“You said who? Who’s back? Who came back?”
Zhou Yan was so shocked he fired off three jumbled questions in a row.
There was no ripple in Jiang Shijing’s eyes. He said softly, “So she actually pulled it off.”
“Shijing, you already knew Lin Xiangwan had returned to the country!” Zhou Yan lost his composure and stared at him. “You made such a big show of going to the airport today don’t tell me you knew she was coming back and went there on purpose to block her?”
“What are you talking about?”
Jiang Shijing still looked like a carefree playboy. He flashed a roguish grin. “I haven’t seen my girlfriend in days. What’s wrong with picking her up at the airport?”
“Yeah, keep making it up. I knew you never really let it go all these years.”
Zhou Yan rolled his eyes and muttered, “Back when she ran off from the wedding, you went on for half a month ”
“Cousin.” Jiang Shijing’s tone darkened.
Zhou Yan knew he had said the wrong thing and sighed.
The man before him lowered his gaze, hiding all emotion, impossible to read.
All these years, Zhou Yan had never been able to see through this cousin of his.
Whether he loved them or not, Jiang Shijing could always play the devoted boyfriend in front of women so perfect they couldn’t help themselves, so flawless that even breaking up felt like their own fault.
But after Lin Xiangwan left, it was the first time Zhou Yan had seen the flesh-and-blood man beneath Jiang Shijing’s mask.
Sensing that Jiang Shijing seemed to be in a bad mood, the secretary asked cautiously, “So, President Zhou… will you see her or not?”
“Yes, will you?” Zhou Yan shot Jiang Shijing a meaningful look.
Jiang Shijing stood up, face composed. “You can’t even decide whether to see someone?”
The secretary froze, watching him walk out of the office, still not understanding what he meant.
“President Zhou, should we see her or not?”
Zhou Yan said helplessly, “Let Lin Xiangwan come up.”
Reception room.
Lin Xiangwan was led to the door by the secretary. She took a deep breath.
She didn’t know how the Zhou family viewed her fleeing the wedding back then, but she doubted their attitude would be any good. Most likely they were only agreeing to meet her out of respect for the Wen family.
Once she stepped in, she had to be prepared for sarcasm and humiliation.
Steeling herself, she knocked and entered.
Two men sat inside one in a black suit, one in a white shirt both with their backs to her.
Yet even from behind, she recognized the man in the white shirt at once.
It felt as if something had pierced the tip of her heart a fine, lingering pain.
Lin Xiangwan pressed her lips together, paused for a few seconds, then walked over with a smile. “President Zhou, hello.”
She pretended not to see Jiang Shijing and extended her hand toward Zhou Yan.
Though he had seen her three years ago, Zhou Yan still couldn’t help being stunned.
Three years had only made Lin Xiangwan more striking. She was more radiant now, with an added touch of mature allure.
She wore a formal suit skirt, her hair softly curled. It was the most ordinary professional attire, yet on her it somehow looked subtly seductive.
No wonder his cousin…
Zhou Yan snapped out of it when his foot was suddenly nudged.
He didn’t stand to shake her hand. Instead, he lifted his chin lazily at her.
“Have a seat.”
Her hand hovered in midair for half a second before she calmly withdrew it and sat down.
She couldn’t help glancing sideways at Jiang Shijing.
He seemed not to notice her presence at all, head lowered as he fiddled with his phone. Message notifications kept chiming clearly he was chatting with someone.
“Miss Lin no, I should say President Lin. I didn’t expect the newly appointed CEO of Fanxing to be you. That’s quite a surprise,” Zhou Yan said, legs crossed, eyes mocking.
Lin Xiangwan curved her lips faintly. “I’ll take that as congratulations on my appointment. I’m here today to seek cooperation with Ding Sheng. May I know if President Zhou is interested in the new factory we’ve developed? Here is the project proposal.”
She handed over a document with both hands.
Zhou Yan didn’t take it. He glanced at it instead. “I’m actually very easygoing. As long as a partnership that comes to me is suitable, I generally don’t refuse.”
Lin Xiangwan asked, “Does that mean we can cooperate?”
She didn’t quite believe he would be so casual about it, yet she couldn’t help holding onto a sliver of hope.
Fanxing’s new factory technology was advanced. In the smart manufacturing industry, rapid updates were the norm. She believed the company’s strength could impress Zhou Yan.
But Zhou Yan only smiled, arms draped over the sofa. “Don’t rush, President Lin. I’m not finished. There’s no particular threshold to working with me but I do value one thing in a partner: integrity.”
Her body stiffened.
Zhou Yan continued with a smile. “Three years ago, you unilaterally canceled your engagement and flew abroad, disappearing without a trace for three years and leaving chaos behind. That doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in your character.”
Jiang Shijing, who had been playing with his phone, finally looked up. His dark eyes fixed on Lin Xiangwan.
She instantly felt uncomfortable. The hands clasped on her knees slowly tightened.
Zhou Yan pushed the document back across the table. “You have a history of running away. It’s hard for me to believe Fanxing will thrive under your leadership. I’m also worried that if you’re unhappy one day, you might suddenly breach the contract. So I’m sorry I don’t want to work with you.”
The sarcasm in his words was unmistakable.
Lin Xiangwan bit her lip in humiliation, her heartstrings pulled tight.
Jiang Shijing continued to watch her steadily, his gaze like a blade.
Under that gaze, she had nowhere to hide, sitting stiffly on the sofa as if on a cold bench awaiting judgment.
The air froze. The room was eerily silent.
After a long moment, she found her voice. “We can add a clause to the contract. If our side harms Ding Sheng’s interests or disrupts normal cooperation without cause, we will pay ten times the penalty.”
“There’s no need for a penalty. How about…” Zhou Yan shifted his posture, leaning sideways against the sofa, studying her with interest. “You explain why you ran away from the wedding back then?”
Lin Xiangwan curved her lips in self-mockery.
She understood now. Zhou Yan hadn’t agreed to see her because of the Wen family’s face. He wanted justice for his cousin an explanation.
From anyone’s perspective, what happened three years ago made her look like the scumbag who abandoned her fiancé on the eve of the wedding.
Jiang Shijing clicked his tongue lightly, tone flippant. “Miss Lin, there’s no need to look so bullied. If you don’t want to talk about it, you can leave now. My cousin just likes gossip. Why you left back then doesn’t interest me in the slightest.”
Zhou Yan’s mouth twitched as he shot him several looks.
Lin Xiangwan’s heart ached fiercely as she lifted her eyes to meet Jiang Shijing’s.
She wanted to walk away, too. She didn’t want to dig up the past.
But only by securing Ding Sheng’s contract could she prove to other potential partners that even the Zhou family relatives of the Jiang family were willing to cooperate openly. Their fear of offending Jiang Shijing would then be groundless.
Without such an opening victory, her next moves would be much harder.
She looked at the seemingly carefree man, yet spoke to someone else.
“President Zhou, if I explain, will I get a chance at cooperation?”
“Of course.”
Resting his chin in his hand, Zhou Yan replied leisurely, “I do love a good piece of gossip.”