"Old Lin, is this your mother?" Niu Shufang had no intention of letting go. Just as she was about to tighten her grip on Shen Xiaoyan's hand, a large hand directly clasped her wrist. The force was so great that she was flung aside.
"Ah?" Lin Xin hadn't recovered from the shock and looked at Zheng Wei with a bewildered expression, still out of his depth.
"Even your own sister has no right to criticize her, let alone some random woman!" Zheng Wei reached out and grabbed Shen Xiaoyan's hand. Seeing the marks on Shen Xiaoyan's hand, he irritably said to her, "Are you mute? If someone grabs you, you just let them?"
Shen Xiaoyan remained silent.
Lin Xin also snapped back to reality. He glanced at Niu Shufang, who was pushed aside, and then at Zheng Wei, who was on the verge of exploding. He said with a hint of trepidation, "Brother, aren't we childhood friends?"
"Assistant Hou, cancel all endorsement contracts Niu Shufang has with City Jiang." Zheng Wei gave Lin Xin a cold glance, then casually made a call to Assistant Hou, speaking in a light tone, as if narrating a commonplace event.
As soon as Zheng Wei said this, even Lin Xin's face changed.
Niu Shufang was just starting out in the entertainment industry, and the Zheng Corporation's endorsement was something he had helped her secure. Now, Zheng Wei's words were not only a slap in Niu Shufang's face but also his own.
"Old Zheng! Brother! She's just entered the industry, this contract is very important to her." Lin Xin felt that Zheng Wei didn't need to be so ruthless for Shen Xiaoyan's sake.
"Shen Xiaoyan is also here for the first time, and Ms. Niu is so eager to make things difficult for her. Do you think I'm dead?" Zheng Wei's decisions were difficult to change, especially on something as trivial as endorsements.
Lin Xin finally understood what Old Lu's gaze had meant earlier...
Old Lu must have wanted him to be careful... but he had truly crossed Old Zheng's bottom line now.
After so many years of brotherhood, he had no idea when Shen Xiaoyan had become one of Old Zheng's bottom lines. The thought made Lin Xin feel a pang of discomfort...
Brothers are like clothes!
...
For Niu Shufang, the situation became extremely awkward. She stood there, unsure whether to sit or stand.
Zheng Wei gently rubbed Shen Xiaoyan's hand. He didn't look up, but everyone in the room knew his warning was directed at Niu Shufang. "Watch yourself from now on. If Lin Xin were alone, it would be fine if you didn't knock. But if I'm here, you'd better leave."
"Me too," Lu Taobao added.
The maximum limit of their small circle seemed to be their significant others, and Niu Shufang was clearly none of that.
"Why are you still lingering? Aren't you hungry?" Zheng Wei finished rubbing Shen Xiaoyan's hand and saw her still sitting there blankly. He naturally reached out and patted her head lightly.
"Oh." So much had happened today, Shen Xiaoyan couldn't quite process it. She hummed and quietly resumed eating.
Niu Shufang couldn't bear to stay any longer. She covered her face and rushed out.
Seeing her storm out, Lin Xin felt a pang of worry.
"Old Lin, this woman has character problems, she's not your type," Lu Taobao said leisurely after the private room door was closed again.
"She clearly stepped on you to get to me. Don't you see that?" Zheng Wei spoke without reservation in front of his two brothers.
"Brother, you say that and it makes me sad! Every woman who's approached me since childhood has had that motive! I'm also very frustrated, you know?" Lin Xin felt like he had made the wrong career choice by becoming a lawyer. He should have just inherited the family business, then he'd be a powerful CEO now!
"I already have a wife, don't push your problems onto me," Zheng Wei said with a cold tone.
"Hmph, your wife is also only a few days old," Lin Xin felt he had completely lost his appetite after Niu Shufang's incident.
"Are you full?" Seeing Shen Xiaoyan put down her chopsticks, Zheng Wei glanced at her.
Shen Xiaoyan nodded.
"Speak, don't just nod and shake your head," Zheng Wei felt like he was going to be suffocated by Shen Xiaoyan.
"I'm full." Shen Xiaoyan's voice was naturally gentle, and her low tone sounded soft and obedient!
"We'll leave after we finish eating." Zheng Wei hadn't eaten much either. He stood up and waited there until Shen Xiaoyan stood up. Then he casually picked up her bag and put his arm around her waist.
Lin Xin nearly choked on his food at this sight.
"It's too much, truly too much!" Lin Xin grumbled.
"You should lie low these days. Don't let your various confidantes flaunt themselves in front of Shen Xiaoyan. Old Zheng is serious this time, otherwise, why do you think he dislikes Sima Han?" Lu Taobao said to Lin Xin.
"Got it, got it." Lin Xin waved his hand.
"What do you got? The Niu family isn't easy to deal with either. In short, you handle it yourself. Of course, I still suggest you cut ties with the Niu family. You know what they're like," Lu Taobao patted his clothes, also preparing to leave.
"Old Lu, are you so sure they'll make it to the end?"
Lin Xin didn't believe the two would end up together. They seemed like people from different worlds.
Just as Lu Taobao was about to speak, he heard a commotion outside the private room. Thinking of Zheng Wei leaving just moments ago, he immediately opened the door and stepped out, only to see Zheng Wei in a brawl with someone. Shen Xiaoyan was trying to pull Zheng Wei away, but her efforts were futile.
"Old Zheng!" Lu Taobao shouted. Without caring who the other person was, he rolled up his sleeves and joined Zheng Wei in attacking the man.
Shen Xiaoyan watched in stunned silence: Shouldn't Mr. Lu come over to break up the fight? Why was he joining in?
"Zheng Wei, stop fighting!" Seeing the scene becoming increasingly chaotic, Lin Xin would probably join the brawl in a few seconds.
The opponent was not alone. In a short while, several people were fighting. However, Zheng Wei's group was more skilled at fighting and the other side soon admitted defeat.
"Your lip is bleeding," Shen Xiaoyan quickly took out a tissue from her bag and wiped Zheng Wei's mouth.
Zheng Wei didn't move, allowing Shen Xiaoyan to wipe the bloodstains.
"Hey, what did our Doctor Sima do to you? You're beating people without asking for a reason?" a young man from the other side accused.
Hearing this, Zheng Wei let out a disdainful snort. He put his arm around Shen Xiaoyan's waist, his expression chilling as he looked at Sima Han, whose lip was also bleeding, and said coldly, "Ask him yourself. Ask him why he's staring at someone else's wife!"
"You're bullying people!" The two young men, following behind Sima Han, looked at Zheng Wei's group with disgust.
"The fight is over. Doctor Sima, how do you think we should compensate you?" Lu Taobao stepped forward at this moment, blocking Lin Xin. Although Lin Xin was a lawyer, he took charge of dealing with Sima Han.
Because of Lu Taobao's words, several people's eyes fell on the man leaning against the wall.
Compared to Lu Taobao and Zheng Wei, he had less ferocity and more gentleness. He wore a light blue robe, and his face was serene. Despite having just fought fiercely, there was no sign of distress about him.
Hearing Lu Taobao's words, Sima Han was not as indignant as the two young men behind him. He was very calm. He glanced at Zheng Wei and then said in a light tone, "No need."
With that, he left with his men.
Lu Taobao's gaze was thoughtful as he watched them leave.
"Do you need to go to the hospital?" Shen Xiaoyan asked Zheng Wei.
This time she saw clearly that the man had indeed looked at her, but Zheng Wei's reaction was too extreme.
"It's nothing, let's go home." Zheng Wei tightly held her waist and walked out.
...
Zheng Wei, with the help of his grandmother, finally found a nanny to help cook at home and make medicine for Shen Xiaoyan. The workroom upstairs had been set up, and Shen Xiaoyan was sitting in a chair with her laptop.
She didn't actually pay attention to entertainment news. Whenever she went online, she mostly browsed the latest fashion trends. But this time, as soon as she opened a webpage, she saw all sorts of push notifications about Niu Shufang.
It turned out that Niu Shufang's endorsements were suddenly withdrawn, and even other small endorsements she had secured were canceled. This caused such a stir that curious netizens quickly pushed Niu Shufang onto the trending list. All the media were paying attention to the matter, speculating that Niu Shufang must have offended someone.
Shen Xiaoyan only learned from these news reports that Niu Shufang had been developing quite well and was a rising starlet. However, she didn't pay much attention to it and just skimmed through, then went to check the news about the recent fashion week.
Just because Shen Xiaoyan didn't pay attention didn't mean things wouldn't come knocking on her door.
She stayed in the workroom for an entire afternoon. When she came out in the evening, she found the nanny looking at her with a worried expression.
"Aunt Na, what's wrong?" Aunt Na was introduced by Chairman Sun, Zheng Wei's mother, so Shen Xiaoyan was naturally very polite.
"Xiaoyan, look, isn't this your photo? This seems to have just been exposed, it's only been three minutes. Look at this headline, it says Niu Shufang offended you and was maliciously blacklisted." Aunt Na smoothly swiped her phone to show Shen Xiaoyan.
"No, I must tell the young master. He might not know about this yet!" Aunt Na's protective nature was evident. She didn't even ask Shen Xiaoyan about the details, and unhesitatingly believed it was the other party's fault.
They bullied Shen Xiaoyan!
"Aunt Na, don't tell him about this for now. He might still be on his way back by car." Shen Xiaoyan was actually a little worried about Zheng Wei handling it.
This kind of thing would probably blow over if left alone, and new gossip would soon emerge to bury it. But if it fell into Zheng Wei's hands, it might become quite bloody.
"But I've already sent it." Although Aunt Na was not young, her hand speed was fast, and she was very adept with her phone.
Shen Xiaoyan: "..."
"Xiaoyan, don't worry. Just focus on your designs. Leave these things to the young master," Aunt Na used to work for the old Zheng family, and she knew their capabilities very well.