Chapter 20

Sylvia asked Meng Zixian if he wanted to go upstairs and sit down. Her index finger was wrapped around a key ring that Meng Zixian had left at the front desk. Meng Zixian knew what she meant by the invitation, but he couldn't say he couldn't go up because he had to fly to Las Vegas tomorrow. It wasn't a good excuse, and he didn't have to fast the night before going to Las Vegas, but he didn't want to spend the night at Sylvia's place.

He would go back to his house in Jericho, Long Island.

The setting sun half-sank into the river, and the light and shadow on the glass curtain wall at the bottom of the apartment building gradually condensed into a deep red. Sylvia put the key in her palm, still with a perfect smile on her lips, leaned forward and hugged Meng Zixuan, "I wish you a safe journey."

Meng Zixian ran into Sylvia again two months ago at a friend's wedding. They had a wonderful chat. She supported free speech, but she didn't dwell on workplace discrimination against minorities. She disagreed with traditional patriarchal order and ethics, but in interviews she rejected the simplistic logic of radical feminists who argued that men relied on institutional oppression. She was a thorough reader of Max Boot and could argue that tanks and large armies were less effective than small, elite units deep within communities in combating local insurgencies.

Sylvia has an exquisite appearance and a smart mind, but the limited number of times they went to bed made Meng Zixuan feel that she was in the bedroom as if she were in a lecture hall, trying her best to prove her unspoken intimacy with the other party.

One morning, Meng Zixian got up to shower. Just as he was washing the foam off his hair, he caught a glimpse of the glass bathroom door quietly opening. Having spent most of his adult life in the military or prison, he never closed his eyes while washing his hair. The last time someone approached him while he was showering, they were clutching a half-sharpened toothbrush.

She stuck her head into the bathroom, and Meng Zixuan's palm almost got stuck in her throat. Many pictures of how Sylvia would die here flashed through his mind, but he reacted in time.

Sylvia was completely oblivious to this. She seemed accustomed to the fact that others could not resist her approach. She continued to smile and look him in the eye. She pulled off her bathrobe by the sleeve and stepped into the bathtub with one leg. When the cold water poured over her, she cried out and stepped out.

At the breakfast table, Sylvia didn't talk about school as cheerfully as usual. Meng Zixian knew she was waiting for him to make a move—to say sorry, to suggest taking a hot bath together, or to give her a kiss—to smooth out the awkward wrinkles between them.

Meng Zixuan said nothing.

Meng Zixian traveled to Las Vegas to meet with several investors, outlining his acquisition plan for Atlantic Savings Bank. A week later, two family office partners from Luxembourg were scheduled to fly to the American West. They called Meng Zixian at Findel International Airport and planned to head straight to the Toto Trail in the inner canyon of the Grand Canyon for camping the next morning.

Meng Zixian said it was quite hot there, and that a visit after October would be more appropriate, but the other party insisted. "Let's go during the off-season, it's quieter," Marcel Schmidt said. Meng Zixian explained that camping permits in the hinterland had to be drawn up four months in advance. Schmidt said, "I donate to the national park every year, so should getting a camping spot be a problem?" Meng Zixian said, "Okay, I'll make the arrangements." These two people held nearly 1.5 billion euros in idle funds from three families, and he wouldn't mess with money.

The night before the client arrived, Xi Yuhui went to dinner with Meng Zixian. Weiss Capital had rented a small pier in Sausalito for an event, and Xi Yuhui happened to be traveling in the West Coast.

Xi Yuhui said that the news of Li Ting's accident could not be concealed. Now all the shareholders, big and small, are in a mess. People go to the hospital every day, saying that they are visiting the patient, but in fact they all suspect that Li Ting has fled abroad with the money.

Meng Zixuan said that it was quite a long trip to Rongcheng.

Xi Yuhui said the surgery had taken place a month ago, and the patient had been transferred back to Hancheng. Financial reporters swarmed around like flies sniffing out a foul odor. Fortunately, the losses were from the capitalists, otherwise Li Ting would have been dragged from his hospital bed and paraded through the streets.

Two people walked along the dock's boardwalk, a few pigeons cooing at their feet. Nearby were a few small boats, their cables loosely tied, their hulls swaying with the tide, but they didn't disturb the strolling pigeons. After two more steps, Xi Yuhui stopped, and Meng Zixian also stopped.

Xi Yuhui said, "You were quite ruthless this time. Old Li was fooled by you and was afraid you would steal his chairmanship. So anxious that his superiors gave in to Wu Ruifeng and pushed the directors to approve Chen Yue's acquisition plan. Otherwise, Chen Yue's due diligence team still wouldn't have been able to get in. No one suspected that you had colluded with Chen Yue's top executive and were playing tricks on Old Li. On the contrary, his stroke and coma almost ruined your plans."

"You think too much of me." Meng Zixuan shook his head: "Li Ting approached Wu Ruifeng to solicit investment, and Xiao Jun from Chenyue also came to me. I thought it was also a way to get equity, so there was no need to refuse. I didn't expect that the two paths would lead to the same destination."

"You're still talking official language at this time." Xi Yuhui laughed at first, grinning for a moment before realizing that Meng Zixian wasn't kidding. He really intended to force Li Ting to abdicate, and he hadn't planned to join forces with Chen Yue at the beginning. Xi Yuhui's mouth was half open in surprise, and after a long moment, it slowly closed. "If you threaten Li Ting like that and he doesn't let Chen Yue in, where will you get the capital in the end?"

"I have other limited partners." Meng Zixuan said, "But the action won't be so fast."

"The administration gave Wu Ruifeng a fancy office at Xuantao headquarters, with a gold-rimmed sign outside: 'Strategic Liaison Officer.' This jerk even brought in a grand piano a few days ago."

Meng Zixuan asked which floor it was on.

"On the same floor as you." Xi Yuhui smiled mischievously: "You're next door."

Meng Zixian felt unlucky.

Xi Yuhui said, "You didn't plan to join forces with others to deal with Li Ting, but now he's come in with such a swagger. Once the acquisition contract is signed in two or three months, several senior management positions will have to be replaced based on Wu Ruifeng's opinion. I thought you'd discussed this with Xiao Jun."

Meng Zixuan didn't respond.

Xi Yuhui continued, "Also, you haven't checked with Lou Hetai, right?"

"No." Meng Zixian admitted that this was not a proper thing to do. But Lou Hetai was completely devoted to Li Ting, and he would not stand on his side. Even if Meng Zixian could win Lou Hetai over, with Li Ting's understanding of Lou, he would definitely be able to catch information from the clues.

"I have no objection." Xi Yuhui raised his arms in surrender. "But Wu Ruifeng, the strategic liaison officer, had just arrived and, out of the blue, he suggested overhauling the risk control department. Didn't that catch Lou Hetai off guard? Lou Hetai didn't say a word at the morning meeting that day, his face turning blue with anger. Wu Ruifeng said that the accumulation of bad debts and overdue accounts was a systemic error in the risk control and back-office departments. He wanted the person in charge of the model to resign."

"Resign?"

"Let's do this for Chenyue's financial backers to see," Xi Yuhui said. "And it's also in line with the slogans of Xuantao's group of chattering small shareholders, all clamoring to make an example of risk control."

Meng Zixuan snorted coldly from his nose.

"But at this juncture, the key technical personnel must not be moved." Xi Yuhui looked at him motionlessly.

"Yes." Meng Zixuan agreed.

“So let’s discuss it over the next two days and decide whether to…” Xi Yuhui paused for a moment, took a breath, and then continued, “Or let Shen Huan go.”

Meng Zixuan didn't say anything after hearing this. He raised his chin slightly, turned sideways, and his eyes fell on Xi Yuhui's face.

Xi Yuhui quickly explained, "That sounds a bit ridiculous, doesn't it? I felt the same way when I first heard the proposal. Isn't this a slap in the face to Old Li? But if you think about it carefully, this move is quite brilliant."

"First of all, Chen Huan is now Ronghui's deputy general manager, and she's indeed in charge of risk control models. The title carries weight, and doesn't she also represent the company in model consulting? This will make things easier for both new and existing shareholders. Wu Ruifeng is definitely going to make a big move this time. Let's give him a sweet treat first, so he won't be upset when we hit him with a stick later, right? That's one reason."

"Besides, if we move Chen Huan, we won't hurt her too much. After all, she..." He cleared his throat and lowered his voice a little, "Chen Huan is just a decoration placed here by Lao Li, and she knows it herself. She hasn't fought or competed for anything over the years. Isn't she a good and calm sister-in-law? A good sister-in-law must also take responsibility at critical moments. Besides, we are not moving her position on the board of directors, nor are we taking her shares.

"Third, that gets to the heart of the matter. Third, Zixian, think about it, if Old Li were still awake now, would he push Chen Huan out as a target and give everyone an explanation?" Xi Yuhui raised his hand and paused, carefully looking at Meng Zixian, and finally slapped his thigh. "Of course! Didn't Liu Bang push his wife and children out of the carriage? Pretending to be cowardly, but truly courageous! Old Li is such a courageous person. You said that a few months ago, Old Li asked his wife to take on a real job at Ronghe. Could there be this deeper meaning behind it..."

"You're such a good talker." Meng Zixuan interrupted him.

In the distance, a ketch approached, its sails furled, its moorings cast, and the vessel drew close to the dock. A few champagne glasses lay overturned on the stern sofa. Several people on the side waved at them, their spindly arms twitching like the chaotic hands of a broken clock.

Xi Yuhui nodded with Weiss's colleague on the ship. He wore a fake smile, his eyebrows furrowed in anxiety, and turned to Meng Zixuan, "So, do you agree with Chen Huan's matter, Zixuan?"

"Um."