While Xi Xinyi took in all of Qi Lei's reactions naturally, she could not help but put on a victorious grin.

"Well then? Master Qi? I told you that you don't get to decide on these things. In fact, you seem to have a prejudice against Yueying!"

Xi Xinyi charming face curved with a sinister smile as she silently looked at Qi Lei.

Qi Lei flung his phone hard on the table and his eyes met with Xi Xinyi's delighted look, appearing a little sly and unfathomable. His handsome darkened face was colored with a freakish smile in the next second. "It looks like you have a pretty good relationship with my old man. You could actually get him to recognize your worth!"

As Qi Lei spoke, he slowly leaned all the way back. "You have quite a reputation. Even the Han family can't bear to look on without helping. It looks like Han Yifeng still cherishes you for old time's sake. You've already come to this extent of a situation, and with your mother's scandal, the fact that he could endure it is really not bad."

When Qi Lei said all of this, his face brimmed with a smile that did not reach his eyes. You could not hear from his tone whether he was being rueful or sarcastic though the smile on his face looked exceptionally conspicuous to Xi Xinyi.

Upon recalling Han Yifeng's indifference and heartlessness, Xi Xinyi was stunned for a moment. Her hands that fell by her side suddenly tightened their grip onto her skirt as her face colored with suppressed anger. "Thank you, Master Qi, for your compliments. I find myself very lucky to be able to get everyone's help too."

Only Xi Xinyi herself would know the amount of sacrifice she had to do for all of this help. The reason she was not willing to give up was that there was no way she could lose to Xi Xiaye! That witch framed her, schemed against her, and made her lose everything. No matter what, she had to get back at her!

"Oh, right, I heard that your sister, Xi Xiaye, and Glory World's Chairman Mu had their wedding abroad. Didn't I hear that you two sisters had a pretty amazing relationship? I remembered when you were eager for me to be your brother-in-law. Now that she's having her wedding, why didn't you go? Also, you could have brought Yueying to Glory World since that's your brother-in-law's company," Qi Lei teased as he looked at Xi Xinyi, his tone sounding sly.

Xi Xinyi's expression turned worse. She bit her lip and coldly looked at Qi Lei. Obviously, she knew that he had said it on purpose to see her miserable.

Everyone knew that the reason for Yueying's crisis this time was Glory World's sudden departure. In fact, they brought with them a huge group of old shareholders and some precious resources, catching Yueying unprepared and exposing all of their financial loopholes. Even the banks came after them.

"Why are you looking all sad at me like that? I was just offering you a suggestion." Qi Lei shrugged innocently. He looked amused and sarcastically at Xi Xinyi. Back then, when the Xi family wanted to send Xi Xiaye into his bed with the goal of combining them with Qi Kai by marriage, he knew all about their intentions. In fact, Xi Xinyi had obscurely mentioned Xi Xiaye to him more than once, especially when she knew that he was interested in Xi Xiaye's identity as the Director of Glory World Corporation.

"Oh, right, I just remembered that you don't seem to have that fantastic a relationship with your sister. She gave up on Han Yifeng, and instead got a gold mine like Mu Yuchen. I think that you don't feel too good about that, huh? They're having their wedding banquet at the Imperial Sky Hotel. Hmm, I wonder if they invited you?"

Qi Lei had a taunting expression. You simply could not read any emotions from that expression of his.

Xi Xinyi had heard about the banquet. Not many guests were invited to the banquet, but those that were seemed to be respected people. Qi Lei must have received the invitation too. After all, Qi Kai was collaborating with Glory World in some projects.

In fact, she knew that Mu Yuchen and Xi Xiaye had gone abroad for the wedding. She probably did not have the time to care about Yueying. Otherwise, Xi Xiaye probably would not have let her make a comeback.

Ever since Xi Mushan divorced Yue Lingsi, and after the latter's scandals were exposed, she had not seen him. Xi Xinyi did think of looking for him, but...

Yue Lingsi was now akin to a crazy lady. She stayed in Han Yifeng's villa and got drunk every day. She frequently cursed Shen Wenna or lashed out about Xi Mushan. The Yue family ignored her most of the time. On one hand, they were also waiting for this news to die down by itself.

When she thought about how she had fallen to this state while Xi Xiaye gloriously held her wedding, Xi Xinyi could not help but feel anger and unhappiness surface. She could not understand why although she fared better than Xi Xiaye in everything, Lady Luck had never been on her side.

Why did the witch Xi Xiaye, who had just been dumped by Han Yifeng, turn around and immediately hook up with a perfect man like Mu Yuchen? He was someone with power and prestige, who even treated Xi Xiaye so well!

As for Xi Xinyi?

She did love Han Yifeng deeply, yet now he wished he could just kick her aside, completely disregarding the child she had. That was enough to show Han Yifeng's indifference and heartlessness!

Both of them had had numerous loving moments. Why did it turn so brittle in the face of reality? All the promises of eternal, undying love were indeed all lies!

Xi Xinyi's expression started to shift. She thought about it for a while before she looked up at Qi Lei.

While Qi Lei took all of this in, he leered demonically. "Since you're already a part of Qi Kai, then I hope you will prioritize the company's interests. If you want to use Qi Kai as your weapon, then that would be too egoistic. I am not Han Yifeng, and the Qi family isn't the Han family. If you don't behave, don't blame me for not giving you face! Even though the old man's words are firm in Qi Kai, as strong as he is, he won't be able to push around the board of directors! Got that, Miss Xi Xinyi?" Qi Lei spoke without courtesy. That sly tone of his made Xi Xinyi scoff coldly.

Qi Lei seemed to have something against her. That was obvious!

She heard that back then when Qi Kai acquired and merged with Yueying, Wang Qin and the rest did not agree. It was only with Qi Qiming's persistence that they gave in.

Qi Lei was the Vice President of Qi Kai. Wang Qin wanting to push him up to Qi Kai's main seat was not something for a day or two, but Qi Qiming did not seem to agree with it much. In fact, he did not seem to have any intentions of retiring. She heard that Qi Qiming did not like Qi Lei very much and was always very unconcerned about him. From the phone call earlier, she could perhaps already infer something.

When she thought about this, Xi Xinyi shot Qi Lei a look. "Don't worry about this, Master Qi. I, Xi Xinyi, am not an arrogant person. Since CEO Qi has given his orders, are you going to throw out your instructions and let them continue with the work?"

Xi Xinyi's tone was not courteous. From the sound of it, it carried the strong-willed tone of a successful career woman.

Qi Lei shot Xi Xinyi a look through narrowed eyes while the corner of his lips curved into a sly smile. He then took the phone on the table and made a call.

Xi Xinyi's charming face then flashed with a smile. "Master Qi, don't worry. Yueying is my property, so no matter what, I won't ruin my own reputation. As long as the new movie is released in the box office, Yueying's crisis will truly be resolved. These two movies are the most anticipated releases from our company, so we can't halt them."

Xi Xinyi was practically hoping for these few movies to make her comeback. Previously, because of the Han Corporation's support and Glory World as well as Qi Kai's participation, they wanted to use their strength and start shooting a few movies at one go. They were looking forward to getting the highest ticket sales at the box office with these few movies to make up for Yueying's financial loopholes. However, who would've expected the things that happened one after another afterward, causing their downfall?

Xi Xinyi even vaguely felt that inexplicably, there seemed to be a string guiding her path, but she could not put her finger on what it was. She could only contemplate that these thoughts were a result of her being too sensitive.

"I'll wait for you to show some sort of results to prove your decisions today then." Qi Lei was quite calm as he smiled faintly at Xi Xinyi.

"I'm confident in myself!" Xi Xinyi straightened up too.

Yueying readjusted internally. Since they now had Qi Kai's resources for support, Qi Kai themselves signed on a lot of huge celebrities. She could completely rely on Qi Kai's strength to achieve her own plans!

Xi Xinyi soon vanished out of the door and Qi Lei's expression turned cold in an instant. He then huffed before his hand balled up tightly.

Upon returning to City Z, Wang Hui and the rest returned straight to the Mu residence. They still had a lot of things to do the next day. They also thought that they should give Mu Yuchen and Xi Xiaye a little privacy as newlyweds, so they were not willing to disturb them at the Maple Residence either. Zhou Zimo and Su Chen went straight home too, not wanting to be light bulbs.

When they returned to the Maple Residence, it was close to evening. What shocked Xi Xiaye was the fact that the Maple Residence had been given a simple redecoration. Some furniture had been changed to new ones, and there were beautiful flower ribbons hanging from the ceiling of the living room. It was decorated the way their bridal chamber was.

Even the railings along the staircase were decorated with blossoming champagne roses. Xi Xiaye had just stepped into the living room when this heartwarming and harmonious scene, which was the work of Sis Wang and the rest, greeted her.

Dishes and drinks were prepared and on the dining table in preparation for a candlelight dinner.

"Congratulations on your marriage, Master, Missus!" Sis Wang's voice suddenly came from behind.

Xi Xiaye subconsciously turned around and realized that Sis Wang and the Maple Residence servants were beaming behind them. All of them held presents that they then gave to Xi Xiaye.

"Thank you!"

Xi Xiaye and Mu Yuchen exchanged a look. Then, they smiled and thanked everyone as they accepted the gifts gratefully.

"Master, Missus, dinner's ready. You've had such a long flight, so you must be quite tired. Have something to eat first, then shower and rest earlier. You have your wedding banquet tomorrow! We'll go home now!" Sis Wang fussed.

Xi Xiaye nodded. "Okay, just remember to come to our wedding banquet tomorrow."

...

"I'm so tired. I can't muster even a hint of energy."

She walked to the sofa in the living room before throwing herself onto the soft couch. She lay down all floppy and muttered, "This wedding is really quite troublesome."

"Some beautiful memories require sacrifice."

Mu Yuchen handed her a warm and wet towel which she took to wipe her hands. Then, suddenly there was a gentle touch on her shoulders. She subconsciously turned and noticed that the man was gently holding her shoulders. He then started to gently massage them and she moaned in sheer pleasure.

"Where did you learn how to massage? It's quite good," Xi Xiaye just closed her eyes and spoke with maximum enjoyment.

"Your husband is innately talented and self-taught. Consider yourself lucky. I don't serve just anyone." He chuckled, then took a bolster before stuffing it to her, letting her comfortably lie on her belly before quietly continuing.

"I've never seen a person who felt more good about themselves than you, but I'm not the average person either. I am now your Missus Mu. Can you compare the average person to me? That's just lowering your standards and insulting yourself. They say that a man's quality and presence is actually presented through his woman. If you're good to me, that means you are a wise and good man. They all say that the successful ones who are cultivated and have high quality are usually very good to their wives. Look at Grandfather and Grandmother, and Father and Mother? Isn't that so?" she said very calmly.

As Mu Yuchen listened, he suddenly laughed involuntarily. "What logic? This is nonsense!"

Xi Xiaye shrugged to disagree. "How can you say it's nonsense? Didn't I just give you examples? She continued rather justifiably, "However, I do quite like you being self-confident and in high spirits. A good man would be more confident, so you can continue being arrogant."

"Continue being arrogant? Well then, Missus, what kind of man is considered a good man to you or someone who can be your husband?"

They rarely sat down leisurely for idle chat, so Mu Yuchen and Xi Xiaye were both feeling quite relaxed.

"Mmm... How do I say this? I think that this opinion would change with phases. Had it been before, I would've hoped that someone would console me and keep persisting with me, but now that I've gone through so much more, I suddenly find that Mother is actually right. I think that a husband and wife should be the kind of friends who speak without holding back. They have to play many roles like being a father, a brother, a teacher or a friend. Those are all the forms of a good husband. Su Nan says I'm really lucky that I managed to get you. Well, now that you've married me, do you think that you've been cheated or did you got lucky?"

She turned to look at him a little grouchily, her starry eyes challenging him.

"Of course, I got lucky. Do I look like someone who would make a bad business deal?" Mu Yuchen answered confidently without a doubt.

She then nodded, satisfied. "I think you got lucky and profited too. This matches your innate nature as a profiteer more, but I think I got lucky too."

"Missus, managing marriage is actually like managing a business. Of course, it'd be best to have a win-win situation. Just like how you told me before, I personally think that whether or not we consider marriage, one would need to first consider whether you'd be happier after marriage. If you're much better off than before, then that means the decision to get married is the right one."

His viewpoint was straightforward whilst his tone of voice was clear as well.

She almost forgot he was always a decisive man. His judgment was sharp and he could always simplify many complicated issues.

"There's nothing wrong with being selfish. You have too many considerations and you trapped yourself. You're not aiming to become a saint. You'll be fine as long as you be yourself."

"It's not as simple as you said. If it's like what you said, people would only get married for materialistic reasons. Can't you think about their feelings?" Xi Xiaye disagreed.

He paused his movements as he looked at her and asked, "When you signed your name on the marriage contract, did you like me very much?"

She had no answer to his question. Instead, she lowered her gaze.

They did not say anything for a while. and Mu Yuchen went on with the massage. As Xi Xiaye was about to say something, her phone on the table started ringing. Mu Yuchen swiftly picked it up, and before he could say anything, a depressed voice came over from the other end.

"Xiaye, it's me..."

Mu Yuchen raised his eyebrows instantly and he glanced over at Xi Xiaye.

Of course, he recognized who the man on the other side of the phone was.

Who else could it be but Han Yifeng?

His eyes turned cold. Without showing any emotions, he handed the phone over to Xi Xiaye.

"It's for you." His tone was calm.

"Who is it?" Xi Xiaye frowned slightly. He was heading toward the coffee table when she took the phone, probably looking for the remote controller.

"Mu Yuchen, could you get me a glass of water? Hurry!" she spoke loudly enough to him as she noticed he did not seem very happy. Then, she answered the call. "Hello, who is this?"

"It's me, Xiaye." Han Yifeng's voice reached her ears.

Xi Xiaye was rather shocked and she sat up straight as her eyes went round in surprise before they darkened soon after. "It's you!"

Han Yifeng was currently sitting on the chair inside his office. He had been taken aback when Mu Yuchen picked up the phone just now, so his expression darkened as well.

"What's the matter?" Xi Xiaye asked indifferently. Mu Yuchen had already returned with her glass of water.

"I just want to congratulate you on your marriage. I've called you before, but you switched your phone off." Han Yifeng took a deep breath as his tone became quieter. "I know you're having your banquet tomorrow, so I'm just calling to send you my wishes."

"Well received. Thank you."

She gave a business-like and distant reply which sounded very frigid in Han Yifeng's ears. He just smiled while being confused about how he was feeling right now. He felt a little sentimental and was tinged with regret, but mostly, he felt lost.

"About what happened before and about whatever Xinyi has done to you, I'm sorry. If possible, I hope you can lead a happy life."

Han Yifeng had no idea why he made this call. He was not sure if he was trying to fill up the void in his heart, or if he just simply wanted to wish her well.

Xi Xiaye took a sip of water quietly, then she smiled without saying anything.

"I've imagined countless possibilities between the three of us, yet I never expected us to end up this way. Say, Xiaye, do you think this is karma?" Han Yifeng asked with a bitter laugh.

Xi Xiaye held onto her glass. "Are you trying to repent now? Maybe you're right. You can't force some things, but from what I can see right now, your love with Xi Xinyi is cheap. I've told you to keep an eye on her before or I'll do what I need to."

"Xiaye, it wasn't I who helped Xinyi. It was my grandfather's intentions. I was kept in the dark." Han Yifeng sighed as he felt exhaustion overcome him. "Xiaye, I know I owe you a lot. Please pardon me for saying this, but can you please let Xinyi go this once? She's almost lost everything now and I also hope the conflict can end here."

"You should tell Xi Xinyi instead. Isn't she linked up with Qi Kai now? Han Yifeng, I've given her many chances. She provoked me first every single time. I've never looked for trouble with her." Xi Xiaye frowned as her eyes hardened. Before Han Yifeng could reply, she hung up angrily and threw her phone aside.

"What's wrong? What made you so angry?"

Mu Yuchen found the remote controller, so he switched the music player on. Soothing music started playing throughout the room.

"He was begging for Xi Xinyi. What a joke! Isn't Xi Xinyi doing well right now? We almost cleared Yueying out and she still managed to let it survive. I'm impressed!"

Xi Xiaye glared at Mu Yuchen who was in his own thoughts. He then spoke up as he noticed her stare, "Putting in so much effort to save Yueying is meaningless. It's not something Qi Kai would do, my dear. I'm afraid we'll be able to see something interesting soon."