Chapter 17: Does This Count as Money Too?

If Qin Xueli had to say exactly how Zheng Qian had changed, she couldn’t quite put it into words. It was as if he had grown more confident, exuding the noble and commanding presence befitting a true man.

A genuine man should possess such an aura.

The other colleagues in the company watched the scene unfold with satisfaction. Ding Hongfei, who usually abused his authority as team leader to bully and suppress ordinary employees, had been thoroughly humiliated by Zheng Qian today. It was a gratifying moment.

“I’m leaving now. No need to see me off,” Zheng Qian said, carrying a box and leaving the company under everyone’s watchful eyes.

Once downstairs, he hesitated for a few minutes, pulled out a few work notebooks from the box, and tossed the rest into the trash bin.

Shortly after, he received a call from Wang Zhao, who informed him that the deal with Mrs. Pang had been finalized. “Mr. Zheng, when would it be convenient for you to come sign the contract?”

“Same café as before—I’m on my way now.”

“Alright.”

Meeting Wang Zhao at the café, Zheng Qian asked about the price they had agreed on.

“Twenty million.”

“Still a million less than before?”

“Mm.”

“I looked into Mrs. Pang’s background and social connections and found that Mr. Pang’s company has been declining over the past three years. Recently, they’ve been hit with a lawsuit and urgently need cash to compensate the plaintiff.”

“So I confronted Mr. Pang directly: if he refused to sell, I would apply to the court to freeze Jiangshan International’s properties. Then the property would go to judicial auction, where it probably wouldn’t fetch more than fifteen million. In the end, they agreed to sell to us for twenty million.”

This wasn’t something Jin Lu could have achieved with a mere twenty thousand yuan—it was Zheng Qian who had spent ten million. All for Jin Lu’s sake, to help her get justice.

In such a moment, it was only fitting that Jin Lu be present.

Zheng Qian immediately messaged Jin Lu, asking her to come to the café right away.

“Shall we go in first? Mrs. Pang and Mr. Pang are both here today.”

Once seated, Zheng Qian sat opposite the couple.

Mrs. Pang no longer bore the arrogant and shameless expression she’d had before; instead, her face was pale and pitiful.

“It would have been better if you’d sold it earlier. You drove up the price, only to end up selling for three million less.”

Though Zheng Qian had spent an extra ten million, Mr. and Mrs. Pang had made no profit.

That ten million was meant to let Jin Lu have her vindication. Zheng Qian didn’t mind spending money—he believed a woman’s smile was worth it.

“Mr. Zheng, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have done that,” Mrs. Pang said with a miserable look. Mr. Pang cast her a cold glare, evidently scolding her for trying to be clever after Wang Zhao’s talk with them.

“Is Miss Jin not here today? I want to apologize to her in person.”

Just as Jin Lu’s name was mentioned, she hurried into the café, breathless.

“What happened? Is something wrong?” Jin Lu, unaware of the situation, didn’t know it was about the property. Zheng Qian only told her it was urgent and asked her to come quickly.

Mrs. Pang immediately stood and bowed apologetically to Jin Lu.

“Miss Jin, I’m truly sorry. This was my fault, and I wasted your precious time.”

Jin Lu was utterly confused—what was going on?

“Miss Jin, Mrs. Pang has agreed to sell the property for twenty million. If you sign here, the property at Building 7, Jiangshan International, will belong to you,” Wang Zhao said, having prepared all the necessary paperwork in advance.

Jin Lu looked at Zheng Qian dumbfounded, not understanding what trick he had played to make a miser like Mrs. Pang relent and even lower the price by three million.

Zheng Qian only smiled wryly.

Jin Lu took the pen Wang Zhao handed her and carefully examined the contract.

“Is the house only going to have my name on it?” she asked, furrowing her delicate brows.

“Yes, just yours,” Zheng Qian nodded. “Sign quickly. Once it’s signed, it’s yours. I’ll transfer the money to Mr. Pang.”

If both their names were on it, the system might flag it as a violation and refuse the cashback, so it was safer to have just Jin Lu’s name.

[Spent 20,000,000 yuan, system cashback 200,000,000 yuan, credited.]

Two hundred million credited.

I, Zheng Qian, am making money!

After receiving the twenty million payment, Mr. and Mrs. Pang left the café.

Shortly after, Wang Zhao received a transfer of eight million.

“Miss Jin, you and Mr. Zheng continue talking. I’m leaving now…” After receiving the money, Wang Zhao greeted Jin Lu and quickly departed.

Jin Lu watched the scene, clearly bewildered.

She sat beside Zheng Qian, placing her jade hand on the back of his hand, her eyes full of seductive curiosity. “What did you do?”

“Why did Mrs. Pang agree to sell the Jiangshan International villa for twenty million? And why did Mr. Pang come too?”

“Also, when I messaged Lawyer Wang on the way here, thinking something happened to you, I saw a red exclamation mark. What’s that about?”

“Wang Zhao blocked you? I didn’t know about that, I swear…” Zheng Qian leaned into her, deeply inhaling her fragrance.

Jin Lu didn’t need to be told to guess.

Zheng Qian must have had Wang Zhao, the elite lawyer, use all his resources and connections to find something incriminating about Mr. and Mrs. Pang, spending a considerable sum of money.

Wang Zhao, realizing Zheng Qian’s financial might and feeling inferior, probably blocked Jin Lu.

That must be it.

Jin Lu looked at the man leaning against her, smelling her scent, and smiled bitterly.

Perhaps the money spent could have just bought Mrs. Pang’s original high asking price of thirty million outright.

Was it really worth it, all for her?

Foolish man!

“Going home? I made you lunch; it’s almost cold.”

“All right.”

On the way back to Jiangshan International, Jin Lu stopped at a convenience store.

“What’s up?”

“I’m going to buy some essentials.”

“What essentials?” Zheng Qian still didn’t quite understand.

“For the first time, you don’t need them, but you might later. Just buy some to be prepared.”

There was a two-second silence in the car before Zheng Qian realized what she meant.

Jin Lu was talking about umbrellas!

“Okay, stay in the car. I’ll go buy them.”

Zheng Qian jogged into the store and bought two boxes of the best quality umbrellas.

[Spent 169 yuan, system cashback 1,690 yuan, credited.]

???

That counts too?

Zheng Qian was stunned; even buying umbrellas counted as spending?

Back at the Jiangshan villa, Zheng Qian ate the lunch Jin Lu had made.

He had to admit, she was quite skilled in the kitchen, especially the beef—crispy on the outside, tender inside—and the braised pork was delicious without being greasy.

While Jin Lu was washing the dishes, Zheng Qian quietly approached her from behind and wrapped his arms around her…