Ye Zhi, seeing that the gift didn't seem to be well-received, awkwardly explained, "I saw your bedroom was so empty, and I thought I'd buy something practical to place in your room. Massage chairs are very practical. If you're tired, you can lie down and rest, and let it massage you. It also comes with a massager, which I tried and it's great! So I bought two, one for you, and one for me..."
Qi Xuan's expression shifted slightly. One for him and one for Ye Zhi? Did this count as a couple's massage chair?
Ye Zhi suddenly thought of something and hurriedly said, "...Ahem, I absolutely had no intention of spying on you!"
The corners of Qi Xuan's lips curved into a faint smile. So, Ye Zhi paid attention to the furnishings in his room usually.
Just as the butler was about to say something, before he could even speak, he heard Qi Xuan say, "Butler, take it to my room."
"Alright!" The butler agreed with a chuckle. He turned to Ye Zhi and said, "Miss Ye, your gift is truly wonderful. Young Master really likes it!"
Ye Zhi finally felt relieved.
The servants carried the massage chairs into Qi Xuan's bedroom, after which the butler began to entertain her with blue lobsters.
Just as Ye Zhi was enjoying her meal, the doorbell suddenly rang.
The butler went to answer it and returned with a slightly displeased expression.
"Young Master, your assistant just arrived. Ou Minghan sent the invitation to your company, and the assistant wants to ask how you intend to handle it." the butler said.
Ye Zhi and Qi Xuan often discussed matters without excluding the butler, so the butler had heard some things related to Ou Minghan and knew he wasn't a good person. Therefore, he had a very poor impression of Ou Minghan.
Ye Zhi's expression showed surprise. She couldn't help but look at Qi Xuan, "Why would he send you an invitation?"
"His birthday is approaching, and he's sent invitations to many people." Qi Xuan said indifferently. "Actually, he's been to my company several times, wanting to see me in person, but I haven't met him."
This was the second time she had heard about Ou Minghan's birthday today. It seemed Ou Minghan was attaching great importance to this birthday.
Of course, celebrating a birthday was secondary; the real purpose was to expand his network by using the birthday as an excuse. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come to find Qi Xuan repeatedly.
"Are you planning to attend his birthday banquet?" Ye Zhi asked curiously.
"I don't attend pointless banquets." Qi Xuan said indifferently.
"That's a shame..." Ye Zhi sighed. "I wanted to give him a 'big gift'!"
"Do you like giving gifts so much?" Qi Xuan asked, a hint of sourness in his tone.
Ye Zhi was taken aback. She said with a chuckle, "Don't misunderstand, the 'big gift' I'm talking about is something Ou Minghan might not like to receive. By the way, when is his birthday?"
"About half a month from now." Qi Xuan replied.
"Isn't that perfect timing?" Ye Zhi said with a smile. "It seems my big gift is very suitable to be given on that day."
"You mean..." Qi Xuan's expression cleared, but he didn't finish his sentence.
"Yes, exactly what you're thinking." Ye Zhi nodded, and they exchanged a knowing smile.
"Oh, right. Ou Minghan's birthday banquet is scheduled to be held at the Star Dream Club, which will also reopen on that day." Qi Xuan continued.
"Oh my..." Ye Zhi smiled slightly. "That makes me feel a little embarrassed. It seems I'll have to offer an extra gift."
The butler watched from the side, feeling very anxious.
Was there something he wasn't privy to? Why were these two playing games of riddles in front of him? Didn't they know that speaking in half-truths was really annoying! But then again...
It seemed like a good feeling to have them share a common secret!
*
Half a month passed quickly, and soon it was Ou Minghan's birthday.
Ye Zhi arrived at Taoxun Company early. During these past two weeks, she was truly grateful to Ye Qin Ya, Ou Tian Tian, and Zhang Dan Ni.
Because Ou Minghan's birthday was approaching, these three women had used all their charm to win Ou Minghan's heart. As a result, Ou Minghan was constantly dealing with the vying affections of three women and didn't have much time for anything else, completely failing to notice the quiet development of Taoxun!
Today, it was time to give Ou Minghan a surprise.
Ye Zhi glanced at her watch. It was 8:55 AM, only five minutes before 9 o'clock.
Ye Zhi stood behind Chen Wei and calmly asked, "Is everything ready?"
Chen Wei, sitting at his computer desk, took a deep breath and said, "Everything is prepared. The website will go online at nine."
Ye Zhi nodded and said no more.
The five minutes passed quickly. As Ye Zhi saw the second hand reach the end, she calmly said, "Let's start."
Chen Wei nodded.
The website went online, the chat tool went online, and Taoxun's chat tools and shopping websites' advertisements were everywhere on the streets and alleys.
Advertisements for Taoxun were displayed on screens all over the city, in subway stations, bus stops, and even inside residential elevators.
Not only that, but major websites also featured headlines and pop-ups promoting Taoxun.
"I wonder what Ou Minghan's expression will be right now?" Chen Wei said with a hint of mockery.
"No need to look, I can tell it won't be pleasant." Ye Zhi smiled and opened the Qianbai website. Even the Qianbai website had advertisements for Taoxun.
Ye Zhi clicked her tongue twice. It seemed Ou Minghan was truly consumed by love troubles lately.
Inside the Qianbai company, Ou Minghan was indeed troubled.
Ou Tian Tian was having "episodes" all day, complaining of chest pain; Ye Qin Ya was crying every day, hoping he would accompany her; even Zhang Dan Ni was always pestering him, saying she had suffered for him and that he owed her compensation.
He was so annoyed by these three women that he hadn't had a peaceful day in a long time.
"CEO..." Ou Minghan's assistant, Feng Jie, walked in. He looked at the headache-stricken Ou Minghan and hesitated.
"What is it, speak up!" Ou Minghan said impatiently.
"A new company was just launched today, also focusing on online shopping and social networking..." the assistant said softly.
Ou Minghan's gaze turned colder. He sneered and said dismissively, "Who is this audacious enough to go against me?! Don't bother with it; that company won't last more than a few days!"
Feng Jie quickly said, "CEO, but this company is advertising everywhere and offering many promotional discounts. It's already generated a lot of buzz online..."
"What?!" Ou Minghan slammed the table in anger. "Whose company is this? Who dares to be so bold?!"
"The founder of this company..." Feng Jie hesitated, then truthfully said, "is Ye Zhi."
Ou Minghan's expression immediately became even more unpleasant. It was Ye Zhi!
"Gather all information about that company for me immediately!" Ou Minghan said fiercely.
The assistant immediately agreed. Soon, a document about Taoxun appeared on Ou Minghan's desk.
Ou Minghan flipped through it, his face already contorted with displeasure.
The document mentioned that besides the support of the Ye family, Ye Zhi also seemed to have a mysterious investor, which was why she could afford to spend so much on advertising. However, his investigation couldn't uncover the identity of this mysterious investor.
"What do you mean you can't find out?!" Ou Minghan, enraged, slammed the table again. "What do I pay you people for?! And what about the advertising department?! Why are their ads even on our Qianbai company's website? Who approved this? Get them removed now!"
Feng Jie dared not even breathe. The embarrassing situation was a result of Ou Minghan's own decision, wasn't it?
He was the one who told the advertising department that Qianbai only cared about the money for advertisements, regardless of what the client did or whether their claims were true.
In fact, Qianbai's website had already encountered scandals involving false advertising, but Ou Minghan had suppressed them.
Therefore, Feng Jie wasn't surprised that the advertising department had accepted the ad without proper vetting.
Feng Jie couldn't help but say, "But cancelling the contract like this will incur penalties..."