Qin Zhongtian had just finished his meeting and barely settled into his chair when the door was shoved open, revealing Pei Shaoze's furious face.
"President Pei?"
Qin Zhongtian looked at the visitor with some surprise.
"President Qin, are you deliberately unwilling to cooperate with our Dingshun Group?"
Pei Shaoze's chilling aura made the temperature in the entire office drop significantly.
Qin Zhongtian was momentarily stunned, staring blankly at Pei Shaoze before finally asking, "President Pei, what do you mean by that? Cooperating with Dingsheng Group is a tremendous opportunity for our company."
Pei Shaoze wasn't buying it at all, his expression remaining icy.
"I sent my personal secretary to discuss the next steps with you, but your company threw my person out the door. Is this your attitude?"
Hearing this, Qin Zhongtian was still confused and instinctively looked up at Su Banxia standing nearby.
"President Pei, could there be some misunderstanding here?"
"Misunderstanding?"
Pei Shaoze let out a cold laugh. "If President Qin doesn't believe me, why not pull up the surveillance footage and see for yourself."
Qin Zhongtian quickly shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I'm wondering if there might be another misunderstanding? Secretary Su rarely appears in public, so it's understandable that our front desk didn't recognize Miss Su."
"Not recognizing her is one thing, but couldn't they have called to confirm? Did they have to throw my secretary out of your company's door to feel satisfied?"
As Pei Shaoze said this, his gaze sharpened, and the coldness radiating from him made Qin Zhongtian involuntarily step back a few paces.
Seeing Qin Zhongtian like this, Pei Shaoze paused before continuing, "I never expected President Qin to protect his employees so well. It seems we have to swallow this loss ourselves?"
"This was my front desk's fault. I'll go reprimand them right away."
Qin Zhongtian forced himself to speak under Pei Shaoze's piercing stare.
"This is our first collaboration, and I didn't expect President Qin to have such an attitude toward our company. It seems I've disturbed you."
With that, Pei Shaoze turned to leave with Su Banxia.
"President Pei!"
Seeing this, Qin Zhongtian quickly stepped forward to block their path.
Pei Shaoze looked at him expressionlessly, his powerful aura making Qin Zhongtian dare not say much.
In desperation, Qin Zhongtian turned his pleading gaze to Su Banxia. "Secretary Su, this was our company's fault, causing you such great offense."
"To be honest, a little humiliation doesn't matter to me, but your company's actions have seriously damaged Dingsheng Group's reputation. Whether it can be forgiven depends on President Pei's decision."
Su Banxia adjusted the thick glasses on her nose, speaking in a businesslike tone.
Qin Zhongtian nodded repeatedly in agreement, his heart seemingly in his throat as he mustered the courage to continue, "President Pei, Secretary Su, I will conduct a thorough review of this matter!"
"President Qin, come back to us when your company has figured things out. We can't afford such a high-and-mighty partner!"
Pei Shaoze said bitterly, then swept out with a flourish.
Su Banxia followed closely behind, her heart racing. She had come to negotiate with Qin Corporation and never expected this to happen.
Watching the frosty figure ahead, Su Banxia quickly quickened her pace and blocked his path. "Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"
"Hmm?"
Pei Shaoze glanced at her indifferently.
"After all, they didn't recognize me, which led to this rude behavior. But giving up the cooperation just like that—isn't that a bit much?"
Su Banxia spoke weakly.
"I really think you're missing a few screws."
Pei Shaoze shot her a look of exasperation.
Su Banxia was baffled, clearly not understanding what she had done to anger this living tyrant.
"Secretary Su!"
The front desk clerk, seeing Pei Shaoze leave, blushed and hurriedly blocked Su Banxia's path.
"Something wrong?"
Su Banxia frowned slightly, having no good impression of this woman.
Judging people by appearances always leads to big mistakes!
The front desk clerk seemed to sense Su Banxia's disdain and said awkwardly, "What happened earlier was my fault. I didn't understand the situation, but I was thinking from the company's perspective. I hope Secretary Su can understand."
"We were all thinking from our companies' perspectives, so my understanding alone won't help."
Su Banxia's voice was cold.
"I... I..."
The clerk lowered her head, biting her lip, tears seemingly welling up in her eyes. After a moment, she continued, "This job is very important to me. Secretary Su, could you..."
"I'm just an employee too. This time, you've made me lose face for Dingsheng Group. Whether I can keep my own job is still a question."
Su Banxia adjusted her thick glasses, clearly not falling for the clerk's act.
Seeing this, the clerk was at a loss.
Taking advantage of the clerk's hesitation, Su Banxia slipped away.
Stepping out of Qin Corporation's building, Su Banxia looked back and felt a pang of regret, as if she saw the 500,000 yuan slipping through her fingers.
It seemed shortcuts weren't for her after all. When would this 13 million debt ever end?
The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became, kicking at stones on the road.
Pei Shaoze had already driven off the moment he left Qin Corporation. Staring at the unfamiliar surroundings, Su Banxia felt like she'd been set up.
He had come with her, so why did he wait until she was thrown out before stepping in to explain?
This guy was clearly enjoying her embarrassment!
And she had praised him last night!
What a waste of her breath.
Thinking this, Su Banxia silently cursed Pei Shaoze from head to toe.
Meanwhile, Pei Shaoze rested his long, fair hands naturally on the steering wheel, his gaze drifting casually out the window. The slight curl of his lips betrayed his excellent mood.
Recalling the awkward sight of Su Banxia being thrown out, he felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
This time, he had done it on purpose—to force that woman to dress up and appear before him.