Xia Yu agreed but repeatedly emphasized to Kong Hanyue that he might not be able to solve the issue.
“Zezé definitely can’t fix it, so you give it a try.” Kong Hanyue had inexplicable confidence in Xia Yu.
She then arranged Xia Yu’s schedule: “Zezé hasn’t woken up yet. Once he comes downstairs, I’ll tell him to take you to the company.”
“Remember to ask the school for leave on my behalf,” Xia Yu said.
“Sure!” Happily, Kong Hanyue left the room.
Xia Yu threw off the covers and began changing clothes.
He picked up his phone and checked the time—it was 6:30 AM. Zhong Yunze usually woke up at 7.
Wait a second, since Zhong Yunze hadn’t woken up yet, the phone call that Kong Hanyue mentioned must have happened last night.
To wait until morning to come find me—since when did Kong Hanyue become so considerate?
Suddenly recalling that Youxue had slept with her, Xia Yu figured it out.
So it wasn’t that Kong Hanyue had become considerate—it was just that Youxue was the reason.
After getting dressed, Xia Yu finished washing up and knocked on Zhong Yunze’s door.
If Kong Hanyue had directly told Zhong Yunze to let him handle the company matter, Zhong would definitely find it ridiculous—how could an outsider solve such an issue?
If Kong Hanyue insisted further, the two might even argue. Although Zhong wouldn’t dare to get angry at her directly, part of his frustration might spill over onto Xia Yu.
This was a plot that needed correcting.
After knocking twice, Zhong Yunze opened the door wearing pajamas. He looked somewhat tired.
“What’s up?” Zhong Yunze asked Xia Yu.
“You were overheard by Mom when you called last night,” Xia Yu said.
“What? I specifically waited until she wasn’t around before making that call!” Zhong Yunze was now wide awake, not wanting Kong Hanyue to worry about company matters.
“The reason doesn’t matter. What matters is that Mom came to me this morning asking for help because of last night’s incident.”
“Can you even help?” Zhong Yunze briefly believed him, but quickly realized how implausible that sounded.
“I can’t help at all. You know Mom’s personality. To put it bluntly, even a middle school student nowadays knows more than her.” Xia Yu was laying the groundwork.
Zhong Yunze nodded in agreement.
“I’ve always helped her with little problems before, so she thinks I can handle company matters too. But how could I possibly have such ability, right?” Xia Yu feigned helplessness.
Zhong Yunze nodded again, now fully caught up in Xia Yu’s logic.
“I told her straightaway I couldn’t do it, but she wouldn’t listen and insisted I go,” Xia Yu continued.
“I get it, I get it,” Zhong Yunze nodded again, thinking for a moment before adding, “Old people and little kids are both very stubborn. At times like this, you just need to humor them a little.”
Seeing Zhong Yunze say exactly what he wanted to hear, Xia Yu smiled: “That’s exactly what I thought too. So we’ll just go through the motions.”
“Alright.” Zhong Yunze agreed. The company was already in this state—it would be even worse if their mother became unhappy too.
“There are Mom’s spies in the company too. Remember to keep it under wraps,” Xia Yu needed a legitimate identity to conduct his investigation.
“I’ll say you’re a professional I specially invited,” Zhong Yunze patted Xia Yu’s shoulder, feeling even more appreciative of him.
Lying to parents together was also a way of expressing brotherly affection.
“Alright then, I’ll head off,” Xia Yu said, having completed his persuasion.
“Wait,” Zhong Yunze stopped him, saying sincerely, “Thank you, Xia Yu.”
Watching Xia Yu leave, Zhong Yunze smiled. Two sons working together to keep their mother happy—what a touching display of family love!
After dressing and washing up, he went downstairs.
Downstairs, Kong Hanyue was already waiting. She mentioned Xia Yu, and Zhong Yunze immediately agreed.
“Alright then, you two brothers have a good trip,” Kong Hanyue waved goodbye to the two sons.
Walking out the door, Zhong Yunze said to Xia Yu, “Let’s go to the teahouse first and meet Uncle An.”
Xia Yu was somewhat surprised—he hadn’t expected to meet An Tianfeng again so soon.
The two got into the driver’s car and arrived at the teahouse.
They sat at an empty table for five minutes before An Tianfeng arrived.
This was the first time Xia Yu had met An Tianfeng using this body.
Xia Yu observed An Tianfeng—he was of average height, strong and energetic-looking, though his expression was somewhat awkward.
An Tianfeng had originally thought resolving Zhong Company’s issue would be easy, but hadn’t expected it to be so difficult. That traitor was unexpectedly cunning, refusing to take the bait.
The more mysterious and profound he and Zhong Yunze had appeared before, the more awkward they were now. The embarrassment was so thick that An Tianfeng felt uneasy the moment he saw Zhong Yunze.
Sitting down in front of Zhong Yunze, An Tianfeng looked at Xia Yu in confusion and asked, “Who’s this?”
“This is my older brother.” After introducing Xia Yu, Zhong Yunze re-introduced An Tianfeng.
Xia Yu exchanged a few polite greetings with An Tianfeng before excusing himself to use the restroom and leaving the table.
This was to give An Tianfeng and Zhong Yunze some space, allowing Zhong to now deceive An just as Xia Yu had deceived him.
Three minutes later, Xia Yu returned to the table. Zhong Yunze had already finished his persuasion.
An Tianfeng smiled and nodded at Xia Yu.
Though Xia Yu was an unexpected addition, An Tianfeng wasn’t unhappy. On the contrary, he felt somewhat appreciative of him.
From Zhong Yunze’s words, An Tianfeng concluded: this was a young man who knew his own limits, was filial, and skilled in social etiquette.
Most importantly, he knew his own limits, openly admitting he couldn’t solve this issue.
If even I can’t solve it, how could an outsider possibly manage?
An Tianfeng glanced at Xia Yu again. Handsome, around the same age as his daughter—only fulfilling two conditions.
Returning his focus to Zhong Company’s matter, An Tianfeng said to Zhong Yunze, “This project has already been handed over to that company. It’s irreversible now. Just give up. The business world is dangerous out there. Why don’t you just work for my company like your father used to?”
An Tianfeng’s meaning was clear: he wanted Zhong Company to return to its previous state of being dependent on An Group.
This might actually be good for the company’s development—at least it would be stable. But Zhong Yunze couldn’t feel happy.
Because this meant surrendering and withdrawing.
Even more importantly, he realized that his admired Uncle An wasn’t actually that impressive after all.
If it hadn’t been for An Tianfeng’s several plans, the company wouldn’t have suffered such a complete defeat.
All his flashy moves had only helped the opponent.
“I’ll think about it some more,” Zhong Yunze said gloomily.
“Alright, I’m returning to Yaoguang next week. You can call me anytime.”
After making this promise, An Tianfeng casually ate a few bites of morning tea and hurriedly left the teahouse.
It wasn’t only Zhong Yunze who felt like he was surrendering and retreating—An Tianfeng also felt this way. His old face was somewhat embarrassed.
As a well-known entrepreneur in the entire district, to suffer such a defeat in a small company in Zilang!
But it’s not that Old An lacks ability—it’s just that the traitor was too cunning!
Even if it were someone else, even a Bodhisattva reincarnated, they wouldn’t have been able to solve this problem!
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