Chapter 138: You Can’t Call Him Hubby [Fourth Bonus Chapter]

“Are you certain their bottom line is as high as three hundred million? Can they really produce that much cash?” Sun Zhengyi asked over the phone, his voice tinged with doubt.

“I’m absolutely certain!” Little Ma replied. “I have an extremely reliable source of information. I also know for certain that Huang He secured a massive loan of one billion yuan last year. He has enough money to put up the three hundred million!”

“Then is Lianzhong Games really worth three hundred million to us?” Sun Zhengyi asked again.

“Lianzhong Games alone isn’t worth that much. But Lianzhong Games combined with our QQ is worth far more than three hundred million. This is an important transaction concerning QQ’s future development,” Little Ma said.

“Very well. But your stake in Tengda will be diluted even further. Are you truly willing to accept that?” Sun Zhengyi asked curiously.

“It’s no problem. Tengda’s total market value will rise substantially as a result. Besides, I believe Mr. Sun has no intention of interfering in the company’s operations,” Little Ma replied.

“Hahaha, good. The money will arrive tomorrow. At the same time, I’ll send my people over to sign a new investment and equity agreement with you,” Sun Zhengyi said.

The money indeed arrived the next day. That afternoon, Little Ma, Bao Yueqiao, and Leng Zhiruo gathered in Lianzhong’s reception room. Since the two parties had already met before, Bao Yueqiao simply invited both of them this time and had them bid against each other face-to-face. The auction began immediately.

“First, I have confirmed that Tengda can provide two hundred million yuan in cash,” Bao Yueqiao announced after clearing his throat.

“Oh, Mr. Ma, what tremendous nerve. I wonder where you managed to get even more money this time?” Leng Zhiruo asked with a smile.

“That has nothing to do with you, Miss Leng. Are you planning to continue bidding?” Little Ma asked coolly.

“Certainly. I bid two hundred and fifty million. Are you still following?” Leng Zhiruo unleashed her move directly, raising the price by another fifty million all at once. Her intention was obvious: she meant to crush Little Ma with the enormous gap.

This was a common tactic at auctions. When bidding over an item became fiercely contested, raising the price little by little often made people lose their heads. It was like boiling a frog in warm water, causing bidders to call out prices far beyond their original expectations before they even realized what they were doing.

By naming a high price all at once, however, one could force those who wanted to engage in a drawn-out struggle to regain their senses and calmly consider whether they should continue bidding. They might then abandon an irrational price and secure the item at a relatively lower cost.

That was precisely the tactic Leng Zhiruo was using now.

“Two hundred and sixty million!” Unfortunately for her, Little Ma followed without the slightest change in expression.

“Two hundred and seventy million!” Leng Zhiruo called out through gritted teeth.

“Two hundred and eighty million!” Little Ma continued.

“…”

This time, Leng Zhiruo fell silent. She sat in her chair and pondered for a long while before saying, “I’m going to the restroom.”

She rose and walked away. But just as she was about to reach the door, she suddenly turned to Wang Danrou and said, “Danrou, didn’t you say you needed to go as well?”

“Ah!” Wang Danrou froze for a moment, then hurriedly stood up, nodded, and followed Leng Zhiruo out.

The two of them were gone for nearly half an hour. Bao Yueqiao even joked that he was about to send some female employees in to check whether something had happened when Leng Zhiruo finally returned with Wang Danrou.

“Two hundred and ninety million!” Leng Zhiruo declared.

Her manner had become exceedingly confident and spirited. She wore a radiant smile, looking completely different from the hesitant woman she had been earlier.

She looked as though she had just found a huge sum of money.

“She must have gone to consult Huang He and ask for more money and greater authority,” Little Ma realized inwardly. Through Wang Danrou, his informant on the inside, he knew very well that Leng Zhiruo was essentially being directed by Huang He. Every bid was decided by Huang He. She had undoubtedly just received his approval to use more funds.

Should he follow this time?

Now it was Little Ma’s turn to hesitate. In his heart, three hundred million was more or less the absolute limit of Lianzhong Games’ value. He would never go any higher.

He considered the matter, then glanced at his sister-in-law’s shoes. They were a pair of exquisite high heels, beautiful and elegant. Her feet were angled slightly inward as they rested on the floor, and at that moment, Little Ma reached his decision.

“Three hundred million!” he said.

“You’ll regret this! This company isn’t worth that much money at all. Whether you get it or not doesn’t matter!” Leng Zhiruo snapped. She rose furiously and strode rapidly out of the reception room, as though she could not bear to remain there for another moment.

“I’m sorry!” Wang Danrou hurriedly apologized to everyone before chasing after her.

That left Little Ma alone in the reception room.

“It seems that from today onward, Mr. Ma, we’re family,” Bao Yueqiao said with a broad smile.

He was thoroughly satisfied with the price of three hundred million yuan—so satisfied that he could hardly have been more pleased. At least one hundred and twenty million of that sum would be distributed to her. In only a few days, he had become a billionaire. How could he possibly have any complaints?

“Yes, we’re family now!” Little Ma said, letting out a long sigh of relief.

He had Wang Danrou to thank. Using their prearranged signal, she had secretly told him that Leng Zhiruo had already reached her limit.

————————————

Leng Zhiruo was truly furious. That very evening, she boarded a plane back to Wenzhou, startling Wang Danrou, who had planned to remain in the capital for another day. In the end, she could only return to the company with Leng Zhiruo.

However, as soon as they reached the residential floor, Wang Danrou was informed that Leng Zhiruo was in an extremely bad mood and did not wish to be disturbed that night. She wanted to rest alone.

A few days earlier, Wang Danrou’s room had also been reassigned. She had been moved from the room next to Leng Zhiruo’s to the one farthest away.

The reason, of course, was the sounds coming from downstairs:

“Brother-in-law… brother-in-law… brother-in-law… sis…”

After a deliberately suppressed cry, the entire room finally fell silent. By then, however, it was already a complete mess.

From the bathroom to the sofa, from the sofa to the mattress, and even across the desk, traces of what had happened could be seen everywhere.

Ever since a certain seal had been broken, nothing remained to restrain Huang He and Leng Zhiruo. The little wild creature within Leng Zhiruo had been unleashed, and whenever she found an opportunity, she would cling to Huang He.

Yes, that little wild creature was probably a fox.

“Zhiruo, why do you insist on calling me brother-in-law?” Huang He asked as he held her. “Didn’t I tell you to call me husband?”

“What? Does it make you uncomfortable when I call you brother-in-law?” Leng Zhiruo asked, frowning slightly.

“That’s not it…” Huang He licked his lips. In truth, hearing her call him brother-in-law was far more stimulating than hearing her call him husband. He had merely assumed that she would dislike the title. After all, what woman would not want to be acknowledged openly as someone’s wife?

“I do want to call you husband,” Leng Zhiruo said, lowering her head. “But I can’t bring myself to say it. Whenever I open my mouth, my sister appears in my mind, as though she’s accusing me of stealing what belongs to her. So, brother-in-law, I think the word husband should remain reserved for my sister. I have no face to call you that.”

“You foolish girl… What if we never marry? Will you continue calling me brother-in-law in front of other people? Your sister wouldn’t be happy about that either. Even if she’s in heaven, I think she would still want her little sister to live well,” Huang He said, rolling his eyes.

“Forget it, brother-in-law. I can’t let go of it right now. Let me think it through first, all right?” Leng Zhiruo refused again.

Huang He said nothing more. In any case, calling him brother-in-law was even more thrilling. Why not let things remain that way?

“Brother-in-law!”

Another call came from inside the room. But this time, it clearly was not Leng Zhiruo’s voice. It belonged to Wang Danrou.

“She’s started contacting her brother-in-law again!” Leng Zhiruo pouted. “Brother-in-law, could Wang Danrou have fallen for her own brother-in-law?”

“Really? Then Little Ma is quite fortunate,” Huang He said with a sigh.

Leng Zhiruo promptly rapped him on the head.

“Hey, if Little Ma is fortunate, doesn’t that mean I’m fortunate too?” Huang He protested.

“But Wang Danrou’s sister is still alive! What a shameless little minx!” Leng Zhiruo cursed.

Huang He very much wanted to comment on that, but he did not dare.

“Brother-in-law, Director Leng lost her temper terribly. It seems we really disrupted their plans. She didn’t even eat dinner and locked herself in her room!” Wang Danrou’s voice came through the computer.

This time, however, the eavesdropping was not being carried out through a bug planted in the room. Instead, they were intercepting the mobile-phone signal directly. Thus, even in a room without a listening device, none of Wang Danrou’s calls could escape Huang He and Leng Zhiruo’s ears.

It was utterly merciless.

There was little else worth mentioning in the remainder of the call. Little Ma mainly thanked Wang Danrou for helping him successfully obtain Lianzhong, then promised to give her a bonus of one million yuan. Wang Danrou refused.

“That girl really thinks she helped her brother-in-law,” Leng Zhiruo said with a mocking laugh. “She doesn’t know that a certain someone’s account contained less than one hundred million from beginning to end. He couldn’t possibly conjure three hundred million in cash out of thin air.”

“So we ought to thank Wang Danrou as well. Find an excuse to give her a few thousand yuan as a bonus and reward her efforts,” Huang He said cheerfully.

This plan had been a tremendous success. By making use of Wang Danrou, his sister-in-law, they had fed Little Ma false information and caused him to spend an extra three hundred million for nothing. Tengda’s finances should be under pressure once again.

Then it was time to move on to the next step.