A chill shot up Qin Cheng's spine and he felt his straight back buckle in an instant.
His eyes bulged as he stared in disbelief, memories flashing through his mind—scenes of him laughing and chatting with Jiang Jianming.
He simply couldn't imagine that the unremarkable-looking Jiang Jianming possessed enough power to make so many companies turn against him in the blink of an eye.
Qin Cheng's face was ashen, cold sweat beading on his forehead. Seeing him look like a lost soul, his Father-in-law snorted, contempt and anger written across his face.
"Now do you believe me? What on earth did you do to him that he's going after you like this? Do you have any idea how much your stupidity has cost our family? You worthless fool—how could I have married my daughter to you!"
Qin Cheng's heart filled with guilt and regret; he knew his momentary impulse might have brewed a disaster.
"I… I was wrong," Qin Cheng muttered. "I really didn't know he had that kind of power. Isn't he just a…"
"Enough! Look what you've become. You used to be modest and driven, but once you had a bit of money you changed. Who do you think you are? A big shot?" the Father-in-law raged. "You're nothing but a small-time merchant—what makes you think you can fight him? Think money makes you special? In some people's eyes you're not even worth a fart!"
Qin Cheng hung his head, unable to meet the Father-in-law's gaze. He knew every word was true.
He was just an ordinary man with no background at all.
Everything he had today came from his wife's family.
In the eyes of the truly powerful he was insignificant.
He drew a deep breath and said slowly, "Dad, I know I was wrong…"
Qin Cheng dared hide nothing now. Head bowed like a scolded child, he spilled every detail of his clash with Jiang Cheng at the airport.
He knew the truth was out—photos had been taken—and there was nothing left to conceal.
He felt a bit aggrieved; in his eyes he'd merely flirted with Zhou Ying—no big deal.
Besides, he'd only bad-mouthed Jiang Cheng a couple of times, and for that his wrist was broken.
He couldn't understand why Jiang Jianming was persecuting him.
When the Father-in-law heard this he cursed, "You lecherous bastard—how did I pick a son-in-law like you? I must've been blind."
His voice brimmed with fury and disappointment; he felt he'd lost face and let his daughter down—after all, he'd personally chosen this son-in-law.
Qin Cheng smarted at the Father-in-law's words.
Even now he felt he'd done nothing truly wrong—just acted on impulse.
He retorted dismissively, "Dad, what's the point repeating the same thing over and over? You can fix this, can't you? Jiang Jianming can't possibly know more people than you do."
In Qin Cheng's view, Jiang Jianming must have pulled strings through his own network to land such a heavy blow; otherwise he'd never have managed it alone.
The Father-in-law grew even angrier at those words.
"Who do you think I am? I'm your Father-in-law, not your errand boy. Every time you make a mess you expect me to clean it up? Dream on."
Qin Cheng bristled at the reply.
"Dad, what do you mean? We're family—are you really going to abandon me and watch Jiang Jianming crush me?"
The Father-in-law said, "You brought this on yourself. You made the mistake, now face the consequences."
Those words chilled Qin Cheng to the core.
He felt the old man looked down on him and wanted him to beg.
"Fine, Dad—if that's how you feel, then let bankruptcy come."
He turned to his wife. "Chen Xue, you heard him—your dad won't lift a finger. They all want to watch me die."
"Watch you die? Who do you think you are? If you don't handle this mess, our Chen family business will be dragged down too."
"Dad, is there really no other way? Is this the only road left?" Chen Xue asked, distressed.
The Father-in-law sighed, "I've looked into it. Their company is in the middle of restructuring, and—very quietly—Jiang Jianming just secured the rights to a mining area in Shanxi."
"And then?"
"That mine wasn't even on the auction shortlist, yet somehow Jiang Jianming walked away with the ownership."
Qin Cheng caught the implication. "You mean someone's backing him? Who?"
The Father-in-law shook his head. "Not everyone is qualified to bid on and mine that property. Have you wondered how a small construction-company owner could elbow out the competition and win outright? It takes not only deep pockets but powerful connections. My sources say the influence comes from the capital."
"So he's got someone up top?" Qin Cheng asked.
"More than that. Rumor has it Jiang Tai Construction is far from simple. When you try to look into Jiang Jianming, you find nothing—three generations up are blank."
"Nothing to find? Then where on earth is he from?"
"I've asked myself the same. Nothing to find—so where can he come from? People hide their identities for only two reasons: either they have something shameful to hide, or their identity is something special."
"All anyone knows is that he's the boss of Jiang Tai Construction. His past, his family, his education—everything seems deliberately erased. No one knows where he came from."
"Precisely because there's nothing to find, his very existence makes people uneasy. Jiang Tai kept an extremely low profile until recently, and you just had to charge straight into him. That's no small misfortune."