Much later, after I'd become good friends with the restaurant manager—the man in the suit—I learned that the reason they'd been so polite to me the whole time was because I'd appeared too calm, as if I'd got them cornered. They suspected I had some kind of shady background, so they just wanted me to eat and drink my fill and leave peacefully, not daring to do anything rash. Of course, that happened a long time later. But back then, I was actually quite intimidated by them.
"Excuse me, are you Ms. Li Hao?" A woman suddenly spoke up beside me, startling me. Perhaps my expression wasn't exactly cute, because she immediately explained, "I've seen you at your company's press conference." I never knew I was so famous. The thought that my performance had been witnessed by this woman I didn't know, yet she knew me, made my face slightly flush.
"Why don't we find a place to sit down and talk?" The woman had short hair, was tall, and wore a very fitted suit. She looked very capable, and most importantly, she could ignore my ashamed appearance, which made me feel a little better.
After sitting down in the small coffee shop next door, she finally remembered to introduce herself: "My name is Zhu Jiahua..." Hearing her say this, I immediately remembered that she was the executive general manager of Ruifeng Investment Co., Ltd. I had met with her project manager before to discuss financing, but the deal did not go through.
However, it doesn't matter to me now whether you're the general manager or the chairman, because I've lost both mentally and materially and have no more resources to invest in this battle. So I leaned back lazily in my chair and nodded, "Yes, I remember you rejected our investment application."
"Looks like neither of us has a bad memory. What's wrong, are we in trouble?"
"Don't you think it's a bit abrupt to ask this given our relationship?" I didn't intend to be polite at all.
"It might be true for other people, but for someone who eats a meal at a restaurant for free and acts as if it's their right, I think this is a very trivial matter, isn't it?" Zhu Jiahua didn't even blink, let alone feel embarrassed.
Regardless of the circumstances, what happened just now was hardly a virtuous act. Being remorseful and frustrated because of one's own mistake, and then venting one's anger on innocent people, one has no right to expect them to treat one with courtesy.
So I nodded: "Yes, you're not wrong."
"Alright, tell me about your troubles. I'm more interested in that."
"It's nothing. Our company is having some cash flow problems right now, and the last bit of working capital I invested... was a bad investment."
"Is it just a matter of money?" Zhu Jiahua breathed a sigh of relief. "I was very impressed with your Nufang project. It was a great project, but unfortunately, I had several other good projects on hand at the time, so I had no choice but to give you up. How about this?" As she spoke, she rummaged in her bag for a while and took out a business card. "Try contacting this Mr. Zhang. As far as I know, he has some spare capital, so the chances are relatively high. Of course, the key is whether you can persuade him."
After taking the business card, I looked up at the sky. The sun, clouds, and blue sky all looked normal.
“The pie doesn’t fall from the sky; you earn it yourself,” Zhu Jiahua said. I was stunned for a moment, then suddenly thought of someone—only that person could so clearly see through the subtle clues to my feelings.
"Can I borrow your phone for a moment?" I asked, trying to sound honest. My phone had been ringing so much that it had died long ago.
"Of course," Zhu Jiahua said, handing over his phone.
When I took the phone, I wanted to say something, but after thinking about it, I stopped myself. Unexpectedly, Zhu Jiahua said, "Don't ask me why I'm so good to you. If you can accept it, then accept it; if you can't, then forget it."
I sighed. "I have no choice but to accept it now. As for your answer, tell me when you're ready."
Zhu Jiahua nodded in satisfaction.
Zhu Jiahua wasn't exactly an approachable boss; a few words from her were enough for me to label her "eccentric." However, for no apparent reason, because of her, both Nufang and I had a glimmer of hope, which made me realize that being eccentric wasn't such a bad thing after all. The whole thing just seemed too unbelievable. Of course, I knew she wouldn't give me this opportunity because she discovered my shamelessness and experience in freeloading. But right now, I couldn't care less. At this moment, I wouldn't hesitate to sell my God for some money. I just thought Ms. Zhu Jiahua definitely wouldn't be interested in that unkempt old man. Just seeing this glimmer of hope gave me incredible motivation. Life rekindled within me. At the same time, I wanted to forget the blows and humiliation of the day as quickly as possible, so throwing myself into work was a wise choice, both professionally and personally.
Part Two, Chapter Thirty-Four
When the large sum of money was finally deposited into the company account, the kind-hearted people in the company almost wanted to build a magnificent, all-gold altar to enshrine me. However, I felt utterly ashamed before those admiring glances that tormented my conscience, and I was so guilty that I wanted to run away. But what was more urgent was that I had to find the mastermind behind this scandal as soon as possible. However, in this situation, I was caught between wanting to catch a mouse and being afraid of breaking all the porcelain in the room. I really had no other way but to painstakingly gather evidence and take precautions. The worst part was that I didn't even have anyone to consult with. I was filled with anxiety and felt as if I could grow a long beard at any moment.
I was looking at the financial plan when someone knocked on the door, so I said without looking up, "Come in!"
Strangely, I didn't hear any footsteps. I looked up and saw Shan Jie standing in the doorway.
"If you're going to come in, come in; if you're going to retreat, retreat. What are you standing there for?" I said, a little annoyed.
Dan Jie seemed to have made a great decision before finally walking in, only to place a resignation letter on my desk. I was taken aback and looked at him. His gaze didn't seem to avoid mine at all, but this suddenly made me realize that the answer I had been pondering for days was right before my eyes.
I didn't want to lose my composure, but the shock I felt was making me almost unable to control myself. I thought that once the truth came out, I could finally put my mind at ease, but the reality was even harder for me to bear.
“It’s not just him, it’s us too.” Liu Yiming and Fiona arrived together, with two more resignation letters on the table.
I felt a little dizzy, and in a daze, I felt that I should be the one who betrayed them, not them. Three to one, no one knew how heavy this blow was for me.
"I'm sorry." I stood up and bowed ninety degrees to them. "I know it must have been a painful process for you all to make the decision to leave the company. As the ultimate cause, I am truly guilty of a heinous crime to make you all do something so painful. Therefore, I am the one who no longer deserves to sit here, and I am the one who should leave. I am very sorry for causing you all trouble."
I stood up to leave, but three hands grabbed me at once: "Please let us finish." Liu Yiming said somewhat excitedly, "That's right, we accepted an agreement, this one," Liu Yiming put down a few sheets of paper and continued, "and it was accepted after the three of us discussed it. Because the information we received at the time was that the only chance to save 'Rage' was to sign this agreement, and in this agreement, we wrote down the only condition besides allowing 'Rage' to continue operating: you would continue to serve as the company's executive general manager and steer the company's operations. And the other party agreed to this condition. But in the end, because we unanimously supported your last financial effort, we violated the provisions of the agreement, and we also lost the last chance to save 'Rage'. Fortunately, we finally made the right investment this time. You not only solved the funding problem, but also restructured the capital chain, and 'Rage' began a virtuous cycle. So, it's time for us bad guys to take our leave. We should say we are the ones apologizing."
I stared at them like an idiot.
I always thought I wasn't the most outstanding, but certainly the most hardworking; not the smartest, but definitely the strongest. But now, all of that has been completely overturned! I've always tried to protect them in my own way, even resorting to petty tricks, but I never imagined that the one truly being protected would be myself. If it weren't for Zhu Jiahua's almost miraculous help this time, how terrible and severe would the consequences of my last gamble have been?!
"I am ashamed." After a long silence, I finally managed to speak again. "I sincerely hope that you can give me a chance so that I can continue to bloom with you."
Amidst FIONA's tears, several pairs of hands, some fat and some thin, clasped together. Shan Jie muttered under his breath, "Boss, could you please not be so mushy next time? I can't stand you suddenly becoming so cheesy."
After a few days of feeling refreshed, Ms. Zhu Jiahua suddenly appeared in my office. Although it was unexpected, I still received her with great enthusiasm. In addition to my initial gratitude for her help, I also felt secretly fortunate afterward, so my enthusiasm was 100% from the bottom of my heart.
To everyone's surprise, Ms. Zhu's first words were: "To be honest, I didn't like you from the beginning, and I still don't like you now."
I was taken aback for a moment, and asked curiously, "Why do you like me?"
"That's true." Zhu Jiahua nodded in agreement. Then, she suddenly added, "You've recently broken up with your boyfriend, haven't you?"
"It's okay for a woman to be heartbroken, the important thing is not to lose her job," I said calmly. After experiencing the recent ups and downs, whether or not I'm in love isn't really that important to me anymore.
"I'm a divorced woman," Zhu Jiahua said matter-of-factly. The only thing I could do for this eccentric woman was to be a calm and attentive listener. So Ms. Zhu continued, "My previous marriage ended after a year of notorious domestic violence. At that time, I harbored a wish that no one knew: I wanted every body to have a bed, every heart to have warmth, I wanted to wipe away everyone's tears, and never let anyone pull out another's hair again. So, I worked hard, and then here, in Guangzhou, a year ago, I met the most important man in my life. We fell in love because of our shared suffering. In my eyes, he possessed everything a man should have: strength, confidence, decisiveness… His only flaw was that he didn't love me. Because he told me that the person he loved was a woman named Li Hao. Now you know why I don't like you, right?" What a strange woman! She could just coldly express her hatred for the office occupant in someone else's office, and immediately, with poetic language, explain the reasons for that hatred with such conviction.
I nodded involuntarily, but who was this man? A kindred spirit? Also a divorced man, just a year later…WILLSON! I suddenly understood, but then I was puzzled: “Then why are you helping me?”
"You think it was really President Sun who came out with the money?" Zhu Jiahua's tone was very dissatisfied. "Because he didn't want you to know that he was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes, that's why he went through all that trouble. As for me, I was just a temporary actor. Help you? If I could, I'd rather you be sent to the deepest hell." Willson actually changed his principle of never mixing public and private matters for me. It would be a lie to say I wasn't moved.
"So what is the purpose of your visit today?" I still couldn't figure out this woman in front of me.
"I'm just here to tell you that I'm not your creditor, that's all. Being thanked by someone I don't like makes me feel indigestion." After saying that, Zhu Jiahua stood up, dusted off her clothes, and said, "Okay, I've said my piece, I'm leaving."
"Then I won't say thank you, lest I spoil your appetite." I eagerly opened the office door for this enigmatic lady.