"It seems the Ye family's upbringing has all gone to the dogs."
Su Banxia's voice was soft, yet every word struck a chord in Ye Lan's heart.
Catching the veiled insult in Su Banxia's words, Ye Lan's expression soured as well.
"You old hag, why are you always clinging to my Shaoze brother?"
"Are you sure it's me clinging to him?"
Su Banxia let out a sneer. Ye Lan's IQ was truly pitiful.
Ye Lan straightened her back and pointed a finger at Su Banxia's nose: "Otherwise, do you think Shaoze brother would hover around you? You must have pulled some trick, seduced him! I used to trust you so much, Su Banxia, but you're nothing but a shameless bitch!"
"Miss Ye!"
Su Banxia's voice rose a notch: "Don't mistake my courtesy for weakness."
"What... what do you mean?"
Ye Lan was intimidated by the aura Su Banxia exuded, shrinking her neck as she asked weakly.
"In public, I believe Miss Ye will show some restraint for the Ye family's reputation. But if you insist on being relentless, I don't mind adding another mark to the Ye family's ledger."
"What can a mark do?"
Su Banxia curled her lips in a cold smile: "Miss Ye has probably forgotten about the termination of the Ye Group's contract."
"You!"
Ye Lan was left speechless, only able to glare at her in frustration.
"Could you get this dress for me? I'd like to try it on."
Ignoring the fury in Ye Lan's eyes, Su Banxia pointed calmly at the blue gown in front of her.
"I saw this dress first!"
Ye Lan wasn't about to back down. After holding in all that anger, she had to get even now!
The shop assistant looked at the two women awkwardly.
Ye Lan shoved Su Banxia aside, pulled a black card from her bag, and slapped it on the counter: "I'm buying this dress. No one else is taking it!"
"Miss Ye sure is throwing her weight around. Buying a dress and flashing a black card?"
Pei Shaoyin, stepping out of the fitting room, happened to witness the scene. She didn't need to guess what had gone down between them.
"What are you doing here?"
Ye Lan's heart skipped a beat for no reason.
Pei Shaoyin's lips curled slightly as she calmly walked to Su Banxia's side, her voice gentle: "My brother told me to stick close to Banxia and pick out some suitable clothes. Does Miss Ye have to meddle in this too?"
"Shaoze brother wouldn't fall for a woman like her..."
"My cousin isn't blind. Not falling for someone like you is the right call."
Pei Shaoyin shot back, not giving Ye Lan any face at all.
Ye Lan clutched the hem of her clothes, her face burning with rage.
Pei Shaoyin was a regular at this store, and the shop assistant knew her status well. Ignoring Ye Lan's black card, she hurried over to Su Banxia warmly.
"Miss Su, this dress..."
"Since Miss Ye likes it, let her have it!"
Ye Lan stared at Su Banxia in disbelief. Was this woman finally realizing her place and backing off?
But the next words hit her like a thunderbolt.
"I don't want clothes tainted by something dirty, no matter how pretty they are."
With that, Su Banxia didn't linger a second longer. She grabbed Pei Shaoyin and walked straight out of the store.
Holding her breath, Su Banxia got back into the car. Pei Shaoyin stole a glance at her: "There's no need to get angry over someone like Ye Lan."
"Did Pei Shaozé send you to keep me company today?"
Su Banxia's gaze was sharp, leaving Pei Shaoyin no room to think.
"Look, you're practically my sister-in-law now. Don't you think you should dress up a bit?"
Pei Shaoyin turned away awkwardly.
Su Banxia ignored her, started the car, and drove straight to Dingsheng Group.
At that moment, Pei Shaozé was in his office dealing with the fallout from the contract termination.
Yan Xin watched him work and couldn't help teasing lightly: "Rich as you are, you sure know how to burn money. Eight million, just like that?"
"The matter I asked you to follow up on..."
"Don't worry, I won't let you down! Ye Hengtian and Li Yi dared to mess with the wrong person. They'd better be able to swallow that eight million!"
Yan Xin saw right through him and raised an eyebrow with a faint smile.
Pei Shaozé lowered his head to continue with the documents, completely ignoring Yan Xin.
Yan Xin opened his mouth to ask about the specifics of that night, but seeing Pei Shaozé's demeanor, he swallowed his words.
Just as Yan Xin was about to leave, the office door was suddenly pushed open.
"Ban... Banxia?"
Yan Xin was a bit startled.
Pei Shaozé looked up at the visitor, his eyes showing clear displeasure: "Didn't I give you the day off?"
"Don't I deserve an explanation for that eight million termination?"
Su Banxia stared at him intently. Giving her a long break and sending Pei Shaoyin to accompany her—was he trying to keep her from noticing anything at the company?
"The termination was their own fault."
Sensing the tense atmosphere in the office, Yan Xin tried to mediate.
"President Yan, I'd like a word alone with Pei Shaozé."
Su Banxia's face was unusually serious.
Yan Xin knew what that meant. He glanced at Su Banxia with a hint of disappointment before slowly backing out of the office.
"You came all the way back to the company just to ask about that eight million?"
Pei Shaozé closed the file in front of him, looking at her with interest.
"I caused this mess, so I should be the one to fix it. I don't want you treating me like a fool and keeping me in the dark."
Su Banxia's dark eyes held a firm resolve.
Seeing that look, Pei Shaozé was momentarily dazed. After a long pause, he curled his lips into a faint smile: "Do you really think Li Yi and the others were targeting you?"
"What do you mean?"
Su Banxia paused, then asked slowly.
"They had ulterior motives! Ye Hengtian wanted revenge for me canceling the deal with the Ye Group, so he teamed up with Li Yi to set a trap."
"And because I didn't think it through, I fell for it, right?"
Su Banxia felt a bit embarrassed bringing it up. When had her IQ dropped so low?
Pei Shaozé noticed her unease and smiled lightly: "Come here."
"What?"
Su Banxia didn't react in time. His train of thought was too fast for her.
"Come here!"
A chill crept into Pei Shaozé's eyes.
Su Banxia pouted and reluctantly stepped forward a few paces.