This was good news that allowed everyone to heave a sigh of relief.
Mu Junze landed at noon the next day and quietly returned to Shangting. Meng Nianchu, who had originally planned to pick him up at the airport, was stuck at home.
"I thought you'd only be back this afternoon. Why are you back so early?" Meng Nianchu took his luggage and pushed it aside.
Mu Junze reached out and hugged her, burying his head in the crook of her neck. He asked in a low voice, "How have you been these days?"
"I..." Meng Nianchu wanted to tell him about the time she was knocked unconscious, but she felt sorry for how hard he'd been working these days. She swallowed back her initial words and said with a gentle smile, "I'm fine. Mom has taken good care of me at home."
As she said this, she held his face in both hands and saw the exhaustion on it.
"You've had a tough time in the US these past two days. Go take a shower and rest first. We can talk about everything later. There's no rush."
Mu Junze let out a long breath, gave a soft grunt, and walked upstairs rubbing his temples.
Meng Nianchu pressed her red lips tightly together, thinking that it wasn't the right time to burden him with more trouble.
The most important thing now was to find Wang Long. Bai Ling's friend in Singapore had only caught a glimpse of Wang Long near the seaside villa by chance and then lost all traces of him.
On the other hand, Mu Junze had also sent his men to search for Wang Long with all their might. Most of the business tycoons had also pitched in, hoping to take this opportunity to get in good with Mu Junze and make money with him in the future.
With more people on the search, naturally, more leads emerged.
Just as the last day to reply to Tianmin Company was approaching and Meng's father was in a complete panic, Mu Junze suddenly received a call from one of his employees. The employee said that they'd seen Wang Long at the airport on his way back from Singapore. Along with two other employees, they'd caught the man and were already on their way back to Shangting in the car.
When Mu Junze and Meng's father, who were still at Shangting and hadn't gone to the company yet, heard this news, the stones in their hearts dropped by more than half.
Meng's father spread his arms on the sofa and said with a smile, "Junze, you've really helped a great deal with this matter. Thank you so much!"
"It's okay."
Mu Junze looked at Meng Nianchu, who was standing to one side.
Knowing that he was being a bit awkward and seeking praise, Meng Nianchu didn't hesitate to give him a thumbs - up. "You're amazing!"
Sure enough, after she said this, the corners of Mu Junze's mouth curled up slightly.
The distance from the airport to Shangting wasn't too far. The employee dragging Wang Long arrived at Shangting in no time.
When Meng's father saw Wang Long, who'd caused him so much trouble, his anger flared up immediately. He grabbed Wang Long by the collar and punched him in the face.
"You little brat, you've really grown bold, haven't you? How dare you stab me in the back! What did I do to you that made you hold so much resentment and do such a despicable thing! Tell me!"
Wang Long took the punch and slumped to the ground. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and sneered coldly, "I'm willing to be this despicable."
This enraged Meng's father so much that he wanted to hit him again.
Meng Nianchu quickly stopped him. "He's still useful, Dad. Don't get so angry that you hurt yourself."
"Hurt myself?" Meng's father pulled back his fist, his eyes full of mockery. "It's not worth getting angry over such a petty person!"
Hearing this, Wang Long propped himself up and stood up. He scanned the huge living room and said in a sarcastic tone, "No wonder Boss Meng is so capable. For a small project, he'd even lie to the people around him. He'd keep saying, 'I'm doing this for your own good. I think highly of you.' But in the end, he still favored that new guy who got into the company through connections and promoted him in every way."
"What do you mean!"
Hearing Meng's father's cold - voiced question, Wang Long glanced at him from the corner of his eye. "Doesn't Boss Meng know what I mean?"
"The Hainan project was clearly assigned to me. Why, after that He Jiang, who graduated from some small - time place, joined the company, did you hand the project over to him directly! Boss Meng once said that he hated most in the company was people getting in through connections and having incompetent people join.
"But what about He Jiang? Where did he come from? Not only did you let him into the company directly, but you also gave him the project!"
Meng Nianchu remembered the Hainan clothing project. It had been a year ago.
Back then, when Meng's father went to the factory to check the clothing fabric in person, he suddenly had a heart attack. It was He Jiang, who happened to be working in the factory, who gave him first - aid treatment in time and called the emergency hotline, which saved Meng's father's life.
To repay He Jiang for saving his life, Meng's father originally wanted to arrange for He Jiang to learn other clothing - related jobs in the company so that he could be promoted later.
Unexpectedly, this young man was full of hidden talents. Although he'd just graduated not long ago, he already had rich design experience and had even done co - branding for well - known brands. He'd been willing to work in the factory just because he was bored.
With such an outstanding resume, how could Meng's father let such a good talent slip through his fingers! After much persuasion, he finally got He Jiang to join the company and handed the Hainan project to him so that he could show his talents.
At that time, Meng's father had also explained this to Wang Long, but he still had misunderstandings.
Hearing him bring up this matter, Meng's father gritted his back teeth in frustration. "Back then, to compensate you, I also gave you an equally important project, and you said you didn't care! You've been scheming for so long over such a small thing. I really misjudged you back then!"
"Is it really just this one thing?" Meng Nianchu suddenly spoke up, her eyes cold.
Wang Long looked at her. As if Meng Nianchu's gaze could see through what was on his mind, Wang Long couldn't help but feel scared. In a way of throwing caution to the wind, he shouted loudly, "So what if I did this? Isn't it just about losing money? I'll pay. I'm willing to take responsibility for everything. Is that okay!"
Mu Junze recorded what he said and sent it to the senior management of Tianmin Company. Then he leaned back on the sofa, folded his arms across his chest, and watched silently.
Meng Nianchu half - smiled and spoke again. "Someone saw you wandering around Meng Rong's seaside villa in Singapore. You've known Meng Rong for a long time and even joked that you had a crush on her. If you really wanted to take revenge on my father, you'd have had countless opportunities in a year."
"I, it's none of your business!" Beads of sweat dotted Wang Long's forehead. He was breathing rapidly. He shouted and then didn't dare to look into Meng Nianchu's eyes anymore. He quickly looked away.
Meng Nianchu let out a snort. "How much money could a designer working in the company have to silence the other company?"
She paused for a moment. Seeing that Wang Long was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, she slowly continued, "Maybe you don't know yet. My father has already cut off all relations with Meng Rong. If you're hoping that she'll spend money to save you, you might as well go out and buy a lottery ticket right now."
"Or, you can tell me if the person who instigated you to do this is really Meng Rong. If you tell the truth, I'm also willing to help you out. How about it?"