Chen Li dared not lie and told Lin Zhaojiang everything about Wu An'an visiting her home.
Lin Zhaojiang frowned slightly, his gaze growing increasingly profound.
In his memory, Wu An'an was indeed a very capable person. Back then, the Yunshi Morning Post was on the verge of bankruptcy due to poor management, but it was able to be brought back to life by Wu An'an.
Not only does it consistently rank among the top three in annual subscriptions, but its news reports are also insightful and in-depth. Wu An'an is skilled at building relationships and has a good reputation within the industry. Furthermore, because she was once a student of Liu Yunkang, many people hold her in high regard.
Perhaps it was because of this overestimation that Wu An'an became increasingly forgetful of her own surname.
Lin Zhaojiang snorted coldly, stubbed out his cigarette, and crushed it hard in the ashtray.
A few days later, he arranged to meet Liu Yunkang and Wu An'an at the same private club as before.
The difference this time was that he arrived first.
Led by bodyguards, Liu Yunkang and Wu An'an walked through a winding corridor to the innermost room. The door to the private room was ajar, and Liu Yunkang cautiously stepped forward to peek inside—the food had already been served, and Lin Zhaojiang was eating, with a traditional copper hot pot in front of him.
The atmosphere seemed quite harmonious.
Yet, this harmony carried a strange undertone.
Liu Yunkang was stunned for a moment, then frowned and glanced back at Wu An'an.
Wu An'an was quite excited because this was another opportunity to spend time with Lin Zhaojiang, especially since Song Wan wasn't there.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Seeing Wu An'an rushing inside without a care, Liu Yunkang quickly grabbed her, gave her a wink, and lowered his voice, "This meal is strange. He suddenly called us here, I wonder why..."
"What's so strange about that?" Wu An'an glanced at him. "Mr. Lin probably needs the media's help with something, which is why he called us over."
She said that, but she didn't really think that way.
She even brought Lin Zhaojiang a gift: a beautiful mechanical watch. It wasn't cheap, and it was a couple's watch; the woman's version was on her wrist.
"Teacher, don't worry!" Wu An'an chuckled. "Aren't you and President Lin good friends? It's perfectly normal for good friends to go out for dinner together!"
"What do you know!" Liu Yunkang said helplessly. Befriending Lin Zhaojiang was like "serving a tiger." Besides, what real friends could someone like Lin Zhaojiang have? People only took notice of him because he was useful to them.
Liu Yunkang walked in nervously, his heart pounding.
Since we can't figure out what the boss is thinking, we'll just have to play it by ear.
"You're here!" Lin Zhaojiang looked up and smiled, continuing to cook his hot pot. "Don't be shy, sit down quickly! Heh, this beef and mutton were all air-freighted in this morning, they're especially fresh, you should try some!"
Just as Wu An'an was about to pick up her chopsticks, Liu Yunkang glared at her and stopped her.
The atmosphere was somewhat tense; in the overly quiet air, one could almost hear someone's frantic heartbeat.
Lin Zhaojiang scrutinized the two faces. He appeared to be smiling, but the chill in his eyes made one feel as if they were standing on an icy plain.
"What's wrong?" he asked in a deep voice. "Are you two not having a good appetite? Should I tell the kitchen to change a few dishes?"
"No need, Mr. Lin!" Liu Yunkang rolled his eyes, quickly filled his glass, and stood up abruptly, gulping down three glasses of wine.
Lin Zhaojiang laughed and looked at him meaningfully.
Wu An'an couldn't see his intention and kept trying to stop him, "Teacher, aren't you allergic to alcohol? Can't you drink?"
“Yes,” Lin Zhaojiang said slowly, “Miss Wu is right. You really didn’t drink alcohol when we ate together before.”
“Today is different.” Liu Yunkang said with a wry smile, “President Lin, you…you might as well speak frankly. If I have made any mistakes, I will definitely correct them!”
Lin Zhaojiang remained silent for a moment, then slowly put down his chopsticks, exuding an aura of authority and unapproachability in every gesture.
"I know that you two are both prominent figures in the media industry. Whatever you write or say is enough to ruin someone's reputation."
"But I'm used to being arrogant!"
Lin Zhaojiang's voice was deep, but every word he uttered was powerful and resounding, like a bullet.
His eyes also flashed with sharpness, "I'm not afraid of what anyone says, but if anyone dares to touch my people, I will spare no expense to make them wish they were dead!"
"Yunkang knows me about this, right?"
Lin Zhaojiang patted Liu Yunkang on the shoulder, and the reporter, who was used to big scenes, almost fell off his chair.
Liu Yunkang's face turned pale, and he hurriedly stood up, his voice trembling as he said, "I don't know where I offended President Lin... Please enlighten me!"
Wu An'an, who was standing to the side, couldn't sit still any longer.
"Yes, Mr. Lin!" She quickly took out her watch, opened the box, and placed it in front of Lin Zhaojiang. "This is a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it... You and my teacher have been friends for many years. Why can't you speak frankly? Besides... and with just one word from you, Mr. Lin, not only my teacher, but I would do anything for you willingly!"
"Is that so?" Lin Zhaojiang raised an eyebrow.
He glanced at the watch on the table; it was indeed a fine piece, and quite expensive.
But Wu An'an also had the same one on her wrist.
This made him feel nauseous.
He suppressed his anger, remained calm, gently picked up the watch, and suddenly threw it into the hot pot!
The scalding hot soup splashed everywhere, and sparks hissed from the stove underneath the pot.
Wu An'an gasped and instinctively covered her face. Liu Yunkang was also terrified, his back stiffening and he remained motionless.
Lin Zhaojiang looked at Wu An'an and uttered three words with a half-smile: "Fire it out."
"What?"
Do I have to repeat myself?
Wu An'an was pale and almost collapsed in the chair.
"Didn't you say you'd do anything for me willingly?"
"Mr. Lin, this..."
"Wu An'an," Lin Zhaojiang said coldly, "you know perfectly well what you've done. Do I need to remind you again?"
Liu Yunkang wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at Wu An'an with a hint of disbelief in his eyes.
However, he quickly guessed what was going on.
She's probably harassing Song Wan again!
Liu Yunkang glared at her hatefully, wishing he could throw this ungrateful woman into the hot pot just like Lin Zhaojiang threw that watch!
"Mr. Lin, I..."
"Considering this is your first offense, and also because you're Yun Kang's student, I won't pursue the matter this time." Lin Zhaojiang turned to look at the two of them. "If there's a next time, it won't be as simple as it is today. No matter how powerful the Yun City Morning Post is, it's still just a newspaper, and Yun City has no shortage of newspapers! Do you understand?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
