We still don't know what's going on with Mo Lian's mother.
Mo Yushen showed no intention of greeting him, so he took a deep breath and walked over.
Seeing Mo Yushen stop, Xi Jia asked, "What's wrong?"
Mo Yushen typed: 【My father.】
Xi Jia read the notes in the morning and learned that his father had cheated on his wife, causing Aunt Qin great distress.
Xi Jia: "Let's find a secluded place to talk."
The three moved to a corner.
Chairman Mo never expected that Mo Yushen would actually join forces with the Ji family, putting the Mo Corporation's board of directors in a difficult position.
The Mo family and the Ji family are strategic partners. Now that the Ji family has decided to completely stop cooperation, it is like hitting the Mo family where it hurts.
"What you're doing is like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs," Chairman Mo said through gritted teeth. His disputes with Mo Lian were always family matters, but now that the Ji family was involved, everything was uncertain.
"No one can predict the Ji family's ambitions. Perhaps Ji Qingshi is just using helping you as a pretext to eventually take over the Mo family. What will you use to control the situation then?"
Chairman Mo sighed, "Mo Yushen, you're so foolish, don't you know that!"
Mo Yushen casually remarked, "If it really comes to that, I would rather hand over the Mo family business to the Ji family than leave it to Mo Lian."
He took Xi Jia's hand and they walked away.
Chairman Mo stood there, stunned. He almost couldn't breathe; he felt angina.
Mo Yushen was so focused on keeping Xi Jia company that he hadn't seen the financial news and was unaware of what had happened. He took Xi Jia to the neurosurgery department to see Professor Xiang's assistant; they had someone specifically assigned to take Xi Jia for her examination.
Mo Yushen finally had time to check his phone. Ji Qingshi's decision had taken him by surprise.
When Chairman Li called, his tone was noticeably more relaxed. "Ji Qingshi just spoke to me on the phone. He said the resumption of cooperation will be based on my decision. He won't participate in any decisions made by the Mo family. You're a really good brother-in-law." He paused, "It's also a reward for your efforts."
Mo Yushen: "I didn't think that much. Xi Jia and I are husband and wife, so this is how it should be." He only knew that if he were the one who was sick, Xi Jia would not leave him or abandon him.
Chapter Sixty-Three
At noon, Ji Qingshi's office was greeted by an uninvited guest.
Ji Qingshi had anticipated Mo Lian's arrival and had his secretary prepare coffee beforehand, the most bitter kind.
"Try it, it's only for entertaining rare guests," Ji Qingshi said with a half-smile. He sat down opposite Mo Lian, his legs naturally crossed.
Mo Lian knew from the smell that it would be hard to swallow. He stirred it gently.
The atmosphere was not harmonious.
Mo Lian had never compromised with anyone. Jia Shi Group's move, which cut off his lifeline, disrupted all his plans. Left with no other choice, he had to take the initiative to seek peace.
"Mr. Ji, I'm not being polite with you. Tell me your terms."
Conditions for continued cooperation.
Ji Qingshi said quietly, "I've set your sights on the Mo family, but I'm afraid you won't be able to let go of them."
Mo Lian paused slightly, then smiled, though the smile didn't reach his eyes, "When did you become so dryly humorous?"
Ji Qingshi: "I caught it from my brother-in-law."
Mo Lian didn't reply. He picked up his coffee and took a sip; it was coffee with bitter herbs added. Ji Qingshi's current attitude was unclear, as if he lacked sincerity in discussing things.
Mo Lian probed again, "It's just a research and development decision."
The subtext of this statement is that Mo Yushen may be using the pretense of treating Xi Jia's illness to gain the support of the Ji family.
Mo Lian continued, "This year, your Ji family invested so much money in the research and development center in Switzerland, and in the end, it all went down the drain. Not to mention Professor Xiang's cooperation with the Mo family's pharmaceutical factory, the development of new drugs is basically hopeless."
Ji Qingshi: "Mr. Mo, you may have been abroad for too long and forgotten the idiom 'drawing a cake to satisfy hunger.' My sister needs the cake that Mo Yushen is drawing for her right now. Even if Mo Yushen wants to use me, I'm willing to take the bait."
Having said all that, there's no point in continuing the conversation.
Ji Qingshi had originally planned to meet with Mo Lian, and took advantage of today's opportunity. "How you and Mo Yushen argue is your Mo family's internal affair, and I have no right to interfere."
He changed the subject: "What you're doing now is affecting my sister's health. I still hope you'll carefully consider the cooperation proposal between the pharmaceutical company and Professor Xiang."
Mo Lian remained silent, sipping his coffee.
Ji Qingshi spoke again: "Everyone has their own bottom line. My bottom line is Jiajia, just like your bottom line is Jiang Qin."
Mo Lian suddenly looked up and stared intently at Ji Qingshi.
Ji Qingshi: "I won't step on your landmines unless absolutely necessary. I hope you won't either."
A blatant threat. A cold glint flashed in Ji Qingshi's eyes.
Mo Lian never expected that Ji Qingshi would uncover the secret he kept hidden in his heart, a secret that almost no one knew.
Ji Qingshi: "You should thank my sister. If it weren't for her, Mo Yushen would still be that ruthless person. Whether you would still be in the Mo family is another matter."
Mo Lian finished his coffee. He took his leave.
The secretary knocked and came in, bringing two exquisite potted plants. The lush green leaves were adorned with a few drops of water.
"Mr. Ji, here are the potted plants you requested."
Ji Qingshi leaned back on the sofa, nodded, and gestured for his secretary to put it there.
The secretary didn't dare say anything more, closed the door, and left.
Ji Qingshi stared absently at the potted plant on the coffee table. The knocking sounded again, and before he could say "come in," the door was pushed open, revealing yet another uninvited guest.
Mo Yushen was carrying two packs of cigarettes. The last time Ji Qingshi visited him, he also brought cigarettes, so he was returning the favor.
Ji Qingshi said, smoking a cigarette, "You won't give me a single extra penny."
Mo Yushen: "Who said that?" He took out a lighter from his handbag. "When I bought cigarettes, the shopkeeper gave me two lighters as a gift."
Ji Qingshi was so angry that his stomach hurt.
He rubbed it. "Where's Jia?"
"She took her medicine and took a nap." He came over to check on her while she was sleeping. The word 'thank you' was too inadequate to express his gratitude for Ji Qingshi's help. So he simply didn't mention it.
Mo Yushen glanced at his watch and deliberately mocked, "Aren't you on a business trip this afternoon? Aren't you going to the airport?"
Ji Qingshi ignored him. His stomach was really aching, so he got up and poured himself a glass of hot water.
Mo Yushen looked at the potted plant on the coffee table, deciding to take it home for Xi Jia to play with. He took out his cigarettes and put the potted plant in the tote bag.
"Mo Yushen, what are you doing!" Ji Qingshi strode over and lifted the handbag to one side.
Mo Yushen stared silently at Ji Qingshi. Something worth less than a few dozen yuan felt like a death sentence to him. "Who gave it to you?"
Ji Qingshi: "I just had my secretary buy it."
Mo Yushen couldn't understand it, and he didn't ask any questions.
He was going to take Xi Jia out for a street photoshoot in the afternoon, so he didn't stay long.
Ji Qingshi: "Are you going back to help Jiajia write the script?"
Mo Yushen: "What's the point of writing a script? Take her for photos."
The office fell silent again.
Ji Qingshi had nothing much to do. He had originally planned to go on a two-day business trip, but he finished all his work ahead of schedule. He picked up two potted plants, called his secretary, and went to his apartment in the Fifth Ring Road.
Ji Qingshi instructed his secretary to find him the photos of the apartment interior that Ye Qiu had posted on Weibo.
The secretary started looking through Ye Qiu's Weibo posts. In the past six months, Ye Qiu had rarely updated his Weibo, and the few posts he did post were all about promoting his TV series.
Flipping back to last year, there were only a few selfies taken inside the room.
"Mr. Ji, are these alright?"
Ji Qingshi glanced at it and nodded. "Take a few pictures from this angle later, and put the potted plant on the windowsill."
The secretary understood. She then asked for his opinion, "Should we post it using your Weibo account?"
"Um."
The secretary thought for a moment. She couldn't just send a few photos; she needed to add some text. Luckily, there was a potted plant in the picture. She asked, "Spring?"
"casual."
After that, the secretary didn't say anything more.
The car drove all the way to the underground parking lot of Ye Qiu's apartment. The secretary thought that Ji Qingshi would not go into the apartment with her, but to her surprise, he also got out of the car.
The apartment was largely unchanged, except for a few things that were missing. The couple's slippers were gone; Ye Qiu must have thrown them away.
Once inside, he looked around but found no trace of him.
The secretary arranged the potted plants and took several photos according to the angle requested by Ji Qingshi.
Ji Qingshi took a picture of Ye Qiu from the entrance hall and placed it not far from the potted plant. He said to his secretary, "The photo is blurred, but you can still see it if you look closely."
The requirements were really high. The secretary dared not object and could only comply.
Twenty minutes later, the secretary finished editing the photos. She logged in with Ji Qingshi's account and posted an update.
Ji Qingshi looked at Ye Qiu's table and said to his secretary, "Use your alternate account to submit the photos I just posted to an entertainment influencer, saying that I am suspected of dating actress Ye Qiu."
Secretary: "...Okay." She immediately took action. This time, Ye Qiu is likely to be trending on social media, and will never have 'peace' again.
Because Chu Shan was labeled as Ji Qingshi's ex-girlfriend, even now, any news about her is always related to Ji Qingshi, and her popularity remains high.
Moreover, Ye Qiu was revealed by President Ji himself through the photos.
The secretary asked, "Mr. Ji, what should I say if Ye Qiu's agent calls? Should I say we want to... get back together?" She almost choked on the last two words. She even used "we" to avoid saying it was him.
Ji Qingshi glanced at his secretary, "Who said we wanted to get back together?"
The secretary nodded, indicating that she understood.
Ji Qingshi said in a low voice, "She's not resentful of me for not acknowledging her. Let's make it up to her today, and then we'll be even."
The secretary was speechless. What kind of bizarre move was this?
Before leaving, Ji Qingshi placed the access card on the coffee table.
Closing the door, Ji Qingshi felt no sense of relief whatsoever.