Chen Lin slowly shook his head.
His eyes, usually tinged with irreverence, grew deeper than ever before.
He looked at Zhou Hai, his gaze as still as the water in an ancient well, without a single ripple.
"Chairman Zhou," he began, his voice quiet yet clear enough to reach every corner of the backyard. "Your offer is very tempting."
"But I refuse."
Boom!
Those words struck everyone present like three invisible sledgehammers.
Li Xiaoyue had to brace herself against the table to keep from collapsing. As she stared at Chen Lin's calm face, her mind went blank. Three and a half billion! And a procurement contract worth a hundred million every year! How... how could he turn it down so casually?
A muscle in Zhou Hai's face twitched almost imperceptibly. In his decades of navigating the business world, he had met countless people and negotiated countless partnerships. This was the first time anyone had faced his astronomical offer without so much as blinking.
"Why?" Zhou Hai's voice sounded dry. He could not understand it. He refused to believe there was anyone in this world who did not like money, especially when faced with a sum that could change the fortunes of several generations.
Chen Lin smiled.
He settled back into his wicker chair and gently stroked Clear Wind's silky fur on his lap, looking so relaxed that he might have just turned down a glass of plain water rather than a mountain of gold.
"There are two reasons."
He held up two fingers, shifted his gaze away from Zhou Hai's intense stare, and looked toward the reservoir under construction in the distance, his eyes thoughtful.
"First, and most importantly, my ingredients are produced in limited quantities. I can't meet your group's enormous demand."
"Chairman Zhou, I understand what you're getting