You're dumping me, huh? Fine, then I'll just pick up the school beauty and make her my wif

Liu Wei looked up and met Jiang Che's gaze. After a few seconds of silence, he revealed a rare, faint smile.

"What I mean is, your Jiang family certainly has absolute power in the business world now, but..."

Liu Wei stopped there, but gave Jiang Che a meaningful smile.

Jiang Che couldn't help but frown. If Zhang Suyun and Liu Mengyao weren't still there, he would have asked, "What the hell are you laughing at?"

But if you calm down and think about it carefully, it's not hard to guess what Liu Wei meant by the second half of his sentence.

It's just that I wanted to tell him that the Jiang family is indeed very strong in the business world, but not so good in the political arena.

Jiang Che couldn't help but sneer inwardly. Did Liu Wei think his grandfather's status in China was just for show?

But Liu Wei seemed to have guessed what Jiang Che was thinking, and his indifferent voice rang out again: "Grandpa Jiang should be over eighty years old this year. If you count it, Grandpa Jiang is one of the oldest people I have ever met."

"The senior officers my Liu family knows are all quite old, but they are still younger than Grandpa Jiang."

"Moreover, my Liu family is mainly rooted in the political arena. If the Jiang family has any business difficulties in the future, the two families can just visit each other and it will be a matter of a word."

Although Liu Wei had tried his best to be subtle with his not-so-high emotional intelligence, Jiang Che still understood the meaning behind his words immediately.

After his grandfather passes away, the Jiang family will completely lose its political protection, and its business will certainly be impacted.

If he chooses to be with Liu Mengyao, the Liu family is willing to become the Jiang family's new political protector, allowing both families to continue to develop.

This is blatant pressure and temptation.

Liu Wei was reminding Jiang Che that the Liu family could provide political protection, something that was extremely rare for a purely business family like the Jiang family.

It all depends on whether Jiang Che is willing or not.

While waiting for Jiang Che's reply, Liu Wei peeled off the last piece of peel from the apple and threw it into the trash can. Then he cut the flesh into neat little pieces, stuck them in with toothpicks, and put them into a glass plate.

He handed the plate to Liu Mengyao, "Mengyao, take this to Jiang Che and let him try the apples I bought, see if they're sweet."

Liu Mengyao took the plate with some hesitation, her expression filled with unease.

She first looked at her brother, then turned to look at Jiang Che and Su Qinghe, standing there awkwardly, feeling that she didn't know whether to give the apple to them or not.

She may be simple-minded, but she's not stupid either. How could she not see the targeting and hostility in her brother's every move?

Jiang Che watched Liu Mengyao awkwardly shift her body little by little and said calmly, "No need."

Then, under everyone's gaze, he stood up from the chair, walked straight to the bedside table, and took another apple for himself.

Then he picked up another fruit knife, sat back in his chair, and started slicing quickly.

Jiang Che's knife skills weren't as refined as Liu Wei's; his cuts were uneven and pitted. However, he didn't care at all. He cut the peeled apple in half and stuffed one half directly into Su Qinghe's hand.

"Qinghe, taste this apple for me and tell Instructor Liu whether it's sweet or not."

Jiang Che appeared to be talking to Su Qinghe, but his eyes were constantly fixed on Liu Wei.

But Liu Wei's expression didn't change much. He took two tissues and wiped the remaining juice off his fingers one by one.

After wiping himself clean, he crumpled the tissue into a ball and carefully threw it into the trash can. Then he looked up at Jiang Che and gently shook his head.

"Young man, it's a good thing to value loyalty and friendship. That's just like your grandfather's style of leading troops back in the day."

Liu Wei adopted a condescending tone, like an elder, saying, "But as a person, you still need to be clear-headed. Sympathy and love are two different things."

At this point, Liu Wei suddenly paused, then stood up, walked to the windowsill, picked up a watering can, and watered a pot of clivia on the windowsill.

"To help someone in need is to show kindness."

"But to treat compassion as a lifelong responsibility is to burden yourself."

"When it really comes down to competing for your future and connections, you'll realize how deadly this soft-heartedness can be; it can ruin your whole life."

These words were practically pointing a finger at Su Qinghe, calling her a useless burden and saying that she had nothing to offer that could compare to the Liu family.

Jiang Che stared coldly at Liu Wei's broad back. It seemed that Liu Zhenguo had told his son about his relationship with Su Qinghe.

After roughly rehearsing his words in his mind, he stood up, intending to retort, but Su Qinghe spoke first.

The girl's voice was soft and gentle, with a naive and innocent tone. "Instructor Liu has such a long-term vision for the future. He has planned everything so clearly and thoroughly."

Su Qinghe took a step forward and stood beside Jiang Che. "But I'm a little curious, Instructor Liu, since you've planned your marriage and future so perfectly, how come you're still single?"

"Is it that you haven't met a girl who can pave the way for you, or is it that the girl doesn't find your schemes appealing?"

Every word was piercing, every cut drew blood.

The ward fell silent once again.

Liu Mengyao pressed her body tightly against the wall, kept her mouth shut and didn't say a word, even deliberately making her breathing much quieter.

If she had known it would turn out like this, she would never have invited Jiang Che and Su Qinghe up there...

Liu Wei's watering motion was abruptly halted in mid-air.

After a few seconds, he slowly put down the spray bottle in his hand and then slowly turned around.

For the first time, he looked at Su Qinghe with his own eyes. His eyes, which had seen life and death in the military camp for many years, were filled with a chilling coldness and a strong penetrating power, and they were fixed on Su Qinghe's face.

This girl is not as pitiful and innocent as she appears on the surface.

"Sharp-tongued and quick-witted."

After a long while, Liu Wei finally managed to utter four words.

His eyes were filled with an undisguised sense of threat.

Su Qinghe met his piercing gaze without flinching, her rosy lips curving into a defiant arc.

Liu Wei raised his wrist, glanced at the time on the watch face, and stopped arguing with Su Qinghe, that little brat.

"Jiang Che, Meng Yao, it's getting late. You should have classes this afternoon, so hurry back to school." He was essentially giving them the hint to leave.

But before Jiang Che turned to leave, he suddenly stopped him, "Jiang Che."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Che merely stopped in his tracks without turning around. "Is there anything else, Instructor Liu?"

"In a couple of days, there will be an internal exchange meeting in the military region of Lincheng. All the attendees will be important figures from various military regions."

Liu Wei stared at Jiang Che's back and said calmly, "This is a rare opportunity to broaden your horizons. Don't even mention a high school student like you; even the top official of Lincheng wouldn't have a way to get in."

He paused for a few seconds, his gaze sweeping over Liu Mengyao: "Perfect timing, I'm going to take Mengyao to meet some people, you can come along too."