Sheng Rongtian, upon hearing those words, slapped Tang Ping hard across the face once more.

"Are you joking? Selling my shares to him? In his dreams!" he roared.

Tang Ping, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth, cowered in the corner of the sofa and stammered, "But... this is the only way..."

"Absolutely not!" Sheng Rongtian spat. "If anyone’s pooling shares, it should be him selling his 10% to me!"

Tang Ping hesitated, her voice barely audible. "But even if he’s willing to sell, we... we can't afford it."

Sheng Rongtian froze, his expression darkening further.

Lowering her head, Tang Ping murmured, "After that 800 million yuan loss, you poured almost all our family savings into the company. We don’t even have a million left in the bank. With this amount, how could we possibly afford 10% of the shares?"

Sheng Rongtian’s face twisted with fury. He kicked Tang Ping in the stomach, cursing, "This is all your fault! Giving birth to that damned curse!"

Doubling over, clutching her stomach, Tang Ping didn’t dare utter another word.

Sheng Rongtian sank into a brooding silence, and Tang Ping, observing his expression from the corner of her eye, smirked internally. She knew this look—he was considering it.

A cold sneer curled at the edge of her lips. As long as Sheng Rongtian agreed, she and Huang Xing would take every last penny he had before disappearing.

Sheng Rongtian was no longer reliable. Ever since the company had started its downward spiral a few years ago, Tang Ping had been quietly planning her escape. At first, she thought Huang Xing was unwilling to abandon his wife for her. But unexpectedly, her patience had paid off.

Just days ago, Huang Xing approached her with a proposition. They had reached an agreement: if Sheng Rongtian agreed to sell his shares, Huang Xing would release evidence of Sheng Rongtian’s embezzlement and bribery from years past.

Once Sheng Rongtian was in prison, she could file for divorce without opposition.

After Huang Xing divorced his wife, she could take their daughter, Qingqing, and officially move into the Huang family.

This wasn’t her first time executing such a scheme—her experience in such matters was extensive. Sheng Rongtian had been just as reluctant to divorce years ago, yet her tactics had worked in the end.

As long as Huang Xing had even the slightest feelings for her, even if they stemmed from her leverage over him, she was confident she could drive away his wife and son, usurp their place, and claim the entire Huang family fortune for herself.

Tang Ping was certain her plan would succeed.

Later that night, at the Qi residence:

Sheng Wenyin was lounging on the sofa, snacking on grapes, when her phone rang.

Glancing at the caller ID, she picked up. "Hello?"

Five minutes later, she hung up, her face adorned with a calm, satisfied smile.

"Huh, I thought this would take more effort," she muttered to herself, setting the phone down on the coffee table. She reached for another grape but found the plate empty.

Frowning, she turned to Qi Si. "Did you eat all the grapes?"

Without looking up from his phone, Qi Si replied, "I didn’t have a single one."

Sheng Wenyin blinked, scratching her head. "Oh, I ate them all myself? I’ll go get more."

She skipped off to the kitchen and returned with a freshly filled plate. Offering it to Qi Si, she said generously, "Here, have some. Don’t say I never share."

Qi Si shook his head, his hands still busy typing on his phone.

She plucked a grape and held it to his mouth. "Eat."

Startled, he paused, looked at her deeply, then leaned in with a soft smile and bit into the grape.

Seeing him eat, Sheng Wenyin grabbed another for herself, munching contentedly.

Qi Si chuckled. "You’re in a good mood. Got the shares?"

Sheng Wenyin froze momentarily, glancing at his phone before narrowing her eyes at him. "Is there anything you don’t know?"

Qi Si thought for a moment before replying, "I don’t know when you’ll finally accept me."

Sheng Wenyin: …

Caught completely off guard, she turned her back to him, ignoring the comment, and focused on eating her grapes.

Qi Si, however, began reaching for grapes as well, his hand brushing against hers repeatedly.

After the third or fourth time, Sheng Wenyin finally glared at him. "How am I supposed to eat if you keep holding my hand?"

Qi Si withdrew his hand, his face calm. "Accident."

Her lips twitched in frustration. She shoved the plate into his hands, got up, and stormed off. "Fine, I’m done eating!"

Once she was gone, Qi Si’s phone buzzed again.

It was a message from Colonel Ding, asking if he’d be joining the upcoming mission in Country H.

Qi Si glanced upstairs, hesitated, and typed back: Command has not assigned me.

In other words, he wasn’t going.

Sighing softly, Qi Si muttered, "Wonder how long I can keep this from her…"

Two days later:

Sheng Wenyin received a call from Gan Mei.

"Had a good break? Enjoyed yourself?" Gan Mei teased.

Sheng Wenyin flopped onto her bed, groaning. "I didn’t even relax! I’ve been so, so busy!"

Gan Mei snorted. "Busy? With what? Trolling people on Weibo under a fake account?"

"Gan-jie!" Sheng Wenyin protested. "I’m an adult now! A boss! I don’t even use Weibo anymore!"

"Yeah, right. Anyway, come to the office tomorrow for a meeting. Time to discuss your next project."

"Wait, wait!" Sheng Wenyin hurriedly counted on her fingers. "Let me check if I’m free tomorrow!"

After some quick calculations, she sighed in relief. "Gan-jie, I’m free. Let’s go!"

"Don’t be late," Gan Mei warned.

The next morning, Sheng Wenyin arrived bright and early at the company.

Inside the meeting room, Gan Mei smirked. "Well, well, you’ve gotten prettier."

Sheng Wenyin froze, glaring at Gan Mei and the others in the room suspiciously. "What are you all up to?"

Gan Mei rolled her eyes. "Nothing! We’re just complimenting you!"

Still wary, Sheng Wenyin sat down and began reviewing the project files. But when she realized all the offers were for terrible films and TV shows, she slammed the papers down in disbelief. "Is this a joke?!"

Gan Mei coughed awkwardly, exchanging a glance with the marketing director.

Sheng Wenyin caught the exchange immediately. Pointing an accusatory finger, she shouted, "Ah-ha! You two are conspiring against me!"

Gan Mei smacked the table. "Sit down! You’re overreacting."

Reluctantly, Sheng Wenyin obeyed, sulking.

"Fine," Gan Mei sighed, sliding another folder across the table. "I’ll be straight with you. It’s that reality show, Romantic Marriages. You turned it down before, but the higher-ups have signed you on. Filming starts next Monday."

Sheng Wenyin’s face darkened. Without a word, she pulled out her phone and made a call.

"Hello?" Qi Si answered casually.

"Are you free next Monday?"

"No," Qi Si replied smoothly. "I have a show to film."

Sheng Wenyin’s voice dropped to a dangerous calm. "Don’t tell me it’s Romantic Marriages."

"It is."

Sheng Wenyin sucked in a deep breath, gripping her phone tightly. Finally, she whispered, "For heaven’s sake… be a decent human."