42: Chapter 42 went too far
This was truly an unexpected delight.
Chen Hao had never considered before that Favorability could be increased repeatedly. If that were the case, lowering it and then raising it back up—wouldn't that mean he could get as many Special Rewards as he wanted?
Without hesitation, Chen Hao swallowed the bone tempering pill. It dissolved instantly upon entering his mouth, and a warm current flowed through his limbs and bones. His entire skeleton cracked and popped.
Chen Hao stretched lazily and instinctively opened his personal page to check.
"Chen Hao: Body Tempering Mid-stage"
"Root Bone: Innately Deficient (Currently repairing, progress 40%)"
"Lifespan: 64 years remaining"
"Below are the six-dimensional stats:"
"Constitution 15; Martial Prowess 15; Comprehension 15. (Strengthenable)"
"Potential 88; Destiny 99; Charm 48. (Not Strengthenable)"
The Root Bone progress increased by 6%, and his lifespan seemed to have increased by 2 years. Both Constitution and Martial Prowess grew by 5 points.
Awesome!
Zhang Menglu was still immersed in the future Chen Hao had painted for her, dreaming of opening her own company, becoming a boss, and making big money.
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became, and she blurted out, questioning him.
"I understand the reasoning, but what exactly should I do next?"
Zhang Menglu's interruption brought Chen Hao back from his feeling of comfort.
In the past, he would certainly have told her everything without reservation, meticulously guiding Zhang Menglu on how to proceed.
But now that he knew Favorability could be raised repeatedly, Chen Hao's mindset had changed.
He planned to use a different method: administering a blow followed by a sweet reward. First, lower the Favorability, then use flowery words to raise it back up.
Let's do it!
"To be honest, you are quite dumb. You are already this old, yet you only grew legs and not a brain. I've said so much, and you still don't get it. You are just a beautiful fool."
Zhang Menglu performed the 'Smiling Face Disappearing Act'.
Although she hadn't known Chen Hao for long, he had spoiled her during this time, guiding her patiently and teaching her meticulously. When had Chen Hao ever looked down on her?
That she was dumb was an objective fact, and Zhang Menglu didn't want to argue, but to have it stated so blatantly—what was the difference between that and calling her a fool out of disdain?
"Zhang Menglu Favorability -20, Current Favorability 80."
Chen Hao stopped immediately. Just that one sentence caused the Favorability to drop by 20 points. If he cursed more, he could drop the Favorability to negative numbers in just a few sentences.
Chen Hao abruptly changed his tone and said:
"However, a 'beautiful fool' has one advantage: your dullness threshold is very low. If others set a trap for you, you might not notice it, and that is the key to your victory."
"Zhang Menglu Favorability -10, Current Favorability 70."
Damn, why did it drop another 10 points?
Chen Hao quickly tried to smooth things over.
"That's the expression! Keep that attitude! You need to learn to put on airs, learn to hide your true emotions, so others can't see through your real thoughts. If you do that, you've succeeded halfway."
Zhang Menglu slammed her chopsticks on the table, put on a stern face, and crossed her arms.
"So you were deliberately trying to anger me?"
Chen Hao naturally couldn't follow her lead.
"I wasn't deliberately trying to anger you; I was trying to make you understand momentum. In business and negotiations, you need to maintain the momentum you have now. If you are strong, the other party is weak; if you are weak, the other party is strong."
Chen Hao poured her a glass of wine.
"Hiding your confidence is too difficult for you, but maintaining silence and putting on airs is very easy for you. As long as you don't reveal your positive side, major things can be accomplished."
Zhang Menglu slightly lowered her guard and questioned him.
"So, you still think I'm dumb?"
Another fatal question. Chen Hao swallowed hard.
"How could I think you're dumb? As the saying goes, a woman without talent is virtuous. The dumber you are, the more I like you."
Zhang Menglu narrowed her eyes.
"You really do think I'm dumb."
"Zhang Menglu Favorability -10, Current Favorability 60."
She immediately stood up, angrily grabbed her bag, and turned to leave.
"Where are you going?"
"I'm not eating anymore!"
Well, Zhang Menglu was genuinely angry.
"Wait for me a moment."
Chen Hao scanned the code to pay the bill and chased after her, but Zhang Menglu walked far ahead without looking back, sulking angrily.
Chen Hao said everything he could, but still couldn't appease her anger.
Back at the hotel, she washed up angrily, changed into her pajamas, and lay down on the bed.
Chen Hao shamelessly leaned over.
"Don't touch me!"
Great, she was really holding a grudge!
Now, anything he said would be counterproductive. He could only choose to keep silent.
Chen Hao lay on the bed, gazing at the ceiling. At this moment, he truly felt like he had lifted a rock only to drop it on his own foot.
Everyone has a temper, especially women. You can praise them in any way, but you absolutely cannot say anything bad about them. Chen Hao knew this long ago.
But just to lower the Favorability, he tested the waters by saying one bad thing and almost went too far.
The current Favorability was 60. To make up for that 40-point loss, who knew how troublesome it would be?
It seemed the method he used was wrong. He couldn't use the 'blow followed by a sweet reward' strategy on his girlfriend. A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea; a slight misstep could lead to eternal damnation.
This path was a dead end. It seemed he would have to use other methods if he wanted to farm Special Rewards in the future.
Because Zhang Menglu was angry, the two slept separately that night, not disturbing each other.
Nothing happened overnight.
The next day.
Chen Hao got up to wash, and although Zhang Menglu was also up, she still kept a stern face and remained silent.
Chen Hao cautiously asked.
"Still angry?"
Zhang Menglu gave Chen Hao a sidelong glance.
"Didn't you say so? You told me to maintain an angry state."
Chen Hao muttered helplessly.
"I did say that, but this atmosphere pressure is too low."
Thus, the two of them had morning tea together. Before heading to the factory that morning, Chen Hao took Zhang Menglu to a high-end department store to make amends for his mistake.
He meticulously selected and bought a set of high-end women's fashion for Zhang Menglu, and also bought her a designer handbag, spending over 80,000 yuan.
When she emerged from the fitting room, her entire aura had changed dramatically.
"Clothes make the man, and the saddle makes the horse. Wearing this outfit, you truly have the bearing of a female boss."
"Favorability +5, Current Favorability 65."
Zhang Menglu spoke with affected dignity.
"Consider this outfit compensation for you calling me dumb."
Chen Hao forced a wry smile.
"Okay, okay, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have said that about you. Please don't be angry anymore, alright?"
"We'll see based on your performance."
Zhang Menglu put on airs and walked away.
Afterward, Chen Hao hailed a taxi, and he and Zhang Menglu headed straight for the factory.
On the way.
Chen Hao checked WeChat. Sun Nana had sent him a message stating:
"Today's coordination is suspended. I am packing up and will depart in the morning to meet you in Guangcheng."
Chen Hao didn't pay much attention and typed back: "I'll wait for you to arrive."
"It's not just me. Many people from the company are coming, including General Manager Ma, Vice President Wang, and several colleagues from the Sales Department."
Chen Hao froze and typed back to question her.
"Why are so many people coming?"
"It's all because of you. Rumors are spreading throughout the company that you secretly caused trouble, damaging the company's reputation, leading to a full mobilization to Guangcheng to salvage the company's honor. I estimate the scene won't be small."
Chen Hao finally understood where his uneasy feeling came from.