Chapter Forty-Two: Miracle? No! It’s All an Act!

As the voice from the loudspeaker echoed through the room, the employees who had been busy at their work suddenly stopped, their expressions relaxing. The seriousness and focus from before vanished, replaced by a sense of ease.

At that moment, a man and a woman emerged from a nearby room. The man, in his fifties with graying hair, held a large megaphone in his hand. The woman was young, beautiful, and somehow familiar.

“Hmm?” Bai Bing furrowed her brows, immediately recognizing the woman. With surprise tinging her voice, she asked, “Su Xue? What are you doing here?”

“Acting, of course!” Su Xue replied with a smile, then, with light steps, walked over to Wang Zheng, who had just come out the door. As she reached his side, the corners of her lips curved into a crescent, as if she were smiling at the moon.

“Brother, how was it? Satisfied?” she asked, a hint of pride in her tone.

“Very satisfied! Extremely satisfied!” Wang Zheng replied with a smile, then turned his gaze to the employees who had stopped working. “I almost wish I could keep them here working forever! Well, except for the men, of course.”

Hearing Wang Zheng’s words, Su Xue’s face lit up with a joyful and contented smile. She took Wang Zheng’s arm and led him to the older man, introducing him, “Brother, this is Director Zhao, the best director at our television station, and also a professor at the Jinghua Academy of Drama. As soon as I got your message, I went to him and explained everything. Director Zhao thought this was a great opportunity for his students to practice, so he brought them all here. They’re all seniors at the drama academy.”

“Thank you so much for your help, Director Zhao!” Wang Zheng extended his hand cordially. If it hadn’t been for him, the scene just now might have been a complete disaster.

“Not at all. How could I not help Miss Su’s brother?” Director Zhao replied with a laugh.

It turned out that when the bald Boss Huang and the others had insisted on “touring” Zhongtian Company, Wang Zheng had delayed them with the excuse of having a meal, all the while devising a plan to pull the wool over their eyes. He finally thought of television dramas and the TV station, so he sent a message to Su Xue under the table, asking her to find a director and some actors to put on a grand show of work at the company’s eighteenth floor in Yong’an Tower. For a hacker like Su Xue, getting through the electronic doors was child’s play; though she hadn’t done hacking for years, she still kept a decoder handy for just such occasions. What followed was the scene of Wang Zheng’s dramatic exit from the elevator.

As for how someone knew about Lin Xiaolei, it was all thanks to the photo on her desk. The photo, of course, had been provided by Su Xue. Otherwise, why had no one greeted Bai Bing? Because there was no photo of her, so no one recognized her—luckily, Bai Bing wasn’t a key figure.

Boss Huang and his group only believed what they saw with their own eyes, not realizing that even their own eyes could be deceived.

Because there was still work at the TV station, Su Xue and the others soon left. Lately, Su Xue had been acting mysterious, as if she were plotting something—some unlucky soul was surely in for trouble. Meeting her today was a rare occasion indeed. After seeing Su Xue and Director Zhao off, the company returned to its usual silence. Back at the office, Lin Xiaolei was still standing outside her office door, feeling as if everything that had just happened had been a dream.

What she thought was a miracle turned out to be an act.

“You lecher—no, you sly fox! Too cunning by half!” Bai Bing squinted at Wang Zheng, her tone accusatory. What she’d hoped would be a chance to see Wang Zheng in a tight spot had turned into a real play. Only Wang Zheng could come up with such a harebrained scheme. But, on second thought, it really was a brilliant idea.

“I told you before—don’t talk to me in such a rude way. And don’t pretend to be so high and mighty in front of me. I’m garlic, got it?” Wang Zheng shot back at the overbearing woman.

Lin Xiaolei, meanwhile, didn’t seem pleased by the perfect performance just now. Rather, she showed a trace of worry. Hesitating, she approached Wang Zheng as he returned, stammering, “We… we may fool them for a while, but not forever. What do we do next?”

“Hire new staff immediately. No need for many—ten will suffice,” Wang Zheng replied decisively. “If Boss Huang and the others do as I suggested, it won’t take long before buyers come to us on their own. Of course, until then, we must be patient.”

“But we don’t even have the funds to pay salaries, and there’s still a huge loan from the bank!” Lin Xiaolei said, troubled.

“There will be a three-month probation period, a guaranteed minimum salary of eight hundred a month, with bonuses for sales. That way, they’ll have to work a month before getting paid. By then, things should have improved. I think we can manage a total of eight thousand for salaries.”

“Scoundrel!” Bai Bing said sharply.

Make people work for a month, pay them if things go well, don’t if things go badly—wasn’t that just a scam? If the situation hadn’t improved by the end of the month, Lin Xiaolei wouldn’t even be able to pay the rent at Yong’an Tower. Moving out would be the least of it—Zhongtian might really go bankrupt!

“All businessmen are cunning. This is called wisdom, understand?” Wang Zheng replied to Bai Bing with an air of pedantic self-importance, looking at her as if to say, “Are you slow?” Bai Bing could only grit her teeth in frustration.

“But… isn’t this going to hurt innocent people?” Lin Xiaolei looked at Wang Zheng, concern in her eyes.

Wang Zheng, hearing this, grabbed her hand and held it tightly. Even in this dire situation, she was thinking of others. Such a lovely, kind soul!

Beauty and charm make a man pause—kindness and wisdom make him stay.

How could a great man like me stand by and watch a kind-hearted maiden struggle alone in the treacherous world of business?

In the name of the moon…I’ll protect you!

“In silence, we perish; in breaking the silence, we survive. You must believe that in a month, your company will undergo a complete transformation.” Wang Zheng’s voice was full of confidence.

Lin Xiaolei stared blankly at the man before her, unable to understand where this groundless confidence came from.

Was he just born with it?

It was time to take the only chance left and see how far they could go.

“I understand. I’ll… I’ll go write the job postings now!” Lin Xiaolei said to Wang Zheng. At that moment, a blush blossomed on her pale cheeks, making her look like ripe fruit in the autumn sun. Her eyes shimmered like a clear, sweet spring. She lowered her head, bit her lip, and in a rare display of shyness, murmured softly, “Hand… my hand…”

“Hm?” Wang Zheng looked at her, puzzled by her inaudible voice. Her hand? Did she want his phone?

“You lecher, let go of her hand already!” came an annoying voice from the side. Bai Bing glared at Wang Zheng, her expression all but saying, “You’re such a lecher.”

Only then did Wang Zheng realize he’d been so moved by Lin Xiaolei’s kindness that he’d held her hand all this time, forgetting to let go. Seeing her trying to withdraw but unable to, he quickly released her and apologized, “Oh! Sorry!”

“It’s… it’s okay!” Lin Xiaolei replied, then hurried back into her office, so quickly that Wang Zheng missed the chance to admire her blushing face.

Wang Zheng folded his arms and pinched his chin, looking at her office door with a faint, meaningful smile on his lips.

“Lecher!” Bai Bing said with a huff.

Her constant jibes were even testing the patience of a good-natured man like Wang Zheng. He glared at her and shouted, “Shut up, you vixen!”

“You… you’re insulting me!”

“Yes, I am! So what if I am?”

“…!”