Chapter 120: Answering Fluently

Seeing Chen Xi's confidence, Li Xue's expression shifted slightly.

Mu Lin slowly chimed in, "They've been studying the materials this whole time, especially since Lu Yi started causing trouble. Their skills should be solid."

"No one asked you!" Li Xue snapped, then turned her head back to Chen Xi. "I'm very busy and don't have time to waste on you. I'll ask just three questions. If you can answer them smoothly, I'll assign you a task."

Chen Xi said confidently, "Go ahead and ask, Sister Xue!"

"The land area of Success Community, the number of underground parking spots, and the construction budget for the guardhouse."

This was a very obscure residential complex that most people paid no attention to.

'Since Mu Lin was bragging that Chen Xi could recall any detail, I'll test him on something obscure.'

Without a moment's hesitation, Chen Xi answered, "It covers five hectares. There are one hundred and twenty ground-level parking spots and six hundred underground. As for the guardhouse construction budget, there are three proposals with no consensus yet. The first is for all homeowners to split the cost, paying six hundred yuan each, for the best option costing two hundred thousand yuan. The resulting guardhouse would basically be a small villa. The second is for all residents to split the cost at four hundred yuan each, for a mid-range option costing one hundred thousand, which would be decent but unremarkable. The last option is for the property management company to pay for it themselves. That's twenty thousand yuan for a plastic-and-glass booth, and anyone standing inside would look no different from a bear at the zoo."

Chen Xi rattled off a long string of details.

Li Xue, however, was dumbfounded.

The details were so minute that even she might not have handled them personally.

"You're not just making things up to fool me, are you?"

Zhou Yu quickly interjected, "No, Sister Xue! It's all in the files, look!"

She then handed over a thick binder of materials.

Li Xue glanced at it, and her expression softened. It was exactly as written in the documents.

So, she held up the binder and continued her questioning.

She fired off two or three more questions, and Chen Xi answered each one just as fluently.

Now, Li Xue couldn't stay in her seat.

She glanced at Mu Lin. "You didn't train him beforehand?"

Mu Lin said, "Nope. Weren't you just here yesterday? Did you see them doing any last-minute cramming?"

Li Xue thought about it, then slowly nodded. He had a point.

Mu Lin said, "So, you see? Can you give them this opportunity?"

Li Xue looked troubled. "They still need a project. I can't just let them practice on a major one."

"Then find a smaller project. There must be one, right?"

Li Xue frowned. "Let me think... I'll ask Xue Yang about it later."

"But I'll make sure the special team gets work, so they're not just sitting around idly like before."

Hearing Li Xue's commitment, Chen Xi was so excited he jumped up and lunged toward her for a hug.

Li Xue glanced at Mu Lin, then awkwardly raised a hand to stop him.

"Hey, stop that. You're not a kid anymore, you can't just hug me whenever you want!"

Chen Xi nodded awkwardly. Zhou Yu, being more observant, felt that there was definitely something significant going on between Mu Lin and Li Xue.

'But with Mu Lin's capabilities on full display, there was no longer any suspicion of him being a kept man.'

Li Xue turned and headed for the door, then glanced back at Mu Lin.

"You, come out."

Mu Lin obediently walked out, earning very strange looks from the remaining members of the special team.

"Things are about to get busy. I'll be taking the driver with me to visit construction sites, so there won't be a spare driver to take you home."

Mu Lin smiled faintly. "It's fine. I can just walk."

His speed was actually incredible; his leg strength had been honed by climbing in and out of the mountains.

Li Xue's expression hardened. "You might be fine with walking, but if Grandpa finds out, he'll kill me. It'll look like I'm mistreating you."

"I had my secretary sign you up for driving school. Study hard."

Mu Lin said, "Okay."

Li Xue took a phone call. After a couple of words, she said, "I happen to have something to do as well. Let's go together, I'll drop you off at the driving school."

Mu Lin could only comply. What Li Xue said was true.

After acquiring the land, everything at the company was getting back on track.

Li Xue called for the driver, but he was out on an errand with other mid-level employees.

Li Xue pursed her lips. She had no choice but to drive herself.

Mu Lin sat in the passenger seat and securely fastened his seatbelt.

Li Xue was wearing a short skirt, the hem falling just right, an inch above her knees.

Mu Lin had never noticed these things before.

'She definitely didn't dress like this before…'

Mu Lin thought about it but couldn't figure it out. It wasn't like Li Xue had seen Zhao Ling'Er in the past couple of days.

'In any case, it's not a bad thing.'

"What are you looking at?" Li Xue shot Mu Lin a sideways glance.

Startled, Mu Lin replied, "I'm not looking at anything. What do you want me to look at?"

His counter-question caught Li Xue completely off guard.

She stomped on the gas and sped off.

"Isn't this the way home?" Mu Lin asked, surprised.

"It's on the way. When you come back from the driving school later, you just need to take the bus for three stops. It's quick," Li Xue explained.

Mu Lin let out a soft "Oh."

Suddenly, he felt a chill run down his spine, and the hairs on his arms stood on end.

A wave of killing intent was surging straight toward them.

"Stop the car! Don't go any further!"

Li Xue snapped, "What's wrong? You don't want to go to driving school? Do you really want to walk back and forth between home and the office? I'm not going to be your chauffeur!"

"Get out of the car, now!"

He lunged over to Li Xue's side, reaching for the door handle.

Li Xue was pushed to one side, their faces almost touching.

'This was a first!'

Mu Lin pulled the door handle open and said to Li Xue,

"Get out, quickly! Any later and it'll be too late!"

Li Xue jumped out of the car on pure reflex, just in time to see a fireball the size of a baby's head flying toward it.

It was so fast that by the time Li Xue blinked, the fireball had already hit the car.

The car's engine instantly burst into flames, thick smoke billowing from under the hood.

Li Xue was petrified, crying out, "Mu Lin! Mu Lin!"

Mu Lin had pushed her out, but he was still inside the car.

BANG!

The car door slammed shut. Mu Lin emerged from behind the car, carrying a handful of items.

"I got all the documents from the case, and your handbag too," Mu Lin said, handing them to Li Xue.

It was only then that Li Xue realized: after pushing her out, he had risked his life to retrieve the documents.

The car's insurance and registration documents were all in the case in the passenger-side glove box.

But most crucial were the business files they were about to need.

Several were irreplaceable, vital certificates. If they were lost, they'd have to go through the tedious process of reapplying at the housing authority.

Mu Lin had really saved the day.

Li Xue wanted nothing more than to throw her arms around Mu Lin and give him a huge hug.

But one look at his nonchalant face, and the thought vanished.

She gritted her teeth in frustration.

"What happened?" Li Xue asked.

Mu Lin pointed to the entrance of District One. "Run over there. Tell them you're Li Hao's granddaughter and ask for protection. Chen Jingyun will definitely protect you."

'Chen Jingyun's skills are decent. If it's just for protection, there's no doubt he can handle it.'

'He might not have the power to defeat an opponent, but he's more than capable of getting Li Xue away to safety.'

"Why would he help me?" Li Xue had to think for a long moment after hearing the name Chen Jingyun before she finally remembered he was the security captain of District One.

"Because I saved his life! If he can't remember who Li Hao is, then tell him you're Mu Lin's woman!"

After saying that, Mu Lin had already turned and was sprinting off in the direction of the villas.

Hearing the three words "Mu Lin's woman," Li Xue's expression became incredibly strange.

She couldn't tell if she felt happy or angry.

Mu Lin glanced back and saw Li Xue still standing there. "Hurry up and run!" he urged.

Li Xue finally snapped out of her daze. She dropped the documents by the side of the road, grabbed her phone, and sprinted toward the entrance of District One.

Chen Jingyun had heard the commotion from the direction of District Three and was contacting their security team to inquire about the situation, debating whether to strengthen the deployment within District One.

Just then, he saw Li Xue sprinting toward him in her short skirt. In her haste, she had thrown all decorum to the wind, the hem hitched high on her thighs, offering a fleeting glimpse of what lay beneath.

"Miss Li!" Chen Jingyun stepped forward. He remembered that she was the Li Family's granddaughter and had an unclear but very close relationship with Mu Lin.

When Li Xue heard Chen Jingyun call out her name directly, she let out a sigh of relief. Having to explain would have been too awkward.

"Please protect me!" Li Xue said.

"No problem. It seems there's been an incident in District Three. I'm reinforcing the deployment in District One. You'll be safe here."

In truth, an attack on District Three would not normally spill over into District One. The residents of District One were all figures of real power; messing with them would bring dire consequences.

But one could never be too careful, so Chen Jingyun was always prepared.