Water and Fire~Chapter 72: Follow Me Back to Beijing

 

Chapter 72: Follow Me Back to Beijing

Ren Yan returned to the conference room for a meeting.

An hour later, Chu Qianmiao received another call from Ren Yan. She assumed he had just finished a meeting there.

The car radio played during their conversation. The hosts, a man and a woman, told jokes while interrupting with traffic updates, occasionally featuring advertisements for home improvement companies. "Warm Home, first-class design and renovation, making your home a warm haven."

Chu Qianmiao was startled by the words. "Warm Home," an online home improvement company, was the company founded by Gu Miaoyu and Luo Feng. She was both happy and proud of Gu Miaoyu.

Ren Yan's voice brought her scattered thoughts together.

He said, "The call this afternoon was disconnected. Please tell me about your other findings."

Chu Qianmiao immediately gathered her attention and answered in an orderly manner, "Mr. Ren, here's the thing. I've taken your advice and have been looking for opportunities to chat with employees at all levels of Taoye Cinema Line. I've discussed salaries, benefits, and the company's development. They say their salaries haven't increased in two years, and their benefits have become very poor. They used to receive cards, cash, and rice, flour, and oil during the holidays, but now they only get two small barrels of oil. Regarding the company's development, I heard there were many film projects, but they've been shelved by Ling Wuyi. Ling Wuyi explained that these projects didn't meet policy requirements, so they weren't filmed. But the film and television planners said the main reason was that the company was short of money. In short, Taoye Cinema Line isn't as good as Ling Wuyi portrayed it to be; Ling Wuyi has over-glossed it."

Ren Yan hummed, paused, and then said, "Tell me what you think."

To avoid being seen, Chu Qianmiao stood at the bottom of the Taoye Cinema Line office building. A ginkgo tree stood in front of the building, its leaves a dazzling golden hue. Whether hanging from the branches or lying on the ground, they were a breathtaking sight. Chu Qianmiao, clutching her phone, thought for a moment that, regardless of his availability, Ren Yan should definitely come to Shanghai right now, at least to see the tree in its golden glory. Beauty captured with one's own eyes is always more vivid than that captured with a camera.

Standing amidst the golden beauty, she said to Ren Yan, "I know we can only trace guarantees involving bank loans through the bank's credit reporting system. But Ling Wuyi is said to have resorted to private lending, and unless Ling Wuyi himself proactively reports it, we can't confirm guarantees for private loans. But based on my discussions with Taoye Cinema Line staff and the financial issues I've uncovered, I believe what Mu Jie said is true. Taoye Cinema Line is subsidizing Ling Wuyi's trading company, and there are indeed large external guarantees."

"So, the situation now is that I tend to believe Taoye Cinema Line does have external guarantees. But if Ling Wuyi denies it, we have no evidence."

Chu Qianmiao paused, then added, "If we proceed with this project blindly, we'll just collect the financial advisory fee and be done with it. But the problem is, if after the merger is completed, the lending company comes to collect the debt and reveals this external guarantee that we didn't uncover through due diligence, will we be exempt from liability? Then, perhaps not only our project team, but even Litong will be penalized."

Her palms went cold at the thought. If the news really went viral, Ren Yan, the department head, would ultimately bear the brunt of the consequences.

So, after careful consideration, she decided that she couldn't discuss this matter with Cui Xijie first; she had to discuss it directly with Ren Yan.

Since Cui Xijie had been sent here by a leader at headquarters, he must be very familiar with them. Regardless of whether that leader was Ye Haorong, the news would eventually reach Ye Haorong. And Ye Haorong and Ling Wuyi, the owner of Taoye Cinema Line, were clearly quite familiar with each other. After all, it was Ye Haorong who contracted the project for Ren Yan. Furthermore, it was Ye Haorong who had helped find the accounting firm. She feared that if Ye Haorong learned of this, he might choose to whitewash and suppress the problem, allowing the project to proceed blindly. In the end, Ren Yan would be the one to bear the brunt of the blame.

So, despite their recent disagreement, she chose not to disclose this matter to Cui Xijie and instead discussed it directly with Ren Yan.

"So, Mr. Ren, if it were me, I'd probably find a way to pry Ling Wuyi out of his hushed mouth and get him to tell the truth."

But that was no easy task.

Ren Yan's voice came over, "Remember what I'm going to say next. From now on, you're not going to get involved in this matter of large-scale external guarantees, and don't even mention a single word about it to anyone."

Chu Qianmiao was a little confused, but she obediently agreed.

Another voice came over Ren Yan's line, and Chu Qianmiao vaguely heard, "Let's take the Airport Expressway 2."

After hearing these words, Ren Yan hung up.

After get off work that evening, Chu Qianmiao had dinner and returned to the hotel. She read, studied, and sorted through documents, spending the night peacefully.

The next morning, she arrived early at the due diligence office for Taoye Cinema Line. She opened the window to let out the stagnant air before going to her desk to put down her computer bag.

The due diligence office was on the second floor, and with the window open, she could hear every sound from downstairs.

Chu Qianmiao thought she heard someone say something like "Mr. Ren."

She stood up and rushed to the window to look down.

Beneath the golden ginkgo tree downstairs stood a man.

Tall, slender, and handsome, he wore a dark blue wool coat, his shirt unbuttoned, a scarf draped around his neck.

He was amidst a field of golden fallen leaves, gazing up at the equally golden ginkgo tree.

For a fleeting moment, Chu Qianmiao thought, "How wonderful! He's witnessing this breathtaking view."

Then she was startled.

He had rushed over overnight, taken care of things overnight.

The man gazing at the ginkgo tree suddenly turned his head. He was looking up at the second-floor window, at her.

He waved at her from below, a smile curling his lips as he told her, "Pack your things and come back to Beijing with me later."

The merger and acquisition project ended seemingly abruptly, yet also seamlessly. Chu Qianmiao dragged her suitcase back to Beijing with Ren Yan. Also traveling with her was Cui Xijie, who continued to chat and chat cheerfully with her throughout the journey, even asking her if she knew why Mr. Ren had suddenly come to Shanghai that night and why he had suddenly mentioned the guarantee.

Chu Qianmiao followed Ren Yan's instructions, displaying her acting talent, perfectly portraying her surprise upon hearing the word "guarantee" for the first time. She even asked, perplexed, "Could our project termination be related to the guarantee?"

Cui Xijie observed her reaction and, with his signature smile, said, "It seems you don't know either."

Two days after returning to Beijing, the listed company Yilai Pictures issued a resolution from an extraordinary board meeting, announcing the termination of its acquisition of Taoye Cinema Line. This was the official announcement that the project was completely terminated.

Chu Qianmiao later learned about the events of that night from Qin Qianyu.

Qin Qianyu told her about this after sharing a piece of great news.

As for the happy event, it was on the third day after she returned to Beijing that Qin Qianyu announced to everyone that he had just checked his results and had passed the insurance agent exam. He was now a prospective insurance agent, just one step away from becoming one.

Chu Qianmiao nearly jumped for joy when she heard the news.

She quickly squeezed in front of the others to offer her best wishes to Qin Qianyu, "Boss Qin, if you become rich, don't forget me. And don't give your review materials to anyone else. I want them, I want them."

Sun Yi challenged her, "I want them, too."

Qin Qianyu said, "You two compete to praise me. Whoever praises me the best will get them."

Sun Yi immediately abstained, "That's f*cked! A competition of flattery, who can compete with Qian Miao?"

Chu Qianmiao refused to abstain. She began to praise Qin Qianyu, "Brother Qin, you passed the exam so quickly. It shows that you have the talent and aura for taking exams. Your aura permeates your materials. When I use your review materials, I'll be imbued with your aura. Blessed by your wisdom and aura, I'm sure I'll pass, too."

Qin Qianyu was flattered by the flattery.

Sun Yi sighed, "It's been ages since I've heard Qian Miao's flattery. Hearing it again, her skills remain undiminished, fresh and refined, and still manages to knock me out."

Liu Lifeng sneered, "How else could she have been favored by her boss?"

Chu Qianmiao chuckled and continued, "You said before that it was because I was pretty."

Liu Lifeng choked, his face flushing with anger. "Can't you tell that calling you pretty is a compliment?"

Chu Qianmiao's face was filled with amusement. "Then I'd love to hear you call me pretty."

Liu Lifeng's face flushed even more, and he said, "That's unreasonable."

Qin Qianyu, relieved by the flattery, immediately handed Chu Qianmiao some study materials from his office and told her, "I have some more at home. I'll bring them to you tomorrow."

Chu Qianmiao thanked him profusely.

Suddenly, two more books appeared on the desk. She looked up and met Cui Xijie's smiling face.

"Qianmiao, I have two review materials from when I took the insurance agent exam. They should be useful if you want to study."

Chu Qianmiao was stunned for a moment, then quickly thanked him.

Liu Lifeng sneered, "Old Cui, you really have a heart of a saint. What's the point of being so kind?"

Cui Xijie walked over, patted him on the back, and said with a smile, "We're all colleagues in the same department. We have to keep an eye on each other. Let's go have a cigarette."

Liu Lifeng stood up and walked out with him.

Chu Qianmiao faintly heard Liu Lifeng say as they walked, "You're just too nice," and Chu Qianmiao laughed.

This silly guy, even after being betrayed by Cui Xijie, would probably still happily help Cui Xijie count the money.

After they left, Qin Qianyu winked at her. She followed him to the tea room.

As she made their coffee, Qin Qianyu recounted what had happened that night in Shanghai.

Qin Qianyu said, "Mr. Ren called me and asked me to write a project termination statement so he could submit it to headquarters. He dictated it to me, so I know the whole story."

Chu Qianmiao couldn't help but ask, "Why didn't he let me or Cui Xijie write it?"

Qin Qianyu replied, "He wanted to get you out of the way, and he didn't trust Cui Xijie."

Chu Qianmiao asked, "Doesn't that mean he's dragging you into this?"

Qin Qianyu replied, "No, although I wrote the document, it was ultimately submitted under Mr. Ren's name."

Chu Qianmiao still had her doubts. Why couldn't she write it and submit it under Ren Yan's name?

A quick thought brought her to a conclusion. Ren Yan was worried that if he asked her to write the document and then submitted it under his own name, she would think he was taking credit for his subordinate's work.

Rather than risk misunderstanding, he simply went to Qin Qianyu.

She sighed inwardly. How could he think so much every day, yet his face still wrinkled? It's unrealistic.

Qin Qianyu, sipping the coffee she'd made, told her that Ren Yan and the chairman had bought tickets and flown directly to Shanghai immediately after their meeting that day.

Upon arrival in Shanghai, he contacted Hu Li, the owner of the publicly listed Yilai Pictures, and reported that the acquired company, Taoye Cinema Line, might have concealed information about external guarantees.

Yilai Pictures' owner, Hu Li, had a wide network of connections. He made several phone calls and asked others to inquire. Once he had a clue, he summoned Ling Wuyi, the owner of Taoye Cinema Line, and, through a mixture of coaxing, deceit, and intimidation, finally convinced Ling Wuyi to tell the truth.

There was indeed a large amount of external guarantees.

Hu Li was furious; he almost had to pay the price for the pit Ling Wuyi had dug.

Hu Li immediately decided to terminate the acquisition and issued a notice for an extraordinary board meeting.

Qin Qianyu told Chu Qianmiao, "As for the termination of this merger and acquisition project, from a company perspective, our department helped mitigate risks and deserves praise. But from the perspective of headquarters leader Ye Haorong, it's a major grudge."

Chu Qianmiao was stunned and asked, "It's just a contract fee. Is it worth such a big grudge?"

Qin Qianyu looked at her as if she were stupid and said in a low voice, "How can this be just a simple contract fee? This is blocking someone's path to wealth."

Chu Qianmiao expressed her ignorance and wished to hear more.

Qin Qianyu looked around, making sure it was safe. Then, lowering his voice, he said, "You said the headquarters leader is so familiar with Ling Wuyi. How could he not know about Taoye Cinema Line's situation? And knowing that he was so actively promoting this project, why?"

Chu Qianmiao asked, "Why?" Though she asked, she already knew it was definitely "profitable."

"Of course there were benefits to be gained," Qin Qianyu whispered.

"Like, what are the benefits?" Chu Qianmiao inquired.

"This Mr. Ye, I guess he's so proactive because either he has shares in Taoye Cinema Line—of course, he's got someone to hold them on his behalf, so he can collect the profits after the sale. Or, Ling Wuyi promised to give him a percentage return after the merger. But seeing how hard he's working, I think it's the first possibility, because the first one pays more."

Chu Qianmiao exclaimed, "Ah!" "If that's the case, then I'm really preventing someone from getting rich. If he knew I was the one who leaked this information and guaranteed it, he'd kill me."

Qin Qianyu patted her shoulder. "Mr. Ren took the entire responsibility, not even a word of yours," he sighed. "Our boss, though aloof, is absolutely responsible. When good things happen, he thinks about sharing them with everyone, but when bad things happen, he takes it all on himself. A true man."

Chu Qianmiao returned to her workstation and spent the entire day thinking about how much trust Ren Yan must have in her, how courageous and responsible he must have been, to have believed her words without any concrete evidence, and rushed to the front line without hesitation to shield her, shouldering all the trouble and resentment single-handedly.

Then he stood beneath the golden ginkgo tree, raised his head and waved to her, smiling and telling her to pack her things and come back to Beijing with him later.