All eyes in the hall focused on Su Qianmo as she entered. Her appearance left everyone stunned.
Su Qianmo walked in with Gu Chenan, and the servers outside closed the banquet hall doors. This usually unremarkable sound of closing doors acted like a morning alarm, waking everyone from their trance.
People finally came to their senses and began greeting Su Qianmo.
"Hello, CEO Su."
"CEO Su is so stunningly beautiful. I never imagined our city would have such a gorgeous female CEO."
"We deeply admire CEO Su's abilities. Please, CEO Su, don't hesitate to give us some guidance."
Flattering words surrounded Su Qianmo. Perhaps because she was too dazzling, no one noticed Gu Chenan beside her.
"You're too kind, everyone," Su Qianmo smiled. Under everyone's gaze, she suddenly grabbed Gu Chenan's arm and held it close.
The crowd was startled, finally noticing Gu Chenan beside Su Qianmo.
"Wasn't CEO Su supposed to come alone today? Who is this man?" someone whispered.
The previous speaker explained from within the crowd, "Damn, no way, this guy is the driver I mentioned earlier - CEO Su's driver!"
"D-driver?" someone stammered in disbelief.
CEO Su was holding his arm! How could he be just her driver?
Had anyone ever seen a female CEO publicly holding her driver's arm like that?
"CEO Su, who might this gentleman be?" someone finally asked aloud.
Su Qianmo had been waiting for this question. She insisted on bringing Gu Chenan today precisely to announce to the world that she was Gu Chenan's girlfriend before any other woman could claim him!
She looked up at Gu Chenan, smiled sweetly, and said, "He's my fiancé, Gu Chenan."
"F-fiancé?!"
The crowd was shocked. They lamented inwardly, "Such an outstanding CEO already has a fiancé. What a pity!"
However, one person in the crowd had the most exaggerated reaction. Upon seeing Gu Chenan and hearing Su Qianmo's words, her jaw dropped to the floor, her eyes seeming to have an epileptic fit as her pupils shook violently.
"Gu-Gu Chenan is CEO Su's fiancé?!"
This person was Liu Wan.
She stumbled backward in disbelief until she grabbed a pillar in the banquet hall to steady herself.
Shock, surprise, confusion, and disbelief cycled rapidly across her face, as if she had suddenly mastered the art of face-changing.
"Something's not right here," she thought. "How could someone as capable as CEO Su be interested in a useless homebody like Gu Chenan?"
"Moreover, Gu Chenan and CEO Su aren't even from the same world. How on earth did he meet her?"
"I admit Gu Chenan's looks are impressive, but CEO Su doesn't seem like the type to date a pretty boy, does she?"
Liu Wan wasn't the only one confused; everyone else was puzzled too.
Hadn't they said earlier that CEO Su came with her driver? How did he suddenly become her fiancé?
How could someone who could buy a company as big as Caiying not have a dedicated driver?
Or... could this man be both CEO Su's fiancé and her driver?
Uncertain, they decided to observe further.
"CEO Su, with your impressive abilities, your fiancé must be quite capable as well?" someone asked politely, then turned to Gu Chenan. "Mr. Gu, may I ask what you do for a living?"
What do I do?
Seeing the expectant look, Gu Chenan pondered for a moment before replying, "I usually stay at the company, helping Qianmo with various tasks. Nothing worth mentioning."
Hearing this, the crowd's expressions immediately turned strange.
Obviously, the "company" Gu Chenan referred to was Caiying, and his statement about staying there suggested he had no real job.
As for his claim of helping CEO Su with various tasks, everyone naturally assumed he meant trivial matters.
Hiss~
So, CEO Su's fiancé really was her driver?
Damn, a kept man!
Having reached this conclusion, the crowd's gaze towards Gu Chenan immediately dimmed, with some even shifting their attention back to Su Qianmo.
This misunderstanding wasn't entirely the crowd's fault.
Gu Chenan hadn't disclosed his identity to the public, and what's more misleading was that he had driven Su Qianmo here today. In these people's eyes, it was natural to assume Gu Chenan was Su Qianmo's driver.
And then Su Qianmo had introduced him as her fiancé.
So in everyone's eyes, Gu Chenan's identity became driver-cum-fiancé = kept man.
In the crowd, Liu Wan gazed languidly at Gu Chenan.
She still couldn't believe that Su Qianmo, such a capable female CEO, had fallen for Gu Chenan, this useless homebody, and even become engaged to him.
The man she herself had deemed unworthy had suddenly become the fiancé of Caiying's CEO?!
This was too ridiculous!
If she hadn't witnessed Caiying's recent moves, she might have thought Su Qianmo was a fool.
It was precisely because of what she was seeing now that Liu Wan felt her assumptions about Gu Chenan during their blind date were confirmed.
This Gu Chenan was essentially just a pretty boy trying to live off a rich woman!
......
"CEO Su, please come this way. We'd be honored if you could share some insights."
"Yes, CEO Su, I have many questions I'd like to ask you."
The representatives from other cosmetics companies gathered around Su Qianmo, making her the center of attention.
Hearing their flattering words, Su Qianmo knew it was mere small talk and shouldn't be taken seriously. She smiled and said, "There's no need for me to give any insights. You're all veterans in the beauty industry, I'm just here to pay my respects."
"CEO Su, how can you say that? We should be the ones..."
Seeing Su Qianmo engage in conversation with the crowd, Gu Chenan grabbed a cocktail for her, gave her a knowing look indicating he'd be nearby if needed, and then sat down in a corner of the banquet hall.
Before coming today, Gu Chenan knew Su Qianmo would become the focal point once she appeared, not just because of her looks, but also due to Caiying's current reputation.
If other companies could establish a good relationship with Caiying, they might be able to benefit from its influence.
"I never thought we'd meet here," Liu Wan said, holding a glass of red wine as she approached Gu Chenan.
Surprised to see Liu Wan, Gu Chenan shrugged, "Yeah, what a coincidence."
Liu Wan glanced at Su Qianmo, who was chatting animatedly with the other CEOs and executives, then turned back to Gu Chenan. "How does it feel to have climbed the social ladder?" she asked.
"That's the CEO of Caiying, you know. You must be grinning in your sleep, right?"
Gu Chenan frowned, "What's it to you?"
"Nothing, really," Liu Wan shook her head and smiled. "I just despise men who live off women, that's all."
"Hah," Gu Chenan scoffed. "Well, excuse me, but I despise presumptuous women. Please don't talk to me, I have an allergy to stupidity."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
