Chapter 2

This was exactly what Lin Zixian found a bit of a headache. He understood the rules; he knew that the boss of a large company wasn't someone you could just meet whenever you wanted.

He had just called the old man, hoping to get Qiao Antian's contact number to save trouble, but the old man's phone was off, probably because he had played mahjong all night and forgotten to charge it.

"Of course there's an appointment, it was he who made the appointment with me," Lin Zixian said without changing his expression. In fact, it was indeed Qiao Antian who had approached him, although he had approached his master.

Hearing that there was an appointment, and that it was the chairman who had made it, the receptionist immediately became serious and asked respectfully, "May I ask for your surname, sir?"

"Lin, the Lin of 'double wood'," Lin Zixian smiled.

"Please wait a moment, sir, let me verify it." The receptionist checked the appointment list but couldn't find anyone surnamed Lin. However, seeing Lin Zixian's calm demeanor, she picked up the phone and quickly dialed a number. After connecting, she nervously said, "Assistant Ning, this is the front desk. There's a Mr. Lin here who says he has an appointment with the chairman... Yes! He is surnamed Lin, a young man... Not there?" She stared blankly at Lin Zixian, her face full of fear, and said, "I understand."

She hung up the phone with a snap, a bit angry. The person in front of her had made her get scolded, so she directly called the security.

As expected, Lin Zixian was immediately escorted out by the security.

Standing outside the headquarters of Minghua Group, Lin Zixian did not leave. Instead, he took out his phone and dialed a number, the one he had memorized when the receptionist dialed it earlier.

After the call was connected, Lin Zixian said coldly, "Is this Assistant Ning?"

"Who is this?" came a puzzled woman's voice from the other end.

"I'm the Mr. Lin who was just escorted out by the security. Tell Qiao Antian that the person he asked for help is here. I'll only wait downstairs for ten minutes, no more. If he's late, tell him not to look for me again." Without waiting for a response, Lin Zixian hung up, took out a cigarette, lit it, and started timing.

He wasn't joking; once the ten minutes were up, he would be done, and even a grand sedan couldn't persuade him. He knew he wasn't someone anyone could easily invite. He was very valuable, and if it weren't for the old man's sake, he wouldn't have come here to deal with trouble.

Inside the company building, a beautiful woman in a standard business suit was stunned by the busy signal on her phone. She hung up, picked up a pen, but was a bit restless. In the end, she wrote down the number displayed on the landline and took a file, leaving her office.

She knocked on the door of the chairman's office, and a deep male voice came from inside, "Come in!"

In the luxurious and spacious office, a slightly plump middle-aged man was looking at a report. Assistant Ning entered and placed a file on the desk, smiling, "Chairman, there's a file here that needs your signature."

The middle-aged man was Qiao Antian, the chairman of Minghua Group. He put down the report he was reading, glanced at the file to be signed, and found that it wasn't something that needed to be signed urgently. Usually, the assistant wouldn't bring an unimportant file to him when he was busy, but would wait until he was free. He frowned, his eyes still on the file, and asked, "Is there something else?"

"Just now, a Mr. Lin called, saying he was here to help you. I checked the appointment records, but there was no such person, so I rejected him. However, he seemed unhappy and said he would only wait downstairs for ten minutes, no more. I'm worried it might be a private appointment, so I came to ask you," Assistant Ning smiled.

"Mr. Lin... to help...?" Qiao Antian thought for a moment, frowned slightly, and said, "Could it be him?" He immediately took out his private phone and dialed a number.

He had indeed run into some trouble, having offended another company in business. If it were normal business competition, it wouldn't be a big deal. Anyone who could build a business this big would have connections in both the legal and illegal worlds, and the worst that could happen would be to pay a ransom.

However, the background of this company was very dark, and not just a little. It had strong connections in the country, and his daughter, who was the general manager, had offended them terribly without realizing the severity. He had tried to mediate through some influential people, but they all backed off when they heard about the other party's background.

Now, the other party had issued a harsh ultimatum, demanding that Minghua Group not only return what it had gained but also hand over ten percent of its shares, with a ten-day deadline. If they didn't agree, they would not be lenient.

This was a blatant threat. Qiao Antian, who had built the company to this level, was not someone to be intimidated easily. If he gave in to such threats, anyone could come and take a bite out of his company. Was there a wolf in the world that could be fed enough?

He naturally wouldn't agree. He couldn't set such a precedent, but he wasn't afraid of open confrontations; he was afraid of underhanded tactics. If the other party struck in the dark, he wouldn't even have evidence to go through legal procedures, so he immediately hired a large number of bodyguards from a domestic security company.

Later, he remembered a phone number his father had left him on his deathbed two years ago, saying to call this person named Lin Bao if his life or property was threatened. Unfortunately, his father didn't finish his sentence, and he didn't know who this Lin Bao was.

Thinking that more options meant more security, he tried calling the number and got in touch with this Lin Bao, explaining his troubles. However, the other party just said they knew and hung up, showing no respect.

Now, a Mr. Lin had come, and he needed to verify if it was the same person.

Assistant Ning breathed a slight sigh of relief. It seemed the chairman had indeed made a private appointment with a Mr. Lin, but why didn't he contact the chairman directly?

Qiao Antian's phone beeped, indicating it was off. He was stunned, held the phone, and thought for a moment before saying, "Please go down and personally invite him up, and be polite."

He had a feeling that the person his father mentioned on his deathbed was not ordinary.

"Yes, Chairman." Assistant Ning quickly left, knowing they couldn't afford to waste the ten minutes.

Outside the headquarters of Minghua Group, Lin Zixian had already lit his second cigarette, occasionally checking the time on his phone. There were only three minutes left, and the other party hadn't even called. He was considering whether to wait any longer when he saw a beautiful woman in a business suit walking out quickly, her eyes scanning around, seemingly looking for someone.

Beautiful! Lin Zixian's eyes lit up, wondering if she was looking for him. However, her gaze lingered on him a few times with a puzzled look, as if she wasn't looking for him. She took out her phone and dialed a number, and Lin Zixian's old phone beeped.

Their eyes finally met, both a bit surprised.

Assistant Ning looked at the phone in his hand, recognizing it as an old Nokia bar phone, which matched her memory of a phone from years ago. She wondered if it was even a black and white screen. Moreover, his clothes were not of high quality, and he didn't seem like a serious person. Could this really be the person the chairman had appointed?

She hung up, and the ringing on Lin Zixian's phone stopped.

She quickly walked over, looking him up and down, and asked, puzzled, "Are you Mr. Lin?"

Lin Zixian glanced at his phone, seeing the time, and said coldly, "One minute left."

Hearing this, Assistant Ning finally confirmed his identity and extended her hand, "Hello, Mr. Lin. I'm Assistant Ning, Ning Lan. The chairman sent me to pick you up."

Lin Zixian didn't want to shake her hand, but he couldn't resist her smile and lazily took her hand. However, he found the touch pleasant and didn't want to let go.

Ning Lan tried to pull her hand back but found that he was holding it firmly, and her face changed, "Mr. Lin, what are you doing?"

"Don't worry! I'm not trying to molest you. It's just that there are many people in this building who look down on others. I'm afraid I'll be kicked out again. I think it's safer to hold your hand," Lin Zixian said seriously.

Ning Lan tried to pull her hand back a few more times but couldn't break free. She forced a smile, "Mr. Lin, don't worry. It was a misunderstanding earlier. This time, with me leading the way, no one will stop you."

"Is that so? One embarrassment is enough. If it happens again, I'll have no face to show. Better to be safe," Lin Zixian smiled and leaned closer, sniffing the high-end perfume on her, and whispered, "I'm a person who seeks revenge. You had me kicked out earlier, so I need to save face. Either we go hand in hand to see Qiao Antian, or you go back alone. Think about it, I don't like forcing people."

Ning Lan didn't expect to meet a rogue. She was both angry and frustrated but couldn't refuse. She maintained a professional smile and extended her other hand, "Mr. Lin, please."

Lin Zixian agreed and they walked into the building hand in hand.

As they passed the front hall, Ning Lan kept her eyes straight, but the internal staff stared in disbelief. Wasn't this the guy who was just escorted out by security? How did he come back? And he was holding hands with the chairman's assistant in public? The employees, who followed the company rules, felt quite embarrassed...

The two receptionists were even more stunned. Lin Zixian didn't blame them and even smiled and nodded at them, as if to say, "See? I really have an appointment."

Once they entered the elevator, the doors closed, and Lin Zixian slowly let go of her hand. Ning Lan looked at him, thinking he would hold her hand all the way to the chairman, and was wondering how to explain it to the chairman later. But he let go...

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