"Yes," Ye Zhi replied calmly.
Zhan Ruoqing had already signed the investment contract. As for Zhan Ruoqing's friends, she had video-called with several of them today, chatted with them briefly, and arranged times for them to meet. They were all highly interested and only the contracts remained unsigned, but Ye Zhi had already counted them in.
Ye Yongxian listened to the names she mentioned, his expression complex.
He had actually intended to introduce Ye Zhi to his connections step by step, paving the way for her once she had achieved some success.
But who knew that Ye Zhi would solve the problems herself, and what's more, the people she knew were all the rising stars of the new generation in the capital.
His daughter was truly capable; what more could he say?
"Alright," he sighed with emotion, "then let's cooperate."
"Then I'll come to Ye's tomorrow to discuss the details," Ye Zhi said.
"Whatever you say," Ye Yongxian nodded.
"Oh, Dad, how is that piece of land in Beihu?" Ye Zhi asked.
"I checked," Ye Yongxian frowned. "There's some issue with that land; even if we acquire it, development won't be smooth, so I plan to give it up."
"It's good that you're giving it up," Ye Zhi said. "We can focus on the cooperation with Taoxun first."
Ye Yongxian's brow relaxed, and he nodded in agreement.
After chatting with him, Ye Zhi walked out of the study. She was about to go to the restroom when she suddenly saw Ye Yuzhe acting suspiciously, trying to sneak back into his room.
"Stop!" Ye Zhi's face darkened, and she directly asked, "Where were you tonight?!"
Ye Yuzhe froze. He reluctantly shuffled over, forcing an awkward smile. "Big sister, I just went for supper with some classmates..."
Catching the faint smell of alcohol on him, Ye Zhi's expression changed. "You drank?!"
"No, no, no, they were the ones drinking. It must have gotten on my clothes. I didn't touch a drop!" Ye Yuzhe said urgently.
Ye Zhi grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him close. "Open your mouth."
"Ah—" Ye Yuzhe obediently opened his mouth wide.
"You stink!" Ye Zhi pushed him away with disgust. "Go wash up!"
"Okay!" Ye Yuzhe agreed obediently and turned to leave.
"Come back!" Ye Zhi suddenly called him. She frowned. "Stay away from those hangers-on of yours in the future!"
"What hangers-on? They're all my classmates!" Ye Yuzhe said aggrievedly.
Ye Zhi's brow remained furrowed. She pondered, "I think I should enroll you in some cram schools..."
"No, no, no!" Ye Yuzhe exclaimed in alarm. "My dearest sister, please spare me! This is the last summer holiday before my third year of high school. Just let me relax completely!"
"No!" Ye Zhi said decisively. "You should be starting your countdown to the college entrance exam now!"
Ye Yuzhe's mouth dropped open in surprise. He became anxious. "How can you be like this? Are you even my real sister?!"
"It's precisely because I'm your real sister that I'm doing this," Ye Zhi raised an eyebrow. "You can speak louder, call Mom and Dad out, and let's see what they say!"
"You..." Ye Yuzhe glared at her angrily, then let out a frustrated "Ah!" and stormed off.
Ye Zhi: ...
She sighed with a hint of helplessness. In truth, she didn't really want to force Ye Yuzhe like this.
It was just that she remembered in the original plot, Ou Minghan had arranged for people to be by his side, who, under the guise of friends, led him astray, exposed him to those substances, and ruined Ye Yuzhe's life.
She had felt so much for her brother at the time, so she had searched for chapters related to him by title and discovered a passage where the brother quit those substances and prepared to seek revenge on Ou Minghan.
She had been too heartbroken for her brother then, so she hadn't dared to read further. Because she knew Ou Minghan was the protagonist and would be fine, but her brother was a supporting character, and his fate was uncertain.
Although it was just a brief mention, Ye Zhi's upbringing made her understand how painful and difficult it was to quit those things through sheer willpower, and how easily one could relapse.
She didn't want Ye Yuzhe to experience that. His life had just begun, and he had a bright future ahead of him.
However, she was currently in a struggle with Ou Minghan and simply didn't have the energy to manage Ye Yuzhe. Therefore, for now, she could only confine him with cram schools. When she had time, she actually wanted to bring Ye Yuzhe to her side and educate him personally, letting him truly feel the deep love from his sister.
Having completed everything she needed to do at the Ye family's residence, Ye Zhi took her leave.
Upon returning to the villa on the mountainside, Ye Zhi got out of the car. She glanced at the house opposite, her expression showing some hesitation.
Qi Xuan had promised to guide her with her fitness training every night.
However, it was so late today; it would clearly be inappropriate to disturb him now. Forget it, she would go home first and deal with it tomorrow.
As Ye Zhi turned to enter her house, she saw the door opposite open, and Qi Xuan walked out.
The butler and the maids hid behind the main door, watching them with anticipation. Qi Xuan had actually come to the door after hearing Ye Zhi's car. He waited until the car stopped before pretending to bump into her.
"You're back?" Qi Xuan asked very naturally.
"Yes, I had dinner with my parents and my brother," Ye Zhi sighed. "He's going through a rebellious phase. I made him feel my sisterly concern..."
Qi Xuan watched her with a faint smile. He enjoyed hearing her talk about these trivial matters.
"Um..." Ye Zhi asked with some difficulty, "It's so late today, are we still going to train?"
"Of course," Qi Xuan said calmly. "One cannot slack off on training for a single day."
Ye Zhi nodded. "Then I'll go home and change first..."
"Let's train at your place," Qi Xuan said calmly. "After training, you can rest directly without having to travel back and forth."
"That works too," Ye Zhi agreed.
Seeing the two of them walk into Ye Zhi's house, the butler and the maids emerged with resentful expressions.
It was just training, why were they being kept in the dark? Was there something they couldn't see?
Ye Zhi changed into her workout clothes and came downstairs to the living room.
While exercising, she asked, "Coach Qi, I ate a bit too much today. Do I need to do extra training?"
"No need. Eating a bit more occasionally won't have a significant impact," Qi Xuan said calmly. Suddenly, he asked with some concern, "What did you eat?"
Ye Zhi replied truthfully, "At noon, I had a cup of milk tea, a small cake, and an ice cream pot. It wasn't much, all desserts. I ate quite a lot at dinner; my parents kept putting food on my plate..."
Qi Xuan: ...
Could he still take back his earlier statement?
"From now on, I'll be responsible for your three meals," Qi Xuan said in a deep voice.
"Ah?" Ye Zhi looked at him, confused.
"As your fitness coach, it's only reasonable that I'm responsible for your fitness meals," Qi Xuan said calmly.