Xue Ying introduced with a smile, "Mr. Tian Zhong, this is Mr. Lin Chen, the chairman of our Starlight Corporation."

Seeing how young Lin Chen was, Tian Zhong was taken aback. He chuckled and said to both in fluent Mandarin with a smile, "Mr. Lin, Miss Xue, we are very interested in your Starlight Group's cosmetics and would like to cooperate with you."

"Cooperate? Mr. Tian Zhong, how do you propose we go about this cooperation and how will the profits be distributed?" Xue Ying asked.

"We will invest in your company, set up branch factories across the country, and market your products globally under the Dongmei Group's brand. As for the division of profits, it will be three-seven," Tian Zhong said with a smile.

"Is it seven for us and three for you?" Lin Chen asked, looking at Tian Zhong.

Tian Zhong looked at Lin Chen as if he were a monster, with a face full of arrogance, "Of course, it's seven for Dongmei, three for you."

Hearing Tian Zhong's offer, Lin Chen scoffed, "Mr. Tian Zhong, are you joking with us? Even if it were seven for you and three for us, I wouldn't agree. Dongmei may indeed be the leader in the cosmetics industry now, but as they say, 'Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west,' within a year, I believe Starlight will be on equal footing with Dongmei, so please, you should leave."

"What did you say?" Tian Zhong's face changed when he heard Lin Chen's words.

Starlight Cosmetics was just a small company that had recently gone to market, and his mention of cooperation was essentially an acquisition. He never expected Lin Chen to outright reject the offer and audaciously claim they would equal Dongmei.

"Mr. Lin, you are far too arrogant. To claim you will be on equal footing with Dongmei Group, who do you think you are?" Tian Zhong scoffed coldly.

Lin Chen smiled slightly, "Who said we would be on equal footing? One day, Starlight Group will replace Dongmei and become the world's number one cosmetics brand company."

"Hahaha!" Hearing Lin Chen's bold declaration, Tian Zhong couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Young man, it's fine to have dreams, but being too arrogant is not a good thing."

Lin Chen smiled faintly, "Well, that settles it. Since you show no sincerity, we have no plans to cooperate. We shall take our leave."

With that, Lin Chen stood up, turned, and left the café together with Xue Ying.

"Damn!" Tian Zhong watched Lin Chen's departing figure, his eyes flashing a cold gleam.

"Xiao Ying, I leave this guy to you; make sure you extract their cosmetics formula from him," Tian Zhong said coldly.

"Mr. Tian Zhong, don't worry, I will definitely make him spill the formula," Xiao Ying said, her pretty face showing a hint of ruthlessness.

After leaving the café, Lin Chen and Xue Ying went straight to a bar, where each ordered a stein of beer and started drinking.

Xue Ying clearly could not hold her liquor; her vision was already blurred after just one stein of beer.

Her jade-like hand supported her beautiful jaw as she stared blankly at Lin Chen.

"Lin Chen, will you one day leave DY?" Xue Ying suddenly asked.

Lin Chen gave an awkward smile, "Perhaps, for college I might consider schools in Capital City."

"Capital City? Ah, knowing one day you would leave, I just didn't expect it so soon. Waiter, another stein of beer," Xue Ying suddenly waved at the waiter.

"Miss Xue, you've already had quite a bit today; maybe another day," Lin Chen said worriedly.

"No, today I won't stop until I'm drunk. Lin Chen, come over to my place tonight," Xue Ying slurred.

Lin Chen stared at the infatuated Xue Ying, his face stiffened.

Was she desperately drinking today in an attempt to get him drunk?

Xue Ying's cheeks were slightly flushed, carrying a hint of allure as she leaned close to Lin Chen, "They say alcohol confuses the mind; tonight, I want to be your woman."

"Not bad!" Lin Chen's heart was also a bit chaotic, but how could he refuse a beauty's invitation.

Just at that moment, however, suddenly all the lights in the bar went out, and the surroundings turned pitch black—clearly a power outage.

Noises of cursing filled the air, but just then, Lin Chen felt a jade-like hand lift his chin, and along with an enticing fragrance, a pair of red lips pressed tightly against his.

Feeling his lips moisten, Lin Chen's body tingled as if electrified.

But at the critical moment, he pushed her away.

Xue Ying, just getting into the mood, felt a bit annoyed and even more dejected. Could it be that she had been imagining his interest all along? He couldn't possibly be so harsh in pushing her away without any feelings, right? That was really disrespectful.

As Xue Ying was lost in her thoughts, suddenly she felt her hand being grabbed. Lin Chen whispered into her ear, "Follow me, something's up."

Then, Xue Ying was pulled along by Lin Chen as they darted through the pitch-dark bar and quickly headed outside.

Although it was so dark inside the bar that one couldn't see one's own hand in front of their face, Lin Chen seemed unaffected, guiding Xue Ying past the bar's patrons to the entrance.

"What happened, Lin Chen?" Xue Ying asked, puzzled.

Lin Chen opened his palm, revealing a shining throwing knife in his hand.

"Someone just tried to ambush us," Lin Chen said with a cold, serious expression.

"Was that dart caught by you just now?"

Xue Ying felt a chill in her heart, the tender moment she had been enjoying with Lin Chen vanishing without a trace.

Just now, in such an environment, if the dart had hit her or Lin Chen, no one would have even noticed. It dawned on her that she had just had a brush with death.

"Who exactly could it be?" Xue Ying asked.

Lin Chen shook his head, "I don't know. Let's leave here first."

Xue Ying flagged down a taxi and the two left the bar.

"How did you even notice the assassin in the dark?" Xue Ying asked curiously.

Lin Chen gave a slight smile, "Brother's eyes are like Sun Wukong's fiery eyes—clearly seeing everything around even in the darkest conditions. That guy threw two darts; I caught one, and the other should still be on the bar's sofa."

"Do you really have night vision?" Xue Ying asked, somewhat believing yet somewhat skeptical.

Xue Ying examined Lin Chen's eyes but couldn't see anything special.

Then, Lin Chen suddenly spoke to the driver, "Miss, driving so late, aren't you worried your family will be concerned?"

The taxi driver gave an awkward smile, "Nothing can be done, I need to earn a living, every little bit helps."

"Oh, Miss, how old are you?" Lin Chen actually started chatting with the female driver.

"Mister, don't you know it's not polite to ask a lady her age?" the female driver said shyly.

"Haha, I think you shouldn't drive anymore. You're quite pretty; how about being my secretary? If you're obedient, a house, a car, and money are all trivial—don't believe it? Ask her. She used to work in a dance hall, and now as my secretary, she lives freely in designer clothes," Lin Chen chuckled as he spoke to the girl.

This guy was way too arrogant, hitting on another girl right in front of her, and even mentioned that she used to work in a dance hall. Had she seen him wrongly? Was Lin Chen such a philanderer?