Chapter 353: The Opponent Is Too Weak

Just then, Chen Junhao looked up, his gaze casually sweeping across the second-floor dining hall until it locked onto Yang Xun. The moment their eyes met, the expression on Chen Junhao’s face noticeably shifted.

A playful smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth, as if he had spotted something amusing. He whispered something to the middle-aged man beside him before walking straight toward Yang Xun’s table.

“Oh? Isn’t this the live-in son-in-law of the Xu Family?” Chen Junhao’s voice was neither too loud nor too soft, pitched perfectly for the surrounding tables to hear.

“What? You’re not at home playing the doting husband today, but came all the way out here for seafood?”

The middle-aged man behind him followed closely, his gaze landing on Yang Xun with a scrutinizing look. Chen Junhao deliberately stepped aside half a pace and introduced him, “President Cheng, this is the live-in son-in-law of the Xu Family I told you about. His name is Yang Xun.”

Upon hearing the title ‘President Cheng,’ Yang Xun immediately knew the middle-aged man was Cheng Ye, the boss of Meiyan Biotechnology. He was the mastermind who had bribed Xu Feifan to steal the formula for Ninghua Cream, and later tried to suppress Xu’s Beauty Industry using a smear campaign. Ultimately, he had his face rubbed in the dirt when he was completely crushed by the stellar reputation of Ninghua Cream.

Cheng Ye’s gaze lingered on Yang Xun for a few seconds. A faint, barely-there smile played on his lips, as if he were finally looking at a face he had only heard rumors about.

“I’ve heard so much about you,” Cheng Ye said politely, though his politeness carried a condescending scrutiny that made others uncomfortable. “I hope Mr. Yang has been well at the Xu Family recently? I heard Ninghua Cream is selling quite well. Congratulations.”

Yang Xun didn’t bother to stand up. He simply leaned back in his chair, his eyes resting on Cheng Ye’s face for a brief second before looking away. That indifferent posture was far more infuriating than any biting sarcasm.

“President Cheng, we aren’t exactly close. Please don’t interrupt my meal with my friend.” Yang Xun’s tone was flat as he turned his attention back to the table.

Chen Junhao choked on Yang Xun’s reaction. Sneering, he said, “Yang Xun, you’re just a live-in son-in-law, yet here you are dining alone with a woman. If Xu Yue found out, she’d definitely divorce you!

“It sounds nice to call you Xu Yue’s husband, but in reality, you’re nothing more than a dog raised by the Xu Family!”

Yang Xun’s face darkened as he slowly stood up. He was a tall man, half a head taller than Chen Junhao, and he looked down at him from above.

“I’m warning you. You can say whatever you want about me, and I’ll treat it as hot air, but don’t you dare touch the people around me.” He then shifted his gaze to Cheng Ye, enunciating each word clearly. “And you. If you have the time, you’d be better off dedicating it to developing your own products. Stop plotting to trip others up, or you’ll eventually dig your own grave.”

At these words, both Cheng Ye and Chen Junhao’s faces contorted into extremely ugly expressions, as if they had just swallowed a fly.

Yang Xun had no interest in entertaining these two any longer. He turned to Yue Feifei. “We clearly didn’t check the almanac before going out today. Let’s eat somewhere else.”

“Okay!” Yue Feifei immediately nodded, grabbed her bag, and followed Yang Xun out.

Cheng Ye clenched his fists, his eyes vicious.

“Yang Xun, what the fuck are you acting so arrogant for? Stop right there!” Chen Junhao couldn’t help but curse, threatening to teach Yang Xun a lesson.

Hearing him cursing out loud, Yang Xun didn’t care in the slightest. Instead, he felt the urge to laugh. Sometimes, when opponents were this weak, he didn’t even have the desire to strike back; he merely wanted to watch them wallow in their own incompetent rage.

“Yang Xun, their eyes looked really scary. They’ll definitely look for a chance to get revenge on you. You’d better be careful,” Yue Feifei warned.

“Don’t worry, those two can’t make any real waves,” Yang Xun replied, looking entirely unconcerned.

Still, those two teaming up was undoubtedly bad news. One hated him to the bone, while the other was eyeing the Xu Family like a hungry tiger. They were definitely scheming on how to throw a wrench in the Xu Family’s plans. However, at the moment, he didn’t know what they were aiming to do. He could only wait for them to make their move.

The two of them walked out of the seafood restaurant. The night breeze blew against their faces, carrying the faint scent of street food and the exhaust fumes from passing cars.

***

Meanwhile, inside the private room of the seafood restaurant, it was excessively quiet. The only sound was the low hum of the air conditioning.

Cheng Ye’s expression was grim. He sat down, picked up his glass, and took a large gulp of liquor. The liquid burned as it slid down his throat, but the fiery sensation failed to dispel the gloom in his chest.

“That Yang Xun is way too arrogant.” Chen Junhao sat down as well, tugging at his collar. His tone was laced with unsuppressed irritation. “Did you see his attitude? He didn’t even look us in the eye when he spoke. If we weren’t in a public place, I would have had someone beat him up already.”

Cheng Ye didn’t reply. He simply picked up a piece of cold food with his chopsticks, placed it in his mouth, and chewed slowly. His gaze was fixed on the table, lost in thought.

Seeing his silence, Chen Junhao added, “President Cheng, aren’t you angry? He told you to stop plotting to trip others up right in front of everyone. How is that any different from slapping you across the face?”

“What’s the use of being angry?” Cheng Ye finally spoke. He put down his chopsticks, picked up his teacup, and took a sip. His tone was so flat that no emotion could be deciphered from it. “He’s right. I did stumble before. With Ninghua Cream, I was defeated fair and square.”

“So we’re just going to let it go?” Chen Junhao’s eyes widened. He had seen Cheng Ye’s methods of dealing with people before. The man was an absolute smiling assassin; there was no way he would just take a loss and leave it at that.

“Of course we can’t just let it go,” Cheng Ye said, setting his teacup down as his gaze darkened slightly. “But the key now is how to turn the tables. Ninghua Cream’s reputation is already solidified. We won’t gain any advantage by clashing with them head-on. We need to think of another way.”

He paused, his eyes shifting to Chen Junhao’s face. The look gave Chen Junhao the chills. “Young Master Chen, does your family happen to have any… special resources?”

Chen Junhao was taken aback for a moment. “What do you mean?”

“I heard your family used to be in the wholesale medicinal herbs business. You must have quite a few connections on hand, right?” Cheng Ye’s tone held a hint of probing. “If we can find a new ingredient that’s both highly effective and low in cost, we could create a product far more competitive than Ninghua Cream. That way, we’ll eventually be able to return the humiliation we suffered today.”

Chen Junhao frowned and thought for a moment. Before he could speak, someone knocked on the private room door from the outside.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. Three unhurried knocks with an even rhythm.

Both Cheng Ye and Chen Junhao glanced toward the door simultaneously, a trace of surprise on their faces. They both knew the owner of this seafood restaurant. Usually, the waiters would just push the door open and walk right in; they never knocked like this.

“Come in,” Cheng Ye called out.

The door was pushed open.

A man in a short-sleeved black shirt stood at the doorway. He had a lean build and appeared to be in his thirties. His features were remarkably ordinary—the kind of face that would instantly disappear in a crowd. However, his eyes gave off a very unsettling vibe.

He didn’t enter right away. Instead, he stood at the threshold, sweeping his gaze across the private room before finally settling on Cheng Ye. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, revealing a somewhat polite smile. “Boss Cheng, apologies for the sudden intrusion.”