Chapter 206 205: Haughty Then Deferential
Due to time constraints, Yan Feifan met Yu Suye's brother in Staff Cafeteria Number One. He was Yu Chuanbai, a business elite who had graduated from Harvard Business School.
He stood at six-foot-one with a bright, handsome face. You had to admit, the Yu Family had some excellent genes.
With his looks and physique, Yu Chuanbai could have easily been an actor or a model.
The Yan siblings and the Yu siblings each carried a tray of food to a relatively quiet table in the cafeteria and sat down.
"Mr. Yan, I used to think my sister's rate of progress was the absolute limit for a medical student."
Yu Chuanbai said with a compliment, "But after my sister told me about you, I realized how little I actually knew."
He paused for a moment before his tone turned serious. "Mr. Yan, thank you for looking out for my sister."
"You're too kind," Yan Feifan said modestly. "Su Ye and I are under the same mentor. We look out for each other. It's not just me looking after her."
Just then, Yan Ziruo asked with concern, "Mr. Yu, is the cafeteria food to your liking?"
"I know that Su Ye still hasn't quite gotten used to it."
Yu Chuanbai gave a slight smile. "It's not bad."
"After a few years of eating burgers and fries abroad, everything back home is a delicacy."
As if to prove his point, he took several more bites of his food, then nodded in assessment. "It's a little milder and sweeter than what northerners are used to, but it's still quite tasty."
"Su Ye's never really adapted, mostly because she grew up privileged and was a little spoiled."
"Letting her go hungry for a day would sort her out."
Yu Suye shot him an indignant glare and asked, "Brother, how did you suddenly end up in charge of this medical technology negotiation?"
Yu Chuanbai took a sip of his seaweed and egg drop soup and said with an air of candor, "Su Ye, isn't this all your doing?"
"Mr. Lian said that even though we don't have the home-field advantage, seconding me to the negotiation team gives us the advantage in personnel, which should increase our chances of success."
Yu Chuanbai turned his gaze to Yan Feifan and asked with a smile, "Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Yan?"
Yan Feifan hummed in agreement and said vaguely, "At least communication can be more simple and direct."
At that, Yan Ziruo chimed in, "Mr. Yu, as long as the terms of the deal are comparable, we'll naturally give priority to one of our own."
"Su Ye is living with us, and she's like a sister to me."
Yu Chuanbai smiled faintly. "I've come with Mr. Lian's most generous offer. We won't be outdone by the Baiyulan Group."
Yu Suye huffed, her voice tinged with displeasure. "Brother, I'd hoped this lunch would be a chance for you to meet my friends, Feifan and Ruoruo, just as my brother."
"You can save the back-and-forth for the negotiating table."
Yu Chuanbai patted Yu Suye's head indulgently and chuckled. "Alright, whatever my little sister says. No more business talk for now."
Seeing this, Yan Ziruo copied the gesture, lightly patting Yan Feifan on the shoulder.
"Feifan, we're just having a friendly get-together, so be on your best behavior..."
For the rest of the meal, the group fell into a pattern of eating and casual conversation.
It was mostly Yu Chuanbai and Yan Ziruo doing the talking, chatting about everything under the sun, while Yu Suye and Yan Feifan focused on their food.
After lunch, the two pairs of siblings parted ways at the cafeteria entrance.
One pair headed south, the other north.
After they were about twenty meters apart, Yan Feifan couldn't help but remark, "Yu Chuanbai is the total 'tall, rich, and handsome' package. I really thought you'd be staring at him and drooling, Sis!"
"I'm surprised you managed to keep your composure."
Yan Ziruo scoffed. "Feifan, you really underestimate your big sister."
"He's our counterpart in this negotiation."
"This is a multi-million yuan deal. As your fully authorized representative, how could I be so unprofessional?"
As soon as she said that, she showed her true colors.
"He's so tall, so handsome, from such a good family, and he's a star student from Harvard... He's my ultimate dream guy."
Yan Ziruo's eyes took on a dreamy, faraway look, her face a mask of fantasy.
"Feifan, I'm going to display my unparalleled talent and charm during the negotiation, and I'll win that guy over in one fell swoop."
Yan Feifan couldn't help but roll his eyes, shooting her down. "Sis, can you please be a little more realistic?"
"Tomorrow's meeting will be the first business negotiation of your life. I'll be happy as long as you don't end up losing me money."
"And you think you're just going to flip a switch and crush it?"
Yan Ziruo hooked her arm through her brother's and huffed, "You little brat. I may not know any negotiation tactics, but I do know one thing."
"The technology you have is unique. They're the ones who are begging us."
"As long as I play it cool and hold my ground, they'll just keep sweetening the deal..."
The other pair of siblings were also having a private conversation.
"Last time you went back to Jingcheng, you didn't even visit home. On top of that, you hit Lu Yao. Grandpa, Mom, and Dad are all furious."
Seeing his sister's silence, Yu Chuanbai sighed. "Su Ye, you never used to be this drastic."
"Did that Yan Feifan fellow put you up to this?"
"It has nothing to do with him!"
Yu Suye replied stiffly, "It was my own decision. I just didn't want to drag things out anymore."
Yu Chuanbai was silent for a moment before asking, "Su Ye, I'll admit that Yan Feifan is a medical genius, but just by looking at him, I can tell he would absolutely not make a good husband."
"Have you thought about it? If you're with him, you'll have to sacrifice a lot—perhaps even the medical career you've always loved."
Yu Suye was quiet for a moment before saying slowly, "The future is too far off. I haven't thought that far ahead."
"But right now, I'm certain of how I feel."
"I like him."
Yu Suye added, "Feifan might not seem romantic, but he has his own way of showing he cares."
"That doesn't mean he won't make a good husband."
Yu Chuanbai reached out and patted his sister's head again. "In that case, you should follow your heart."
"You've come this far without ever being in love. Experiencing one soul-crushing romance would make your life complete, I suppose."
"Brother, we *will* be happy," Yu Suye protested.
Yu Chuanbai smiled. "Well, that would be even better, wouldn't it?"
"Of course, I'd much rather your life turn out like the heroine of a doting romance novel—so perfect that it makes everyone else burn with envy."
"What about Grandpa, Mom, and Dad?" Yu Suye asked, a little worried.
Yu Chuanbai chuckled. "I'll do my best to fulfill the wish they've always had."
"When I was in the United States, our aunt tried to persuade me to stay there."
"I told her that she had already left, and you, Su Ye, would also leave one day. If I left too, Grandpa, Mom, and Dad would be all alone."
"Brother..." Yu Suye said, touched.
Yu Chuanbai chuckled. "Su Ye, I'm not making some great sacrifice. This is the life I chose for myself."
"Once you make a choice, you don't regret it. You just give it your all."
"The same goes for you, Su Ye..."
At nearly five in the afternoon, Yan Feifan was in the director's office of the plastic surgery center, refining Wang Dongdong's cosmetic surgery plan, when a knock on the door broke his concentration.
He got up to open the door.
The person standing outside the door was someone Yan Feifan definitely hadn't expected to see.
It was Lin Zuo from the Baiyulan Group.
The Lin Zuo standing outside his door now bore no trace of the cold arrogance from that night. Instead, his face was lit with an eager smile, as warm as a summer breeze.
A phrase immediately popped into Yan Feifan's mind.
'So arrogant before, so humble now.'
"Mr. Yan, I am so sorry about the other night..."
Yan Feifan cut him off bluntly. "As for the Baiyulan Group, I'll only speak with Ouyang Yanran..."
