Chapter 97

097

Yang Chen was very conflicted as he was dragged towards the tennis court, asking Mo Qianyi with an innocent look, "If you want to go, go ahead. I'll go somewhere else to move around. I'm not a VIP, so I won't meddle unnecessarily."

Mo Qianyi gave him a glare and whispered, "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. You want to go to the swimming pool to look at women, right? Let me tell you, the VIPs here are mostly well-known figures in the business and political circles of Zhonghai. Since you're our public relations representative for Yulai International, you must interact more with these people. Every relationship can be a key to success. Remember the boss's advice!"

"I just bought breakfast. My previous job was selling lamb skewers. I think those things are far from me."

"Not far, the tennis court is right ahead."

"..."

The Fenglin Leisure Center was indeed grand. As soon as they entered the tennis court, Yang Chen felt like he was on a football field. This made him feel as if he were in one of those developed countries in Europe and America where tennis is popular. After all, in China, where tennis is not very popular, it was quite special to have such a large court for tennis—though he could accept it if it were table tennis.

On the red and green plastic tennis court, many people were already there, dressed in tennis gear and swinging their rackets. Among them were several eye-catching ladies, whose ample chests jiggled as they ran, drawing much attention. The men on the side were cheering, but it was unclear what "ball" they were watching.

Following Tang Wan, they walked to the southeast corner of the court, where the facilities were even more luxurious. Besides the leisure seats on the sidelines, there were many waitresses serving tea and drinks, and high-quality speakers played music with a blues rhythm.

At this time, there were already many men and women chatting and laughing on the court. Only two young girls were actually playing tennis. To Yang Chen, a complete novice in tennis, these two girls had beautiful postures and attractive figures, but their eyesight was poor. They couldn't even catch such slow balls, and it was mostly just serving back and forth without anyone receiving the ball.

"President Tang, you're finally here. We've been waiting for you for a long time," a handsome man said with a smile.

"I didn't expect Director Xu to be here too. What a rare guest," Tang Wan said, shaking hands with the man.

"Without President Tang, playing tennis wouldn't be as fun," a middle-aged man with a potbelly laughed.

Tang Wan smiled warmly, "President Shao, you're joking. Today, we're all here to play tennis together. It's no big deal if I'm not here."

"You can't say that. Without the host, we wouldn't have a leader," a beautiful woman flattered.

A group of wealthy people greeted each other warmly, but not a single word they said was genuine.

Mo Qianyi and Yang Chen, who appeared with Tang Wan, naturally drew attention. Someone immediately recognized Mo Qianyi, who was quite famous in the business world, and came up to greet her with a smile.

"I didn't expect Miss Mo to come. It's been a long time. Miss Mo still looks radiant and beautiful," a middle-aged man with a scholarly appearance praised, looking very sincere.

Mo Qianyi smiled sweetly, "President Huang, you're too kind. I just happened to hear from President Tang that there's a tennis match here, so I came to join in the fun."

Then, many people came up to chat with Mo Qianyi, and the atmosphere was quite pleasant. However, they almost all naturally ignored Yang Chen, neither excluding nor approaching him. These business and political elites had sharp eyes. They could easily tell that Yang Chen was not an important figure. From the fact that Yang Chen was following Mo Qianyi, they could draw many conclusions, most of which guessed that Yang Chen was Mo Qianyi's assistant or had some hidden relationship with her—such things were not uncommon in this circle.

So, Yang Chen sat to the side, watching the two women chat with a group of people he didn't know.

"Miss Mo, I heard that President Lin of your company was recently unwell and hospitalized. Is that true?" someone finally asked about Lin Ruoxi.

Mo Qianyi nodded slightly with a hint of worry, "Yes, Director Zhao, but our president should be discharged next week. She has already recovered."

Director Zhao said with relief, "That's good. The government leaders have highly praised your company's performance over the years. President Lin is a woman who doesn't yield to men. At a young age, she has led Yulai International to achieve such remarkable results, showing more courage than the old president. She is truly an indispensable young pillar of the Zhonghai Chamber of Commerce. I still remember the ceremony a year ago when President Lin was named one of the top ten entrepreneurs in Zhonghai. Her demeanor was truly unforgettable..."

Talking about Lin Ruoxi, the group praised her again, and a few young and capable men even showed admiration.

Yang Chen secretly smiled bitterly. It seemed that Lin Ruoxi's cold personality was inevitable. If she were a bit more热情, the men who would have thoughts about her would indeed wear out the threshold.

After the conversation, Tang Wan suggested, "Everyone is here to play tennis today. Let's put business aside. Who wants to warm up first?"

"Haha, President Tang is right. I'll go first, who wants to play with me?" an old man with a hearty laugh picked up a tennis racket and asked.

"I'll do it," a well-maintained, slightly plump woman smiled and picked up a racket, "Brother Liu, go easy on me. I just had a baby a few months ago, and my body hasn't fully recovered."

"Of course, of course..."

Yang Chen watched the woman sway her fat hips as she walked up to the man, laughing and playing tennis, and secretly wondered if they were playing tennis or flirting.

The tennis warm-up hadn't started long when another group of people walked to the side of the court. The leader was a man wearing sunglasses, dressed in a pink, flamboyant tennis outfit, with a fair complexion. He wasn't very tall, but his entire body exuded a charm that ordinary men lacked, making him look somewhat effeminate. If not for his Adam's apple, he could easily be mistaken for a gender-neutral young girl.

Behind the man were two or three attendants carrying sports equipment, and four bodyguards in suits. Even under the sun, they were neatly dressed, their eyes sharp and alert, clearly highly trained.

The appearance of this group immediately caught the attention of the others, but their expressions were different from when Tang Wan arrived. Although they smiled, their eyes revealed a hint of fear.

"I didn't expect Young Master Zhou to come. It's a great honor," Tang Wan was the first to step forward and welcome him as the host.

The young man surnamed Zhou smiled gently, took off his sunglasses, revealing a pair of charming single-lidded eyes, and shook hands lightly with Tang Wan, immediately letting go, appearing polite and refined. "President Tang, you're too kind. I, Zhou Dongcheng, only have the privilege of knowing everyone here because of my father. I hope you won't mind my interruption."

Hearing the name "Zhou Dongcheng," Yang Chen frowned, tugging at Mo Qianyi's arm and asking in a low voice, "Is this Zhou Dongcheng from Dongxing Group?"

Mo Qianyi looked at Yang Chen strangely and laughed, "I didn't think you knew about Dongxing Group. It seems you're not completely clueless. Yes, he is the only son of Zhou Guangnian, the heir of Dongxing. I advise you to stay away from him, or it could be dangerous."

"Dangerous? He seems quite polite," Yang Chen, who was meeting the real Zhou Dongcheng for the first time, didn't expect the son of the Zhou family, a potential enemy of the Rose, to be such a delicate young man. His polite demeanor didn't seem to match his background in the underworld.

Mo Qianyi's expression changed slightly, and she whispered in Yang Chen's ear, "The danger I'm talking about is because he doesn't like women..."

If he doesn't like women, then what does he like?

That's right, men!

Yang Chen shuddered. No wonder he seemed to avoid touching Tang Wan, a top-tier beauty, as if it were a formality. It wasn't politeness; it was a dislike of touching women!

Seeing Yang Chen's reaction, Mo Qianyi giggled and whispered, "What are you afraid of? With your looks, he wouldn't even look at you!"

Yang Chen wasn't listening, as he suddenly remembered that a few days ago, when he saved Chen Bo during a late-night snack, Chen Bo had mentioned a boss surnamed Zhou who wanted him to provide services. A boss surnamed Zhou who could make a small-time gang leader like Guo Ziheng work hard to find people must be this Zhou Dongcheng!

Thinking about this, many things became clear. A few days ago, he was chased by strangers in a black Honda, and he had been wondering who sent them. It must have been related to Zhou Dongcheng. After all, he had told Guo Ziheng to tell the boss to find "me" if there were any issues.

Sure enough, after Zhou Dongcheng exchanged a few words with a group of business and political figures, he casually glanced at Yang Chen and gave him a "seductive" smile.

Yang Chen thought it was over, but after talking to a few important people, Zhou Dongcheng walked over to Yang Chen, surrounded by a strong scent of women's perfume, and sat down gracefully.

"Sir, do you mind if I sit here?" Zhou Dongcheng's face resembled that of some Korean male celebrities, with thin lips and a fair complexion. Up close, his skin was particularly smooth.

Yang Chen, who had seen many such men abroad, felt a bit awkward and smiled bitterly, "You're already sitting down. Why ask me?"

"Sitting down is my right, but I want to know your opinion."

"Can I stop you from sitting here?"

"No," Zhou Dongcheng said bluntly.

Seeing the two talking as if they were strangers but familiar, some people who knew the situation smiled strangely. They naturally assumed that Zhou Dongcheng, who was known for his preference for men, had taken a liking to Mo Qianyi's male secretary.

Mo Qianyi's mouth opened in surprise, unable to speak. She had just said that Zhou Dongcheng wouldn't be interested in Yang Chen, but now, seeing Yang Chen's awkward expression, she couldn't help but almost laugh out loud.

Their conversation wasn't too quiet, and many people around them heard it.

At this moment, Zhou Dongcheng asked politely, "May I know your name, sir? I am Zhou Dongcheng, Executive Vice President of Dongxing Group."

Pretend not to know? Yang Chen felt uncomfortable, pursed his lips, and said, "My name is Yang Chen, Yang Xi. I'm the top male PR representative at Yulai International. By the way, there were only two male PRs in the competition..."