Return to 88: Starting from Marrying My Sister-in-law

The sandalwood incense in the tea room mingled with the cold air from the air conditioner, creating a tense silence.

With a soft rustling of the bamboo curtain, Xiao Jun and Mu Qizhong pushed open the door and entered.

The two people had different expressions.

Mu Qizhong was full of anticipation, hoping to hear some good news from Lu Yang.

Xiao Jun's jawline was taut like a fully drawn bowstring, and the bruises under his eyes made his face look even more gloomy.

Lu Yang knew that the "green hat" was still firmly pinned on his friend's head.

He pointed to the bamboo chair opposite him, his voice carrying a barely perceptible hint of consolation: "Sit down, you two. Brother Xiao, I've already told my wife about it. She... didn't say yes or no, but anyway... well, she cried quite a bit."

Xiao Jun didn't sit down. Instead, he leaned against the door frame, took out a cigarette, lit it, and the sparks flickered in the dim light.

With a self-deprecating and sarcastic expression, he said, "Get to the point, what story did that woman make up this time?"

He exhaled a smoke ring, blurring the fierceness in his eyes.

Lu Yang picked up his teacup, took a sip, and found the water had cooled down, just like the stalemate.

"...That's the situation. Why don't you just go along with it and don't get a divorce yet?"

He put down his teacup and looked directly at Xiao Jun. "I see your wife has also regretted it. She broke up with that coach cleanly and even asked me to plead for her. If you two get back together, wouldn't that be a happy ending for everyone?"

Before Lu Yang could finish speaking, Mu Qizhong, who had just sat down, chimed in, "This is a good idea. It's about adapting to any situation without making any changes. The company has its own management, and it avoids the risk of equity turmoil."

Xiao Jun scoffed and stubbed out his cigarette hard on the tea tray.

"Joy? Old Lu, Old Mou, it's easy for you to talk when you're not the one suffering! I saw her with my own eyes..."

Before he could finish speaking, his phone rang shrilly.

Xiao Jun frowned and glanced at the caller ID: "Zhao Xiaowan".

He hesitated for a moment, but still answered: "What trick are you trying to pull this time?"

Zhao Xiaowan's rapid breathing came from the other end of the phone, her sobbing scream piercing the receiver: "Brother Jun, help! I ran away from home... but... but they're chasing me!"

The background was a chaotic mix of footsteps and shouts, with the faint sound of her two younger brothers yelling.

“My bag… they stole it! The property deed and car keys are all gone. My father told me to tell you about these interest payments. If you want to take our son away, you have to give him the shares as originally agreed…”

Her voice suddenly rose, then fell into a desperate whisper.

"But don't worry, I won't agree. I'd rather die than get a divorce. And that IOU, I already crumpled it up and swallowed it... It was given to me by President Lu, eight hundred million, I can't let them take it away!"

Once her breathing had calmed down a bit, she said urgently, "Go and pick up the child! I... I can't go back to my parents' house... If I go back, my dad will definitely lock me up!"

The call suddenly dropped, leaving only a busy tone.

Xiao Jun stood frozen in place, his phone slipping from his fingers and crashing to the floor with a thud.

Lu Yang's eyes darkened: The Zhao family actually dared to make a move? This mess is probably getting deeper and deeper.

Mu Qizhong was also nearby, his face quite gloomy. He slammed the teacup he had just brought to his lips onto the floor of the tea room, shards of the teacup and scalding tea splashing everywhere.

"asshole."

"Has the Zhao family given him too much face?"

There's a way out, but you don't take it properly. Do you really think you're something special?

He and Xiao Jun were not only business partners, but also close friends with similar vices.

Now, seeing his cronies neglecting their families due to their hedonistic lifestyle, leading to family troubles, and now his in-laws exploiting a loophole in the divorce proceedings to seize his vast fortune.

One can't help but feel a sense of shared sorrow for the fallen.

It's inevitable that they'd feel a shared sense of righteous indignation, thinking: "I'm even worse than this kid surnamed Xiao. Will I ever end up like him?"

With that thought, he decided that from now on he would slowly learn to settle down, spend less time indulging in pleasure outside, and spend more time at home with his young wife, so that she wouldn't follow in the footsteps of his wife and end up being cuckolded.

Lu Yang then got up and went over to pick up Xiao Jun's dropped phone.

He patted the other person on the shoulder and said, "Don't panic, it's not a big deal. I think your wife is right. First of all, you need to bring your son back. As for the property certificate, bank cards, and car keys that were taken from your wife, I can guarantee that the Zhao family won't take any of them, not even that IOU. Sister-in-law, you don't really need to swallow it so hard. Even if they give it to them... your father-in-law, will he come looking for money from you?"

Lu Yang is right.

Aside from the 300 million yuan in cash in that bank card, the house and car are all fixed assets. Without the permission of the legal owner, even if the Zhao family had the property certificate and car keys in their hands and had powerful connections, they wouldn't be able to dispose of these things and transfer them to their own names in a short time.

Xiao Jun was slapped by Lu Yang and came back to his senses. He said bitterly, "I... to be honest, I wasn't worried at all when my two brothers-in-law and father-in-law took these things... the property certificate and the like. But when I heard that she had been betrayed by her family and was being chased and beaten by her two younger brothers who wanted to take her back and lock her up, I actually softened. Just now, I almost wanted to rush over and save her."

Lu Yang and Mu Qizhong exchanged a glance: There's hope.

Although the couple each pursued their own interests, they surprisingly still had feelings for each other!

Right!

If there were no feelings between them, they should have divorced long ago during the last marital crisis.

Before Lu Yang could say anything, Mu Qizhong stood up and said to Xiao Jun very seriously, "I can see that you still have feelings for your wife, otherwise you wouldn't be worried about her."

To be honest, your wife's infidelity was wrong, but the responsibility doesn't lie with her; it's entirely your fault. You can have your fun outside, but you can't be away from home all the time...

Sigh, your wife is just too lonely; maybe she wants to get revenge on you...

So I think you should just forget about this. Focus on winning your wife back and getting through this immediate crisis first...

What about the future... well, we'll see... sigh..."

No matter what he says, Mu Qizhong's goal is to save the company from its current listing crisis.

The next step is to appease this little brother in front of him.

Xiao Jun turned to look at him with annoyance and said, "The hat isn't on your head, yet you're saying such nice things."

He's not a fool.

Mu Qizhong's motives were impure; any businessman could see that. However, it's understandable, though.

Thinking of this, he forced a smile and said, "But I still have to thank you. At least you didn't kick me when I was down, so we brothers can still get along..."

If the choice is to kick someone when they're down, then the simplest way to handle the crisis is to act decisively and remove Xiao Jun from his position as president, replacing him with someone else to lead the prodigy in continuing the IPO plan.

For example, Lu Yang is the major shareholder behind Little Prodigy, owning the Century Group which spans multiple industries. If Lu Yang were to take the lead and serve as the chairman of the group while also serving as the president of Little Prodigy, it would definitely be a powerful boost to investors' confidence, minimizing the impact of changing leadership at the last minute, and even accelerating Little Prodigy's IPO process.

Even if things don't go well, there's still this guy beside him. Old Mou has been eyeing the young prodigy's CEO position for a long time.

If we replace him with Lao Mou as the president of Little Prodigy, given Lao Mou's reputation both domestically and internationally, the publicity surrounding the "canned goods for a large airplane" deal would be absolutely fantastic, and could similarly fuel the IPO process.

That would be enough to minimize the impact of his divorce scandal.

Mu Qizhong chuckled, "Don't flatter yourself, kid. You think I really don't want to replace you? Our friendship isn't that close yet. It's only because you have a good brother-in-law that I'm doing this. Even if I took action, Brother Lu wouldn't agree, right, Brother Lu?"

These words are a mix of truth and falsehood, making it difficult to distinguish between them.

Lu Yang shook his head. "I didn't say I wouldn't agree. You gave up on your own. I also didn't say you wanted to replace this kid as the president of Little Prodigy. I thought you were too busy to have time. You're partying every night. Be careful with your kidneys. Also... don't invite this kid again. Learn from your mistakes. This kid should settle down. If he doesn't learn his lesson, trouble like today will happen again."

Although Lu Yang didn't say it, his words clearly implied that he agreed with Mu Qizhong's suggestion.

Any suggestions?
Of course, Xiao Jun, you shouldn't be too dramatic. Since your wife doesn't want a divorce, and it just so happens to be stuck at the juncture of the company's IPO, whether you like it or not, you'll have to continue wearing this green hat.

As for how long to wear it?
Once the company goes public, the retail investors will have matured and received their returns. They can do whatever they want, wear it if they want, or get divorced whenever they want. Who cares?
Xiao Jun took the phone from Lu Yang and found it could still be turned on. He quickly dialed his wife's number while walking towards the door. "You two just wait. I'm out of luck this time. I accept it. I'm not getting a divorce. Laugh all you want, but you have to help me deal with the Zhao family and my father-in-law's threats."

He can't fight this battle alone.

Lu Yang and Mu Qizhong looked at each other again: This is simple, shall we do it or shall we?

"Together?"

They all sat back down in the tea room, and after Xiao Jun left, they called the tea server in to refill their teacups with fresh tea...

After finishing a pot of good tea, they both took out their phones and made calls.

"Old He, I am Lu Yang. You are the district secretary. As far as I know, the Zhao family's group should also be a company under the district, right? That's good..."

"Mayor Fu, I have something to report to you. It concerns the successful listing of Xiaoshentong, a key company supported by the city, in the US..."

"Is this General Manager Liu from the Municipal Investment Company?"

I... Lao Mou...

Yes, yes, I won't wash your feet today. I'll call you out to wash your feet next time I have time...

Sure, sure...

I have something to tell you. This Zhao family is a bit unreliable...

Offend me?
No, not at all... It's Xiao Lu, and Xiao Xiao... I just can't stand it... You know, Old Zhao is so old, he's wasted his life. He knows this IPO in the US is a must, and the Zhao family is one of the shareholders of Little Prodigy, but he's still greedy and wants to use his daughter and son-in-law's divorce to try and get his share of the son-in-law's assets...

Yes, that's exactly it. I think it's more than that. I suspect Old Zhao also wants to sit in that CEO position at Little Prodigy, but he's not afraid of getting his ass ripped off...

Mr. Liu, you think so too, right?
That's great. Now that we've reached a consensus, I think we should teach him a lesson, otherwise this old bastard might cause trouble..."

"Hey, Mr. Hong, this is Lao Mou. Do you have time to come to Pengcheng for a visit recently?"

What? Your kidneys aren't fully healed yet? Well, wait a bit longer, no rush...

I have something to tell you. Are you interested in the Zhao family's... Pengcheng's Zhao Group's shares in Little Prodigy?

Yes, that's great! Let's discuss it together.

Don't worry! I'll definitely leave you some soup..."

Several phone calls were made.

Everything went very smoothly.

Lu Yang and Mu Qizhong put down their phones almost simultaneously, exchanged a smile, and said, "Let's have some tea. Now, let's just wait and see what happens."

After leaving the teahouse and going downstairs, Xiao Jun drove at breakneck speed to his father-in-law's house, making one phone call after another to his wife from inside the car.

The phone call went from no one answering at first, to the line being busy, and then to the phone being switched off.

His heart sank.

Has the decision changed?
Has your wife changed her mind?
Is she hanging out with that pretty boy again?

He was still caught by his two uncles and taken back, and locked up by his father-in-law.
All of these wild thoughts, no matter which one they are, are things he doesn't want to see or happen.

This caused his hard-won determination to waver again.

Even if he wanted to wear this green hat, the other person wouldn't allow it, so what's the point of wearing it? Let's just go all out and fight to the death.

As the resentment in his heart grew stronger and stronger, it rose to his face and spread to his eyes, forming a dense and terrifying bloodshot vein.

There was a sudden traffic jam ahead.

Xiao Jun ordered the driver to roll down the car window. The driver only stuck his head out for a short while before turning back to Xiao Jun and saying, "Boss, it sounds like someone is trying to commit suicide by jumping into the river at the bridge ahead. A lot of people are watching, blocking the road. Should we take a detour?"

"What a convoluted scheme."

Xiao Jun cursed as he pushed open the car door and got out. He was furious and had nowhere to vent his anger. He ran to the back of the crowd at the bridgehead, pushed them aside, and was about to burst into the fray to yell at the idiot who was about to jump into the river and commit suicide: "If you want to die, then die already! Don't block my way and get in the way of my urgent business..."

Before he could even utter a word, he was completely dumbfounded, because the person standing at the bridgehead was now half-suspended in mid-air.

It turned out to be his wife, Zhao Xiaowan.

His two familiar brothers-in-law were at the very front of the crowd, and instead of offering any advice, they seemed to be deliberately provoking his wife:
"Sis, you don't need to put on an act. Really, we, your brothers, didn't force you. You're the one who wanted to divorce your husband."

"It's like we, as your younger brothers, are trying to force you to your death."

"Exactly, good deeds go unrewarded. With so many people watching, let's be honest, jumping won't change anything. Your assets after the divorce will belong to the Zhao family anyway..." (End of Chapter)