"Brother Wu, it’s not April Fools’ Day. What kind of joke is this?"

Hearing the voice on the phone, Chen Xi’s tone immediately soured. ’What kind of joke is this? I’ve already spent fifty or sixty thousand, and now you’re just telling me it’s a no-go?’

Wu, on the other end of the line, was annoyed by Chen Xi’s tone, but there was nothing he could do. He had no choice but to patiently explain. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"Uh, President Chen, I’m really not joking. Your sister-in-law really can’t get in this time. It’s not that I won’t handle it for you, but things are a little complicated right now. Even if you went to the Vice Chairman, it would be useless."

At that exact moment, Bai Mengjie, who had stepped out to wash her hands, happened to push open the door to the private room. And as luck would have it, she heard every single word.

Hearing that she couldn’t get into the school she had dreamed of, tears immediately began to well up in her large eyes.

Hearing the commotion, Chen Xi glanced back at his sister-in-law, grabbed the phone off the table, and turned off the speaker. He then stormed out of the private room to finish the call.

Seeing her younger sister crying, Bai Menghan rushed forward and pulled her into a comforting hug.

No one else at the table had the heart to eat anymore. All eyes were fixed on the doorway, waiting for the outcome of Chen Xi’s call.

Fang Chenyi, sitting beside Bai Menghan’s grandmother, opened his mouth to speak but ultimately said nothing. ’I don’t know the full situation yet,’ he thought. ’Better not to speak out of turn. It won’t be too late to say something after Chen Xi comes back.’

Just like that, the atmosphere in the private room grew tense.

After about five minutes, Chen Xi shoved the door open and stormed back in, his face a mask of fury.

Noticing that all eyes in the room were on him, Chen Xi heaved a helpless sigh as he sat back down.

Seeing this, Second Uncle immediately asked with concern,

"What on earth is going on, Chen Xi? Is Mengjie not getting in? But didn’t you already spend fifty or sixty thousand? Whether she gets in or not isn’t the biggest problem—the main thing is, did we just throw all that money away for nothing?"

Bai Mengyao nodded in agreement. "That’s right, dear. We spent fifty or sixty thousand. If my sister can’t get in, we have to get that money back!"

Chen Xi was already simmering with frustration. He couldn’t talk back to his father-in-law, but with his wife chiming in as well, he snapped at Bai Mengyao,

"Get it back? Of course I want it back! But do you think that old son of a bitch is just going to hand it over?"

After his outburst, Chen Xi seemed to recall he was surrounded by his in-laws. Catching his father-in-law’s furrowed brow from the corner of his eye, he sighed and tried to smooth things over.

"Look, honey, I wasn’t angry at you. It’s just... that old bastard is a real piece of work."

Bai Mengyao, however, didn’t seem to take it to heart and continued asking, "So, dear, do you think maybe we didn’t give him enough money? That the old guy wants more?"

Chen Xi shook his head helplessly.

"That’s not it. I subtly brought that up, but from the way he put it, there’s nothing he could do this time even if I gave him a million."

He paused, a look of resentment creeping onto his face as he continued,

"He said there was a major shake-up on their board of directors. They got a new chairman, and no one knows if he’s going to reorganize the leadership team, so now everyone is just trying to keep their heads down. I mean, this new chairman is a real bastard. Of all the times to show up, why now? It’s like a toad hopping onto your foot. It might not bite you, but it’s disgusting..."

Fang Chenyi, who had been quietly sipping his tea, couldn’t listen to another word of this. He had just taken over Qinhuang Sunshine, which meant he was the "no-good chairman" Chen Xi was talking about.

"Ahem... Brother-in-law, I don’t think this really has anything to do with the new chairman."

Chen Xi was surprised that Fang Chenyi, who had been silent all this time, had actually spoken up—and to contradict him, no less. He opened his mouth, but he didn’t dare snap at Fang Chenyi the way he had at his wife. Still, he had to say something.

"Tch, I know the guy is just an innocent bystander in all this. But his arrival really did affect Mengjie’s enrollment. If he hadn’t shown up so suddenly, Mengjie would be in by now."

Perhaps because the issue hit so close to home, as soon as Chen Xi finished speaking, Second Uncle took a long, hard drag from his expensive cigarette and grumbled,

"Chen Xi is right. Even if the new chairman doesn’t know about this, he can’t be a saint. Think about it—if the place has a director like that Wu fellow, how good can the guy in charge be?"

As soon as Second Uncle finished, even Bai Menghan’s father—Chen Xi’s own father-in-law—spoke up.

"Chenyi, I know you’re a kind-hearted young man, but your second uncle has a point. If it weren’t for that new chairman, Mengjie wouldn’t be stuck like this, right?"

Fang Chenyi was left speechless with exasperation. He opened his mouth but had no idea what to say. Meanwhile, Bai Menghan, who was comforting Mengjie, saw the look on her husband’s face, and something seemed to click.

She gave Mengjie a gentle pat on the back, handing her over to Second Aunt, then stood and walked to Fang Chenyi’s side. Everyone else was too busy fuming to notice what Bai Menghan was doing.

Reaching Fang Chenyi’s side and seeing his look of utter exasperation, Bai Menghan whispered softly in his ear,

"Chenyi, do you know the new chairman of this school? Or perhaps..."

Fang Chenyi froze. It was obvious she had already guessed the unspoken part of her question. He gave Bai Menghan a thumbs-up, a wry smile on his face.

Bai Menghan’s eyes widened in disbelief. "It can’t be true, can it?" she blurted out.

Her voice was a little too loud. The chatter at the table died down as all eyes turned toward the two of them.

"What’s wrong, Menghan?" Father Bai asked when he saw his daughter’s stunned expression. "What is or isn’t true?"

Fang Chenyi shot her a look, signaling her not to say anything, then turned to the rest of the table with a chuckle.

"Um, about that... Mengjie getting into Qinhuang Sunshine is not a problem. Second Uncle, Second Aunt, you don’t have to worry."

His words left everyone stunned. No one could understand why Fang Chenyi would say such a thing. After all, Director Wu had just stated in no uncertain terms that it was impossible.

So where on earth was Fang Chenyi’s confidence coming from?

"I’m just going to make a quick call."

[To be continued...]

ps: Two Chapters have been released together to make for a more satisfying read.