Chapter 56

The meal was abundant, but the atmosphere was poor, making it hard for anyone to have an appetite.

Xiaohua occasionally kicked Qiaoyun's foot under the table. This girl was really a headache. Normally, when guests came to the house, she would at least be polite on the surface, but today it seemed like she was deliberately putting pressure on Lin Zixian. She would often stretch her chopsticks to the same dish just as Lin Zixian's chopsticks were about to reach it. As a result, Lin Zixian's chopsticks would either weakly pick up a tiny bit of food or just grab air, and he ended up eating mostly plain rice.

Xiaohua was really angry. You can't bully someone just because they work for your company! People might think I'm a bad mother... So far, Qiao Antian hasn't told her anything about Lin Zixian's background.

So she enthusiastically helped Lin Zixian with his meal, constantly urging him to try this and that, almost like a mother-in-law entertaining a prospective son-in-law.

Qiao Antian's eyes darted around, but he didn't say a word. He finally realized what was going on—this fearsome Lin Zixian was actually afraid of his daughter! As the saying goes, a hero can't resist a beauty, and this was quite interesting... He was secretly pleased. He was afraid that he couldn't control this person for his own use, but now that there was someone at home who could keep him in check, it was all good.

So he let Qiaoyun put pressure on Lin Zixian, pretending not to see anything.

Lin Zixian, not wanting to lose face, endured the meal, which was very painful for him.

Qiaoyun, on the other hand, enjoyed the meal thoroughly, eating much more than usual and only stopping when her stomach was full.

After the meal, Lin Zixian didn't want to stay any longer. He asked Qiao Antian for a car, got into a BMW, and sped off.

Qiaoyun, standing by the window upstairs, watched the car lights disappear down the hill. She touched her uncomfortably full stomach. She had already eaten a lot at noon, and now this, she was probably going to have indigestion. She turned on the stereo, and the harmonica tune of "Castle in the Sky" played. She slowly walked around the room...

Back at the Sakura Snow Apartment, Lin Zixian glanced at the bicycle parked by the wall. When he entered, he found everyone was already there, including Xia Qiu and Qin Yue, who had been acting strange lately. They were all crowded in the living room watching TV.

"Hey! Everyone seems to be in a good mood today!" Lin Zixian said cheerfully, but then he noticed that everyone was staring at him. He looked at himself, thinking his security uniform might have caught their attention, but he didn't pay much attention to it.

He wasn't slow to react; he had just experienced too many ups and downs and didn't worry about trivial matters. He often seemed carefree, but when he focused, he could be quite formidable.

"Lin Zixian, you deceived everyone's feelings," Li Mingcheng said, slapping the coffee table and leading the charge.

Qin Yue's eyes were curious, Zhang Beibei's eyes held a hint of amusement, Tong Yunan looked a bit worried, and Liu Yanzhi seemed hesitant to speak. Only Tong Feifei was looking around at the strange uncles and aunts.

Lin Zixian looked at everyone's expressions and realized it was probably about his job at Minghua Group. He smiled and didn't take it seriously, walking towards the water dispenser and saying, "Let's have a drink first."

Liu Yanzhi suddenly jumped up, grabbed him, and said with a smile, "Sit down, I'll get you some water."

Lin Zixian was taken aback, and everyone looked at each other, stunned. They had been planning to gang up on Lin Zixian at Liu Yanzhi's instigation, but now the instigator had defected. They all felt like they had been tricked, and the united front instantly crumbled.

"Deputy Minister Lin, please drink!" Liu Yanzhi handed him a cup of water with both hands, smiling warmly.

"Uh... Are you okay?" Lin Zixian asked suspiciously, feeling that something was amiss.

After drinking two sips, Liu Yanzhi tried to put the cup away for him, but he refused and put it back himself. He took off his cap and placed it on Tong Feifei's head, sat down next to her, and looked around, saying, "I really didn't mean to hide anything from you. I admitted it later, but you didn't believe me... Besides, being a deputy minister in the security department isn't that impressive, right?"

Everyone was speechless. He had indeed admitted it, but the key was that no one had believed him at the time. Now, it seemed unreasonable to accuse him.

"How could that be," Liu Yanzhi squeezed in next to him, smiling, "You're not just any deputy minister. Minghua Group is such a big company, and you can practically run half of it!"

Lin Zixian glanced at Li Mingcheng, whose eyes were almost on fire, and quickly moved his seat to the other side, afraid that Li Mingcheng might attack him. He laughed awkwardly and said, "That's not true. It's all rumors. If I could run half of Minghua, why would I be a deputy minister? I'd at least be a full minister!"

"Deputy Minister Lin, we all live under the same roof. It's not right to keep hiding things from us. I saw the chairman chatting with you, and you seem to have a close relationship. In the future, you should take care of us in the company! You promoted two squad leaders today. When will you promote me and give me a position?"

Lin Zixian was at a loss, feeling flattered but also uncomfortable with this woman. The others couldn't help but laugh, but Li Mingcheng stood up, slamming his hand on the table and shouting, "Lin Zixian, you must tell us the truth. What is your background, and what are your intentions for renting a room in Sakura Snow Apartment?"

To be honest, Lin Zixian quite liked the atmosphere in Sakura Snow Apartment and didn't want to cause trouble over his position as a deputy minister. He quickly moved away from Liu Yanzhi, stood to the side, and said with a bitter smile, "I'll tell you the truth! I used to work as a dishwasher in a restaurant in the United States. I met the chairman of Minghua Group, Qiao Antian, by chance, and that's why I came back to China and joined Minghua. As for renting a room in Sakura Snow Apartment, it was purely coincidental. The landlord, Aunt Qiu, knows this best. You can call her if you don't believe me."

"Heroes don't ask about each other's backgrounds. Many successful businesspeople started as dishwashers," Liu Yanzhi said, leaning on him and pleading, "Deputy Minister Lin, please help me!"

This couldn't go on, so Lin Zixian quickly pulled away her hand and said firmly, "I can help you, but you have to promise me one thing first."

The living room fell silent. Liu Yanzhi blushed and said, "If Deputy Minister Lin helps me, I'll do ten things, not just one." Her manner suggested that she was willing to do anything, even marry him.

Li Mingcheng's teeth were bared, and Lin Zixian chuckled, "If you marry Li Mingcheng, I'll do my best to get you a position in Minghua Group."

The living room erupted in laughter. Liu Yanzhi was stunned, while Li Mingcheng looked shocked, then extremely grateful, almost ready to hug and kiss Lin Zixian... This brother was a true friend, very considerate.

"Brother Lin, don't stand there, sit down. I'll get you some water," Li Mingcheng quickly pulled Lin Zixian to his seat and eagerly brought him a cup of water.

Lin Zixian instantly escaped the predicament, sat down steadily, and finally drank the water in peace.

Li Mingcheng stood behind him, almost ready to massage his back, and looked at Liu Yanzhi with fiery eyes, waiting for her response.

"With his stingy nature, if I marry him, I'll have to eat radishes and pickles every day. No way, I'm going to bed." Liu Yanzhi rolled her eyes, twisted her hips, and went upstairs.

Li Mingcheng's heart sank, but he was used to rejection and had developed some resilience.

Lin Zixian, however, turned his head and handed the teacup to him, saying, "Rome wasn't built in a day. Take it slow. With me in charge at Minghua, go check on her work and create some trouble for her. She won't be able to handle the pressure and will eventually submit to your authority, unable to escape your control."

This didn't sound right to everyone. If that happened, Liu Yanzhi would be submitting to his authority, not Li Mingcheng's. But Li Mingcheng didn't see it that way. As long as he ended up with the girl, it was all good...

"Thank you, Brother Lin, thank you, Brother Lin. You're my real brother, even better than my real brother," Li Mingcheng beamed, bowing and taking the teacup, "If you need anything, just call, and I'll be there."

The living room burst into laughter again. Some people even urged him to prepare the wedding candy in advance, and Li Mingcheng was so happy that he bowed to everyone, promising to share the wedding candy with them.

After a while, everyone dispersed. Lin Zixian went back to his room, opened his laptop, and logged into the underground world platform to check some information.

When he heard the water in the bathroom stop, he closed the laptop, took off his security uniform, picked up some clean clothes, and went to the bathroom. As he passed, he saw Tong Yunan coming out of the bathroom, carrying a warm, fragrant scent. He casually asked, "Is Feifei asleep?"

"Uh-huh!" Tong Yunan nodded, "Brother Lin, I'll wash your uniform later. If I wring it out and hang it up, it should dry by morning."

In fact, she had been washing his clothes every day for a while now, and Lin Zixian didn't mind. He responded and closed the bathroom door.

After his bath, Lin Zixian went back to his room, took his security uniform, and threw it on the sofa in the living room. He then took a chair to the rooftop to enjoy the night. Tong Yunan came out, picked up the clothes he had left in the bathroom, and took them downstairs to the communal washing machine.

Soon, the rooftop was filled with the melodious sound of a harmonica. The windows of the second-floor rooms gradually opened, and the residents leaned out to listen.

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