Water and Fire~Chapter 4: The Collaboration Confirmed

 

Chapter 4: The Collaboration Confirmed

As Ren Yan finished speaking, Zhou Hanhai burst into laughter.

"Mr. Ren has an ear for women. Like me, like us," he said, glancing around at the men at the table, "we're missing the point!"

Everyone else laughed, and Chu Qianmiao felt strangely shy and awkward amidst the laughter, her hands and feet looking half-witted. She quickly raised her eyelids to glance at Ren Yan. Amidst the joking laughter, he showed no sign of being awkward, remaining completely at ease—as if someone who has been in the workplace long enough has become immune to such sexual banter.

He smiled calmly at Zhou Hanhai and said, "Before the meal began, didn't Mr. Zhou say I should offer a toast to Lawyer Xiao Chu for her help? Everyone has to work this afternoon, so drinking won't be possible, so let's just offer a bowl of noodles as a token of our gratitude!"

"Not bad!" Zhou Hanhai turned to the lobby manager, "Give everyone here a small bowl of noodles. Oh, and an egg, too."

The lobby manager left at the command. Zhou Hanhai smiled again, "Let's all take advantage of Lawyer Xiao Chu's birthday today and have a bowl of noodles. It'll be a good start for Hanhai Home Textiles' IPO!"

Chu Qianmiao was flattered by Zhou Hanhai's words. She hurriedly thanked them, "Thank you, Mr. Zhou, thank you, Mr. Ren, thank you all!"

Her birthday had been spent with steamed buns in the morning, but by noon, it had suddenly become a grand occasion, with many prominent figures each sharing a bowl of noodles with her, even defining it as "taking advantage of her."

Aside from the time in high school when she successfully tricked Gu Miaoyu into a bully with her mere talk, Chu Qianmiao felt that this moment was the second peak of her life.

The noodles were served soon. She ate with relish, tilting her head subtly as she did so, her gaze darting across Ren Yan's face.

Ren Yan and Zhou Hanhai were huddled together, whispering. Zhou Hanhai nodded occasionally, saying, "Okay, you make the decision. You have the experience, and I trust your judgment."

Chu Qianmiao stole glances at Ren Yan again and again. His face tilted halfway, revealing the lines of his jaw, almost too beautiful, as if they had been carved by the most skilled craftsman with the most intricate craftsmanship.

Suddenly, she felt a surge of resentment. She couldn't accept how such a handsome man could have forgotten her? And she often promoted him as the hero of her erotic dreams!

Thinking of her erotic dream, she couldn't help but recall the long, nurturing kiss from last night...

She choked on her noodles and started coughing.

Zhang Teng put down his chopsticks and looked at her concernedly, "What's wrong, Qianmiao? Why are you choking like this? Are you okay?"

Chu Qianmiao fought the choking sensation rising in her throat, shook her head, and managed a whisper, "I'm fine."

The two people at the main table glanced over at her, and after confirming that she was alright, they leaned in and whispered.

The others, after observing the unusual movement, returned to their conversations with their neighbors.

Finally calming down, Chu Qianmiao lowered her voice to Zhang Teng, "I just choked on my regurgitated food! Luckily, the noodles in my stomach regurgitated up my throat and I was able to push them back down. Otherwise, this bowl of longevity noodles would have been wasted. It would have been such a bad omen if it had been wasted! I don't want to die the moment I leave the house again!"

Zhang Teng couldn't help but laugh out loud, "You're such a jerk, kid! Can you please stop being so harsh on yourself?"

Zhang Teng's laughter was accompanied by another. Chu Qianmiao looked to see Qin Qianyu. He had obviously heard her and was laughing. Glancing to the side, she noticed that Ren Yan, sitting next to Qin Qianyu, was also laughing.

...perhaps he'd heard it too.

"Little Lawyer Chu is so funny!" Qin Qianyu said.

Chu Qianmiao smiled, but her heart was filled with sorrow. As a girl, she preferred to hear compliments on her beauty. But nine out of ten people who knew her emphasized her "really funny," while the remaining one often praised her as "extraordinarily funny."

…Sometimes, she felt a deep empathy for Sha Yi, who clearly came from an idol drama, yet somehow managed to become a comedian.

Towards the end of the meal, Zhou Hanhai said to Zhang Teng, "Lawyer Zhang, do you have anything to do later? If you're not busy, come sit with me?"

Zhang Teng quickly agreed.

After the meal, Chu Qianmiao followed Zhang Teng into Zhou Hanhai's car to visit Hanhai's family. Zhang Teng and Zhou Hanhai sat in the back, chatting, while Chu Qianmiao sat in the passenger seat, breathing in and out, digesting her food. Suddenly, she tilted her head and saw in the rearview mirror a black Mercedes-Benz following behind.

Ren Yan and Qin Qianyu had also followed.

She couldn't explain why, but her chest suddenly felt swollen with a satisfying feeling. Just like when she was a kid in kindergarten, every time the most handsome boy in the class appeared, she felt kindergarten life become especially exciting.

Arriving at Hanhai Home Textiles, Zhou Hanhai asked his secretary to take her and Zhang Teng to the reception room. Zhou Hanhai and Ren Yan went to the chairman's office first. Chu Qianmiao guessed they had something to discuss.

The reception room had tea, milk, and coffee, and surprisingly, there were plenty of snacks, chocolate shachima cookies, and all sorts of delicious treats.

The secretary said, "Sometimes our meetings can last a long time, and President Zhou is worried everyone's hungry, so he prepared these treats for everyone."

After the secretary left, Zhang Teng said to Chu Qianmiao, "To judge a company's quality, we first look at how its owner treats his employees."

As they were speaking, the door to the reception room opened and the secretary arrived to usher them in.

"Lawyer Zhang, Lawyer Chu, please follow me to the chairman's office!"

Chu Qianmiao followed Zhang Teng into Zhou Hanhai's office. The office was spacious and bright. A large fish tank filled with fortune fish lined the wall near the door. Not far from the tank sat a set of leather sofas. A complete set of exquisite teaware sat on a mahogany coffee table in front of the sofas. Next to the tea set sat a small purple sandalwood bracelet.

Since starting working, Chu Qianmiao had discovered that three essential items were the defining characteristics of bosses: fortune fish, tea sets, and bracelets. It seemed as if only with these three items did a boss truly become a boss.

Zhou Hanhai and Ren Yan each sat on a single sofa, while Chu Qianmiao joined Zhang Teng on the long couch. Qin Qianyu pulled up a chair and sat slightly behind Ren Yan.

Ren Yan and Zhang Teng chatted for a while about capital market trends, with Zhou Hanhai occasionally interjecting with questions and sentiments. After chatting for a while, Ren Yan turned to Qin Qianyu and said, "Xiao Qin, tonight, organize the information you have on Hanhai Home Textiles and send a copy to Attorney Zhang and the others so they can understand the company's basic situation."

Chu Qianmiao saw Qin Qianyu momentarily pause after hearing this instruction. He then whispered something to Ren Yan. Chu Qianmiao guessed, guessing it was something like, "Don't we still need to meet..."

At this point, Ren Yan gave him a half-smile and raised his eyebrows. These two signals interrupted Qin Qianyu's confusion.

Qin Qianyu immediately fell silent.

Ren Yan turned to talk to Zhang Teng, "Attorney Zhang, you two will review the materials tonight and then come back tomorrow to finalize the confidentiality agreement and project agreement. After that, several of our intermediary organizations will come to Mr. Zhou for a formal meeting to finalize the specific matters related to the company's listing."

Zhang Teng had observed the heated exchange between Ren Yan and Qin Qianyu. So he said, "Mr. Ren, I heard from Lei Zhenzi that you need to meet with Linfeng Law Firm again."

Ren Yan smiled and said, "The Linfeng team has a lot of projects going on lately, and Mr. Zhou wants to get started quickly and can't wait. Since you're an acquaintance, you're trustworthy. Besides, through today's conversation, we've already seen that you, Attorney Zhang, are very experienced in the capital markets and have a strong grasp of projects. So, Mr. Zhou and I just discussed it again, and we've decided to partner with you."

As Chu Qianmiao listened to Ren Yan speak, she felt like a gentle breeze, refreshing and pleasant. His voice was generally clear, yet it held a hint of magnetism. Back in school, she'd been drawn to his voice when he spoke, and she hadn't expected his voice to remain the same, still a powerful weapon.

She thought, after all, people are willing to fall again where they fell. Perhaps this is the pitfall of Stockholm.

Zhang Teng, having secured the project, smiled, his thick brows softening. "Thank you, Mr. Zhou and Mr. Ren! It's an honor to have this opportunity to work with you all!"

He glanced at Chu Qianmiao, who quickly followed suit: "Thank you, Mr. Zhou and Mr. Ren!"

Ren Yan glanced at her, then quickly looked away.

From then on, until the meeting ended, he and her didn't exchange glances or words again.

Chu Qianmiao thought, after all, he had the demeanor of a leader.

***

After the meeting, Chu Qianmiao was about to leave after Zhang Teng, but Qin Qianyu stopped her. He asked for her contact information and email address so he could package the materials and send them to her that evening.

Zhang Teng, craving a cigarette, went out for a smoke, leaving Chu Qianmiao and Qin Qianyu to liaise.

Finally having a chance to talk freely, Qin Qianyu seemed a little excited, saying that working on this project with Lawyer Chu would be very interesting.

Chu Qianmiao didn't shy away, smiling brightly and saying, "I can't promise anything else, but if you need to park your car while we're working on a project, I'll definitely direct you!"

Qin Qianyu laughed heartily.

Chu Qianmiao waited for his laughter to die down, intending to casually broach a question she'd been harboring for a while.

"Manager Qin, your CEO Ren..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Qin Qianyu interrupted her.

"He's very handsome, isn't he? You can't help but glance at his face, can't you?"

Chu Qianmiao was startled by that last part. Was her glance really that obvious?

Thankfully, Qin Qianyu followed up with, "Not to mention you, even a straight guy like me can't help but look at him sometimes. He's so handsome! Our CEO Ren alone carries the banner of good looks for our entire investment banking department!"

Qin Qianyu's face was filled with pride as he spoke.

Chu Qianmiao wanted to say, "Brother, wake up! You investment banks are about money, not actors playing with your looks. What's there to be proud of?"

Besides, that wasn't what she wanted to ask at all! What she wanted to ask was...

Does Mr. Ren have a girlfriend?

***

Qin Qianyu returned to the company that afternoon and knocked on Ren Yan's office door.

"Mr. Ren, I'd like to confirm with you which documents we can send to Zhang Teng first so they can review them."

Ren Yan looked up from his desk, paused, and said, "Send whatever you have. Let them review it first so they have an idea of ​​the situation and can offer targeted feedback during the intermediary meeting."

Qin Qianyu replied, "OK," but then changed the subject, asking, "Mr. Ren, why did you suddenly change your mind and not meet with the Linfeng Law Firm staff to make the final decision on hiring Zhang Teng and his team? Linfeng was recommended by headquarters after all. Aren't you afraid of what headquarters might think of you if you chose Xinfeng Law Firm directly?"

"Do you think I care about that?" Ren Yan raised the corner of his mouth, a slightly uninhibited smile.

Qin Qianyu pondered and nodded. "That's true." He paused, then asked again, "Then why did you decide on Xinfeng so quickly?"

"Why do you think I decided so quickly?" Ren Yan asked in return.

"Because... Lawyer Chu is pretty?" Qin Qianyu said deliberately. He noticed Ren Yan glanced at Chu Qianmiao several times during lunch, even ordering a bowl of noodles. He'd never paid this much attention to a female partner before.

"You know me so well?" Ren Yan immediately gave him a devilish grin.

Qin Qianyu looked at his devilish grin and immediately felt like he was about to die.

"I don't dare understand, I don't dare understand!" he said quickly.

The leader's mind is like a needle in the sea.

Ren Yan cut him some slack and gave him a standard answer.

"Zhang Teng's professional skills are indeed good, and our project is very tight. Linfeng has many projects and it's difficult to coordinate time because they were introduced by headquarters and have a lot of clout. So, for all that, we should just go with Zhang Teng and avoid any further complications."

Qin Qianyu looked educated. But before leaving the office, he had another fight with Ren Yan.

"Boss, you explained a bit too much just now. It's not your usual style. It makes people think you might be hiding something!"

With that, he turned and ran, letting the pen Ren Yan threw at him hit the door.

***

Chu Qianmiao was in a daze the entire afternoon. She remained in a daze until she got home from get off work, until Gu Miaoyu finished cooking dinner, and until she sat down to eat.

She slurred through three bowls of rice and kept eating, nearly bringing Gu Miaoyu to tears. "Sanqianshui, please shut up! I made extra rice to make porridge tomorrow morning! And now you've eaten all the rice I was going to use for porridge tomorrow morning!!!" Gu Miao angrily tugged at Chu Qianmiao's face, forcing her distracted attention back to her. "Hey, what's wrong with you that makes you overeat?"

Chu Qianmiao chuckled. "It's my birthday today, I'm happy, I'm going to eat more!"

Gu Miaoyu immediately snapped. "Shuishui, do you think I'm blind? You look so melancholy, and you're trying to trick me into thinking you're happy?"

Chu Qianmiao put down her bowl and slapped her thigh.

"Oh! You actually saw through me." After a pause, she suddenly asked, "Little Daogu, do you remember that senior from college? There was one time when it was pouring rain and you called me, saying you didn't bring an umbrella to study in the library. One of your seniors gave you his umbrella, and you cried out, saying you were a little moved. If you saw that senior again now, would you recognize him?"

Gu Miaoyu looked at Chu Qianmiao seriously. "Come on, Shuishui, tell me, what did we eat last night?"

"..." Chu Qianmiao was stunned by the question. "Radish? Or winter melon?"

Gu Miaoyu puffed out her cheeks and slammed the table. "I can't remember either! You see, we can't even remember what happened yesterday, so how can we remember what someone looked like that long ago, right?"

Chu Qianmiao sighed, put down her chopsticks, and let go of the rice.

Okay, she thought, so maybe that guy really has forgotten about her, forgotten that they'd had some interactions in college.

She felt melancholy again, but immediately forced herself to cheer up.

A bright light suddenly flashed through her mind:

—It doesn't matter! She's forgotten what happened before, that's all! She hasn't lost!

Chu Qianmiao felt a sudden sense of clarity. She clapped her left palm against her right fist, thinking: This is happily settled!