Chapter Fourteen: Persuading Su Mian to Invest

“What does this have to do with me?” Su Mian looked coldly at Lin Qingqing, her eyes full of confusion. “Is it that I didn’t make things clear at the company, or that you and Qin Yunzhen don’t even understand your own identities?”

Lin Qingqing ignored Su Mian’s sarcasm and began to speak on her own.

“Right now, the Qin Group’s assets are in a state of loss. If we had invested with your portion of the property, things might have been manageable, but Uncle Qin and Aunt Qin have taken a very firm stance; those assets are completely inaccessible.”

“Moreover, several projects we invested in before have all been losing money. The Qin Group’s funds are already tied up, and without Ying Tai’s investment, you don’t even need me to explain what will happen next—you should be able to guess.”

Su Mian remained silent throughout.

After explaining for a while and seeing Su Mian unmoved, Lin Qingqing’s tone grew anxious.

“Uncle Qin and Aunt Qin don’t want to trouble you, so they haven’t approached you, but you can’t be so ungrateful, can you?”

Su Mian found it baffling. “How am I being ungrateful?”

Over the years, she felt she had been conscientious toward both the Qin family and Qin Yunzhen.

“I don’t care what you and Qin Yunzhen plan to do; none of it concerns me. And how I deal with the Qin family is none of your business.”

Lin Qingqing carried herself as if she were the matriarch of the Qin family. Blocking Su Mian was not a request but an order.

Therefore, Su Mian had nothing more to say.

“If you really want to cooperate, go find General Manager Lin. It has nothing to do with me, and I won’t be helping.”

Su Mian said this and turned to leave.

Lin Qingqing immediately stepped forward and grabbed her arm, her tone suddenly becoming sincere.

“I know you have issues with Qin Yunzhen, but Uncle Qin and Aunt Qin have done nothing wrong. If you don’t help, they’ll really be finished.”

This silenced Su Mian.

In truth, Lin Qingqing was right. Whatever conflicts Su Mian had with Qin Yunzhen, they had nothing to do with his parents.

“Just help out, please,” Lin Qingqing pleaded again.

Su Mian sighed, her tone less harsh than before but still cold.

“I’m just a small assistant. I can’t guarantee success.”

Seeing this, Lin Qingqing’s eyes brightened as she stared at Su Mian, her voice carrying a strange insistence.

“As long as you’re willing to discuss it with General Manager Lin, it will definitely work.”

Feeling the grip on her arm and the look in Lin Qingqing’s eyes, Su Mian shuddered and pulled herself free.

Looking at Lin Qingqing with suspicion, she asked, “What’s your real intention?”

Seeing Su Mian’s probing expression, Lin Qingqing quickly masked her thoughts and waved her hand.

“No, of course, I just want the Qin Group to do well.”

This delay made Su Mian almost late for work, so she hurriedly said she would give it a try, but couldn’t promise anything.

Leaving those words behind, Su Mian headed back to the company.

Once back, she planned to discuss the matter with Lin Mu, but when she arrived at his office, he was already gone.

“Looking for General Manager Lin? He said he had nothing to do this afternoon and went home early. If it’s urgent, you should call him.”

Su Mian nodded and thanked her colleague.

She returned to her desk and dialed Lin Mu’s number.

Meanwhile, in a private room at the club, a group of people were chatting.

Huo Beihan sat beside Lin Mu, and they were talking when Lin Mu’s phone rang.

He took it out and saw it was Su Mian, looking at Huo Beihan with a meaningful glance.

Huo Beihan shot him a sidelong look.

Lin Mu promptly answered, adopting the commanding tone of a boss.

“General Manager Lin, when will you be back? I have something to discuss with you.”

“I see. Then come to Chongming, and we can meet there.”

“But it’s during work hours.”

Su Mian glanced at the clock—it was just past three in the afternoon.

“So what? Who cares about the time when it comes to business?”

Lin Mu’s confident retort left Su Mian speechless.

When Su Mian arrived at the club, she found Lin Mu was not alone.

Huo Beihan, Shen Tingzhou, and Wen Jinbo were all there.

Besides these men, there was also a girl.

Su Mian recognized her as Wen Jinbo’s sister, Wen Jinyu.

“Brother, why can just anyone come to our gathering?” Wen Jinyu said sarcastically, eyeing Su Mian the moment she entered, before Su Mian had a chance to greet.

Su Mian frowned at Wen Jinyu.

She was about to say something but, seeing Huo Beihan sitting next to Wen Jinyu, chose to remain silent.

For some reason, whenever Huo Beihan was around, Su Mian felt the atmosphere shift uncomfortably, always fearing that a wrong word might provoke him.

“Alright, it was me who invited her,” Lin Mu quickly smoothed things over.

“I think you’re really something, inviting just anyone. Isn’t this spoiling the mood of our gathering?” Wen Jinyu implied Su Mian wasn’t part of their circle.

Forcing herself in might only cause friction.

Wen Jinbo, helpless, pulled Wen Jinyu aside.

“Watch your mouth. If you keep this up, I won’t bring you out next time.”

“Brother, what are you doing?” Wen Jinyu felt baffled.

She was his sister, yet instead of defending her, he was siding with an outsider.

“Do you want Huo Beihan to dislike you?” Wen Jinbo’s voice was low, but Su Mian heard it clearly. Upon hearing Huo Beihan’s name, Wen Jinyu’s arrogance immediately faded.

“No, I won’t say anything then.”

Though Wen Jinyu said this, her gaze remained fixed on Su Mian.

“Come, have a seat,” Lin Mu quickly offered a spot.

Su Mian sat between Lin Mu and Huo Beihan.

“If I remember correctly, aren’t you two siblings?” Lin Mu deliberately looked at Huo Beihan, teasing, “But as the older brother, where’s your manners? Your own sister comes and you don’t even greet her?”

Huo Beihan didn’t respond; his face remained sullen.

Su Mian felt especially awkward. She had come to discuss an investment matter with Lin Mu, but the crowded room had thrown her off.

Since Lin Mu had spoken, Su Mian had no choice but to grit her teeth and greet Huo Beihan.

“Brother.”

Huo Beihan nodded in acknowledgment.

Originally, Lin Mu had intended for Su Mian and Huo Beihan to have some private time, but he noticed the atmosphere between them was odd.

He glanced at Huo Beihan with a hint of grievance, thinking, “Looks like I’m indispensable here. If I don’t say something, how will you ever open up with that gruff personality of yours?”

Huo Beihan felt uncomfortable under Lin Mu’s gaze and shot him a look.

He cleared his throat, turned away, then remembered to ask Su Mian.

“By the way, you said you have something to discuss with me. What is it?”

Su Mian hesitated at Lin Mu’s question.

She hadn’t agreed to Lin Qingqing lightly; in her view, both Mr. and Mrs. Qin were decent people, and she couldn’t ignore them just because of Qin Yunzhen. Besides, the project itself wasn’t problematic.

“Well…”

Su Mian was about to speak when she noticed Huo Beihan watching her, and suddenly she stammered.

“If it’s work-related, Huo Beihan has a lot of experience in this area,” Lin Mu said with a smile. “Maybe if you tell him, he can offer some advice.”