Cecilia Gu felt a little embarrassed. "You know Yun Nuo too?"
Joe Qi tilted his head and thought for a moment before answering, "The famous beauty and talent of Y Province—if I didn't know her, I'd be a nobody. But I'm not really familiar with her, since I'm in the entertainment industry and she's not. Besides, with how wild I am, someone like her wouldn't bother with me."
Cecilia hadn't expected Joe Qi to be so blunt, and it made her like him even more.
Joe Qi continued, "Last time you came to my place, I didn't treat you well enough. Sorry about that!"
Cecilia smiled and shook her head. "You were the groom, taking care of so many people. It's normal to miss a few. Besides, I wasn't mistreated at all—the staff at your villa were very professional."
"Hmm, are you suggesting I should give them bonuses for not neglecting you?" Joe Qi joked.
Cecilia couldn't help but laugh out loud.
At that moment, Cecilia realized Joe Qi really was an interesting person.
No wonder, even at thirty-eight, he's still the top boyfriend pick for so many women.
With the ice broken between them, Joe Qi laughed as well.
"Looks like I made the right choice. You're actually a really great girl," Joe Qi said with a smile, looking at Cecilia.
"Thank you for the compliment—it's really because you're so much fun! Ruona once told me the line of girls after you could stretch to the Pacific. I didn't buy it, but now I totally get it," Cecilia replied with a grin.
"Too bad, I still don't have as many admirers as Charles Yin! My fans only reach the Pacific, but his circle of admirers has gone around the world several times! That's the difference!" Joe Qi said, exaggerating his disappointment. "Especially since he married the Yun family's second daughter—he's basically the envy of everyone!"
Cecilia couldn't help but smile again.
Joe Qi really was such an interesting guy.
"Hmm, now I'm really curious about you. There aren't many people who can make Charles Yin lose his cool, then pull himself together at the last second!" Joe Qi finished joking and looked at Cecilia seriously. "So, I'd really like to be friends with you, if you'll let me? Whether you and Charles stick together or go your separate ways, I want to be your friend. Deal?"
Cecilia's smile faded and she grew serious, nodding hard.
Back at Joe Qi's wedding, even though he barely knew her, he really went out of his way as a host.
Especially since he kept Dieyi Chen in check, making sure she didn't get involved in the love triangle between Cecilia, Charles, and Sylvia Ran. That was already a huge favor.
With Cecilia's agreement, Joe Qi broke into a huge grin.
He felt super uneasy about blowing through all the family money at once.
Sylvia Ran shot Ethan Yin a look of annoyance—he was hopeless.
If it were Charles Yin, this amount of money wouldn't even make him blink.
"Why are you defending him? Oh, right. You two actually grew up together, so of course you take his side." Cecilia sighed. "Did he put you up to this?"
"Hey, we just became friends! Why are you doubting me already?" Qiao Qi frowned helplessly, making a goofy face. "I just wanted to tell you myself—this has nothing to do with Charles."
"Okay, then tell me," Cecilia said, amused by Qiao Qi's expressive face.
"Do you know who he's trying to fool?" Qiao Qi asked.
Cecilia shook her head, confused.
"He's not trying to fool you—he doesn't need to. This whole playboy act is for two people to see." Qiao Qi said mysteriously. "Bet you can't guess who. The second young master of the Yin family is about to get burned."
"Huh?" Cecilia looked at Qiao Qi in confusion. "Why do you say that?"
"Because this whole setup was meant to take down Yin Siyao," Qiao Qi sighed. "Charles isn't good at expressing his feelings, and some things he can't—or shouldn't—tell you directly. That's why there have been so many misunderstandings. Are you still upset that Charles went after the Yun family?"
Cecilia didn't answer. She just gripped her water glass, neither admitting nor denying it.
"Charles was a bit reckless going after the Yun family. But he's not the impulsive type. If he were, how could he survive in business? He's earned his place as CEO of the Yin Group—he's no spoiled heir. Back then, the Yun family was reaching out to you, and you were wavering about returning to them. In this world, nothing stays secret forever. Every move you make is watched by Charles—and by those who really want to hurt you," Qiao Qi explained slowly.
"Charles knew this, so he played dumb and set a trap. He pretended not to notice you returning to the Yun family, then launched a full attack on them, because he knew you wouldn't just stand by. You're too loyal—of course you'd help them. But you didn't have enough cash to save the Yun family, so you had to sell your shares. Once you did, the enemies lurking in the shadows would make their move."
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"That was the trap Charles set—he was waiting for them to make a move, so he could strike hard and catch them off guard," Qiao Qi explained. "These days, he's been acting like he's lost interest in you, drifting from woman to woman, but it's all just a smokescreen. Only if you seem out of favor would you sell your shares. If Charles stayed close to you, you'd still be the high-and-mighty wife of the Yin Group CEO—why would you ever need to sell your shares?"
"Only when everything lined up—when the other side believed it all—would they dare to show themselves and kick you when you're down," Qiao Qi said with a smile. "Today is the day the net closes. If nothing goes wrong, most of their money is already trapped."
Cecilia was stunned.
She never imagined that a simple argument with Charles could be so complicated.
"Charles never fights a battle he can't win. This time, Yin Siyao is totally finished," Qiao Qi continued, still smiling. "The funny thing is, Yin Siyao thinks he got lucky and scored a bargain, but he doesn't realize Charles has been planning this all along. The Yin family's fortune was never going to fall into the hands of an outsider. If all goes well, the trap will close completely in another hour or two."
Cecilia was honestly at a loss for words.
It felt like she'd never truly understood Charles Yin.
His tactics were endless, almost impossible to count.
Cecilia nodded, not dodging the question at all.
Cecilia nodded, not dodging the question.
Joe Qi grinned. "I knew it! There's no way you'd just roll over and give up."
Cecilia smiled softly.
She'd never been the type to just roll over and give up.
As long as there was even a sliver of hope, she'd never quit!
Otherwise, how could she have gotten this far?
If she were the type to get crushed by fate, she wouldn't be sitting here chatting with Joe Qi—she'd have been sold off cheap by the Gu family, probably as a bride to some lonely old bachelor in the mountains.
Back then, she fought tooth and nail just to earn her college years!
Back then, she fought with everything she had just to earn her college years!
"Why not?" Joe Qi's smile was deep. "She married me for status and money. It's just a fair partnership, that's all."
"Why not?" Qiao Qi's smile was deep. "She married me for status and money. It's just a fair partnership, that's all."
Joe Qi chuckled. "Guess you don't know my story well enough. My family's already a mess—I really don't need another headache."
Qiao Qi chuckled. "Seems you don't know my story well enough. My family's already complicated enough—I don't want to add another headache."
Cecilia could only stare at him speechlessly.
While Cecilia finally felt at ease, somewhere else, things were getting tense.
Yin Siyao stared nervously at all the charts in front of him, his head spinning. He couldn't help but ask, "Xiwei, are you sure about this?"
He felt uneasy about spending all his family’s money at once.
Ran Xiwei shot Yin Siyao a look of annoyance—he was hopeless.
If it were Charles Yin, this amount of money wouldn't even make him blink.