Chapter 511: How to Play the Self-Media Game

Chapter 511: Chapter 509: How to Play the Self-Media Game

But Xiao Longjiang stopped him with a look. It was better to forgive where one could; pushing things further probably wouldn’t end well for anyone. He had no idea what a desperate Ji Tianya might do.

Ji Tianya’s face was a mask of misery, as if his mother had just died. He would have to pay the difference out of his own pocket! Otherwise, what kind of expert could five million possibly hire? A Grandmaster cost ten million; it made no sense for a Peak Grandmaster to be cheaper.

Mu Lin was reasonably satisfied. He scanned Ji Tianya’s meridians with his divine sense and noticed a few problems. “Hall Master Ji,” he said, “if you handle this well, I might have a surprise for you.”

Ji Tianya trembled. He was lucky to have kept his life; who would care about some surprise?

“You’re not going to ask me what the surprise is?” Mu Lin raised an eyebrow.

Ji Tianya was curious, of course, but he decided against asking. ‘Saving my own skin is more important.’

But now that Mu Lin had brought it up, it felt rude not to inquire.

“Mr. Mu, what is this surprise you mentioned?” Ji Tianya forced himself to ask.

“I’ll repair your meridians and help you break through to become a Grandmaster.”

Ji Tianya’s spirits instantly soared. He asked in shock, “Mr. Mu, how did you know?”

Mu Lin said coolly, “Do I need to explain myself to you?”

Ji Tianya shook his head frantically. “I mean, my hidden injury is buried very deep. An ordinary person could never see it. And given my position, it’s impossible for me to go around telling people about it. So how did you find out?”

“I saw it. I dabble in medicine. It’s enough to get by.”

Ji Tianya was now thoroughly shaken. ‘Mu Lin’s abilities are truly extraordinary! This probably has nothing to do with medicine. It must be something on a much deeper level.’

Ji Tianya didn’t care what it was. Overcome with emotion, he dropped heavily to his knees on the spot.

“Mr. Mu! I beg you to heal my injury! I, Ji Tianya, will work like a horse and slave away to repay your kindness!”

Mu Lin sighed. He had only offered to heal Ji Tianya to motivate him to work hard and not slack off. The fact that Ji Tianya had immediately dropped to his knees to beg for treatment made him rather uncomfortable.

“Hall Master Ji, please get up. As I said, as long as you arrange for the bodyguards Miss Xiao needs, healing you will be a simple matter.”

Ji Tianya was incredibly proactive, eager to show Mu Lin what he could do. He planned to present all the Peak Grandmasters under the Profound Hall’s command for Xiao Longjiang to inspect, letting him take his pick.

“Mr. Mu, don’t worry! I guarantee I’ll handle it. Chairman Xiao, rest assured, I will definitely send you the best experts. I won’t let you down!”

“Be quick about it!” Mu Lin said sternly.

“I’ll send them tomorrow. They’ll be in place by tomorrow. Please rest assured, Mr. Mu, I absolutely will not disappoint Chairman Xiao!”

“I’ll trust you this once. But if you screw this up, don’t blame me for being merciless!”

Ji Tianya replied, “I’ll be completely reliable! Please don’t worry! I definitely won’t cause any trouble!”

Xiao Longjiang said, “Then I’m counting on you, Hall Master Ji. My daughter’s safety is in your hands!”

“Chairman Xiao, I’ll take my leave. I’m off to find your men!” Ji Tianya departed at top speed, hurrying away, vowing to find the very best Grandmaster.

Watching Ji Tianya leave without even finishing the banquet, Xiao Longjiang had mixed feelings. “Mu Lin, how many more secrets do you have?!”

Mu Lin laughed heartily. “Uncle Xiao, don’t be so surprised. So-called people of the Martial Dao may practice martial arts, but deep down, they’re just as afraid of death as anyone else. A little threat is all it takes.”

Xiao Longjiang just assumed Mu Lin was being modest. He wasn’t born yesterday. It wasn’t easy to put someone like Ji Tianya in his place like that; not just anyone could do it.

Xiao Hongling smiled composedly. “Mu Lin, you’ve helped me out in a big way again!”

“Uncle Xiao, no need to rush your thanks. I have a favor to ask of you, too!”

Xiao Longjiang said solemnly, “Whatever it is, I agree to it all. You’ve helped me so much, I’d be ashamed to bargain with you!”

Mu Lin said, “Uncle Xiao, let’s not be hasty. How about we go back to the room first and talk there?”

Xiao Longjiang realized he had gotten a little carried away and felt a bit sheepish. He composed himself and said, “Alright. As you say, let’s go back first. I’ll have some pastries sent up, and we can talk while we eat.”

The four of them returned to the room. Li Xue had been rather quiet; Mu Lin’s display of power was so incredible that she found it hard to process.

After they sat down, Mu Lin turned to Li Xue and asked, “President Li, do you know anything about social media?”

Li Xue thought for a moment and said, “No, I studied real estate. What does that have to do with social media?”

Mu Lin rubbed his nose. “Huh, that’s strange. I just figured since you’re on your phone all the time, you’d know about it.”

Li Xue said, “I’m so busy every day. I just browse a little before going to sleep. Who has time to do a deep dive into that stuff?”

Mu Lin thought about it and agreed with her. “I guess I underestimated social media. It’s not something you can just learn by looking at it. I remember Uncle Xiao has related businesses. I want to ask him to lend me some people to help me take over Wu Tianliang’s social media team. I’m completely in the dark here; I wouldn’t even know if they were cheating me.”

Li Xue was dazed for a moment, then said in a low voice, “That’s up to you. It’s the company you acquired. Of course I won’t interfere.”

Xiao Longjiang, however, was stunned. How could a Martial Artist like Mu Lin have a company like that? He pressed, “Mu Lin, you have a social media company?”

Mu Lin replied, “I didn’t before. I just picked it up for cheap at the banquet.”

Xiao Longjiang listened with his mouth agape, completely confused by Mu Lin’s vague explanation. Xiao Hongling quickly stepped in to clarify.

Xiao Hongling explained in detail what had just happened. After she finished the entire story, Xiao Longjiang still hadn’t processed it. He paused for a long moment before it finally sank in. So that was what happened. He exclaimed with feeling:

“That bastard Wu Tianliang is pretty vicious. I remember his father is Wu Xingfeng, one of the Ning Family’s dogs…”

“To do something so despicable… we can’t just let this go! I’ll pay them a visit another day and hold them accountable.”

Even if they were dogs of the Ning Family, Xiao Longjiang could still crush them.

After venting his anger with a tirade of curses, Xiao Longjiang quickly said to Mu Lin, “Mu Lin, don’t you worry. I’ll make the arrangements. I’ll have the people sent to you by tomorrow morning at the earliest, tomorrow afternoon at the latest.”

“As for Wu Tianliang’s team, I know of them. They’re very good at what they do.”

“The student surpasses the master, as they say. In any case, the teams at my companies can’t beat his.”

Mu Lin’s eyes lit up, feeling like he’d struck gold. “I never would have thought there was something even you couldn’t handle, Uncle Xiao.”

“What kind of talk is that? Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Those few companies are just minor side projects for me. It’s great if they’re useful, but it’s no loss if they’re not.” Such was the nonchalance of a man with a massive business empire.

Afterward, they chatted for a bit. Xiao Longjiang still had to socialize with other friends from the business world, so he left Xiao Hongling to entertain Li Xue and Mu Lin.

Mu Lin and Li Xue stayed until the banquet ended and everyone began to leave.

On the way back, Li Xue’s feelings were a complicated mess. She had been through one shock after another.

Mu Lin asked, “President Li, are you drunk?”

Li Xue snapped, “Bullshit, I haven’t been drinking!”

“Then why are you having so much trouble driving?”

Li Xue was speechless for a good while. With a strange expression, she said, “I never expected you to have so much influence. You actually saved Xiao Hongling.”

‘So that’s what this is about,’ Mu Lin thought. He said, “I was wondering why you were so tense. So that’s what it was? It was pure luck; I just happened to run into the situation. And I couldn’t just leave her. She’d been locked up for over a week without food or water. She was on the verge of dying from thirst and starvation. Heaven is compassionate; it wouldn’t have been right for me to turn a blind eye.”

Li Xue’s brow slowly relaxed, and the knot of tension in her heart began to loosen.

“You did a great thing today. I’ll give you a reward later. Things are busy right now, so we’ll put it on hold for the time being. Once the branch company is established and everything has stabilized, I’ll give you a raise.”

Mu Lin’s eyes lit up, and he was instantly energized.

Even though he was currently worrying about what to do with the tens of billions in his pocket, more money was always better. Mu Lin saw nothing strange about that.

He pressed, “How much can you give me? Tell me.”

Li Xue asked, “How much do you want?”

Mu Lin tilted his head and said, “How about a ten million annual salary?”

“Dream on! Three million a year, after taxes. Not a penny more.”

‘Better than nothing,’ Mu Lin thought. He pursed his lips and said, “Thank you for your consideration, President Li! I’ll continue to work hard in the future.”

After clearing the air about Mu Lin’s relationship with Xiao Hongling, Li Xue’s mood was no longer so apprehensive.

“Don’t get happy too soon. For that much money, you’ll have to make real contributions to the group! Don’t think you can keep coasting like you do now!”

“President Li, I haven’t been coasting. I only went on that business trip because you arranged it.”

“And did I tell you to go and never come back?”