Mu Yi was still beating Mu Jun, while the clueless Mu Haoguang stepped forward to pull Mu Yi away, anxiously asking, "Xiao Yi, what's wrong with you? Why are you hitting your father?"
Mu Yi gritted his teeth and said, "He's not my father. If he really were my father, how could he covet his own daughter-in-law?"
Mu Haoguang looked bewildered. "Huh?"
It was Guan Chenli who reacted first. "Xiao Yi, what nonsense are you talking about?"
Mu Yi looked at Guan Chenli. "Mom, whether I'm talking nonsense or not, you know perfectly well in your heart."
After saying that, Mu Yi strode away. Finally coming to his senses, Mu Haoguang trembled with rage as he pointed at Mu Jun on the ground. "You… how dare you! How could you!"
[Actually, Mu Haoguang bore some responsibility for Mu Jun turning out like this. He clearly knew about his son's messy relationships with women but turned a blind eye. As long as no children were involved, he couldn't be bothered to intervene.]
[It was precisely because of Mu Haoguang's tacit approval that Mu Jun became increasingly unrestrained, ultimately leading to this family tragedy.]
Master Lin watched in confusion as a son beat his father, then was bewilderedly dragged into the elevator.
He complained unhappily, "Why are we leaving now?"
He still hadn't figured out what was going on. They didn't leave when they should have, and now when he was getting interested, they were leaving.
These unfilial sons, daughters, and grandchildren!!!
Lin Xiawan explained concisely, "Grandpa, your mahjong partner's grandson's wife gave birth to a son for him."
Master Lin: "?"
What was that?
He was old, but not stupid. Why couldn't he follow young people's train of thought at all?
[Sister Xiawan, as expected of you. A single sentence can contain so much information.]
Lin Tingyue thought Lin Xiawan had deduced this from Mu Yi's rhetorical question, unaware that she herself had already been completely exposed. Lin Tingyue was still marveling.
[Sister Xiawan is truly born for gossip.]
Lin Xiawan looked at Lin Tingyue and smiled slightly.
It wasn't until they got in the car that Master Lin, his head practically steaming, finally sorted out the messy relationships. Sitting in Lin Ruqiao's car, he asked blankly, "Then can I still play mahjong with Old Mu in the future?"
Lin Ruzhi, who was sitting with the old man and fastening his seatbelt, twitched her mouth violently. "Dad, it's better not to."
Who knew what other scandals Master Lin's mahjong friends might have? This affair with a daughter-in-law, tacitly approved by his own father, was truly horrifying.
Lin Ruzhi was worried that Master Lin, already quite old-fashioned, might become corrupted.
Master Lin didn't yet know that his mahjong friends were about to undergo a major purge.
In Lin Rusong's car.
Bai Yaxin, Lin Tingyue, Lin Xiawan, and Lin Jiaxin were all in this car. As for Lin Shengyan, to save a seat for his eldest aunt, he had gone to Lin Yuhuan's car.
"Brother, Ruqiao and Ruzhi messaged me saying they want to replace all of Dad's mahjong friends."
Lin Rusong thought of the chaos in Mu Haoguang's family. "That's a good idea."
[We could send Grandpa to senior citizen university.]
[They play mahjong at senior citizen university, and you can sing and dance there too.]
Lin Jiaxin's eyes lit up. This was a great idea—why hadn't she thought of it before? She immediately began discussing it with Lin Ruqiao and Lin Ruzhi.
Master Lin never expected that his simple desire for a great-grandson, coupled with holding a family meeting in the hospital corridor to restore his recently shattered dignity, would result in losing his mahjong partners and being sent back to school???
That evening, Lin Jiasi called Lin Rusong, "Hahahaha Mom told me Dad feels like the sky is falling. He probably won't cause any trouble for a while now."
Bai Yaxin remarked, "This is perfect timing for Auntie to focus on things she enjoys."
"Exactly! Hahaha I knew right away this brilliant idea must have come from Tingyue."
Though utterly mischievous, she loved it.
Back when she was in school, Lin Jiasi had constantly been criticized by the old master. He demanded she rank at the top of her class and excel in everything, claiming it was "for Lin Jiasi's own good."
Later, when Lin Jiasi joined the family company and sought his guidance on unfamiliar tasks, the old master would snap that all her education had been wasted.
She'd often imagined sending the old master to senior citizen university someday and throwing all his critical comments back at him. Now this fantasy was actually coming true.
Hearing Lin Jiasi's words, Bai Yaxin, who had been lying down, suddenly sat up.
Lin Rusong asked, "What's wrong?"
Bai Yaxin said, "Tingyue is going to the company tomorrow too. If she doesn't perform well, you mustn't criticize her."
Lin Rusong laughed and put his arm around Bai Yaxin's shoulders, "Why would I criticize Tingyue? Besides, she's just going with Yuhuan to observe tomorrow. It's not her field anyway – what expectations could I possibly have?"
"You're right…"
"See?"
"I need to remind Yuhuan too."
Lin Rusong watched with amused exasperation as Bai Yaxin left the room.
Lin Tingyue woke up early the next morning. Bai Yaxin had prepared a professional suit for her the night before. After changing into the outfit and entering the dining room, Tingyue saw her mother's eyes light up.
Tingyue walked shyly up to Bai Yaxin and asked, "Mom, does it not look right?"
"It's perfect, absolutely perfect."
After breakfast, Tingyue got into Lin Yuhuan's car.
Tingyue humbly sought guidance, "Big brother, what should I do today?"
"Tingyue, no need to be nervous. You'll be my assistant today, and I'll guide you through everything."
"Okay, big brother."
[Assistant to the General Manager?]
[This is probably the highest position I'll ever reach in my lifetime.]
[Hahaha finally it's my turn to rise above being an ordinary office worker!]
Lin Yuhuan adjusted his glasses. Did Tingyue always have this much internal monologue…?
Upon arriving at the company, Tingyue followed behind Lin Yuhuan as they entered the general manager's private elevator together.
[A personal elevator! I'd probably faint from happiness if this were me.]
Lin Yuhuan glanced at Tingyue, mainly to make sure she wouldn't actually faint.
Meanwhile, the moment Tingyue and Yuhuan entered the elevator, someone immediately reported this to Lin Yuhuan's secretary, Zhou Nannan.
"How strange, I haven't heard anything about Manager Lin changing secretaries?" In the breakroom, Tong Yaqin, who usually spent time with Zhou Nannan, expressed confusion.
Xing Yaping quickly checked Zhou Nannan's expression and hurriedly said, "What are you talking about? There's no way Sister Nannan would be replaced. Right, Sister Nannan?"
Zhou Nannan responded with professional detachment, "No one can guess Manager Lin's intentions. If he's dissatisfied with me and wants to replace me, that would be perfectly understandable."
Zhou Nannan calmly stirred the coffee in her hand, but inwardly, she was already beginning to panic.
Why was there no warning at all?
Just moments ago, Lin Yuhuan had texted her, asking her to prepare a cup of coffee and a glass of milk.
No, Zhou Nannan tightened her grip on the coffee cup—she absolutely could not be replaced.
Ding—the elevator arrived.
From Zhou Nannan's perspective, she could indeed see a young woman following behind Lin Yuhuan.
This girl gave Zhou Nannan a strange feeling. Though she looked only about twenty, her demeanor was remarkably seasoned, as if she had been navigating the workplace for years.
This wasn't good—she couldn't even read her opponent.
No matter what, she couldn't just be silently replaced. She had to fight for herself first.
Thinking this, Zhou Nannan picked up the tray and said, "I'm going to deliver the coffee to President Lin now."
"Oh, alright."
Tong Yaqin and Xing Yaping nodded, watching as Zhou Nannan knocked on the office door just as she always did.
Such strong composure, Xing Yaping silently vowed to learn from Zhou Nannan's mindset.
When Zhou Nannan entered, she noticed the girl wasn't sitting opposite Lin Yuhuan but was standing by the office's large floor-to-ceiling window, curiously looking outside as if everything in the office held an inexplicable allure for her.
Zhou Nannan didn't think this newcomer was overly bold. Someone who could act so casually in front of President Lin might not be here to replace her.
She had heard that President Lin had two younger sisters—perhaps this one was his sister?
Zhou Nannan first set down Lin Yuhuan's coffee. "President Lin, your coffee."
Lin Yuhuan gave a slight nod. "Good."
Then, Zhou Nannan placed the milk on the coffee table in front of the office sofa. "Miss Lin, your milk."
Lin Tingyue turned around and was met with Zhou Nannan's professional smile. Lin Tingyue's eyes lit up.
[What a beautiful big sister!]
Zhou Nannan said, "Miss Lin, do you need anything else? There are desserts in the pantry."
[Desserts!!!]
Lin Yuhuan covered one ear with his hand and said, "Get her some desserts."
Zhou Nannan was slightly taken aback. President Lin hadn't corrected her form of address—it seemed her gamble had paid off. Feeling relieved, her smile grew even more sincere. "Of course, please wait a moment, Miss Lin. I'll fetch them right away."
Lin Yuhuan was momentarily distracted by her radiant smile. He averted his gaze and asked Lin Tingyue, "How is it?"
Lin Tingyue took a sip of milk, her eyes curving into happy crescents. "It's wonderful."
[The view is great, the milk is great, and the pantry is great too.]
[It's like I've pulled off an epic comeback to become the boss!!!]
Lin Yuhuan stood up and sat across from Lin Tingyue. After a moment's thought, he said, "Actually, Lin Corporation has several subsidiaries. If you're willing, I could arrange for you to be parachuted in."
That should count as pulling off an epic comeback to become the boss, right?
[Huh?]
Lin Tingyue stared blankly.
[Brother, are you for real?]
Embarrassed, Lin Tingyue said, "Forget it, forget it."
[With my work skills, if the new company doesn't go bankrupt within a week, it'd be a miracle!]
Lin Yuhuan: "…"
Lin Tingyue, afraid he might bring up the parachuting idea again, quickly changed the subject. "Brother, was that lady just now your secretary?"
"Yes, she just started three months ago."
Lin Yuhuan wondered, was Lin Tingyue only willing to go to the new company if she could take his secretary along?
…That wasn't entirely unacceptable.
Just as Lin Yuhuan was about to speak, he heard Lin Tingyue's inner thoughts.
[How come I remember Big Brother having a romantic subplot with his secretary?]
[And Big Brother fell in love at first sight?]
Who?
Him?
He fell in love with Zhou Nannan at first sight?
[Sigh, Big Brother, still hung up on love at first sight. Just wait until she steals your confidential information and gives it to the rival company—then you'll come to your senses.]