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At that, Cheng Yu curled his lips into a faint smile, gave Pei Zhennan a courteous nod, then turned and left.

Pei Yan looked at his father, then at Cheng Yu, instinctively wanting to follow him. Pei Zhennan stopped him. "Wait a moment. There are some things I need to tell you."

Pei Yan's gaze remained fixed on Cheng Yu's retreating figure. Only after Cheng Yu left the study and closed the door did he reluctantly look away. "Dad, what do you want to tell me?"

"I just wanted to ask—who has Cheng Yu been in contact with lately?"

"Us, obviously. Grandpa Chen was angered badly enough to be hospitalized, and Ah Yu hasn't been in a very good mood these past few days. He goes to the hospital every day to keep Grandpa Chen company." Pei Yan was baffled by the question. "Oh, right. I heard from Cheng Shao that Ah Yu seems to have signed with an agency. He's going to join a reality show and become an idol singer."

What kind of nonsense was that?

Pei Zhennan frowned deeply. "He wants to enter the entertainment industry?"

"Looks like it." Pei Yan scratched his head, unable to understand Cheng Yu's decision either. "Apparently, he wants to establish his own jewelry brand. Joining the entertainment industry is to build popularity and increase his name recognition."

After thinking for a moment, Pei Yan added, "Oh, right. Grandpa Chen said Ah Yu is also entering some DMI International Jewelry Design Competition. He's designing a set of golden wedding anniversary rings to celebrate Grandpa Chen and Grandma Lin's fiftieth wedding anniversary."

This had made Chen Simiao incredibly happy. Cheng Yu had not even settled on a first draft yet, but Chen Simiao was already so excited that he practically wanted to pull out his phone and call all his old friends to brag. Fortunately, Cheng Yu stopped him in time. Cheng Yu did not want any unnecessary complications, so he could only persuade his grandfather to hold back a little longer. Once he won the trophy, his grandfather could throw as many celebratory banquets as he liked.

Listening to Pei Yan, Pei Zhennan frowned. "So Cheng Yu is quite methodical."

He wanted to break away from C&C Jewelry and create his own brand, so he joined the entertainment industry? No matter how Pei Zhennan thought about it, Cheng Yu's plan seemed absurd. Having seen how much Cheng Yu cared about C&C Jewelry, the way he had dealt with Zhao Jinchui, and Cheng Yu's request just now to purchase C&C Jewelry shares from him, Pei Zhennan would rather believe that Cheng Yu was retreating in order to advance, trying to use this method to lull Chen Lingyun and her husband into lowering their guard. He refused to believe that Cheng Yu truly wanted to join the entertainment industry.

With that temperament, he was not born to smile and flatter others.

Unaware of his father's inner grumbling, Pei Yan puffed out his chest with pride. "Of course. Ah Yu is actually amazing."

"What about you?" Pei Zhennan asked without changing expression.

"Huh?" Pei Yan did not understand what his father meant at first.

Pei Zhennan continued, "Do you know what Cheng Yu was discussing with me just now?"

Pei Yan shook his head blankly.

Pei Zhennan then told his son Cheng Yu's entire plan for dealing with Zhao Jinchui, without leaving out a single detail. When he finished, he looked at the stunned Pei Yan and said meaningfully, "Cheng Yu is so capable. Do you think you can handle him?"

Pei Yan froze. He vaguely seemed to understand, yet still asked in confusion, "Ah Yu isn't an employee of Pei Mining. Why would I need to handle him?"

"What do you think?" Pei Zhennan looked at his muddleheaded son and said gravely, "Human nature is drawn to strength. The more outstanding a man is, the more so. Pursuing someone stronger is the nature and instinct of male creatures."

"Cheng Yu is very strong." Thinking of all Cheng Yu had done before, Pei Zhennan praised him sincerely. "Don't be fooled by his age. In all my years, I have never seen someone his age with such deep schemes and methods. More importantly, Cheng Yu's talent and ability to learn are worthy of his ambition and cunning. A person like that is born unwilling to waste his attention on mediocrity."

As Pei Zhennan spoke, he turned the subject back to his son. "You've known him for so long and clung to him for so many years. Has he ever given you even half a glance?"

Pei Yan said nothing.

Pei Zhennan continued, "If you keep drifting through life like this, I dare say you'll only grow farther and farther away from him. By then, even if you cling to his side every day, he may not even see you."

"A person like that will not be friends with the weak."

"Or rather, compared with friends, someone like Cheng Yu cares more about evenly matched opponents and partners with value he can use."

"He's not as scary as you make him sound." Pei Yan could not help retorting. "Ah Yu isn't like what you said, Dad."

"Then what kind of person do you think he is?" Pei Zhennan looked at his slightly dazed son and pressed on step by step. "Of all those things you told me before, how many did Cheng Yu personally tell you? And how many did you learn by asking Cheng Shao, Grandpa Chen, and Grandma Lin?"

Pei Yan was rendered speechless.

Pei Zhennan coldly tore away his son's last shred of self-deception. "In other words, he used you to arrange a meeting with me. He wanted to use me to deal with that Zhao fellow. Of course, perhaps he was also hoping the snipe and clam would fight while the fisherman reaped the benefit. But from beginning to end, he never revealed a single word to you. In his eyes, you're just a messenger. You weren't even qualified to hear this plan."

Pei Yan drooped dejectedly, forced to admit that Pei Zhennan had a point.

"Ah Yu... Ah Yu has always been like this. He just doesn't like talking." Pei Yan gloomily defended Cheng Yu. Yet both father and son knew that while Cheng Yu might not like to talk, he was never short of words around people who mattered to him. With Chen Simiao and his wife, Cheng Yu could talk about anything. Before Pei Zhennan, Cheng Yu could also lay everything out openly.

Perhaps he had not told Pei Yan anything because he did not like talking. But more fundamentally, Cheng Yu simply could not be bothered to waste words on Pei Yan.

In Cheng Yu's eyes, Pei Yan was probably the sort of person to whom even one extra sentence felt like a waste of time.

In a sense, Pei Zhennan was that kind of person too. Or rather, anyone in a position of power who controlled tens of billions in wealth and tens of thousands of employees would not spend time and energy on useless people or matters.