Schemes Within Schemes

"Ding Han, look how polite you are~~~"

Jiang Xiaoyun was practically beaming from ear to ear.

Lin Yue said, "Come in quickly, it's windy outside."

So, the group entered the living room on the first floor of the mansion.

There were a few familiar faces among them: Xiao Chen, Chen Dongqing, and two others I didn't recognize, who were likely important figures in Lin Qingying's faction on Yuening's side.

"Old Chen!"

I greeted Chen Dongqing.

Chen Dongqing immediately stepped forward to shake hands and said with a smile, "I thought you were too busy to come today. I heard you've been very busy lately, with the e-sports hotel and Stream City No. 1, things are going very well!"

"That's all, just something I did casually."

I replied modestly, "Otherwise, wouldn't life be too boring?"

"Snort!"

Xiao Chen stood there with his arms crossed, looking very cool.

"Xiao Chen, why are you standing there like a telephone pole? Are you trying to pretend you don't know me?" I greeted him first.

"Ding Han, you son of a bitch..."

Xiao Chen was almost driven mad with anger.

In a typical script, someone like me, a nobody who climbs up to someone as high as Lin Qingying, should feel inferior to someone as talented and wealthy as Xiao Chen. But in our case, the script is completely different. It turns out that I, the poor guy, relentlessly pursue Xiao Chen, while the rich and handsome Xiao Chen runs away with his tail between his legs.

Hahaha~~~

Fang Tuo stepped forward and put his arm around Xiao Chen's shoulder, laughing, "Xiao Chen, President Manager Lin and Ding Han are such a good couple now, you should just give up, really... it's completely hopeless!"

Xiao Chen's face turned ashen, and he remained silent.

"Ding Han."

Lin Yue smiled and said, "Sit down. I have some good news for you. I don't know if Xiao Ying has told you yet."

Lin Qingying took my hand and pulled me to sit on the sofa.

"What good news? She didn't say."

"This afternoon, Xiaoying officially joined the board of directors as the largest shareholder. Although Manager Xie is still in charge of the board, Xiaoying's entry is the first step of a perfect start. As long as nothing unexpected happens, it's only a matter of time before she takes over Yuening."

Really?

I looked at Lin Qingying beside me. "Such big news, and you didn't even tell me?"

Lin Qingying smiled gently, "It's just joining the board of directors, not sitting on the chairman's throne, so I didn't say anything, worried that we'd end up opening champagne halfway through..."

That makes sense.

I nodded. "We still need to keep trying!"

"Um!"

Beside her, Jiang Xiaoyun opened the gift Lin Qingying had given her, her face immediately lighting up with a smile, "Xiaoying, this necklace must be very expensive, right? You and Ding Han really went to great lengths..."

"It's not expensive, as long as my sister-in-law likes it."

"I like it, of course I like it!"

Jiang Xiaoyun immediately took off her previous necklace and put on the one Lin Qingying had chosen for her, which indeed enhanced her appearance considerably.

"Dinner is being prepared in the kitchen, it might take a while. Why don't you young people play cards for a bit?" Lin Yue said.

"Okay."

Fang Tuo pulled a stack of cards from his coat pocket and said, "How about we play a board game? I have a Sanguosha here, want to give it a try?"

"Can!"

Lin Qingying and I nodded together.

So, Lin Qingying, Chen Dongqing, Fang Tuo, Xiao Chen, and I played Three Sanguosha together.

Lin Qingying and I are of one mind; regardless of who is the lord and who is the rebel, neither of us can bear to kill the other.

Xiao Chen was like a madman. Even though I drew the Lord card and he drew the Loyal Minister card, he still traveled a long distance with his equipment to kill me. He was very ruthless.

When Lin Qingying drew the Lord card, Xiao Chen still launched a frenzied attack on me.

"Xiao Chen, this is really pointless of you."

Lin Qingying threw a "kill" card at Xiao Chen, finally unable to tolerate it any longer.

"Xiao Ying, I..."

Xiao Chen's face turned bright red as he continued his attack on me.

Lin Qingying continued to hurl arrows at Xiao Chen.

In the end, Xiao Chen was killed by Lin Qingying, who revealed her trump card: a loyal subject!

"..."

He sat there blankly, feeling deeply wronged.

"Kill!"

As the last remaining rebel, my identity is self-evident; I simply unleashed a killing blow on Lin Qingying.

"Xiao Ying, you saw it too!"

Xiao Chen said, "Ding Han is a treacherous villain, and you even helped him kill me, a loyal subject. Now look what's happened, you've been killed by him too..."

Lin Qingying explained, "But this is just a game. He won't hurt me outside of the game."

"..."

Xiao Chen remained silent, his face ashen.

"Gagaga gagaga~~~"

Chen Dongqing and Fang Tuo were both laughing heartily. Xiao Chen was a shareholder, and they were senior executives. Although they didn't dare to directly offend Xiao Chen, they still dared to make sarcastic remarks.

Moreover, Xiao Chen is actually a good person in terms of temperament and character; he can take a joke. If he weren't so obsessed with Lin Qingying, he might even be a very good friend.

A moment later, Jiang Xiaoyun came over from the kitchen. "Everyone, dinner's ready."

The dining table not far away was already laden with delicious dishes, and several chefs were still busy in the kitchen.

"Have a meal."

Lin Qingying stood up and pulled me to sit next to Jiang Xiaoyun.

As usual, I still can't drink alcohol, so I have to use beverages instead.

But the blessing was top-notch, which made Jiang Xiaoyun overjoyed.

About halfway through the meal, a luxury car pulled up outside.

Who is it?

Lin Yue asked in surprise, "Xiao Yun, who else did you invite?"

"No..."

Jiang Xiaoyun said, "My closest girlfriends already celebrated my birthday with me yesterday, but I haven't notified anyone else. Who could it be?"

"Butler, go out and take a look."

"Yes, Manager Lin."

The butler went out and then brought two people in.

The two unexpected guests were both acquaintances.

One is Xie Zheng, the chairman of Yue Ning Group and Lin Qingying's rival.

The other one was someone she had met a few times; Chen Jingyao, the CEO of Yue Ning Group, was Lin Qingying's direct subordinate.

I looked up and saw that Chen Jingyao's face was even more unpleasant than Xiao Chen's, and he was looking down, seemingly afraid to meet our eyes.

"Chairman Xie, what's going on here...?" Lin Yue stood up in surprise.

"Cough cough..."

Xie Zheng held an exquisite gift box in his hands and said with a smile, "Knowing that today is Xiaoyun's birthday, although you didn't invite me, I, as your uncle, have come uninvited and brought a gift. Xiaoyun, take a look, this dress was carefully selected for me by your aunt. Do you like it?"

Inside the gift box was a rather gorgeous dress, clearly worth a fortune.

"Chairman Xie, you're too kind!"

Jiang Xiaoyun stepped forward, took the dress, and said with a smile, "Xie Xie, thank you so much. I'm almost embarrassed by Chairman Xie's kindness."

"Look at what you're saying, we're all family, don't be so polite."

Xie Zheng wore a forced smile, then turned his gaze to Lin Qingying: "Xiao Ying..."

"Manager Xie."

Lin Qingying nodded with a smile.

"I think I've disturbed your meal," Xie Zheng said, glancing at the food on the table.

"No, no!"

Lin Yue said, "Since Chairman Xie is here, please sit down and eat with us. I'll have the kitchen prepare a few new dishes; I hope Chairman Xie won't find them offensive."

"These are just everyday meals from my family, why would I complain about them?"

Xie Zheng said, "Old Chen is here too, can I bring him along for a free meal?"

"Alright, Mr. Chen, please have a seat."

The dining table was large enough that it wouldn't feel crowded even with the two of them.

But Xie Zheng bringing Chen Jingyao along was clearly not really for the birthday celebration.

After a few drinks, Chen Jingyao's face was still very pale. He kept his head down, not daring to look at Lin Yue or Jiang Xiaoyun, let alone make eye contact with Lin Qingying.

This guy looks like a schoolchild who's made a mistake; you can tell he's guilty at a glance.

"Xiao Ying..."

Xie Zheng finally got to the point, saying, "Actually, the first thing I did today was to wish Xiaoyun a happy birthday, and another thing is to bring Chen Jingyao here to apologize to you."

"Manager Xie, wasn't this matter already agreed upon at the board meeting?" Lin Qingying said calmly.

"But..."

Xie Zheng said, "Old Chen is a veteran of our Yue Ning Group. He was there when your father and I started the business together. He has been loyal to the group all these years and has never made any mistakes in his work. What do you think...?"

"Manager Xie."

Lin Qingying said solemnly, "Chen Jingyao's dereliction of duty in the management of Yue Ning Energy has been proven. We have already made this public within the group. As the chairman, Manager Xie, you should also know how serious the consequences of the Yue Ning Energy Crisis at the beginning of the year were for Yuening. If it had been handled improperly at that time, our group might have been in a hopeless situation. I don't think this is a trivial matter."

I think I understand.

Lin Qingying accompanied me back to my hometown, Tengshan City, during the Chinese New Year. At that time Yue Ning Energy Crisis occurred, directly causing Lin Qingying to leave midway through the trip. And this whole affair is somehow related to Chen Jingyao?

Of course, the greater possibility is...

This is one of Lin Qingying's methods to cut off Xie Zheng's support. There may be an element of using this as an excuse, but this time it is enough to make Chen Jingyao leave the position of CEO. In this way, Lin Qingying will have one less force hindering her in Yuening.

"Listen to me... Chen Jingyao is an Old Ma in the group, he has worked diligently for so many years. If we really strip him of everything, it will be bad for all of us. Xiaoying, when your dad held a banquet for you to celebrate your graduation, Chen Jingyao, who is of that generation, was especially happy and got drunk. Have you forgotten all of that?"

Xie Zheng spoke earnestly and humbly.

"All right."

Lin Qingying said, "Then... let Chen Jingyao go to the customer service department and take on the position of Customer Service Director."

"Okay, okay..."

Chen Jingyao immediately nodded repeatedly. "Thank you, President Lin, thank you, President Lin..."

"As for the position of CEO of Yue Ning Group, my choice is Chen Dongqing."

Lin Qingying looked at Chen Dongqing and said, "This young CEO Chen is exceptionally talented and more than capable of handling this position."

Chen Dongqing was immediately dumbfounded, looking flattered.

"What Chen Dongqing said..."

Xie Zheng said, "He's still too young. Let him gain more experience in a few years. I'm afraid he won't be able to command respect yet."

"Alright."

Lin Qingying said, "Then, as a second-best option, I hope Huang Minyu will serve as the new CEO. This is my bottom line."

"What General Manager Huang said..."

Xie Zheng frowned. "Okay, I think so too."

"Yes, let's eat, Manager Xie."

Lin Qingying gave a warm smile.

I sat to the side, trembling.

Is this the cutthroat world of business? Perhaps Lin Qingying's initial choice for CEO was Huang Minyu, and that bringing Chen Dongqing into the mix was merely a ploy to create a situation where both sides could back Xie Zheng?

Good heavens, the city is full of tricks, I want to go back to the countryside!