Chapter 54: Perhaps She Doesn’t Love Her Husband
“Blame me?”
Su Banxia quickly shook her head. “Of course not!”
This topic couldn’t go on any longer.
Su Banxia lowered her head slightly. It seemed that going home tonight to be with the two kids might not be realistic anymore.
She couldn’t help but sigh.
Pei Shaoze glanced at her, furrowing his brow slightly, and spoke, “It won’t be a long evening!”
Su Banxia hummed in acknowledgment.
A moment later, she suddenly turned to look at him, only to find him focused on driving.
But he had heard her earlier. His meaning was that she could leave early, right?
Overjoyed, Su Banxia couldn’t help but say to Pei Shaoze, “Thank you, President Pei!”
Pei Shaoze wasn’t interested in her thanks. He looked at her and asked, “Do you love your children very much?”
Su Banxia nodded. “In this world, there shouldn’t be parents who don’t love their own children, right?”
“And you love your husband very much too?”
Su Banxia: “...”
Hesitating for a moment, she unconsciously nodded and turned her gaze out the car window.
People fear lying because once you tell the first lie, you have to pile countless more lies on top of it to make it seem beautiful and real.
Su Banxia wasn’t good at lying, so she often chose silence instead.
But her silence, in Pei Shaoze’s eyes, seemed to convey a different message.
Perhaps she didn’t love her husband.
With that thought, Pei Shaoze suddenly felt a surge of inexplicable joy. He didn’t know why, but he was happy.
The car stopped outside Night Charm. The sky hadn’t fully darkened yet.
It was still early, so the place was nearly empty. Nightclubs and bars like this only came alive after midnight.
At this hour, the quiet was natural.
Ye Hengtian had reserved a spot, so Pei Shaoze led Su Banxia straight into the private room.
Su Banxia initially thought they would only meet Ye Hengtian, but she hadn’t expected others to be there as well.
And they were all people she knew.
Ye Lan, Gu Feifei, Ren Yuan.
Well, it really was a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road.
The others were also surprised that Pei Shaoze had brought Su Banxia.
In the private room, the arrival of Pei Shaoze and Su Banxia made the already fake, cheerful atmosphere a bit awkward.
Su Banxia was meeting Ye Hengtian for the first time. He was a man in his thirties, with a rugged appearance, handsome features, and a hint of roguishness.
She recognized the others, so she only gave them a brief glance without paying much attention.
Seeing Pei Shaoze, Ye Hengtian stood up with a smile, a glass of wine in hand, and walked over to him. “President Pei, you’ve finally arrived. I was afraid you wouldn’t grace us with your presence!”
Pei Shaoze smiled faintly. “How could I?”
With that, he took the glass from Ye Hengtian, clinked it with his, and took a sip—just one sip.
Ye Hengtian, on the other hand, downed his glass in one go.
After finishing his drink, Ye Hengtian squinted slightly, smiling as he glanced at the remaining wine in Pei Shaoze’s glass.
Then, with a grin, he turned to Su Banxia. “Oh, when did President Pei get such a beauty by his side? She’s truly exquisite!”
He refilled his glass and raised it to toast Su Banxia.
Su Banxia took the glass, clinked it with his, and tilted her head to finish the drink.
Such were the rules of the business world. Pei Shaoze could get away with not finishing Ye Hengtian’s toast, but Su Banxia couldn’t. She was just a secretary. When a company president offered a toast, she couldn’t just take a tiny sip.
But just as the glass touched her lips, Pei Shaoze stopped her wrist. He gave her a calm look and said, “Don’t drink too much. Your fever only broke last night.”
The words were ambiguous.
Not only Ye Hengtian but the other three also changed expressions.
Su Banxia’s heart skipped a beat. She took a small sip and said to Ye Hengtian, “President Ye, I’m sorry. I haven’t been feeling well lately, so I can’t drink much. I’ll just have a little to show my apologies. I hope you don’t mind.”
Everyone in business was sharp.
Ye Hengtian glanced at Pei Shaoze and immediately laughed. “What are you saying, miss? Toasting with a beauty like you is a pleasure I wouldn’t trade for anything. Why would I mind? Especially since you’re President Pei’s...”
Su Banxia froze slightly.
She saw Ye Hengtian looking at Pei Shaoze, clearly asking about Su Banxia’s identity.
Pei Shaoze reached out, pulled Su Banxia over, and guided her to sit on the sofa. He said, “Su Banxia, my... girlfriend.”
These words made Ye Lan, who had been staring at Pei Shaoze with longing eyes, clench her teeth in frustration.
When had Su Banxia become Brother Shaoze’s girlfriend?
What about her?
What was she supposed to do?
Ye Hengtian, upon hearing Pei Shaoze’s introduction, smiled faintly and said with interest, “I was wondering what kind of person could tame President Pei. Meeting Miss Su today, I have to say, I’m envious. President Pei is truly fortunate!”
“Thanks.”
With those two words, Pei Shaoze returned to his usual cold demeanor.
Ye Lan looked at Pei Shaoze pitifully, her dark eyes pleading as she glanced at her brother. Ye Hengtian shot her a warning look before raising his glass to discuss the recent cooperation between the Ye family and Ding Sheng with Pei Shaoze.
As for Gu Feifei and Ren Yuan, they were completely ignored the entire time.
Su Banxia stayed by Pei Shaoze’s side, never one to stir trouble. So, despite the occasional hostile glances from those two, they didn’t make any moves.
After all, they had to consider Pei Shaoze. Su Banxia was content to enjoy the peace.
She wasn’t unaware of Ye Lan’s murderous glare, but she chose to ignore it. Ye Lan was just a spoiled girl who couldn’t do much.
Ye Hengtian and Pei Shaoze kept discussing the reason Ding Sheng had suddenly terminated its cooperation with the Ye family.
Pei Shaoze’s answer was, “The cooperation was terminated because the Ye family didn’t provide products that met Ding Sheng’s requirements.”
Su Banxia didn’t know if this was true, but seeing Ye Hengtian’s grim expression, she stayed quiet beside Pei Shaoze.
Ye Lan, however, spoke up. “Brother Shaoze, our Ye family has cooperated with Ding Sheng for years. We’ve always provided products according to your requirements. Why didn’t you raise these issues before, and why are you bringing them up now?”
Pei Shaoze looked at her, amused. “So, you’re saying the Ye family’s products for Ding Sheng have always had problems?”
“No, that’s not it!”
Ye Lan hadn’t meant that at all.
But Pei Shaoze’s words made her panic.
Ye Hengtian shot her a look, signaling her to shut up, then turned to Pei Shaoze with a smile. “President Pei, if you’re saying the Ye family’s products for Ding Sheng have issues, there must be evidence. Making baseless claims that harm the Ye family’s reputation and influence doesn’t seem like your style, does it?”
Pei Shaoze looked at him, his dark eyes narrowing. “Are you sure you want evidence?”
No company could guarantee that every single product it produced was flawless and problem-free. If Pei Shaoze was determined to find issues, he would. And over the past two years, the Ye family had indeed had problems.
The question seemed casual, but Ye Hengtian took it seriously.
Pei Shaoze meant business. He was making a move against the Ye family. The contract termination was just a small warning.
If...