Su Qiqi also turned her head to look at him in surprise.
A hint of anxiety flickered in Jin Muchen's eyes.
"The boss must be mistaken. My surname is also Jin, but I'm not a CEO." Jin Muchen shot the boss another glare, causing the boss to visibly tremble.
The boss was a smart man; after counting the glare, he understood that there must be some unspeakable secret. Seeing everyone staring in disbelief, he quickly tried to defuse the situation.
"You just look so much like a friend of mine, who's also named Jin and is a CEO. But on closer inspection, you're even more handsome than he is. It seems I was mistaken."
Su Qiqi sighed in relief and said,
"Boss, please don't mistake people in the future. If my hubby were a CEO, I would quit my job immediately."
Su Qiqi's comments amused the servers nearby, relieving some of the tension.
Jin Muchen shook his head, stopped talking, and took out his card.
"It seems like the boss really did mistake me for someone else."
"Uncles and aunts, I've put the money here. Please start your meals when everything is ready."
Lin Hui and Su Xingchen looked at each other, realizing that their earlier squabble had been for nothing. But free food was not to be wasted, and they were certain that Su's parents would pay them.
Jin Muchen knew the money would eventually end up with Su Xingchen and his wife, he just wanted the couple to reveal their foul attitudes in their haste, letting Su's parents realize that their son and daughter-in-law were "vampires".
However, their parents' favoritism was too deep, beyond help.
Moreover, he nearly revealed his identity earlier. If he made another forceful proposition, he might be recognized.
The table was filled with exquisite dishes, very respectable. The food at the City Hotel was of banquet quality. Jin Muchen told Su's parents that he had specially requested it, and though it was discounted, it was still at the regular price.
A lavish and lively exterior, along with normal spending levels, made it more than suitable.
Lin Hui made a show of serving food to Chen Shujuan, sighing,
"This place is good, son-in-law does have money. I wonder why he won't spend it on our Qiqi."
Hearing this, Su Qiqi felt like throwing up her unswallowed food.
"Sister-in-law, stop the act. The betrothal gifts have already been settled. It's time to give up your schemes."
Lin Hui's face changed, and she shot Su Xingchen a glance: "Just look at your little sister."
Su Xingchen was enjoying his meal. Turning around, he patted Lin Hui twice, signaling her to shut up.
Jin Muchen didn't start eating. Instead, he took out a pair of canes he had selected for Madam Su and Su Tiancheng. A red gem was embedded on the top, looking quite valuable.
"Oh my, what's this?"
Chen Shujuan's eyes lit up. Her legs were bad, and for the sake of saving money for her grandson, she always made do with chopped up pieces of wood. This cane was just what she wanted.
"Are you satisfied?"
"Definitely satisfied. Oh, this child is so considerate."
When Madam Su saw money, her eyes lit up. She instinctively felt that the cane was worth at least several thousand, so her attitude changed.
Su Tiancheng simply coughed twice, didn't say anything, and accepted it.
Seeing the cane, Lin Hui's eyes turned green with envy. Just as she opened her mouth, an exquisitely packaged luxury bag landed in front of her.
"This… is this for me?"
She recognized the pattern on the bag. It was a style she wouldn't be able to afford even with years of salary.
"A small token."
Jin Muchen didn't have a good impression of Lin Hui and couldn't be bothered to exchange niceties.
As for Su Xingchen, Jin Muchen knew what he wanted the most.
"Big brother, I know a few people at JT where I work. There's some surplus material this year, I'll have someone send it to your company this week."
Su Xingchen immediately put down his chopsticks. JT's materials were in high demand every year, even the leftovers were worth quite a bit of money.
"Ah, that's great, thanks brother-in-law."
"Brother-in-law is really capable. Aren't these things worth a lot of money? Do JT employees earn that high a salary?"
Lin Hui stroked the bag. She was certain it was genuine.
"I bought them from friends at a discount."
Jin Muchen said calmly.
"Oh! Brother-in-law, you're too polite. When can we meet your parents? We still haven't seen our in-laws even though you're already married. It doesn't sound good when spoken out loud."
Lin Hui was persistent, believing that there was something suspicious about Jin Muchen's identity.
"Sister-in-law, his parents are busy. Let's talk about it later."
Su Qiqi herself didn't know what Jin Muchen's parents did. She just didn't want to make trouble out of nothing.
"Qiqi, have you met your in-laws yet? Our children from the Su Family need to have manners."
Su Tiancheng suddenly remembered the haste of his daughter's wedding and still didn't know what kind of people her in-laws were.
Jin Muchen naturally couldn't let them meet his grandfather, as his grandfather wouldn't be able to hide his identity.
"My parents are working in another city. When they have time, I'll arrange a meeting."
Jin Muchen followed Su Qiqi's words.
"Ah, are there other people in your house? Siblings for example?"
Lin Hui was persistent.
"No."
After all, they had accepted her gifts, so it wouldn't be right to press her hard. Su Xingchen patted Lin Hui's hand, indicating that they should drop the matter for now.
They got a lot today anyway, and the betrothal gifts were already given. They could always ask for more money later.
After three rounds of drinks, Su Tiancheng was a bit drunk and apologizing to his daughter. Jin Muchen expressionlessly called a few taxis to send the Su family home.
When Jin Muchen returned, Su Qiqi was sitting in the passenger seat, deep in thought.
"Mr. Jin, you spent quite a lot of money today."
"No."
"How come? The walking stick, the bag, and the materials, it's not thousands, but at least tens of thousands... Can I repay you in installments?"
The more Su Qiqi talked, the more upset she became. All of these were things she would have to repay Jin Muchen in the future. She was deeply in debt just by marrying someone.
Jin Muchen sighed and said,
"These were all fake gifts from clients."
But to their surprise, Su Qiqi immediately sat up straight. There was no way she could be mistaken.
The bag that Lin Hui was infatuated with was something her bestie, Lu Kek, had long coveted. The anti-fraud features on it, Su Qiqi knew better than anyone else.
Lu KeKe was a connoisseur who also studied gemstones. Over time, Su Qiqi could generally tell the real from the fake.
"Don't lie to me. I know you did it to pacify my sister-in-law, but money should be spent where it's needed. You still have a child to raise."
Su Qiqi thought Jin Muchen was trying to put on a brave front to quell the matter.
Jin Muchen didn't bother to explain, but he made it clear he would not accept Su Qiqi's money.
Su Qiqi had never wanted to be in debt to others.
"So, I have a card here, which I can use to pay you back. I'll use it for living expenses. What do you think?"
Jin Muchen was somewhat surprised since Su Qiqi's family circumstances made it hard for her not to crave money.
His house was a bit ostentatious. Su Qiqi would have certainly noticed he had some money.
Did she marry him, with no thought towards his money at all?
"No need."
"No, we must."
Su Qiqi said decisively.
"I'm also a part of this household. You've spent so much money on my family, so it's only right that I pay you back."
Su Qiqi had already transferred the tens of thousands of yuan she had saved to this card using her phone.
Though it hurt a bit to part with so much money, she believed it was the right thing to do.
If she submitted the project proposal within the next week and it was well-received, she could get a bonus.
The thought of the proposal made Su Qiqi's headache even worse.
A week passed swiftly. Su Qiqi created a very detailed proposal, with every step based on field investigations.
Han MeiYuan sat next to her boss, Chen Jinhai, swinging her high-heeled legs and occasionally brushing against the boss's slacks.
"Su Qiqi, don't you want to work anymore?"
Chen Jinhai glanced at the file and flippantly tossed it at Su Qiqi's feet.
"Boss, I spent five days working on this. Could you take another look?"
Su Qiqi couldn't stand the humiliation, but because she was an employee, she had to swallow her pride and comply.
Chen Jinhai didn't say anything else. Han MeiYuan picked up the folder and scoffed,
"Su Qiqi, if you put in even a little effort, you wouldn't have been rejected and scorned so badly by the other company. JT is not an ordinary company. It's one thing to deceive me sometimes, but you dare to fool the boss too?"
Her words only added fuel to the fire.
Su Qiqi couldn't understand how her carefully crafted proposal was being attacked nonstop by these people.
"Su Qiqi, if you ever come up with this kind of garbage again, don't bother coming to work! You..."
Before Chen Jinhai could finish, the phone rang. Su Qiqi saw his face turn obsequious when he picked up the call. She knew it was someone from Party A.
As Su Qiqi guessed, it was bald Manager Wu on the other end.
"Ahem, Mr. Chen, didn't that Su Qiqi at your company submit a proposal earlier?"
Manager Wu beat around the bush, just seeking some benefits.
Chen Jinhai's face was stiff from fake smiling. He knew that this junior employee had offended someone from JT, so he had to teach her a lesson.