Chapter 359 - 357: Strike a Snake at Its Seven Inches

Chen Junhao didn’t care about Xiao Shijun’s aloofness. Right now, his only goal was to suppress the Xu family, and Xiao Shijun was undoubtedly the sharpest blade for the job.

"President Cheng, I’ll invest one hundred million into Jade Skin Cream," Chen Junhao declared.

Silence fell over the conference room for a brief moment.

Chen Junhao sat in the chair next to Cheng Ye, crossing his legs as he spoke in a leisurely tone. "However, I have a condition."

Cheng Ye turned his head slightly. "Please speak, Young Master Chen."

"I want Xu’s Beauty Industry completely ruined!"

Chen Junhao tapped his fingers lightly on the table. With a vicious glint in his eyes, he gritted his teeth and declared, "I want Yang Xun to kneel before me, kowtow, and admit his mistakes. And I want him to personally deliver Xu Yue to my bed."

The people in the conference room exchanged uneasy glances. No one dared to respond.

Cheng Ye glanced at Chen Junhao, fell silent for a moment, and then nodded. "Rest assured, Young Master Chen. Once Jade Skin Cream hits the market, the Xu family’s Ninghua Cream will be nothing to worry about."

"Jade Skin Cream alone isn’t enough," a voice suddenly interjected.

It was Xiao Shijun, who had remained silent until now.

Everyone’s gaze immediately shifted to him, filled with confusion and surprise.

"Xu’s Beauty Industry has already built up a strong reputation, and Ninghua Cream’s repurchase rate is exceptionally high. Even if our product is more effective, it will be very difficult to shake their market position in the short term."

Xiao Shijun leaned back in his chair, picked up the teacup in front of him, and took a sip. His tone was unhurried. "To kill a snake, you must strike its weak point. Rather than clashing head-on, we should figure out a way to throw them into internal chaos."

Chen Junhao narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at him with piqued interest. "Go on."

"As far as I know, the foundation of Xu’s Beauty Industry is actually quite unstable.

"She has a brother named Xu Feifan who is an incurable gambling addict. People like him are incredibly easy to exploit. Give him a little benefit, and he will naturally work for us," Xiao Shijun explained.

As soon as he finished, Cheng Ye sighed. "Mr. Xiao, to tell you the truth, we’ve already bribed her brother before, but we were exposed. Xu Feifan has been kicked out of his home and is of no use to us anymore."

Xiao Shijun chuckled softly. "There’s an old saying: a prodigal son’s return is worth more than gold. As long as Xu Feifan puts on an act of genuine repentance, how could his sister bear to hold a grudge? Besides, Xu Yue probably wouldn’t guess that we’d use him against her a second time.

"Once their internal operations fall into chaos, we’ll launch Jade Skin Cream and catch them completely off guard."

Xiao Shijun articulated every word clearly, and everyone listened with rapt attention.

When he finished, Cheng Ye’s fingers paused on the tabletop as if digesting the proposal.

Chen Junhao, however, was the first to laugh. He stood up and began to clap.

"I didn’t expect you to be so scheming. Fine, we’ll do as you say.

"I only handle the investment; you guys handle the company affairs. I have a party to attend, so I’ll take my leave."

He chuckled as he stood up and walked toward the door.

"I’ll have someone transfer the money to your company’s account this afternoon. I can’t wait to see the Xu family crash and burn."

The conference room door clicked shut.

Xiao Shijun looked down at his cold tea. The corners of his mouth twitched into a faint, fleeting smirk—so fast that no one caught it.

Two days later, at Xu’s Beauty Industry.

Xu Yue sat in her office, a marketing proposal spread open in front of her.

The hype for Ninghua Cream had lasted much longer than expected. Both the repurchase rate and public reputation were holding steady, and it looked like they were on track to completely cover the entire year’s losses.

Her phone chimed with a message from Yang Xun: "What do you want to eat tonight? I’ll cook."

The corners of Xu Yue’s mouth curved upward subconsciously. Just as she was about to reply, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Zhou Miao pushed the door open, her expression a little awkward. "President Xu, Mr. Xu Feifan is here. He says he wants to see you."

Xu Yue put down her phone, furrowing her brows slightly. "Let him in."

A moment later, Xu Feifan walked through the door.

He had lost a massive amount of weight. His cheeks were sunken, and his shirt was terribly wrinkled.

With deep-set, dark bags under his eyes, he looked as if he hadn’t slept properly in days.

"Yueyue..."

He came to a halt in front of the desk, his hands hanging limply by his sides. His tone carried an unprecedented sense of despair.

Xu Yue leaned back in her chair and stared at him. "What do you want?" she asked coldly.

Xu Feifan took a deep breath, his voice hoarse. "I know I was a monster before—selling company data, causing you endless trouble, and fooling around outside.

"Recently, I gambled away all my money, and all those women around me took off. Only then did I realize how incredibly stupid I was."

His eyes reddened for a second before he forced back the tears. "I don’t expect you to forgive me right away, but I truly know I was wrong. I don’t want to live this kind of muddled, pointless life anymore.

"I want to start over. Could you... give me one more chance?"

Xu Yue’s gaze fell on his face, her elegant brows knitting together. "You say you want to start over. How exactly do you plan to do that?"

Xu Feifan looked up, speaking with a sincerity he had never shown before. "I want to work at the company. I’ll start from the very bottom—serving tea, pouring water, running errands, doing odd jobs—whatever it takes. Just please, give me a chance."

The office remained quiet for a moment.

Looking at him, Xu Yue thought of the words their parents had entrusted her with before they passed away. She also thought of the countless times Xu Feifan had disappointed her over the years.

If he had simply asked for money, she would have told him to get lost immediately, but instead, he was offering to start from the bottom.

After a full dozen seconds of silence, she finally spoke. "Fine. You can go to the marketing department and work as a sales clerk. You’ll have a three-month probationary period, and your salary will be exactly the same as the other new employees. If you don’t do a good job, you’ll be fired on the spot."

Xu Feifan froze, seemingly unable to believe she had agreed so readily. Then, he nodded vigorously. "Thank you! Yueyue, I promise I’ll work hard. I won’t disappoint you again."

Xu Yue sighed, hoping against hope that his repentance was genuine.

That night after returning home, Xu Yue leaned back on the sofa and brought the matter up.

"Do you think he genuinely wants to turn over a new leaf, or does he have some other agenda?" Yang Xun asked.

"He looked quite sincere. He’s lost a lot of weight and seems much more grounded."

Xu Yue’s tone softened with a hint of uncertainty. "Before Mom and Dad passed away, they told me to take good care of him. If he can really turn his life around, they would definitely be relieved to know."

"Alright, let him give it a try. But I’d suggest you keep your guard up. Have someone keep an eye on him, and don’t give him any important tasks, just in case."

Yang Xun still felt that someone like Xu Feifan couldn’t be trusted, but Xu Yue was soft-hearted and ultimately couldn’t abandon her brother.

"I know," Xu Yue nodded.

Suddenly, she changed the subject. "Ah Xun, our finances are doing well now. Have you ever thought about starting your own business?"

"What do you think I could do?" Yang Xun asked with a smile.

Xu Yue looked at him earnestly. "If you ask me, your medical skills are so incredible that you could easily open your own clinic and make a name for yourself in Zhonghai City.

"Besides, haven’t you been looking for medicinal herbs to treat your sister? Running a clinic would not only provide a stable income but also give you access to more channels for sourcing ingredients."