Chapter 4

Haicheng is named for being surrounded by the sea. In its early days, it mainly focused on export trade. In the 1990s, due to its unique geographical advantages, it was designated as a first-level special economic zone. In just one year, it broke the GDP record and reached 27,967.3 billion yuan, becoming famous worldwide.

One-third of the contribution came from the Shen family, who were local business tycoons in the early days of Haicheng. With their immense economic strength, they used real money to build a new Haicheng and made selfless contributions to the city's economic development.

Only the older generation knows that Haicheng is a nickname, and Chenhai is the real name.

Besides their dominance in business, the fact that both Chief Executives came from the Shen family was the source of their absolute authority.

The first Chief Executive, Shen Qingrong, was a legendary soldier who made outstanding contributions during the War of Resistance against Japan. He was dressed in military uniform and adorned with medals. After his death, the national flag was placed over his coffin and he was given a grand funeral.

For three generations, the Shen family has thrived and flourished. The new heir, Shen Yiheng, took over the Shenhai project as soon as he took office. This multi-billion-dollar project, which involves cooperation with top cities in China, has attracted much attention from the beginning. It is estimated that the project will grow tenfold or even a hundredfold after completion, and its development potential is limitless.

Undoubtedly, Shen Yiheng became the focus of the entire audience as soon as he appeared, causing a sensation and constant screams. Many people were eager to recommend themselves.

"President Shen is truly young and promising. We older generation are far inferior to him. We hope that President Shen will continue to guide and mentor us in the future."

"Oh, Yiheng, do you remember me? I used to visit your house often when I was little, and I even hugged you."

Despite the constant noise around him, Shen Yiheng had no interest in listening to the lecture. Frowning in annoyance, he strode into the main venue with his bodyguards clearing a path, leaving everyone with only a cold and unapproachable back view.

The meeting was scheduled for 15 minutes later. The entire room fell silent, and the participating companies dared not move an inch, for fear of missing even the slightest bit of information related to the project.

Then the meeting was delayed, and as time ticked by, the people in the audience grew increasingly anxious.

"What happened?"

They only dared to whisper among themselves and glance at Shen Yiheng again, even if they didn't understand why, they could only obey and wait.

No one knew what Shen Yiheng, who remained silent, was waiting and hesitating about; even his secretary, Zhou Ying, could only wait from the sidelines.

A quick glance across the entire venue revealed Shen Yiheng's sharp gaze locking onto the person almost instantly.

The opportunity to get in was rare, and the empty chair near the middle, which should have been packed, seemed particularly out of place.

Shen Yiheng casually flipped open the roster beside him, glancing at it indifferently.

He glanced back at the empty chair, a flicker of nameless anger flashing across his cold eyes.

He was practically gritting his teeth as he said, “No rush, let’s start once everyone is here.”

The announcement caused an uproar, with everyone speculating which company executive was so audacious as to stand Shen Yiheng up. When Zhuang Haiming turned around and saw the empty chair not far away, his vision went black, and he felt as if the sky had collapsed.

He quickly picked up his phone and dialed Zhuang Yazhi's number, only to be met with a series of unanswered calls.

Suddenly, Zhuang Haiming had a strange feeling that Shen Yiheng on the stage was staring at him coldly and fiercely.

The room was unusually silent, leaving Zhuang Haiming at a loss. To prevent any further mistakes, he quickly sent a message to Zhuang Yazhi, telling her not to come, so as not to embarrass herself and leave a bad impression. Zhuang Haiming thought that his daughter had only recently returned to the country and probably didn't know many people, so not showing up was probably the best option.

Time flew by, and everyone stared at Shen Yiheng, but Shen Yiheng stared at the empty seat. His cold face, devoid of any emotion, made it impossible to guess what he was thinking. People were afraid that he might take his anger out on everyone present at any moment.

"The meeting is beginning."

Just when everyone thought the unlucky guy was going to suffer, Shen Yiheng suddenly announced the start of the meeting, and that his secretary Zhou Ying would preside over the meeting. The next second, without hesitation, he quickly turned around and left.

On the rooftop, Zhuang Yazhi crossed out the missed calls and ignored the messages.

The reason she didn't attend the meeting was because she couldn't stand Shen Yiheng's arrogance. The tragic scene of being murdered in her previous life was still vivid in her mind. Her resentment had nowhere to go, and she crumpled the admission card in her hand.

A cool breeze blew by, and only after calming down and regaining his composure did Zhuang Ya turn and leave.

The sunlight was so bright that it blurred my vision with light and shadow. I took two more steps forward until a powerful blackness crashed into my line of sight. It was too late to stop.

"Damn it." Zhuang Yazhi cursed under his breath, even though he had already avoided the crowd, he still chased after them like a ghost.

Shen Yiheng approached step by step, blocking the only exit and leaving Zhuang Yazhi with nowhere to go. He said in a low voice, "Long time no see." Even such a common greeting from him carried a coercive tone.

Zhuang Yazhi faced him head-on, unafraid of the arrogant person before her, raising her haughty chin and giving him a cold stare in response.

Three years ago, around this time, I ran into this persistent person shortly after returning to China.

Their meeting and acquaintance began in a disastrous way.

At the graduation party, Zhuang Yazhi was toasted repeatedly. Not being able to hold her liquor, she soon became completely drunk and mistakenly entered the wrong hotel room. When she woke up the next morning, the scene was completely different.

Only afterwards did she realize how crazy she had been while drunk. But Shen Yiheng didn't lose out either, as they both took advantage of each other.

Believing that no one had lost out, Zhuang Yazhi thought it was just a one-night stand and would say goodbye and never see him again. But Shen Yiheng didn't think so. He put on his clothes and chased after her, looking righteous and determined to take responsibility for Zhuang Yazhi.

Although the man in front of her was handsome and had a good physique, and her first experience with him was quite good, Zhuang Yazhi still refused. She didn't like clingy people.

But unexpectedly, after being rejected, Shen Yiheng became even more persistent. It was hard to tell whether he was hurt by the rejection or simply stubborn. He chased after Shen Yiheng from abroad back to Haicheng like a leech.

Perhaps it really was a twisted fate; our first meeting after returning to China was at an engineering discussion meeting, and from then on, things spiraled out of control.

Zhuang Yazhi was distressed and extremely irritated by this, and now that they had met again, it was another disaster for her.

Every time I see Shen Yiheng, I'm reminded of the scene of my being hit and killed. What's worse, I finally managed to defeat those scumbags, but before I could even have a couple of days of peace, he was gone.

Having been given a second chance at life, she has come to terms with things and only wants to reclaim everything she has lost. She doesn't want to have anything to do with Shen Yiheng anymore, which is why she deliberately didn't show up at the meeting.

Who would have thought they would block the rooftop so completely, and shut down the exit?

Standing at 1.9 meters tall, with a robust and powerful physique, he pressed forward relentlessly. His normally pacing manner, coupled with his imposing presence, made him appear like an eagle surveying its territory, determined to capture its prey.

Zhuang Yazhi was momentarily stunned, as the familiar sense of oppression returned.

He intervenes forcefully without saying a word; this is how he behaves when he's angry.

Just as she was thinking about how to escape, Zhuang Yazhi accidentally slipped and fell straight out. The sudden feeling of weightlessness made her mind go blank.

At the critical moment, Shen Yiheng quickly wrapped his arms around the person's waist and used brute force to turn the dangerous situation around.

But he was angry, especially when he saw Zhuang Yazhi pushing her hands away from him, her body and mind resisting him with a cold demeanor, which fueled his anger.

He deliberately scared Zhuang Yazhi by pretending to let go.

Unfortunately, her little scheme failed. She had already seized the opportunity when Shen Yiheng let go and quickly turned around and made her escape.

“Madman,” the curse was squeezed out from between his teeth.

In her previous life, she at least waited three years before making her move. In this life, she's already so impatient after just returning to the country. She must have had terrible luck for eight hundred lifetimes to have gotten involved with such a pervert.

Shen Yiheng did not rush to chase after him. Instead, he stood there, lost in thought, gazing into the distance. The illusion of his feigned failure made him tremble with fear, and his chest felt tight and painful. This feeling was unbearable.

Not long after Zhuang Yazhi left, Zhou Ying, the secretary, also came to the rooftop after the meeting ended. Coincidentally, he saw Zhuang Yazhi leaving in a panic at the entrance.

He sensed something was wrong after just a simple encounter, took out his phone to check it again, and finally confirmed it.

"Mr. Shen, the person you're looking for,"

Shen Yiheng waved his hand to interrupt Zhou Ying: "Who are the top-performing candidate companies for this project?"

Zhou Ying opened the proposal and read it carefully: "Xingcheng, Jinghao, Zhuang's..."

Shen Yiheng listened intently, his dark eyes brightening as his thoughts raced, a subtle interest gradually emerging.

Great, Zhuang Shi is great! He likes Zhuang Shi very much.

On her way home, Zhuang Yazhi sneezed several times, still feeling relieved to have temporarily escaped the clutches of evil.

Just as I was about to catch my breath, I received a call from my secretary, Li Si, saying that the board of directors had issued a notice requiring the public relations department to work overtime urgently to prepare for the external publicity of the relevant projects.

The phone call also specifically mentioned the sinking project, and there were rumors that the Zhuang family had won the bid.

Zhuang Yazhi had a headache, a really bad headache. It was exactly what she feared.

She didn't get back to the company until almost 7 p.m. At that time, not only the public relations department, but the entire company was extremely busy, with everyone focusing their energy on preparing project engineering materials.

Even Cai Siyue, who usually slacks off, becomes unusually proactive and serious. When she sees Zhuang Yazhi return, her attitude undergoes a complete 360-degree change, becoming obsequious and ingratiating.

"Manager Zhuang, you must be exhausted after a long day out. I was just being naive before, so please forgive me if I offended you in any way. I sincerely admire you, Manager Zhuang. You've only just returned to the company and you've already secured such a big project. Your future is truly limitless. The Zhuang family will be counting on you from now on."

Something unusual must be going on; Zhuang Yazhi's intuition told her that something was wrong.

Li Si had barely settled into his office chair when he rushed in, his face grim, and hesitated before saying, "Something's happened."

Zhuang Yazhi sat still, as calm and composed as ever.

When she returned to the company after revealing her identity, she was prepared for the inevitable backlash and the inevitable trouble. Now that she's here, she's ready for battle.