BXBX NOVEL Chapter 178 - 178: 176: Conspiracy (3) Don ‘t be afraid, I am behind you to protect you!
Chapter 178 - 178: 176: Conspiracy (3) Don ‘t be afraid, I am behind you to protect you!
Song Zhizhi came to her senses, “Dad, this pot of tea isn’t in Uncle Liu’s office.”
“It might be that it’s all been used up.” Song Shan said indifferently. “But Liu’s assistant would always replenish it before I finish. It’s never been interrupted for all these years. My habit of drinking tea was actually indulged by Liu’s assistant.”
There is a hint of gratitude in his tone.
Song Zhizhi bite her lip lightly.
“Speaking of which, where did Liu’s assistant go? Why hasn’t she shown up today?” Song Shan said to himself.
Song Zhizhi didn’t respond, and naturally didn’t say anything at that moment.
Song Shan called Liu’s assistant, but the call wasn’t picked up.
Song Shan was even more surprised, “Why isn’t she picking up her phone? And not coming to work?” “Maybe something’s held her up.”
“If there was something, she would’ve told me beforehand.” Song Shan was slightly uneasy. “I hope nothing bad has happened.”
“That shouldn’t be the case.” Song Zhizhi brushed it off.
Song Shan thought for a moment, “Let’s wait a little longer.”
However, there would be no waiting for him today.
Song Zhizhi checked the time, realizing that they were already half an hour past the start of the workday.
She let out a gasp.
Song Shan looked at her, “What’s wrong? Not been sleeping well these past few days? You seem out of sorts.”
“There’s a bid meeting this morning!” Song Zhizhi exclaimed as she quickly made her way out of the room.
Song Shan watched as his daughter rushed off.
He had a feeling that something was amiss.
Song Zhizhi quickly returned to her office via the elevator.
As soon as she got to her desk, Li Sheng walked up to her, “Team Leader Song, why are you late for the bid meeting today? Everyone is waiting for you, including all the major corporations.” Song Zhizhi swiftly picked up her laptop and headed for the bid meeting room.
As she arrived,
Everyone was waiting for her.
As the project leader, being late was, indeed, a big oversight.
Song Zhizhi noticed that Zhan Song’s face was cold.
She quietly apologized before taking her place in the bidding site.
The finance department staff read the bidding rules aloud to the room, and then under the surveillance of the cameras, everyone presented their bid documents. They went through each bid individually, and according to the pre-set rules, they determined the best bid.
The meeting went on for a long time.
Song Zhizhi noticed Xin Zaozao, sitting in an inconspicuous location of the conference room.
As expected, she did not disappoint.
Xin Zaozao was truly holding the bid document she had proposed and showed up here.
Considering Xin Zaozao’s precarious situation within the Xin Group, not only could she manage the bidding work under such circumstances, but she was also capable of bidding on the customer attraction project that all corporations disdained. This made Song Zhizhi somewhat impressed.
It was more admiration than impressed.
She had always admired Xin Zaozao since the past life.
Xin Zaozao’s development could genuinely make a compelling workplace literature piece. It’S hard to imagine a girl who knew nothing would become a globally ranked entrepreneur. Even if the Xin Zaozao of the end had become cold, and her style could even be described as sharp, inevitably, no woman ever surpassed the name Xin Zaozao in her past life.
The media later crowned her as the Business Queen.
Xin Zaozao seemed to have noticed Song Zhizhi’s gaze, and looked at her.
The two exchanged glances, but then looked away.
In such a setting, everyone knew that personal feelings absolutely could not interfere. If feelings were discussed, everything would be ruined.
The scene in the meeting room was familiar.
The competition for popular projects was fierce.
Many corporations were vying for those projects, going all out to win. However, the Xin Group, prided itself on bidding for unpopular projects. Because they were the only company bidding, there was no competition, and it automatically landed on them. Moreover, their bid price was one million more than the bottom line set by the Commercial Management. The minimum price set by the Commercial Management was two billion, nine hundred and forty million, and the bidding price they put forward was two billion, nine hundred and fifty million. This bid price was suggested by Ji Baijian, and if Song Zhizhi and Ji Baijian…
So she greatly admired Ji Baijian.
She heard that Ji Baijian didn’t have much work experience either. Still, he managed to navigate in the commercial field so adeptly which left people in awe.
On the other hand, she was barely making ends meet everywhere she went.
The bidding conference lasted through the morning until the bidding process was complete.
All projects were finalized, leaving none unassigned. The meeting concluded smoothly.
Before ending, Zhan Song made concluding remarks. After extending an official thank you to everyone, he got to the point, “To show our appreciation for your support of Commercial Management operations, we will be hosting you in the Wenyue banquet hall at 7 pm tonight. We hope everyone, whether you won the bid or not, can join us. All key personnel of Commercial Management will be present. Electronic invitations have been sent to your mobile phones. Please check.”
“Thank you for Commercial Management’s warm invitation.”
“We will definitely be punctual.”
“We will certainly be on time, thank you for Commercial Management’s warm hospitality.”
The originally serious bidding site instantly became much livelier.
After a round of compliments, everyone gradually left.
Song Zhizhi also returned to her seat.
She had just sat down and hadn’t even catched her breath.
Zhan Song approached her, “Song Zhizhi, come to my office for a bit.”
“Yes.” Song Zhizhi followed Zhan Song’s pace.
Inside the Planning Director’s office.
Song Zhizhi sat across from Zhan Song.
“Don’t be nervous, it’s good news.” Zhan Song smiled.
Song Zhizhi also smiled, “I thought it was about me being late today…”
“Being late is not good of course, but considering it’S your first time, I won’t pursue it. However, as a part of Commercial Management’s management team, you must set an example in the future.” “Hm?” Song Zhizhi was stumped for a moment.
Zhan Song smiled, “The Director of Human Resources told me, because your performance stood out for this project, the higher-ups decided to promote you to the position of manager of the planning department’s third division.”
“Huh?” Song Zhizhi was even more surprised.
“You heard right, you’ve been promoted. Moreover, you’re bypassing your supervisor and going straight to manager. This is unprecedented in all the years of Commercial Management. Grab this opportunity.” Zhan Song said in a congratulatory tone.
Obviously, Song Zhizhi was happy deep down, but she was still a bit flabbergasted, “What about the previous manager, Hu Lai?”
“He applied for a leading position in another province during a recent internal competition.” Zhan Song said, “This is your lucky break.”
Her luck was indeed good.
Song Zhizhi speculated that maybe this “luck” stemmed from Yi Wenhan’s actions.
Think about it, Hu Lai had been openly promoting Yi Wenhan. Regardless of any secret motives, it was clear that Hu Lai intended for Yi Wenhan to succeed him. She even suspected that Yi Wenhan had a hand in Hu Lai’s internal competition. But who could have predicted… that heaven’s plans surpass those of man.
Who would have known she would suddenly return and luck out so much.
At this moment, Yi Wenhan must be fuming.
But at this time…
She suddenly felt a tightening in her heart.
Would Yi Wenhan be able to restrain himself at this point?
When people are pushed to the edge, they wildly fight back.
She bit her lip.
“Song Zhizhi.” Zhansong called her.
Being brought back to reality, Song Zhizhi quickly responded, “Yes.” “What are you thinking about?” Zhansong asked.
She seemed lost in thought all of a sudden, which was quite unusual.
Isn’t everyone overjoyed when they get promoted? Yet Song Zhizhi looked worried.
“I’m just overly amazed, afraid it’s not real.”
“So you also get scared. Seeing your performance in Commercial Management, I thought you were fearless.” Zhansong joked.
“You’re too kind.” she said.
“It’S a good thing. Commercial Management needs passionate employees like you who are enthusiastic and full of ideas.” Zhan Song praised publicly, “Don’t worry, the HR department will release the promotion documents soon. Prepare to treat your colleagues.”
“Okay.” Song Zhizhi agreed immediately.
Zhan Song continued with his congratulatory remarks. Song Zhizhi excused herself after sometime and walked out of Zhan Song’s office.
As soon as she returned to her seat and sat down.
Li Sheng swiveled his chair over, “Manager Song.”
Song Zhizhi furrowed her brows.
“The in-house notice is out, you’ve been promoted. You’ll be at the same level as Manager Chu.” Li Sheng seemed even more excited than her.
Probably because Chu Qin was too arrogant, he had been longing for someone who could restrain her.
Among all the people in Commercial Management, only Song Zhizhi dared to confront her openly!
“Congratulations. I knew you would excel.” Li Sheng said, showing a bit of regret, “It’s just a pity that I won’t be able to work with you.”
“That might not be the case.” Song Zhizhi said, “It’s normal to rotate positions, who knows, we might get a chance to work together again.”
“If such an opportunity arises, please remember me. I wouldn’t want to work under that witch.”
Song Zhizhi chuckled.
That was her way of agreeing.
Li Sheng thanked her profusely.
Song Zhizhi casually responded to him and started working.
She didn’t have any important work to do anyway; after the bidding project ended, it wasn’t their department’s responsibility anymore.
She turned on the computer, logged on to WeChat.
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: I’ve been promoted.
Ji Dabai: Really?
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: Why so indifferent?
Ji Dabai: Congratulations.
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: Humph.¯
Looking at the emoticon sent by Song Zhizhi, Ji Baijian’s lips curved up into a smile.
He just sat there, staring at the screen.
Reading the messages sent by Song Zhizhi.
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: There’s a banquet at Commercial Management tonight, were you guys invited?
Ji Dabai: Yes, we were invited.
As expected.
Song Zhizhi had also guessed that they would be invited.
Even though they didn’t participate in the bidding, the Ji family, being the largest consortium in Jin City, would not be forgotten by Commercial Management when organizing any event.
Moreover, the Jihong Group’s withdrawal was a good thing for Commercial Management. Otherwise, no ordinary enterprise could compete with the Jihong Group. Since Commercial Management wanted to be seen as a fair institution, they naturally wanted the wealth to be evenly distributed.
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: Are you coming?
Ji Dabai: Yes.
Zhizhi to Zhizhi: See you tonight.
Ji Dabai: Ok.
Afterwords, Song Zhizhi saw that Ji Baijian had gone offline.
It felt as though he had only opened WeChat for her sake.
He would be online when she was online.
As soon as she went offline, he did too.
Her heart felt warm.
She also logged off WeChat, leaned back in her office chair, her eyebrows slightly furrowed.
In fact, she contacted Ji Baijian not just to tell him about her promotion, the most important thing was she wanted to discuss their family’s current situation with him. She was worried that their actions might have pushed Nie Wenzhi and his mother to a breaking point, and if that was the case, their family’s risk factor would increase.
But at this moment, she wasn’t sure how to break it down for Ji Baijian.
Because she herself didn’t know how to alleviate her inner turmoil.
It felt as if everything was able to be dealt with militarily or physically.
She took a deep breath.
She still decided to wait and see how things would develop.
At 4 p.m., all the employees participating in the sea project got off work early, using their public funds to dress themselves up.
Song Zhizhi did not leave, but went to her father’s office.
Song Shan was attending an international video conference. He used fluent standard international language to hold a conversation with a foreign client. Song Zhizhi didn’t dare to interrupt, so she sat quietly and waited.
The meeting lasted for more than half an hour and ended happily in a cacophony of laughter.
Song Shan’s mood was also pretty good at the moment.
He turned off the video, went back to his office chair, and frowned as he picked up his water glass,
“Zhizhi, could you fetch a glass of water for me?”
Song Zhizhi went to get the water for Song Shan.
Song Shan said, “Assistant Liu really didn’t show up all day, I wonder if something happened to him?” He sounded genuinely worried.
Song Zhizhi tried to comfort him, “Dad, you worry too much. Uncle Liu is an adult after all. What could possibly happen to him? Maybe he just had some personal stuff to deal with and didn’t have time to inform you. You should stop worrying.”
“You don’t know. Uncle Liu always tells me everything he does. Over the years, he’S the one I trust the most.”
Song Zhizhi felt a bit uncomfortable.
If her father knew that the two people he trusted the most in his life, Liu Zizhong and Nie Wenzhi, were scheming against him, would it be hard for him to accept?
She deliberately changed the subject, “By the way, you should be attending the Business Management banquet tonight, right?”
“I just got the notice from the external liaison department, of course I have to go.”
“Let me accompany you to pick out clothes.”
“Why are you so kind-hearted all of a sudden?”
“It’S not out of kindness. Dad, I got promoted.” Song Zhizhi smiled brightly.
“I know. I received the internal news a while ago.” Song Shan lightly tapped Song Zhizhi’s nose, “I knew you would do well.” “So should dad reward me?” ‘What kind of reward do you want?” “I saw this super beautiful evening dress…” “Buy it, buy it.” Song Shan did not hesitate at all.
“Dad is the best to me.”
Song Shan laughed and said, “Let’s go. You’re the star of tonight’s banquet. I’ll accompany you to dress up nicely.”
“Thank you, Dad.”
Song Zhizhi, arm in arm with Song Shan, left Commercial Management.
Song Zhizhi insisted that Song Shan ride in her car.
She was now afraid, truly afraid of any solo actions from her father. She really didn’t know when or where danger may lurk.
She could only proceed cautiously.
They went to the mall’s dress section together to pick out dresses, and got their makeup done.
Luo Xiaolang closely followed them.
Song Zhizhi even secretly told Luo Xiaolang to pay extra attention to her father’s actions tonight, and to inform her if anything unusual happened. Luo Xiaolang always obeyed Song Zhizhi.
After everyone had dressed up.
Song Shan and Song Zhizhi appeared at the banquet scene.
This time, Song Shan didn’t bring Nie Wenzhi along, because Song Zhizhi had been sticking to him, and he didn’t want to give Nie Wenzhi any trouble.
The banquet hall was already crowded at this moment.
Song Zhizhi, accompanying her father, greeted everyone who came up to them.
Most of them were compliments for Song Zhizhi, for her promotion had already spread quickly throughout the entire Commercial Management, and naturally also throughout the entire business circle.
Song Zhizhi’s promotion was indeed unprecedented. A newcomer, a jump-style promotion, seemed completely like using a cheat.
Song Zhizhi kept responding to everyone who came to congratulate her, it was even somewhat exhausting after making the rounds.
Just as she was about to catch her breath.
Song Zhizhi saw Ji Baijian coming over.
Ji Baijian came with Ji Yunlei. Zhang Qingmei was next to Ji Yunlei, and the three of them walked over directly.
“My daughter’s father-in-law.” Ji Yunlei took the initiative to greet Song Shan, “Where is the daughter’s mother-in-law?”
“Today my daughter is the star, so naturally accompanying her is most important.” Song Shan said with a smile.
“That is true. Zhizhi’s achievements really exceed my imagination. It’s a blessing for our Ji Family to have such a capable daughter-in-law.”
“You flatter her. She’s still pretty green, there’s a lot she still needs to learn.”
“You’re just being modest.” Ji Yunlei said seriously, “Wherever I go, I tell people about my clever and capable daughter-in-law, she will certainly accomplish great things in the future!”
“Look at you!” Song Shan said, but his proud smile didn’t hide a thing, “However, this time, Zhizhi was able to develop so well, much of it is thanks to your support. Otherwise, Zhizhi’s promotion would not have been so easy.”
“She’s my daughter-in-law. If I don’t support her then who will. These are small things. We as elders all hope for the prosperity of the younger generation, don’t we?”
“True, we are all getting old. All we can do is watch the younger generation blossom.” Song Shan agreed.
The two had a lively chat.
Ji Baijian gave Song Zhizhi a signal with his eyes.
Song Zhizhi instantly understood.
She let go of her father’s arm and saw that he was talking happily with Ji Yunlei, then directly left the banquet hall with Ji Baijian and went to the back garden.
Zhang Qingmei stood beside them, smiling politely, but inside she was extremely unhappy.
Why could Ji Baijian have such a successful and capable daughter-in-law whereas her Ji Baili…
Thinking of her worthless and unambitious son, she was so angry that she didn’t know what to do!
Ji Baijian and Song Zhizhi went to the back garden.
Song Zhizhi left Luo Xiaolang in the banquet hall and told him to keep an eye on her father’s every move and gesture.
The back garden was much quieter than the banquet hall.
The two moved towards a somewhat dark corner. They looked like a couple on a date, but in fact, they were discussing serious matters.
Song Zhizhi asked, “Is Liu Zizhong with you now?”
‘Yes.
“But this isn’t a long-term solution, my father asked about Liu Zizhong’s whereabouts several times today, I’m afraid it will be discovered…”
“Don’t be afraid.” said Ji Baijian, “It will soon be over.”
“What do you mean?” “Liu Zizhong’s sudden disappearance will make the person behind him impatient.” “So, what should I do now?”
“I have thought a lot, and the only direct and effective way is to tell your father the truth.”
“Huh?” Song Zhizhi furrowed her eyebrows.
She did not want to be honest, she had always wanted to catch the real handle of all the people before telling her father, she did not want her father to misunderstand her.
“If you don’t tell your father, we can hardly assure his safety.” Ji Baijian said, “I even considered getting a professional bodyguard to accompany your father 24 hours a day. But have you ever thought about it, would your father accept it? Would he agree to be guarded mysteriously by someone? Even if you persuaded him, could you prevent Nie Wenzhi, who is at his side, from doing something? Can you ensure 100% protection?”
“What I’m worried about is, if I tell my father about Nie Wenzhi’s ill intentions towards our family, my father may not believe me. If Nie Wenzhi does not act this time, and I don’t catch her doing anything, I’m afraid I’ll give Nie Wenzhi the chance to frame me!” “Trust me, Nie Wenzhi won’t be able to resist this time!”
“Is it intuition again?” Song Zhizhi asked.
“Intuition is not an elusive thing. It’s born from a lot of analyses I’ve done.” Ji Baijian explained.
At that moment, he did not show any emotions because of Song Zhizhi’s slight distrust.
He probably understood her.
Anyone facing such a situation would be more cautious than anyone else.
He began, “First, when Liu Zizhong noticed your abnormality, he immediately became cautious and hid the thing he used to make tea for your father. At this point, he is afraid of the unnecessary troubles as the night goes long and will definitely try to do something to your father. With his current disappearance, his accomplice, undoubtedly Nie Wenzhi, will make her move; secondly, with your current rise in the Commercial Management, I believe Yi Wenhan has repeatedly warned Nie Wenzhi about the threat you posed to him. Even the most patient person has his breaking point. Considering all these factors, Nie Wenzhi is bound to make her move.”
Song Zhizhi looked at Ji Baijian.
She had actually thought about this too.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be so troubled and uneasy.
She knew this moment would be the most dangerous, but she couldn’t think of any good measures to ensure the safety of her entire family. Yet at this moment, Ji Baijian seemed to have pointed out a clear path for her.
She said, “Ji Baijian, I trust you.”
Ji Baijian nodded, “You can slowly explain to your father on the way back later. With the current relationship between you and him and his acknowledgment of your ability, I believe convincing your father wouldn’t be hard. But don’t be in a hurry to leave right now. For your future development, you should attend this banquet to the end. To put it bluntly, this banquet is specifically held for you by the Commercial Management, rarely anyone has such an honor apart from the top leaders, so you must cherish certain opportunities.”
“I know.” Song Zhizhi nodded.
She was indeed in a state of some collapse now, but she would not lose her poise.
Especially now during this critical period, she would certainly not show any abnormality and let the people behind see it. It might create variables for many things.
She took a deep breath.
Adjusting her emotions forcefully.
All of a sudden, Ji Baijian stretched out his hand to touch her head. His voice was rarely gentle, said, “Don’t be afraid, I’ll protect you from behind.”
Song Zhizhi managed a smile.
Yes.
She was not afraid.
As long as Ji Baijian was there, she had nothing to fear.
Song Zhizhi took the initiative to hold his hand.
Their fingers interlaced.
Song Zhizhi said, “Let’s go, let’s go out.”
Ji Baijian chuckled, leading Song Zhizhi towards the banquet hall.
The hall was still bustling with people.
For banquets hosted by Commercial Management, hardly anyone would leave early.
As soon as Ji Baijian and Song Zhizhi entered the hall, the entire hall seemed quiet for a moment.
Everyone was slightly surprised.
Then they saw someone entering the banquet hall.
The people in the banquet hall naturally separated into two sides, creating a welcoming passage.
In the entire business world, who else could command such respect other than Ye Taiting, the helmsman of the Ye Family?
The entire banquet hall was exquisitely silent, all eyes were on Ye Taiting.
Ye Taiting had previously attended such banquets.
During this period, it seemed he had appeared more frequently in public.
Song Zhizhi looked straight at Ye Taiting.
He looked the same as when she had seen him before, a sharp and wise old man.
She had never thought that Ye Taiting would stop in front of her.
Alright.
Song Zhizhi admitted feeling a bit nervous.
Out of so many people, the first person Ye Taiting greeted was her.
“You indeed have not disappointed me.” Ye Taiting said.
Song Zhizhi’s heart was throbbing, she said, “I’m doing my best, hoping not to let Mr. Ye down.”
“Excellent.” Ye Taiting said again.
His approval was clearly revealed.
Song Zhizhi immediately said, “Thank you for Mr. Ye’s affirmation.”
‘Your future development is immeasurable, I see great promise in you.” Ye Taiting said.
He even reached out and gently patted Song Zhizhi’s shoulder at that moment.
Under the watchful eyes of all, everyone saw the great favor Ye Taiting, the helmsman of the Ye Family, had for Song Zhizhi.
This was unprecedented in the several decades that Mr. Ye has been at the helm of the Commercial Management!
It was indeed a glorious achievement!