Women like Hou Mingzhu, before their complete success, all their praise has a purpose. Ye Tiancheng would not be foolish enough to truly listen to her and took it all as sarcasm.
"Everything is still under exploration. Being overly confident now is just reporting good news and not bad. Since I chose this path, I can only push through."
Ye Tiancheng's humility made Hou Mingzhu suddenly feel he was unfathomable. After hearing some irrelevant rumors, she felt Ye Tiancheng had an even more mysterious aura.
"Ye Tiancheng, I am your fiancée after all, and we have this relationship. Are you going to keep things from me? Why don't you tell me what has happened to you recently?"
Hou Mingzhu was truly cunning. The Ye Tiancheng of the past was too short-sighted. He only felt that Hou Mingzhu was beautiful and proud, but because she was a woman, he had always overlooked the schemes and wisdom of this viperous woman.
"Nothing has happened. I've been arranged to farm here by you for some time. I thought I couldn't spend my life with my face to the yellow earth and my back to the sky, so I made a slight change. Everything is still in the experimental stage now, and I dare not guarantee success. I'll take it one step at a time."
Regarding Ye Tiancheng's ambiguous response, Hou Mingzhu, based on her understanding of men over the years, quickly concluded that Ye Tiancheng was definitely hiding something important that he couldn't say. The more he played coy, the more interested Hou Mingzhu became.
This woman had been doted on for too long. Whatever she wanted, she could perhaps get with a flick of her finger, always effortlessly. So this time, when facing Ye Tiancheng, Hou Mingzhu acted like she was dealing with an ordinary person and even resorted to a honey trap. "Oh, Ye Tiancheng, I knew you misunderstood me. I opposed your coming here to farm from the beginning. Did you ever think carefully about why I chose you? Is it because I have special feelings for you?"
Ye Tiancheng never believed in such empty words. The more beautiful a woman was, the better she spoke, and the sweeter her words, the more she was likely to deceive.
After that great dream, Ye Tiancheng was no longer the naive boy who could be easily captured. He now knew who was good to him. It was Hou Qing'er, who was always gentle, lovely, and silently devoted, who could move Ye Tiancheng's heart.
"I dare not think about that. After all, the gap between us is too great. You are like the high and mighty moon in the sky, while I am a pile of mud that cannot be lifted. I just want to be down-to-earth every day and don't want to add so many unnecessary troubles to myself."
Seeing that Ye Tiancheng did not fall for her trap, Hou Mingzhu became a little impatient. She was unwilling to admit that she had failed with a man of Ye Tiancheng's caliber.
Especially when Hou Mingzhu quickly received a message from her secretary stating that Ye Tiancheng's road construction was proceeding very smoothly, and that with some mysterious fertilizer, all the withered saplings that had revived not only survived but began to grow wildly.
At this, Hou Mingzhu threw caution to the wind. She took off her jacket, revealing a hint of her shoulder, and wore a form-fitting rose-red dress that perfectly showcased Hou Mingzhu's good curves.
"Let's not talk about work for now, Ye Tiancheng. I really didn't expect you to have such abilities. You must have earned quite a bit during this time. Shall we have a drink to celebrate our meeting today?"
Ye Tiancheng tried to refuse, but he couldn't resist Hou Mingzhu's repeated invitations. This Hou Mingzhu would not give up until she achieved her goal, and Ye Tiancheng was too lazy to continue playing cat and mouse with her.
"Then let's have a little drink."
After a few rounds of drinks, Hou Mingzhu thought Ye Tiancheng was drunk and quickly leaned half of her body against him, even linking her arm with his, acting very intimately.
"Ye Tiancheng, the rumors outside are quite wild, saying you met some immortal who appeared in your dreams, which is why you've been able to overcome all obstacles and transform from a penniless boy into a farmer leader with some reputation."
Ye Tiancheng had no intention of telling anyone about the Nuwa Stone, as it would cause a lot of trouble.
Not only would the stone be snatched away, but his life might even be in danger. Ye Tiancheng was not that foolish. Showing off would only accelerate one's death; low-key was the eternal survival rule.
"How could that be? It's just luck. I don't know any immortals. Perhaps heaven is willing to help me."
Hou Mingzhu was truly trying her best and sacrificed a lot of her charm, but she got nothing from Ye Tiancheng, only superficial pleasantries.
Clearly sensing that Ye Tiancheng was hiding something, Hou Mingzhu, angered, took her money and left. Ye Tiancheng immediately regained his sober demeanor and then returned home.
Their current interactions could only be limited to business. Ye Tiancheng did not want any further entanglement with this viperous woman.
By the time Ye Tiancheng returned to the village, it was almost dark. Little Fatty was also returning from handling some business outside.
The saplings had grown so well. Now, with the village as the center, the news had spread, and many entrepreneurs had come to buy land.
When Ye Tiancheng first planted them, it was almost at the price of scrap. But now, with the saplings growing wildly, their value had increased countless times.
"Don't rush to sell. I don't have time to wait for the trees to grow into towering giants, but we must wait a little longer. The current price is still not ideal."
Upon hearing Ye Tiancheng's instructions, Little Fatty immediately stated that he would strictly follow his words. He also told Ye Tiancheng that it was fortunate he had arranged for some security personnel in advance, as someone had gone to cause trouble at the road construction site.
However, those guys were truly stupid. With Ye Tiancheng's prior preparations, before they could even carry out their plan, they were caught and handed over to the public security organs, directly imprisoned.
This was the legendary attempt to steal a chicken only to lose the bait! Ye Tiancheng almost burst into laughter upon hearing this.
Who could blame Ye Tiancheng for having the foresight of a protagonist? These small fries were all destined to be cannon fodder. After a long dream, Ye Tiancheng felt his protagonist's halo had grown even brighter.
As Ye Tiancheng and Little Fatty were chatting at the doorstep, Village Chief Hou Dabao came over to flatter him.
"Ye Tiancheng, you are truly prescient. If he hadn't listened to you and made security arrangements, the road construction project might have been delayed. Now it's just a matter of a day or two, and it will be completed soon."
For road construction, everyone who had left the village wanted to do it. Only after benefiting all the villagers could they receive everyone's praise.
But who would have thought that such a world-shaking event would be accomplished by Ye Tiancheng, a mere bumpkin? And now that he owned so much sapling land, with the current public outcry, it was simply being hyped up.
As the richest man and the most promising person in the village, everyone wanted to find an opportunity to latch onto him. But Ye Tiancheng remembered what they were like back then. They wouldn't have given him a single grain of rice even if they saw him starving to death.
"Alright, if there's no official business, you don't need to come to me. I'm quite busy every day, and I'm afraid of neglecting you."
He always harbored resentment towards these people. Even though Ye Tiancheng had become more tactful, he had to make things clear to prevent them from running to him every few days and forcing Ye Tiancheng to spend energy dealing with them.
After the village chief was given the cold shoulder, the number of other annoying people trying to curry favor also decreased. Ye Tiancheng was secretly pleased that he could finally have a few quiet days.
He had been extremely busy lately, and he still had to build a horticultural center. So for the past two days, Ye Tiancheng deliberately stayed indoors and instructed Little Fatty to do anything that needed to be done.
He finally had some leisure time and even took a day off, which was unprecedented, to take Hou Qing'er to visit his father who was recovering in the hospital.
Previously, the relationship between Ye Tiancheng and Hou Qing'er had been quite discreet. But this time, he openly took her out, passing through the town and going to the city. As a celebrity, Ye Tiancheng was recognized by many people, and some news gradually spread.
Hou Mingzhu received the news and was so angry that she slammed the table, losing the mood to attend a party with her girlfriends.
"This Ye Tiancheng, finally showing some promise, making him worthy of my attention, but as his promise grew, he actually started a relationship with another woman outside. A third party is the most detestable! I will never let you two dogs and bitches off!"
Hou Qing'er was also from the same clan. Although Hou Mingzhu didn't interact much with this village girl, they had met before. She never expected that the seemingly wise Hou Mingzhu would have her man snatched away by a foolish village girl.
Feeling a bit resentful, coupled with the fact that what someone else had became a treasure, Hou Mingzhu felt as if she had developed feelings for him, which was a bit exaggerated in hindsight.
Accustomed to being a spoiled young lady, how could Hong Mingzhu tolerate such a silent loss? No matter how much she tried to convince herself, it was no use. The fact was clear: Ye Tiancheng had indeed cuckolded her.
No matter how well she planned, she couldn't stoop to the level of a farmer. However, she couldn't swallow this insult. By the time she heard the news, Ye Tiancheng had already taken Hou Qing'er to the town. Hou Mingzhu dressed herself up elaborately before appearing.
A noble and mysterious blue long dress, ten-inch high heels, wavy hair, and a delicate makeup created by a high-end makeup artist, all to show Ye Tiancheng when they met, allowing him to compare and know what a pheasant was and what a phoenix was. She wanted to tell him not to be confused and to not seek his own destruction by having an affair instead of staying with his fiancée.
Hou Mingzhu arrived first. She heard that Ye Tiancheng had taken Hou Qing'er to a seafood restaurant, which was the most reputable restaurant in town. Hou Mingzhu also pretended to coincidentally meet them there.
"Ye Tiancheng, what a coincidence! I didn't expect to see you here!"
Ye Tiancheng also did not expect Hou Mingzhu to come. After all, since the branch plot had been activated, Ye Tiancheng had never experienced this before. Everything was like an Easter egg, and anything was possible.
"I don't think this is a coincidence. Coming to a small town's seafood restaurant for a meal, Miss Hou Mingzhu, you're also dressed a bit too grandly!"
Ye Tiancheng actually exposed her in front of the "mistress," which was a real blow to Hou Mingzhu. She was quite angry. If she turned and left at this moment, wouldn't that be letting off the third party who should be kicked out immediately?
"I'm just used to it. After all, when you have money, dressing a bit more expensively makes you look grand. Unlike some people, even if they wore the same clothes as me, it would be useless. A pheasant can't turn into a phoenix, can it? Qing'er!"
Hou Mingzhu's aggressive approach immediately made Ye Tiancheng feel a hint of palace intrigue. He didn't want to eat anymore and pulled Hou Qing'er to leave.
"Qing'er, I still prefer the meals you cook. Let's go home and eat."
"Don't go. What's wrong with having a meal together? I believe you two have no unusual relationship. Isn't it better to be open and honest?"