Fan Wuling frowned. "This quality is just..." Too poor.
So bad, it didn't even deserve to be called the work of the planning department head.