Fyren Zhang thought to himself... The author of this book's brain really should be filled with cow dung.
What the hell!
What kind of game are these heroines playing?!
I don't want to feel ashamed anymore!
I can't even keep up with this logic—and I'm still supposed to be some kind of heroine?!
I've never even heard of... refusing to save someone's life!
But no—his ultimate goal was to get these two heroines away from himself. Otto Long would only disappear for a day. One day later, these two women would become ticking time bombs for the plot.
Fyren Zhang wrapped his arms around Xena Xu again and smiled, "Xena, I'm Fyren Zhang, the villain, remember? Just now, you were the one who stood up for this girl—I saw it! I'm not bluffing you! Can't you just spare 100,000 or 800,000 to save her? Or... even 50,000 would work?"
Xena Xu slowly shook her head. "Not possible."
"Hey, come on... if that's the case, just hire her away! I'll cover her salary—you won't have to spend a single penny. That should be fine, right?"
Xena Xu still shook her head. "Oh, I get it now—you're trying to blackmail me!"
Fyren Zhang's furious face turned the color of pig liver.
"How am I blackmailing you?! I'm not even asking you to pay! The person is yours, she'll work for you, and—"
"Why would such a good deal fall into my lap?" Xena Xu retorted. "You must be trying to plant a corporate spy on me. Don't think I'm easy to fool! I'm very smart!"
Fyren Zhang suppressed his anger and whispered, "You idiot, she's not a corporate spy! And even if she were, you could just put her in a position where she can't access any core information!"
Xena Xu said, "I'm a doctor. The people I hire must be reliable. This woman... I don't think she looks trustworthy, the way she's glaring at me!"
Fyren Zhang completely lost his temper.
"How is she not trustworthy?! She's the most filial, intelligent, capable, and resilient girl I've ever met!"
"She was just a teenager when her mother fell ill. She gave up her education to work—no one else was willing to be my secretary! But even though she knew I was a lecherous, scummy bastard, she still took the job because the pay was good!"
"She's been with me for five years—dedicated, never making a single mistake! Every time I touched her thighs, lifted her skirt, peeked at her, or humiliated her with dirty jokes... she endured it! All just to earn money to save her mother!"
"The office gossip—she bears it all alone as a young girl, never defending herself, never arguing. Every day at work she endures harassment from a jerk like me, and after work—no clubbing, no hotpot, no movies, no shopping malls... Her clothes, aside from work suits, are all cheap knockoffs worth just a few dozen dollars. You know why?"
Fyren Zhang said angrily, "Because she's terrified of losing her job! She wants to save every penny for her mom's treatment! How could a girl like this be bad? How does she look like a bad person?"
"Oh? Fyren, you know her so well!"
"Of course! It's been five years!" Fyren Zhang said excitedly. "Xena Xu, I misjudged you! I thought you were nerdy, kind, cute, loving, warm-hearted, and compassionate—that you wouldn't hesitate to help someone in need. But now... Ugh, I don't even fucking know what I'm saying—"
Fyren Zhang slapped himself.
[Shit, what am I getting excited about? What nonsense am I spouting? That's the dialogue of a proper male lead! What kind of act am I putting on here?]
The two women watched as Fyren Zhang slumped into his chair, elbows on knees, rubbing his temples in frustration.
Chloe was frozen.
Fyren... actually sees me this way?
Is he actually... a kind and warm-hearted person?
Then why... does he keep bullying me? If... if you want to help me, why can't you do it yourself? Why make me follow Xena?
She couldn't figure it out—today, this man was completely off.
Xena Xu smiled and said, "Fyren, my secretary just messaged—the conference is about to start. I'll go prepare now!"
Fyren Zhang didn't look up, just waved irritably as if to say, "Go away, you devil."
Xena Xu stifled her laughter. The moment she pushed the door open and turned back, she saw Fyren Zhang's arm swinging like a fan—smack!—hitting himself again. She burst out laughing.
...
Press Conference
Fyren Zhang forced himself to finish reading the script prepared by the PR team.
To be fair, it was well-written—emphasizing how the pharmaceutical company faced a moral dilemma between profits and ethics, and ultimately chose ethics. It also promised thorough self-reflection and internal investigations.
As expected, halfway through the conference, phones kept ringing among the executives. The stock price was plummeting terrifyingly.
Normally, such a humiliating conference wouldn't include a Q&A.
But the reporters were too enthusiastic.
One reporter stood up and said, "Fyren, is this fake drug incident an isolated case? Will similar incidents happen again in the future? How can you guarantee all medications produced by your factory will meet quality standards? Can you even confirm that similar issues haven't occurred with drugs you've already manufactured and sold?"
Chloe immediately intervened, "I'm sorry, we don't have a Q&A session planned, please—"
Fyren Zhang waved his hand and approached the microphone. "If such incidents had occurred before, this conference would've happened much earlier. If they happen again, we'll hold another conference like this. I can't promise our production will always be flawless, but I can guarantee that whenever such issues arise, we'll destroy the problematic batches and hold public conferences. In fact, our willingness to host this event demonstrates our commitment—this pharmaceutical company will always prioritize ethics over profits."
Chloe was surprised.
This man who usually spoke so carelessly had actually given an excellent response today.
A beautiful female reporter stood up. "Fyren, rumors suggest you're about to get engaged to Ms. Eliza Leng, executive president of Qingfeng Group. Is this true? There's speculation that after pursuing Miss Leng for years, you've used family influence to pressure the Leng family into compliance. Can you confirm?"
Chloe quickly said, "I'm sorry, this matter is unrelated to today's conference topic. We won't be addressing such questions."
The reporter refused to back down. "Public opinion portrays you as a profit-driven capitalist who disregards ethics. Was this product destruction and press conference just performance art? A staged show to project an image of corporate responsibility?"
Fyren Zhang studied this nuisance—then suddenly remembered.
Grandma's tits, another heroine.
Otto Long was supposed to be detained for one day, so why were his harem members running loose?
He couldn't afford to antagonize female reporters at a press conference.
Fyren Zhang smiled. "I am a capitalist. Whether I'm profit-oriented isn't for me to say—that's your judgment to make. As for whether this conference is theater, that's not my call either. But I've clearly communicated our stance: thorough self-reflection and serious accountability. Thank you."
Chloe immediately announced, "Thank you all for attending. Today's conference concludes here."
Fyren Zhang rose to leave as security immediately formed a protective cordon around him.
A swarm of reporters closed in, with the female reporter particularly aggressive at the front, thrusting a recorder forward: "Fyren! The pharmaceutical company made such a massive mistake - can one press conference really make it disappear? Will similar errors occur in future production? Was this mistake human error or system failure? If intentional, who should take responsibility for this colossal blunder...?"
Fyren Zhang walked away stone-faced, ignoring her.
Damn you Otto Long, you bastard.
You're locked up, but my troubles haven't decreased one bit.
Why do you have so many women?
Sure, most novel protagonists keep harems, but you... aren't you taking it too far?
Yes, I envy you, but you... have no shame, do you?
True, I want to be you, but you... you're ridiculously smooth.
Exiting the hall through the VIP corridor, Fyren Zhang strode forward when another group approached from the opposite direction. Leading them was a qipao-clad woman in high heels walking directly toward him.
Fyren Zhang recognized her instantly.
Voluptuous curves, perfect proportions, a face that defied heaven's fairness...
Another heroine - Cora Chen.
Cora Chen, granddaughter of Qiushou Chen, sister to Eason Chen and Huan Chen.
Currently the powerful, unrivaled president of the Chen family conglomerate.
But in truth, she was his genuine ex-girlfriend - both each other's first love.
Because of Eason Chen's meddling, their relationship had crumbled, leaving their初恋 (first love) in ruins - pathetic.
Now, meeting again after all these years... inevitably awkward.
In his current hurry, Fyren Zhang decided to pretend not to see her and walked straight past.
Cora Chen froze momentarily at the sight of her first love, instinctively stopping in her tracks.
Yet Fyren Zhang passed by as if she were air.
[You don't see me, you don't see me, you don't see me...]
[Just pretend I'm invisible!
[What happened back then was my fault - I'm too ashamed to face you. Let's just go our separate ways from now on.]
Cora Chen turned to stare at Fyren Zhang's retreating back.
This guy... am I hallucinating?
The thought made her smile bitterly.
Could I still be hung up on him?
Fyren Zhang hadn't taken ten steps when Xena Xu appeared ahead, immediately blocking his path.
"Fyren! Hey, I just saw Cora walk by! Cora!"
Fyren Zhang nearly lost it. "Don't— stop shouting for her!"
"Cora! Over here!"
Cora Chen had been about to leave, feeling ridiculous.
Three years since their breakup - three years without so much as a dinner invitation, apology, phone call, or text from Fyren Zhang.
Just complete radio silence.
Yet seeing him today, her heart had still skipped a beat.
After all, it was first love. The person they had liked, the girl's first love, was impossible to forget completely.
Even at seventy years old, sitting in a wheelchair, one would still remember one's first boyfriend—unless one had lost one's memory.
At this moment, having bumped into XenaXu, both of them had to face each other.
Among the four great families, it might be an exaggeration to say they were "of one breath," but they all maintained formal etiquette with each other.
In high society, no one would truly fall out publicly with major figures or conglomerates.
There was little genuine friendship among these rich second generations; they were mostly nodding acquaintances who often met at various events.
When they encountered each other, they would merely exchange pleasantries and say some polite words.
CoraChen turned around and walked back, smiling as she said, "I thought the person who just walked past looked familiar. It turns out to be you, Fyren! How have you been? It seems like you've changed your style recently, huh?"
FyrenZhang forced a laugh, trying to act natural. "Ah, sorry, sorry! I've had so much on my mind these days—I keep getting lost in thought while walking."
After XenaXu called out to the two, she fell silent instead.
She knew the history between these two and had deliberately created this situation to watch the "drama" unfold.
After CoraChen finished her polite remarks, she suddenly stumbled over her words, not knowing what to say next.
FyrenZhang, in his attempt to explain, also experienced a sudden mental block and couldn't utter a word.
The two stared at each other, their mouths moving, but no sound came out.
The three of them stood there awkwardly.
XenaXu glanced back and forth between the two, observing their expressions.
FyrenZhang opened and closed his mouth, unable to speak, only managing a polite smile.
CoraChen was thoroughly embarrassed, wanting to say something but at a loss for words. She could only slightly tilt her head and adjust her hair to hide her awkwardness.
The awkwardness reached its peak.
[XenaXu, you damn troublemaker, why did you call her over!
"I'm so embarrassed I could dig a hole in the ground and hide."
[Cora is even more beautiful now, and her chest has developed so well. I even pinched them before. Too bad I didn't pursue her further back then....]
CoraChen looked startled and asked suspiciously, "Fyren, what did you say?"