Wei Shu said, "Third Master, calm down! This is just a drama. All we need to do is learn from how the male lead won the female lead back. The rest doesn't matter, it doesn't matter!"
Although the plot was rather brainless, the kind of roller - coaster and dog - blood plot was just so addictive that people couldn't stop clicking. Before they knew it, Yan Yincheng, Wei Shu and the others had stayed up all night binge - watching the drama. At dawn, the show was just at the part where the male lead misunderstood the female lead because of his first love and insisted on divorcing her. Third Master Yan was so angry that he kicked over the trash can.
"That idiot! He couldn't even see such an obvious frame - up! He hurt Zhixi and divorced her for that woman. He deserves to end up in hot water!"
After he finished scolding, he felt the surroundings fall into complete silence. Suddenly, he realized that he might have just scolded himself!
He roared, "I'm not watching anymore! What a lousy TV show! I'm going to have this show permanently taken off the shelves so it can never be aired again!"
Wei Shu helped up the trash can, turned off the over - heated TV for the time being, and said, "Sure, Third Master. I'll call right away and have them ban this TV show! We've been watching all night and must be tired. How about we don't go to Pei's today and just take a good rest?"
After calming down, Yan Yincheng also felt a bit sleepy, so he said, "Okay."
While Yan Yincheng, Wei Shu and the others were catching up on sleep after their all - night drama binge, Miss Xu was already full of energy and on her way to work.
Coincidentally, Pei Mingyuan came to the company early today and happened to run into Xu Zixi in the elevator.
"Good morning, Xiaoxi," he greeted.
Xu Zixi replied, "Good morning, President Pei."
After this exchange, the two fell into silence and the atmosphere became a bit awkward. Xu Zixi thought for a while and took the initiative to say, "President Pei seems to be very busy recently? I haven't seen you in the company for a long time." She remembered that the last time she saw him was during the first test of the model.
Pei Mingyuan rubbed his temples and said, "Yes, I've really been quite busy recently. Besides the Gulf Project, I've also been dealing with other company affairs. Mr. Yan, the third son, went through our financial reports from the past six months and found several loopholes. These loopholes seem to be man - made. I'm still investigating, but the progress is a bit slow."
Xu Zixi couldn't help raising her eyebrows in surprise and said, "Man - made loopholes? What's going on?"
In the president's office, Xu Zixi was sitting on the sofa, propping her chin with one hand and flipping through the financial reports of Pei's from the past six months with the other. Pei Mingyuan was chattering in her ear about the loopholes that Yan Yincheng had discovered from the reports.
"I've gone to find the people involved in the incidents that Mr. Yan mentioned one by one during this period, and asked them about the situation at that time, but I haven't found any problems. I've even been thinking if this is just a smoke - screen that Mr. Yan deliberately put out to stop me from getting close to you. Look, I've been so busy recently that I don't even have a chance to talk to you."
Pei Mingyuan said to Xu Zixi rather aggrievedly. After all the investigations, he still had no clue. He had thought more than once that Yan Yincheng must have done it on purpose! There were no real loopholes at all, it was all made up!
Xu Zixi flipped through the reports very quickly, skimming through them as if she didn't need to think at all. After a moment, she closed the reports and said, "Mr. Yan is right. There are indeed problems."
Pei Mingyuan was shocked. Yan Yincheng hadn't lied to him. It was real?
Xu Zixi didn't say that, looking at the financial reports, it was a bit far - fetched to connect these losses and claim they were man - made. But after learning from Fang Ruiyang that there was an insider from the Zhao family in Pei's, these losses were obviously no longer "unavoidable factors". Thinking of how Fang Ruiyang had badmouthed another insider in front of Zhao Quanjing, she had another idea.
Pei Mingyuan suddenly remembered that the charming woman sitting across from him had another unexpected identity - hacker. Maybe she could help him solve the problems that he couldn't find or understand?
"Xiaoxi, can you help me?" He looked at Xu Zixi with eager eyes. "Third Master Yan has given an ultimatum. He wants me to solve this problem as soon as possible and reverse the losses within half a year. I think I can't do it alone. I need your help!"
Xu Zixi couldn't help thinking of the clothes that had inexplicably appeared in her living room yesterday and felt like laughing.
What a coincidence, it was also half a year. It seemed that Pei Mingyuan's feeling was right. Yan Yincheng had done it on purpose. He must have worked really hard to find these loopholes just to give Pei Mingyuan something to do.
"Do you want to hire me?" Xu Zixi said to Pei Mingyuan. "But I'm very expensive."
Pei Mingyuan said, "Don't worry. I won't shortchange you. Twenty million. Is that okay?"
Xu Zixi shook her head. "At this price, you can only hire my apprentice."
Pei Mingyuan: "???" When did she get an apprentice? No, this price was already very high! The last time she solved the video problem for Weiwei, she charged ten million. Now he was doubling it. Wasn't it enough?
"Then... thirty million?" Pei Mingyuan had no choice but to raise the price a bit.
Xu Zixi tapped the table gently with her slender fingers and said, "President Pei, the price doesn't work like this. If I help you, solve these loopholes, expose the person behind all this, and reverse Pei's losses, I'll be bringing in continuous profits for Pei's. It's not appropriate for you to try to pay me off with just thirty million, is it?"
"But... you're also a part of Pei's. You've also signed a 20% dry - share dividend agreement. Solving the loopholes and reversing the losses is also in your own interest, isn't it?" Pei Mingyuan said matter - of - factly.
"You can't mix these things up, President Pei," Xu Zixi smiled. "The 20% dry - share dividend is a return for my hard work and labor for Pei's. But what you need now is another unknown skill of mine. Helping you with the investigation is not within my job scope or my job responsibility. The price should be calculated separately. All these are clearly stated in the contract."
"Then name your price!" Pei Mingyuan said, steeling himself.
"One hundred million. No bargaining," Xu Zixi said. "This is already a friendship price at a huge discount. You know, I usually don't take on any tasks that pay less than a billion."
One hundred million... Pei Mingyuan could afford it, but the major shareholder of Pei's was no longer from the Pei family. If this money went through the company's account, it would surely be discovered by that Yan guy. If that person found out that he had asked her for help, he might give the Pei family a hard time again. But if he had to pay this money out of his own pocket, he would feel reluctant. One hundred million, after all...
"Then I'll hire your apprentice," he said. Since she was so good, the apprentice she had personally trained shouldn't be too bad, right?
"Can your apprentice take on this task for twenty million?"
"Beep." Suddenly, Xu Zixi's phone rang with a text message notification. She apologized to Pei Mingyuan and then clicked on the latest unread message.
The text message was from Fang Ruiyang. It read, "I've returned everything."