Spicy crayfish.

Lemon boneless chicken feet.

A fruity cocktail mixed with Sprite and Corona using seven or eight kinds of fruit.

Plus matcha cream puffs from a bakery.

Carrying these, Ye Chen parked the G-Wagon downstairs and returned to his rented apartment.

"Back so soon?"

Hearing Ye Chen come in, Chen Yinuo, who was teaching Ye Youyou phonics, turned her head and asked.

"I just went to have a meal and chatted about family stuff. No point staying longer and forcing a conversation, right?" Ye Chen chuckled.

As soon as Ye Chen finished speaking, Ye Youyou noticed the bags in his hands.

"Dad, did you buy something delicious?"

"Yes, didn't you say you love matcha cream puffs? Dad got them for you!"

"Wow, thank you, Dad!"

Ye Youyou dropped her phonics practice, rushing to Ye Chen's side to rummage through the bags.

"Dad, what's all this?"

"These are for Mom, not for you. You focus on your cream puffs, but remember to drink plenty of water!" Ye Chen smiled.

"What did you buy?"

Looking at the assortment of bags, Chen Yinuo walked over.

"Spicy crayfish, lemon boneless chicken feet, and fruit cocktails—aren't these your favorites? Come, try some!"

Ye Chen's warm smile appeared as he placed the items on the table.

For a moment, Chen Yinuo was stunned.

If she recalled correctly, aside from grocery shopping for meals, this was the first time Ye Chen had personally bought food for her since they got married.

And not just anything—these were her absolute favorites: spicy crayfish and lemon boneless chicken feet.

The fact that Ye Chen had remembered her preferences surprised her as much as his thoughtful gesture.

"What are you waiting for? Sit down. I'll grab some cups!"

Ye Chen poured out the fruit cocktail into glasses.

"I didn't expect you to remember what I like!"

Ye Chen paused, feeling a pang of guilt before saying sincerely, "I'll remember everything you like from now on. For the rest of my life."

At that moment, Chen Yinuo felt her eyes well up with tears.

She laughed lightly, took a deep breath, and wiped the corner of her eye with her finger, deciding not to dwell on her emotions.

Instead, she slipped on disposable gloves and got to work.

"What did the old secretary talk to you about?"

As she peeled a crayfish, she casually asked.

"Just some small talk. By the way, I mentioned the no-scar cream production to him, hoping he could help smooth the process and save us time on approvals."

Ye Chen extracted a piece of crayfish meat and held it up to her mouth.

Startled, Chen Yinuo didn't lean forward but reached out to take it instead. "What did the secretary say?"

"He said as long as it's legal and meets all standards and requirements, a recommendation wouldn't be an issue." Ye Chen smiled.

"You've met a benefactor this time."

Looking at the transformed Ye Chen, Chen Yinuo couldn't help but marvel.

"A benefactor?"

Ye Chen thought silently for a moment but said with a smile, "Yes, a true benefactor."

That night was the longest conversation Ye Chen and Chen Yinuo had shared since Ye Youyou was born.

But in the end, they still didn't share the same bed.

Ye Chen wasn't in a rush. After his previous rejection, he had come to terms with waiting a bit longer after all these years.

The next day, Monday.

After two leisurely days, Ye Youyou returned to school, and Chen Yinuo headed to work.

Driving the unregistered G-Wagon, Ye Chen dropped Ye Youyou off at the entrance of Zijing Kindergarten.

The parents and teachers nearby were all wide-eyed.

A G-Wagon worth over two million had become Ye Youyou's family car?

Instantly, Ye Chen, Chen Yinuo, and Ye Youyou became the center of attention.

Wasn't he riding an electric scooter just a few days ago?

What kind of fortune had they stumbled upon in such a short time?

Ignoring the curious stares, Ye Chen waved goodbye to Ye Youyou with a smile, then drove Chen Yinuo to the Huaxing Trade office building.

Finally, he headed for the Henda Group headquarters in Jiangzhou CBD.

At the reception desk:

"Hello, I'm Ye Chen."

The receptionist, already informed of his arrival, immediately stepped forward.

Uncertain of Ye Chen's exact status but remembering the CEO's explicit instructions, the receptionist treated him like a VIP.

"Mr. Ye, welcome. Mr. Xiao asked me to escort you to the conference room on the 39th floor. This way, please."

"Thank you!"

Ye Chen followed the receptionist leisurely toward the elevator.

In a distant corner near the elevator, a cleaning lady tugged on Liu Xueqin's sleeve, exclaiming, "Hey, hey, Xueqin! Look, isn't that your son-in-law?"

"Son-in-law?"

Liu Xueqin, who had just finished mopping, instinctively looked up.

She saw the receptionist respectfully leading a man toward the elevator.

Having worked at Henda Group for years, Liu Xueqin knew that anyone escorted by the reception staff was no ordinary person.

"Xueqin, doesn't that figure look like your son-in-law Ye Chen?"

The cleaning lady, who lived in the same resettlement neighborhood as Liu Xueqin, had met Ye Chen a few times and couldn't help but whisper.

"First of all, let me correct you—I never acknowledged that person as my son-in-law. Second, that gambling, drinking loser? Do you really think he could step foot in Henda Group, let alone be escorted by the receptionist? Do you know how rare that treatment is?"

Pulling her gaze back, Liu Xueqin sneered.

She wouldn't deny the resemblance but deemed it impossible that the man could be Ye Chen.

"True, but the resemblance is uncanny!"

"There are plenty of lookalikes in the world. People say I resemble that actress from Hong Kong who always plays rich moms, yet here I am mopping floors and cleaning toilets!"

The cleaning lady burst out laughing.

"All I want now is for my ungrateful daughter to divorce that loser and find someone rich. Then I can leave this cleaning job and live a comfortable life."

"Your daughter's got the looks and figure for it. If she looks again, she's bound to find someone better!"

"Exactly! But that ungrateful girl won't listen. It's infuriating! Forget it, the more I think about it, the angrier I get!"

At the Henda Group's 39th floor conference room.

Ye Chen pushed open the door to find a man and a woman inside.

The woman was Xiao Qiang, the deputy general manager he had met the other night.

The man was Liu Zhuo, the executive vice president he recognized from his previous life's memories.

"Mr. Ye!"

Seeing Ye Chen enter, both Liu Zhuo and Xiao Qiang stood up, politely greeting him with smiles.

"Ms. Xiao, we meet again!" Ye Chen smiled lightly.

"Yes, we meet again."

Recalling their encounter at A Café, Xiao Qiang's inner frustration resurfaced, though she maintained a composed smile.

Pointing to Liu Zhuo, she introduced, "Mr. Ye, this is Liu Zhuo, our executive vice president at Henda Group."

"Mr. Ye, a pleasure to meet you!"

Straightening his suit jacket out of habit, Liu Zhuo extended his hand with a smile.

"Mr. Liu, a pleasure!"

Neither humble nor overbearing, Ye Chen shook his hand with a faint smile.

"Mr. Ye, please have a seat!"

As Ye Chen let go, Xiao Qiang gestured toward the sofa.

Nodding slightly, Ye Chen sat down and got straight to the point:

"Mr. Liu, Ms. Xiao, let's not waste time. Have you decided on my asking price?"

"Mr. Ye, can we approach this price rationally? Your demand of 660 million—isn't that excessive?" Liu Zhuo asked with a wry smile.

"Rationally? I am being rational. That's why I didn't quote an inflated figure and instead gave my bottom line. As for 660 million, I don't think it's excessive," Ye Chen replied seriously.

"Mr. Ye, let me ask you something. It's only been a few days since you acquired Jinzhong Village for over 60 million. Now you're demanding ten times the price. Don't you think that's unreasonable?" Xiao Qiang interjected.

Ye Chen, however, simply smiled and shook his head.

"Ms. Xiao, are you questioning your own expertise, or do you take me for some clueless middleman? Our deal isn't based on how much I spent to acquire the land. And as for whether the price is excessive—let me remind you, it's you who want to buy the Jinzhong Village land from me, not the other way around."