As Yue Tong spoke, she stood up and gave instructions to Young Master Ji.
"Da Bao, have your secretary book a private room at the hotel. Let's all sit down and see if there's any misunderstanding, and then explain it all out slowly."
The "Da Bao" that Letong mentioned refers to her son, Ji Da Gongzi, while Ji Huan, the young master, is called Ji Xiao Bao by everyone in the Ji family.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhizhou panicked. He had come today not only for personal matters but also for official business, and he had almost forgotten his important business because of the Ji family's interrogation!
“Young Master Ji, no rush. We’re here today not only to meet you, but also to discuss some business with you.”
He was genuinely afraid that once they were outside, if he tried to discuss business, the terrifying three members of the Ji family would refuse him, citing the reason that business shouldn't be discussed in private.
"Business?"
The three members of the Ji family asked in unison, their gazes all turning to Shen Zhuzhizhou.
Zhu Zhizhou glanced at Zhu Junzhao, gesturing for him to speak.
"Yes, Mr. Ji and Mr. Le, Mingxuan and Ji's have always had a pleasant working relationship, right? But a few days ago, we received a call from Ji's saying that the contract expires next month and will not be renewed. We came here today to talk to Mr. Ji and Mr. Le and see what the reason is for ending our cooperation of more than ten years."
Zhu Junzhao spoke very politely, which was quite different from the good-for-nothing playboy that was rumored to be.
Ji Rui and Le Tong exchanged a puzzled look. "Oh? Is that so? Da Bao, do you know about this?" Le Tong turned to look at Young Master Ji.
Young Master Ji also looked puzzled. "Really? I'm not quite sure, after all, I didn't handle this matter."
Zhu Junzhao and Zhu Zhizhou knew perfectly well that the three members of the Ji family were pretending to be stupid, but what could they do? Their fate was now in the hands of these people from the Ji family. Even if they pretended to be crazy and beat people up, they had to endure it.
"Who notified you at the time?" Young Master Ji asked Zhu Junzhao.
"Director Chen!"
Zhu Junzhao had actually contacted and negotiated with this Director Chen in private, but unfortunately, the other party was unyielding. No matter what methods Zhu Junzhao used to threaten or bribe him, the other party only said two words, "Sorry!"
Young Master Ji didn't ask any more questions, picked up the phone and dialed directly.
"Director Chen, are you in charge of the cooperation project for Mingxuan Hotel in L City? Hmm... Okay, come over here now, take the person back, and have a proper discussion."
After giving the instructions, he hung up the phone decisively.
"Young Master Zhu, this matter is indeed under Director Chen's jurisdiction. He's on his way here now. If there's anything you don't understand, you can discuss it slowly."
Clearly, Young Master Ji was taking the opportunity to pass the buck to Director Chen regarding the Zhu family.
Zhu Zhizhou and his son did not gain any advantage from the Ji family. Fortunately, the Ji family were all civilized people, and they were met with nothing but rebuffs. Therefore, apart from some verbal mockery and attacks, Zhu Zhizhou was not physically harmed.
The subsequent negotiations with Director Chen did not improve despite their arrival in person.
"Mr. Zhu, Young Master Zhu, these are the detailed requirements for our Ji family's reception of guests and hotel facilities starting next quarter. Please take a look. If you meet all the requirements, I will re-list Mingxuan Hotel as one of the potential partners."
Even though Zhu Zhizhou and Zhu Junzhao knew that the requirements and details handed over by Director Chen were aimed at Mingxuan, they had nothing to say.
Who told them to provoke the second young master of the Ji family first?
Despite his pent-up anger, Zhu Zhizhou was still unwilling to give up. He turned around and wanted to invite the Ji family to lunch, but his secretary told him, "Mr. Zhu, I'm sorry, Mr. Ji and Mr. Le went out to meet a client and will be having lunch with them."
The Zhu family father and son were naturally unwilling to give up, so they booked a room at a hotel near the Ji family's place, thinking they would stay one night and then try to invite the Ji couple again that evening.
At four o'clock in the afternoon, Zhu Zhizhou dialed Ji Rui's number.
"Mr. Ji, hello, I am Zhu Zhizhou."
On the phone, Ji Rui was very polite. If Zhu Zhizhou had experienced it in person, he would never have imagined that the person who had been so aggressive towards him that morning would be this man on the phone.
"Hello Mr. Zhu, are you back in L City?"
"President Ji, Jing and I are still in R City. Do you have time tonight? We'd like to invite President Ji and President Le out for dinner."
After what happened that morning, Takeozumi dared not mention anything on the phone, neither business nor personal matters.
"Mr. Zhu, I'm so sorry. My wife and I promised our two little ones that we would come home to have dinner with them. As parents, we can't break our promises."
Over the years, Zhu Zhizhou has heard too many excuses, but only President Ji dares to so brazenly use a simple dinner for a pair of toddlers as an excuse to refuse someone.
But ironically, he dared not criticize anything.
"Is that so? Mr. Ji is right. We parents should keep our word. How about we have lunch together tomorrow?"
Having made a special trip to R City, only to gain nothing, whether on official or personal matters, how could Zhu Zhizhou be content?
On the other end of the phone, there was the sound of typing, followed by Ji Rui's apologetic voice, "President Zhu, I'm so sorry, my wife and I are going on a business trip tomorrow, and it will probably be at least a week before we get back."
Regardless of whether Ji Rui's words were true or false, it was absolutely true that the other party did not want to have this meal with him.
Zhu Zhizhou was furious, but he could only suppress his anger in front of Ji Rui. He then forced a smile and said, "Oh, well then. It seems we came at the wrong time. Let's make another appointment next time."
Ji Rui on the other end was also very polite, "Okay, okay, or we can make an appointment next time we go to L City."
Zhu Zhizhou knew that Ji Rui's "or" was just a polite remark, not even a perfunctory one, and not credible at all.
But even so, what can he do?
Full of pent-up anger, Zhu Zhizhou hung up the phone and glanced at Chen Jing sitting on the sofa watching TV, which made him even angrier.
"Look at your two daughters! They're certainly capable, one marrying into the Yan family and the other into the Ji family. But they're both ungrateful wretches! They've found good families and forgotten about their parents!"
Chen Jing stared at the TV screen, ignoring him.
She was still caught up in deep self-blame and self-loathing, and had no time to pay attention to Takeshi's cold words.
Zhu Zhizhou looked at her strangely. Lately, she was still the same as before, never talking back when scolded, but he always felt that something was different about her, and that timid and weak aura about her seemed to be disappearing little by little.
Between her brows, there was a hint of the stubbornness of a young girl like Zhu Qianying.
The thought popped into Zhu Zhizhou's mind, but he didn't investigate it further. Seeing that she remained silent, he continued to curse.
"Young Master Yan is impressive. I knew from the start that the Ji family shouldn't be this ruthless. Could it be that you and your mother told the Ji family something beforehand?"
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