"I think the two of them are getting along quite well now, so you shouldn't worry so much." Jiaxi's mother said, and then left the room to go to the kitchen.
...
After dealing with some matters at his pharmaceutical company, Hong Jiaxi went to the Huangfu Group and met Huangfu Sisong in the president's office.
He had also received a call from Huangfu Sisong that morning when he went to the company, which was why he came to the Huangfu Group alone.
"Dad."
Huangfu Sisong glanced at him and said, "You're here. Did you have a good honeymoon with Yaoyao?"
"Yes, Mengyao was very happy. She spent her days sunbathing and diving on the island, and didn't want to come back," Jiaxi said with a smile.
"That's good," Huangfu Sisong said with relief. "As long as you two are happy together, we are happy too."
"Dad, Mengyao and I will bring gifts to visit you tomorrow. She still has some of her wedding leave left, so she's resting at home today."
"It's alright. You can bring her over tomorrow. I asked you to come to the group today because I have something important to discuss with you."
Jiaxi didn't know what important matter he had to discuss, but he still asked humbly, "Dad, please tell me whatever you need to."
Huangfu Sisong asked, "How is your pharmaceutical company doing?"
"It's alright, it's passable."
Huangfu Sisong asked again, "If you didn't rely on your family, could you support yourself and Yaoyao with that company?"
Jiaxi couldn't answer immediately and said, "Mengyao and I graduated from medical school together. We majored in pharmacology, which is why I started the pharmaceutical company. I didn't expect to make much money, I just wanted to find something to do for myself."
After hearing what he said, Huangfu Sisong thought that this kid was just content with the status quo and said with a smile, "It was fine to think that way when you were single. But now that you're married, you have responsibilities. Haven't you ever thought about making your company bigger and stronger?"
Jiaxi didn't have that idea, but he still appeared very proactive and said, "I have thought about it, but my company doesn't have that strength yet..."
"It's good that you have ideas. Our Huangfu Group has a pharmaceutical factory under its name, and I want to hand it over to you to manage. It can also support your pharmaceutical company."
Actually, Jiaxi didn't want to expand his company's scale, nor did he want to manage any pharmaceutical factory.
He had everything now and lacked nothing, so he felt there was no need to tire himself out so much.
"Dad, but I don't have any experience managing a pharmaceutical factory, so I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it well."
Huangfu Sisong encouraged him, "No one has experience at the beginning. There's always a process."
"How about I go back and discuss it with Mengyao and my parents first."
"What is there to discuss? This is a good opportunity for you to develop your company. Can't you make a decision yourself?" Huangfu Sisong also felt that this son-in-law had no ambition at all, and it seemed unlikely he could be relied upon in the future.
If he lost his son, he had two daughters. He thought as long as he could get his son-in-law to help with some matters.
But one was too strong, and he didn't dare let Yao Feili know too much about the group's internal affairs; the other was incompetent and had no aspirations, which truly disappointed him.
Jiaxi could see that Huangfu Sisong was displeased, so he could only agree and say, "Alright, I'll give it a try then."
Huangfu Sisong patted him on the shoulder and said, "The pharmaceutical factory will be transferred to your name. The experienced employees will remain as they are, and there will be no changes. This way, they can help you get familiar with the factory's operations and integrate it with your company."
"Thank you, Dad. I will work hard and rely on myself to give Mengyao a good life." Jiaxi thought that his father-in-law was probably worried that his daughter would suffer with him, which was why he so generously gave him a pharmaceutical factory.
But for him, all this was irrelevant. He had no intention of managing any pharmaceutical factory; he would just hire someone to look after it for him then.
Jiaxi came out of the Huangfu Group and looked up at the towering skyscraper, which felt like a mountain pressing down on him, making it hard to breathe.
He and Mengyao had only been married for a short time, and Huangfu Sisong was already interfering with his career.
Their family's strength was far inferior to the Huangfu family's. By marrying Mengyao, he had made his parents and grandfather both happy and cautious, fearing they might offend Mengyao's parents.
They had also repeatedly instructed him to always go along with Mengyao and make her happy, and that the Huangfu family would also give their family many benefits.
Jiaxi hadn't expected that after marriage, life wouldn't just be about the two of them, but also involve the entanglement of two families.
He didn't want to go back for a while. Coincidentally, he received a call from a friend inviting him for a drink, and he readily agreed.
Jiaxi and a few friends went to the same bar where they had drunk before. As he entered, he deliberately scanned the room, looking at the patrons, and didn't see the tout.
After he and his friends ordered drinks, when the waiter brought them over, he pretended to casually ask, "Where is that Lili from here?"
"Oh, she hasn't been here for a long time. She doesn't work here anymore," the waiter replied.
Jiaxi then pretended not to care and chatted and drank with his friends.
After the gathering dispersed at night, he found a designated driver to take him home.
On the way, he thought about how this girl had never contacted him again, nor had she pestered him. She had even disappeared from her original workplace.
Jiaxi thought of Lili, and then of Mengyao. The two women gave him completely different feelings.
At this moment, he somewhat missed Lili, who was so humble that she wished to crawl at his feet. The sense of superiority she gave him was something Mengyao couldn't provide.
As he neared home, he contacted an acquaintance who worked as a private investigator.
"Help me find someone, a tout who worked at a bar. Everyone called her Lili."
"Young Master Hong, no problem."
...
Mengyao had slept for almost the entire day at home. She woke up once in the afternoon and ate a few bites of the meal her mother-in-law had sent to her room before going back to sleep.
She slept until it was dark outside before lazily waking up.
She had traveled abroad before, and she hadn't been this sleepy when adjusting to the time difference back in Lancheng.
She didn't know why, but after returning from her honeymoon, she always felt particularly exhausted. Could something be wrong with her body?
She lazily got out of bed and saw that the meal delivered to her room had been replaced. The food was still warm to the touch, and a maid had replaced the unfinished meal with a new one.
Jiaxi's mother was truly thoughtful. She couldn't help but feel touched.
However, she had no appetite for the meal. She forced herself to eat a few bites, wondering why Jiaxi hadn't returned yet.
She picked up her phone and called Jiaxi.
He answered quickly, his voice cheerful. "Darling, I'm on my way home. I'll be there soon."
Mengyao asked curiously, "You usually don't work overtime for the company. Why are you so late coming home today?"
"You know me best. After I left the company today, your dad called me for a talk, and some friends I haven't seen in a long time invited me to get together."
"What did my dad talk to you about?" Mengyao asked in surprise. "And he called you specifically? We were going back tomorrow anyway."
Jiaxi chuckled and said, "It was a conversation between men. He was afraid I wouldn't be able to support you in the future, so he told me to work hard and strive for my career."