Volume 1, Chapter 54: Luring the Prey into the Trap

Dragon Head Mountain.

Inside a thatched cottage, Ye Tian sat cross-legged on the floor, refining medicinal pills.

A short while ago, the medicinal ingredients for pill refining that the Li family had helped him collect arrived one after another. There was still a small portion that proved exceedingly difficult to find, leaving Ye Tian with no choice but to ask the Xu family for assistance in making inquiries.

After a long wait, the ingredients required by Ye Tian were finally gathered in full.

For the past few days, he had remained in the cottage, refining Qi-Gathering Pills to aid his cultivation.

The refinement of this type of pill was considerably more difficult than that of Body-Forging Pills. Ye Tian failed twice in succession, only managing to succeed on his third attempt, producing a batch of Qi-Gathering Pills of rather decent quality.

That very day, after Li Qingcheng delivered some daily necessities requested by Ye Tian, she lingered and did not leave for a long time.

Seeing her hesitate in her steps, Ye Tian could not help but ask, "Is there anything else?"

"Elder Brother Ye..."

Li Qingcheng turned around, her expression somewhat hesitant. "There is indeed something. I feel it is necessary to speak with you about it..."

Ye Tian was in high spirits at the moment and did not notice anything unusual about her demeanor. He asked, "Why are you beating around the bush with me? If there is something on your mind, just say it directly."

"It concerns your ex-wife, Shen Yuwei."

Watching Ye Tian's expression, Li Qingcheng lowered her voice. "During this recent period, she has been using your name all over Nanjiang City to bluff and swindle..."

Since she had already brought it up, there was no longer any point in concealing it. She proceeded to recount everything regarding Shen Yuwei.

Recently, Ye Tian had been entirely occupied with pill refining and had virtually no contact with the outside world.

During such a critical juncture, members of the Li family naturally would not bother him with these vexing, trivial matters.

Seeing that Ye Tian had yet to step forward to refute the rumors, Shen Yuwei mistakenly assumed he was intentionally indulging her, and she completely threw caution to the wind.

Lately, she had been spinning one tall tale after another, to the point where even Li Qingcheng felt a chill run down her spine.

It was only yesterday that Shen Yuwei went so far as to spread the news that she was about to reunite with Ye Tian and hold another wedding ceremony. Li Qingcheng could finally bear it no longer, and she seized this opportunity to alert Ye Tian.

"Outrageous!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Tian was instantly filled with righteous indignation.

This ungrateful woman who had betrayed him actually dared to use his reputation to perpetrate frauds?

"We are returning to Nanjiang City!"

Ye Tian had no choice but to deal with these matters.

Otherwise, there was no telling how much trouble Shen Yuwei might bring upon him.

"I will make arrangements immediately."

Li Qingcheng let out a sigh of relief.

At the same time, a trace of covert joy surged in her heart.

She had previously worried that Ye Tian still harbored lingering affections for Shen Yuwei, which was why she had never dared to take any decisive measures against her.

Now that Ye Tian was going to personally deal with Shen Yuwei, her lingering anxieties were put to rest.

***

Returning to Nanjiang City and reviewing the local online gossip concerning Shen Yuwei, Ye Tian's complexion turned as dark as the bottom of a wok.

He finally realized just how much trouble this shameless, despicable woman had brought upon him!

"Why didn't you stop her, and why didn't you tell me sooner?"

Tossing his phone aside, Ye Tian asked Li Qingcheng with a gloomy face.

Looking somewhat aggrieved, Li Qingcheng replied, "Who could have anticipated she would go to such lengths? Besides, you gave instructions beforehand that no one was allowed to disturb you while you were refining pills. My hands were tied."

Seeing her looking like a wronged young daughter-in-law, Ye Tian found it difficult to reproach her further. Helplessly, he said, "Forget it. Matters have already reached this stage, so we should think about how best to resolve this mess."

Li Qingcheng had pondered this problem for a long time recently and had already devised a foolproof solution.

Hearing Ye Tian's inquiry, she directly shared her perspective.

"I have already thought it through for you. Since so many people have been wanting to befriend you lately, why don't we host a banquet and invite those people to attend? That way, we avoid continuously dodging them and accidentally giving offense."

"Furthermore, you can publicly clarify your relationship with Shen Yuwei at the banquet. In doing so, the rumors will collapse of their own accord, preventing a great deal of trouble."

"By the way, it will also help enhance our group's corporate image. It's a win-win solution that achieves multiple goals at once!"

"A banquet?"

Ye Tian was not particularly fond of participating in such social gatherings. However, with no better alternative at hand, he pondered for a moment and gave his consent.

Li Qingcheng then asked, "As for the guests at the banquet, which individuals should we invite? Do you have a list in mind?"

Ye Tian frowned. "I don't know more than a few of those people, nor do I have any idea who should be invited. Why don't you handle the arrangements instead?"

"Are you certain you want me to arrange it?" Li Qingcheng asked earnestly.

Ye Tian smiled, dismissing the matter lightly. "This is hardly a major issue. You have full authority to take charge."

"Very well, I'm on it!"

Entrusted with this task, Li Qingcheng appeared thoroughly delighted. Before long, she produced a name list and handed it to Ye Tian.

"No need to show it to me. Just proceed according to your own arrangements. As for the preparations for the banquet, I will have to trouble you and Li Cheng."

Ye Tian glanced casually at the document. Seeing that the names were entirely unfamiliar to him, he lost all interest in reading further.

"Fine then. I will arrange it according to my own ideas. You mustn't blame me if something goes wrong when the time comes..."

Li Qingcheng offered a preemptive disclaimer.

Ye Tian shook his head, amused. "Alright, alright. Just go ahead and do it; I'll take the responsibility if anything goes wrong, okay?"

"Great, I'm off then!"

Making an OK gesture with her hand, Li Qingcheng left the apartment.

Ye Tian failed to notice the flash of triumph and cunning that crossed her eyes the moment she turned around.

Hmph, Shen Yuwei, since you love playing games so much, I will let you play to your heart's content!

***

Lately, Shen Yuwei had been frequenting various social circles, appearing infinitely glamorous on the outside while burning with anxiety on the inside like an ant on a hot pan.

Because Ye Tian had remained completely unresponsive, a vague sense of unease gnawed at her.

Logically speaking, her intention to remarry had already been made abundantly clear. If Ye Tian were not a fool, he would certainly understand her intentions.

Yet, his indifference and silence left Shen Yuwei feeling somewhat insecure.

"Could he still be holding a grudge? I've already lowered my pride to show goodwill, isn't that enough to appease him?"

"Forget it. Whether he mocks me or not, I'm done putting up a facade. I'll just have a showdown with him directly."

"What I want right now is to remarry him!"

"And I need to fabricate a plausible excuse..."

Wracking her brains, Shen Yuwei frantically sent text messages to Ye Tian, attempting to explain the events surrounding their divorce.

First of all, she claimed that her decision to divorce Ye Tian was actually mandated by the company's board of directors.

Since Ye Tian was one of the co-founders of her company, once news of his imprisonment spread, it would inevitably disrupt the company's IPO timeline, resulting in devastating financial losses for the board members.

Faced with this crisis, after deliberation by the board, the optimal remedy was to sever her marital relationship with Ye Tian.

Driven to a dead end with no other options, she was forced to divorce Ye Tian, intending to reconcile with him once the company's public listing succeeded.

After all, the company also embodied Ye Tian's painstaking efforts; he should surely understand and would certainly not wish to see the firm driven to bankruptcy.

As for why she repeatedly antagonized Ye Tian after the divorce...

That was because she had been threatened by Su Baitao!

Su Baitao was the supervisor appointed by the board to oversee her divorce, and her association with him was nothing more than an act!

Now, she had completely broken ties with Su Baitao and intended to reunite with Ye Tian, hoping he would forgive her...

Yet, this seemingly rational explanation, once transmitted to Ye Tian, vanished like a stone sinking into the sea without eliciting the slightest response.

In reality, Ye Tian never saw any of those messages.

Since Dragon Head Mountain lacked mobile signal, his phone had remained in Li Qingcheng's possession all along, allowing her to field calls from prominent figures on his behalf.

However, these messages were read by Li Qingcheng instead.

Never had Li Qingcheng imagined that Shen Yuwei would concoct such a clumsy excuse, and the reading of it filled her with blazing fury.

After repeated deliberation, Li Qingcheng decided to have Ye Tian host a banquet and dispatch an invitation card specifically to Shen Yuwei.

At this very banquet, she would strip away Shen Yuwei's disguise and expose her true colors to the world!