After the Reborn Young Master Embraced a Life of Wellness – Chapter 80

“Mr. Chen, should we head to the hotel first?” one of the sales department colleagues asked as Chen Mo hung up the phone. Then, noticing a faint blush on the young executive’s face, he grinned and added, “Was that your girlfriend just now?”

Chen Mo took back his luggage and replied, “Let’s go to the hotel first.”

Then, coughing lightly, he added, “Not a girlfriend.”

Yuan Hao, standing a few steps behind, froze for a second. Then an unreadable expression flickered across his face.

After all, among everyone on this trip, he was probably the only one who knew the truth.

Definitely not a girlfriend—more like a boyfriend.

Every time Yuan Hao thought of that man, a chill would run down his spine. If he had once harbored some vague admiration or unrealistic fantasy about Chen Mo, then after finding out who that man was, those feelings were thoroughly crushed.

Mr. Chen was not someone he could even dare to think about.

That person would never allow anyone harboring improper thoughts about Chen Mo to remain by his side. Yuan Hao understood his place very clearly—and, thankfully, had a bit of self-awareness.

He quickly stepped forward, interrupting the colleague who was still trying to gossip. “Let’s go, the car I ordered should be here any minute.”

Chen Mo had to admit—his protégé’s judgment had improved lately.

But he was too tired to think about the reason behind it.

The group stayed at a national chain of star-rated hotels, just under two kilometers from the seminar venue.

By the time they checked in, it was already evening.

Still recovering from his illness, Chen Mo declined the dinner invite from Lao K and the others, opting instead to stay in and rest.

He first called the hospital.

After confirming that his grandfather’s condition remained stable, he exchanged a few words with the caretaker and hung up.

Then he showered, organized some documents, and unknowingly dozed off on the sofa.

In a hazy dream, he vaguely felt someone draping a blanket over him.

He mumbled sleepily, “Ayan?”

“Who’s Ayan?” The question jolted Chen Mo awake.

Under the soft glow of the suite’s warm lighting, he saw it was Lao K. Sitting up from the couch, he rubbed his forehead and asked, “It’s you. When did you come back?”

“Just now,” Lao K said, picking up the glass of water already on the table and handing it over. “You weren’t feeling well, so I came to check on you. What’s going on with you lately? You’ve been sick for days and still not getting better. I just touched your forehead—it’s warm again.”

Chen Mo took the glass and sipped twice. “I’m fine. Took some medicine.”

“Medicine has to work, you know.” Lao K, familiar with him after years of working together, picked up the small medicine bottle on the table covered in English text. He squinted at it. “Never seen this one before. And who’s this Ayan? You called him pretty intimately. Is he the one who prescribed this?”

Chen Mo couldn’t help chuckling at the way Lao K was frowning at the bottle.

Lao K had met Xi Siyan before and knew they were old friends—but probably hadn’t thought any further. Chen Mo wasn’t sure how Lao K would react if he learned that Ayan was, in fact, Xi Siyan.

And besides, Chen Mo didn’t usually call him that.

The last time had been at Yang Zhi’s wedding—when he carried him home and Chen Mo had deliberately used the name in a teasing tone.

He’d just blurted it out now in confusion.

Lao K had always held Xinrui in high regard. Now that Xinrui and CM were in a cooperative relationship, Chen Mo didn’t plan on coming clean. It would only add unnecessary psychological pressure on Lao K—and wouldn’t do anyone any good.

Lao K didn’t press further. He set the medicine bottle down and frowned. “From what I’ve heard, every company in Suicheng is sending people to this seminar. Everyone knows the official name sounds nice, but the real purpose is to benefit Chuanxing. Since your speech isn’t until the last day, why not skip the first two days and actually get some rest?”

Chen Mo laughed softly—though the laugh carried a trace of coldness. “If I really don’t show up, wouldn’t that be exactly what they want? Ren Xiansen has already locked down at least 40% of the fast-moving project inventory, and this seminar is all about low-investment, high-yield ventures. What do you think he’s trying to do?”

Lao K replied, “But we’re not the ones calling the shots.”

Chen Mo slowly swirled the bottom of his glass. “The market is small. If this pie falls right on our heads, everyone else will be furious.”

Chen Mo had devoted himself to intelligent technology for years.

Partly because he was passionate and skilled in it, but also because his foresight and insight in this field were sharp enough to make even veterans uneasy. That’s why, even as the boss, Lao K rarely questioned his decisions.

Early the next morning, the event organizers sent a car to pick them up.

R2D had just entered the market and was making waves—unsurprisingly, it became the center of attention for the entire research team.

The first day’s schedule focused on registration and orientation. Participants signed in, collected materials, and attended a welcome speech, which was crafted to be highly inspiring. Chen Mo noticed several teams of young professionals about Yuan Hao’s age, participating actively and expressing great enthusiasm for the theme: “Technology leads the future, innovation drives development.”

Because of this, one individual stood out starkly from the crowd.

Not because he was flashy or loud.

But while everyone else was still discussing general principles—like “the fundamental driver of economic growth is technological innovation”—he was already casually debating intelligent data processing and machine perception. The technical terms rolled off his tongue as effortlessly as if he were talking about the weather. Naturally, this drew in those who were truly passionate about and deeply involved in the field.

Especially those teams who had brought their own self-developed products—their eyes lit up.

Because it was still the first day, no one’s official name tag had been issued yet.

So people started getting curious—who was he?

“He’s so young. What small company is he from? I’ve never heard of him.”

“Maybe he just graduated? With that level of knowledge, you’d think he’d be famous already—at least among top universities.”

Before long, they got their answer.

Ren Xiansen, CEO of Chuanxing Technology, walked over with a smile that looked polite but wasn’t. He extended a hand and said, “Mr. Chen, long time no see.”

“Mr. Ren, long time no see,” Chen Mo responded calmly.

In truth, it hadn’t been that long—just long enough for the bruises on Ren’s face to disappear.

Ren Xiansen’s smile grew increasingly stiff. “Mr. Chen really is a top student from Q University. Xinrui is developing so well these days. Why would you still be interested in these small-scale projects?”

The moment those words left his mouth, the surrounding crowd fell into stunned silence.

Murmurs broke out:

“He’s actually Chen Mo?”

“No wonder his understanding of intelligent perception is so advanced. I read a paper he wrote during undergrad that covered this exact topic.”

“Should we approach him? Our goal here is to scout new talent. We only agreed to talk to Chuanxing because we had no better option.”

“Hold on—Chuanxing and Xinrui are famous rivals. President Ren looks like he’s barely holding back his frustration.”

Chen Mo didn’t hear the murmurs.

It was no surprise that people in the same field didn’t recognize his face. Back when he was in school, he rarely participated in academic activities. At the same time, he was already handling Xinrui’s internal affairs. Lao K and Su Qianran had always managed Xinrui’s external operations, so his face seldom appeared in public.

He wasn’t here for academic exchange this time anyway.

Looking at the slightly awkward expression on Ren Xiansen’s face, Chen Mo didn’t even bother to smile. He said calmly, “Mr. Ren, you must be joking. Anyone who earns something through their own effort deserves respect. Only those who are used to reaping without sowing, hijacking other people’s achievements—those people ought to reflect on themselves and ask whether they’re ready to face the consequences. Don’t you agree, Mr. Ren?”

Ren Xiansen’s mouth twitched.

Then he forced a smile and gave Chen Mo a strange look. “Yeah, who knows how things will turn out.”

This vague threat didn’t go unnoticed by the crowd.

Most people chose to stay neutral—observing silently, not wanting to get involved.

When the morning session ended—

In the cafeteria arranged by the event organizers, Chen Mo and Yuan Hao found the table where Lao K and the others were already seated.

Just as they sat down, Yuan Hao poked at the food on his tray and whispered, “Why does it feel like everyone’s staring at us?”

“Eat your food,” Chen Mo said casually, taking a bite of vegetables.

Lao K looked around and muttered, annoyed, “Knew it—we’re being targeted. The organizers are in a joint venture with UA, and under their directive, they’re clearly siding with Chuanxing. They’re just waiting to make things difficult for us.”

Chen Mo smiled faintly. “Can’t take the heat? I’m guessing no company will dare talk cooperation with us these next couple of days.”

Yuan Hao, still young and hot-blooded, nearly shot to his feet in anger when he heard that.

Chen Mo raised his eyes, his tone cold: “Sit down.”

“Master?” Yuan Hao said, fuming.

Chen Mo replied calmly, “This is just a gentle warning. For all you know, they’ve spiked the food you’re eating now with laxatives or something.”

“…Huh?” Yuan Hao froze, staring at his meal in disbelief. “They play that dirty?”

Chen Mo raised an eyebrow. “I’m just saying.”

A sales department colleague, seeing Yuan Hao so flustered that he wouldn’t even dip his food into the hotpot, chuckled and said, “This is nothing. When I was interning, the company I was at broke into a competitor’s office in the middle of the night. There were also guys who planted viruses on USB drives, and someone even splashed paint on a rival’s house. Kid, this world’s brutal. Welcome to adulthood.”

The table burst into chuckles.

Realizing he’d been tricked, Yuan Hao sat down grumpily and shoved a couple of bites into his mouth.

But jokes aside, Chuanxing had indeed pulled some shady tricks behind the scenes.

Chen Mo didn’t have much of an appetite to begin with.

After a few bites, he stopped eating. Leaning back in his chair, he waited for the others to finish while typing on his phone.

Soon, replies came flooding in:

“Don’t worry, Mr. Chen. Since you’ve been butting heads with Chuanxing for so long, everyone’s just looking for the right moment to act.”

“Ren Xiansen’s little three-piece combo is on its way.”

“I’m only pretending to be at odds with you. Still don’t trust me?”

Chen Mo leaned back lazily.

His face remained perfectly calm, not giving anything away.

It was then that the noise in the cafeteria suddenly grew louder.

At first, Chen Mo didn’t pay attention.

Until Lao K elbowed him.

And Yuan Hao gave him a nudge under the table with his foot.

Chen Mo looked up, puzzled. “What?”

“Over there,” Lao K motioned with his chin.

Chen Mo turned—and saw a large group entering through the cafeteria doors.

They weren’t from any of the joint venture companies, but from the scientific research and policy review authorities above them. And among the group, one person stood out starkly.

Xi Siyan walked in, chatting casually with a middle-aged man in a suit.

They were gradually approaching their table.

Overheard, someone in charge said excitedly, “We weren’t expecting foreign guests at such short notice. The Foreign Affairs Office cleared the review in record time. President Xi really came through.”

Xi Siyan responded, “You’re too kind. Just doing my job.”

Then, without looking around, he passed by their table.

Lao K nudged Chen Mo again and whispered, “Why’s he here?! You should go over and say hi—make a connection! If nothing else, it’ll rattle the people in charge. I guarantee Ren Xiansen’s face will turn green.”

Chen Mo glanced at Xi Siyan’s back, then lowered his gaze.

He continued scrolling on his phone. “Our relationship hasn’t reached that level.”

“So what level has it reached?” Lao K asked.

Chen Mo: “Hmm… not sure. Haven’t asked.”

Yuan Hao, sitting across from them, almost face-planted into his food.

There’s really no need to ask.

After all—it’s already reached the point where they sleep in the same bed.