Chapter 113: Chapter 112: What I Want Is an Attitude

He sat up in the bubble bath, long legs at his service. His phone had several missed calls and was vibrating nonstop with messages, but Lin Chu ignored it all.

This was a high-pressure tactic.

If things were going to fall apart, so be it.

No matter how respectable you were, you couldn’t forget your ruthless side. When it was time to bare your fangs, you bared your fangs.

If you dared to bare your fangs, even if you didn’t actually do it, you were still a wolf.

If you didn’t, you’d forever be a dog.

"Yingying..."

Lin Chu suddenly called her name.

"Hmm?"

She shifted, sending a splash of bubbles rippling through the water.

"A three-person game of poker... know how to play?"

Lin Chu asked, a teasing glint in his eyes.

She froze for a second. Her face, already flushed from the steam, turned an even deeper shade of red as she gently bit her lip.

’She didn’t deny it, which means she agrees.’

Lin Chu pursed his lips into a smile but didn’t tease her further. ’Am I really going to go through with it? No, it’s the attitude that counts!’

...

「Early the next morning.」

Zhang Peng was up a little after six. Ever since they started the company, he’d been waking up earlier and earlier, heading to the hotel gym every morning to work out.

Health is wealth, after all.

Brother Chu, on the other hand, usually slept in past nine, and Zhang Peng was used to it.

As he stepped out of his room, Zhang Peng was surprised to see a man standing outside the door. He wasn’t particularly tall, but he was quite handsome.

He’d never met Hou Chengjin, so he didn’t recognize him.

"Hello?"

Zhang Peng guessed the man was looking for Lin Chu and asked with a polite smile.

Hou Chengjin smiled and nodded. He’d been up all night, and the dark circles under his eyes and his weary expression showed it. "Excuse me, is this President Lin’s room? I’m a friend of his."

Zhang Peng noted his polite attitude but remained cautious. He didn’t invite him in, instead standing in the doorway. "What can I help you with? Have you been... waiting all night?"

’He’s probably here looking for an investment,’ he guessed.

’That sort of thing was pretty common.’

Hou Chengjin nodded and got straight to the point. "That’s not important. One of my people messed up and angered President Lin. I’m the boss, so I’m here to clean up the mess. I messaged President Lin, but he hasn’t replied, so I came to see him in person. Is it convenient? Could you let him know I’m here? Just tell him it’s Hou Chengjin; he’ll know who I am."

Hearing this, Zhang Peng relaxed.

’If Brother Chu was ignoring him, he must have a good reason.’

’It’s best if I don’t get involved.’

"President Lin is sleeping, so I’d rather not disturb him. Why don’t you go get some rest? I’ll pass on your message to him. If he wants to talk, he’ll contact you."

Zhang Peng said tactfully.

’It wouldn’t be right to just leave the man waiting here.’

’Making him wait would only build more resentment. Whatever the misunderstanding was, it was best to put it on hold for now.’

’So, the best thing to do was send him away and try to smooth things over later.’

Zhang Peng was now very clear on his role. Lin Chu was the public face of the company, and he was the one working behind the scenes. The face could do whatever it wanted, while the one behind the scenes had to clean up the messes.

Hou Chengjin glanced at him and sighed inwardly.

’This must be one of Lin Chu’s men.’

’He handles himself well.’

’Thinking of that streamer of his, Hou Chengjin wanted to strangle her. What an idiot! A world-class, museum-grade idiot!’

"Alright, sorry to trouble you. Can I get your WeChat?"

Hou Chengjin said with a smile, pulling out his phone.

Zhang Peng thought for a moment and agreed, pulling out his own phone to let him scan his code. "Sure."

"Great. I’ll get a room nearby and catch a quick nap. Please let President Lin know I’m waiting to speak with him in person once he’s awake."

With that, Hou Chengjin turned and left.

’There was no point in waiting any longer. He’d already shown his sincerity by waiting here and sending Lin Chu a message every hour from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. Lin Chu would definitely see them when he woke up.’

’At the end of the day, the fault lay with him. He’d chosen the wrong person for the job—someone like *her*—and he had been too careless.’

’You don’t offend a big shot who can casually drop ten million, even if you can’t end up working with them.’

’Besides, he was now certain that President Lin was a tough nut to crack. Women couldn’t get a handle on him; he seemed to have no weaknesses.’

’...except for his love of fine dining. And Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.’

Zhang Peng watched him leave, lost in thought.

Still, he didn’t knock on Lin Chu’s door. He just sent him a message on WeChat before heading downstairs to the gym.

...

Lin Chu woke up, opened his eyes, and grabbed his phone. Dozens of unread messages.

He scrolled through them and saw that most were from Hou Chengjin. Miaomiao had sent seven or eight messages, all apologizing for what happened last night.

Zhang Peng had sent a few as well.

He mentioned running into the guy that morning.

The most recent one read: "Brother Chu, wake up! Get to the gym, quick! The girl in the white swimsuit—I see her! She’s right here! Hasn’t left yet! I’ll keep an eye on her!"

He checked the time. The message was sent at 7:48. It was now 8:11.

Not much time had passed, and since Zhang Peng hadn’t sent an update, she was probably still there.

Lin Chu felt a flicker of interest and had to suppress a smile.

He hadn’t gone out of his way to look for the girl in the white swimsuit after that one fleeting glimpse, but she had certainly left a deep impression. He still hadn’t forgotten her, and clearly, neither had Zhang Peng.

’Truly, if you never forget something, you’re bound to encounter it again.’

"Where is she now?"

Lin Chu replied quickly.

Zhang Peng: "In the fitness area. She’s on a treadmill and has been for over half an hour. She’ll probably be done in another thirty minutes. No rush. Take your time, shower, do your hair, put on some cologne, the works."

’You’re so thoughtful, Peng.’

Lin Chu smiled.

As for Hou Chengjin and his crew, Lin Chu fired off a quick reply: "What’s past is past. If we have business, we can talk about it later. Let’s move on."

’Some relationships are like working out. The muscle fibers tear and then repair themselves, growing back even stronger.’

Still, Lin Chu didn’t feel like he’d won.

’I didn’t fucking win. I didn’t get anything out of it. It was all a big waste of time.’

’At best, you could say I didn’t lose.’

’Of course, as a "battle record" for his first time dealing with this crowd, it was decent enough.’

...

Showering, drying his hair, changing, and heading out the door was a single, fluid motion.

Jin Jiaying woke up, but Lin Chu just told her to go back to sleep before he headed straight for the hotel gym.

’The early bird gets the worm, huh?’

He got there and found Zhang Peng.

He didn’t even need Zhang Peng to point her out. Lin Chu’s eyes were immediately drawn to a woman on the treadmill in black shorts and a white T-shirt. She was running at a brisk pace—the machine was set high, probably at 9—and her form was vigorous. Her chest bounced with each stride, barely contained by her sports bra.

Yet her face was strikingly youthful, with fair, flawless skin that seemed to radiate a youthful aura.

’No wonder I remembered that face. Absolutely divine.’

’She looked just as stunning on the treadmill as she did in the water.’

Plenty of people in the fitness area were sneaking glances at her, some more obviously than others.

"Go on, Bro. You go for it. I’m focused on my career right now, no time for romance. But hey, I think you could seriously consider this one for sister-in-law material. Of all the candidates I’ve seen so far, she’s number one. Total goddess vibes, for real."

Zhang Peng goaded him on with a mischievous grin.

Lin Chu shot him a look, the corners of his mouth turning up. He inwardly agreed but still retorted, "You just haven’t seen enough of the world. What the fuck is a ’goddess’?"

...

...