A month later, Zhou Ruo An successfully acquired Jinggui Electronics, and the final transaction price was even ten percent lower than Shengkai’s original acquisition budget.
At the signing ceremony, Zhou Ruo An sat beside Zhou Ran Ming as the project leader, while his father and brothers could only sit in the audience section, witnessing this victory that belonged solely to Zhou Ruo An.
Zhou Ruo An secretly took a photo and sent it to Zhang Jin’s WeChat. The man had been dead for half a year, but the account still existed. Zhou Ruo An typed: “I won a round for you. Your two idiot brothers are so jealous their faces are twisting out of shape. They look even worse than you did before you died. Your cheap father is forcing a smile too. The son he painstakingly raised got beaten by an uneducated bastard child. Taking a bite of shit for every bite of candy—it definitely can’t feel very good.”
Putting down his phone, Zhou Ruo An slowly lifted his head and revealed a proper smile to the crowd below.
……
After the signing ceremony, Zhou Ruo An escorted Zhou Ran Ming to his car. He lowered himself humbly, adopting the most deferential posture possible.
Zhou Ran Ming patted him on the shoulder and casually tossed out a few words of praise. “Xiao An did very well this time. Keep working hard in the future. I think highly of you.”
Zhou Ruo An responded with respectful sincerity. “There’s still follow-up work regarding Jinggui that needs supervision. I’ll definitely continue working hard and won’t disappoint the chairman’s expectations.”
A flicker crossed Zhou Ran Ming’s eyes. After pondering for a moment, he smiled and said, “You’ve worked hard recently. Leave the follow-up work to someone else. Go take a vacation—pick anywhere you like. I’ll cover the expenses personally. Consider it your uncle treating you.”
The smile at Zhou Ruo An’s lips stiffened slightly before instantly returning to normal. Still wagging his tail obediently, his tone remained unchanged. “Before the acquisition funds are fully transferred, everything is still uncertain. Shao Chen Feng is a difficult person to deal with. I had to put in a tremendous amount of effort and take many indirect routes to help Shengkai secure Jinggui. If someone else takes over negotiations with him now, I’m afraid he may regret it.”
A slow smile spread across Zhou Ran Ming’s face, an imposing pressure radiating from him. “The contract has already been signed. Backing out now would require paying breach-of-contract penalties. Do you really think Shao Chen Feng would do something that foolish?”
Zhou Ruo An stood half a head taller than Zhou Ran Ming. As long as he straightened his back slightly and lowered his eyelids halfway, there was an air of looking down from above. He shrugged. “Who knows? After all, he already went against his own principle of ‘highest bidder wins’ when he chose Shengkai.”
That was no subtle warning—it was an outright threat. Zhou Ruo An had played a decisive role in this business acquisition, yet no matter how Zhou Ran Ming investigated, he could not uncover what methods Zhou Ruo An had used to break through the competition.
The unknown was always frightening. After a moment of consideration, Zhou Ran Ming once again adopted an appreciative expression. “Then Xiao An can continue working hard and supervise the follow-up matters. Your contributions won’t be forgotten. Uncle won’t let your efforts go unrewarded.”
“But my current status isn’t appropriate for discussing follow-up production matters with Shao Chen Feng.” Zhou Ruo An looked troubled. “After all, this concerns manufacturing, and I’m only the acquisition project leader. It’s neither justified nor authoritative. No one would truly accept it.”
The smile on Zhou Ran Ming’s face faded slightly. He raised a hand and summoned the secretary waiting nearby. “Draft an appointment notice immediately. In the name of the board of directors, appoint Mr. Zhou Ruo An as the general manager of Jinggui Electronics Factory, fully responsible for the factory’s production and operations.”
Zhou Ruo An’s face filled with shock, unable to hide his delight. He enthusiastically hugged the powerful helmsman of Shengkai Foreign Trade and said respectfully and warmly, “Uncle, I won’t disappoint you.”
Zhou Ran Ming bent down and got into the car. In the rearview mirror, Zhou Ruo An continued bending respectfully at the waist as he watched him leave. The secretary tapped out the final word of the appointment notice on the tablet and asked Zhou Ran Ming, “Chairman, are you really planning to hand Jinggui over to Zhou Ruo An?”
Zhou Ran Ming withdrew his gaze from the rearview mirror and slowly closed his eyes. “Fleas have their uses too. There are things lions and tigers can’t accomplish, but fleas might. Let him jump around for a while. If he proves useless, we’ll crush him with one foot.”
The secretary tapped the screen once and sent out the appointment notice.
……..
Only after Zhou Ran Ming’s car disappeared from sight did Zhou Ruo An straighten his slightly bowed back. The phone in his pocket vibrated. Along with the appointment notice, another message had entered his inbox—a WeChat message from Zhou Bin.
The text was brief and rigid, only a few words: “Return home immediately.”
When Zhou Ruo An had first returned to the Zhou family, Zhou Bin often dragged him along to drinking parties and banquets, mocking and ridiculing him, treating him like a clown for entertainment. Back then, Zhou Ruo An had been desperate to establish himself, obedient and eager to please, so the two had gotten along surprisingly often.
Later, Zhou Ruo An gradually revealed his sharpness. Zhou Bin became so jealous he probably wanted to stab voodoo dolls in frustration. Their relationship consequently collapsed overnight. The last message exchanged between them had been three months ago.
Today, the third branch of the family had seized the greatest credit. Zhou Jing Tao naturally had to keep up appearances, so a celebratory family banquet was unavoidable. However, the person notifying Zhou Ruo An should not have been Zhou Bin.
Still puzzled, Zhou Ruo An’s phone rang loudly again. This time, it was the butler.
The butler’s surname was Zhong. To his face, Zhou Ruo An called him Uncle Zhong; behind his back, he called him Old Man Zhong.
Old Man Zhong was rigid, rule-abiding, and snobbish—not an easy person to get along with. Zhou Ruo An himself wasn’t exactly a saint either, so he couldn’t say whether he liked the man or not. Still, he always remained polite in person, just like now, warmly answering the call.
Sure enough, it was to notify him to return home for dinner. But Old Man Zhong seemed a little unusual today. Beyond his usual strictness, he unexpectedly added a few extra words. “Madam likes Chinese toon. Secretary Fu sends over two baskets every year around this time. The dish has been added to tonight’s menu. Fourth Young Master is in for a treat.”
These words were nothing special on the surface, merely ordinary household chatter, but coming from Butler Zhong—who was rigid, disciplined, and almost never wasted a single word—they carried an inexplicably unusual undertone.
First Zhou Bin, then Butler Zhong. When things were abnormal, caution was necessary.
After hanging up the call, Zhou Ruo An found a corner in the underground parking garage and bit a cigarette between his lips. The coin in his pocket had become faintly warm from being rubbed over and over. When the cigarette had burned down to half, he dialed Ren Yu’s number.
“What kind of work is Zhou Zhe’s former secretary, Fu Chun Shen, doing now that he’s been kicked back to Human Resources?”
Smoke curled around the corner, half-concealing the darkness in Zhou Ruo An’s eyes. “No work at all? Seventeen late arrivals in one month, nine early departures, and five days absent without leave?”
Zhou Ruo An removed the cigarette and chuckled softly. “Ren Yu, how do you know Fu Chun Shen’s situation so clearly?”
The person on the other end sounded indignant, but Zhou Ruo An interrupted him. “I don’t want to hear about your love-hate drama. I’m only asking whether you know what he was doing during all those late arrivals, early departures, and absences.”
Ren Yu was usually well-mannered and rarely swore in front of his boss, but today he failed to hold back. His voice slid through the receiver: “I’m not his fucking father. Why should I care how he dies out there?”
Then he added rather sincerely, “Sorry. I just can’t help wanting to curse him out.”
Zhou Ruo An dug at his ear, displeased. “I rely on you to uphold appearances for me. From now on, speak more English and French. Keep this kind of street-cursing buried in your stomach.”
With that, he hung up. He silently finished the cigarette, then pulled open the car door and got inside.
……..
As the weather warmed, the artificial lawns in the villa district had already begun turning green. Gardeners were cultivating flower seedlings in the garden, yet when they saw Zhou Ruo An, they were far less attentive than usual. The wrinkles on their faces no longer piled up in flattering smiles like before.
Inside the living room, everyone was unusually present. Zhou Jing Tao sat upright and formal. Zhou Bin and Zhou Zhe each occupied one of the single sofas nearby. Madam Zhou reclined upon the beauty couch by the window, while Third Miss attended at her side, her slender jade-white fingers peeling longan fruit. A plate was already piled with the glossy, translucent flesh.
Ever since Zhou Ruo An entered, not a single person greeted him. Though calculations churned in his heart, his expression showed no irritation. He grabbed two longans and tossed them into his mouth, grinning as he thanked Third Miss.
A dragon-patterned teacup crashed heavily onto the table, tea splashing out. Zhou Bin wore a dark face, looking as though someone had slept with his wife and dug up his ancestors’ graves.
Zhou Ruo An excelled most at becoming arrogant through favor. He had merits now, so he no longer bothered being polite. Besides, the current situation was not one he could escape merely by bowing and scraping.
Spitting out a fruit pit, he asked casually, “What’s wrong here? Why is Big Brother so angry?”
Zhou Bin was not yet thirty, yet wine and lust had already hollowed out his body. Eye bags hung beneath his eyes as he angrily demanded, “Zhou Ruo An, are you really Father’s biological son or not?”
Zhou Ruo An’s breathing stalled. His heart dropped like it had been filled with cold lead. Forcing himself to smile, he asked, “What kind of question is that?”
Zhou Zhe rolled the Bodhi beads in his hand and spoke gently, “Rumors are spreading outside saying you’re not Father’s biological son—that you’re an impostor.”
The moment the words “impostor” were spoken, even the sweet longan flesh turned bitter in Zhou Ruo An’s mouth.
There was nowhere for him to sit, so he turned and walked to the window, leaning there. Just a few steps away, dark emotions hid beneath lowered lashes, concealing the storm raging within.
When he turned back around, the young man’s face was icy cold. “It’s just a rumor. Are you all trying to convict me again?”
Zhou Jing Tao lowered his sparse eyelids and remained silent. Madam Zhou pretended to nap with one arm propping up her head, leaving her two biological sons to charge into battle for her.
Zhou Bin crossed his legs. “It’s not exactly a rumor. Someone said you’re the civet cat from The Prince Replaced by a Civet Cat tale, the fake prince swapped in place of the real one. They sounded very convincing. Hard not to believe.”
Zhou Ruo An swept a glance across everyone in the room and sneered. “You didn’t believe the DNA tests after doing them twice, yet you insist on believing someone else’s ‘convincing story’? If you want to drive me out, just say it directly. No need to take such a huge detour.”
Zhou Bin widened his eyes. “Who knows whether DNA testing can make mistakes? If people outside weren’t spreading it so convincingly, we wouldn’t even have thought about testing you again.”
Imitating actors from television dramas, he clapped twice. A side door opened, and two medical staff emerged from the adjoining room, dressed in doctor’s coats and carrying medical cases, standing shoulder to shoulder behind Zhou Bin.
“What is the meaning of this?” Zhou Ruo An asked.
“Real gold fears no fire.” Zhou Zhe’s voice had the sort of gentleness that soothed people. “To silence the rumors, Fourth Brother, you’ll just have to suffer a little again. Let them draw a tube of blood now and take it back for testing, so your innocence can be proven.”
Zhou Ruo An suddenly clenched his fists tightly.
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