The whole house is engulfed in silence. He Qimo is exhausted, lying on the bed asleep. Outside the door, in the living room on the first floor, Liang Xi looked at He Yuan, Zhou Huimei, and He Xiaoqi across from him, his face awkwardly tense. A frantic day and night of urgent public relations had completely suppressed all the newspapers and entertainment magazines that almost released news overnight. However, this only blocked the throat leading to social channels. The wealthy circles, however, could not stop the gossip. The wife of the first real estate president in Rong City had an affair, and it was exposed by her husband himself, in that politically charged neighborhood... As such, this highly credible news would certainly lead even those socialite ladies who never like gossip to chat a few words. In just one day, those wealthy ladies once stimulated by Zhou Huimei’s flaunting, called one after another with "concern." On one hand, sympathizing with the He Family for seeking such a "soon-to-be unlucky and disgraced" family as relatives. On the other hand, lamenting that they didn’t expect such a family to produce such a daughter, truly bringing shame to the He Family’s name. Though the words all seemed to undervalue the He Family, upon closer taste, it wasn’t hard to hear another kind of ridicule. Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on novel·fıre·net Furthermore, the Junsheng Group’s entertainment department, which charged into the entertainment industry like a dark horse these past two years and rapidly catapulted its leading star, Shen Jian妮, also fell into a huge news scandal recently for beating a paparazzo journalist to the point of severe injury, causing her image to plummet and a storm of criticism online. Their own daughter, He Xiaoqi, didn’t know which mean-spirited person spread the wild rumor, almost becoming a laughingstock in the wealthy circles. Misfortunes never come singly, and these few days, Zhou Huimei’s heart was like playing bungee jumping, plunging from the highest point straight to the lowest point, then bouncing from the lowest point to the highest point. When receiving calls, her face would go from pale to livid, then from livid to black-purple. Gnashing her teeth, clutching her fingertips, wishing she could curse them all away, saying, "Mind your own business!" Yet, on the face, she still had to maintain a smile, repeatedly saying, "Misunderstanding, misunderstanding, it’s all small issues and will soon be over..." Liang Xi kept silent, as Zhou Huimei, facing the increasingly quiet atmosphere in the living room, grew more and more furious. Finally, with their silence approaching ten minutes, Zhou Huimei coldly broke the silence first, "Will you not tell what exactly is going on with that Gu Zixuan now? Liang Xi! You are Junsheng Group’s chief secretary, not her Gu Zixuan’s personal bodyguard. Junsheng’s downfall does you no good!" Liang Xi felt extremely awkward but still raised her eyes and insisted, "Madam, the lady did not cheat, the president also said it was just something said in anger during a quarrel, deliberately exaggerated by people with an agenda. The lady didn’t do anything to betray him, the lady is not that kind of person." "Not that kind of person? Then who in the world is such a shameless person?" The acrid terms made Liang Xi furrow her brow. Zhou Huimei further raised her voice, "Besides, I believe my son wouldn’t unjustly accuse her of such a crime. Unless she did something shameless, my son wouldn’t speak such words even in a quarrel! And the situation is already chaotic today! And you’re still not saying who this woman was unfaithful to?" This time, even He Yuan, who had been silently sitting with a stern face, couldn’t hold back. He put down the teacup in his hand and said firmly, "How can you talk like that?" "What do you mean how can I talk!" Zhou Huimei swept her angry brows, "I talk ! And am I wrong? He Yuan! And you! Usually, you always defend Gu Zixuan and that’s fine, but don’t you know my son’s temper? Liang Xi! Don’t you know the president’s temper?" This time, Liang Xi lowered her head, not daring to speak. He Yuan also furrowed his brows, not knowing what to say. Indeed, He Qimo didn’t talk much. When the He Family was still a small company and financially comfortable, he was consistently quiet and reserved. Later, when problems arose with the company, nearing bankruptcy, he became even more silent and focused on learning. After returning home to take over and reform the company, he became thoroughly profound and steady, speaking only when necessary. However, those familiar with He Qimo knew that whenever he spoke, it was invariably unavoidable, and the evidence irrefutable. Although He Yuan thought of Zixuan’s temperament and believed this daughter-in-law wouldn’t do such a thing, Qimo wasn’t someone who would stir up trouble without cause. Thinking again about the strange atmosphere between them since marriage, over the years... He Yuan lightly furrowed his brows, those eyes brushed by the years, clear and understanding, although he wasn’t certain, he could almost guess the possibility. What his son said, his daughter-in-law’s affair might very well have occurred during dating, before marriage... And the man who made his son concerned, might be... difficult to deal with. Next to him, Zhou Huimei was so furious her face turned red, fanning herself constantly, "Really, I just knew this was a restless vixen, annoying me every day at home is one thing, it turns out she was doing these things secretly, annoying my son, just look at how my son was angered today! They should have divorced early on, she is simply a jinx! A harbinger of misfortune!" Zhou Huimei was mumbling protectively... Upstairs, at an unknown hour, He Qimo stood by the banister, listening to the ongoing arguments. He lowered his eyes, took out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, lit one, and inhaled with a furrowed brow... After finishing one cigarette, he lit a second, but after a couple of drags, he recalled what Gu Zixuan said last night. "Can’t you smoke a little less?" "..." Silence. Something struggled and spread in his heart. He extinguished the cigarette. He took out his phone and glanced at it. A whole day... From Gu Zixuan’s disappearance last night to today’s complete lack of news, she hadn’t sent him any messages. Thinking about the fact that the company had been substantially taken over by Feng Chengjin, he was so angry he wanted to punch the wall. But recalling Gu Zixuan’s tearful back as she left last night, there was a tremor of reluctance in his heart again. Finally, listening again to the murmuring accusations in the living room, he wearily headed to the bedroom. Closing the door, he intended to go back to sleep. But as he was undressing, he heard the phone ring. Picking it up, seeing the number on the other end, he didn’t even think before hanging up. Soon, the other end called again, and he hung up once more. After two or three times, he frowned, slid his finger, and added the number to the blacklist. But on the other end, Shen Jian妮 hearing the cold prompt of the call being hung up was left entirely stunned, her eyes widened, feeling like cursing! After hanging up, in the hotel’s high-end business suite, her manager Xiao Liu anxiously asked, "How did it go? Did the President take the call?" With the President’s level of position, Xiao Liu had no way to communicate directly. But ever since Liang Xi, the President’s secretary, delivered the news of the public relations team being dismantled, he hadn’t been willing to take her calls either. In the end, pinning her hopes on the President for old times’ sake, Xiao Liu could only look expectantly at Shen Jian妮, hoping she could somehow produce some key life-saving note. After all, public relations operate on the 72-hour golden rule. The first day, to suppress every situation and cancel the slander, that would be the best outcome. If it couldn’t be contained, three days is already the limit; after three days, whatever should be on the news is on the news, whatever should be trending online is already trending, the public opinion has fully spread, and the direction is set, even a deity couldn’t salvage it! Yet, in the end, Shen Jian妮 still let him down. With trembling lips, Shen Jian妮 said, "He put me on a blacklist..." "Ah..." Hearing this, Xiao Liu slapped her face in frustration, turned around, wanting to hit the wall. Shen Jian妮, however, thought about the cold-hearted way He Qimo did this, her anger boiling in waves. He even blacklisted me just like that! But thinking about the instigators... the He Family mother and daughter, Shen Jian妮’s furious heart grew even darker. After all, the He Family’s troubles had nothing to do with her; it was Zhou Huimei who had tricked her, saying to have a child to get in the door. In the end, it was all a set trap! They even called reporters behind her back trying to take down Gu Zixuan, completely disregarding whether her own reputation would be ruined along with it! Thinking about how she foolishly fell for it once, Shen Jian妮 held her phone, furiously pacing back and forth on her high heels. After being fooled, He Qimo wouldn’t listen to her explanations, and Old Witch Zhou hadn’t even bothered with a call, making Shen Jian妮 pace even more. Finally, thinking about how she had never been used in her life, and considering her originally bright future... The anger within Shen Jian妮 grew ever stronger, stuck in her chest, unable to be released. She stopped her steps, finally muttering under her breath, "Damn it! Are they trying to kill me too!" He? She? Mr. He? Madam? Xiao Liu was instantly dumbfounded, "Who are you talking about?" "Old Witch Zhou! Hmph! She really thinks Shen Jian妮 is a pushover! I even dare to confront Gu Zixuan, why should I fear a fake nouveau riche like her?" In an instant, Xiao Liu seemed to understand something, her face pale, "Aunty, it’s already come to this, what else are you thinking of doing?" Shen Jian妮 flipped her wavy hair and said, "Take her down!"