Chapter 1152: New Eligible Bachelor

After Wei Lan's charity dinner to raise money for her daughter's foundation, Iris of Hope, she began bringing her stepson René Alejandro to all sorts of social events. With him around, Wei Lan became even more in demand at various gatherings. Many befriended her despite her notorious past reputation because they wanted to get close to René Alejandro, the son of a Spanish viscount. 

When they discovered that René Alejandro intended to stay in China for quite a while, he quickly became one of the top eligible bachelors in the country alongside Jin Chonglin. 

Before Jin Liwei married Iris Long, he was the number one eligible bachelor in the country. It didn't matter that there were many rumours about him being gay before. Many were still willing to marry him even if those rumours were true because of his billionaire status. Marrying him was the ultimate shortcut to a life of luxury. Too bad that Iris Long managed to fish such a gigantic whale before anyone else, leaving the others who wanted to marry Jin Liwei disappointed and even heartbroken.

Jin Chonglin became the next top eligible bachelor, not only in the country but abroad as well where his fame reached. He was a superstar whom many were fantasizing to be their boyfriend, lover, and husband. In addition, his identity as the younger brother of billionaire CEO Jin Liwei also made him more desirable to a lot of dreamers hoping to marry him. 

Another eligible bachelor was Lu Zihao. However, not many people were familiar with him. Most of the general public had no idea who he was. Only those who knew him as Sir Lu Jianhong's grandson were gunning to attract him as a prospective husband. [Read official chapters on W e b n o v e l (dot) com. Please stop supporting piracy. Also follow author on Instagram: @arriacross]

Now that René Alejandro entered the scene, almost all the young, unmarried ladies in high society wanted to forge a connection with him. Not only was he the only son of a Spanish viscount and heir to old, noble money, but he also founded his own cybersecurity company which was doing quite well abroad. In short, he was also rich in his own right even without depending on his adoptive father's wealth.

Wei Lan kept on showing him off as if René Alejandro was her own biological child. She wasn't even this enthusiastic when it came to her own daughter, Iris Long, back in the days. 

This topic about René Alejandro was considered minor news but still quite important in the country's high society circles. If a Chinese lady married him, she wouldn't only become directly connected to Spanish nobility by marriage but would also enjoy her husband's wealth, not to mention the chance to give birth to beautiful half-Spanish children. These advantages alone were enough to raise her status in high society by several levels. Who wouldn't want to fight for this kind of opportunity?

While high society was clamouring to know more about René Alejandro, Jin Chonglin launched another high-profile event—the official grand opening of the country's newest entertainment company, LXC Studio.

Iris Long didn't attend again, citing health issues, but her husband, CEO Jin Liwei attended for both of them. He joined his younger brother in cutting the ribbon to the newly renovated building that they converted to house LXC Studio. The Jin brothers sat down with the journalists and other invited media representatives to answer some questions.

The focus was of course on the establishment of LXC Studio after Jin Chonglin and Iris Long both left their previous talent management company, Bright Summit. Even though the reporters wanted to make an issue between LXC Studio and Bright Summit, they couldn't. How could they when Bright Summit's current president attended LXC Studio's grand opening to openly show support?

"This is a question for CEO Jin," a reporter said. "Many of us want to know why your wife, Iris Long, hasn't shown herself to the public for so long since her marriage with you. Is she really ill or is there some other reason? If she's really ill, may we know what kind of illness she's suffering from?"

"My wife is ill and in complete bed rest," Jin Liwei answered. His expression was cold but his tone had a trace of gentleness when talking about his wife. "We're not ready to disclose her specific health condition yet. I want her to recover and become healthy again first before letting her clarify everything and return to work."

There were audible gasps among everyone present upon learning that Iris Long was in complete bed rest. Was her condition that serious? 

Another reporter asked, "CEO Jin, did Iris Long become ill because of what happened to you? Or more specifically, when Rose Young, the former CMO of Jin Corporation, plotted to violate you?"

"Hey!" Jin Chonglin gestured for Lin Dong to stop the reporter for asking such a loaded question during what was supposed to be a day of celebration.

Lin Dong, now the Chief of Talent Management at LXC Studio, was about to move but Jin Liwei stopped him. 

"It's fine. I'll answer the question."

"Big Bro, you don't have to," Jin Chonglin whispered to him.

"It's fine," Jin Liwei repeated. Then he looked at the reporter who asked him the question straight in the eyes, causing the intimidated man to back up a few steps. "My wife's health hasn't been the greatest even before our wedding, but you're right."

All eyes of the reporters present lit up with interest. They leaned forward, eager to learn more and afraid to miss any words from CEO Jin's answer. 

"My wife fell ill the night that Rose Young plotted against me," he admitted. "In fact, she tried to run to where I was but her condition turned for the worse. Her doctor had no choice but to order a complete bed rest for my wife. That's why I can't forgive what the evil woman did. If it were only me, I might have let her off depending on how sincere her apology was, but since her actions against me caused direct harm to my own wife, I can't find it in me to be merciful."

Murmurs arose from everyone. The reporters were busy taking notes of what he said. After that, Jin Liwei refused to answer any more questions that wasn't related to LXC Studio. 

In the end, the professional Jin Chonglin took over. LXC Studio's grand opening ended on a high note.