Velvet Chains of a Tycoon

Sheng Lu's expression immediately turned frosty. "Grandpa, I told Ran Qin that I'm just an ordinary programmer at Lu Corporation."

The old man wasn't surprised at all. "Haha, so you're testing the girl, are you? That's fine. Why don't you take her back to our old fishing village by the sea for dinner?"

Sheng Lu snorted. "That old fishing village hasn't been lived in for years. Are you sure it's even suitable for cooking?"

"If not there, can't you eat at one of the local food stalls?"

The old man grew visibly irritated. "What's wrong with you, boy? Who gets married without bringing their spouse home? If you want to pretend to be poor, we'll all play along. What more do you want?"

Sheng Lu loosened his tie and spoke casually. "I don't want anything else. If you can convince my mom, I have no problem with it."

The old man snorted again. "What's so hard about convincing your mother?"

Sheng Lu replied coolly, "Then I'll wait for your good news."

After ending the call, he tossed his phone aside. His mother, Chunmei Yin, had always envisioned a daughter-in-law from a prominent family. Ran Qin was definitely not her type. The chances of the old man convincing his mother were virtually zero.

Just as he was about to head to the bathroom, his phone rang again. It was his carefree younger brother, Yu Lu.

"Bro, you've been married to Ran Qin for almost a week now, right?"

Sheng Lu frowned. "Spit it out. Don't beat around the bush."

"It's just… I'm really curious about my sister-in-law. I want to see what kind of woman can stay with you for more than three days…"

Before Yu Lu could finish, Sheng Lu cut him off. "Grandpa just called. Mom is back from abroad. If you're free, go keep Ms. Yin company."

"Uh, I'm not free. I have to work overtime tonight, bro. I'll be busy now."

After hanging up, Sheng Lu shrugged. It seemed only Ms. Yin could handle the little troublemaker.

He shook his head and headed to the bathroom. He generally didn't waste time or energy on unimportant matters.

---

The next morning, at 9 AM, Ran Qin had just woken up when Jian Qin's call came through.

"Ran, are you up?"

"Yeah, I'm up. I slept late last night, so I woke up a bit late today."

Last night, she had taken a job on a translation platform, and the client was in a hurry. She had stayed up until 4 AM to finish and deliver the translated document.

"I need to talk to you about something. I'm at the Ren'an Clinic now. Zhao Lin said you haven't arrived yet. When will you get here?"

"I'll be there soon. It's about half an hour by subway. You can sit in the clinic for a while, Brother."

Ran Qin hung up and hurriedly got ready, rushing out without even making breakfast.

She, Zhao Lin, and Liu Ming had opened the Ren'an Clinic last year. This was only the second time Jian Qin had come to the clinic, the first being on their opening day when he brought a congratulatory flower basket.

Liu Ming had to attend to occasional customers and organize the pharmacy, while Zhao Lin was checking out a shop transfer she had arranged online.

"Mr. Qin, I'm sorry, but I have an appointment to look at a shop. I won't be able to keep you company. You can have some tea; Ran Qin should be here soon."

Jian Qin nodded. "No problem, Zhao Lin. Go ahead and do what you need to. Ran said she'd be here in half an hour. I'll just wait here for her."

Zhao Lin poured him a cup of tea, apologized, and left in a hurry.

Half an hour later, Ran Qin arrived at the Ren'an Clinic.

Seeing her, Jian Qin quickly stepped outside. "Ran, let's talk outside."

Ran Qin nodded. The clinic was already going through enough challenges. It was better not to let Zhao Lin and the others know about her brother's issues, so they wouldn't worry.

"Brother, I thought about it last night. Five hundred thousand yuan is a lot of money. But we can earn it. Can we ask the gas company manager to extend the deadline from three days to three months?"

Jian Qin shook his head. "Manager Zhang of the gas company is Yang Cheng's uncle. How would he agree?"

Ran Qin paused. "…How could I forget that?"

"Your sister-in-law came up with an idea. She says this way we can avoid the five hundred thousand debt…"

Jian Qin explained Xiaomei Du's plan to fake a divorce and leave with nothing.

"Ran, I didn't go to school much, and I don't understand legal matters. Will this really help us avoid the debt?"

Ran Qin shook her head. "Brother, I'm not a lawyer either, so I don't know. But I do know that once you and Sister-in-law get a divorce, and you leave with nothing, the house will belong to her completely. If she decides not to remarry you, turning the fake divorce into a real one, you'll end up with nothing."

Jian Qin hesitated. "…Could my wife really deceive me?"

Ran Qin took a deep breath. "I don't know, Brother. You've been married for almost two years. You should know her character better than I do."

Before marrying Jian Qin, Xiaomei Du worked at a beauty salon. About three months after the wedding, she quit, citing pregnancy preparation, and never worked again.

Xiaomei Du disliked working. Even at the salon, she would often slack off, earning less than she spent.

After over a year of trying to conceive, she hadn't gotten pregnant, but she had developed a habit of laziness and extravagance. She didn't earn any money and always complained that Jian Qin didn't earn enough for her.

Hearing his sister, Jian Qin felt uncertain. After all, they had only been married for two years, and they didn't have a child or any other bond. He felt he hadn't known Xiaomei Du long enough to see her true nature.

"Maybe I should sell the house."

Jian Qin thought for a moment. "Selling the house is the only option now. Once it's sold, I won't have to pay the mortgage. Even if I can't find a job right away, I won't be crushed by the debt."

"But selling the house won't happen overnight."

Ran Qin also felt worried. "The gas company wants the money in three days, and now you only have two days left. Can you sell the house in two days?"

"I don't know. If I have to, I'll borrow five hundred thousand from a high-interest lender and then sell the house to pay it back."

Deciding to sell the house, Jian Qin felt less afraid of borrowing the money.

Ran Qin thought for a moment. "Alright, then go discuss it with your wife. The property title has her name on it, and if she doesn't agree, you can't sell it."

Ran Qin doubted Xiaomei Du would agree to sell the house. So, she needed to prepare in case Xiaomei Du refused. She would need to have the five hundred thousand ready to help her brother.

Taking out her phone, she was about to log into QQ to contact Shangguan, whom she hadn't talked to in a long time, when Grandma Huang's laughter came from the door.

"Haha, Ran, you're here early today?"