Chapter 124

Chapter 124: Someone Is Jealous Li Yungui thought to himself that although this young lady knew how to play golf, girls usually lacked strength, and it was uncertain whether she could even get the ball onto the green. Even if she did, it would probably take her eight or nine strokes. Losing a little money to win a beauty's smile would be worth it. Chu Tang smiled softly with pursed lips. "I'd be happy to have dinner with you, but betting money is no fun. Let's bet on something else." "What would Lawyer Ruan like to bet on?" "If I can get the ball onto the green within ten strokes, Mr. Li will sign a one-year legal counsel contract plus a case representation contract with our firm. For every stroke under that, we add another year. If I can get onto the green in one stroke, we'll sign a ten-year contract on the spot—all of your company's cases must be entrusted to our firm within those ten years. How about that?" Li Yungui chuckled, thinking to himself that this young lady had quite a head on her shoulders. She wasn't greedy for the small money of one or two hundred thousand—she was scheming for a big deal. A company as large as Tenghua Group generated enough cases in a single year to sustain their entire law firm for a full year. He had underestimated her. Li Yungui turned and joked with the firm's director, "Old Liu, where on earth did you find Lawyer Ruan? She's so dedicated and conscientious, always looking out for your firm's interests. I'm tempted to poach her to be our in-house counsel." The director replied with a laugh, "Hahaha, Mr. Li is joking." Li Yungui found it amusing and agreed with a smile. "Since Lawyer Ruan proposes using the contract as the stake, then so be it. As long as Lawyer Ruan is happy." Chu Tang smiled sweetly. "Great." The caddie handed over the club, and Chu Tang took it, giving it a practice swing. Li Yungui said with a somewhat flattering tone, beaming, "Not bad! Not bad! Lawyer Ruan clearly has natural talent." Chu Tang curved her lips in a smile but said nothing, positioning herself and lining up her angle. "Mr. Li, I'll accept your concession." Before Li Yungui could even process the meaning of her words, Chu Tang had already swung with fluid, practiced ease. The small white ball traced a perfect arc through the air before landing steadily on the green. Li Yungui stared in stunned disbelief. She had made it onto the green in a single stroke. The firm's director beside him couldn't help but clap in applause. "Beautiful!" Chu Tang walked onto the green and sank the putt with an elegant form, her smile radiant. "Mr. Li, one stroke onto the green. As agreed, your company will sign a ten-year representation and legal counsel contract with our firm." Li Yungui snapped back to reality and couldn't help but clap in admiration. "Excellent! Excellent! I never would have guessed that Lawyer Ruan plays so well. Your technique looks even more polished than mine. And here you said you only knew a little—you're too modest." Chu Tang smiled with pursed lips. "Mr. Li flatters me." The director stood to the side, grinning from ear to ear. A ten-year legal counsel contract and representation agreement! He had originally planned to bring Ruan Chutang along as a practice partner and companion, to keep Mr. Li entertained until he was in a good mood before discussing the contract. He never expected Ruan Chutang to single-handedly secure a ten-year contract with Tenghua Group in one move! In all his years of practice, he had never landed such a big deal in one go. The director felt somewhat ashamed of his own inadequacy. Over there, Shen Yan nudged Jiang Shixu with his elbow and jerked his chin toward them. "That ex-girlfriend of yours is pretty impressive—one stroke onto the green. I'd say her form is no worse than a professional's." Jiang Shixu turned to look, a hint of tenderness surfacing in his eyes, his expression rather proud. "Tangtang won the national youth championship back in high school." "Oho." Shen Yan's gaze turned teasing. "Look at you, all proud. The way you're looking at her is like she's your own kid bringing home a certificate." Jiang Shixu's features softened. "Isn't she my own kid, after all?" Shen Yan remarked casually, "Wonder what those two old men are talking about, laughing so happily." The moment the words left his mouth, the tenderness and smile on Jiang Shixu's face faded instantly. He handed his club to the caddie and strode over in that direction. "Hey? Where are you going?" Shen Yan followed. Jiang Shixu's expression turned cold, his tone devoid of warmth. "To talk business." "Business?" Shen Yan was baffled. "With who?" Looking up and seeing the three people laughing merrily not far away, Shen Yan immediately understood. He was jealous. He was going to give those two old geezers something to deal with, otherwise they'd keep hovering around Chutang. How could someone like him stand to watch that? Shen Yan snickered inwardly. Someone had been holding it in for so long and finally couldn't take it anymore. Jiang Shixu stopped in front of Chu Tang, the sunlight casting a small shadow over her. Standing in Jiang Shixu's shadow, Chu Tang looked up at him. He was wearing a dark gray athletic suit today, his usual cool and aloof style. Why is he here again? Chu Tang wondered inwardly. Li Yungui was also puzzled. This president of Jiangshi Group was someone he could hardly get a meeting with on ordinary days, and even when he did, the man would ignore him completely. Why had he approached twice today to greet him on his own initiative? Had he run into some kind of bad luck? Jiang Shixu stood with his hands in his pockets, looking utterly at ease, his tone carrying a hint of nonchalance. "Mr. Li, I recall you mentioned last time that you wanted to collaborate with our Xingchen?" Xingchen was a hotel brand under Jiangshi Group. When Li Yungui heard that the president of Jiangshi Group was taking the initiative to discuss cooperation, he immediately nodded and bowed in response, "Yes, yes, yes, President Jiang, Tenghua has been wanting to cooperate with Xingchen for a long time. I mentioned it to you at the cocktail party before, but you were busy then and said we'd talk another time. Today is a good opportunity—we both happen to be free. There's no time like the present." Li Yungui raised his wrist to check his watch and said with a chuckle, "It's just about time for a meal now. How about this—I'll book a restaurant, and we can talk over lunch?" Jiang Shixu's gaze swept over Chu Tang as if by chance, then quickly withdrew. His voice was cold as he replied with a simple "Fine." Li Yungui was overjoyed inside. The director of the law firm, perceptive as ever, spoke up, "Well then, President Jiang, Mr. Li, you two go ahead and talk. Xiao Ruan and I will be on our way. Mr. Li, we can discuss the contract signing in more detail another time." Chu Tang had been standing silently the whole time, staring blankly at Jiang Shixu's shadow on the floor, lost in thought. When she heard it was time to leave, she snapped back to attention and prepared to leave with the director. Li Yungui replied, "Alright, Old Liu, I'll come find you tomorrow afternoon to discuss the contract. Since I just lost to Lawyer Ruan, I'll certainly honor what I promised beforehand. I'm a man of my word." In truth, Li Yungui said this deliberately for Jiang Shixu's benefit. If he wanted to cooperate with the hotels under Jiangshi Group, he needed to leave a good impression on Jiang Shixu. However, Jiang Shixu couldn't care less about any of that. All he heard was that Chu Tang was about to leave. Jiang Shixu's voice was faint, betraying no emotion, as if he truly didn't care. "Since you're all together, why not stay and join us for a meal?"