Chapter 65: Apologies Require Slaps to the Face to Show True Sincerity-Depois de renascer, recusei-me a assumir o fardo, e a família da minha esposa enlouqueceu.(Estufar-se em uma panela de ferro.)

"Honey, don't listen to him. He was the one spreading rumors in the company that I had an affair with that Zhou Jie. It's all lies now."

Lin Meina was on the verge of a breakdown; she had originally come here to cause trouble for Zhao Qiang.

"Business is business, Zhao Qiang. You are going to take a beating today no matter what. Since you've offended me, Sun Zhixiong, if I just let you walk away like this, I might as well pack it in and leave Imperial City."

Sun Zhixiong said with a vicious look in his eyes.

Zhao Qiang crossed his arms and sneered, "Come on then! I'd love to see what you can possibly do to me!"

"Very well, kid. You're the first person to act this arrogant in front of me."

Fuming with malice, Sun Zhixiong waved at his henchmen and snapped ruthlessly, "Go on, give that kid Zhao Qiang a thorough beating!"

His lackeys immediately cracked their knuckles and closed in menacingly on Zhao Qiang.

Zhao Qiang stood his ground, his gaze unwavering. He knew very well that avoiding this fight was no longer an option.

He rolled his wrists, getting ready for the confrontation.

Right at that moment, the tall, imposing gates of the Chu family residence slowly swung open once again.

Hu Biao, the towering giant, strode out imposingly at the head of a squad of guards, surrounding everyone in the blink of an eye.

Sun Zhixiong and Lin Meina were instantly dumbfounded, their faces draining of all color, panic etched deeply into their features.

Sun Zhixiong's body began to tremble involuntarily, filled with overwhelming dread. "W-what on earth is going on here?"

Hu Biao's booming, thunderous voice rang out, "What kind of stray cats and dogs think they can come and cause trouble at the doorstep of the Chu family? Tired of living?"

Before his voice had even faded, he moved like lightning, taking down Sun Zhixiong's thugs in a flash and sending them rolling on the ground amidst a chorus of wails.

Sun Zhixiong's face turned as pale as a sheet, beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolling down his forehead.

His knees went weak, and he could barely keep himself standing.

He hurriedly squeezed out a fawning, ingratiating smile and stammered, "A misunderstanding, a total misunderstanding! We're leaving right now, immediately!"

He knew all too well that this was the territory of the Chu family; if he slipped up even a little, he would be in catastrophic trouble.

Just then, a crisp yet commanding female voice stopped the two of them in their tracks, "Did you two really think you could just walk away after acting so insolent at the entrance of my Chu family? Since when was it that easy?"

Chu Mengyao was dressed in her previous stunning attire—a sleek qipao that hugged her figure, sheer black stockings wrapping around her slender, gorgeous legs, and high heels that clicked against the ground as she swayed toward them with effortless grace.

She first shot Zhao Qiang a sideways glance of annoyance, muttering inwardly, "This guy—whenever he runs into trouble, he still expects this young lady to bail him out."

"Eldest Miss Chu, we didn't mean to offend the prestige of the Chu family," Sun Zhixiong said in a rush. "We're leaving right this second."

His voice dripped with subservience and terror, terrified of displeasing the eldest miss.

Even the Zhang family wouldn't dare easily provoke the Chu family, let alone Lin Meina.

Lin Meina was merely the general manager of some small company; in Chu Mengyao's eyes, she was utterly insignificant, not even worthy of a second glance.

"Yes, yes, leaving right now," Sun Zhixiong echoed frantically. At this moment, in front of the Chu family, he was as humble and insignificant as an ant.

If Zhao Qiang hadn't been so arrogant earlier and bruised his ego, he would never have dared to cause a scene outside the Chu estate.

"Did I say you could leave?"

Chu Mengyao let out a cold snort, her voice chillingly piercing.

At her command, the Chu family guards stepped forward in unison, blocking Sun Zhixiong and Lin Meina's path.

Lin Meina's face turned ghastly pale, her terror-stricken eyes filled with utter helplessness. She blurted out anxiously, "Eldest Miss Chu, how have we offended you? Please, show mercy and let us go!"

Sun Zhixiong also bobbed his head and bowed repeatedly to apologize, looking almost ready to drop to his knees and beg for mercy.

"Let you go?"

Chu Mengyao glanced at Lin Meina with utter disdain. "A cheap, promiscuous woman like you thinks she deserves that?"

"If you want me to spare you, get down on your knees, kowtow, and apologize!"

Chu Mengyao's words were filled with overbearing dominance and unquestionable authority.

A wave of bitter humiliation washed over Lin Meina; she felt the Chu family was being utterly tyrannical.

Yet under someone else's roof, one had no choice but to bow their head.

Sun Zhixiong was even more terrified. He was the head of a subsidiary company under the Chu family and relied entirely on them for his livelihood.

If he offended the eldest miss, not only would his meal ticket be ruined, but he probably wouldn't even be able to survive in this city anymore.

Without a second thought, Sun Zhixiong grabbed Lin Meina and dropped to his knees with a heavy *thud*, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness while offering profuse apologies.

Chu Mengyao, however, frowned and said coldly, "I told you to apologize to Zhao Qiang, not to me."

Lin Meina and Sun Zhixiong were completely dumbfounded, as if they hadn't heard her correctly.

Looking utterly unconvinced, Lin Meina stubbornly retorted, "Why should I bow my head to Zhao Qiang? I refuse!"

Sun Zhixiong turned livid with rage. He slapped Lin Meina fiercely across the face and roared, "Stop talking nonsense!"

He didn't dare let Lin Meina provoke Chu Mengyao any further; his family still needed the Chu family to put food on the table.

Looking down at them, Chu Mengyao dropped only a single sentence: "Having offended the man this young lady has set her eyes on, don't you think you should slap yourselves in the face?"

The implication was clear as day: Zhao Qiang was her man.

Sun Zhixiong and Lin Meina were completely blank, their brains tangled in utter confusion.

What was going on here?

Wasn't this Zhao Qiang just someone Chu Mengyao had invited over to cause trouble?

How on earth had he suddenly become her man? That changed the entire equation completely!

Zhao Qiang couldn't help but chuckle. He quickly clarified, "Don't get the wrong idea, you guys. The eldest miss and I don't have that kind of relationship."

Refusing to drop the matter, Chu Mengyao pouted coquettishly and declared, "I've taken a fancy to him, got it?"

A fleeting trace of bashfulness flashed through her eyes. She was doing this partly for little Peach, wanting to give her a normal home.

So she supposed she would just suffer a little grievance and reluctantly accept him.

Sun Zhixiong and Lin Meina exchanged blank, helpless glances, having no idea what to do next.

Lifting his head cautiously, Sun Zhixiong looked at Chu Mengyao and pleaded, "Eldest Miss Chu, t-this is all so sudden; we really had no idea beforehand."

"Had we known that Zhao Qiang was your man, we would never, ever have dared to offend him."

He desperately wished he could strangle Lin Meina for dragging him into this mess by picking a fight with Zhao Qiang for no good reason.

Now, not only had he gained nothing, but he had also gotten a face full of dirt.

Chu Mengyao snorted coldly. "You didn't know? Well, knowing now isn't too late!"

Lin Meina bit her lower lip. Though she felt a profound sense of reluctance, pressured by Chu Mengyao's intimidating aura, she muttered under her breath, "Zhao Qiang, I'm sorry."

"I just offended you, sir. Please, give me a chance."

Lin Meina kept her head bowed, her voice trembling. To her, this was nothing short of absolute, unadulterated humiliation.

When had she ever been treated with such grievance? Back at the company, she was always the one making Zhao Qiang bow and scrape to her.

Damn it all—he had actually managed to latch onto the massive thighs of the Chu family! No wonder he was acting so fearless.

Zhao Qiang smiled. Seeing Lin Meina's deeply resentful expression, he demanded an apology on his own terms.

"Director Lin, did you skip breakfast today?"

Raising his volume, Zhao Qiang's gaze filled with mockery. "Why is your voice so quiet? Who is that even meant for?"

"If you're going to apologize, speak up so I can actually hear it!"

Pushing the matter further, Zhao Qiang refused to give Lin Meina a single moment to catch her breath.

"And slap yourself in the face while you admit you were wrong."

Zhao Qiang continued mercilessly, "That's how you show sincerity. Since you clearly don't know how, let me teach you!"

With that, Zhao Qiang prepared to instruct Lin Meina personally by planting heavy slaps across her face.

With Chu Mengyao standing right there as a deterrent, Lin Meina didn't dare so much as twitch.

*Smack!*

After a few resounding slaps, amidst shrill screams, a bright red handprint blossomed across the older woman's face.

Biting her teeth through the agonizing pain burning on her cheek, Lin Meina had no room to talk back and could only endure it in silence.

The corners of Chu Mengyao's lips curled upward into a secret smile; she hadn't expected Zhao Qiang to have such a dark, mischievous side.

"Director Lin, do you understand now?"

Zhao Qiang withdrew his hand and frowned slightly. "I might have gone a bit too hard—my own hand is stinging now."

"I understand! I understand! Zhao Qiang, please stop hitting me, I was wrong, I was wrong!"

Covering her swollen face, Lin Meina was on the verge of tears. Her face was already bruised and battered; if he kept hitting her, she would end up completely disfigured.

"Look at you, talking nonsense again. I was just teaching you how to apologize, and you're claiming I hit you? When have I ever laid a hand on you?"

Zhao Qiang raised his hand again, scaring Lin Meina into a violent shudder.

Chu Mengyao chimed in, "And another thing, Lin Meina. You'd better rein it in from now on. Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you have a bit of money. In front of me, you don't even make the cut. If I want to crush you, I have a hundred different ways to do it."