NOVPUB
Chapter 107: Chapter 106: The Warrior Who Charges for Love
"Li Ya and I are university alumni," Li Hao said with a smile.
Mr. Chen gave a thumbs up, "From classmates to lovers, from across the ocean to this familiar land, Manager Li’s love history is truly enviable!"
With that compliment, the smile on Li Hao’s face became even more brilliant.
"Mr. Chen misunderstood, she is my junior," he continued, "When she enrolled as a freshman this year, I had already been working for three to five years."
Mr. Chen looked again at Li Hao standing before him.
He didn’t give off the sleazy vibe typical of a front-end finance man; instead, he had an air of youthful vigor.
Had he not revealed this age difference himself, Mr. Chen would never have guessed Li Hao’s true age.
However, it did make sense when considering Li Hao’s work experience mentioned last night.
"On the first day Li Ya enrolled, I happened to go back to school to see Professor Charmain," Li Hao took out a cigarette and offered one to Mr. Chen,
"I met her at the school gate. Seeing her alone with three suitcases, I was quite curious."
His eyes shone brightly, "Mr. Chen, you should know, her appearance often makes her mistaken for a foreigner."
"So, I went up to offer a hand," Li Hao continued, "It was only when we started talking that I realized she was a compatriot."
Mr. Chen nodded, "Encountering one’s own people in a foreign land does give a sense of reliance."
"I’ve worked there for many years too, and the outgoing Li Ya seemed to open up my heart."
Li Hao took a deep drag of his cigarette, seemingly transported back to that sunny afternoon with the hustle and bustle at the school gate fading into the background, and only his conversation with Li Ya was clear in his ears.
He smiled, with all his words filled with memories, "I helped her take her luggage to the dorm and we exchanged contact information."
"And just like that, our story began."
Compatriot, senior, enthusiastically helping — all these buffs overlaid at that moment.
Mr. Chen listened to Li Hao’s story and swiftly unraveled the timeline in his mind.
"So, it seems like you two didn’t date for long?" he asked.
"48 days, 11 hours, 43 minutes," Li Hao said, eyeing his Rolex.
Mr. Chen raised his eyebrows, "I didn’t realize Manager Li was such a romantic."
"I think meeting Li Ya was lucky," Li Hao went on, "If she hadn’t been in a hurry to return to China, I wouldn’t have followed her back."
Mr. Chen caught on to something important, "In a hurry to return to China? But she had just enrolled, hadn’t she?"
Li Hao kept his expression unchanged, "The environment in overseas universities is different from home. Although Li Ya has a Western appearance, she was educated in a Chinese way since she was young."
"Local people didn’t accept her, and the international students from China found her out of place, so she became an outcast at school."
Li Hao’s voice carried a hint of helplessness, "She didn’t like the environment there and preferred to return to the motherland, to the land she knew."
"When I found out she wanted to come back, I was actually quite torn,"
A complex emotion flashed in Li Hao’s eyes, "I had a stable job and a good life over there, but Li Ya’s departure meant losing a very important companion in life."
"But I also understood that I couldn’t bind her because of my selfishness."
He took a deep breath, as if making up his mind, "So, I decided to come back with her."
Mr. Chen: "That’s a big decision for you."
"Yes, but I believe it was the right decision."
A determined look appeared on Li Hao’s face, "After coming back, I joined CGG and got this job."
Laughing, he said, "Mr. Chen, you know all about me now, don’t you?"
Mr. Chen looked at Li Hao’s sincere smile as if seeing a warrior who, for love, had given up a high salary and resolutely returned to his homeland.
But he also understood that since Li Ya is likely to be Wen Shulin’s daughter, Li Hao’s true motives for returning to the country were questionable.
For a girl he had only known for a handful of days, even if she was very beautiful, it’s unlikely that a shrewd person like Li Hao would gamble his career on it.
The only explanation was that Li Hao knew about Li Ya’s family situation.
And he knew that after returning to the country, he could get what he wanted.
"Manager Li is amazing!" Mr. Chen still said, "If it was me, I definitely wouldn’t have the courage."
"Not at all, Mr. Chen, you jest," Li Hao waved his hand, "Life is short. Meeting the right person isn’t easy."
Mr. Chen nodded, "That’s true."
"Oh, right," Li Hao flicked the ash from his cigarette, "So what happened with your foreign polyglot lady in the end?"
Mr. Chen replied calmly, "Ha, brings up a stomachful of fire when I think about it."
"I met her while on a business trip."
Mr. Chen began his story, "Initially, it was quite sweet, but when she found out I was going back to China, she broke up with me."
"She told me that she preferred life abroad and would not follow me back to China."
There was a hint of regret in Mr. Chen’s tone, "At that time, I was truly disappointed and sad."
After hearing this, Li Hao comforted him, "Mr. Chen, I understand how you feel. Matters of the heart are always unpredictable."
Mr. Chen nodded, "Indeed, who can truly understand affairs of the heart? But now I’ve come to terms with it. Everyone has their choices, and I can’t force mine on them."
"That’s why I asked you whether the tulips in The Butchart Gardens have bloomed," Mr. Chen said with a smile, "That’s where we made our commitment."
Li Hao laughed heartily, "It seems Mr. Chen is someone who cherishes the past."
"More conservative, I guess!" Mr. Chen answered.
Li Hao put out his cigarette and asked, "Mr. Chen, what do you think about this product?"
Mr. Chen: "Let’s do this, I have a fund of thirty million arriving next Thursday. I will contact you then."
Li Hao happily said, "Alright, then I’ll lock in a thirty million share for Mr. Chen first."
Chen Cheng stood up, "Thanks for your hard work, taking the time to chat with me during the weekend."
"It’s all part of my job."
After chatting a bit more, Chen Cheng stood up, preparing to leave.
Li Hao escorted him to the door, and the two shook hands goodbye.
Exiting the CGG building, Chen Cheng stood by the roadside, pondering the news he had just received.
Li Hao’s care for Su Liya was visible to the naked eye.
Yet Chen Cheng recalled her attitude from last night.
It was clearly not the interaction one would expect between a couple who were dating.
"Could he be lying?" This was the only reason Chen Cheng could come up with.
Ding-ding-ding.
A burst of ringing from a phone call interrupted his thoughts, it was Chen Jin calling.
"Mr. Chen, are you busy?"
Chen Cheng: "Just left CGG, met with Li Hao."
"That’s great, I’ve got some new information," said Chen Jin, "How about we look into it together?"
"Sure! Where shall we meet up?"
Chen Jin: "I’ll come pick you up right now."
"Alright."
Hanging up the phone, Chen Cheng looked at the bustling traffic in front of him, then turned to gaze at the towering skyscraper behind him, and questioned himself, "Which of his words were true?"
...
Roughly twenty minutes later, a large G-class stopped in front of Chen Cheng.
Chen Jin rolled down the window and smiled, "Mr. Chen, get in."
Chen Cheng got into the passenger seat, and Chen Jin drove off.
"Why are you driving yourself today?" Chen Cheng asked with a smile.
Chen Jin: "Weekend, felt like going for a drive by myself."
He took a file bag from the side of the driver’s door, "Mr. Chen, take a look at this first. It’s Li Hao’s information."
"That was fast," Chen Cheng took it.
Chen Jin: "Easy to look up, and very clean."
After opening it, Chen Cheng saw the detailed information of Li Hao.
Li Hao was from Su Bei, went to Canada during high school, and only returned to China last month.
"This guy’s family is decent. They own a clothing factory in Su Bei with annual revenue of around eighty to ninety million," continued Chen Jin as he drove.
"But since his middle school grades were mediocre and he couldn’t get into a good school, he was sent abroad."
Chen Cheng was looking at the detailed information that was even more thorough than a census, with Li Hao’s parents investigated just as clearly.
But then he thought if Chen Jin could get this detailed information about Li Hao’s ancestors in only about ten hours, then Wen Shulin must have seen all this long ago.
"So this means he’s just a rich second-generation kid," Chen Cheng muttered.
Chen Jin nodded, "Yeah, a small-fry rich second generation, no significant background."
Chen Cheng closed the folder, thinking back to his talk with Wu Dongyi, he understood why Li Hao was put in the fund department of CGG, instead of a less demanding department like "Strategic Investment."
"If he has no background, and Wen Shulin is promoting him, then there’s only one possibility," Chen Cheng remarked.
"He has something on him," Chen Jin repeated the conclusion from last night.
"But I don’t know what kind of leverage Xiao Wen could possibly have over him," he continued, "unless it’s his wild younger years having an illegitimate daughter and a relationship that wasn’t made public, what else could there be?"
Chen Cheng gazed out of the car window and spoke lightly, "The only thing that could possibly make a mother comply, I am afraid, is her child."
"What?"
"I think the problem is with this Su Liya," Chen Cheng gave his judgment.
Chen Jin found it a bit unbelievable, "What kind of problem could a young girl have?"
Chen Cheng detailed Su Liya’s sudden return to the country, and also roughly explained about Li Hao who rushed back for love.
"This..." Chen Jin frowned, "Are you saying that Su Liya got into some kind of trouble there?"
"Could it be drugs?" Chen Cheng asked.
"Over there, that’s hardly an issue," Chen Jin considered for a moment, "It must have been something serious for her to rush back to the country."
"And Li Hao knows the whole thing, or even more likely, witnessed Su Liya do something, and so..."
The two pieced together the whole story bit by bit.
Chen Cheng reopened the folder, his gaze fell on the alma mater shared by Li Hao and Su Liya—Queen’s University.
He took out his phone, bypassed the firewall, and began searching for news related to this university on Twitter, FB, and Google.
Shortly after, on Twitter, Chen Cheng saw a post that immediately caught his eye.
"Lao Chen."
"Hmm?"
"Do you think it could be because of this?"
He handed the phone to Chen Jin, and upon seeing it, Chen Jin’s brows furrowed tightly, even the speed of the G-class slowed down.
