Lin Ranran never expected to meet Shang Xu again, let alone beneath her own apartment building.
“Did you come here specifically to find me?” Lin Ranran asked warily. “Why?”
Shang Xu had never seen her look so sharp and guarded, least of all toward him.
Her appearance had changed dramatically. She had cut her long, straight hair, which once reached her waist, into a short style brushing her shoulders. She had traded the white dresses and T-shirts with jeans she once loved for sharp suit trousers, and an expensive Luxury Watch adorned her wrist.
“Ranran, you were never this vain before.”
Seeing his gaze fall on her wrist, Lin Ranran raised a brow and curved her lips. “I earned this money myself. I can spend it however I want.”
“Stop putting on a brave front. I know what you’re capable of. You can’t even carry a few documents without scattering them all over the floor...”
He paused. His prejudiced gaze held both pity and unwillingness to accept reality. “Did Ji Yan deceive you? I told you long ago that he wasn’t a good person. Lin Ranran, Su Corporation owns a considerable number of shares in Ji Yan’s project. Su Xiang won’t make things easy for you.”
Lin Ranran’s eyes widened. She could hardly believe such words had come from his mouth.
Although Shang Xu’s image had long since collapsed in her heart, she had never imagined he would humiliate her without cause.
She took a deep breath and suppressed the urge to slap him. After all, the project had entered a critical stage, and she could not get herself taken away by the police for this.
Her red lips parted, her voice cold and merciless. “Shang Xu, you’re vile.”
“I know you’re unhappy that I said this. I missed you. I’ve been exhausted lately.”
“If you’re tired, go to sleep. Don’t come harass people.”
She turned to leave, but someone grabbed her by the arm.
“Let go!”
“I only want to say a few words to you.” Shang Xu looked at her with his deep-set eyes, seeming exhausted. “Ranran, will you come back to me?”
In the past, Lin Ranran would have softened. She would have believed she was special in his heart.
But now she was Manager Lin, seasoned by years in the workplace. She had encountered several people who used seduction to obtain data from Ji Corporation’s project.
“If you’re trying to make me betray Ji Corporation, then, Shang Xu, you’ve chosen the wrong method. You’re not that charming.”
After saying this, she stared fixedly at the man before her. Shang Xu’s movements froze, and his eyes seemed to twist for a moment.
“Is that the kind of person I am in your eyes?”
Lin Ranran answered firmly, “You are.”
Shang Xu’s gaze grew cold and sinister. “What has Ji Yan given you?”
“Respect, and room to display my abilities.” Lin Ranran’s voice was cold. “Shang Xu, why are you doing this? What use would stealing Ji Corporation’s project data be to you? Do you even have the funds to develop it?”
“How do you know I don’t?”
“You can deceive the stockholders, but not us. Take care. Instead of dwelling on this, summon the courage to burn your boats and complete the current projects one by one. Then you can answer to the buyers and Materials Suppliers.”
The veins on the backs of Shang Xu’s tightly clenched fists bulged. He ground his teeth. “You’ve decided I’m bound to fail?”
“Think whatever you want. Don’t come looking for me again. I don’t want us to have anything to do with each other in the future.”
“Fine, Lin Ranran. Don’t regret this!”
Shang Xu did not know why he had driven to the apartment building beneath Lin Ranran’s home today. His instincts told him that he could not lose Lin Ranran.
He had even thought, absurdly, that if Lin Ranran returned to his side, perhaps he could seize Ji Yan’s project as well.
He had not expected Lin Ranran to see through the idea as soon as it formed, then reject him so decisively.
Ji Yan—always Ji Yan!
Why had everyone been talking about Ji Yan lately? Why did everyone insist on comparing him with Ji Yan?
Where had he gone wrong, allowing Ji Yan to surpass him?
He had never expected He Chan not to be a False Heiress, and that the Paternity Test had merely been mishandled in such an absurd way.
Why had this happened out of nowhere? Could Uncle He have deliberately staged this drama to make He Chan give up on him?
He closed his eyes and slammed his fists against the steering wheel, his expression twisted. Without this incident, He Chan would still be chasing him, and he would have had more connections and time to deal with those projects.
Everything had lined up perfectly!
No, he would not admit defeat. He still had a chance.
At the Yunqi Private Dining Room, Fu Jia and Jiang Yi looked at each other. “Brother Xu, you still want Financing? It’s already over a billion. My family can’t produce that much cash flow.”
Jiang Yi’s tone was urgent. “Wasn’t the market about to open? The funds will flow back at once. Why do we still have to put more money in?”
Shang Xu remained expressionless, his pressure even more overwhelming. “If you want the stock price to rise, you have to enlarge the pool. Don’t you understand that?”
“But if we enlarge the pool any further, the funds won’t be able to circulate. At the last meeting, two groups of materials suppliers came to demand payment.”
“Do you understand this, or do I? Has Shang Corporation ever run into problems all these years? Which Materials Supplier gets paid in the same year?”
“But...”
Shang Xu shot them a cold look. “If the stock price can’t rise, all the previous investments will go down the drain.”
Fu Jia gritted his teeth. “How much more do you need?”
“At least eight hundred million.”
“Eight hundred million? Brother Xu, where are we supposed to get that much in such a short time? We’ve already mortgaged everything we could.”
“Is that so? What about those land parcels belonging to Fu Corporation...”
Fu Jia’s expression changed. “Fu Corporation operates in the food and beverage industry. Whenever we expand into a new location, we buy a land parcel and open a directly operated store. That’s how we keep prices low and attract customers. If land parcels hadn’t risen in value over the years, Fu Corporation could never have grown this large. The land beneath each store is Fu Corporation’s foundation. We absolutely cannot mortgage it.”
“It’s the same for Jiang Corporation. These past few years, we’ve relied on profits from our old game copyrights. How could we touch those assets?”
“If you don’t, the more than one billion invested before will go down the drain. Have you thought this through?” Shang Xu threatened, impatient. “What are you afraid of? Shang Corporation will invest more than you have. Would I harm myself?”
His shout left the two men uneasy, but neither could bear to lose their previous investments. They could only say they would find a way after returning home.
Before long, Ji Yan heard that the three companies had increased their investments again. As the stock price climbed, he told those around him to sell as soon as possible. They must not try to earn the last Copper Coins only to become trapped.
Su Xiang shook her head. “Shang Xu has gone insane. He dares to keep dragging Fu Corporation and Jiang Corporation into this mess. And those two companies—haven’t they noticed that something is wrong?”
“Even if they have, they can’t get off the ship now. Who could bear to lose more than a billion for no reason?”
“But once Shang Corporation’s problems erupt, they’ll trigger a chain reaction. Those two companies will bear joint liability, and even their remaining assets won’t be safe. If they leave now, they’ll only lose a layer of skin.”
Ji Yan analyzed calmly. “Who could bear to? After all, it’s money they worked hard to earn. Once someone is on the ship, they can never see as clearly as someone on shore.”
“It’s a pity for those who bought Shang Corporation’s properties. They’re destined to become an unfinished building.”
“Perhaps the government will introduce a policy in a few years.”
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