Stepping out of the hotel, Fyren bid farewell to Eason and the others.
He reminded Eason repeatedly: "If you meet Otto, don't act like a coward."
As Fyren got into the car, Xena jumped in after him, smiling at him.
Fyren shifted awkwardly.
"About earlier... I'm sorry."
"It's fine." Xena lowered her head, then peeked up at him with a small smile. "You're a good kisser... or rather, you're just good at it."
"Uh..." Fyren rubbed his neck. "That was kind of a special situation, so..."
Xena's expression darkened. "What do you mean?"
"Nothing, just... don't take it too seriously..."
"Don't take it seriously? That was my first kiss! How could I not take it seriously?"
"Your first kiss?"
"What did you think?"
"Aigoo... that's... awkward."
"Fyren!" Xena's voice rose. "You kiss me in front of everyone, then say 'sorry'? What—you think you can just pull me over whenever you feel like it, kiss me, then tell me to get lost so you can stay a bachelor?"
Fyren considered this, then nodded. "Yeah."
Xena shoved the door open and stormed out. "Count yourself lucky, Fyren! I'm a dog if I ever come back to you!"
The car door slammed shut.
When Fyren and the others reached their hotel, Zaring came over to assist.
He froze when he saw Xena stomping away, tears in her eyes.
"Fyren," Zaring ventured carefully, "Xena seems to really like you... and her family's rich. Honestly, she's more appealing than Eliza."
Fyren chuckled. "Zaring, mind your own business. I know what I'm doing."
"Oh."
Just then, Fyren's phone rang—Maggie.
"Fyren, can you come to the office?"
"What's up?"
"Some documents need your signature."
"Got it."
At the company, whispers followed Fyren's arrival.
"Look, Fyren's here."
"Wow, he hasn't shown up for days."
As Fyren entered, Chloe hurried after him. "Fyren, great news!"
"What?"
"The shantytown development team signed another contract with us!"
"Give me the highlights."
Chloe hesitated. "You'll need to ask Maggie for details."
Employees greeted him in chorus:
"Hello, Fyren! Hello, Fyren!..."
Fyren turned with a smile. "Good work, everyone. Keep it up."
The staff exchanged stunned glances.
A female employee whispered in shock, "Did you hear that? Fyren smiled at us! And said we're working hard!"
"He used to ignore me completely! Before, he'd only flirt with pretty executives. What's wrong with him today?"
At a T-junction in the hallway, a woman carrying a coffee tray rounded the corner—and crashed straight into Fyren's chest.
Coffee splattered everywhere, ruining Fyren's suit.
The female employee froze in horror. "Fyren, I'm sorry! Fyren, I'm sorry! Fyren, it was my fault! Fyren, I really didn't mean to—"
Chloe immediately exploded. "What are you doing rushing around like that? Do you have any idea how much Fyren's suit costs?"
The clerk trembled, on the verge of tears.
Fyren simply laughed, picking up the only half-spilled cup from her tray and taking a sip. "Relax. Just make everyone fresh coffee."
"Y-yes, right away..."
As Chloe followed Fyren, she hissed, "I'll have her fired immediately."
Fyren looked surprised. "Why? Aiya, it's just coffee—not worth it. Look how scared she is."
Chloe smiled faintly. "Fyren, before, you would've yelled at her. You've changed a lot recently."
Fyren ignored the comment. "How's your mother's condition?"
Chloe's eyes softened. "Thank you for asking. She's stable, but...per our agreement, I still need you to speak to Xena about performing the surgery."
Fyren nodded. "Understood."
Entering the office, the staff immediately stood. "Fyren."
"Sit, everyone."
Chloe helped Fyren remove his stained jacket, handing it to an assistant for cleaning while instructing another to fetch a replacement.
Fyren sank into his executive chair with a grin. "Alright, how much more does the office plan to squeeze from us this time?"
Maggie smiled. "No squeezing—this is genuinely good news."
Fyren raised an eyebrow. "Go on."
Maggie unfolded Crystalpeak City's planning blueprints. "After deliberation, the city government decided to sell us this parcel at a special discount as compensation for the shantytown project."
Fyren studied the map. "Where exactly is this?"
"Its potential is enormous. Properly developed, it could generate massive profits."
"Hmm."
Maggie continued, "Additionally, both the city government and office agreed to reduce our tax rate for three years. We'll save hundreds of millions."
"I see."
"There's more. Our Operations Department's targeted projects have been prioritized. Barring surprises, they're all ours—leaving other families and foreign investors empty-handed."
"Wait." Fyren held up a hand. "Isn't this unfair competition? Won't it deter future investments?"
Maggie explained, "Mayor Ziv stated publicly that Dasheng Group is Crystalpeak's most conscientious enterprise. He said we can't let such companies shoulder burdens without reaping benefits."
She added, "He emphasized that without resolving the shantytown issue, all other investments would suffer. Once completed, the city's appeal to foreign capital will solidify. Essentially, he endorsed us completely."
Fyren exhaled deeply.
Rubbing his chin, he asked, "There's more, isn't there?"
"Mmm-hmm." Maggie nodded. "In short, Mayor Ziv has been running around the province these past few days for this project and our Dasheng Group. The subsidies and incentives he secured for us are the best available! He doesn't want us to collapse—he wants us to complete this project. The benefits are too numerous to count. Right now, Dasheng Group is the hottest star company around."
Everyone watched Fyren expectantly.
Fyren showed no trace of happiness. He remained completely calm, his brow permanently furrowed.
[This isn't over yet! I'm going to lose so much less money because of this!]
Chloe froze, thinking: What the hell is going through Fyren's mind?
Fyren rapped the table twice and looked at Maggie. "So...is there any way we can...not sign this additional contract? No tax breaks, no incentives, no...land or anything?"
Maggie stared in shock. "I...I've already signed everything. The contracts are in effect. The executive team only needs your confirmation now."
Fyren rubbed his chin, clearly distressed.
The executives grew nervous.
This was pure profit!
Dasheng Group would definitely lose money on this project. The government had been more than accommodating—Mayor Ziv had gone out of his way to secure these benefits out of sympathy for the company. So why wasn't Fyren happy about it?
Fyren scratched his ear. "Next time something like this comes up, notify me first."
"Oh...yes."
Maggie felt wronged.
When such windfalls came knocking, most businesses would sign immediately, afraid the opportunity might slip away.
These supplemental contracts carried zero risk, required no additional investment, and promised huge returns—they were completely within their rights to accept.
Yet Fyren seemed not just unappreciative, but actually displeased.
Just then, a man burst through the door. "Fyren! Congratulations, Fyren! Congratulations!"
"What now?!" Fyren snapped.
"Our pharmaceutical company's stock price has skyrocketed!"
Fyren shot to his feet. "What did you say? Explain clearly!"
"Yesterday, a mysterious ID posted a recording online of you reprimanding the young master. Based on your conversation, it completely dispelled the rumors that you intentionally manufactured fake medicine! Your stern rebuke has gone viral—self-media outlets are reproducing it, and influencers are making videos and writing articles praising you as the conscience of the pharmaceutical industry!"
"Online sentiment has completely turned around! They're calling you a compassionate doctor and a model for our times! The company's credibility is restored, and our stock price has surged 300% above its previous peak! Rough estimates put our market capitalization at 220 billion now! Just from the stock increase,we′ve made at least 80 billion!"
Fyren's eyes widened. He slumped back into his chair and blurted out: "It's over."
[The stock price won't stay this high—it'll drop eventually. But even if it halves, we'll still make over 40 billion!
Over 40 billion profit there, and here we're not even losing the full 50 billion—plus we're getting land! All my hard work for nothing—not a single cent lost!
I worked so hard to lose 50 billion, and they made me 40 billion instead! Mayor Ziv is determined to shove land and projects down my throat!
I'm finished!]
The corner of Chloe's mouth twitched.
Fyren's math was wrong!
Completely backwards!
What kind of brain did Fyren have? Who even calculated profits and losses like this?
She didn't know Fyren had planned to lose money to make money in the real world. Now that he'd failed to lose here while the pharma company profited over there, he was collapsing internally.
All that effort wasted.
At that moment, several female employees in professional attire and black stockings appeared at the doorway, glaring at Maggie.
Fyren felt angina coming on.
Pointing at the door, he croaked, "What are they doing? Look! Just look!"
"Yes!"
Maggie rushed out. After a few minutes of hushed conversation, she returned excitedly. "Fyren, more good news!"
Fyren's face went pale.
"Stop! How is that possible?"
"It's true!" Maggie said. "The shantytown blueprints are finalized—construction can start immediately! And the city government promised 40% of the commercial district to Dasheng Group after redevelopment!"
"Fyren, I'm in awe! I formally apologize to you!"
A vice president stood abruptly.
Fyren clutched his chest. "Sit down! We'll discuss this later!"
"No! I must express my admiration now, Mr. Cheng!"
"Fuck you!"
"Yes! Thank you, Fyren!" The man grabbed his phone. "I just got word—Dasheng Group's stock is soaring too! Marketing's phones are jammed with presale housing and commercial space requests! This project won't just break even—we'll make massive profits! Bloody massive, Fyren!"
Everyone rose, cheering, hugging, shaking hands—
"Fyren is awesome!"
"Fyren's the real deal!"
"Bullshit, Fyren's a legend!"
"Fyren's as awesome as awesome gets!"
"What's wrong with Fyren?"
"He's so happy he fainted!"
"Move back! Give him air! Pinch his nose!"
"Pinching won't help! Fyren likes pretty girls—book a nightclub! Get him ten girls, he deserves it!"
"Right! All in miniskirts and black stockings! Fyren's a pervert—that's what he likes!"
With his last shred of consciousness, Fyren weakly cursed, "You...bastards..."