The sixteenth scoop: What juicy gossip? Take sixteen bites...

"Someone even snatched a script away from you?" Ye Lin asked.

Ye Mo nodded. "Of course. The entertainment industry is all about backing and connections. What could I do when my backing couldn't compare to theirs?"

Her words carried a pointed implication.

Ye Lin smiled, glanced at her, and asked, "Are you asking me to back you up?"

Ye Mo giggled and leaned closer to him. "Aren't you my big brother? Of course you have to back me up! I'm no fool. Never mind how things were before, but my surname is Ye now-the Ye in Ye Corporation. I have connections and backing, so why wouldn't I use them?"

Ye Mo didn't think there was anything shameful about her thinking. She could even say quite openly that she had come for the [Ye Family] name from the very beginning.

She made no attempt to conceal this arguably rather self-serving attitude. She was perfectly open about it even in front of the Ye Family, just as she was now, frankly telling Ye Lin that she intended to use the Ye Family's backing for her own benefit and wanted him to support her.

"...Big brother, you must know people in the entertainment industry, right?" Ye Mo's eyes shone slightly. "If you run into them, don't forget to introduce your wonderful little sister. Tell them to think of me whenever they have a good script!"

But Ye Lin didn't answer her question. Instead, he considered it for a moment before saying, "Dad and Mom will probably introduce you to everyone before long. Once that happens, everyone will know you're the Ye Family's daughter. Then, even without me stepping in, no one will bully you."

Ye Mo was surprised. "Introduce me to everyone? Won't that affect your family's reputation?"

"...Our family, not your family." Ye Lin was helpless at the way Ye Mo kept separating herself from the Ye Family. He continued, "You are the Ye Family's daughter. That's an indisputable fact. Besides, how would that affect our family's reputation?"

"Because I have a bad reputation online?" Ye Mo was very self-aware.

Ye Lin's tone was mild. "That was before. It won't happen again... Your reputation will only get better from now on."

Something stirred in Ye Mo's heart as she listened. She understood that Ye Lin was saying he would back her up-with him and the Ye Family around, those unscrupulous media outlets would have to weigh their options before trying to smear her again.

"Thank you, big brother." Ye Mo immediately gave Ye Lin a sweet smile, showing plenty of gratitude. "Momo loves you..." She held up her index finger and thumb to make a finger heart at him.

The gesture might have seemed greasy coming from someone else, but when Ye Mo did it, perhaps because she was beautiful, it was actually a pleasure to watch and looked extremely pretty.

Ye Lin gave Ye Mo Secretary Huang's phone number. "...This is Secretary Huang's number. If you run into any difficulties, call her."

"Can't I call you, big brother?" Ye Mo asked.

Ye Lin was helpless. "You can, but I might not have much time... Secretary Huang can act on my behalf in many matters. Don't worry."

The mention of Secretary Huang reminded Ye Mo of the gossip she had heard from 888, including Secretary Huang's secret crush on her big brother. Her interest immediately sparked.

"Big brother, did you know Secretary Huang has been going on blind dates lately?"

Chapter 16: The sixteenth scoop: What juicy gossip? Take sixteen bites...

"...Secretary Huang has been going on blind dates lately. Did you know about that, big brother?"

As Ye Mo asked, she stole glances at Ye Lin's expression, wanting to see how he would react to the news.

Ye Lin glanced at her and said calmly, "Looks like you and Secretary Huang get along very well. It's only been a few hours, and she's already told you about her blind dates."

Ye Mo still offered an explanation on Secretary Huang's behalf. "Secretary Huang didn't tell me. I divined it..."

Seeing that Ye Lin didn't seem concerned about Secretary Huang's affairs, she said no more and very naturally moved on to another topic.

By the time they returned to the Ye Family home, it was already evening. Dinner had been prepared right on schedule, and everyone was simply waiting for the two of them to return.

"...How did things go with the company's money trees?" Lin Zhipeng was still thinking about the matter. He sighed. "Those money trees were part of a wealth-attracting feng shui formation I hired a very famous master to arrange. People have been making trouble for the company lately. Maybe it's because the feng shui formation was broken!"

Ye Mo: ...Was her bargain-bin dad really this superstitious?

Ye Lin answered, "It's been dealt with, all thanks to Momo..."

He looked at Ye Mo and said, "Momo discovered that the money trees were dying because one of the company's cleaners had been bought off by Fan Group and replaced the water used to water them every day with boiling water."

After being watered with boiling water a few times, it would have been a miracle if those trees had survived.

At this, Ye Zhipeng snorted. "I knew that Fan Wen harbored ill intentions. Back then, the Fan Family wanted to invite Master Luo to assess their company's feng shui, but unfortunately for them, I beat them to it... I just didn't expect him to still be set on ruining our company's feng shui after all this time. What rotten luck!"

After that, he asked Ye Lin how he had handled the matter.

Ye Lin answered, "That cleaner was dismissed according to the company's normal procedures, but... I had HR pass a message on to her."

He smiled faintly. "She lost her job at Ye Corporation because of Fan Group, after all. Surely Fan Group ought to arrange another job for her?"

The cleaner, whose surname was Li, had originally been unwilling to leave Ye Corporation. After all, Ye Corporation was famous throughout the industry for its excellent benefits, a dream workplace for countless workers. But after hearing what HR had to say, she immediately changed her mind.

"...I imagine Fan Group would be very glad to have such a diligent employee," Ye Lin said with a smile, his tone making it sound as though that really were the case.

"Big brother, you're so underhanded," Ye Mo couldn't help remarking. After receiving a quick, startled glance from Ye Baozhu, she continued, "I admire that underhanded side of you."

Sure enough, her first impression of him yesterday hadn't been wrong. Ye Lin really was a "cultured scoundrel," wicked to the core. In a way, the two siblings were actually quite alike.

"Momo," Ye Zhipeng looked at Ye Mo and asked curiously, "your big brother said this was all thanks to you noticing something was wrong. How exactly did you discover that the cleaner was the problem?"

Ye Mo declared "modestly," "I simply used my keen, observant eyes to diligently and meticulously investigate every..." corner of the company.

"She divined it with her miraculous fortune-telling abilities." Ye Lin interrupted Ye Mo's embellishment of her "hard work and contributions." "While wandering around the company, she even went to the kitchen and had a second breakfast with my secretary."

Ye Mo felt it was necessary to explain herself. "...That was called going down to the grassroots and understanding the people's circumstances. I was helping you listen to the voices of your rank-and-file employees, big brother."

Ye Lin said, "Oh? Should I thank you, then?"

"...Oh, how could I accept?" Ye Mo said "bashfully," before adding very quickly, "But if you insist on thanking me, big brother, it's not as though I couldn't accept."

That was what she said, but her expression told an entirely different story. Written all over her face was, "You'll definitely thank me, won't you?"

"Well, that's unfortunate," Ye Lin picked up her words seamlessly. "I'm a bit stingy, just like you. Perhaps it really is because we're siblings. Even our stingy, money-grubbing personalities are the same."

Ye Mo: ...Big brother, you've changed. Your character has collapsed. Do you know that?

"So rich, and still so stingy." She "muttered" loudly enough for everyone to hear.

A trace of amusement flashed through Ye Lin's eyes.

The two of them traded remarks, speaking and interacting with such natural ease and harmony that Ye Zhipeng and Ruan Xianyue felt gratified watching them.

"Don't worry, Momo. Your big brother may be stingy, but Dad isn't!" Ye Zhipeng sounded confident. "Our Momo did something so important for the company. Of course you deserve a reward... How about this? Dad will give you two million. Go ahead and buy whatever you want."