Chapter 28#
As soon as the report broke about the Ji family’s eldest daughter crying bitterly in a sports car late at night, the public collectively condemned the Qi family for failing to discipline their child properly.
Ji Yang once again made an appearance in the public eye, following Huizhou.
Because of the injury on his forehead, it was quite thought-provoking.
In netizens’ words, the brother and sister looked like they’d both hit rock bottom together.
Two days later, the Qi family issued a formal statement.
It announced that the marriage agreement between the Qi and Ji families would be postponed indefinitely.
This “indefinite” was simply a softer version of calling off the engagement entirely — it meant the relationship between the two families hadn’t completely ruptured. But to the outside world, this marriage alliance was already all but finished.
“So humiliating. Really, so humiliating.” In the Ji family’s back garden, Ji Mingyue covered her face for the nineteenth time. “I’ve never been this embarrassed in my entire life. Crying over a man in the middle of the night — how broken must my brain be?”
Ji Yang was amused by her reaction. “Embarrassment is something you get used to the more you experience it.”
Ji Mingyue lowered her hands.
She suddenly turned a bit serious, looking at him. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Ji Yang wasn’t wearing his prosthetic, half-lying on a recliner with Xiao Bai nestled in his arms, stroking it absently.
Ji Mingyue: “I know that without you, I definitely would have been forced to marry Qi Yiming. If not next week, then the week after, or next month. But until the statement was issued, the Qi family never came to cause trouble. Grandfather didn’t even mention it. I knew it had to be because you did something.”
Ji Yang lifted Xiao Bai up and took a deep inhale of its fur.
Then he said, “I didn’t actually do much.”
Ji Yansong had definitely already seen the email.
Neither family had made a move, which meant tacit acceptance of the indefinite postponement as the optimal solution.
The Ji family would rather forgo this marriage alliance than take on the risk.
It was just that this grandson of theirs — in Ji Yansong’s eyes, Ji Yang was probably now a very high-risk ticking time bomb.
The fact that someone had been shadowing him from a distance these past few days made that clear enough.
Ji Yang didn’t care.
He asked Ji Mingyue, “What are your plans going forward?”
“Don’t know.” Ji Mingyue shook her head, then quickly added, “But recently I’ve suddenly come to understand a lot of things. Children of families like ours are groomed from childhood to take the family’s glory as our own, to know how to sacrifice, to keep the big picture in mind. But what does keeping the big picture in mind actually get you? I heard the investigation at the municipal finance bureau has reached a conclusion. Eldest brother will be coming back soon.”
“Ji Zhonglin?” Ji Yang’s hand paused mid-stroke.
As for where their eldest brother stood on the matter of calling off the engagement — when Ji Yang thought of Ji Zhonglin, he truly couldn’t be sure.
Ji Mingyue gazed at Ji Yang bathed in sunlight. “You talk about everyone so indifferently now.”
Ji Yang didn’t quite catch that. “What?”
“I said, you talk about everyone like you couldn’t care less.” Ji Mingyue looked at him with some confusion. “You used to care about your father’s attitude, about who Grandfather favored more — especially eldest brother. You couldn’t stand the idea of him giving even the slightest bit of attention to Ji Chengyi.”
Ji Yang smiled lightly. “That was the same as you — just sudden clarity.”
In essence, he felt nothing for the Ji family members at all.
That was precisely why he could completely step outside his identity as the fourth young master of the Ji family and look at everything and everyone around him objectively.
And looking at them, he felt even less emotion.
The Ji family’s investigation had finally confirmed that Ji Corporation had fabricated contracts and fictitious transactions to inflate revenue by over 25.7 billion yuan, resulting in a fine of 18.229 billion yuan. The group had officially received a delisting notice.
Multiple subsidiaries under Ji Corporation were implicated and ceased operations.
Ji Corporation was, after all, a behemoth, and this alone wasn’t enough to have a fatal impact.
The Ji family selling off several core logistics ventures to cover the deficit had become a hot topic on financial news headlines.
Those in the know understood the intricacies; those outside just watched the spectacle.
Ji Yang was firmly in the latter camp.
He couldn’t even be bothered to look.
When he accepted Peng Jiaying’s invitation to check out the company premises, it was a beautiful, sunny day.
“Old Peng.” He called out from a distance.
The moment they met, Ji Yang felt Peng Jiaying had changed enormously.
Not in terms of appearance — rather, his mental state. He had completely shed the dejected, downcast aura from before. His entire demeanor was refreshed and renewed.
His fighting spirit was up; the spark in his eyes was different.
Peng Jiaying held two drinks in his hands, handing Ji Yang the room-temperature one. He still spoke a bit cautiously, “I thought you might not be able to come out.”
“Why would you think that?” Ji Yang took the drink, inserted the straw, and took a sip.
Peach-flavored, and the color was practically baby pink. Ji Yang took a sip and complained, “Why do I get this one while you get a latte?”
Peng Jiaying choked a bit. “It suits you.”
Ji Yang: “…Thanks.”
The people Ji Yansong had sent to watch him had been pulled back after two days.
Presumably because they saw him not leaving the house at all, and he’d even submitted his resignation from the company through his assistant Nie Xu — didn’t look like he was planning anything dramatic.
So today, when he came out, apart from the driver, no one was tailing him.
Peng Jiaying looked at him, then pulled out a bank card as he spoke. “No matter what, you’re the company’s second boss. This is the startup capital you gave me before — it’s barely been touched. I know that no matter how big the Ji family’s problems get, the family trust means your daily life won’t be affected, but your situation in the Ji family can’t be great either. Take it for emergencies.”
“I don’t have any emergencies.” Ji Yang declined, looking up at the high-end office building before them. “But you chose to set up here and you’re telling me you didn’t spend much?”
Peng Jiaying pushed up his glasses. “This is Jianyuan’s property.”
“Jianyuan’s property?” This time it was Ji Yang’s turn to choke.
Peng Jiaying hesitated. “Don’t blame me for this. I traded a bit of insider information from Haicheng for it. But don’t worry, nothing illegal — at most it counts as an advantageous factor in legitimate competition.”
Ji Yang burst out laughing.
He patted Peng Jiaying’s shoulder. “Boundless prospects.”
Peng Jiaying was so perceptive — the affiliation process had always gone through a middleman, and Ji Yang hadn’t looked into the details too closely. He still trusted Nie Xu on that front.
He just hadn’t expected that in such a short time, Old Peng as a business partner would prove far more reliable than Ji Yang had imagined.
The two entered the office building.
They didn’t expect to run into Qi Songqing.
Qi Songqing had completely dropped the roguish demeanor Ji Yang had seen that night. Impeccably dressed in a suit, he emerged from the elevator leading a group of elite professionals — some domestic, some international — gesturing as he walked, throwing out professional jargon to the people around him.
As soon as Qi Songqing stepped out of the elevator, he spotted them too.
“Young master?” Qi Songqing raised an eyebrow.
Ji Yang was speechless. He had no idea why Qi Songqing was greeting him at a time like this. He waved and greeted with a fake smile: “Director Qi.”
Qi Songqing laughed. “Please, no need for that. Just call me by my name.”
A foreigner nearby asked Qi Songqing in broken Chinese who this was.
Qi Songqing introduced him with utmost seriousness: “A young master from the family of an old friend of mine.”
The foreigner complimented: “So cute! Still in school?”
Twenty-four-year-old single male Ji Yang: “…”
Do you foreigners have some kind of misunderstanding about Asian appearances?
Qi Songqing couldn’t stop laughing.
He introduced Peng Jiaying: “This is a promising entrepreneurial talent recently discovered by the Jianyuan venture platform — legal representative of ‘Yiyuan’ Media, Peng Jiaying. Director Peng.”
Peng Jiaying was visibly thrilled. He stepped forward to shake hands one by one, seizing the opportunity to hand out business cards.
Ji Yang could tell — Qi Songqing was deliberately creating the opportunity.
Later, Peng Jiaying recounted the experience excitedly: “That was Jianyuan’s CTO! I heard he’s only twenty-seven and holds over thirty national personal patents. People try every trick in the book just for a chance to meet him, and most can’t even get close.”
Peng Jiaying turned to look at Ji Yang as though gazing at some magical being.
“You two know each other well?” Peng Jiaying asked.
Ji Yang pondered for a moment. “Hmm… he’s actually also a doctor.”
Peng Jiaying: “…”
The newly established small company occupied less than half a floor of the office building, but made up for it with excellent lighting.
The money tree and plant shelves by the door showed signs of meticulous care. It was still Qian Yitian, holding a stack of freshly swept-up waste paper, shouting “Coming through, coming through!” as he burst out.
The moment he saw Ji Yang, he slammed on the brakes. “Fourth Young Master?” A big grin broke across his face. “You’re here!”
Inside there was also Qiao Qiao, along with many familiar faces from the former new media department.
Sweeping floors, wiping tables and windows, busy on phone calls arranging internet installation.
They all smiled and greeted him when they saw him.
Ji Yang recalled that not long ago, he had been the manager of Haicheng’s new media department, taking Qian Yitian and Qiao Qiao on a business trip to Huizhou.
Their parting had been abrupt, and since then Ji Yang never knew whether they’d ended up on the termination list.
Seeing them now — no barriers, no gossip.
As if they hadn’t experienced any workplace upheaval, as if they’d never heard the recent rumors about the Ji family.
Ji Yang knew that, in truth, they were being considerate of his feelings.
“Dinner’s on me tonight,” Ji Yang said with a smile.
A chorus of cheers erupted.
He then remembered running into Qi Songqing, and halfway to the restroom, sent a message to Nie Xu on his phone.
Ji Yang: “You asked Qi Songqing to look after Yiyuan?”
A reply came quickly: “Who’s Yiyuan?”
Ji Yang: “…”
I shouldn’t have asked.
He didn’t know whether Nie Xu had specifically looked it up, but a minute later, a new message came: “Why is it called Yiyuan?”
Ji Yang walked out of the restroom just in time to see a vast stretch of fiery sunset beyond the window at the end of the corridor.
He typed: “‘The one beginning returns, and all things renew.’ Everything returns to its starting point, symbolizing change and hope.”
But then Ji Yang quickly added: “Found it online. Thought the meaning was nice so I used it. Nothing particularly special behind it.”
At that moment, on the top floor of the Haicheng Group headquarters — the secretarial office.
Several female secretaries were on the verge of losing their minds because of the group of people who had been camped out there for an entire day.
A secretary pleaded earnestly, “Director Wang, Director Li, Director Pan — it’s not that the old chairman refuses to see you, but his health has been poor and he’s not even at the headquarters right now. Could you come back another day?”
This only inflamed the visitors further. “Who are you trying to fool? Everyone knows Old Chairman Ji is personally stationed at headquarters. We’re not leaving until we see someone today.”
“Exactly. The construction timeline has been pushed back — you owe us an explanation.”
“And my cultural tourism project! A budget of over ten million — and now you tell me it’s been pulled without notice? Headquarters needs to give us a plan today.”
Every day over the past week, similar people had shown up at the door.
The reception room was about to be driven into chaos.
The second secretary spotted someone by the window who appeared to be replying to messages. She thought for a moment, then walked over.
“Director Nie,” the secretary said softly.
When the man turned to look, she hid the rapid beating of her heart caused by nervousness and spoke quietly: “We’re barely holding on. As for the old chairman, what do you think…”
Nie Xu’s gaze swept across the reception room door. He spoke: “Compile a list of recent visitors, select a few key ringleaders to notify, and book a decent restaurant. Tell them we’re treating them to a meal.”
The second secretary’s heart leaped with joy.
She knew this was settled.
The group had been riddled with troubles lately. Cases like this — not severe enough to warrant a board meeting, yet too significant to simply ignore and let run wild — fell squarely on the shoulders of the office workers stuck in the middle.
But as long as this Director Nie was willing to handle it, the matter could basically be resolved safely and efficiently.
“Understood. I’ll arrange it right away,” the secretary said.
She turned to leave, then paused and looked back. “Still under the name of Young Director Ji?”
Nie Xu nodded indifferently. “Arrange it however you see fit.”
The secretary nodded.
The old chairman had shown signs of intentionally promoting him lately, and Director Nie spent a great deal of time alongside Young Director Ji.
So was the person Director Nie had just been messaging Young Director Ji?
The secretary mused — it was rare to see Director Nie using his phone during work hours. She wondered whether it was work-related or personal.