Chen Haibo's face was ashen. He dared not voice any objections.
He slapped himself twenty times in front of everyone, without holding back. His already swollen cheeks were now like a pig's head.
Song Qiao no longer paid him any mind. After completing the procedures with Wang Gang, he left the merchant association building.
"Wife, I've finished the procedures. Tianhong has officially joined the merchant association now."
As soon as he stepped out, Song Qiao took out his phone and dialed Xia Yuqing, calling her to share the good news.
"So fast? Wasn't it quite troublesome last time?"
Xia Yuqing on the other end of the line exclaimed, her tone filled with surprise.
"It went smoothly, darling, don't worry. I'll bring the documents over for you to look at later."
Song Qiao reassured his wife, then hung up the phone and drove back to the hospital.
Xia Yuqing was momentarily lost in thought.
The last time she went to handle this procedure, the other party had been deliberately difficult and evasive. She never expected Song Qiao to finish it so quickly.
It was truly unbelievable.
While she was still pondering this, Zhang Chuan's call suddenly came through.
"Yuqing, how's that matter with the merchant association?"
Xia Yuqing, who had some doubts about the situation before, now had a vague understanding after receiving his call.
She suspected that Zhang Chuan had probably put in a lot of effort to help her with the merchant association.
Otherwise, why would he call her so soon after her husband had finished the procedures?
"Zhang Chuan, I really need to thank you for this. I thought it would be very difficult, but it turned out to be so smooth. Song Qiao finished the procedures as soon as he got there."
Xia Yuqing said gratefully to Zhang Chuan on the phone.
"This matter..."
Zhang Chuan was visibly stunned for two to three seconds before realizing that the matter had been resolved.
He immediately changed his tone, "Yuqing, you're too kind. We're childhood friends, this is something I should do."
He then chuckled lightly, clearly pleased with his own success.
"Oh, and Zhang Chuan, next Thursday is my mother's birthday. She also wants to invite you over for dinner. Do you have time?"
After chatting with Zhang Chuan for a while, Xia Yuqing suddenly remembered her mother's instructions from the previous day.
"I have time, of course, I have time. I will definitely come to wish Auntie a happy birthday then."
Zhang Chuan was so excited to be invited that he almost jumped up. He immediately agreed without hesitation.
It seemed that Xia Yuqing's mother had a good impression of him, and this was a golden opportunity to impress her.
...
Thursday arrived, and Xia Yuqing's home was lively. It was her mother-in-law's sixty-second birthday. In addition to a few relatives who came to celebrate, two old neighbors were also present.
Furthermore, Song Qiao and his wife had taken the day off work to accompany the elder.
"Auntie, this is the birthday gift I prepared for you."
Zhang Chuan, who arrived last, presented a delicately wrapped small box as soon as he entered.
When it was opened in front of everyone, a very expensive-looking bracelet was revealed.
For a moment, everyone, including Xia Yuqing, was stunned into silence.
"Little Zhang, this is too valuable. I..." The mother-in-law hesitated, about to refuse.
"Oh, Auntie, I specially asked a friend to customize this bracelet for you. It's only about twenty to thirty thousand yuan. You must accept it."
Unexpectedly, Zhang Chuan interrupted his mother-in-law and placed the bracelet on her wrist without further ado.
Those watching drew in a collective gasp, casting envious glances at the mother-in-law.
They never expected this young man, Zhang Chuan, to be so generous, giving away a bracelet worth tens of thousands as easily as that.
The mother-in-law seemed to enjoy the attention, her face beaming with a smile.
"Little Zhang, you're so thoughtful. Unlike my Xiao Song, who didn't even prepare a head of cabbage for me."
The unintended remark struck a chord with Song Qiao. He paused for a moment and then took out an unassuming wooden box from his bag.
"Mom, I prepared a ginseng for you. It's for your health."
Song Qiao said, handing the box to his mother-in-law.
Seeing this, Zhang Chuan's expression clearly faltered. In his haste, he directly opened the box for his mother-in-law.
The next second, he couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"I say, Song Qiao, where did you find this piece of junk to bring home?"
As he spoke, he placed the dry, shriveled ginseng in front of everyone.
The ginseng looked somewhat withered and unappealing, clearly not a valuable variety. At most, it was worth a few thousand yuan, a common product.
It was like garbage compared to the gift Zhang Chuan had just given.
"Xiao Song, what do you mean by this?"
The mother-in-law's face immediately darkened.
Song Qiao presenting this ginseng at this moment was clearly an attempt to embarrass her.
Even Xia Yuqing beside him quietly tugged at Song Qiao's sleeve, signaling him to put it away before they were all laughed at by their relatives and friends.
Song Qiao ignored everyone and simply glanced at Zhang Chuan. He said calmly, "This is wild ginseng from Changbai Mountain, worth around a hundred thousand yuan."
"Pfft."
"I say, Song Qiao, why are you showing off in front of your family? This piece of junk ginseng is worth a hundred thousand? I think you mean Japanese Yen, don't you?"
Zhang Chuan almost spat out his tea upon hearing Song Qiao's words. He immediately launched into a sarcastic tirade without reservation.
"If you don't believe me, there's an appraisal certificate under the box. Don't mistake ignorance for honor."
Song Qiao continued calmly.
This ginseng was a gift from a supplier to him. Since he had no use for it, he decided to give it to his mother-in-law.
Zhang Chuan disdainfully picked up the certificate and the more he read, the more embarrassed he became. His face eventually turned bright red with shame.
To the point that he found an excuse to leave before dinner and slunk away.
"Yuqing's mother, look at these photos."
As soon as Zhang Chuan left, an old neighbor stood up and took out several photos from her embrace.
They were all fitting photos of Xia Yuqing for an advertisement. Due to the design of the clothing, they appeared quite revealing.
"I'm not saying anything, but Yuqing is such a good girl. Why has she become so indecent for money?"
As she spoke, she glanced at Xia Yuqing with a hint of disdain.
Before the mother-in-law could react, Song Qiao's expression immediately turned grim. He shot a fierce glare at the neighbor who was deliberately causing trouble and said coldly:
"Hmph, these photos are just a bit avant-garde. People with a dirty mind see everything as dirty."