Who's going to be the female lead's simp? Aren't the supporting female characters mor

As the Maybach drove along the expressway from the south of the city back to the city center, the neon lights outside the car window stretched into streaks of light.

The atmosphere inside the carriage was somewhat awkward.

Li He, who had just boasted at the entrance of the shopping mall that he would walk sideways, was now frantically adjusting his tie in the rearview mirror, which still looked a bit crooked even after being measured with a ruler.

A fine layer of sweat appeared on his forehead, which was clearly unusual for a spoiled young master who had just won a great victory.

"Brother, are we really going to Tingyuxuan?"

Li He swallowed hard, his voice a little weak, "How about we reschedule? We handled things so well today, Miss Ye must be happy. There's no need to report it in person, is there? Can't we just send a WeChat message?"

Bai Jingyou flipped through the financial statements on his tablet without looking up: "Are you afraid of her?"

"How can this be called fear!" Li He raised his voice instantly, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, but then shrank back guiltily. "That's...that's awe. Brother, you don't know, that aunt of the Ye family, she looks all smiles, but she's actually a beautiful snake. When I was a kid, I was ignorant and smeared cake on her skirt at a party at her house. As a result, my dad hung me up and beat me for three days, and she just stood there drinking juice and watching, as if she thought I wasn't miserable enough."

That was a childhood trauma.

Bai Jingyou closed the tablet, a playful smile curving his lips: "Don't worry, she's a benefactor today, she won't eat people."

"You're her partner, of course you're not afraid," Li He muttered. "In her eyes, I'm just someone to make up the numbers."

The car turned into a quiet alley.

Listening to the Rain Pavilion.

This place isn't very well-known in Beijing because it's not open to the public at all.

It was Ye Lingqing's private teahouse for entertaining her inner circle of friends.

There was no magnificent entrance, only two dim lanterns hanging under the eaves, exuding an air of aloofness that kept strangers at bay.

Chen Mo parked the car and opened the car door for Bai Jingyou.

Li He took a deep breath, as if he were going to the execution ground, and followed behind Bai Jingyou.

As you walk through the winding corridors, the sounds of the artificial hill and flowing water are exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

Pushing open the door to the private room named Tingtao, a faint aroma of Longjing tea wafts out.

The main lights were not on inside; only a few floor lamps emitted a soft glow.

Ye Lingqing was still wearing a cheongsam, but this time it was a dark blue one, embroidered with a few delicate orchids.

She was sitting in front of the tea table, her slender fingers fiddling with a set of exquisite white porcelain teaware, her movements fluid and pleasing to the eye.

On the daybed opposite her, Bai Qing was hugging a pillow, scrolling through her phone listlessly. When the two of them came in, she just lazily raised her eyelids.

"You're here?" Bai Qing yawned. "I would have fallen asleep if you hadn't come soon."

"Sister," Bai Jingyou called out, then his gaze fell on Ye Lingqing. "Miss Ye, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Ye Lingqing did not get up, but simply raised her hand slightly, gesturing for the two to sit down.

"soon."

She pushed two freshly brewed cups of tea across from her, her tone flat, "Just enough for me to finish watching the surveillance footage from the south side of the city. Young Master Bai, you've got some impressive skills. In three hours, you emptied out a shopping mall spanning tens of thousands of square meters. Even those luxury brands that usually look down on everyone else were kicked out."

It was impossible to tell whether the tone was a compliment or sarcasm.

Li He had just sat down on the edge of the chair when he heard this and almost jumped up again.

He carefully observed Ye Lingqing's expression, fearing that this young lady's next words would be to throw this good-for-nothing out.

"Just cleaning up trash."

Bai Jingyou picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and said, "If you want to renovate a mansion into a luxury home, you have to get rid of the old junk first."

"That's junk that the Jiang family spent five years bringing in." Ye Lingqing looked at him with a half-smile. "Bai Jingyou, do you know how much rent those brands generate every year? Three hundred million. By setting this fire, you've burned away three hundred million in cash flow."

She leaned forward slightly, and that languid air vanished instantly, replaced by the sharp edge of a top businesswoman.

"Bai Qing and I made our money like it was raining snow, but that doesn't mean we can just sit here in this bottomless pit and expect nothing in return. I support your plan to build a science and technology city, but I need an explanation for turning a mature commercial complex into an empty shell."

The air froze instantly.

This is Ye Lingqing.

Personal relationships are personal relationships, and business is business.

When it comes to core interests, she has a clearer understanding than anyone else.

Li He felt his throat go dry and subconsciously looked at Bai Jingyou.

Bai Jingyou put down his teacup.

Instead of panicking when questioned, he took out a USB drive from his pocket, gently placed it on the tea table, and pushed it in front of Ye Lingqing.

"Three hundred million in rent is indeed a lot."

Bai Jingyou tapped his fingers lightly on the table. "But Miss Ye, do you think Deep Blue Technology is short of these three hundred million? Or do you think the Ye family and the Bai family joined forces simply to earn this little bit of rent?"

Ye Lingqing's gaze swept over the USB drive: "What's this?"

"This is the business landscape of Beijing for the next five years."

Bai Jingyou's tone was calm, yet it revealed an undeniable arrogance: "The Jiang family's business model is dead. I'm clearing out those brands not because I'm arrogant, but because they're occupying positions without contributing anything."

"Open it and take a look."

Ye Lingqing glanced at him, picked up the USB drive, and plugged it into the laptop next to her.

The screen lights up.

That wasn't a boring Excel spreadsheet, but an extremely complex holographic projection presentation.

"Deep Blue Future City"

Bai Jingyou pointed to the concept image on the screen, "I don't plan to attract investment. The first to third floors of the entire mall will serve as an offline experience center for DeepBlue Technology's full range of products, as well as—the world's first unmanned logistics warehousing demonstration base."

"From the fourth floor to the top floor, I will open it up to all DeepBlue ecosystem partners, rent-free."

"Rent-free?" Li He, who had been silent until now, exclaimed in surprise, "Brother, are you crazy? How are we supposed to make money then?"

Ye Lingqing's eyes narrowed, and her fingers slid across the touchpad at an increasingly faster pace.

"Data," Bai Jingyou uttered.

"All companies that move in must use DeepBlue's system and share their supply chain data. What I want is not rent, but control over the underlying data of the entire building materials, electronics, and logistics industries in Beijing."

Bai Jingyou leaned back in his chair, his gaze deep and unfathomable.

"When all the data flows through our servers, Ms. Ye, do you think the value involved can be compared to a mere 300 million yuan in rent?"

"What we're going to do is certainly not just be a simple landlord."

The room fell into a deathly silence.

The only sound was the gurgling of the water boiling in the teapot.

Ye Lingqing stared at the data model on the screen, her previously tense lips slowly relaxing, finally curving into a stunning smile.

She is a smart person.

It's easy to understand.

Traditional commercial real estate is about addition, while Bai Jingyou is doing multiplication, or even exponential growth.

Once this model is proven successful, the remaining traditional shopping malls owned by the Jiang family will instantly become obsolete junk.

This isn't just stealing business; it's a devastating blow.

Ye Lingqing closed her laptop, picked up her teacup, and raised it to Bai Jingyou. "This cup of tea is for you. The Ye family will invest an additional 2 billion yuan in this project, and I want to take a 5% larger stake than originally planned."

"Three points," Bai Jingyou countered calmly.

"Four points, no less," Ye Lingqing insisted, "In addition, I want the exclusive financial services rights for this data center."

Bai Jingyou smiled.

Doing business with smart people is so much fun.

"make a deal."

The two teacups touched lightly in the air, making a crisp sound.

Li He watched in stunned silence. That's it?

A two billion dollar deal, settled in just a few words? And judging from Ye Lingqing's expression, it seems like she's the one who got the better deal?

"Alright, now that we've finished discussing the important matters, it's time to divide the spoils."

Ye Lingqing put down her teacup, took out a black gold card from her handbag, and casually tossed it to Li He.

Li He hurriedly caught it: "Miss Ye...Miss Ye, what is this?"

"Although the Li family only played a supporting role in this acquisition of the Jiang family's assets, they still contributed," Ye Lingqing said calmly. "This includes a 10% share of the profits from that plot of land in the west of the city, which I'm giving to Young Master Li as a small token of my appreciation. From now on, work hard for Young Master Bai and stop embarrassing your father."

Li He held the card, his hands trembling.

One-tenth of the shares are pure equity!

Although that piece of land is currently an unfinished project, once DeepBlue Technology moves in, it will become incredibly valuable! This isn't just a welcoming gift; it's a gold mine!

"Thank you, Miss Ye! Thank you, Brother Bai!" Li He was so excited he was incoherent, wishing he could kowtow to the two of them on the spot. He finally understood that following Bai Jingyou meant not only getting rich, but also gaining the approval of a top-tier big shot like Ye Lingqing.

This is what it means to truly mingle in the scene!

"Don't thank me yet."

Ye Lingqing glanced at him, her eyes suddenly turning cold. "If you've taken the money, you have to do the job. I heard that Jiang Feng, that good-for-nothing second son of the Jiang family, flew back from abroad tonight?"

Li He was taken aback: "Jiang Feng? That troublemaker?"

"Yes." Ye Lingqing tapped her slender fingers lightly on the table. "Jiang Han is a hypocrite, he plays dirty tricks. But this Jiang Feng is a real madman, he plays ruthlessly. He's clearly back because he's unwilling to see the Jiang family fall like this."

She looked at Bai Jingyou, "It's not convenient for me to deal with this kind of brute directly; it would be too dirty for me. Young Master Bai, it's up to you now."

Bai Jingyou was not surprised to hear this.

The Jiang family had, after all, held sway in the capital for decades; even a centipede with a hundred legs will not die easily.

Since that old fox from the Jiang family dared to sign the agreement, he must have left himself a backup plan. This Jiang Feng is probably their last stand.

"A reckless man is good."

Bai Jingyou smiled, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "I was afraid they'd keep hiding like cowards. Now that they've stuck their heads out, it's the perfect time to chop them off."

"What do you need me to do?" Li He immediately pledged his loyalty, his fighting spirit brimming with the huge sum of money. "Should I send men to the airport to intercept him right now?"

"Need not."

Bai Jingyou stood up, straightened his collar, and said, "Since we're building a science and technology city, we need to act like civilized people. Chen Mo."

Chen Mo, who had been standing in the shadows, stepped forward: "Boss."

"Check Jiang Feng's flight back to China, and also the information on all the vehicles registered under his name," Bai Jingyou said calmly.

"By the way," Bai Jingyou stopped abruptly at the door, turned back to Ye Lingqing, "Ms. Ye, are you free tomorrow? DeepBlue Technology is having a new product launch and needs a guest to cut the ribbon. I think there's no one more suitable than you."

Ye Lingqing raised an eyebrow: "Are you inviting me to endorse you?"

"It's an invitation for you to assert your sovereignty."

Bai Jingyou said meaningfully, "Now that the Jiang family has fallen, someone has to tell the Beijing business community who the new masters are."

As Ye Lingqing gazed at that tall, upright figure, the admiration in her eyes grew even stronger.

"Tomorrow morning at ten o'clock," Ye Lingqing said softly, "I will be there on time."

……

Stepping out of Tingyu Pavilion, the night breeze was slightly cool.

Li He was still immersed in the shock of what had just happened, holding the black gold card and grinning foolishly.

"Alright, stop laughing, you're drooling." Bai Jingyou got into the car and gave him a somewhat disgusted look.

"Brother, I'm truly impressed," Li He said sincerely. "Even Miss Ye is completely under your thumb. That Jiang Feng is nothing! If he dares to cause trouble, I'll be the first to cripple him!"