The Heiress's Game

Ye Ming brought her two children to Suiyuan. She held her six-year-old daughter's hand in one hand, and her eight-year-old son, carrying a small schoolbag, followed behind. Before she even entered the door, her voice preceded her arrival: "Boss Gu! Congratulations! I heard you don't need to get married!"

Gu Yunjin came out of the tea room to greet them, but before she could even speak, the two little ones pounced on her like two little cannonballs, hugging her legs on either side.

"Aunt Yunjin! Mom said you don't have to marry that man anymore! Can we eat cake to celebrate?" The little girl looked up, her eyes sparkling.

"What cake? We should eat hot pot!" the little boy immediately corrected.

Gu Yunjin squatted down and kissed each of the two children on the cheek, saying with a smile, "Eat up, everyone. We'll have hot pot first, then cake. Auntie's happy today, so you decide."

The two children cheered and rushed into the living room, and the nanny quickly followed.

"When Zhou Ji told me this, I thought he was joking," Ye Ming said as she changed into slippers.

"How exactly did you negotiate? How did you get your dad to agree so quickly?"

Gu Yunjin led Ye Ming toward the tea room, saying, "The process isn't important; what matters is the result—not only was the marriage alliance canceled, but we also received a large sum of money."

Ye Ming put down her teacup: "Yun Jin, sometimes I really don't know whether to admire you or feel sorry for you."

You, a 26-year-old girl, negotiated with your own father—demanding money and annulment of the engagement—and accomplished both in one go.

What are other people's daughters doing at this time? They're begging their dads for handbags. And you? You're discussing business models with your dad.

Two children were chasing each other under the pomegranate tree outside the window, their laughter sharp and crisp, drifting in through the French windows like background noise from another world.

"sister in law."

"You ask me how I did it—it's actually very simple. In a place like Gujia, I never treat Gu Zhenxing like a father."

Ye Ming paused for a moment while holding the teacup.

"I treat him like my boss."

"At its core, a wealthy family is just a joint-stock company. Blood ties are your share certificates."

Gu Zhenxing is the major shareholder and CEO, Wang Manyun is the executive vice president, and Gu Mingyue and Gu Mingcheng are preferred shareholders.

They have the right to receive dividends, the right to participate, and the major shareholder will bail them out if they make a mistake.

As for me, I am a retail investor who has been neglected for a long time. My share of shares is pitifully small and may be diluted at any time by private placements.

If I spent all my time longing for family affection, for fairness, for my dad to suddenly have a change of heart and love me a little more—I would have gone mad long ago.

She picked up her teacup, took a sip, and her gaze fell on the pomegranate tree outside the window.

The little boy was standing on tiptoe to reach the fruit on the branch, and the little girl was cheering him on.

The corners of her mouth unconsciously curved slightly.

"So I figured it out when I was very young. Treat him like your boss, and everything makes sense."

Would you be sad if your boss favored other employees?

No, you'll just think it's his personnel decision.

Would you feel wronged if your boss gave resources to someone else?

No, you'll only think about what kind of performance you can use to convince him next time.

Would you be devastated if your boss assigned you a job you didn't want?

No, you would just tell him, "Boss, I'm better suited for another business line."

"So this time when you called off the engagement, you didn't talk to him about 'I don't want to,' but rather 'I have a better solution,'" Ye Ming said.

"Yes, the reason I don't want this man is not 'I don't like him,' but 'he's not capable enough and doesn't deserve my project.'"

Gu Yunjin laughed self-deprecatingly, "If you treat the wealthy family like a workplace, you'll avoid a lot of unnecessary internal friction."

The amount of profit you generate for the company determines your say; everything else is meaningless.

Ye Ming reached out and gently patted Gu Yunjin's shoulder.

"Are you happy now?" Ye Ming asked.

Gu Yunjin looked up and saw two children in the yard, tired from running around, squatting under a tree and drawing on the soil with twigs.

"I'm so happy. The arranged marriage was called off, the funds arrived, and my friends brought their kids to celebrate with me—I won this round."

She paused, then added, her tone light and cheerful as if she were talking about the weather.

"As for whether anyone will pat me on the head and say 'Yun Jin, you're awesome' after I win—that's not important."

I never expected it, so there's nothing to be disappointed about.