Just then, Song Wan also noticed him.
She was both surprised and delighted. After a moment of stunned silence, she ran towards him like a joyful little bird.
"How did you get here? You..."
“I invited him here.” Xiao Liran walked up from behind and raised an eyebrow at Lin Zhaojiang.
Lin Zhaojiang smiled helplessly, "So you two knew each other all along. So... the person Wanwan was talking about who admired her was you."
"I certainly won't miss any promising author."
Song Wan looked at Lin Zhaojiang and then at Xiao Liran, appearing somewhat surprised.
"You two..."
"Now let me formally introduce myself to you." Xiao Liran smiled and spoke with poise. "I am the owner of SL Publishing Company, an author agent, and also Mr. Lin's ex-wife."
"What?" Song Wan's eyes widened, her heart skipped a beat.
For a moment, her mind was in a daze, and she didn't know what to say.
She knew that Lin Zhaojiang had been married before, but whenever his ex-wife was mentioned, he would only mention her lightly and glossed over the topic.
The woman's jealousy often made her treat this "ex-wife" as an imaginary enemy.
She had also imagined the scene of meeting her "ex-wife" countless times—she thought that when that time came, she would definitely hold Lin Zhaojiang's arm, with an elegant and indifferent smile on her face, and assert her dominance over that woman in a calm and collected manner.
She was even a little jealous of this "ex-wife"—because she had known Lin Zhaojiang earlier and had been a part of his life much earlier.
However, she never expected that one day she would meet her "ex-wife" under such circumstances.
Song Wan froze, rooted to the spot like a plaster statue, completely at a loss.
"Miss Song, I'm so sorry." Xiao Liran smiled apologetically. "I was afraid you would react this way, so I didn't reveal my identity when we first met."
“Although Mr. Lin and I were once husband and wife,” she said earnestly, looking into her eyes, “we were only husband and wife in name only. We got married for the benefit of both families, and I have no relationship with him. So you don’t need to mind this past.”
Song Wan was surprised by her frankness. In front of Xiao Liran, who was elegant, generous and honest with her, she felt a little inferior.
“Ms. Song,” Xiao Liran took her hand and smiled sincerely, “Now that you’ve toured my company, are you satisfied? It’s not very big here, but as your agent, I genuinely want to sign you! Besides… with future investment, are you worried about the company’s growth?”
As she spoke, her shrewd gaze turned to Lin Zhaojiang, "Don't you agree, Mr. Lin?"
Lin Zhaojiang took a deep breath, finally smiled helplessly, and raised his hands in surrender.
"Rachel!" Xiao Liran seized the opportunity. "Take Miss Song to the conference room first, get her some books by our authors to look at, and then give her the contract!"
"Okay!" Rachel was also very excited.
“President Lin,” Xiao Liran chuckled, “Please come to my office to discuss the investment matters.”
Lin Zhaojiang nodded, gave Song Wan a gentle smile, and then followed Xiao Liran to the office.
Mr. Xiao's office is not large, with glass on all four sides, creating a completely transparent working environment.
Moreover, the floor, the table, and the coffee table were littered with piles of sample books, manuscripts, and color illustrations...
Lin Zhaojiang had barely stepped inside when there was nowhere to even put his feet down.
Xiao Liran finally managed to clear a space on the sofa for Lin Zhaojiang to sit down.
Then I busied myself making him coffee.
"No need!" Lin Zhaojiang glanced at the unprofessional coffee pot, forcing a smile. "Let's get down to business."
“Alright!” Xiao Liran readily agreed, taking the agreement directly from the drawer. “Please take a look, Mr. Lin!”
"This is the investment agreement, with a letter of intent and a business plan attached... These two documents should have been written by your people, but I wrote them for you so you can use them to fool those old guys at the board meeting!"
Lin Zhaojiang curled his lips, let out a long sigh, and was at a loss for words, feeling both amused and exasperated.
Xiao Liran was very familiar with the way China Forestry Group did things.
The board of directors is mostly composed of veterans, and everything must be discussed at the board meeting. Although Lin Zhaojiang can make decisions, he cannot make decisions unilaterally.
The investment in SL Publishing Company is a tiny, insignificant case for China Forestry Group. If it were to proceed according to the group's formal procedures, it would be impossible to know when it would be submitted to the board.
Even if you get on the board's list, it doesn't guarantee approval.
So, Xiao Liran turned to the last page—she had another trick up her sleeve.
"An urgent report?" Lin Zhaojiang's eyes widened.
"This... is a last resort, please understand." Xiao Liran smiled, even the wrinkles around her eyes revealing a slyness. "Just sign this urgent report, and it'll be as if you wrote it. I know that within Zhonglin Group, for any case with such an urgent report, it's just a formality at the board meeting; those old guys won't give it any trouble! This way, my investment will have a chance!"
"Xiao Liran!" Lin Zhaojiang was speechless. "Ha, you'll stop at nothing to get this money from me!"
"Otherwise what? I need money!"
"You're quite arrogant."
"President Lin," Xiao Liran chuckled, "I told you long ago that you would come back to me one day and sign a contract, right? Don't worry, I'll give your little white rabbit a very generous fee for her writing!"
Lin Zhaojiang glanced at her.
After putting on airs for a while, he still took out a pen and signed his name on the agreement.
"Thank you, Mr. Lin!" Xiao Liran put the agreement away with satisfaction. The rest of the work was up to Lin Zhaojiang to deal with the board of directors.
"With this investment, our company can expand! I can then recruit more promising authors!"
"What did you say?" Lin Zhaojiang frowned sharply and glared at her.
Are there other authors?
Is this woman genuinely lacking in emotional intelligence, or is she just playing dumb? He's already invested such a large sum of money, and instead of thinking about how to use it on Song Wan, she's thinking about recruiting other authors?
"You...don't only support Wanwan?"
"Are you kidding me!"
"Xiao Liran!"
"Oh, big brother!" After receiving the agreement, Xiao Liran was no longer the same person who had begged him for favors. "Although your little white rabbit writes well, she's not yet at the level for publication. Even if I sign her to write for me, it will still take some time to train her! During this time, I still need to rely on other writers to make money. This company isn't just for her!"
Lin Zhaojiang was furious, never expecting that he, who was usually so shrewd, would be so easily fooled by Xiao Liran!
If it weren't for Song Wan being here, he must have lost his mind to come and invest in this small company!
"Um... Mr. Lin!" Xiao Liran said with a smile, "Thank you so much for your timely help. Don't worry, I will definitely mentor Miss Song properly!"
"By the way, you haven't read what she wrote, have you? Would you like to take a look?"
Lin Zhaojiang remained silent, his face dark.
Xiao Liran turned to the computer and deliberately dragged out her words: "This article she wrote is really good...it seems to have someone in it! President Lin, are you sure you don't want to read it?"
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