I was exposed for adding my female boss to my group of female friends.

“He’s not a returnee from overseas; I bet he’s never even been abroad in his life,” Cai Zhenyi said with a smile.

Gu Zongyan's face looked extremely pale.

Originally, his focus was only on Gu Yuqing's love life, but as Cai Zhenyi explained things step by step, he began to doubt Gu Yuqing's judgment more and more.

As girls reach a certain age, it's inevitable that they'll experience romantic feelings, something Gu Zongyan had anticipated. However, he never expected that the person he chose would be so unbearable.

He felt extremely embarrassed in front of his old friends.

Gu Chengxi, however, did not share this view. Her watery eyes looked around, and she only felt that Gu Yuqing was getting cooler and cooler.

He dropped out of junior high school to start his own business and became a small business owner. What a cool guy!

Xia Longju's smile faded, and he frowned as he asked:

"What you're saying doesn't make sense. Where would someone who dropped out of junior high school and comes from a poor family get the start-up capital to become a company boss?"

Cai Zhenyi said, "For this part, you should ask Yuqing; she knows best."

Gu Zongyan's face turned ashen as he said, "Previously, she disregarded the company's objections and invested 100 million yuan in a game company in her own name. It must be this person's company, right?"

All eyes turned to Gu Yuqing.

Gu Yuqing sighed and said, "Yes."

Gu Zongyan narrowed his eyes: "So, because of your personal relationship with that person, you gave him a hundred million to help him? How could our Gu family have such a wasteful woman like you?"

These words were quite serious, and everyone present held their breath; for a moment, not a single sound could be heard.

Xia Longju's expression softened slightly, but he also frowned.

He never expected that it was Gu Yuqing who provided funds to Chen Ya to help him start his company.

Xia Longju was a seasoned veteran; he knew something was wrong as soon as he heard what Cai Zhenyi had just said.

If you have no connections or background and want to accumulate your first pot of gold to start a company in Beijing, besides buying lottery tickets, most of the other ways are written in the criminal law.

The fact that Gu Yuqing provided the funding was actually better than he had imagined.

However, Gu Zongyan found it very disagreeable.

Why would Gu Yuqing give money to a man with no status, no background, and no education to help him rise from humble beginnings?

There is no such thing as love without a reason. To put it bluntly, the two of them must have been having an affair for Gu Yuqing to do this.

It wasn't that Gu Zongyan deliberately thought the worst of people; he had experienced too much, and he could figure out the cause and effect of such things with just a little thought.

If a child like Gu Chengxi doesn't understand, does that mean even a seasoned veteran like him who has been in the business world for many years doesn't understand?

However, this thought played right into Cai Zhenyi's hands.

Tsai Chen-yi deliberately spoke in a way that was half-revealed and half-concealed, in order to guide them to think in this direction.

Gu Zongyan's chest heaved as he pointed at Gu Yuqing and said:

"I always thought you were a very rational person, but I never expected that you would be so easily swayed by emotions. You have disappointed me greatly."

He stood up, gripping the armrest of the chair, and asked sternly:

"I'm asking you, did you have an improper relationship with that person, which is why you provided him with funds to help a kid with no connections get ahead?"

Gu Yuqing's lips twitched as if she had been stabbed, and she said, "Disappointed, disappointed. You're always disappointed. What do you know?"

Chapter 394 Don't Step on My Feet

"Disappointment, disappointment, you're always disappointed, what do you know?"

Gu Yuqing's voice trembled as she said this.

Wu Qiutong reached out and gently tugged at her best friend's clothes, trying to calm her down, but Gu Yuqing shook her off forcefully.

"You've been provoked by his few words and you think this way about me? Why can't it be because I'm optimistic about the prospects of Chen Ya's project that I invested in him?"

Gu Yuqing rarely spoke with such excitement, which startled Gu Zongyan.

Wu Qiutong felt that her moment to shine had finally arrived, and quickly said:

"Yes, the company that Yuqing invested in makes games with a very good reputation and is very famous!"

"Really?" Gu Zongyan softened slightly and asked, "What's your name?"

“Call it ‘Original Demon’,” Wu Qiutong quickly said.

Gu Zongyan thought for a moment and said, "I haven't heard of it. Have you heard of it?"

Yi Yangbing and the others shook their heads, and Gu Chengxi also looked bewildered.

Aside from those working in the mobile game industry, none of these people play games much in their daily lives. Gu Chengxi is young, but she's a social butterfly and doesn't play games either.

Zhang Weiqiang took out his phone and said, "GenDemon is also a competitor of our company. In terms of sales alone, it does often rank high on the bestseller list..."

After saying that, he used his phone to bring up the best-selling list of the mobile phone store and handed it to Gu Zongyan to see.

Gu Zongyan took the phone, glanced at it, and subconsciously read aloud the most prominent part of the screen:

"User rating: 2.6 out of 5..."

In its early stages, "Genshin Impact" faced a massive online backlash, with many low scores being given to the game even before its release, resulting in a very low rating of only 2.6.

This is only because the number of players increased after the game was launched, and the rating has improved somewhat; otherwise, the rating would have been even lower.

Of course, Gu Zongyan was unaware of the background and consequences.

Seeing that his temper was about to flare up again, Wu Qiutong quickly tried to salvage the situation:

"These negative reviews are all from paid trolls! The game itself is actually quite good! And the key point is, this game is very profitable!"

Gu Zongyan felt a little uncomfortable in his heart, took out a nitroglycerin pill and swallowed it, then asked, "Really? Let me see the stock."

He decided that words alone were not enough and that the only way to know how well the company was doing was to look at the data.

"Uh……"

Wu Qiutong hesitated for a moment, and Cai Zhenyi, who was standing next to her, had already answered for her:

"Uncle Gu, this company isn't listed yet."

Gu Zongyan paused for a moment.

In Gu Zongyan's eyes, companies that are not publicly listed cannot be considered legitimate companies. However, considering that this is a newly established startup, it is reasonable that it is not publicly listed.

So he asked again, "What about the revenue? Surely you can't be clueless about the revenue?"

"Uh..." Wu Qiutong's eyes darted around twice, and she immediately said, "Anyway, I made quite a lot!"

Gu Zongyan tapped his knee and said, "I need specific numbers!"

After saying that, he looked at Gu Yuqing.

Unlisted companies are not required to publish financial reports, and Gu Yuqing, as a shareholder, should know about their internal revenue situation.

"..."

But Gu Yuqing's only response was silence.

After she learned that "Original Magic" had secured revenue in its first week, she hadn't paid much attention to how much money Chen Ya had actually made.

As long as she doesn't lose money, she doesn't have time to keep track of how much she's making every day. She's usually very busy, you know!

Busy having fun.

Gu Zongyan pounded his knee harder: "I'm asking you a question, why aren't you saying anything?!"

Cai Zhenyi smiled and said, "The revenue of 'Original Magic' is still very high, at least it is often on the best-selling list, but we don't know exactly how much promotion fee was spent."

His implication was clear to everyone: he was implying that Genshin Impact's inclusion on the list was the result of extensive marketing and promotion.

Gu Yuqing immediately retorted, "We didn't spend any money on promotion at all!"

Cai Zhenyi looked at her and asked, "What was the revenue and net income of 'The Original Demon' in its first month? Dare to tell me?"

"..."

Gu Yuqing fell silent again.

It's not that she's afraid to tell, it's that she simply doesn't know.

Cai Zhenyi smiled dismissively and said, "What, you don't dare to anymore?"

"It's not that I'm afraid, it's that I forgot. Chen Ya told me before, but I didn't remember..." Gu Yuqing said, trying hard to recall her memories.

"..." Cai Zhenyi was speechless. He didn't know if Gu Yuqing was too indifferent or too trusting.

Yi Yangbing chimed in, "When I was little, if I told the teacher I didn't bring my homework, the teacher would always say, 'If you didn't bring it, you didn't do it,' hehe..."

If you didn't bring it, it means you didn't write it down; if you don't remember, it means you're afraid to say it.

At least that's how it sounds to everyone. Gu Yuqing felt guilty and didn't even dare to say the numbers.

Gu Zongyan finally couldn't hold back any longer, slammed his hand on the sofa armrest and shouted, "Enough! I don't want to hear anymore!"

He stood up, about to say something, when Secretary Liu, who was in charge of the overall planning of the coming-of-age ceremony, hurriedly walked in.

"Mr. Gu, and Miss Gu, the ball... is about to begin..."

Seeing Gu Zongyan, who stood imposingly in the living room, ready to unleash his anger, he suddenly dared not speak.

"Uh, did I come at the wrong time?"

Gu Zongyan suddenly calmed down, becoming as calm as if he had given up, and walked straight out the door.

"Let's go. Today is an important day for Chengxi. I don't want to waste time on trivial matters."

Everyone stood up and followed Gu Zongyan out in single file.

Gu Yuqing sat on the sofa, still sulking. Wu Qiutong grabbed her arm, wanting to say a few words of comfort, but found herself unable to say anything.

Gu Chengxi followed at the back. Seeing that Gu Zongyan didn't turn around, she quietly slipped back, leaned close to Gu Yuqing, and whispered:

"Sis, is that person coming today?"

"..." Gu Yuqing remained silent for a while, then said, "I guess so."

In fact, she wished Chen Ya wouldn't come.

Today was the first time Chen Ya met her family, and they had hoped that Chen Ya could make a good impression on them.

Unexpectedly, before the person even arrived, their impression score had already been reduced to the lowest possible level.

What's the point of playing this game?!

All she wants now is for the coming-of-age ceremony to happen quickly, the dance to start, and for everyone to go home as soon as possible. Ideally, everyone should be home before Chen Ya arrives!

With a pained expression, Wu Qiutong said to Gu Yuqing, "Yuqing, shall we go out?"

Gu Yuqing snapped out of her daze, stood up, and said, "We should go out. But you didn't bring a dance partner, are you planning to go out and hook up with men?"

"No, I want to go out to eat. I... I'm not full," Wu Qiutong said pitifully.

"..."

This best friend is so spineless.

……

The manor was brightly lit, moonlight pierced through the clouds, and the lake surface reflected the starlight.

Gu Chengxi was the first to enter the dance floor and start dancing; her dance partner was none other than the distinguished young master Ye Xianzhi.

Both were dressed up in formal attire. Ye Xianzhi, with her exaggerated hairstyle and tuxedo, was quite striking in the middle of the dance floor, despite her short stature.

Gu Chengxi, who looked like a princess, and the two of them standing together looked exceptionally well-matched, like a perfect couple.

Gu Yuqing sipped her martini, the lemon on the rim of the glass carrying a bittersweet aroma. She suddenly realized how well Gu Zongyan had planned Gu Chengxi's future.

She got into the school through connections, and her class was also arranged through favors. It's said that everyone in that class comes from a prominent family; there's no one without connections.

Gu Zongyan also continued to act as a philanthropist at her school, frequently donating items from time to time.

They also regularly hold gatherings and salons, inviting Gu Chengxi's classmates to participate. This included her coming-of-age ceremony.

The things Gu Chengxi usually learns—horse riding, etiquette, ballroom dancing—are all things with a strong aristocratic flavor; to put it bluntly, they are all catering to the tastes of certain social classes.

Under this elite education, Gu Chengxi was naturally molded into a perfect lady.

However, Gu Yuqing couldn't help but wonder, was Gu Chengxi truly happy?