Chapter 72: The Inescapable Marriage Fate Cord

"There are still several suspicious details surrounding your son's death. I can't lock down a suspect yet, nor can I definitively classify the case as murder."

"From the sound of it, you've made some progress?" Huang Boyuan was sharp. He picked up his teacup, speaking casually.

I didn't answer hastily. I was probably the only person in all of Jiangcheng who knew Huang Guanxing's death was connected to the Underworld Live Show. As a Streamer for the show, it was my greatest secret. Even if that name were to go public one day, it absolutely could not come from me.

"You're thinking. Did something come to mind? Is the killer's identity so sensitive that you don't dare speak up?" The conversation had barely started, yet I was already overwhelmed by Huang Boyuan's presence. He had navigated the business world for decades; he had eaten more salt than I had eaten rice. "Let me be clear. With Ganding Pharmaceuticals backing you, no one in Jiangcheng will dare give you trouble."

"Your company is indeed a commercial giant in Jiangcheng, but I doubt it has reached the point where it controls everything." I couldn't just play along with Huang Boyuan's words; doing so would drag me into his rhythm and leave me without the initiative.

"I didn't come here today to report on Huang Guanxing's cause of death. I have a business proposition to discuss with you."

"Discuss business with me?" Huang Boyuan laughed in spite of himself, glancing at the clock on the wall. "You have eight minutes."

His meaning was perfectly clear. How could a down-and-out loser running an Adult Shop think of discussing business with the director of a publicly listed company? Was I even worthy?

I heard the utter disdain in his words, but I didn't get angry. I placed my thermos on the desk and unscrewed the lid.

As it opened, the rich aroma of liquor wafted through the room.

"Good liquor!" The scent alone made Huang Boyuan's eyes light up. As a company director, he attended countless social engagements and had tasted fine liquors from all over the world, but he had never encountered an aroma so unique and lingering.

He had been leaning back in his chair ever since I walked in. Catching the scent, his body unconsciously left the backrest, and he sat upright at his desk.

"Now this looks more like a conversation." I pushed the thermos toward him. "Taste a drop."

"Who drinks liquor by the drop?" He let out a hearty laugh. Turning to the display shelf behind him, he retrieved a liquor set and picked out the two smallest ceramic cups.

It was obvious he was a lover of good drink. He filled both cups and brought one to his nose. "Fragrant but not cloying, mellow but not biting."

Then he brought it to his lips, intending to savor it slowly. But this tiny cup seemed to hold some immense magic. The moment the liquor touched his lips, his body reacted on its own, downing it in a single gulp.

"This liquor is truly bewitching. It makes a man act against his own will." With the cup emptied into his stomach and a fragrant aftertaste lingering in his mouth, the dignified director of Ganding Pharmaceuticals smacked his lips, his gaze drifting to the second cup.

By all rights, that second cup had been poured for me. But looking at Huang Boyuan's eyes, I could see his hidden reluctance and the literal ache he felt at the thought of parting with it.

"Boss Huang, don't be in such a rush to drink it. Savor it slowly. This liquor is a medicinal tonic brewed from several Chinese herbs; it has tremendous health benefits."

Prompted by my reminder, Huang Boyuan noticed a faint thread of warmth in his stomach. He closed his eyes to carefully experience the sensation. By the time he opened them again, five minutes had passed.

"This liquor is divine!" Huang Boyuan was in robust health, but due to an ailment from his younger years, the circulation in his legs was poor, causing them to ache if he maintained one posture for too long. Yet after downing just a single cup, his blocked qi and blood were cleared, as if a dozen tiny hands were gently massaging his meridians.

He stared greedily at my thermos. Thanks to the liquid inside, a cheap, ten-yuan street-stall item had transformed into a treasure coveted even by the director of a publicly listed company.

"How much for this liquor? I'll buy it!"

Huang Boyuan's tone was urgent. Seeing him like this, I secretly laughed. 'No matter how cunning the fox, it can never beat a good hunter.'

Wearing a smile, I held up a single finger. "A thousand a drop, ten thousand a mouthful!"

Hearing the price, Huang Boyuan finally calmed down. These businessmen possessed a terrifying, almost innate instinct. "That's too expensive. Even the special liquors exclusively supplied in Huaxia only cost this much."

"You can still get your hands on Huaxia's exclusive liquors if you pull some strings and spend enough money. But this liquor is one of a kind. Aside from me, no one can provide it."

I screwed the lid back onto the thermos and picked it up. "Besides, I don't intend to sell it. I want to partner with you."

"What kind of partnership?"

"I will provide the raw liquid, and you will help me analyze its medicinal ingredients. In the future, this liquor will become one of your products."

"You want to sell the formula?" It would be a lie to say Huang Boyuan wasn't tempted. Huaxia's liquor culture ran deep. If this liquor could be successfully brewed, its prospects were incredibly bright.

"Name your price."

"I want fifty percent of the profits." Cultivation relied on four essentials: wealth, companions, methods, and land. If I wanted rapid success, I needed to buy massive amounts of earthly treasures.

"What an enormous appetite. I provide the technology, the resources, and the distribution channels, and you just open your mouth and demand fifty percent?"

Huang Boyuan pulled a thick stack of documents from his drawer. After an hour-long tug-of-war, we finally reached a basic agreement.

I would provide the raw liquid. Once it was successfully brewed, I would take ten percent of the total sales profits.

It looked like I was taking a loss, but in reality, I was catching a white wolf with empty hands. I was getting something for practically nothing, sacrificing only half a bottle of the raw liquid.

Just as we were about to sign the agreement, Secretary Zhang's voice echoed from outside the door. "Director Huang, your next guest has been waiting a long time."

"Let her wait. I'm discussing major business here."

No sooner had Director Huang spoken than a woman's voice rang out. "Isn't Ganding Pharmaceuticals putting on too many airs? We've been waiting in the reception room for a solid hour. Could it be that Director Huang is intentionally making things difficult for us sisters to show Jiangjin Real Estate who's boss?"

"Miss Jiang, Director Huang is genuinely speaking with an important guest. You cannot go in right now."

"I can't go in just because you say so? I'd like to see exactly what kind of guest makes Director Huang disregard his appointments and leave Jiangjin Real Estate hanging in the lobby for an hour!" She moved to push the door open, but then another woman's voice chimed in.

"Feifei, stop! Director Huang is likely meeting with someone very important. Don't disturb them."

"Sister-in-law, we've been waiting for an hour! I bet Huang Boyuan is just being difficult on purpose and doesn't want to see you." With that, she shoved the office door open.

The faint aroma of liquor still drifted through the room. Left with no choice, Secretary Zhang led the two women into the inner office.

"Director Huang, the project manager for Jiangjin Real Estate and Miss Jiang Fei are here."

Hearing Jiang Fei's name annoyed me. 'Why is she everywhere? Now that this Marriage Fate Cord is tied, is she really impossible to shake off?'

"Let me see who this honored guest of yours is. Tsk, tsk, quite the eccentric taste in fashion, isn't it?"

Jiang Fei was just about to walk over when the other woman recognized me at a glance. She cried out in disbelief, "Gao Jian?!"

The voice coming from behind me was so familiar I couldn't possibly mistake it. "Ye Bing?"

I turned my head to look, and my eyes were met with sheer awkwardness.

"It's you! The guy who bullied me at the bank!" Jiang Fei covered her mouth and gasped. "Sister-in-law, this is the mysterious man I met at the bank that day!"

Ye Bing was even more shocked than Jiang Fei. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined that Huang Boyuan's honored guest would be me.

In her mind, I should have been holed up in my Adult Shop, coasting through life and waiting to die. But reality had just slapped her hard in the face.

The good-for-nothing loser she despised was the very person Huang Boyuan was treating as an esteemed VIP, breaking an appointment and leaving her and Jiang Fei waiting for a bitter hour just to do business with me.

Forcing a stiff smile, Ye Bing stared at me in astonishment. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just discussing some matters with Director Huang." With the agreement mostly settled, I set the thermos on Huang Boyuan's desk and extended my hand to him. "If this venture succeeds, I'll bring even better things in the future."

Huang Boyuan stood up and shook my hand. "A pleasure doing business with you. Ganding Pharmaceuticals will not let you down."

With the matter settled, I turned and walked away. I left freely and easily, not sparing Ye Bing or Jiang Fei another glance.

"Hey, wait." While Ye Bing was still reeling in shock, Jiang Fei chased after me, following me all the way to the end of the corridor.

"So your name is Gao Jian." She was panting, having jogged all the way in her high heels just to catch up.

"Miss Jiang, we aren't exactly close. Do me a favor and keep your distance." I was standing by the doors waiting for the elevator. Whether intentionally or not, Jiang Fei stood incredibly close to me, so close I could feel her hot breath puffing against my neck.

It left a tingling, numb sensation that made me subconsciously pull away.

"Am I that terrifying?" Jiang Fei stared at me with wide eyes. She wore only light makeup today, and though her outfit wasn't as provocative as the one at the bank, her devilish figure made even standard business attire look indescribably sexy.

I turned a deaf ear to Jiang Fei's words. Right now, all I wanted was to get on the elevator and leave as quickly as possible.