The next morning, Li Hao looked at Li Yinhe and said, "Son, while our group has essentially secured the Dingli Group project, we absolutely cannot let this news leak out. We have to be prepared for anything."
"The company has two priorities right now. First is screening the materials suppliers. Second, the project must be flawless, especially when it comes to quality."
"Also, the company needs to prepare more than enough liquid capital. We also need to send people to collect any outstanding payments, and they must be collected before the project begins."
Li Yinhe nodded. "I understand. I'll give the necessary orders."
"Just in case, have someone keep a close eye on Wu Long. Mr. Zhou certainly won't announce that the project has been promised to us, but it's always better to be safe than sorry."
"The moment Wu Long finds out, he'll stop at nothing to come after us."
Mu Lin didn't say a word, but he was standing by and committed everything to memory.
After breakfast, Mu Lin, Li Xue, and the others headed to the company as usual.
"Good morning, Manager." That was the first person Mu Lin ran into after arriving on the twenty-ninth floor.
The Special Projects Department was, in fact, under the supervision of this same Manager Xue.
Xue Yang paused for a moment, then nodded and smiled in response. "Mu Organization, you seem to be in good spirits. How are things in the Special Projects Department?"
He asked specifically because Mu Lin didn't look at all like he'd been given the "special treatment" one might expect.
'Could it be that those Crown Princes have had a change of heart?'
"It's been okay." Mu Lin paused, then gave a faint smile. "It's just that Team Leader Chen... he's been a little strict with me."
"That Chen Xi kid is just a spoiled heir. Avoid him when you can and try not to provoke him. He wouldn't dare act too recklessly at the company, anyway."
Xue Yang had a good impression of Mu Lin, so he wanted to give him a heads-up.
"I understand. I'll be careful. Thank you, Manager Xue."
"Don't mention it."
When Mu Lin arrived at the Special Projects Department, Chen Xi was still recuperating at the Holy Medicine Hall. This meant that, including Mu Lin, there were only seven people in the department.
The moment Zhou Yu saw Mu Lin, her eyes lit up with a sparkle that was impossible to ignore.
"Brother Lin!"
The others stood in a line, looking like they were acknowledging their new boss.
'Could it be just as I suspected?' Mu Lin raised an eyebrow. "What's all this?"
"From now on, we follow Brother Lin's lead! We'll do whatever Brother Lin says. If you tell us to go east, we'll never go west."
Zhou Yu and the others had clearly rehearsed this, delivering their lines with great conviction.
Mu Lin snapped out of it and shook his head with a chuckle. "Alright, alright, I was wondering what this was all about. From now on, we'll listen to whoever's right, got it?"
Zhou Yu, ever the quick-witted fangirl, immediately turned to the others. "Did you all hear that? From now on, whatever Brother Lin says is right. No questions allowed."
Mu Lin paused. 'It can be interpreted that way?' he thought. 'Ah, whatever. Let them be. As long as these young masters and ladies are happy.'
"You look different," Mu Lin said, looking at Zhou Yu with curiosity.
Zhou Yu's face flushed. "Brother Lin, does it look ugly?"
"Not at all. It looks great. A hundred times better than that bird's nest you had before," Mu Lin said without a second thought, completely oblivious to whether he might be hurting a young woman's feelings about her appearance.
Zhou Yu no longer looked like a punk. She had dyed her hair back to a natural color and wore light, elegant makeup.
Dressed in her custom-tailored corporate attire, she actually gave off the vibe of a pretty, young secretary.
Zhou Yu was beaming at first, but after hearing the second part of his comment, she looked at Mu Lin with a wronged expression. "Brother Lin, you're so mean."
Suddenly,
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
The door to the Special Projects Department was knocked on.
Zhou Yu quickly slipped into her role and said, "Come in."
An average-looking female employee glanced inside and asked, "Where's Team Leader Chen Xi? Tell him to come to Conference Room 4 for a meeting."
Zhou Yu was about to agree when she remembered that Chen Xi wouldn't be coming in at all today. She quickly asked, "Team Leader Chen is on leave today. Can Vice Team Leader Mu go in his place?"
The woman rolled her eyes mockingly. "Anyone can go. Whatever."
After all, they would just be part of the scenery. It didn't matter who went.
After the woman left, Mu Lin raised his eyebrows. "Even you guys have to go to meetings?"
Zhou Yu scratched her temple. "We have to at least make our presence felt, you know? You don't have to do much. It's easy. Just sit there quietly and zone out when nothing's happening. If you want a bonus, you can help serve tea or hand out tissues."
Her words made the other members of the Special Projects Department want to crawl into a hole and hide.
"No, that won't work," Mu Lin said, shaking his head. "Freeloading and waiting for the end is not my style. I have to do something."
'This Special Projects Department has to be turned into something real. Otherwise, not only will I feel guilty about taking that two hundred thousand, but I also won't be able to face Elder Li with a clear conscience.'
「Conference Room 4.」
With Chen Xi absent, Mu Lin was the only one who could attend the meeting.
The moment Mu Lin walked in, all eyes snapped toward him.
Every gaze was filled with a mixture of surprise and bewilderment.
"Who are you?" a man with a cold look in his eyes asked.
"I'm Mu Lin, Vice Team Leader of the Special Projects Department," Mu Lin said. "Team Leader Chen Xi is on leave today, so I'm here in his place."
"The Special Projects Department." The man sneered. "Manager Xue, saving a seat for trash—for the Special Projects Department—is a waste of the company's mineral water. Even mineral water costs a few bucks, you know."
Xue Yang frowned, but his expression quickly turned into a smile. "As expected of our finance director. You're always thinking about the company's every penny."
"It's just one bottle of water, and President Lu is already making calculations. Is the company's financial situation already in the red?"
The finance director, Director Lu, sneered. "No need to be so passive-aggressive with me. I just don't want company resources wasted where they shouldn't be."
Xue Yang didn't bother bickering with him further and said directly to Mu Lin, "Your seat is over here. Sit down."
Mu Lin appeared completely unfazed. He simply smiled and nodded at Xue Yang in thanks.
Soon, more people began to file into the conference room.
When a tall, beautiful figure entered, Mu Lin instinctively glanced over.
The moment Li Xue entered the conference room, her eyes fell on Mu Lin. Her delicate brows furrowed. 'It's him,' she thought. He was the last person she wanted to see right now.
Dressed in professional attire, Li Xue was a completely different person from the woman he knew at home.
Now, Li Xue's expression was cold, her beautiful eyes sharp and piercing.
"Since everyone is here, the meeting will now officially begin."
Li Xue's cold voice echoed in the conference room. "No department is to slack off in the coming period. You must complete your current tasks properly. Tie up all loose ends on completed projects and submit them."
"As for ongoing projects, there is zero tolerance for errors, especially concerning quality and safety."
"The project department will brief us on their situation in a moment. Any projects that have not yet been handed off should be finalized in the near future."
"..."
Li Xue was an elite and a pragmatist. She always came prepared, and every one of her directives was well-considered. The departments rarely had any objections.
Mu Lin's perception of Li Xue began to change. Her demeanor at the company was the complete opposite of how she was at home.
Toward the end of the meeting, the finance director raised his hand. "President Lin, the payment for Sheng Baiqin Garden remains uncollectible. I was wondering if you had a solution?"
Li Xue pursed her lips and turned to Cui Chun, the leader of Project Department Team 1. "Team Leader Cui, what's the situation?"
Cui Chun's expression changed. She shook her head and said, "President Lin, Team Leader Gao from quality supervision says it doesn't meet the standards."
Sheng Baiqin Garden had been the very first project Li Xue was responsible for when she joined the company.
The faces of those in the conference room who knew the inside story changed, and they all turned to look at Li Xue.
Li Xue had been overseeing the Sheng Baiqin Garden project. If there was a quality issue, she would have to bear full responsibility.
"That's utter nonsense!" Li Xue's expression was frosty. "I've overseen Sheng Baiqin Garden from the very beginning. There was absolutely no cutting corners!"
Lu Yi wore a mocking expression. "President Lin, this project was your sole responsibility. You'd best resolve this before the board of directors finds out."
"In our line of business, you can't afford to get on Team Leader Gao's bad side."
"If you want to collect that twenty million final payment, you're going to need his quality inspection report."
"But whether or not you collect the final payment isn't the biggest deal. The real question is, if the project fails inspection, what will the homeowners who have already made their down payments do? That's something no one can predict."