Chapter 82

"Mr. Li, why aren't you having a drink?" Zhang Zhongmou soon came over with a glass in hand.

He smiled warmly, speaking in Chinese, and sat down beside Li Xu.

"The aftertaste of Fenjiu is too strong. After trying it last time, I didn't dare to touch it again. The Chinese habit of drinking to the bottom is really hard to accept," Li Xu responded with a similar smile.

"This habit is indeed not good, so I drank my toast and quickly came over to hide," Zhang Zhongmou said, shaking his glass as if it were a serious matter.

"Mr. Zhang, rest assured, no one on our side will force you to drink," Li Xu said, still smiling, not revealing a single word.

"To be honest, I have to thank Mr. Li for your recommendation. Otherwise, I might not have had the courage to resign," Zhang Zhongmou said straightforwardly.

"Mr. Zhang, you're too kind. Besides you, there are very few suitable candidates," Li Xu said, somewhat smugly.

It was simple; from this sentence, it was clear that Zhang Zhongmou's attempt to put on a show had failed.

He thought this was Taiwan, his home turf. When he put on a show of uniting everyone around him, the chances of Li Xu making a request and speaking up were very high.

However, he never expected that Li Xu was only making long-term investments in the IC industry and had no interest in manipulating it.

So, until now, the more steady Zhang Zhongmou was, the more steady Li Xu was. Unable to sit still, Zhang Zhongmou took the opportunity during this banquet to come over and ask.

"Mr. Li, you flatter me, but I believe your investment will never lose money," Zhang Zhongmou said with a smile, then raised his glass and left.

Li Xu was stunned for a couple of seconds before he realized something was off. Shouldn't Zhang Zhongmou have continued to probe and see what Li Xu's demands were? Why did he just leave? Was he still playing hard to get?

But after all, Li Xu had attended many banquets with his grandfather and father, and he quickly caught on. He slapped his thigh, realizing that Zhang Zhongmou had seen through him.

Clearly, although he occasionally communicated with Zhang Zhongmou, he never mentioned anything related to the IC industry or showed any signs of anxiety or concern, as if he didn't care at all.

Once or twice might be a coincidence, but if it was always like this, it suggested that he didn't really care about the company's control.

Now that Zhang Zhongmou had come over to ask a few questions, Li Xu first felt smug, then surprised, and was naturally completely seen through. Old foxes were indeed old foxes, and he still had a long way to go compared to them.

In other words, he was at the maximum level, but in terms of equipment, experience, techniques, and skills, he still had a lot to learn. Since he didn't want to learn and just wanted to be a casual player, he might as well go back to bullying the small players.

From a distance, he raised his glass to Zhang Zhongmou, indicating that he understood. Li Xu ate a little more, sat for a while, chatted with the people around him, and helped deal with a wave of people trying to build connections before planning to leave.

But he had only taken a few steps when he was stopped by a flushed man who clearly couldn't hold his liquor but had had a few too many. "Mr. Li, why are you leaving so soon?"

Before he could answer, someone came to his aid. "Mr. Li still has things to do. Minister Xu, please don't disturb him."

Minister Xu was quickly coaxed away, and the person came back. "It's fine, Ah Xu. Minister Xu can't hold his liquor but likes to drink, so he's always like this. I'm really sorry."

"It's okay, it's okay, Brother Chuanpu. But I need to go back to the hotel. Could you arrange a car for me?" Li Xu waved his hand.

The middle-aged man in front of him was Wang Chuanpu. Although he had nothing to do with the Intel and TI team's visit, Li Xu thought he was a good local contact and had invited him, even letting him meet Comrade Nikolai.

"I've already arranged it. It's ready whenever you need it," Wang Chuanpu said with a smile, then his expression turned hesitant. "Ah Xu, are you going back now because..."

He didn't finish, but Li Xu understood immediately. He shrugged. "Of course."

"Then..." Wang Chuanpu pushed up his glasses. "Forget it. You're young and charming, it's normal."

Li Xu was a bit puzzled but didn't pay too much attention. He said a few more words, greeted Zhang Zhongmou and others, and then left with Wang Chuanpu.

Outside the restaurant, a black Lincoln was already parked at the entrance. Wang Chuanpu opened the door for Li Xu and made a welcoming gesture with a smile.

For some reason, his square face looked a bit lecherous when he smiled.

Li Xu shook his head slightly, about to get in, but stopped after taking one step. There was already someone in the car, a woman, a very beautiful woman.

Her black hair was tied up in a bun, and she wore a moon-white short-sleeved cheongsam with light brown leaves embroidered on it, looking elegant and refined.

Although she was about the same age as the Lin sisters, Lin Fengjiao and Lin Qingxia still had a touch of youthful innocence, even in their twilight years. But this woman had a mature allure, and with her aristocratic demeanor, even her slightly high cheekbones didn't detract from her beauty.

However, she looked lost, pale, and when she saw Li Xu enter, she forced a smile that was more painful than a cry.

Li Xu sighed, stepped back, and looked at Wang Chuanpu with a half-smile. He had already recognized the woman in the car.

"Is Ah Xu satisfied?" Wang Chuanpu asked with a smile.

"Brother Chuanpu, you really went all out, even bringing someone from Hong Kong," Li Xu said, smacking his lips.

"It was a bit troublesome, but since it was Ah Xu's request, we will try our best to meet it. We are always generous to our friends," Wang Chuanpu said with a righteous air, which would be believable if you didn't know what they had done.

Even so, their efforts were still impressive... Damn, this would make it hard to turn against them in the future. Even if the two shores thawed, it would only happen after Comrade Nikolai was gone, which was still a few years away.

Although he was thinking, his expression remained unchanged. He shrugged. "Thank you."

Then he got into the car, nodded to the driver, and waved goodbye to Wang Chuanpu outside.

The ride was silent. The driver wasn't one of his people, so Li Xu didn't speak casually. The woman looked dazed, not knowing what to do.

The restaurant wasn't far from the Yuan Shan Grand Hotel, about a ten-minute drive. It was said to be an old establishment, but... what old establishments could there be on this island? Weren't they all on the other side?

"Let's go." The car stopped, and a waiter opened the door. Li Xu extended his hand to the woman.

"Y-Yes..." She responded nervously, grabbed his hand, and was led out of the car and into the hotel lobby, keeping her head down.

Wait! Something's not right! As they entered the elevator and the doors closed, Li Xu suddenly had a thought and quickly glanced at the woman. Indeed!

Earlier in the car, he felt something was off but couldn't figure out what. Just now, when entering the elevator, the woman walked a bit too quickly and bumped into him, her abdomen hitting his elbow.

Li Xu could clearly feel the flatness of her soft abdomen. This was wrong. If his memory served him right, she should have been heavily pregnant, about to give birth to her second child. But now there were no signs of pregnancy. Could it be... the timeline was off?

He looked at the woman again. Ding! The elevator door opened, and Li Xu led her to his suite and rang the doorbell.

"Back so soon? Didn't they say the Executive Yuan would treat you to dinner, and you'd be back later?" As soon as the door opened, Deng Lijun rushed into Li Xu's arms, asking excitedly.

"I didn't feel comfortable leaving you alone in the room," Li Xu kissed her cheek and said with a smile.

Deng Lijun pouted and huffed, clearly not believing him, then noticed the woman behind him.

She was stunned, then bit her lip, looking resentful, and then widened her eyes in realization. "Feng Chengcheng?!"

"Feng Chengcheng?" Li Xu feigned confusion, looking at her and then at the woman. "She's not Feng Chengcheng."

"How can she not be Feng Chengcheng?" Deng Lijun pointed at the woman, getting excited, but then realized something and shrank back. "Y-You... Hello, Miss Zhao Yazhi."

But Zhao Yazhi at the door also looked bewildered at Deng Lijun. Her voice and iconic round face were more recognizable and famous than Zhao Yazhi.

For such a female singer to be in a young man's suite and act so intimately, it was hard to believe they had nothing going on.

"Alright, don't stand in the doorway. Come in and talk," Li Xu said, pulling Zhao Yazhi into the suite and closing the door.

"Edward, this is..." After they all sat down, Zhao Yazhi sat on a single sofa, while Deng Lijun and Li Xu sat together. She asked with a complex expression.

Li Xu shrugged. "The same as them."

Deng Lijun opened her mouth, her expression showing helplessness. Li Xu then hugged her waist, kissed her to comfort her, and turned to Zhao Yazhi, who was clearly uneasy.

"Miss Zhao, can you tell me why you agreed to their request? You are still married, right?" Li Xu asked.