Chapter 12: Cooperation

"All right, you’re no longer needed here. You may go."

Yang Bingyu really didn’t have a good impression of this distant relative of hers. Even though his attitude toward her was leagues better than direct relatives like Yang Jie, she still felt that Yang Mingdao was far from simple. Especially his eyes—they were like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, spying on the Yang Family. It gave her an inexplicable sense of dread.

"You seem to really dislike that Yang Mingdao?" Ye Xuan asked casually as they walked through the brightly lit hotel lobby.

Caught off guard that he had seen right through her, Yang Bingyu stiffened for a moment before quickly relaxing. "It’s not exactly that I dislike him. I just find him dangerous. He gives me a very uncomfortable feeling."

Ye Xuan had sensed this as well. This Yang Mingdao was definitely not as simple as he appeared on the surface.

"He’s just a petty clown. Pay him no mind," Ye Xuan said. He turned his head to glance at Yang Mingdao, who was busy arranging tasks, not viewing the man as a threat in the slightest. Perhaps he had some tricks and schemes up his sleeve, but in Ye Xuan’s eyes, they amounted to nothing.

Yang Bingyu had been out with Ye Xuan for a while now. Although she was a girl, as a direct descendant of the Yang Family, there were still many responsibilities she needed to handle. After settling Zhu Hui and the others in, Elder Yang summoned her to the company. As her bodyguard, Ye Xuan naturally had to accompany her.

But to Ye Xuan’s surprise, he ended up running into his ex-wife, Lin Aoxue, right inside the Yang Family’s company.

"Why are you here?" Yang Bingyu’s face immediately turned icy the moment she saw Lin Aoxue. She certainly hadn’t forgotten what happened yesterday.

Lin Aoxue stood across from Ye Xuan, her eyes flickering as her hands wrung the hem of her shirt. Her emotions were incredibly complex, and it was obvious that she wasn’t completely devoid of feelings for him.

As for Ye Xuan, his gaze wavered at first, but he quickly masked it with a cold demeanor. He looked at Lin Aoxue as if she were a total stranger. His indifferent stare deeply pierced her heart. She bit down hard on her lower lip, feeling a lump in her throat like a stuck fishbone that made her want to cry.

"Aoxue is here to discuss a partnership with us. Bingyu, don’t be rude." Just as the suffocating atmosphere was about to overwhelm Lin Aoxue, Elder Yang’s words broke the deadlock.

When news of last night’s banquet reached the Lin Family, the old madam was furious. She threatened that if Lin Aoxue didn’t placate Su Xiaobai, she would be stripped of her right of inheritance. Facing the old madam’s wrath, not a single person in the entire Lin Family stepped forward to speak up for her. Even her uncles and male cousins stood by gloating, eagerly waiting for the moment she was kicked to the curb.

This completely disillusioned Lin Aoxue.

In front of everyone, she made a promise that she would never allow the Su Family to suppress the Lin Family because of her, even pledging to double the Lin Family’s assets within three months. The first part was already nearly impossible to achieve, let alone doubling their assets in such a short timeframe. Lin Yexing and Lin Jiaxing had laughed out loud on the spot, bluntly declaring it impossible.

The rest of the family urged her not to act on impulse, advising her to drop her stubbornness since the problem could be easily solved through marriage. But Lin Aoxue refused to be a puppet at their mercy any longer. Throwing down some harsh parting words, she left the Lin Family.

She had thought about it all night, well aware that she had completely offended Su Xiaobai. If she wanted to prevent the Su Family from suppressing them, the Yang Family was the only one capable of helping her now. So today, she swallowed her pride and came knocking, hoping to secure a partnership.

"A partnership? Hah, Lin Aoxue, you really are thick-skinned. Before, when you were asked to marry my younger brother, you refused and ran off to curry favor with Su Xiaobai. Now that Su Xiaobai hates your guts, you’re back at the Yang Family playing the victim. What makes you think you have any right to negotiate a partnership with us?" Yang Bingyu’s words were incredibly harsh, offering her not an ounce of face.

The rebuke left Lin Aoxue deeply humiliated. Her small face turned pale, then flushed, and she bit her lip so hard it nearly bled.

Although Ye Xuan had already decided to make a clean break with his ex-wife, it was impossible for him to feel absolutely nothing while watching the girl he had once protected at all costs be humiliated like this. But the moment he recalled the words Lin Aoxue had spoken the night before, his gaze turned cold once again. In her eyes, he was just a kept man living off a woman, a gutless piece of trash. Besides, he had fulfilled his three-year agreement. His involvement with Lin Aoxue ended here.

Standing off to the side, Elder Yang had been quietly observing Ye Xuan’s reactions. He had known about Ye Xuan’s relationship with Lin Aoxue from the very beginning, which was the exact reason why he had agreed to see her today. If Ye Xuan still harbored feelings for her, wouldn’t entertaining this meeting do the young man a favor?

"I know the Yang Family doesn’t lack potential partners, but looking at all of Jianghai City, if you want a true win-win cooperation, there is no one more suitable than the Lin Family," Lin Aoxue said. Despite her difficult circumstances, her inherent pride remained intact. "I came to you today entirely because I believe the Lin Family is qualified to work with the Yang Family, not to wag my tail and beg like a stray dog."

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, the grief and indignation were gone, replaced only by a fierce, confident resolve.

Yang Bingyu was infuriated just looking at her proud demeanor. She was merely a pawn at the mercy of others—what right did she have to be so arrogant?

"Lin Aoxue, I heard that if you can’t double the Lin Family’s assets in three months, you’ll voluntarily leave your family and give up your right of inheritance. I wonder if you’ll still be able to maintain this haughty look of yours three months from now?"

Jianghai City was only so big; news like this spread like wildfire in their circles. These wealthy heirs had even publicly placed bets on whether Lin Aoxue could fulfill her promise in time. Naturally, almost everyone in their circle bet she couldn’t pull it off.