95: Chapter 95: Song Zhiwei's Money Power

On the night the farce at Zhanghua Mountain Villa ended, Song Zhiwei sat in Zhang Fan's car, watching the street scenery flash by outside the window, her fingers unconsciously twisting her skirt. When Pei Yunxiao touched her during the day, that chaotic feeling still lingered in her mind, and a clear thought suddenly popped into her head.

She couldn't leave Zhang Fan. As long as Zhang Fan wasn't by her side, she might be pulled back by the intelligence-lowering halo and turn back into Pei Yunxiao's simp.

"What are you thinking about?" Zhang Fan noticed her distraction and asked, turning his head, "Still thinking about Pei Yunxiao?"

Song Zhiwei shook her head and turned to look at him, her eyes filled with unprecedented determination: "I'm thinking about how I can stay by your side forever." As soon as she said this, the car fell silent. Zhang Fan's hand on the steering wheel faltered, and he almost lost control.

"Wait... what did you say?" Zhang Fan thought he had misheard. "Stay by my side? You're renting my house right now; aren't you already by my side?"

"It's different." Song Zhiwei sat up straight, her tone serious. "The status of a tenant is too fragile. What if one day you don't let me rent anymore? Besides, I want to stay at your company. That way, I can keep an eye on Pei Yunxiao's movements and rely on you to resist the halo."

She paused and dropped a bombshell. "I've decided. In the name of the Song Group, I'll invest fifty million into Singularity Technology as a strategic investor. That way, I'll be a shareholder and can stay in your office legitimately."

"Fi-fifty million?" Zhang Fan almost hit the gas instead of the brake. "Song Zhiwei, are you crazy? Singularity doesn't need that much money right now, and you're doing this..." He wanted to say "going way too far just to stay by my side," but he felt too embarrassed to say it.

"I'm not crazy." Song Zhiwei's tone was flat, as if she were saying "I had a bowl of noodles today." "I've seen Singularity's project proposal, especially the overseas version of star path. It has great potential, so fifty million isn't much. Besides... if this money lets me stay by your side, it's worth it."

Looking at her serious gaze, Zhang Fan suddenly didn't know how to argue. It was the first time he had seen someone talk about an "investment" as if they were "buying a ticket"—and a ticket to stay by someone's side at that.

Early the next morning, Song Zhiwei arrived at the Singularity Technology office on time with the Song Group's legal team and investment contract. When she announced the "fifty million investment," the entire studio exploded—

The coffee cup in Zhou Yurou's hand almost slipped. She stared at the numbers on the contract and confirmed repeatedly, "Fifty million? Miss Song, are you sure it's not five million?"

She thought Song Zhiwei was just playing around, but she hadn't expected such a generous hand.

Liu Ruyan walked over to Song Zhiwei with a freshly brewed cup of tea, her tone slightly complex. "Miss Song really trusts our Singularity. But... after you invest, which department do you want to be in charge of?"

Song Zhiwei waved her hand and had the legal team hand the contract to Zhang Fan for his signature. She then grabbed a small stool and walked straight to a corner of Zhang Fan's office. After sitting down, she smiled at everyone. "I won't be in charge of any department. I'll just be a consultant and come in to take a look every day."

"Take a look? At what?" Zhou Yurou frowned, alarm bells instantly ringing in her heart.

Song Zhiwei's intentions were clearly not about the business; she was obviously after Zhang Fan!

In the days that followed, the Singularity Technology office turned into a complete "battlefield"—

Song Zhiwei reported on time every day, sitting on her small stool in the corner of Zhang Fan's office. She didn't play on her phone or do any work; she just quietly stared at Zhang Fan.

She watched when Zhang Fan typed, she sat in the back row and watched during meetings, and she even followed him to the breakroom to get water, standing nearby and watching.

This bizarre behavior put everyone in the studio under immense pressure:

The programmer guy couldn't help but glance toward Zhang Fan's office while coding, fearing that the "boss's wife" (as they called her privately) would see him write a bug.

The administrative girl had to confirm Song Zhiwei wasn't looking before she dared to step into the office to print documents.

The most uncomfortable ones were Zhou Yurou and Liu Ruyan. Every morning, Zhou Yurou would deliberately hand Zhang Fan a coffee in front of Song Zhiwei, her tone intimate: "Zhang Fan, you worked so late on the proposal last night. Have some more coffee today to refresh yourself. I specifically added double milk for you."

After handing it over, she would glance at Song Zhiwei, her eyes saying, "This is my territory."

Liu Ruyan took the gentle route, occasionally handing Zhang Fan warmed fruit and speaking softly: "President Zhang, don't just stare at the screen. Eat some fruit to protect your eyes; I just cut it this morning, it's fresh." While speaking, she would casually brush against Zhang Fan's sleeve, her movements natural and intimate.

Song Zhiwei played dumb the whole time. No matter how Zhou Yurou and Liu Ruyan "claimed their territory," she just smiled, either continuing to stare at Zhang Fan or taking out her phone to scroll through the news, as if she didn't see their little maneuvers.

Caught in the middle, Zhang Fan felt a chill down his spine every day. Before he could finish Zhou Yurou's coffee, Liu Ruyan's fruit would arrive.

Just as he finished discussing a proposal with Zhou Yurou, Liu Ruyan would lean in and ask if he wanted to rest.

Song Zhiwei, like a silent "supervisor," saw everything but said nothing. It made him so uncomfortable he wished he could dig a hole and crawl into it.

The most miserable one was Gu Jingshen. Because he had helped Zhang Fan block two "peach blossom calamities" before, he had earned the enmity of Zhou Yurou and Liu Ruyan.

The last time he came to deliver documents, Zhou Yurou deliberately spilled coffee on his suit, and Liu Ruyan "accidentally" loaded the wrong paper size into the printer, making him struggle for half an hour before he could leave.

After being tricked twice, Gu Jingshen didn't dare come to Singularity anymore. He even had his assistant deliver documents, specifically instructing: "Don't let Director Zhou or Miss Liu see me."

After a week of this, Zhang Fan felt helpless and talked to Song Zhiwei several times: "At least find something to do, like looking at project materials or talking to the Operations Department about promotion. What's the point of just sitting there watching me?"

Song Zhiwei shook her head and moved her stool closer to him. "No, I like watching you. Watching you makes me feel at ease, and the intelligence-lowering halo won't affect me." She paused and added, "Besides, I can learn things by watching you work, so it's not a waste of time."

Zhang Fan was left speechless and could only let her be. Anyway, she wasn't causing trouble; she just occasionally handed him fruit or poured water, which wasn't much of a hassle.

But a few days later, Song Zhiwei came up with something new. That noon, Zhang Fan passed by the breakroom and heard Song Zhiwei on the phone with the butler. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for him to hear clearly: "Butler Wang, please contact the developer of Yujing Garden and see if you can get the original sales list. I want to buy the entire building where Zhang Fan lives. Price is not an issue, handle it as soon as possible."

Zhang Fan: "???"

He rushed in, snatched Song Zhiwei's phone, and said to the butler on the other end, "Butler Wang, no need to buy it. Just pretend this never happened, thank you."

After hanging up, he looked at Song Zhiwei, completely speechless. "Song Zhiwei, are you crazy? Buying a whole building? Just to live next to me? Which young lady spends money like this?"

Song Zhiwei felt a bit aggrieved and pouted. "I just want to live in the same building as you every day so we can go to work together in the morning and go home together at night. Being closer to you means the intelligence-lowering halo won't affect me as much. Besides, the building in Yujing Garden isn't expensive; it's just pocket change for the Song family..."

"It's not about whether it's expensive!" Zhang Fan interrupted her, rubbing his temples. "This is too exaggerated. Buying a whole building is such a waste! And I'm fine living where I am; there's no need for all this trouble. Besides, if you want to be close to me, can't you just keep renting the place next door? Why do you have to buy the building?"

Song Zhiwei was stunned for a moment, and then her eyes lit up. "Oh! Why didn't I think of that? Then I'll renew the lease next door and renovate it to my liking. That way, I can be with you every day too!"

Seeing her become happy instantly, Zhang Fan smiled helplessly—this young lady's train of thought was truly simple and direct. As long as she could stay by his side, whether it was investing or buying a building, she didn't hesitate.

He sighed. "Renewing the lease is fine, and you can renovate however you like, but you're not allowed to do anything as exaggerated as buying a building again, you hear me?"

"I hear you!" Song Zhiwei nodded immediately, like an obedient elementary student. "I'll listen to you. I won't buy buildings randomly anymore."

She thought to herself: As long as I can stay by Zhang Fan's side, it doesn't matter if I don't buy the building. After the investment, I can stay at the studio every day and live next to him at night. That's enough. Pei Yunxiao can forget about controlling me with the intelligence-lowering halo ever again.