Chapter 119 It's not up to you, it's up to me...

"Alright, sign this."

Seeing that the atmosphere was just right, Liu Ruyan took out a share transfer agreement she had prepared long ago.

"Cousin, this is..."

Liu Haoran took the document and skimmed it. When he saw that he was only losing decision-making power but still retained dividend rights, he was stunned.

"The road to entrepreneurship is bitter, but its glory is eternal."

"And this glory, I, Liu Ruyan, will not enjoy alone."

"We Liu family members are shareholders. And I, Liu Ruyan, am the legal representative."

However, facing her Cousin's surprise, Liu Ruyan simply smiled faintly and spoke unhurriedly.

Hearing these familiar words, Chen Yan was surprised.

Wait, Eldest Miss Liu Ruyan, those words are clearly mine.

That familiar tone, those moving lines—no empty grandiosity, just precise positioning of real interests. Anyone who didn't know better would think she was possessed by Chun Ka-ka.

But despite his surprise, Chen Yan pursed his lips and remained silent.

Right now was Liu Ruyan's show time. If he...

...opened his mouth and ruined the mood, things would really go south.

Liu Haoran's hand trembled as he held the agreement.

It was all there in black and white.

The eight percent of Liu Group shares under his name were to be transferred to Liu Ruyan personally at a set price. The transfer price included a twenty percent premium, to be paid in three installments, with the first installment arriving within three business days of signing.

As for the annual dividends he was entitled to, they would be calculated based on his post-transfer shareholding ratio, not a penny less.

It was full of interests and transparent calculations.

"Sign it." Liu Ruyan pushed a fountain pen to the center of the conference table. The sound of the pen hitting the table wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet room. "Once you sign, you're still my Cousin. If you don't, you won't even be that."

Hearing this, Liu Haoran looked up. The tear tracks in his eyes weren't dry yet, and his gaze held something so complex even he couldn't explain it.

Gratitude? Resentment? Relief? Remorse? It was all there, but none of it was pure.

"Cousin." His voice was incredibly raspy, that tight-throated state after crying. "Why... why are you still giving me dividends? You could have taken this chance to kick me out and not give me a single cent."

"Because you are a member of the Liu family." Liu Ruyan sat back in the head seat, hands crossed on the table, her posture returning to its usual composure and coldness. "Your father is my father's younger brother. Your grandmother is my biological grandmother. Within the Liu family, we can fight and argue behind closed doors all we want. But once the fighting and arguing are over, you still have to come home for dinner."

She paused, her gaze shifting from Liu Haoran to the cloud-covered sky outside the window.

"When my father was alive, he told me something. 'Family business' doesn't mean a family and a business; it means family plus business. Family comes first, then the business. The business can fail, but the family must not fall apart."

Liu Haoran's jaw twitched.

"Uncle, he..." He wanted to say something, but swallowed the words back down.

Sitting nearby, Chen Yan watched this scene, a strange feeling welling up in his heart. Liu Ruyan's words just now were beautiful—so beautiful that he felt she wasn't just speaking to Liu Haoran, but to everyone present and absent today, including himself.

But he understood what was hidden beneath those beautiful words.

Acquiring the shares at a twenty percent premium, providing regular annual dividends, and letting Liu Haoran stay in Shanghai City. With this combination of moves, it was impossible for Liu Haoran to ever side with Qin Shi again in this lifetime.

The reason was simple: everything Qin Shi could give Liu Haoran, Liu Ruyan had now given. And everything Qin Shi couldn't give, Liu Ruyan had also provided.

Money? Liu Ruyan gave it with a premium. Dignity? Liu Ruyan preserved it. An escape route? Liu Ruyan had it ready. Even the social graces—Liu Ruyan handled them flawlessly.

You did me a big favor today by telling me Qin Shi had arranged people in the underground parking lot; this twenty percent premium is the finder's fee.

When Liu Haoran took the fountain pen, his hand was still shaking.

The tip of the pen hovered over the signature line, pausing for three seconds.

Then he took a deep breath and lowered the pen, signing his name stroke by stroke. Liu Haoran.

The handwriting wasn't particularly good, but it was forceful, pressing deep into the paper as if he were trying to crush all the resentment of his life into those three characters.

"Alright." Liu Ruyan picked up the signed agreement, checked the signature line, and tucked it into a folder. Her tone was as flat as if she were confirming a routine procurement contract. "From now on, the Liu Group's business will be directly managed by the group headquarters. Go back and hand over your work to your team. Is one week enough for the transition?"

"It's enough." Liu Haoran lowered his eyes, his voice muffled.

Whether it was enough or not, he no longer had a choice.

"For the next three months after the handover, you will come to the group once a month for a meeting to participate in strategic discussions. You no longer have decision-making power, but I will listen to and consider your opinions." After saying this, Liu Ruyan paused and added, "The Liu Corporation is mine, and it's also yours, but ultimately, it's ours."

Liu Haoran didn't speak; he just nodded.

Instead, he gave Chen Yan a meaningful look.

Feeling the other's gaze on him from the corner of his eye, Chen Yan felt a wave of helplessness.

Damn it, I'm not an idiot. Do you think I can't hear it? Do you really need to remind me like this?

The door to the conference room was knocked on just then—not too loud, not too soft, not too fast, not too slow. Exactly three times.

"Come in." Liu Ruyan's voice returned to its usual coldness.

The door opened, and two people walked in.

Leading the way was a man in his forties, wearing a well-tailored dark gray suit. He had a buzz cut, a square face, and a jawline as sharp as if it were carved with a knife. His gait was steady—so steady that every step seemed measured with a ruler.

Chen Yan noticed a thin layer of calluses on the web of his right hand.

Those were marks that only someone who had handled guns for a long time would develop.

A security background, and definitely not the level of a typical security firm.

Following behind was a young man in a black suit, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a lean build and sharp eyes. He didn't look at Liu Haoran or Chen Yan; his gaze quickly swept the room before locking onto Liu Ruyan.

"CEO Liu." The man with the buzz cut walked to the conference table and nodded slightly. "There's a situation at the Banyan Tree underground parking lot you asked me to investigate."

Liu Ruyan's finger tapped lightly on the table.

"Speak."

"In the second underground level, Zone B2, five parking spaces near the elevator lobby have been on reserve since nine o'clock this morning, marked with 'Private Parking, Do Not Occupy' signs." The buzz-cut man's voice wasn't loud, but every word was as clear as an official report. "I had someone check. Those five spaces belong to a company called 'Hengtong Business.' The legal representative of that company is one of Qin Shi's men."

Liu Ruyan's expression didn't change, but Chen Yan noticed the rhythm of her breathing shift—it became deeper and slower. That was her physiological response to suppressing an emotion.

"What about the surveillance on the third underground level?" she asked.

"That's what I wanted to tell you." The buzz-cut man opened a black folder in his hand, pulled out a photo, and placed it before Liu Ruyan. "Someone tampered with the fire escape from the third underground level to Zone B2 this morning. The electronic lock on the fire door was intentionally damaged; it can be pushed open from the outside with brute force."

The photo was very clear—a grayish-white access control panel had been pried open, exposing the wiring inside. Several wires had been cut, their copper cores glinting gold at the breaks.

When Chen Yan saw the photo, the muscles in his back tightened involuntarily.

A damaged access lock. A fire escape allowing direct access from the third underground level to Zone B2. Five reserved parking spaces in Zone B2.

This wasn't the setup for a "face-to-face chat."

This was the physical creation of a closed "vacuum zone" with no surveillance blind spots that could be entered and exited freely.

Liu Haoran's face went completely pale. So pale that even his lips lost their color; he looked like a piece of rice paper soaked in water.

"I... I didn't know..." His voice trembled, and even his teeth chattered. "Cousin, I really didn't know. Qin Shi told me he just wanted to talk to you face-to-face. He didn't tell me anything else, I..."

"Enough." Liu Ruyan interrupted him. Her tone wasn't heavy, but it carried an unquestionable authority. "I told you, the premium is the price for the information you gave me today. You've already told me everything you know. The rest has nothing to do with you."

She looked at the man with the buzz cut.

"Uncle Fang, handle the matter in the underground parking lot. Get that fire escape door fixed by the end of the day. Don't touch the five parking spaces; don't alert the enemy. However..."

She paused, her gaze turning sharp.

"Before tonight, I want to know exactly who those five people Qin Shi arranged are, what they're carrying, and whether they want my life or something else. Can you do it?"

"I can." The man called Uncle Fang responded crisply and turned to leave. He stopped at the door for a moment and looked at the young man. "Xiao Zhou, stay here. Once CEO Liu finishes her meeting, you're responsible for escorting her back to the garage."

"Understood." The young man responded and stood at the conference room door, standing guard like a door god.

The door closed again.

Silence returned to the conference room, but it was different from before. The previous silence was the calm before the storm; this silence was the wreckage left in its wake.

Liu Haoran was still sitting there, head in his hands, fingers buried deep in his hair. He looked like a hedgehog that had been stripped of its quills.

"Haoran." Liu Ruyan spoke, her tone much gentler than he had expected. "Go back for now. We'll talk about the handover tomorrow."

Liu Haoran looked up, his eyes reddening again.

"Cousin..." His voice choked. "Don't you hate me?"

"I do." Liu Ruyan said it quickly, as if the word were squeezed through her teeth. "I hate how stupid you are, how foolish you are, and how you insisted on teaming up with someone else to sabotage your own hand when you held all the aces. But once the hatred is done, life goes on, and the Liu family must keep moving forward."

She pulled a tissue from the folder and pushed it toward Liu Haoran.

"Wipe your face. Look at you, crying like this. If people see you, they'll think I'm bullying my own Cousin."

Liu Haoran took the tissue and wiped his eyes and face, his movements as clumsy as a child who had been scolded by an adult and then given candy. He stood up, his chair making a dull sound as it scraped across the floor.

"Cousin." He stood there, his lips trembling several times before he finally managed to say the words that had been stuck in his throat. "I'm sorry."

Liu Ruyan didn't speak; she only gave a slight nod.

That nod wasn't forgiveness, but at least it was a start.

Liu Haoran turned toward the door, pausing as he reached it. He didn't look back, only spoke in that raspy, nasal voice.

"Cousin, you need to be careful with Qin Shi too. He doesn't value old ties as much as you think."

Then he opened the door and walked out.

The moment the door closed, only Liu Ruyan and Chen Yan remained in the conference room, along with Xiao Zhou, who stood at the door like a guardian.

Liu Ruyan leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, letting out a long breath.

There was so much weight in that breath that Chen Yan could feel it from two meters away.

Chen Yan glanced at her but didn't say anything.

At a time like this, anything he said would be inappropriate.

So he just sat there quietly, waiting for her to speak first.

After about thirty seconds, Liu Ruyan opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him, her lips curving into a faint smile.

In that curve was exhaustion, relief, and a hint of something even she found hard to believe.

"The things I just said," she looked at him, her voice much softer than when she'd spoken to Liu Haoran—so soft it seemed meant only for him, "did they sound familiar?"

Chen Yan was stunned for a moment before realizing what she was talking about.

The road to entrepreneurship is bitter, but its glory is eternal. For this glory, the Liu family are shareholders, and Liu Ruyan is the legal representative.

These words were practically a carbon copy of the pep talk he had given the team during the filming of "The Empress."

"You eavesdropped on me." He couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

"Who eavesdropped?" Liu Ruyan rolled her eyes. This eye-roll was much more natural than the one she'd given Liu Haoran, carrying an unadorned disdain she only showed in front of Chen Yan. "When it comes to intellectuals, can you really call it stealing?"

Fine, this woman's mouth was always stubborn.

"However—" Liu Ruyan's tone suddenly became serious, so serious that Chen Yan felt a bit uncomfortable. "You were right. Instead of using vague things like equity incentives, it's better to make the benefits visible and tangible. The reason Liu Haoran signed that agreement today isn't because he's afraid of me, but because he calculated it clearly. Staying on my side for dividends is a better deal than being used as a pawn by Qin Shi."

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow.

"I give a million to those who wrong me. So what about those who follow me?"

"Mhm." Liu Ruyan stood up, picked up the folder from the table, and patted off non-existent dust. "You think I was talking to him about family affection? If family affection were useful, he wouldn't have ended up where he is today."

She walked over to Chen Yan in her high heels and looked down at him.

At that angle and distance, Chen Yan could smell the faint scent of gardenia perfume on her. He could see the small shadow her eyelashes cast under her eyes and the faint mole near the corner of her mouth.

"Let's go, Screenwriter Chen." Liu Ruyan handed him the folder, her tone teasing. "Your role for today isn't over yet."

Chen Yan took the folder and stood up.

"What else is there?"

Liu Ruyan took his arm—an action that was now quite natural, as if they had done it hundreds of times. She tilted her head slightly to look into his eyes, the smile on her lips slowly widening into a curve that was dangerous, sly, and a bit unsettling.

"Isn't Qin Shi waiting in the underground parking lot for a 'face-to-face chat'?" Her voice was airy, but every word felt like it was stepping on a blade. "Since he wants to see me so badly, let's meet."

Chen Yan's pupils constricted sharply.

"Are you crazy?"

"I'm not crazy." Liu Ruyan led him toward the door, her high heels clicking rhythmically on the marble floor. "He knows now that I have evidence and that Liu Haoran has confessed, so he won't use the trap he set in the parking lot. He's a smart man; he won't do something stupid when he's already been exposed."

"But..."

"No buts." Liu Ruyan interrupted him, her voice low but carrying an unquestionable certainty.

"You don't have the final say in this, I do..."