Chapter 3: The Suitor, Zhang Chao

At this moment, Zhang Chao stood with ninety-nine roses cradled in his arms. He was rather handsome, and his glasses lent him an air of scholarly elegance.

“What are you doing here?” Ye Feng’s heart sank.

“I’m certainly not here to see a useless pretty boy like you.” Zhang Chao sneered. He and Su Manman had known each other since childhood. As she grew, Su Manman transformed into one of the most celebrated beauties in Licheng, and Zhang Chao had always planned to marry her when the time was right. Never in his wildest dreams had he expected that this useless Ye Feng would beat him to it.

“Well, if it isn’t young Zhang! How do you have the time to come by?” Wang Meili hurried over to greet him.

“Auntie, today is your birthday. I came especially to give you a gift. This is a ten-carat diamond ring I won at an auction. I hope you’ll like it,” Zhang Chao said, though his eyes kept flicking toward Ye Feng's displeased face, a clear look of provocation.

“Oh my goodness, what a huge diamond! If only it were mine.”

“A diamond that size must have cost hundreds of thousands.”

The ladies attending Wang Meili’s birthday banquet were all green with envy.

Wang Meili, hearing her friends’ murmurs, was delighted. She strode over, took the ring, slipped it onto her finger, and admired how it sparkled from every angle, her face glowing with joy.

Then she glanced at her useless son-in-law. If only Ye Feng had one-tenth of Zhang Chao’s thoughtfulness, she wouldn’t be so furious with him.

“Zhang Chao, your gift is wonderful. Not like some people, who only know how to embarrass me,” Wang Meili said, making no effort to hide her disdain for Ye Feng.

“Auntie, you flatter me. It’s the least I could do,” Zhang Chao replied graciously.

Wang Meili’s heart soared at his words, and her smile grew even wider.

“Manman, flowers for a beauty. I hope you’ll accept them.” Zhang Chao turned, his expression sincere, offering Su Manman what he believed was his most charming smile.

The crowd watched with amusement. Gifting flowers right in front of Ye Feng was a blatant act of humiliation.

If they were in the shoes of this unwanted son-in-law, they’d probably want to crawl into a hole out of shame.

It was utterly humiliating.

Su Manman gazed at Zhang Chao, who had pursued her for years, and wavered. Yet no matter what, she was a married woman. Accepting a suitor’s flowers in front of everyone would make her appear unfaithful.

Just as Su Manman hesitated, Ye Feng strode forward, seized the bouquet from Zhang Chao’s grasp, and hurled it to the ground, grinding it under his heel.

He was the Dragon King of the underworld, a man whose word could overturn all of Licheng. For this insignificant Zhang Chao to try to trample him was nothing short of courting death.

“Look! The pretty boy’s throwing a tantrum!”

“See that? The loser is angry, ha ha…”

“I thought this loser had no temper at all. Maybe he’s finally showing a bit of spine.”

Seeing Ye Feng’s actions, Su Manman raised her hand and slapped him across the face. “Ye Feng, are you crazy?!”

“Zhang Chao, I apologize. Ye Feng drank too much today, he didn’t mean it. Please don’t take it to heart,” Su Manman said to Zhang Chao, embarrassed.

“It’s fine. How could I take offense at a useless man?” Zhang Chao chuckled, looking at Ye Feng as though he were a joke.

Indeed, in the Su family, Ye Feng was nothing but a laughable and useless son-in-law.

When she saw that Zhang Chao wasn’t angry, Su Manman was relieved and finally voiced what was on her mind.

“Could I… ask you for a favor?”

“Say the word. If it’s within my power, I’ll do it without hesitation.” Zhang Chao agreed at once, his heart leaping with joy. If he could win the goddess’s favor, perhaps their relationship could take another step forward—he might even become her man.

Su Manman was touched by Zhang Chao’s attitude. If only Ye Feng could be like him, she wouldn’t be so disappointed.

“My company is having some cash flow issues. I need ten million. Could you lend it to me? Don’t worry, I’ll repay you with interest as soon as I get through this rough patch.”

“Manman, I said I would help you. Why are you asking this guy?” Ye Feng’s face was filled with anger, hurt by Su Manman’s lack of trust.

The guests burst into raucous laughter as if they’d just heard the year’s best joke.

“Did you hear that? The live-in son-in-law wants to whip out ten million. What’s he going to do, earn it by doing laundry, cooking, cleaning toilets, and mopping floors?”

“Hahaha… That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard all year!”

“This loser isn’t just useless—he’s learned to brag as well.”

“Ye Feng, can you stop making things harder for me? You do nothing at home all day. Don’t I know whether you have money or not? Just keep quiet and don’t make any more trouble, alright?” Su Manman was genuinely afraid Ye Feng’s words would make Zhang Chao refuse to lend her the money.

Zhang Chao hadn’t expected Su Manman to ask for such a large sum. He was only the general manager of a company—having a few million was already impressive. Still, for the sake of appearances, he hedged, “Don’t worry, Manman. I’ll do my best to help you gather the funds.”

Seeing Zhang Chao’s evasive answer, Su Manman assumed Ye Feng had offended him.

She shot Ye Feng a fierce glare with her almond-shaped eyes, furious.

She had never been more humiliated. Now, she couldn’t bear to stay another moment.

She turned and strode toward the door.

“Manman, where are you going? Wait for me!” Ye Feng called, anxious, and hurried after her.

No one paid their departure any mind, for at that moment, an elderly man entered the room.

All eyes turned to him—for this was Zhao Changqing, the renowned appraiser of Licheng.

Wang Meili saw him and hastily stood, offering her seat. But Zhao Changqing remained motionless before the gift table, eyes locked on something there.

“What is this…” Zhao Changqing pointed to a stone in the corner of the table, his eyes shining.

“Don’t mind it, Brother Zhao. That’s just a worthless rock my good-for-nothing son-in-law gave as a gift. I’ll throw it out right away,” Wang Meili said, embarrassed.

“A worthless rock?” Zhao Changqing started. “Sister Wang, if my old eyes are still sharp, this is a top-grade Red Radiance gem in the rough. Even if there’s just a bean-sized piece of Red Radiance inside, it’s worth at least hundreds of millions.”

The crowd was stunned—unable to believe their ears.

Had anyone else said this, they’d have thought the speaker mad.

But Zhao Changqing was different. As the president of Licheng’s Appraisal Association, his fame spread far and wide, and he had never once misjudged a treasure.

Could it be that the so-called useless son-in-law, Ye Feng, wasn’t so useless after all?

Worried for Su Manman’s safety, Ye Feng hurried after her, but he was a step too late—she had already driven off.

He hailed a taxi, and as he sat inside, he dialed a number. On the other end, a familiar woman’s voice answered.

“King, what do you need?”

“A, help me check up on Zhang Chao and see what he’s been up to lately.”

A was one of Ye Feng’s seven top agents, a world-class hacker. There was no system she couldn’t breach, no information she couldn’t find. In Ye Feng’s days of conquest, she had rendered great service.

“King, Zhang Chao’s company is facing a cash flow crisis. He’s negotiating a partnership with Evergrand Group, and they’ve already agreed to cooperate.”

A wicked smile curled at Ye Feng’s lips.

“Notify F. Use any means necessary—I want control of Evergrand Group.” Evergrand Group was Licheng’s leading enterprise. Whether Su’s family or Zhang Chao, they were nothing compared to Evergrand.

“Yes, King.”