Dark Cuisine

"This Zhou Qiaoqiao is shameless! While we're busy figuring out how to deal with Xu Mo, she’s out there playing tricks on us!"

Han Zhiqi gritted her teeth, her eyes sharp enough to kill.

(๑¯㉨¯๑) Soft Jade trembled with anger!

Shen Manni furrowed her brows, lost in thought.

Earlier, Xu Shi had used her status as a reborn individual to gain an advantage.

At noon, she toyed with the other female leads.

After all, Xu Mo would eventually belong to her.

With a loud slap!

It was done.

Zhou Qiaoqiao had dropped the ultimate bombshell!

Bonds worth hundreds of billions!

Given the plummeting oil prices,

this could easily turn into trillions, right?

Even if everyone pooled their personal savings,

they might barely reach that amount.

Oh, not personal savings—

more like the wealth of entire corporations.

Personal savings would be lucky to scrape together a few hundred billion.

Gao Liyuan watched the reactions of the female leads,

secretly amused.

Misery loves company.

If I’m unhappy, you all should be too.

Let’s suffer together, ladies.

"Soon, it will be Zhou Qiaoqiao and Xu Mo’s wedding day."

"With this kind of achievement, even if Zhou Qiaoqiao wanted to back out, Aunt Su and Uncle Xu would definitely persuade her, even going so far as to tie Xu Mo up and deliver him to her!"

"That’s the best-case scenario—Zhou Qiaoqiao voluntarily stepping aside!"

Han Zhiqi paused, then asked with a smirk, "But do you really think she’d willingly give up?"

The other women fell silent.

If they were in her shoes,

they wouldn’t hesitate.

To avoid complications,

they’d immediately confront Su Ting and Xu Fuqiang,

demanding they tie up their son

and send him to the wedding chamber.

Originally, they thought their biggest enemy was Lin Fan and the Dragon King Hall behind him.

But times have changed—

now their biggest enemy is Zhou Qiaoqiao, the ultimate schemer.

They’d never seen someone so underhanded.

No sense of honor at all.

Yang Jingying sipped her tea, moistening her throat.

Her gaze fell on Xu Shi.

"Xu Shi, try to subtly ask Aunt Su how much she lent to Zhou Qiaoqiao."

"Something this big—I don’t believe Aunt Su wouldn’t know. In fact, she might even be behind it."

"One thing’s for sure, though—Aunt Su doesn’t know what Zhou Qiaoqiao invested in."

Yang Jingying’s analysis was logical and well-founded.

Xu Shi nodded,

grabbed her phone, and stepped outside.

Meanwhile, Han Zhiqi looked puzzled.

"It’s just a project worth a few hundred billion. What’s the point of discussing it now?"

"Shouldn’t we be focusing on how to ruin Zhou Qiaoqiao’s wedding?"

While others say it’s better to tear down ten temples than ruin a marriage,

Han Zhiqi’s motto was: ruin Zhou Qiaoqiao’s wedding, but leave my temple alone.

If she can’t have Xu Mo, no one else should either!

Even if it means throwing him into the river to feed the fish,

then following him in a tragic love suicide,

she wouldn’t let these women have him.

Yang Jingying: "I know you’re anxious, but you’re not the only one."

"I’ve said from the start, we need time to discuss and formulate a plan."

"Can’t you see how highly Aunt Su regards that woman?"

"She has free access to the Xu family’s resources. To put it bluntly, her authority is second only to Xu Mo’s!"

"Right now, I just want to know how much weight she carries in Aunt Su’s heart."

"If it’s insurmountable, even if you end up with Xu Mo, will you ever gain Aunt Su and Uncle Xu’s approval?"

"Once you’re married into the family, not only will your in-laws treat you coldly, but even your own parents will feel you’ve settled for less."

After saying all that,

Yang Jingying felt exhausted.

Her emotions were running high tonight.

That volcanic mud skincare formula

had kept her busy for days.

The Yang family’s business was thriving, sure,

but Zhou Qiaoqiao’s oil bonds

had skyrocketed to the stratosphere!

By the time she secured the deal,

Xu Mo and Zhou Qiaoqiao’s child would already be crawling.

No wonder she was so furious!

Meanwhile, Li Jiaxin, who was just there to make up the numbers, was nearly speechless.

The correct way to use Xu Mo:

—digging up dirt on the Xu family’s pretty employees (✖)

—uncovering future business secrets (√)

Trillions!!!

In the past,

Li Jiaxin wouldn’t have dared to dream of such sums.

But now, reality was just that bizarre,

that unreasonable!

She wasn’t interested in money itself,

but she loved spending it.

Raising women required endless shopping, right?

Her personal savings were substantial,

but even she’d feel the pinch

if she encountered someone particularly extravagant.

After all, her money didn’t grow on trees.

A while later,

Xu Shi pushed the door open and walked in.

The room fell silent.

All eyes turned to her.

Her usually cheerful face now looked like a bitter melon.

"Xu Shi, what did Aunt Su say? How much did she lend?"

Yang Jingying was the first to ask.

She was deeply concerned about this.

Zhou Qiaoqiao’s standing with the elders was too high!

She wasn’t confident she could turn the tide anytime soon.

Xu Shi held up three slender fingers, her expression more miserable than ever.

"Three... three hundred billion."

The moment she spoke,

Yang Jingying’s composure shattered.

Shen Manni couldn’t hold back.

Han Zhiqi nearly fainted on the spot.

Li Jiaxin clicked her tongue in disbelief.

Gao Liyuan’s jaw dropped as she counted on her fingers,

looking like she’d never seen money before.

An Youyi remained expressionless, casually munching on melon seeds.

There was a knock at the door.

Xu Shi called out, "Come in."

A delivery person entered, carrying a tray.

The tray was covered with a lid.

This wasn’t the same delivery person as last time—

it was a new face.

The delivery person looked uneasy, glancing at the group of stunning women before placing the tray in the center of the table.

"Ladies, please enjoy. The rest of the dishes will be brought up shortly by my colleague."

The delivery person lifted the lid and bowed.

At first, she’d assumed the order was placed by a group of men.

Who would’ve guessed it was a room full of beautiful women?

The contrast was staggering!

An enticing aroma immediately filled the room.

It smelled delicious, and it tasted even better.

But ignoring the visual aspect would be criminal!

An Youyi, Yang Jingying, Xu Shi, and Shen Manni nodded in approval.

Han Zhiqi, Gao Liyuan, and Li Jiaxin: What the hell is this?

Is this even human food?

A dog would’ve whipped up a whole new four-course meal!

The tray was filled with a pile of tiny, wriggling bugs.

Curled up,

twisting and turning, nestled in the eggs.

It was utterly horrifying!

"Uh... what is this...?"

Gao Liyuan exclaimed.

As a seasoned homebody,

she couldn’t stand the sight of such disgusting little creatures.

Han Zhiqi’s face froze.

Was this Yang Jingying’s way of messing with her?

She recalled Yang Jingying handing her the menu earlier,

but at the time, it hadn’t seemed suspicious.

Now, looking back,

it was clearly a setup!

A big one!

"What kind of cursed dish did you order? Don’t tell me you can actually eat this!"

Han Zhiqi’s voice was low, her arms covered in goosebumps.