Chapter Thirty-Three: The Struggle for Supremacy

Hong Chen felt as if he’d been struck by electricity—his heart betrayed him, beating several rapid, eager pulses. Such a jealous, wounded look, the kind reserved for a faithless lover, had not graced her eyes for two years; its destructive power was astonishing.

He quickly withdrew, lowering his gaze to his feet and muttering resentfully, “Why did you step on me?”

A low hum answered him. When Hong Chen looked up again, Lin Yuxin was propping her pointed chin with one hand, tilting her beautiful face toward the young couple nearby. Her long eyelashes fluttered lightly, strands of hair danced playfully beside her ear, caressing her flawless cheek as the breeze passed.

The scene was breathtaking; Hong Chen was momentarily entranced, unable to help but sigh inwardly at the Creator’s partiality. There was something heartbreakingly close, yet infinitely distant, a regret as elusive as a flower reflected in a mirror or the moon upon water.

Soon, the skewers arrived. Lin Yuxin withdrew her gaze, and Hong Chen ceased his silent admiration, picking out several skewers with the best presentation—meat and vegetables paired—and handed them to her.

Lin Yuxin thanked him, taking delicate bites, but her pace was not slow. She possessed the grace of a noblewoman from ancient times, blended with the efficiency of a modern urbanite; in short, her manner of eating was pleasing to the eye.

Hong Chen watched her furtively as he ate, noticing her absent-mindedness. He asked, “What are you thinking about?”

Lin Yuxin responded a beat slower than usual, smiling faintly and shaking her head, “Nothing.”

Hong Chen smiled, intending to start a new topic, when he overheard a conversation from a nearby table. The woman, in a coquettish tone, asked, “Why are you zoning out?”

The man replied, “I’m thinking about work.”

She snorted, “Impossible. If something good or bad happened at work, you’d already be talking about it. Today you haven’t mentioned it at all. You must be thinking about a woman—and definitely not me.”

The man pleaded, “Darling, don’t let your imagination run wild.”

She ignored him, continuing, “When you first chased after me, whenever we ate together, you’d either be eating or talking to me—your mouth never stopped. You never zoned out for more than five seconds. Now, every time you drift off, it’s for ten or twenty seconds. That means you’re fantasizing about some beautiful woman who has nothing to do with you. The day you zone out for half a minute while eating, you’ll be thinking about a woman you actually interact with—even if you’re not involved yet, you must already be longing for her in your heart. That’s when it’s time for a yellow card between us.”

The man laughed helplessly. “That’s nonsense. Where did you hear that?”

She answered, “I read it online. Brilliant and insightful.”

He protested, “It’s not as exaggerated as you say. I had a classmate who always zoned out for minutes at a time when eating with his girlfriend. By your theory, he should’ve cheated, but I can tell you for sure he didn’t.”

She replied earnestly, “Wrong. Zoning out for several minutes actually means he hasn’t cheated. Cheaters are always guilty—when alone with their girlfriend, zoning out for about a minute is the tipping point; their thoughts snap back reflexively. His case is more likely he’s reminiscing about his first love, or perhaps some woman he cherishes in his heart but fate keeps apart…”

The man couldn’t bear to listen any longer. “Enough, enough, my dear, save your daydreams for under the covers. It’s freezing here. Boss, check please!”

Hong Chen, drawn in by their exchange, fell silent, listening intently until the owner came to collect payment. Only then did he snap out of it, glancing up—and found himself meeting Lin Yuxin’s eyes.

Eye to eye, their expressions were calm, yet something unspoken lingered between them.

Lin Yuxin spoke first, “You zoned out for a long time just now. What were you thinking?”

Hong Chen blinked, countering, “You zoned out for a long time earlier, too. What were you thinking?”

Lin Yuxin feigned annoyance, glaring at him. “If you don’t want to say, I don’t want to listen.”

Hong Chen drew out his response, “Oh…”

After a brief standoff, Lin Yuxin spoke again, “The VIP card for settling the hotel bill—is it the one the Director of the Commercial Department had you open under your name? Could you let me have it for a week? I’ll gather the money and deposit it.”

Hong Chen took a few seconds to process, then nodded ambiguously, “No rush. The boss is about to go on a business trip—he won’t notice for a month.”

Lin Yuxin breathed a quiet sigh of relief, then shifted the topic, “Next Wednesday night, there might be a gathering. If you’re not working overtime, accompany me.”

Hong Chen was stunned. It was so unexpected—two years of marriage, whether for business or friends, Lin Yuxin had never brought him along. This was unprecedented.

He didn’t ask for details, simply answered, “Alright.”

“It’s almost two-thirty. I have to work overtime tomorrow. Let’s go.” Lin Yuxin checked her watch, ate another skewer, then waved for the owner to bring the bill. Hong Chen quickly finished his last two skewers and was about to pay, but Lin Yuxin beat him to it, handing over a hundred yuan. Seeing this, Hong Chen joked, “I can cover a small bill like this. At least let me keep a bit of my dignity as a man.”

Lin Yuxin shot him a glare. “This meal’s on me—a reward for your performance tonight.”

Hong Chen was left with a head full of black lines. So dragging the Jiang family’s young master back from the brink of death was worth less than a hundred yuan in reward.

“Thank you for your gracious favor,” Hong Chen replied weakly, rolling his eyes as he pulled out the car keys and headed toward the old Passat parked by the road. Lin Yuxin picked up her little bag and followed with a light step, a joyful arc at her lips, her mood seemingly quite good.

…

In the information-rich modern era, a full weekend was enough for news of everything that happened at the arena to spread like wildfire through all the major families in Qing City.

The strength and identity of the cloaked, masked stranger sparked endless speculation.

With the mysterious figure’s backing, the real beneficiary of the arena battle—Hongcheng Group—saw its reputation soar. Many families now regarded it as a power poised to rival the four major first-tier clans.

By midday Monday, the number of company representatives scheduling appointments and visiting Hongcheng Group for cooperation negotiations had more than doubled, amounting to a third of the total from the previous week’s five working days. Not only that, but the caliber of visitors had improved markedly, with a much higher proportion from second-tier and near-first-tier families.

Then, in the afternoon, without warning, Hongcheng Group held an impromptu press conference. President Gao Tianxiong attended personally, announcing a fifty-million withdrawal to open another Paradise Club and a Paradise flagship bar, with sites selected and contracts signed that very morning.

On the surface, an investment of fifty million might not seem large, but the entire Qing City business world understood the significance of Hongcheng Group’s move, and the turmoil it would likely provoke.

Previously, Paradise owned two clubs, two KTVs, and three bars. Four new bars were added, plus three won from the Huang family. With these changes, Paradise’s scale now exceeded Huang’s Crown Club and rivaled Qiao’s Night Capital. The addition of a new club and bar propelled it to second in the industry, with its sights set on the top spot.

Over the past year, the previous joint runners-up, the Huang and Qiao families, had not opened a single new venue—not for lack of funds or desire, but due to restrictions imposed by the Wang family. Their scale had reached the threshold; without sufficient confidence to challenge the Wangs, they dared not cross the line.

Now, Hongcheng Group had made its move. They could not be unaware of the consequences, nor would they foolishly provoke the Wangs just once to test their limits—the Wang family’s boundary had always been clear. The only explanation was that Hongcheng Group was ready to compete head-to-head with the Wangs.

A battle for dominance is fierce in every industry, for it involves not just temporary gains and losses, but the authority to set the unwritten rules.

Thus, the outcome must be decisive.

For many families inside and outside the industry, it inevitably meant facing a choice—an opportunity and a crisis—of which side to support.

The news sent ripples through every major family. Hongcheng Group was rising like a comet, poised to stir the winds and clouds above Qing City—the storm was brewing!

Meanwhile, Hong Chen, the mastermind behind Hongcheng Group, had spent the previous night launching a ten-hour limited-time BOSS festival in the online game Demonic Horde. From ten at night until six in the morning, he fought relentlessly. Now, with the sun past its zenith and slanting westward outside his window, he lay comfortably on a makeshift bed, a line of drool escaping his lips. “Whew… Big Bus jackpot, Osiris dropped a crown…”