Zhang Yang Was a Seller

The dining room fell utterly silent. Except for Zhang Yang, no one had any appetite for lunch.

"Zhang Yang, why didn't you say something sooner?" Cheng Dongxue was upset. He had clearly noticed something long ago. That was why he had spoken to Cheng Hai when he saw Yang Su wearing the Sapphire Necklace.

"I tried to warn you, but no one listened. Even when I spelled it out today, I doubt anyone would have believed me if I hadn't needed the money!" Zhang Yang sneered. He could hardly be blamed for this.

Zhang Yang knew Xu Yuan. She used to come to the Cheng Family home often for free food and drink, though he hadn't seen her lately. The Sapphire Necklace had clearly been a trap laid for Yang Su. Once Yang Su fell for it, Xu Yuan vanished.

Xu Yuan was about Yang Su's age. Both women were vain, loved money, and found glittering jewelry hard to resist.

Xu Yuan looked like a wealthy wife. Zhang Yang knew the truth about her, but the Cheng Family did not. Yang Su had even been proud to call Xu Yuan her friend.

Now this had been a rude awakening. At the very least, Xu Yuan was no good person.

"No. Xu Yuan is my good friend. I have to confront her!" Yang Su was naive enough to believe she could still talk things through with Xu Yuan and recover some of the Cheng Family's losses.

Cheng Hai looked utterly crushed. He had worn that expression ever since he came home. What worried him wasn't having a wife who squandered money, but the financial crisis facing Cheng Company.

Without five million yuan to keep it afloat, Cheng Company would be in serious trouble. Time was short. He had to find a solution as soon as possible.

"Zhang Yang, buy more groceries this afternoon. We're hosting a family dinner for relatives and friends." Cheng Hai made a note of how Xu Yuan had swindled Yang Su out of more than three million yuan, but that wasn't his most urgent problem. Even if they could recover the money, it would take a long, drawn-out fight. Neither he nor Cheng Company could wait.

"Dad, I still have some money. I can contribute," Cheng Dongxue said. She was part of this family and knew she had to help them through this difficult time.

Zhang Yang said nothing. Five million yuan was a small sum to him, but it wasn't time for him to pay it himself.

He knew what Cheng Hai intended: invite his children and some important relatives over, then ask them for help.

Cheng Hai made the arrangements himself. Zhang Yang stayed quiet. The Cheng Family still didn't trust him or think much of him, though he could have helped.

"Dad, Mom, why not let Zhang Yang think of something?" Cheng Dongxue suggested with a smile.

If nothing else, Xu Buwei had a hundred thousand yuan in cash on him right now. How many people carried that much cash around?

"He..."

"That useless fool? He can shop and cook, but what solution could he possibly have? We'll be lucky if he doesn't cause the Cheng Family more trouble. We have guests tonight, so keep your wits about you."

Yang Su immediately snapped at Cheng Dongxue, then took the chance to belittle Zhang Yang. She warned him that no matter what the guests said tonight or how they mocked him, he had to keep his mouth shut and take it.

"Fine. I'll keep my head down and say nothing. I'm your live-in son-in-law, after all!" Zhang Yang said with a grin. He chose to play along. If they wouldn't let him take the leading role, he would be a supporting character instead—a clown for everyone's amusement.

"Zhang Yang..." Cheng Dongxue called out helplessly. She had spent nearly all of the past few days with him. She had seen how formidable and capable he was. She didn't know how wealthy he was, but she believed he could intimidate certain people, Xu Yuan included. Since Xu Yuan had swindled Yang Su out of more than three million yuan, perhaps Zhang Yang could give her a taste of her own medicine and swindle a few million back.

Cheng Dongxue suddenly frowned. How could she have thought that? Was she a terrible person for imagining Zhang Yang as a crook?

Cheng Hai turned and glared at Yang Su. She lowered her head.

Then he looked at Zhang Yang. The man had become a mystery to him, and he began to wonder about everything that had happened to Zhang Yang over the past few days.

Cheng Hai even worried that Zhang Yang might flip the dining table again tonight.

Zhang Yang had been trapped in the same day for a thousand years, and Yang Su had been swindled during that time. In other words, the Sapphire Necklace scam had already happened before he broke free of the time loop. He knew what had happened, at least the important details.

The transaction had taken place in the Cheng Family home. Xu Yuan had brought the necklace right to their door.

But apart from his wife, Cheng Dongxue, who had suggested asking him for help, no one believed in him. So he chose to stay silent.

With so much happening at home, Cheng Dongxue promptly asked for leave. It was easy to get; Zhang Xuanyi agreed at once.

Even Lin Xiaofei took a special interest in the family dinner. She skipped school and stayed to help.

After lunch, the Volkswagen CC pulled away from the Cheng Family's old villa.

The Cheng Family Villa had been there before Zhang Yang married into the family. He had never asked exactly how long ago they had bought it. In any case, it had been cheap at the time.

"Where are we going to buy the groceries?"

Cheng Dongxue had chosen to go with Zhang Yang. At home, she didn't know how to comfort her parents, and she had no desire to get caught in their argument.

"When it comes to that, Zhang Yang's the seller," Lin Xiaofei teased. She wasn't mocking him; she had never looked down on him. She had merely thought a man ought to be stronger. But in bed, Zhang Yang had driven her wild with pleasure. For Lin Xiaofei, that was enough from someone else's husband.

Besides, the Zhang Yang Lin Xiaofei knew was not the Zhang Yang Cheng Dongxue and the others knew. To her, he was a man no other could replace or rival.

For now, Lin Xiaofei alone knew his secret. She alone knew that he had a thousand years of life experience and accumulated knowledge, and that his abilities far surpassed those of ordinary people.

"True. I am the Cheng Family's nanny and housekeeper, after all," Zhang Yang replied with a self-deprecating grin.

Cheng Dongxue turned to look at him.

"Zhang Yang, you should find a job. You have no idea how important steady work is for a man. Why don't we ask my second brother-in-law if his design company is hiring?"

His self-mockery pained Cheng Dongxue. Besides, her second brother-in-law, Yang Gang, wasn't a snob and wouldn't look down on Zhang Yang. She firmly believed that given a chance, Zhang Yang could make something of himself.