Chapter 94: Rolling Up the Sleeves

"Wait, why are you crying?"

Mu Lin asked.

"The company's finished! I don't think I'll ever see Brother Lin again!"

"My parents are definitely going to drag me back home to get married!"

Mu Lin scratched his head.

"Why?"

"The company's finished!"

"The company isn't finished! It's doing just fine! Check the company intranet—President Li even gave out bonuses to the employees!"

Chen Xi said earnestly, "The banks came to collect their debts. If we paid them back, our cash flow would be cut off. Where would the money for bonuses come from? Brother Lin, stop messing with me."

Mu Lin frowned. "Where are you picking up all these weird factoids?"

Zhou Yu said, "Brother Xi used to date a woman from the finance department. He learned all this from her."

Mu Lin reflected on it. 'For a simple life-form like Chen Xi, dating really is a great chance to learn new things.'

Sun Lele, however, had logged into the intranet. Upon seeing the article, she exclaimed:

"Oh my god! Brother Xi, the Li Group is taking off!"

Chen Xi gave a bitter smile. "Of course it's 'taking off' when it's about to go bankrupt!"

"No, the group got an investment from Zhu Qiyu. We're not short on funds now!"

Zhu Qiyu? Chen Xi nearly jumped to his feet.

He hurried over to the computer, glanced at the title, and then quickly scanned the content.

"An investment of nearly a billion… We can do anything now!"

Chen Xi couldn't help but let his imagination run wild.

Mu Lin patted Chen Xi's shoulder. "Alright, feeling relieved now?"

Chen Xi nodded slowly. "Relieved! Actually, as long as you're here, Brother Lin, I'm always relieved!"

"Enough with the flattery," Mu Lin said, giving Chen Xi a pat. "It's almost quitting time. Zhou Yu, go ahead and pack up."

Zhou Yu had long since stopped crying, though her eyes were a little red. She grabbed her makeup bag and quickly touched up her face.

Mu Lin and Chen Xi tactfully turned and stepped out, giving her privacy.

They saw Xue Yang leaning against a window, gazing into the distance as he smoked.

Smoke swirled around him.

Mu Lin said, "Minister Xue, please go to the balcony over there if you want to smoke. Smoking is prohibited in the hallway."

Xue Yang let out a dry laugh. "The company's dead. Who cares about the rules?"

"That's old news. Check the intranet. But keep it down, don't shout."

Xue Yang pulled out his phone and used the browser to log into the intranet.

He took one look and his eyes went wide. He immediately extinguished his cigarette. "Holy crap, that's awesome! I always said that girl Li Xue was impressive. Gold will always shine."

Cui Chun, the leader of Team One, was walking by with his briefcase, apparently trying to slip out a little early.

"Well, well, Team Leader Cui!" Mu Lin walked up cheerfully. "Did you hear? Lu Baichuan and Lu Yi have withdrawn from the board of directors!"

Cui Chun was calm, even finding the situation a little ridiculous.

He already knew. Even if the Lu Family withdrew from the board, they could still influence the group.

Just a moment ago, Lu Yi had sent a group message to his trusted subordinates, saying this was just a temporary setback and he would definitely take back control of the company.

"So what?" Cui Chun shot Mu Lin a glance and turned to leave.

Mu Lin guessed that Lu Yi and Cui Chun were in contact, but he had no proof.

Xue Yang's eyes widened. He waited until Cui Chun was far away before leaning in close to Mu Lin.

"The Lu Family withdrew from the board? When did this happen?"

Mu Lin said, "You don't know? It caused a huge commotion."

"I only knew the banks were calling in debts. The projects have been so busy, what time do I have to go scouting for news?"

Mu Lin sighed. "The Lu Family orchestrated a massive scheme behind the scenes, encouraging the board members to sell their shares to cut off the group's funding."

"President Li had no choice but to go along with it," Mu Lin said, looking up at the ceiling. "She returned all their money, signed and sealed on the spot. No tricks, no games."

"Then, right after they finished signing, the tycoon Zhu Qiyu showed up and specifically said he wanted to invest in us. They were all left staring at each other, speechless. It was too late for them to go back on their decision."

"Lu Baichuan and his son were among them. They really reaped what they sowed!"

Just as he said this, Cui Chun happened to reach the ground floor.

His face grew even gloomier. He turned his head, shot Mu Lin a dirty look, and then left.

Xue Yang clenched his fists and pumped them fiercely in the air.

"Then President Li can finally roll up her sleeves and go all out!"

Mu Lin chuckled and shook his head slightly. If Xue Yang wanted to think that way, it wasn't a bad thing.

Seeing Mu Lin's expression, Xue Yang asked, "What's with that reaction? Is there still a problem?"

Mu Lin said, "The people have left, but the dogs are still here, barking away happily!"

Xue Yang immediately deflated. He knew the company's operational situation better than anyone.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Xue Yang asked.

Mu Lin said, drumming his fingers, "We'll take it slow. No need to rush."

Work was over. Mu Lin headed to the underground parking garage.

He received a phone call. It was Zhou Qianfan.

"Mr. Mu, this is Zhou Qianfan."

"Oh, Xiaozhou. Nice work!"

Mu Lin said cheerfully. He was truly happy today. Although there were still some imperfections, this was definitely the first step for the Li Family to regain control of the Li Group.

Zhou Qianfan paused on the other end of the line. 'Who is he calling Xiaozhou?'

'In Anhua City, he was a man who could make things happen. How could he maintain his dignity after being called Xiaozhou by Mu Lin?'

But considering that Elder Zhou had specifically instructed him to treat Mu Lin well, he could only say pleasantly:

"It was a small matter. If you need anything, just give the order, and we will take care of it for you."

"The Zhou Family has many enemies. To avoid implicating the Li Group, we used very discreet resources to contact you. Since the result was good, I am relieved."

Mu Lin said, "Alright."

With that, he hung up.

He had heard light footsteps behind him. It was clearly Li Xue.

A happy occasion lifts the spirits. The company had secured funding and driven the annoying pests out of the group.

Although their influence remained, not having to see Lu Yi's infuriating face was enough.

"Who were you on the phone with?" Li Xue asked.

Mu Lin smiled. "Just an acquaintance. We were just chatting."

Li Xue handed the pillow back to Mu Lin. "Here, this is yours. It's quite comfortable."

Mu Lin said, "Of course. The filling is sun-dried buckwheat—raw, uncompressed buckwheat. It's packed into the bag, repeatedly beaten to make it firm, and finally sewn shut with thread. The end result is this little thing."

'So it was handmade. Mu Lin had really put his heart into it.'

All of a sudden, she found herself reluctant to give it back.

Mu Lin said, "You can keep using it. Work is tough. It's good to steal a moment for a nap when you're busy."

Hmm… Li Xue didn't say anything.

「In an office somewhere in Anhua City.」

Zhou Qianfan put down his phone, his expression changing several times.

Finally, he let out a sigh of relief.

'I've repaid my debt to Mu Lin.'

'This way, the Zhou Family and Mu Lin should be even, right?'

'But it wasn't my call to make. The old man has to be the one to approve it.'

He switched to another phone and dialed Zhu Qiyu's number.

"Zhou Sheng!" There was fear in Zhu Qiyu's voice.

'Who is he really afraid of? Me, or my father?' The strange thought flashed through Zhou Qianfan's mind before he spoke.

"You performed very well today. Mr. Mu is very satisfied."

"It is my honor to serve Zhou Sheng!" Zhu Qiyu said humbly.

"Keep in close contact with the Li Group. If anything is amiss, tell me."

"Yes!" Zhu Qiyu replied hurriedly. "I will definitely not fail to live up to your expectations!"

"If there's anything within your power to do to help them, do it. You don't need my approval. But when it comes to news about the Li Group, I must be the first to know."

"Rest assured, I will absolutely take your words to heart!" Zhu Qiyu patted his chest in assurance. "I'll tell you at the first opportunity!"

Zhou Qianfan said slowly, "About that matter you mentioned to me last time…"

Zhu Qiyu's gaze sharpened. He had previously spotted a genius high school student and wanted to invest in him, helping him start a company. But Zhou Qianfan had thought the kid was too young and hadn't agreed.

Today, he had actually relented!

"It's not much money—five million. Let him test the waters. If it doesn't work out, don't blame me, you hear?"

"Thank you, Zhou Sheng! Thank you, Zhou Sheng!"

After hanging up, Zhu Qiyu was so happy that he ran three laps around his office, then opened a bottle of beer and drank it in one go.

His long-cherished wish could finally be fulfilled. This was partly due to his own persistent efforts, but a much larger part was that he had perfectly completed the task Zhou Sheng had given him today.

He understood, with profound clarity, just how important Mu Lin was in Zhou Sheng's eyes.

He was someone worth pleasing, at any cost.

'If I build a good relationship with Mu Lin, it won't be just a dream to achieve a higher status with Zhou Sheng in the future!'