My Manor

Some people cannot live without love, like Fu Yuan. This guy had a new girlfriend just a few days ago. But they barely even held hands before it ended.

Afterward, he cried and complained to Jiang Hai on WeChat, but Jiang Hai and the others were used to it. This is the fourth girlfriend he's failed with this year. Now, he's actively searching for another. Fu Yuan is the kind of person who feels like he will die without love.

Then there are those who accept love when it knocks on the door, but stay passive when it's not around. For example, Jiang Hai's classmate Xu Wei, who now stays at home all day. He met a girl from Shu online, and they've been chatting for three years. Although they call each other boyfriend and girlfriend, they've never met in person. Xu Wei doesn't ask her to come to Bingcheng, and she doesn't ask him to visit Shu. It's baffling to Jiang Hai and the others. Is this really okay? It's a bit too platonic.

There's another type of person who doesn't care whether there's love or not. They can live without the opposite sex and do just fine on their own. Feng Yunchen is one of these people. Over the years, she's been a mistress to a man, though they haven't met often. She's saved a lot of money in the process. Since she had a relationship with Jiang Hai earlier this year, she stopped contacting the man.

Even though he hasn't seen her in a while, he still gives her money every month, and the room he once gave her remains hers. Feng Yunchen doesn't mind; having a place to stay and money to spend is enough for her. As for the company's refusal to let her go to the United States for photo shoots, she initially complained but eventually forgot about it.

Feng Yunchen could continue living this way indefinitely. However, two days ago, she passed by Qi Li's western restaurant and noticed Qi Li seemed to have eased up with Jiang Hai. This made her anxious. Who is Qi Li? Isn't she just messing with her?

Feng Yunchen knows something is going on between Qi Li and Jiang Hai. If Qi Li wanted, not only would she be finished, but the person behind her would be as well. Right now, she's fine only because of her relationship with Jiang Hai. This time, she's determined to make her move.

She has to go to the United States for a photo shoot, but her boss still won't let her. Even after she said the company only needs to cover travel and equipment costs, her boss remains hesitant. Finally, her boss agreed, saying as long as she arranges the location and brings a new person along, he would cover the travel expenses and equipment. That's when the conversation, as mentioned earlier, happened.

"Sister Chen, if you say it's okay, then it's okay," the manager said with a smile, looking at Feng Yunchen.

"Tsk, if it weren't for my strength, would you let her go? Just kidding. Tell me, which little slut should I take with me this time?" Feng Yunchen casually dropped her bag on the table, took out a cigarette, lit it, and exhaled a puff of smoke.

In fact, Feng Yunchen doesn't smoke regularly. She only smokes when it's necessary to fit in. It's part of surviving in this industry. Without a bit of a rogue attitude, anyone could walk all over her.

"Xiaoxi, come in," the manager called out, smiling awkwardly.

As the door opened, a beautiful figure stepped in front of Feng Yunchen. Feng Yunchen was momentarily stunned by her beauty.

"Sister Chen, let me introduce you. This is Ai Xiaoxi, a newly signed artist with our company. She's about to do her debut photo shoot. Instead of shooting in China, it would be better to shoot abroad for more influence. I'm troubled, Sister Chen." The manager stood up, his hand briefly touching Ai Xiaoxi's arm. She flinched but didn't dare to pull away, the aggrieved look flashing across her face.

"Oh, when did you start taking care of newcomers like this? Your little secretary?" Feng Yunchen observed the manager's actions and Ai Xiaoxi's reaction. She could tell there was more to the story. In this circle, there are rules. If one person is willing to fight and the other is willing to be beaten, it's none of her business, but a few jokes couldn't be avoided.

"Hey, don't say nonsense. If my wife hears this, you'll be coming to rescue me tomorrow," the manager panicked.

"I couldn't care less about your drama. Come here, little girl. I have some things to say to you." Feng Yunchen looked at the manager with disdain before heading out, motioning to Ai Xiaoxi to follow.

Ai Xiaoxi, grateful for the opportunity, immediately followed her after bowing to the manager. Once outside the manager's office, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Sister Chen, thank you." She caught up to Feng Yunchen and spoke softly.

"Don't thank me. I don't know why you're in this circle, but you have to understand that being shy won't work here. Unless you're pretending to attract attention, you need to let go. If you've made this choice, don't regret it. Now, go back and pack. We leave for the U.S. the day after tomorrow." Feng Yunchen couldn't help but remember her own experience when she first entered the industry. It was a struggle—forced drinking, being framed, and even getting beaten by a female colleague in the bathroom...

But she survived. Now, no matter how much she's pretending to be powerful, Feng Yunchen calls the shots in this company, and all of it takes practice.

"What should I prepare?" Ai Xiaoxi asked timidly.

"Pack all your sexy clothes and make sure you're clean. Don't think this is a vacation. We're going to work, and we might have to serve men." Feng Yunchen waved her hand and walked out of the company, her mood soured by Ai Xiaoxi's sudden appearance.

"Ah?" Ai Xiaoxi turned pale at Feng Yunchen's words. She had mentally prepared for the first part, but the latter... she didn't dare to ask now, only anxiously going home to prepare.

Meanwhile, Jiang Hai had no idea about the situation in China. He was happily enjoying steak at home.

I must admit, Jiang Hai's steak is excellent. Even if it's not perfectly cooked, the quality of the ingredients makes up for any shortcomings.

After dinner, he went to sleep. After spending so many nights in a hotel bed, it felt good to return to his own. He fell asleep almost immediately.

The next morning, Jiang Hai started his daily routine, which wasn't exactly an itinerary since it mostly took place at the manor. First, he visited the cowshed and delivered gifts to Garcia and the others. He brought two types of gifts: wine for the cowboys, fishermen, and others like Dulles Gerard and O'Connor Murphy, and straw hats for the women in the manor.

Jiang Hai had developed a fondness for slightly sweet wines after drinking in Miami, so he brought back several bottles—one for each person. There were still over ten bottles left. After delivering the wine, he checked on the cows and asked Garcia about their condition.

In the two weeks Jiang Hai had been away, except for Qi Li, Zhang Dehai and Pra Walton had handled the warehouse and transportation arrangements. In about a week, they would begin slaughtering the cows they had selected. The first batch would total 1,200 cows—1,000 for Pra Walton and 200 for Zhang Dehai. This had already been planned, so Jiang Hai didn't need to worry about it.

After checking on the cows, Jiang Hai took Xiao Xia for a ride, then went to the beach, where he served wine to Edward Anderson and others and inquired about the fisheries.

The news was positive. The fish were growing faster than expected. The largest fish, including grouper and salmon, had matured quicker than anticipated. The fish that typically take three years to grow had reached impressive sizes in just two months.

A giant grouper had already grown to 50 centimeters. Typically, adult groupers are only 60-70 centimeters long, which left Edward and his friends shocked. If they didn't know that this fish didn't exist in the Atlantic Ocean, they would have suspected it had swum over from another place.

The American redfish had also grown to over 25 centimeters—almost the size of a fully matured fish.