Xiang Wanwan didn't expect that Ding Zhiyuan would assist her. She just felt that she had to go to this cocktail party.
The host of the cocktail party was the Yi family, another wealthy family in Jiangcheng. They had a decent relationship with the Du family, but at my grandfather's party, the Yi family didn't show up until the end of the afternoon. Xiang Wanwan felt it was necessary to give this obvious fence-sitter a warning.
Furthermore, this marked the Yi family's entry into the high-end hotel industry, and the grand opening reception was a grand affair, with Runjia as one of the investors. Originally, Yao Kehan was supposed to attend the reception, but now that Wei Nanrong had taken over as Vice President and Xiang Wanwan had succeeded him as Chairman, both needed a chance to make their mark in the business world, so they simply chose this reception.
Xiang Wanwan told Wei Nanrong her decision. Wei Nanrong had no objection, but there was an inexplicable regret in his eyes.
Xiang Wanwan understood after a brief thought and said with a smile, "Vice President Wei, you can find someone on your own. I won't be your female companion."
At the time of the discussion, the chairman's office wasn't just populated by Xiang Wanwan, Pei Xingyao, and Wei Nanrong; several of the secretary's assistants were also present, pouring tea and handing over documents. Although Xiang Wanwan had a reputation for toughness, her delicate appearance was deceptive. With the exception of secretary Dong Shuqing, the other assistants found her gentle, friendly, and easy to talk to.
An assistant to the chairman, surnamed Xue, was serving coffee to Wei Nanrong. Hearing this, he said in surprise, "Ah? Chairman Xiang, why? Vice President Wei is so nice, isn't he?"
Wei Nanrong's thoughts were revealed by her words. In his heart, he admired her but did not feel embarrassed. He just explained: "I was selfish."
Xiang Wanwan joked, "It's not selfishness, it's the heart of a loving father."
Dong Shuqing listened from the side and explained, "Vice President Wei wants to bring Miss Wei to tonight's cocktail party, right? Given the Yi family's reputation, there must be many young talents and wealthy noblemen among the guests tonight. Vice President Wei wants to choose a good husband for Miss Wei among them."
Wei Nanrong did not deny it, but instead reminded him: "Dr. Xiang, you should also pay attention to your male companion tonight."
Pei Xingyao was handling company affairs at the desk nearby, listening attentively the whole time. When he heard this, his heart immediately tightened.
Xiang Wanwan also raised her head and glanced at Wei Nanrong - what was she paying attention to?
Wei Nanrong knew that she really didn't like mixing personal feelings in the workplace, so he explained, "Director Xiang, your current net worth is quite high, and the entire Jiangcheng is paying attention to your marriage. I know you don't like people talking about this, but I must remind you that from the moment you succeeded as chairman of Runjia Investment, your marriage is no longer just a marriage. Every time a man appears around you, there will be speculation. Tonight, you must choose your male companion carefully and not be willful."
She understood the truth, but she didn't want to follow any rules of wealthy families or enter into any wealthy marriage.
Xiang Wanwan replied casually: "Assistant Pei is enough for me."
What did she say? Pei Xingyao's heart skipped a beat. When he came to his senses, he had almost deleted a page of the document.
No one noticed his abnormality because everyone in the office was stunned and the atmosphere was a little frozen.
To liven up the atmosphere, Xiao Xue added cleverly, "Exactly. What rich, noble young man can compare to Assistant Pei? Assistant Pei..."
"Xiao Xue!" Pei Xingyao nodded calmly, maintaining a calm and composed tone. "Since Xiang Dong is going to the cocktail party, go contact the styling team."
The order was ordinary, but the coldness in it made it clear to everyone - he didn't like this joke.
Xiao Xue turned pale with fear, and asked tremblingly, "Then... then what style of styling should we prepare?"
"Prepare a weak, pitiful, and helpless character." Xiang Wanwan said calmly. "Little white flower, little white cabbage, either is fine."
"Ah?" Xiao Xue was stunned for a moment.
Didn't they tell Dong that if they went there, they would kill everyone and give the Yi family a hard time?
"What? Doesn't this suit me perfectly?" Xiang Wanwan leaned back in her chair, smiling coldly. "That's just how I am!"
What nonsense was she talking about? Pei Xingyao raised his head and glanced at her, frowning unhappily.
At this moment, not to mention the two old foxes Dong Shuqing and Wei Nanrong, even Xiao Xue knew that he had said the wrong thing and left quickly in fear.
When Xiang Wanwan and Pei Xingyao were the only ones left in the office, Xiang Wanwan finally looked over. Pei Xingyao understood what she meant, but her tone remained disapproving: "Miss, you're not weak or pathetic at all."
With him around, I won't feel helpless.
"But my spiritual roots are useless. You don't know this, but I've always thought that if I could cultivate immortality, I would definitely become a sword cultivator." Xiang Wanwan said, supporting her chin with one hand, looking at him sideways, and deliberately raised an eyebrow and asked, "What do you think? Are you laughing at me in your heart?"
"No, I don't. Sword cultivation is very good, and you are very suitable for sword cultivation..." Pei Xingyao explained hurriedly.
Seeing his anxious look, Xiang Wanwan smiled gently.
She suddenly understood why she always liked Pei Xingyao.
Not only because Pei Xingyao was the only character in the original novel who died for the heroine and was loyal to her, but also because she had long felt that he was very similar to her in some ways.
After impulsively asking Pei Xingyao to be her assistant that day, Xiang Wanwan carefully read Pei Xingyao's resume.
Luo Zhen was worried and investigated it personally.
Pei Xingyao has an impressive resume.
He came from an ordinary background, his spiritual roots were only mixed, and he was also an orphan, with no idea who his parents were. He also grew up in an orphanage, but he was luckier. The orphanage he went to was very formal, with annual government funding and corporate donations. So he had a good life as a child, and didn't have to fight for food.
But Pei Xing has been participating in all kinds of competitions since he was very young—according to Luo Zhen's research, he started at the age of five. God knows where he got all the information about these competitions! Maybe he owes it to the internet.
He had participated in competitions since childhood, winning prizes to support himself. Starting in junior high, he lived on campus during the week, returning to the orphanage only during holidays. He seemed to have understood from a young age that his aptitude for cultivating immortality was not high, so he devoted himself to martial arts training, winning several prestigious championships in ancient martial arts competitions.
He studied, practiced martial arts, and learned various skills. After graduation, he joined Runjia Investment with excellent grades and interview scores and became a small employee in the group.
If nothing unexpected happened, he would work diligently, live a down-to-earth life, and earn money bit by bit. Even if something unexpected happened, less than two months after joining the company, he was personally picked by her to be the chairman's first assistant, and he didn't feel excited or look down on her.
Xiang Wanwan felt that in his eyes, whether it was a clerk or the chairman's special assistant, it was just a job.
Just like in her previous life, no matter what position she was in, she felt that she was just an employee.
Now, Xiang Wanwan felt that Pei Xingyao was a bit like her sword in some aspects.
Of course, this is a bit of a burying Pei Xingyao. After all, her spiritual sword is just a spiritual sword. Although she hugged and called her baby every day, she told everyone that this was my wife, but her spiritual sword actually had no sword spirit. In addition to its preference for eating various precious ores and being particularly resistant to beating, it does not show any special potential.
But sometimes Xiang Wanwan deliberately teases it by saying, "Everyone else has sword spirits, but you don't. Do you despise me for being poor?" "Oh, don't despise me for being poor. I've been fasting to support you. Otherwise, I'd go get another job to earn money to buy you ore."
Usually at this time, her sword would tremble slightly and often fly out of the scabbard with a clang, as if she was anxious to explain to her.
In fact, anyone with a discerning eye could see that she was joking.
However, her sword would still be anxious.
Just like Assistant Pei in front of him.
It was this kind of reaction that aroused a bit of evil thoughts in her boring swordsman character.
But this is not her sword after all.
That was the thunder of tribulation that came when one was promoted from the Spirit Severing Stage to the Fusion Stage. Not to mention that it was just an ordinary-grade sword that couldn't cultivate a sword spirit, even if it was an unparalleled spiritual sword, how could it withstand it?
Seeing her eyes curved, Pei Xingyao realized that she was joking.
Just like so many times before, just teasing him.
His heart instantly beat wildly, and his hands and feet went numb. But at this moment, Pei Xingyao clearly saw that the faint smile in her eyes, which had originally appeared because of a joke, suddenly dimmed.
Pei Xingyao's boiling heart suddenly cooled down.
It was just an instinct. She had already been reincarnated. What could her soul, having passed through the wheel of reincarnation, remember? It was enough to make her scattered spirit whole again, free from the muddled state of her previous life.
How could he expect her to remember everything?
Remember who you are, Pei Xingyao. Do you think, after seeing what her mother went through, she would be kind to an assistant with ulterior motives?
Just look at her dislike for Xiang Yongkang, right? If she knew anything about his feelings, she would fire him immediately without a word.
Didn't you swear to protect her at all costs?
You can't afford the small price of hiding yourself and not getting hurt?
Pei Xingyao warned herself and immediately put away her inappropriate thoughts. She glanced at the computer screen and said, "Miss, Xiao Xue has already arranged an appointment with the styling team. They will be here in half an hour."
Xiang Wanwan really liked this attitude of getting back to business in a second. She reflected: Xiang Wanwan, Xiang Wanwan, put yourself in their shoes and think about it. If you went to work and your boss joked with you from time to time, how would you feel?
He must be smiling on the surface but hating in his heart.
Xiang Wanwan quickly put away her joking thoughts: "Got it... Well, let's spread the word and let people look forward to it."
——
When the news that Xiang Wanwan was going to attend the Yi family cocktail party came out, not only Xiang Yongkang, but also other wealthy families were looking forward to it.
How could I not be excited? This is a single female billionaire worth 900 billion! Whoever marries her will inherit the Du family!
Even if she was ugly, he could still marry her if he gritted his teeth. Furthermore, people who had been to the spiritual plant auction had spread rumors that Xiang Wanwan looked a lot like Du Qingjia in the past.
Du Qingjia was a famous beauty back then!
All the wealthy families who had been planning to just go through with it suddenly sent their young men. Before seven o'clock in the evening, the party was already packed.
"Looking at this situation, you're not the only one who's after her. However, you have a natural advantage. Others are just strangers, but you're her father." Ding Zhiyuan whispered in Xiang Yongkang's ear and patted his shoulder. "Come on! As for me, I won't be by your side anymore. She doesn't like me. If she sees me, she might ignore you."
Just like that, after finding a plausible excuse, Ding Zhiyuan ran away and started his plan of hunting for beauties in the venue, while preparing to give Xiang Wanwan a perfect surprise.
Xiang Yongkang had no time to pay attention to him. He was very nervous and conflicted.
In fact, what Xiang Yongkang thought at the beginning was that he would use Xiang Wanyi to anger Xiang Wanwan, and sooner or later Xiang Wanwan would be angry to death. By then, he would be Xiang Wanwan's biological father, so wouldn't it be natural for him to inherit Xiang Wanwan's assets?
I didn't expect Xiang Wanyi to be so useless. He only knows how to spend money but can't accomplish anything.
This forced him to take action on his own. First, he failed to seize power in alliance with Yao Kehan, and now he has to go and please his daughter himself.
And... Xiang Yongkang looked at Xiang Wanwan who walked in, drank the wine in the goblet in one gulp, and cursed in his heart: She is still Du Qingjia's daughter!
Like Du Qingjia, she likes to have an assistant around!
It's always like this, as soon as she appears on stage, she can attract the attention of the whole audience.
Xiang Wanwan wore a snow-white gauze dress tonight, bare of jewelry. The wide hem of her skirt made her look even more petite and fragile. Her face, almost pale under the light, didn't look ugly at all. Instead, she had a kind of pitiful grace that made one feel pity for her.
For a moment, all the men in the room were thinking, this beauty, a beauty worth... 900 billion! She shouldn't be holding someone else's hand, but should be in his arms.
At that thought, all the unmarried men became restless, and several of them were already walking towards Wanwan.
No, if he lets these men go up, he won’t have the chance to get close to Xiang Wanwan!
It has to be now!
Xiang Yongkang borrowed some wine to give him courage, made up his mind, and walked towards Wanwan.
Pei Xingyao was accompanying Xiang Wanwan. The first person he saw was Xiang Yongkang approaching. He immediately whispered, "Miss?"
Arriving so soon? Xiang Wanwan didn't rush to meet the Yi family. Instead, she found a sofa and sat down. She adjusted her skirt and didn't order anyone to stop her, but her expression visibly darkened.
The guests present also knew about the father and daughter and looked over.
The gazes of the crowd watching the show were not pleasant, especially for someone as stubborn as Xiang Yongkang. He approached step by step, hoping that Xiang Wanwan would take the initiative to speak, so as to avoid embarrassment.
But Xiang Wanwan just frowned, glanced at him, and then lowered her head to look at the tablet in her hand.
Xiang Yongkang came to her side, but she still didn't say anything.
This girl, does she really need him, her father, to say hello first? Has she ever thought about where he would put his face?
Xiang Yongkang was angry, annoyed, and ashamed, but for the sake of the 900 billion assets, he had to lower his head.
"Wanwan." He took two glasses of champagne from the waiter's tray and handed one over. "It's a rare opportunity for us father and daughter to meet again. I was wrong that day. Consider this a father's apology to you today. How about this glass of wine?"
Xiang Wanwan slid the tablet without raising her head or even looking at it.
This stinky girl!!!
Didn't she know that everyone in the venue was watching? Did she really want him to be so embarrassed?
Cursing in his heart, Xiang Yongkang remembered Ding Zhiyuan's words and, despite the pressure from everyone, he spoke again: "You are still Xiang after all. Are you really so heartless?"
Xiang Yongkang tried his best to speak in a gentle and patient tone, "You can deny our legal relationship, but can you also deny our blood connection? Wanwan, I was wrong before. Give Dad a chance, and let's reconcile as father and daughter."
"I know you're worried that I'll snatch the Du family's wealth from you. Actually, you've misunderstood. I'm not greedy for the Du family's money. If I really wanted the Du family's money, why would I remarry? I would definitely stay in the Du family and be filial to your grandfather. How could I have founded Hengchen on my own? I'm just worried that you, a little girl, have been living outside without a wealthy education and don't know how to do business. You might not even know you've been cheated. I'm really afraid that your grandfather's hard work will be destroyed. He's had a hard life, so I want to help you manage it. Since you don't want to, I won't care about you anymore."
This sounded so unlikeable. And this glass of wine, he was planning to keep it raised, thinking that this would force him to look at something to save face?
That's great. Xiang Wanwan raised her head and she showed him how he lost face.
"Boss Xiang, most of Jiangcheng knows that I bought Dragon Dew Fruit and Nanming Lihuo Lingzhi at the spiritual plant auction because I'm weak. I've been working at Runjia this week, and everyone in Runjia knows that I'm not in good health. Apart from the medicinal tea prepared by my family doctor, I can only drink purified water from the outside world."
Xiang Wanwan supported herself on the sofa with one hand and looked up.
"Next time, President Xiang, you can investigate my situation a little more before showing your concern and pretending to be a good father. Otherwise, it will seem hypocritical, and I'll think you look down on my intelligence."
“…” Xiang Yongkang was speechless.
How could he know such a thing existed!
After a while, Xiang Yongkang finally explained, "I... Runjia is not my company. If you don't like it, how can I get involved? So, I, I don't know..."
"Then tell me something you know," Xiang Wanwan said. "Just tell me how I lost it back then."
Why did she bring this up in public? Xiang Yongkang frowned and said, "Not only me, but even your grandfather has investigated this matter many times, and the conclusions are all unexpected. You don't believe me, so don't you believe your grandfather either?"
Xiang Wanwan continued to ask, "I've been back for half a month now. Since you want to be my father, have you ever asked me how I'm doing?"
Did he forget to ask about this? Xiang Yongkang asked dryly, "Wanwan, how...how have you been these years?"
In fact, this question does not need to be asked too much. Anyone can see that Xiang Wanwan has not had a good life in recent years. Xiang Yongkang is also well aware of this, but he always feels that in such an occasion, Xiang Wanwan will always say something polite, not to play the victim, right?
Unexpectedly, the first thing Xiang Wanwan said was, "I'm having a miserable life."
Xiang Yongkang's breathing stagnated, and he suddenly felt that he was being led by Xiang Wanwan to ask a question that he shouldn't have asked.
"My spiritual roots were destroyed when I was born. On my first day, Jiangcheng was snowing heavily, and I was abandoned on the roadside. If I had been half an hour later, I would have frozen to death. Fortunately, someone found me and sent me to an orphanage. I developed a high fever that day, and the orphanage had no medicine to treat me. Fortunately, my physique managed to withstand it. Because of my destroyed spiritual roots and this serious illness, I have been weak since I was a child and fell ill at the slightest provocation. All the children in the orphanage had to do handicrafts to earn money. The pretty ones had to play extras on informal film sets for extremely low pay. I started playing extras at the age of five, changing into old clothes to keep warm and three steamed buns to fill my stomach."
"Oh my God..." The wealthy lady next to her couldn't help but cover her lips when she heard this, her eyes filled with tears.
What parent wouldn’t be heartbroken upon hearing about this?
Xiang Yongkang was also embarrassed by what he heard and stopped him, saying, "Alright, alright, I know everything. Stop talking. Family disgrace should not be made public..."
"I worked as an extra from the age of five until I was 16, but I was too weak to continue. That's how Lawyer Zhu found a clue and tracked me down. But after I lost my job, the orphanage said I was old enough, over 16, to no longer be considered a child laborer, so they wouldn't let me stay. I ended up studying during the day and working in a restaurant at night, with room and board provided, washing dishes until 1 a.m. every day."
Xiang Wanwan changed the subject and finally looked Xiang Yongkang straight in the eye. "Boss Xiang, you want to be my father? Do you want to see my hands?"
"No, no need!" Xiang Yongkang said repeatedly. He could clearly feel that everyone in the audience was looking at him with condemnation. He could no longer stay and just wanted to leave quickly.
Moreover, after four years of washing dishes, he could already imagine what those hands would look like. How could they be the hands of a 20-year-old girl? They would surely be covered in cracks and scars, rough and old, with curled nails and barbs.
Like a fifty-year-old rural woman!
Xiang Yongkang turned his eyes away, unable to sit still any longer, and stood up hurriedly, "Well, I have something else to do... I'll excuse myself first!"
Then he fled.
"Pfft~~~" Xiang Wanwan couldn't help laughing and stretched out her hand to the side.
Pei Xingyao silently handed over the bone china cup filled with medicinal tea.
Everyone's eyes couldn't help but follow his movements and they immediately burst into laughter.
Xiang Wanwan's hands were pale and thin. They were indeed not as well-nourished as those beauties' hands, nor as graceful as theirs, but they were definitely not ugly.
After laughing, everyone sensed some complex meanings - so, Xiang Yongkang, the father who always claimed to care about his daughter, had never cared about his daughter's past, and had never even seen what his daughter's hands looked like.
Such a hypocritical person...many people began to reconsider the possibility of doing business with him.
"Hmph." Xiang Wanwan sneered.
She wasn't playing the victim, nor did she mind sharing the past; she just wanted Xiang Yongkang to leave quickly so that, looking back later, he would realize she was full of resentment. Then, she could make amends.
She looks so much like her mother. What will Xiang Yongkang's dear wife think then?
Xiang Wanwan took a sip of tea and returned the cup to Pei Xingyao.
She was in poor health and had little time, so after solving one problem, she had to solve the other one as soon as possible.
She stood up and raised her voice slightly, asking, "What's the matter? Doesn't the Yi family welcome me? Why don't you see anyone? In that case, it's better not to invest the money. Assistant Pei..."
"Xiang Dong! Xiang Dong!"
At this moment, a young man came quickly with a smile on his face.
"Oh! Why did you come here in person without even saying hello? You really caught our Yi family off guard. I am..."
He stretched out his hand familiarly and was about to hold Xiang Wanwan's hand, but a hand reached out from the side and suddenly held his wrist.
At this time, the young man finished speaking: "...The eldest young master of the Yi family, Yi Qiming, is 28 years old and single."
The last four words are the key points.
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