Even if it’s a malicious takeover, there isn’t anything to worry about. They have Ji Fanyin and Zhang Ning there, Li Mingyue thought.

As affluent as the Bai Family was, the Zhang Family wasn’t to be made light of either. 

“Got it. There’s no need to meddle in their affairs.” 

The Li Family already had enough on their plate. They had no spare energy to get involved with other people’s affairs.

“Your brother is also aware of the matter,” the assistant continued.

“So?” Li Mingyue replied without looking up from her documents.

The assistant nervously gulped before adding, “He refused to leave the country.”

Li Mingyue’s movements stalled to a halt once more. Unable to bear it any longer, she closed her eyes for five whole seconds before slowly letting out a long breath.

The assistant dared not to let out even the slightest squeak.

“Get Secretary Fan on the line for me,” Li Mingyue ordered.

“Yes.”

“As for Ji Xinxin,” Li Mingyue added before her assistant could leave the room, “get her back to school if she isn’t able to offer any help. How long of a break is she planning to take?”

“Understood.” The assistant wiped the cold sweat off her forehead and hurriedly left the room.

Once the assistant was out of the door, Li Mingyue put down her work and sunk into her chair, closing her eyes for a brief rest. 

It’s exhausting.



The culprit behind this mess, Bai Zhengye, actually didn’t have malicious intentions in mind when he first made the decision to purchase the studio. 

There was no way Bai Zhou’s improvident squandering could have escaped the notice of his family… though it was not as if Bai Zhou was planning to hide his venting spending from them. 

Bai Zhengye had heard much about it from his secretary, but he simply thought of it as his son’s rebellious phase. He didn’t think that there was a problem with it as long as Bai Zhou didn’t overstep his boundaries. Thus, all he did was to instruct his secretary to keep a close eye on Bai Zhou. 

Not to mention, Bai Zhengye had gone even more overboard in his younger days. He thought that it was only normal for his son to be like him. 

A pity it was that others did not share his sentiments.

During his occasional visit to his mistress to let off some steam, the latter gently expressed her worries about Bai Zhou’s ability to manage the Bai Family’s business empire. 

Despite having an illegitimate son outside, Bai Zhengye had no plans of falling out with the Meng Family by appointing a new successor. His intention was similar to the mindset harbored by ancient Chinese emperors. 

If the crown prince could get along well with the other princes, the other princes could later become kings and assist the new emperor in his work.

That was why he secretly arranged for Bai Zhou to meet his illegitimate son despite holding on to the pact he had with his wife to make Bai Zhou their successor. 

The outcome of that was disastrous. 

Bai Zhengye was only glad he was not present when the meeting took place, or else he would have been caught in the crossfire. 

Nevertheless, he persisted in his ideas. He thought that Bai Zhou was simply too young to understand his foresight, and the latter would understand his intentions in the future. 

Which men don’t have their fair share of relationships outside? Not to mention, Bai Zhou himself also has multiple love interests too. 

Bai Zhengye’s trip to Lakeside City happened by sheer coincidence. 

An important meeting had ended earlier than expected, freeing up some time on his schedule. It just so happened that Lakeside City was in the vicinity. 

He thought about how his son hadn’t called him even once over the past six months, so he made a spontaneous decision to instruct his secretary to take him to Bai Zhou’s apartment.