Fated Love With the Billionaire
Chapter 336: Making Attitudes Clear

Chapter 336: Chapter 336: Making Attitudes Clear

Beep——

A car horn snapped Lu Xingyan’s attention back. He walked to the car, opened the door, and said to the person in the back seat, "What trick are you playing now?"

Wang Qing shot him a glare and got out of the car.

Lu Xingyan, bored out of his mind, stared at the flow of traffic on the road and muttered, "Where did Da Xing’s car go? Why hasn’t he caught up yet?"

Wang Qing used to think Lu Xingyan was a fairly straightforward guy, but now her impression of him had plummeted.

Still, he was handsome, and Wang Qing found herself hopelessly infatuated, so she began obsessing over trivial things.

Her mind wasn’t on why Da Xing was so slow. Instead, she pretended to ask casually, "That was Manager Chen just now, right?"

"Yeah." Lu Xingyan acknowledged.

"What a coincidence, she’s here for dinner too?" Wang Qing asked again.

Lu Xingyan zipped up his coat to the top, tucking his chin into the collar while shoving his hands into his pockets, his feet constantly shifting to keep warm.

"Sss..." He hissed as the cold made even talking hurt his teeth, "No, she’s at Xiajiangnan across the street. There were no parking spaces over there."

On a northern winter night, standing outside for a moment was enough to chill someone to the bone. The cold spread from his feet up to his legs, and the sharp, icy wind cut his face like a knife.

Still no sign of Cao Jianxing’s car. Lu Xingyan finally stepped inside the restaurant.

"Let’s wait inside; it’s freezing out here."

Wang Qing followed him in but turned to glance once more in the direction of Xiajiangnan before entering.

At that moment, Chen Ningxi pushed open the door to a private room. Sure enough, besides Zou Yong, there was also a manager involved in business dealings with her company.

The other party had invited her several times, but she had politely declined each time.

As soon as Sun Chang saw her enter, she hurried to greet her, "Manager Chen, please have a seat. Everyone’s here now. I’ll go let the waiter know to serve the dishes."

Chen Ningxi gave her a distant smile, "Manager Sun is here too."

She took a seat beside Zou Yong, and once Sun Chang stepped out, Zou Yong said, "Manager Sun’s sister is close with your aunt, and your aunt spoke on their behalf. I had no choice but to organize this dinner."

Chen Ningxi chuckled and deliberately joked, "Mr. Zou, you mean you’re afraid of my aunt?"

She needed to divert the conversation from the main topic—Sun Chang intended to take over Pan Cheng’s procurement order, but the cable quality from Sun Chang’s company was still below standard.

Not uttering a single word about the order was a clear statement of her stance.

Zou Yong understood this perfectly.

Sun Chang returned and saw the two of them whispering, seemingly discussing something private.

She smiled and sat back in her seat, saying, "I heard from Zou that you love seafood, so I just went to the kitchen and ordered a few more seafood dishes. Don’t worry, they’re fresh—I watched the chef pull them straight from the tank."

Chen Ningxi said, "There’s no need to order too much. There are only a few of us, and we can’t finish it all."

Sun Chang’s dimples made her smile even more charming, but the calculating look in her eyes diluted the sweetness and friendliness.

Zou Yong broke the ice for them, "Let’s change the way we address each other after work, shall we? No need for Manager Sun, just call her Sister Sun, and no Manager Chen either—call her Ning Xi, or even Little Sis."

Sun Chang was the first to change her tone, addressing Chen Ningxi, "Then I’ll listen to Zou and call you Little Sis Chen."

Chen Ningxi nodded and called her Sister Sun.

Breaking the ice required establishing a sense of closeness, and changing how they addressed each other immediately drew them closer.

Sun Chang was tactful and didn’t rush into discussing business. Instead, she started building rapport with Chen Ningxi.

"I heard from Zou that you’re originally from this area? So, did you also go to Danjiang First High School?"

Chen Ningxi replied, "Yes, I did."

Sun Chang’s face lit up as if they were old friends reunited, "I thought you looked familiar! I went to Danjiang First High too—I think I’m two years ahead of you."

"Really?" Chen Ningxi said, showing no sign of recognition, "I guess we didn’t really get to meet much in senior year; most of the time we were busy studying."

Sun Chang agreed, "Exactly, senior year is all about studying—exhausting, but worth it."

Chen Ningxi smiled lightly, "Hard work always pays off."

Sun Chang then mentioned a few mutual acquaintances, most of whom had some connection to the Chen Family. When it came down to generational hierarchy, Chen Ningxi realized she might have to address Sun Chang as "Little Aunt."

Zou Yong chimed in from the side, "That’s great—you two are relatives. It’s even easier to talk amongst family."

Chen Ningxi didn’t refute him, opting to preserve the harmony of the dinner, "True, when it’s family, some things can be said more sincerely."

She was laying the groundwork so she could use their familial ties as an excuse to refuse later.

Midway through the dinner, Sun Chang gradually shifted the conversation toward the procurement order. Noticing this, Chen Ningxi set down her glass and said:

"Little Aunt, I’m only saying this because of our close ties. If this were anyone else, I absolutely wouldn’t bring this up."

Upon hearing this, Sun Chang adopted a serious expression, "Don’t worry, say whatever’s on your mind."

Chen Ningxi said, "Our company did indeed order a batch of cable equipment from Pan Cheng’s company, but he didn’t secure the order by pulling strings."

She rested her arm lightly on the edge of the table, tilting her body slightly, "From the initial bidding process to cable quality and after-sales maintenance, everything met the standards. There were no issues with the quality inspection either. Moreover, the key point is that Shangxing Special Electric’s cables comply with the latest national standards."

Sun Chang furrowed her brows, showing skepticism. Pan Cheng had a reputation in the industry for using shady techniques, so it was surprising to hear he’d played it straight this time.

But Sun Chang had her own agenda. She slyly hinted, "Ning Xi, there are things I won’t repeat, so you don’t have to worry. Shangxing’s cable quality is almost identical to what our company produces. If Shangxing’s quality is up to standard, then ours certainly won’t have any issues."

Chen Ningxi replied, "If the product meets national standards, then there’ll be absolutely no issues on my end."

Sun Chang glanced at Zou Yong, clearly signaling him to mediate.

Zou Yong withdrew his gaze—this wasn’t the right moment for him to step in.

Sun Chang picked up a glass of wine and moved to sit beside Chen Ningxi, lowering her voice, "Ning Xi, Little Aunt doesn’t mean anything else by this. The report hasn’t come back yet, but I guarantee it meets the new national standards. Rest assured, once the report is finalized, I’ll provide you with supplementary materials immediately. What do you think?"

"..." Definitely not!

Chen Ningxi smiled apologetically, "Little Aunt, you’re more specialized in this field than I am, and you should understand better than anyone what cable quality means. When cable accidents happen, they result in either property loss or casualties. The former can be resolved with compensation, but if it leads to injuries or fatalities, the liability investigation will fall on us. Which one of us can shoulder that responsibility? Can anyone really afford it? Once the cables are installed, if nothing happens, everything is fine. But if something does go wrong, neither you nor I will be able to walk away unscathed—it’ll end in legal trouble."

Sun Chang laughed and lightly patted the back of Chen Ningxi’s hand, "It won’t be that serious. You’re too timid."

When it came to safety production, who dared to take risks and break the rules? Unless Chen Ningxi wanted to throw her career away.

She replied tactfully, "I’ve always been timid—been like this since I was a kid."

That was as good as saying, "No way."

Sun Chang cleared her throat lightly and looked at Zou Yong, who stepped in to deflect the conversation.

"Manager Sun, why don’t you provide Ning Xi with the supplementary materials first? We can discuss the rest later."

Zou Yong didn’t outright refuse, but he also didn’t agree.

...