Chapter 70.1 — Outdoor Date
The Su family ate breakfast together as Mother Su filled them in on how the public was responding to the events at the banquet. As expected, the Wang family and the Qin family were working together to slander the Su family, condemning them for being bad hosts and the younger generation, specifically Su Yanyi and Qin Jiran, for being outrageously disrespectful to their elders.
The Dragon’s Emissary, on the other hand, called out the Qin family for bullying their juniors, trying to use their in-law relationship with the Su family to climb higher up the social ladder, and colluding with the Wang family when things didn’t go their way.
The articles put Qin Jiran’s backstory to good use, emphasizing the Su family’s unwillingness to work with a family as cold-hearted, immoral, and untrustworthy as the Qin family, and Qin Jiran’s objection to acknowledging his so-called father and biological family, as well as his wish for the Qin family to stop disturbing his current life with his new family.
Naturally, the articles had been consented by Qin Jiran before they were published. Although some people disapproved of his attitude and believed he should acknowledge his biological father, the vast majority agreed that a father like Qin Zhenyi did not deserve to be acknowledged.
Even without knowing the truth, the masses could tell that the Su family was warring against the Wang family and the Qin family. The public opinion was divided, and several discussions appeared online. Some netizens claimed that they had been present at the banquet and therefore had inside information, while others claimed to be from the same orphanage as Qin Jiran and told of his sad past.
Among all the participants of the discussions, Qin Jiran’s fans were undoubtedly the most fervent. They stood almost one-sidedly behind him and supported every decision he made while simultaneously condemning the Qin family for mistreating their idol.
In the beginning, Qin Jiran was just a regular actor. After he gained recognition for his exceptional acting skills, he became an idol-level actor. Now, with the help of the Qin family affair, he upgraded to being an inspirational idol-level actor and won even more recognition.
Neither Qin Jiran nor the Su family wanted to put his past in the spotlight, but if they didn’t seize the opportunity and use it in their favor first, the Wang family and the Qin family would take advantage of it instead.
The news of Qin Jiran’s participation in the Tianhai charity performance had also been released, instantly gaining him the praise and support of numerous fans.
Ling Tianyue1 learned of the conflict between the three families and being the insightful businesswoman she was, promptly made the decision to donate a third of the revenue from the charity performance to the numerous orphanages around the country. This would be done on behalf of Qin Jiran.
Then, she had another idea and met with Qin Jiran and Su Yanyi to discuss the prospect of further collaboration.
“President Su, Film Emperor Qin, it would be extremely beneficial for us to establish a charitable foundation together. It can also be considered a kind act of giving back to the society. How about it?” she proposed, looking at the married couple with expectant eyes.
“You’re right,” Su Yanyi nodded in agreement, but before Ling Tianyue could rejoice, Su Yanyi’s next words rendered her speechless. “But why should we cooperate with you?”
“You… are you going to burn the bridge after crossing it?” Ling Tianyue suddenly felt that she had made a very foolish decision.
Su Yanyi was right. If the couple worked together, they would already have everything they needed, whether it be money, power, connections, or publicity. There was nothing Ling Tianyue could help them with!
“I just don’t think there’s anything for you to do,” Su Yanyi said bluntly.
“President Su, don’t do this. I’m the one who came up with the idea! There are a lot of other cooperation opportunities for us in the future; if you burn the bridge now, I’ll be really sad!” Ling Tianyue feigned distress as she pitifully batted her eyelashes. Alas, the couple turned a blind eye. She sighed helplessly.
An apathetic woman and an equally apathetic man, no wonder the two were together!
Su Yanyi curled her upper lip and turned to ask Qin Jiran, “What do you think?”
He shook his head and responded, “I have no objection, we’ll go with your decision.”
Hearing that, Ling Tianyue also curled her upper lip. She interposed, “A man should have his own opinions. If you listen to everything your woman says, you’ll have no place in the family!”
Su Yanyi immediately shot her a glare. Wasn’t that a clear provokation? Hmph! She absolutely refused to cooperate with Ling Tianyue, lest the woman teach her idiot man something bad!
Qin Jiran, however, gave a faint smile. “That’s fine.”
Naturally, Ling Tianyue was just playing around. He didn’t mind her joking, nor the possibility that he would “no place in the family,” because he was already perfectly content with how his family was currently.
His response rendered Ling Tianyue speechless. Although the men by her side were all also very compliant, Qin Jiran’s compliance was different. It was neither calculated nor reluctant. His smile brimmed with satisfaction and happiness.
Ai, how enviable! Of course, the one she was envious of was Su Yanyi. Who told her to have such a good man? It made Ling Tianyue want one too. She had actually been searching, but she just couldn’t find anyone suitable for her. ‘Dammit! Where are all the good men hiding?’
After some contemplation, Su Yanyi suggested, “Cooperation is possible, but if we’re going to cooperate, we should find more companies to work with. Specifically the Su Company, the Dragon’s Emissary, and the SQ Company.” For something like charity, it was best to have more people involved. The participating companies would be able to help those in need and gain publicity at the same time. The charitable foundation would benefit the most if the Su family’s other enterprises joined in with their influence and appeal.
“SQ? The SQ Company that’s working with the Su Company? I’ve only heard of the name. I wonder who the owner is?” Ling Tianyue asked curiously. To work with the Su Company was the dream of numerous other companies, but that was practically impossible. Therefore, the Su Company’s partnership with the new SQ Company had come as a surprise to many.
Ling Tianyue had tried and failed to investigate the company, coming up with only the information that its executive manager was a man named Zhang Minghui. Zhang Minghui was very talented, but he was not the owner of the company. Further digging had lead to a dead end that only fueled her curiosity.
She’d speculated that the SQ Company was related to the Su family and was maybe even controlled by them. Why else would they agree to cooperate with a newly formed company?
Su Yanyi responded by turning her gaze to Qin Jiran. Ling Tianyue immediately understood.
“It’s Film Emperor Qin’s company? Ah, no wonder!”
Qin Jiran didn’t try to deny it, as the secret would be out soon anyway.
