negotiation
"Chairman Gu asked me to connect him with Xia Zhitang for a negotiation tonight. Would you like to come and sit in?" Cheng Shubai's voice came from the Bluetooth headset.
Lin Jingming immediately turned on the turn signal and switched lanes: "I'll come to your company now."
Xia Zhitang has been away for three days. He sends messages to everyone every day to let them know he is safe, but he is unwilling to come back.
Gu Zian found out that the person had fled abroad, but he couldn't find the specific place.
Lin Jingming talked to Wang Jiajia and it turned out that Xia Zhitang found that neither she nor Gu Zian could convince the other, so under tremendous pressure, she chose to leave.
He was not surprised by this. Xia Zhitang was always good at escaping when things couldn't be changed. This was the case with him and Gu Zian as well.
Lin Jingming had finally let go of the things that had once irritated him. Since he couldn't change it, it was fine to leave. At least she wouldn't be consumed by internal friction. As long as she was happy and safe, that was all that mattered.
After many stops and traffic jams along the way, Lin Jingming finally drove the car to the downstairs of Cheng Shubai's company.
The receptionist saw him jogging over to help open the door.
Lin Jingming walked all the way to the door of Cheng Shubai's office and knocked.
Cheng Shubai saw Lin Jingming and pushed the cigar to him: "You came too fast, wait for me."
Lin Jingming took out a cigar, sat in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, holding his mobile phone, smoking and looking at the gradually darkening city outside the window, thinking about a fool with a big belly who had disappeared and no one knew where he had gone.
The orange sunset was stuck in the gap between the high-rise buildings. Lin Jingming pressed the shutter to record the sunset at this moment.
He sent the photo to Xia Zhitang: It’s with Lao Cheng.
After a while, Xia Zhitang sent him a photo of the starry sky: Taking pictures of the stars on the balcony, the starry sky here is so beautiful.
Lin Jingming smiled helplessly: It’s really comfortable.
Xia Zhitang: I haven’t felt so free for a long time. If the big director is free, please come and try it.
Lin Jingming: Okay, next time I’ll take you to see the stars with an astronomical telescope.
Cheng Shubai raised his eyes and saw Lin Jingming holding his cell phone and smiling, and he couldn't help but shudder.
"Chatting with Xia Zhitang?" He looked extremely disgusted. "You and Gu Zian are the number one love-brained ones!"
"Oh, you don't understand the beauty of being in sync." Lin Jingming put away his phone, a look of joyful springtime flowers still on his face.
"Oh, I really don't understand why you're so eager to be someone's stepfather." Cheng Shubai took out his tablet. "I'm going to have a Penguin video conference with them tonight. What do you think they'll give Xia Zhitang as a betrothal gift?"
"I suggested transferring shares to Xiao Qingmiao last night, and that scared them away." Lin Jingming shook his head. "The Gu family is really willing to give."
Cheng Shubai couldn't help but smack his lips: "If this wasn't happening right in front of me, I wouldn't believe it could be so ridiculous."
"Oh, how much do you think he loves Xia Xia? He's just unwilling to give up. The public opinion was so hyped up earlier, isn't it embarrassing now?" Lin Jingming's tone became sharp and sarcastic. "If he really understood Xia Xia, he wouldn't give Xiao Qingmiao shares. He should just sign a divorce and give up custody rights."
Cheng Shubai shook his head: "It's already good. Where a man's money is, there is love."
"Don't judge her by worldly standards." Lin Jingming took out his phone and started ordering takeout. "What do you want to eat?"
"It's something simple. We're scheduled to chat at 8:30." Cheng Shubai looked at Lin Jingming, who was in a good mood. "Mr. Gu is chatting in person, and he even held Gu Zian back from showing up. Guess what bargaining chips they gave?"
"It's hard to say. As long as he is willing to give custody, it will be possible." Lin Jingming answered while ordering takeout.
"You're not in a hurry at all? Aren't you afraid that she will return to Gu Zian's arms?" Cheng Shubai couldn't understand Lin Jingming. He obviously liked her so much, but he acted so magnanimous.
"What's the point of me being anxious? If I push her too hard, she'll run away. Only when she realizes it and comes back willingly will it work." Lin Jingming didn't want to be together, in fact, he wanted to be together so badly.
But right now, they truly had that deep soul connection and resonance. For him, this tingling sensation was far superior to the happiness brought by such things. This kind of happiness, which he could constantly savor in his dreams at night, was something Lin Jingming didn't believe Xia Zhitang could give up. As long as they could maintain this deep connection, the two of them would eventually be together.
At exactly eight o'clock, Cheng Shubai opened the Penguin conference room and pulled Gu's father and Xia Zhitang in.
Lin Jingming hid in a corner where the camera couldn't reach and watched quietly. Xia Zhitang in the camera was wearing a long-sleeved sports jacket and was in a very good spirit.
Not only Lin Jingming stared at Xia Zhitang on the screen, but the other two did the same. Only after confirming her mental state with their own eyes did everyone truly feel relieved.
Father Gu said helplessly, "Silly boy, if you have any problems with Zi'an, just talk to dad first. We are really worried about you running abroad all the time."
Xia Zhitang's expression was very calm: "Dad, I don't want to bring up my parents to put pressure on Zi'an. He and I are both adults, and I think we can be responsible for ourselves."
"Tangtang, once a person has a child, he or she has a layer of responsibility. The elders always hope for the best for their offspring. Even if you are about to become parents, you are still children in my eyes." Father Gu did not show the anger he had shown when he first learned that Xia Zhitang was unwilling to get married. Instead, he came out as an old man and had a serious talk with Xia Zhitang.
"Dad, I know some of my views may be difficult for you to accept, but these are important to me."
Xia Zhitang looked at the position where Cheng Shubai was on the screen. On his desk was the lighter that Lin Jingming usually used.
She knew that Lin Jingming must be there. Even though he did not appear in front of the camera and did not speak, he gave her great support invisibly.
"Tangtang, don't blame Dad for having old-fashioned ideas. To be cruel, this child's background determines his starting point."
Father Gu carefully observed Xia Zhitang's reaction and found that she frowned slightly after hearing this sentence, and then immediately changed her tone.
"But you must have your own considerations. Dad is quite curious about this. Can you tell me?"
He observed Xia Zhitang's conflicted expression, and felt secretly relieved. He turned to look at Cheng Shubai on the screen.
"Please, Mr. Cheng, step aside first. This is our family matter. I want to talk to Tangtang alone."
Cheng Shubai looked at Xia Zhitang and said, "This will only work if both of you agree."
Xia Zhitang looked at Lin Jingming's lighter on the screen, feeling a little hesitant.
The phone on the table vibrated and a message from Lin Jingming popped up: Don't be afraid, I'm here.
She suddenly felt a surge of courage. Yes, what was there to be afraid of? She had a group of friends around her whom she could trust with her back. Both Lao Lin and Jia Jia had always supported her wholeheartedly.
Xia Zhitang nodded slowly: "Okay."
Cheng Shubai clicked the button to exit the meeting with his mouse and swallowed nervously.
"Do you think they can reach an agreement?" Cheng Shubai stood up and took out a bottle of whiskey from the wine cabinet. "Have a drink?"
Lin Jingming stood up, still unsure of the outcome. He held his phone and glanced at it from time to time, fearing that he would miss Xia Zhitang's message.
Cheng Shubai looked at Lin Jingming's unconcealable nervousness and couldn't help but shook his head.
This man was just talking big and talking big, but now he looks restless. He really thinks Lin Jingming can become a Buddha and practice immortality!
Lin Jingming absentmindedly took the wine poured by Cheng Shubai, and was almost choked by the spicy taste that rushed to his forehead at the first sip.
"You actually opened such a strong liquor?" He looked at Cheng Shubai's bottle carefully, "No, you didn't like to drink this stuff before."
"You also know this happened before." Cheng Shubai smiled bitterly, took out a bag of peanuts, took out his mobile phone and ordered a midnight snack.
He had a hunch that Lao Lin might need to drink to drown his sorrows tonight, and so did he.
The two of them ate and drank while chatting about irrelevant things. Everyone had something on their mind, but they didn't want to be alone. It was nice to have someone around to chat about anything.
An hour later, Lin Jingming's phone suddenly vibrated. He opened the screen in a hurry and almost knocked over the wine glass beside him.
Xia Zhitang: We secured funding for the filming project, agreed to be married for two years, and obtained custody.
Lin Jingming stared at the words on the screen with mixed feelings.
"News about Xia Zhitang?" Cheng Shubai looked at Lin Jingming's lonely look and immediately came over.
Lin Jingming simply handed over the phone and grabbed the bottle to pour himself some wine.
The boomerang of fate hit back in a strange way.
He originally chose to exchange marriage for the Su family's resources, and now Xia Zhitang has also embarked on this path.
He took a sip of wine, letting the spicy taste invade his taste buds.
No, she was not changing, but was forced into a corner by public opinion. Except for him and Wang Jiajia, everyone hoped that she would get married and give the child in her belly a normal home.
After all, the Gu family is so well-off, and they are willing to give money. Secular people always look at life choices from a utilitarian perspective, but they don’t consider that not everyone’s needs are the same.
Lin Jingming held the wine glass, watching the pale yellow liquid inside shimmer under the light, and consoled himself: At least I wasn't too stupid. At least I had solved the funding problem for the project I wanted to do by borrowing from the Gu family. After all, it was only two years... He could still wait...
His expression turned bitter. Even if there were still many years to go, he could only wait...
Cheng Shubai was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information on his phone. After reading it several times and getting a little tipsy, he finally came to his senses: "Xia Zhitang's move was worth it."
He raised his eyes and wanted to say something to Lin Jingming, but saw that Lin Jingming was drinking by himself, his mind had already flown away.
Cheng Shubai had some understanding, but he didn't sympathize with him. Seeing his look, he even wanted to laugh at Lin Jingming's initial calmness.
However, considering the pleasant cooperation between the two over the years, Cheng Shubai controlled his expression and did not reveal his true thoughts.
"If we do one, we can be considered brothers in distress."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
