salt by salt

"President Xu, Mr. Lu is here."

"Yeah. Let him wait in the reception room for a while, about 5 minutes." I looked up from the plan and nodded to Hu Ru, "Bring him a cup of hot water... no tea or coffee. Thank you."

She gave a sweet smile and closed the door lightly.I rubbed my temples, but I didn't have to look at it again, everything that was handed in was perfect, I couldn't fault it.I should have felt relieved, but I couldn't smile at all.

The process was not as smooth as I thought. The heads of various departments communicated with the general manager Ye Zhifan, and all the documents were reviewed by him before they were handed over to me, with only one signature missing.

When I questioned the company's management structure, Ye Zhifan said with a respectful attitude, this is what Song Cheng told me to take care of my physical condition.If I am not satisfied, I can directly raise my opinion with Song Cheng, he is just an employee——

His cautious demeanor became fake in my eyes, and I almost couldn't hold back his calm expression.

Song Cheng would never agree with me taking the initiative to take on more jobs. Even if he went to the company to attend a meeting and signed a few things without doing anything, in his eyes, it would be enough to overwhelm me.

And I think he would prefer me to stay in an empty identity, holding nothing in my hands, and only relying on him to survive.

I sorted out my emotions and pushed open the door of the reception room.

Lu Jingfan stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows. He was wearing a well-tailored dark suit. He could only look at his tall and straight back, and he couldn't imagine the terrible physical condition under the clothes.

Hearing the sound of my closing the door, he looked back at me with a calm expression: "The view from this angle is good."

"Really?" I looked at the gray sky outside the window, the nearby subway was under construction, the traffic downstairs was as dense as ants, and there were lifeless skyscrapers all around, "I think it's normal."

"It's your ambition that has grown." Lu Jingfan took out a document bag from his bag and put it on the coffee table, "It's what you want."

I knew that he handed over these documents to me, and if they were discovered, the consequences would be disastrous, so I sincerely said, "Thank you."

"Put away that set. I warn you in advance, don't do unnecessary things."

Lu Jingfan picked up the steaming glass, Ruyu's fingers were slightly reddened, with a kind of fragile and touching.The words that came out of my mouth were still the same unpleasant, I smiled and didn't take it to heart.

If he really wants to stop me from doing these "superfluous" things, he doesn't have to help.

The room was quiet for a while, and Lu Jingfan asked, "Why do you want to start with Yang Chen?"

"Probably because he's stupid."

His tone was serious, with a sense of preaching: "Don't underestimate him, Yang Chen is much more difficult than you think——"

I shrugged my shoulders and interrupted his speech: "The project abroad, if Yang Chen hadn't been smart enough and had the means to find out what was wrong in time, the Yang family would not have been able to escape unscathed. But without your reminder, he wouldn't have done so. Wake up quickly, it means that he is not omnipotent."

Lu Jingfan's expression changed slightly: "Where are you from..."

I didn't deny it: "I asked Yang Chen about you—maybe not everything, but I know him well, and since I said it, there would be no falsehood."

"You really fascinated him." Lu Jingfan quickly returned to his indifferent attitude, and gave me a lukewarm glance, "I don't know how long it will last?"

"Just try it out." I raised the file bag in my hand, "I'll take these first, what do you want in return?"

He was quiet for a few seconds, with complex expressions on his face, ranging from anger at being manipulated by me to self-defeating indulgence.In the end, Lu Jingfan pursed his bloodless lips, and said slowly, "Come here."

I raised my eyebrows, he pulled me closer by my tie, and whispered the request in a humiliating tone in my ear.I wanted to laugh out loud, so as not to irritate his sensitive heart, I forcibly held back in my throat, with a distorted expression: "Cough...of course."

In order to make myself more like Lu Changbai, I pulled up the curtains, and immediately I could only see each other's silhouettes in the room.Another breathing sound became a little rapid, echoing in the quiet room.

I carefully recalled the tone and details of Lu Changbai's speech, and I turned around when I thought I was almost ready, walked up to Lu Jingfan, bent over and held his face.

Gently flicking my lips on the left cheek, I pressed a kiss that could hardly be called a kiss, and said in a low voice, "You did a very good job, Jingfan."

At that moment, I vaguely saw a flash of water in Lu Jingfan's eyes.

He replied softly: "I did not disappoint you, teacher."

After sending Lu Jingfan away, I sat in the reception room for a long time, seriously thinking about one thing——Lu Changbai, a heterosexual with a wife, why did he do this to a student who was only 16 years old and had a close relationship with an adopted son?

I don't believe that he never noticed Lu Jingfan's repressed admiration, even if he expressed his approval for the student's acceptance letter from a world famous school, there is no need to be so ambiguous at all.

When it comes to Lu Changbai's despicable means of making a fortune, the only answer is ready to come out: he knows all the truth, and he did it on purpose.If he could treat Lu Jingfan like this, maybe he also treated his mother back then... No, now is not a good time to worry about this.

The truth has long been annihilated, and what happened can only be learned from the parties involved.As for the two parties, one treats them like a snake and scorpion and avoids talking about them, while the other is a liar full of lies.

I went into the bathroom and rubbed my face with cold water.The man in the mirror was pale and thin, the corners of his lips were tightly pressed, and there was a lingering gloom around him.

like a stranger.

That teahouse is still the same. I remember that every time I come to it, I have something to do with Yang Chen, so I have left many bad memories.

Here I was forced by Zhuang Lin to give in to Yang Chen, and I suffered temporary blindness after being raped by him...but now I can sit leisurely and admire the faintly blooming water lilies on the water.

Yang Chen came earlier than the appointed time.I don't know if he did the styling on purpose, but the moment he opened the door, my eyes lit up. His face was so handsome that I couldn't help but hold my breath. The beautifully furnished room was suddenly eclipsed by the beautiful face.

He sat down across from me, seeing my eyes glued to his face, he couldn't help but curled his mouth: "It's not like I haven't seen it before, what's so interesting."

I could hear the complacency in his tone, and secretly despised his childishness from the bottom of my heart.

"I'm not kidding, what do you want from me? I insist on making an appointment here." In front of Yang Chen was the document bag I brought from Lu Jingfan, he and I looked at each other, and smiled, "What? "

I took a sip of tea and said with a smile, "Take it apart and have a look."

Their tea is indeed very good, full of fragrance, why didn't I notice it before?

Yang Chen frowned slightly, and there was a little uncertainty in his eyes, which stayed on me for a long time.In this silent standoff, he was uneasy, I was indifferent, and the result was doomed.

There was only the sound of paper flipping in the air, and Yang Chen's expression moved slightly. After a few seconds of silence, he asked me: "It's been several years, that project was nationalized early, and it's useless for you to hold Yang's tender."

I lowered my eyes: "Why is this bidding document in Lu Changbai's hands? Why did your father ask you to work with Lu Jingfan? Why can you get the 'truth of the year' with just a flick of your finger? Why do you know Lu Changbai so well?" ? Only by investigation?"

"At the end of the 80s, your father went to a special training class, and that university was Lu Changbai's alma mater. When Lu Changbai picked up the Su family, your father happened to be the director of the government office in the coastal area. How could it be such a coincidence?"

Yang Chen said: "Xu Junyan, these are all your assumptions."

"Maybe." I shrugged, "Maybe your dad and Lu Changbai are not classmates, maybe they have nothing to do with each other. That's just right, it means that as Hongxing's heir, I don't have to have anything to do with you..."

Yang Chen's expression changed suddenly, he stood up abruptly, crossed the table and grabbed my wrist: "Did Lu Changbai give Hongxing to you? When?"

I calmly said, "I just signed it."

"Didn't I tell you not to believe anything he said?!"

Yang Chen held my hand firmly, and he was full of gnashing of teeth in anger when he spoke: "How can there be a pie in the sky? Hong Xing has long been just a shell, and now you can only bear his debts! You have the time to check My dad, why don't you think about it, Lu Changbai can't be a character who would give away things for nothing!"

After the stormy angry questioning, the room was terribly silent, except for the murmur of running water not far away.

Concerned about chaos, I seized the flaws in his words, raised my head and looked at him: "You know Hongxing too well, even the internal situation is clear. Yang Chen, I'm not a three-year-old child. I really can't believe that Lu Changbai and the Yang family didn't cooperate."

Yang Chen's eyes were astonishingly sharp: "Xu Junyan, no one has ever dared to talk to me like this."

"I'm honored to be the first."

"So did you take over Hong Xing?"

"No, I lied to you. Lu Changbai told me about Hong Xing, and he would push Su Wan to settle it. It's not my turn to inherit the debt."

I thought of Lu Changbai's face, although it was similar to mine, I only felt sinister and cunning.While enjoying his wife's tenderness, he can also use her without hesitation. This man has no conscience at all.

Putting down the teacup casually, there was a slight crisp sound when the porcelain collided.The wrist that was tightly gripped before began to turn red, and I couldn't help but hissed slightly when it touched the corner of the table.

Yang Chen was a little hesitant.He knelt down halfway, stretched out his hand to touch my scar, and quickly retracted it, with regret on his face: "I was a little agitated just now, I didn't mean it. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." I smiled at him, "It means you have me in your heart, right?"

He froze for a few seconds, the expression on his face was like a gambler who accidentally won the lottery, and was caught off guard by great ecstasy.He looked a bit stupid, but the corners of his mouth were already raised: "Why are you suddenly... this is not a certain thing, what nonsense are you talking about? Of course it has always been..."

"That's really great," I said, "We're going to be great partners."

Yang Chen's smile froze, like a program stopped in the middle of loading, he slowly moved the hand on my wrist away, and the corners of his lips curled into an unpleasant angle.

An invisible hurricane condenses indoors, and I feel something getting colder.The residual temperature on the skin, or something else.

"Partners? Cooperation for what?"

"I want to get Lu Changbai's hole card - I want the companies he invested in overseas."

"...You are too greedy. I can't directly agree to this kind of thing."

I expected that Yang Chen would turn his back on him. At this moment, he is not a reckless tyrant, but a businessman who weighs the pros and cons.Shrewd and cruel, he lives to nibble away at his interests, and never misses any opportunity he can take advantage of.

"Because of the matter between me and you, you have sufficient reasons to attack him. Even if you are found out, you will have the support of the Yang family behind you. As for the conditions of cooperation-except for the subsequent profit sharing, I heard that you have been a bit difficult recently. I'm afraid your character can't be ashamed to ask your family for money. It just so happens that I have sufficient liquidity in my hand now, and I can help you at any time."

Yang Chen tapped his hand on the table, his face sank like water: "Where did you get the money?"

I pretended I didn't hear, and said to myself: "And I have the support of Lu Jingfan, you know his ability and usefulness, it is a small bargaining chip in my hand. In short, if you cooperate with me, you will never Suffer."

But no matter who he cooperates with, Yang Chen has never suffered a disadvantage - I added silently from the bottom of my heart.

Yang Chen said in a low voice, "None of these matters to me."

"Don't do business that is sure to make a profit? This is not what I know about you."

On the surface, I can do things with ease, but in my heart I am not very sure. After all, three years have passed, and no one can know what Yang Chen is thinking now.Although he didn't want to go this far, Lu Changbai's words reverberated in his mind inappropriately.

When you have nothing, you can also become a profitable investment.

I said calmly: "Or if you want something else, it's not impossible."

Afraid that Yang Chen would do something impulsive right now, I immediately added: "Under your wish."

He seemed to want to laugh, but he didn't make a smile, only a slightly bitter arc.After a long silence, he said: "I will consider cooperation. But I have a request."

With a hanging heart falling, I tried my best to ignore the redness in the corners of his eyes, and said dryly: "You can mention it whatever you want, and I will do my best within my ability."

His bony fingers caressed my cheeks, and those dark eyes stared at me for a moment.

"Next time, don't make conditions on yourself in front of me." Yang Chen's voice was light and light, like a bubble that could burst at the touch of a button, "Xu Junyan, if you abuse yourself, I will be in more pain than you."