[Aaah, this made my fists clench. How can such a disgusting man exist in this world?!]
[This isn't just ordinary yet confident anymore. This is disgusting yet confident.]
[He had two kids with his child bride, still had a white moonlight in his heart, and went after a rich girl to climb the social ladder. Should we give him a compliment?]
[I honestly suspect he took some PUA course to fool a wealthy heiress this badly.]
[Thank goodness the rich, fair-skinned beauty came to her senses before the wedding. It would've been a disaster if she'd actually married him.]
Because Hou Yuanwu was such an outrageous specimen, even though he wasn't a celebrity, #PeerlessPhoenixManHouYuanwu# had already made the trending searches. After various major influencers amplified it, it even reached number one.
Of course, Hou Yuanwu had no mind to pay attention to public opinion online at the moment, and had no idea his reputation was already completely ruined.
He just kept reassuring himself that he still had his academic qualifications. He was still that favored son of heaven. He could definitely turn things around.
Right, there was still Mr. Xie. He surely wouldn't give up on him so easily!
Su Chenglan hadn't worked out, but he could still help Mr. Xie seduce other wealthy heiresses. He had to go find Mr. Xie!
Chapter 23
Late at night, in the study of a villa in an upscale residential complex, a man wearing pajamas and gold-rimmed glasses stared at his computer screen with a gloomy expression.
Suddenly, he stood up and swept all the documents beside him onto the floor.
Damn it! What exactly happened?! The pawns he'd positioned were being plucked out one after another for no apparent reason!
On the surface, Hou Yuanwu had no connection to him, but in reality, he had specially selected Hou Yuanwu and provided him with information so that he could deliberately approach Su Chenglan.
Otherwise, with that idiot Hou Yuanwu's intelligence, how could he possibly have had the opportunity and means to win over the Su Family's second young lady? How could his unsavory past possibly have been kept from everyone?
Aside from his face and his silver tongue for coaxing women, Hou Yuanwu had practically no redeeming qualities. He was also arrogant and never knew gratitude.
Even if the Su Family let him marry Su Chenglan, he would only feel humiliated, not grateful.
As long as he got into the Su Group, a little temptation would be all it took to get him to pry into the Su Group's secrets.
Everything had gone very smoothly before. Hou Yuanwu had soon won Su Chenglan's heart, and she had accepted his proposal and even brought him home to the Su Family. Unable to prevail against her daughter, Lin Xiwen had also agreed to let them get engaged first...
But then things had suddenly changed. It was as though Su Chenglan had suddenly learned everything! Just like the previous few times!
He had Su Yinan leak the news of Su Chengjing's kidnapping to Su Yang, hoping to use the opportunity to throw the Su Group into chaos. Instead, Zhou Wanqing had caught Su Yang cheating red-handed, and his own company was facing bankruptcy, leaving him no strength to stir up trouble for the Su Group.
Then there was how, as Fu Ruiming's "good friend," he had encouraged him to pursue true love and supplied him with increasingly extreme methods. He had been waiting for Fu Ruiming to recklessly ruin the cooperation between the Fu Group and the Xu Group over a woman. Then he would report Fu Ruiming at the end, becoming the oriole waiting behind to swallow Fruit Video, the Fu Group, and even the Xu Group.
But although Fu Ruiming had indeed insisted on a divorce regardless of the consequences, his wife in name had been very rational and handled the divorce proceedings with remarkable ease. Not only had she secured ample benefits for herself, but the cooperation between the Xu and Fu families hadn't been affected at all. Naturally, he hadn't been able to reap the fisherman's rewards either.
What exactly had happened? Who was sabotaging his plans?!
Just then, someone knocked on the study door, and a woman's gentle voice came from outside.
"Haoyu, it's so late now. Why don't you get some rest and work tomorrow?"
Xie Haoyu was already in a state of agitation, and being interrupted only added to his irritation, even if the person was the woman he loved.
He said impatiently, "I'm still working. You don't understand anything about work, so don't meddle. If you want to sleep, go to bed yourself."
The woman's voice came again. "Then would you like me to make you a late-night snack, something to fill your stomach?"
"I already told you, can you stop bothering me?!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Haoyu felt a little regret. Had his tone been a little too harsh just now? Su Yinan had been showing concern for him, after all.
But he quickly shook his head. Forget it. Yinan had always been understanding. She would surely be considerate of him.
Yet very soon, he heard the earth-shaking slam of a door closing, coming from their bedroom.
Su Yinan had indeed gone to bed and stopped bothering him, but Xie Haoyu was even less pleased. He keenly sensed that Su Yinan wasn't quite the same as before.
When had she changed? It seemed that ever since she last saw Ye Jin, her attitude toward him hadn't been as meek as before. Instead, she had started questioning him frequently.
At that thought, Xie Haoyu's expression grew even more pained. Then a flash of inspiration seemed to strike him.
Right, Ye Jin seemed to have been present whenever those pawns ran into trouble. Was she the culprit?
Xie Haoyu's gaze turned sinister. Ye Jin!
Back then, she'd abandoned him without the slightest hesitation, and now she was sabotaging his plans.
He clenched his fists and looked at the shattered glass on the floor. He would make anyone who sabotaged his plans shatter into pieces just like that glass!
After Hou Yuanwu's matter was dealt with, the Su Family was brimming with joy. Su Chenglan in particular had completely changed from her previous lovestruck ways and announced to Ye Jin and Lin Xiwen,
"Mom, Sister-in-law, I was immature before, and stupid enough to get deceived. From now on, I'll focus on my career. Since my eldest brother still isn't back, I'll help everyone look after the Su Group."
Considering that Su Chenglan had done well at her previous job at the magazine, and heartened by her daughter's transformation, Lin Xiwen decided with a wave of her hand to put Su Chenglan in charge of the Su Group's fashion business.