The Art of Teasing - Chapter 171

Chapter 171

Wen Zhengyu had long since lost her temper with Ye Ling and Lian Xin, who were always ruffling her hair.

She smoothed her hair down once again before speaking to Ye Ling. "Don't contact my youngest aunt-in-law just yet. Let's ask my youngest uncle first. I've never been in touch with my youngest aunt-in-law before, and it would be rather embarrassing to call her out of the blue."

Zhuo Yao, sitting in the driver's seat, felt his ears twitch slightly. He shot a discreet glance toward the back without changing his expression.

Ye Ling made a soft sound of acknowledgment, a hint of confusion flickering in her eyes as she looked at Wen Zhengyu.

Wen Zhengyu took hold of Ye Ling's hand but said nothing more.

Investing in an oil field was no small matter, and it demanded even greater caution given the connection to her youngest aunt-in-law's side of the family.

The Lian family kept the assets and personnel of each branch strictly separate; what belonged to whom was clearly delineated. Ma Lu was currently working for her, organizing projects on her behalf, and helping her bring Lian Xin into the fold—taking business right into her youngest aunt-in-law's territory. When it came down to it, this meant she was putting up the money while Ma Lu was acting as her steward. That was precisely why the Old Madam had suggested she find someone to replace Ma Lu. The Old Madam hadn't directly ordered her to make the change because she was already in charge of her own affairs, so the Old Madam would no longer make decisions and arrangements for her.

If she went to the Old Madam with a problem now—her own maternal grandmother—the Old Madam would help wherever she could, of course. But if she managed to gamble away her entire fortune, the Old Madam would, at most, sigh at her and then leave her to go whistle for her supper.

Yesterday, when Ye Ling brought up the matter of her youngest aunt-in-law, she hadn't fully understood the implications. That was why she'd brought the documents to consult her maternal grandmother. No one knew the Lian family's affairs better than her grandmother.

The Lian family's assets had been clearly allocated when the household divided. She could see from her shares that the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Branches all held numerous jointly invested ventures. Lian Xin's business was doing well, so he managed all of them, with the other branches simply collecting their annual dividends. These could be considered the domestic businesses, with Lian Xin acting as the steward. The Fifth Branch's assets, on the other hand, had been given entirely to her two younger male cousins. Because they lived abroad, those assets were kept as a separate portion. The security personnel, including men like Ma Lu, were also under her youngest aunt-in-law's management—otherwise, her grandmother wouldn't have told her to speak to her youngest uncle about replacing someone.

She could certainly approach her two male cousins about doing business together and earning money as a group. If difficulties arose, she could also ask them for help. Mutual assistance and reciprocal dealings between relatives actually strengthened familial bonds. However, her cousins had been abroad for many years and had grown up at their mother's side. They hadn't even returned for their maternal grandfather's passing. This wasn't to say their relationship with her youngest uncle or the Lian family was poor; rather, there were likely inconvenient circumstances at play.

With Ma Lu serving as the intermediary, if they barged in with a project proposal out of the blue, it would be highly inappropriate. Therefore, it was best to consult her youngest uncle first.

The fact that Ma Lu had managed to obtain this project over there and was now presenting it as a potential partnership for Lian Xin and Ye Ling indicated that he had some foundation and connections in that region, and that he was aiming to develop both domestic and international operations simultaneously. Lian Xin's regard for Ma Lu was based on precisely this line of thinking. Now that Lian Xin was managing his own affairs, he naturally wished to emulate the Old Madam by placing some assets abroad—not keeping all his eggs in one basket.

As for herself, if she had more money, she'd live one way; if she had less, she'd live another. Even with substantial wealth, she could simply follow the Old Madam's example and buy more properties to collect rent—that would be entirely worry-free. However, since Ma Lu worked for her, and he'd brought Lian Xin into the picture, and since it was clear that Ye Ling also wanted to pursue this venture and was quite curious about family matters, she could no longer remain uninvolved and leave everything unattended.

Ye Ling had offended so many people. If she could place a portion of her assets abroad as a contingency against any eventuality, that wouldn't be a bad thing at all.

After mulling over these matters in the car, Wen Zhengyu called her youngest uncle, intending to invite him to dinner.

Lian Huaixin's astonished voice came through the line. "You are inviting me to dinner? You're going to fly or take the high-speed rail just to treat me to a meal?"

"Mm," Wen Zhengyu replied. "There's something I'm unsure about. I wanted to get your opinion."

Lian Huaixin said, "Then just tell me over the phone."

Wen Zhengyu said, "It might not be convenient?"

"Alright, alright," Lian Huaixin said. "Come and wait for me outside my base. When it's time for dinner, I'll request leave and come out."

Wen Zhengyu confirmed that her youngest uncle hadn't changed his posting, then booked high-speed rail tickets.

Zhuo Yao, overhearing Wen Zhengyu's phone call, immediately understood that Ma Lu had landed himself in trouble this time by bypassing the Eighth Miss to pull in the Fourth Master first. As Wen Zhengyu's personal bodyguard, he knew about it but could only act as though he didn't.

After Wen Zhengyu arrived at the company with Ye Ling, she followed up her leave request from yesterday afternoon—when she'd gone to buy tea—by submitting another leave slip, this time citing a family visit.

The Human Resources Department now simply disregarded all of Wen Zhengyu's outlandish leave excuses and approved them outright. Anyone who could publicly present the Chairman with flowers during a company-wide meeting and make the Chairman smile more radiantly than the blossoms themselves was not someone to be trifled with.

Ye Ling had scheduled a business meeting. Moreover, Wen Zhengyu was going to see Lian Huaixin about matters unsuitable for discussion over the phone, and it wasn't appropriate for Ye Ling to accompany her.

Since Wen Zhengyu would be traveling a short distance this time without Ye Ling's bodyguards, Zhuo Yao assigned four additional bodyguards from those remaining at home to accompany her.

Once Wen Zhengyu's bodyguards arrived, she sent a text message to Ye Ling, who was in a meeting, then headed out. She recalled Bian Fangjun mentioning the hardships of military life, and had seen how people visiting family members at their bases always brought large and small bundles of food. Taking this to heart, Wen Zhengyu prepared quite a number of items for her youngest uncle before setting off.

The base was in a very remote location. Her youngest uncle told them to wait in the town.

The town's buildings were all small structures, only two, three, or four stories tall. There was not even a slightly decent restaurant in the Lian family's vicinity. She selected a two-story eatery that looked marginally cleaner and larger than the rest and reserved a private room to wait for her uncle.

The things she'd brought for him were nothing more than some tea, snacks, and some meat products.

Lian Huaixin took one look at the items Wen Zhengyu had brought—over half of which were snacks favored by young people—and laughed heartily. "Do you think I'm still a kid like you?" he said. He fished out a piece of dried fruit and popped it into his mouth, chewing as he waved Zhuo Yao, who was standing behind Wen Zhengyu, out of the room. Once Zhuo Yao had exited and closed the door, Lian Huaixin pulled out a chair and sat down. "What's the matter? Coming all this way."

Wen Zhengyu handed the documents to her youngest uncle and said, "Ma Lu provided these. I can see that both he and Brother Xin are interested in expanding into that region, but I'm not sure if it's suitable. I wanted you to take a look and offer some insight." She paused, then added, "Also, could you tell me a bit more about Ma Lu's situation?" The Old Madam had gone so far as to suggest she ask her youngest uncle to replace Ma Lu; she estimated that her grandmother had likely already communicated with her youngest uncle about this.

Lian Huaixin shot her a glance, then unhurriedly flipped open the document and skimmed through it. His expression darkened somewhat. "The Old Madam called me today and mentioned Ma Lu. She said he goes to Lian Xin first to report, and that they discuss things privately before coming to you."

Wen Zhengyu propped her chin on her hand and looked at her youngest uncle. "Let's discuss Brother Xin's matter and Ma Lu's matter separately. Regarding Ma Lu, starting with that first: from my very first encounter with him, I could see he's someone who wants to accomplish things. He has drive, he's capable, and he's not the type who'd be satisfied merely following someone around as a bodyguard. My thinking is that capable people who want to get things done should be placed in positions where they can do exactly that."

"As for Brother Xin, he treats me very well. It's just that he always looks at me as though I'm the simple-minded daughter of a landed gentry, fearing I'll be swindled. Over the past year or two, I've had quite a few incidents, and he and Ye Ling have been the ones handling everything. They're both very attentive to my affairs. When I was recuperating—well, I've been much better lately, but before, I was in a daze, unable to sort through even the simplest matters, and had to rely entirely on them to manage things."

"Brother Xin and I share a blood tie. As for Ye Ling, we're currently cohabiting, but I haven't formally presented betrothal gifts or held an official wedding, so she can't be considered to have formally entered the family. Ma Lu and Brother Xin have known each other since childhood. So, whether judging by blood or by closeness of relationship, during the period when my health made it unsuitable for people to disturb me rashly, it was more appropriate for Ma Lu to approach Brother Xin than to approach Ye Ling."

Wen Zhengyu smiled faintly. "If I had been in perfect health, what Ma Lu did would certainly have been inappropriate. But I was ill, and Brother Xin was helping to manage my affairs. I must acknowledge this debt of gratitude to him. I can't fail to remember his kindness and then turn around and blame him."

Lian Huaixin nodded gently. He understood that Wen Zhengyu still wanted to keep Ma Lu around and observe him further. "Then why did you come to me?" he asked.

Wen Zhengyu pointed to the documents in Lian Huaixin's hand. "This. I'm completely in the dark about it. I asked my maternal grandmother, and she gave me a list of contacts and told me to find people to make inquiries myself." She looked at Lian Huaixin with a touch of embarrassment. "There are three specific things I want to ask about."

Lian Huaixin gestured for her to continue.

"First, I want to know how Ma Lu learned about and acquired this project," Wen Zhengyu said. "I'd like you, Uncle, to help me look into that. I can ask Ma Lu about it later myself. Second, I need to understand the general situation over there—what the investment risks are. And most importantly, I need to know whether this would affect my male cousins or cause them any trouble."

Lian Huaixin cast a thoughtful glance at Wen Zhengyu. "And if I were to say this venture isn't suitable?"

"Then we'll turn it down and simply not do it," Wen Zhengyu replied.

"I don't interfere in their business dealings," Lian Huaixin said. "But I can certainly help you ask around. If anything comes up regarding Ma Lu, you contact Lian Zhang. He's already started taking over the family's business affairs on that side and can manage some things now. He's been in the Middle East since the end of the year before last and has been stationed there for the past two years. You're direct cousins. If you want to collaborate on any business, just contact him yourself directly."

Hearing this from her youngest uncle, Wen Zhengyu felt she now had a clear picture. She settled in, feeling completely at ease, and had dinner with her uncle.

From this matter, Lian Huaixin could see the difference in the siblings' working styles. Lian Xin was a man of action; he'd launch into an undertaking first and deal with the rest afterward. Wen Zhengyu was the cautious type; she would first observe clearly and understand thoroughly before deciding whether to proceed. He could now somewhat grasp why the Old Madam alternated between exclaiming how vexing it was and cherishing her as if she were the most precious thing. With Lian Zhang's fiery temper, if Lian Xin didn't give him prior notice and just barged in with Ma Lu to do business over there, the two brothers might well come to blows first. However, Lian Zhang and his brother's operations focused on European and American markets, while Lian Xin and his side handled domestic business—there was no conflict. If the brothers could support each other and maintain contact, that would be a good thing. Otherwise, as time passed, they would grow distant.

Wen Zhengyu had never spoken with her two male cousins by phone. Her knowledge of them and her aunt-in-law was limited to photographs and her uncle's descriptions. So, after dinner, she handed her phone to Lian Huaixin, asking him to make the first call on her behalf to give her courage.

As an uncle, he would indeed bolster his niece's courage this once. He used Wen Zhengyu's phone to call Lian Zhang. "Your cousin sister is too timid to call you herself," he informed him. "She traveled all this way to find me, just so I could give her a bit of courage."

Wen Zhengyu suddenly realized her uncle could be quite mischievous too.

Her mischievous uncle handed the phone back to her after having instilled some courage in her.

Wen Zhengyu took the phone and heard Lian Zhang's voice coming through. "Cousin Sister, no way—they told me you're incredibly bold."

Wen Zhengyu was momentarily speechless. She asked, "Who are 'they'?"

Lian Zhang coughed twice and hastily changed the subject, asking what she needed. "Have you been bullied again?"

"Uh," Wen Zhengyu replied. "No." She completely ignored the 'again' part and launched into the matter she wanted to ask him about.

"Which oil field?" Lian Zhang asked.

Wen Zhengyu flipped through the translated documents and relayed the oil field's information to Lian Zhang.

Her vision made reading characters difficult, so she recited the details very slowly. Lian Zhang patiently listened to her read everything out, jotting down notes. After hearing it all, he said, "I know a bit about that oil field. Once I've looked into it thoroughly, I'll give you the full details."

After she'd finished discussing the matter with Lian Zhang, her uncle took the phone back. Father and son then proceeded to chat about family matters for a full hour before hanging up.

She sat to the side, bored, cracking sunflower seeds and snacking, inevitably overhearing quite a bit. Her youngest uncle and Lian Zhang first discussed Lian Zhang and Lian Xuan's academic progress, then moved on to her youngest aunt-in-law's recent situation, then to Lian Zhang's work and his working environment, and finally to the broader situation in the region where he was stationed. Just like that, an hour passed.

Afterward, her youngest uncle returned to the base. Since it was already late, she drove three hours back to the city, found a hotel to stay the night, and booked a high-speed rail ticket home the next day. By the time she arrived back, it was already afternoon.

Lian Zhang was exceptionally efficient. By the time she got home, she received a call from him, informing her that the oil field had good production levels and a very attractive price—but it came with disputes! Because of these disputes, the field's owner wanted to sell it off cheaply and transfer the trouble to someone else. Ma Lu had learned about this from a local fixer who used to gather information for him, and it was this fixer who had acted as the intermediary. Aside from withholding the existence of the disputes, the information Ma Lu provided about the oil field was otherwise accurate.

Wen Zhengyu understood immediately. A low-priced oil field—if one had the capability to resolve the disputes, one could make a killing. If not, one could very well lose one's entire investment. Neither she, nor Ye Ling, nor Lian Xin had the ability to resolve these disputes. Acquiring this oil field would mean troubling Lian Zhang. After purchasing it, they would still need to invest in security, manpower, and resources. Not to mention other things, they'd at the very least need to mobilize a batch of extraction equipment and workers. Most critically of all, she herself was a complete layman.

She invited both Lian Xin and Ma Lu to her home, relayed the information she'd uncovered, and then simply propped her chin on her hand and watched the two of them.

Having already witnessed Wen Zhengyu consulting the Old Madam for document review and strategic advice, and knowing she'd gone to see Lian Huaixin, Ye Ling was not at all surprised that Wen Zhengyu had managed to gather intelligence. Lian Huaixin was Wen Zhengyu's biological uncle. The fact that he had personally stepped forward to orchestrate Wen Zhengyu's formal recognition by the Lian family was proof enough of how deeply he cared for her. The Wang Zidao incident last time had spiraled to the point of being nearly uncontainable before Lian Huaixin finally stepped in to close it out.

Lian Xin, for his part, was rendered utterly speechless by Wen Zhengyu.

Wen Zhengyu then summoned Ma Lu and questioned him in detail about the oil field's situation, discovering that Ma Lu had been entirely unaware of the disputes. "Are you confident you can resolve the oil field's disputes?" she asked him.

Ma Lu sat ramrod straight. After asking who the disputing parties were, he told Wen Zhengyu and the others that, with his current manpower and resources, he could not resolve these disputes alone. However, if they could collaborate with Master Zhang over there and invest additional funds, the matter would not pose a significant problem.

Wen Zhengyu realized that when Ma Lu had taken on this project, he had already factored in her, Lian Xin, and Lian Zhang from the very beginning. His plan was to use this project to expand his security company internationally, leveraging his existing personnel and her relationship with Lian Zhang to help him establish a firm foothold.

After a brief moment of consideration, she made a swift decision. "I will not be participating in this project."

Although Lian Xin had his own ideas, whether or not to invest in this project would require further assessment. He did not press Wen Zhengyu on the matter.

After seeing Lian Xin off, she asked Ma Lu to stay behind.

There was an issue between her and Ma Lu that needed to be resolved: namely, an overly ambitious employee working for a boss who lacked grand aspirations.

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