Before arriving at Qin Real Estate, Murong Fei had been full of confidence.
She had never anticipated that Lu Qing would take such a strong stance during their cooperation talks. At the very least, even if Lu Qing was not willing to cooperate, the tone and wording should not have made Murong Fei feel embarrassed.
But the current situation was exactly that, Murong Fei felt awkward and somewhat annoyed.
After hearing Lu Qing’s firm statement, Murong Fei merely nodded her head, said nothing, and immediately left Qin Real Estate.
As soon as Murong Fei had left, Lu Qing immediately called Qin Tian to inform him of the outcome of the negotiations with Murong Fei.
"Not to worry, I said, you have complete authority over this matter. Since you’ve already refused, then it’s a refusal," Qin Tian told Lu Qing after hearing the report.
In fact, Qin Tian was well aware that, given Murong Fei’s character, even if Qin Real Estate were to cooperate with Murong Group, eventually, Murong Fei might secretly allow Murong Group to dominate, relegating Qin Real Estate to a supporting role.
Since they couldn’t cooperate, it was just as well; this was undoubtedly a pressure and a challenge for Qin Real Estate. After all, completing such a big project as a new company carried great risks in funding, manpower, and experience.
Just after Murong Fei from Murong Group had left, Qin Tian was surprised that several CEOs from other companies almost immediately came seeking cooperation with Qin Real Estate.
The competitors of Qin Real Estate seemed to know that the Zhonghai Square project was almost certainly in the bag for Qin Real Estate; thus, dropping their competitive stance, they all took the initiative to seek cooperation instead.
This included Huang Group, which was somewhat beyond Qin Tian’s expectations.
However, Qin Tian rejected all companies that came seeking cooperation.
Jokingly, if Murong Fei was refused, how could these others possibly have a chance.
"It seems that Qin Real Estate is impervious," remarked Huang He Lou while sitting on the sofa in the Huang Family villa after receiving a report from his subordinates.
In fact, his intention for proactively seeking cooperation with Qin Real Estate was merely to probe the reality of Qin Real Estate, not truly to cooperate; Huang Group was not yet prepared, at least they did not regard Qin Real Estate highly.
Of course, what infuriated Huang He Lou the most was Lu Qing’s adamant attitude of non-cooperation.
"This Lu Qing, I haven’t heard of this person before in Zhonghai, and yet he has the nerve to refuse even the Huang Group," Huang He Lou said to himself while smoking a cigar.
Next to him, Huang Zihao added, "Dad, there is also someone called Qin Tian at Qin Real Estate, and I feel that guy is far from simple."
"Qin Tian? I haven’t heard of him either," Huang He Lou was taken aback; indeed, the information he obtained showed that the legal representative of Qin Real Estate was Lu Qing, and from the publicly available information of Qin Real Estate, there was nothing at all about Qin Tian.
After Huang Zihao had recounted his two meetings with Qin Tian at the government building, Huang He Lou became even more astonished.
"Hmm, could it be that this Qin Tian is the real power behind Qin Real Estate?" Huang He Lou mused with a light smile.
Huang Zihao’s expression turned grim, his tone carrying a hint of solicitation, he asked Huang He Lou, "Dad, since Qin Real Estate refuses to drink a toast and must be forced to drink a forfeit, should we now... resort to tough measures?"
Huang He Lou was shocked; he knew Huang Zihao had close ties with some people in society and quickly asked, "Zihao, what do you intend to do?"
"I have a brother in Zhongyi Hall; not long ago, I had him keep tabs on Qin Tian and Lu Qing. With the current situation, if nothing happens to Lu Qing and Qin Tian, sooner or later the Zhonghai Square project will inevitably belong to Qin Real Estate, so I was thinking..."
"With matters , you’d better consider the risks carefully and think of a way out for yourself," Huang He Lou advised.
Seeing that Huang He Lou did not object, Huang Zihao was overjoyed: "Dad, rest assured, I’m grown up now and fully aware of the stakes. Leave this matter to me, heh, I guarantee that within ten days, Qin Real Estate will back out of the Zhonghai Square project!"
Huang Zihao assured Huang He Lou confidently.
In the city streets of Jinshan District, Fan Bing had asked Qin Tian to meet her.
"Sister Bing, what did you call me out here for?"
Having been asked out by Fan Bing without any warning, not even having bought a gift, and following Fan Bing around shopping, Qin Tian felt quite awkward.
"Qin Tian, I mentioned last time that I needed your help with something, remember?" Fan Bing said with a cheerful smile.
Today, Fan Bing was dressed in a white shirt and light makeup, her fair skin glowing translucently, giving her an appearance of simple, sophisticated elegance.
"I haven’t forgotten. It’s just... Sister Bing, you’re dressed so formally today... and I’m wearing... cough cough, isn’t it a bit shabby?"
Looking at Fan Bing’s expensive outfit and then at his own simple and plain clothes, Qin Tian was embarrassed.
"What you’re wearing is just right, well, we’re almost there. Hanliu Café," she said.
Looking at the luxuriously decorated café ahead, Fan Bing led Qin Tian inside.
Just as Qin Tian was feeling puzzled, he heard Fan Bing say, "Today, I’m here for a blind date, and you, you don’t have to do anything, just help me sabotage it."
Qin Tian was immediately stunned.
Hadn’t Sister Bing already gotten married? Last time at East Square, Qin Tian had even seen her with a child!
Qin Tian felt utterly confused at this moment.
Could it be that Fan Bing wasn’t married?
But, given her status, her age, it seemed impossible!
"Damn, could it be she got divorced..."
Thinking of something, Qin Tian’s suspicions grew stronger.
Fan Bing had a child, and now she was out on a blind date; that could only mean she was a divorced woman, and she had a child!
"What kind of man would she have fallen for? To have married and even gotten divorced from him? Who would have the guts? Isn’t this Fan Bing Grandpa’s granddaughter?"
Qin Tian was astounded, feeling more and more baffled the more he thought about it.
"Why are you just standing there, come on in."
Seeing Qin Tian distracted, Fan Bing didn’t give him any more time to think and pulled him inside.
Just as the two entered the café, a loud voice called out.
Following the voice, Qin Tian looked over and saw a young man with a robust figure sitting in a secluded corner of the café, appearing to be in his thirties.
The man was somewhat round, with a chubby-cheeked face, but he looked well-built, clearly someone who had trained physically.
As Qin Tian walked over with Fan Bing, he closely observed the man with a crew cut and instantly recognized him—