Ren Yuan felt more confident and looked at Ye Hengtian. "I have a friend at the peak branch in Thailand. I heard something happened over there. President Pei flew out this morning to handle it and should be there for about a week."
Ye Hengtian simply nodded at this. "Mm, I know about that."
Ren Yuan said, "Don't you plan to do something while Pei Shaoze is away for these few days?"
"Do what?"
Ren Yuan smiled and handed him a document he'd brought. "Take a look at this, President Ye."
Ye Hengtian didn't rush to look at it; instead, he asked, "Did you know Su Banxia before?"
Caught off guard by the question, Ren Yuan nodded. "Yeah, it's a long story between us."
Ye Hengtian leaned back in his chair. "Tell me about her."
Surprised that he was interested in Su Banxia, Ren Yuan set the document on the table and began, "Su Banxia is my ex-girlfriend."
"Oh?"
That was new. Ye Hengtian perked up, squinting with a smile. "How'd you break up?"
"Some unexpected things happened."
Ren Yuan still had some pride, so he gave a brief rundown of Su Banxia's story. "Are you interested in her, President Ye?"
Men's talk usually boiled down to women and money. Ye Hengtian smiled without saying anything, then picked up the document from the table and glanced through it. After a moment, he said, "Manager Ren, if we get the chance, we should definitely work together."
Hearing this, Ren Yuan couldn't hold back his grin. "Then I'll be counting on your support from now on, President Ye."
Ye Hengtian nodded with a faint smile. "Let's talk about Peak."
They hadn't wasted all that time just for idle chatter. Ren Yuan got straight to the point. "Pei Shaoze will be in Thailand for about a week. I found out he's been a long-time rival with Lin Tongze, the president of France's Lin Group. President Ye, we could meet with Lin Tongze and suggest making some trouble for Peak while we have this chance."
"Lin Tongze?"
Ye Hengtian narrowed his eyes, seriously pondering it. After a long pause, he looked at Ren Yuan. "Do you have plans this afternoon, Manager Ren?"
Ren Yuan shook his head. "No."
"How about we grab a meal together?"
In business, it was kill or be killed. Ye's had partnered with Peak for years, and now that Pei Shaoze was canceling the contract, he couldn't just sit back. If there was a chance to turn things around, why not try?
...
Thailand.
Pei Shaoze and Su Banxia went to the branch together. All morning, the branch's CEO led them around to various departments, observing the entire company's operations and employee performance. Su Banxia couldn't grasp Pei Shaoze's purpose here. The issues in Thailand shouldn't be that serious; his main goal probably wasn't the company's condition.
That afternoon, as they left the company, Pei Shaoze turned to the silent woman beside him. "What do you think of this place?"
Su Banxia was taken aback, then stammered, "It seems fine. Shouldn't be hard to resolve."
"That's not what I'm asking," Pei Shaoze said.
Confused, she paused to think. "The development here isn't as big as back home, but there's a lot of room for expansion. Peak started with tech, but a large company can't survive on just one project forever. I think we could try branching out into other things here."
They walked and talked. The car was parked at the company building, and Su Banxia headed toward it, but Pei Shaoze grabbed her arm. She looked at him, puzzled.
He said, "Let's take a walk."
She'd never been here before, so she nodded and followed him. After a moment, the man ahead spoke in a low voice, "Continue what you were saying."
Su Banxia nodded and went on. "Thailand's economy relies mostly on tourism. Most businessmen who come here focus on that, but I think we could look into jade and vegetation. The geography here gives us an advantage."
Pei Shaoze said nothing, just kept walking. After a while, Su Banxia noticed he seemed uninterested in talking and was confused about what he was doing. She quietly trailed behind him.
Suddenly, Pei Shaoze stopped. Su Banxia, not paying attention, bumped into his back. It hurt, and she hissed, rubbing her nose. "Why'd you stop so suddenly?"
He turned to look at her, his dark eyes unreadable, and said in a low voice, "Su Banxia, do you remember what I said last night?"
She froze, replaying last night in her mind. What had happened? After thinking hard, she blinked up at him. "Which part?"
He'd said so much last night; she couldn't recall it all. She wanted a hint.
"The most important part," he said, his gaze dark and sharp.
Su Banxia tried to remember, but found she couldn't. "What?"
She asked him, noticing a hint of anger on his face. She'd really tried, but she just couldn't recall it right then. Afraid her next words would make him angrier, she kept quiet, hanging her head.
Seeing her like this, Pei Shaoze guessed most of it. She'd completely forgotten what he'd said last night. After a pause, he asked, "What do you remember about last night?"
Last night? Su Banxia pouted. She didn't remember much except for what he'd done to her... Blushing at the thought, she felt her cheeks heat up.
Noticing her red face, Pei Shaoze squinted, guessing what she was thinking. A smile tugged at his lips as he leaned in closer. She instinctively stepped back, but he reached out and gently held her. "Blushing? What are you thinking about?"
Su Banxia: "..."
This man could be infuriating when he wanted to be. She blinked a few times, playing innocent. "Nothing! I'm not thinking about anything."
"Oh, really?"
He whispered in her ear, deliberately teasing. She looked down, cursing him as a jerk in her mind. Pei Shaoze suddenly tightened his arms, pulling her close, and said something serious yet utterly inappropriate, "Did you like it last night?"
Su Banxia: "..."
When she didn't respond, he took it as a yes, his smile deepening.
...
By the time they reached the hotel, it was already dark. Su Banxia got a call from China. Thinking it was Guoguo or Xiao Hao, she hesitated for a moment since Pei Shaoze was right there, then answered. A strange woman's voice came through. "Hello, are you Su Guoguo's mother?"
Su Banxia nodded. "Yes, I am."
"Hello, Mrs. Su. I'm Guoguo's teacher. She fainted at school this afternoon. Can you come over?"
Su Banxia was startled. "Teacher, how is Guoguo? Is she okay? Why did she suddenly faint?"
The teacher sounded busy. "She's in the hospital now. We don't know the situation yet. Please come as soon as possible."
Panicked, Su Banxia hung up and immediately called Fang Shiqing. When the call connected, Fang Shiqing's voice came through. "What's up?"
"Shiqing, can you go to the hospital for me? Guoguo fainted at school, and I'm in Thailand—I can't get back right now."
Fang Shiqing was taken aback. "When did she faint? Why haven't I heard anything? Xiao Hao hasn't called me either."
Mentioning Su Hao reminded Su Banxia that her son was sharp and always doted on Guoguo. Why hadn't he called if Guoguo fainted?