Chapter 12
At the Lin Family dining table, Lin Shichang looked seriously at Lin Mengyao and asked, “Did your grandma give you the position of the person in charge?”
Lin Mengyao’s hand paused mid-air as she was about to pick up some food. Seeing Lin Mengyao’s reaction, Lin Shichang understood everything, and his previously stern face turned livid. The ever-attentive Lin Mengchen couldn’t help but shout, “Grandma didn’t give you the position of the person in charge! How do you manage things? If grandma didn’t give you this position, what am I supposed to do? I’ll be eighteen next month.”
“I know you’re jealous that I have parents who love me, but you don’t have to be so malicious, right? To stop me from entering Lin Group and stealing your spotlight, you actually handed over the position you were about to get. I am your sister, yet you push me down a dead end like this?” Lin Mengchen shouted sharply, throwing her bowl and chopsticks onto the dining table.
Xu Ke, sitting next to Lin Mengyao, clearly felt Lin Mengyao’s breath tremble upon hearing these words. “Shut up. She’s your sister.” This was the first time Xu Ke spoke so firmly in the Lin Family, managing to momentarily freeze the atmosphere at home.
Lin Mengchen was stunned by Xu Ke’s attitude. After realizing it, she despised herself for being scared by this cowardly man, becoming more arrogant and vile, “You, a cowardly man living off a woman, when did it become your turn to speak in this house? Don’t think that marrying my sister means you’re part of the Lin Family and can lecture me as a brother-in-law. You’re not worthy, pff!” Lin Mengchen spat harshly on the ground.
“I bet with Dad and won before, so what I say goes in this house. I’m telling you to shut up and apologize to Mengyao.” Xu Ke said coldly to Lin Mengchen, his eyes filled with a chilling and violent look that made Lin Mengchen involuntarily step half a step back, the sound of her chair scraping the floor bringing her back to her senses.
“Apologize for what? No way!” Lin Mengchen shouted at Xu Ke with false bravado, then fled the dining room to her room, not wanting to admit she was scared by Xu Ke’s gaze.
On the other side, Lin Shichang looked at Xu Ke with a displeased expression, then huffed and slammed his bowl and chopsticks on the dining table before leaving. Before he left, he said coldly to Li Lihua, “Why are you still sitting there, taking in this humiliation?”
“Coming right away.” Li Lihua responded, but the next moment, she turned her head to Xu Ke, viciously saying, “You just wait.”
In the blink of an eye, only Xu Ke and Lin Mengyao were left at the dining table. “Don’t take it to heart. Without you, this contract wouldn’t even be signed.” Xu Ke said in an assertive tone, silently keeping a mental note of everyone up and down the Lin Group.
“What about the contract I signed? In the end, this position still isn’t mine, is it?” Lin Mengyao forced a bitter smile and said, “Anyway, thanks for today. I’ve had enough and will head upstairs.” Lin Mengyao gently placed the almost untouched meal back on the table and slowly, tiredly walked toward her bedroom.
Xu Ke originally meant that without Lin Mengyao, the contract wouldn’t continue, but he didn’t expect Mengyao to misunderstand and get upset. Wanting to comfort her but feeling actions spoke louder than words, Xu Ke pulled out his phone and called Xu Jie.
Xu Jie received Xu Ke’s call in the middle of the night and, upon hearing that he wanted to terminate the collaboration with the Lin Group, all her sleepiness vanished instantly.
“You want to terminate our cooperation with the Lin Group?” Xu Jie repeated again, fearing she had misheard. After all, Xu Ke personally instructed this contract to be signed with the Lin Group, so why the sudden change? Xu Jie had doubts but didn’t gossip about them.
“Do you have any questions?”
“After excluding the Lin Group, which company do you plan to give this project to?” Xu Jie asked.
“We’ll hold onto this project for now. As for the Lin Group, there’s no need to see anyone except Lin Mengyao.” Xu Ke said, squinting his eyes, leisurely.
“Alright, I know what to do.”
Unaware of the contract’s change, Lin Shixian came to the Lin Group early the next morning in a new suit and hairstyle, only to be told that Jiahe had terminated their contract with the Lin Group.
“How could this be? Wasn’t the contract just signed yesterday? How can it be terminated today?” Lin Shixian said, incredulous.
“How would I know? Go to Jiahe and talk to Xu Jie. Make sure to get the contract back, even if it means conceding part of the profits.” Grandma Lin said with a gloomy face.
Lin Shixian nodded and hurriedly rushed to Jiahe.
“I’m Lin Shixian from the Lin Group. I’m here to see your President Xu.” Lin Shixian said to the receptionist at Jiahe.
“I’m sorry, but our President Xu is currently in a meeting and can’t see you,” the receptionist said politely with a smile.
“Then when will President Xu be available?”
“We don’t know.”
Meanwhile, Xu Jie, who was said to be in a meeting, was actually with Xu Ke.
“I’ve contacted the heads of other branches of the Xu Group in Luocheng. Apart from Chen Hongda of Chuangfeng, whose attitude is still vague, everyone else is willing to stand with us. When do you have time to meet them?” Xu Jie asked respectfully, standing before Xu Ke.
“Next Thursday.” Xu Ke replied casually while going through some documents, “And what about Lin Shixian?”
“He’s still waiting downstairs.”
Recalling what the Lin Group had done, Xu Ke sneered, “If he wants to wait, let him wait.”
As the project manager, Lin Shixian had a rough time these past two days. Though he didn’t have ulcers on his lips, his throat was swollen and sore when he drank water, not to mention enduring the mocking glances of others around the office.
In the meeting room, he took a difficult sip of water before saying to Grandma Lin with a brave face, “We’ve tried everything, but the Jiahe Group simply won’t let us see President Xu.”
“Can’t you think of a way? The week is almost over, and not a single solution has been proposed. What are you all doing? Don’t you know the longer this drags on, the worse it is for us at Lin Group? Today, no matter what, you have to come up with a solution. If you can’t, no one leaves; start thinking right now.” Grandma Lin slammed the table a few times in anger, scaring everyone below with trembling faces.
With Grandma Lin in a furious mood, nobody dared to provoke her, and the large conference room instantly fell silent, almost eerily so.