Ai Yifeng returned to Lancheng and, using the phone number An Jing had given him, contacted the lawyer assisting Xi Xianya.
After meeting with the lawyer, he learned about the situation with Xi Xianya's case.
He discovered that Xi Xianya had been found to be pregnant and was no longer in the detention center but in a hospital specifically for detaining criminals. To visit her, a special application procedure was required.
The lawyer asked him to wait patiently for a few days. He returned to the apartment he had rented in Lancheng. As soon as he entered, it seemed as if the lingering scent of their time together remained.
He had originally thought that by not holding grudges for being used, leaving her some money, and ensuring she escaped Zhao Jianhua's control, she could then find someone she liked and live a happy life, without having to compromise and pretend to like him.
But he never expected that after he left, she not only failed to escape Zhao Jianhua, but the situation had also become more serious.
...
After Zhao Jianhua had an accident, Zhang Yuyun convened a shareholders' meeting and took over the position of Chairperson.
She had co-founded the group with Zhao Jianhua and had never relinquished her position within the group, growing with it and firmly holding the group's financial power, assisting Zhao Jianhua in his daily decisions.
Therefore, when Zhao Jianhua had his accident, she encountered no resistance in taking over the Chairperson position, and it was unanimously approved.
She was also aware of some of the projects the group was currently undertaking, and the most troublesome was the online platform project with the Huangfu Group.
The technical personnel hired by Zhao Jianhua were completely unable to meet the requirements of the Huangfu Group, and the project was on the verge of launch.
After the Huangfu Group learned of Zhao Jianhua's accident, they had contacted her several times, inquiring about the project's progress.
She could no longer avoid it and had to meet with the person in charge of this project at the Huangfu Group the next day.
Since Zhao Jianhua's accident, she had grown weary of everything and actually just wanted to end all the group's business and live a peaceful life with her two sons.
What wealth and prosperity were all but an illusion!
In the past, she worked tirelessly just to live a good life. Later, when she had a good life and became wealthy, it was nothing special.
The next day, she went to the Huangfu Group and met the project's负责人, Huangfu Sishu.
She also stated directly that their group's online subsidiary did not have the capability to implement the scheme required by the Huangfu Group and hoped that the Huangfu Group would re-tender and find a suitable network company.
Huangfu Sishu saw that Zhao Jianhua's wife was straightforward and decisive, and without beating around the bush, he said, "We will naturally consider your proposal, but at the time, President Zhao emphatically promised that there were no problems and even signed a contract with us."
Zhang Yuyun had to say, "If he were not injured and could still manage the group, it would likely be fine. But now that he has had an accident, and he is not in the group, and I am not as capable as him, this matter is difficult to handle. We also ask that you consider the special circumstances and void this contract."
Huangfu Sishu smiled and said, "Business contracts are not child's play. President Zhao signed the contract with us in the name of the group, not personally. As long as the group still exists, your group must adhere to the contract's requirements. If you cannot, you will have to compensate according to the contract terms. If we were to re-tender, it would consume considerable manpower and financial resources, and we would also need capital."
"Compensation according to the contract?" Zhang Yuyun had reviewed the contract before coming. The compensation was three times the budget for the entire project. Their group would not be able to afford it even if it went bankrupt. "Can you consider reducing the compensation appropriately? Our group will bear the cost of re-tendering."
"What about the time cost delay?" Huangfu Sishu flatly refused, "No, if there is a contract, we will proceed according to the contract. If you cannot complete it, and the project is delayed, we will also sue you..."
"But your group knows our difficulties now and still insists on following the contract. It's a bit too much. If we don't do it, we have to compensate; if we do it poorly, we also have to compensate. What do you want us to do?" Zhang Yuyun thought that since neither side would budge, she retorted.
Huangfu Sishu said, "We are a business, not a charity. As for what to do, that is up to you to decide."
Zhang Yuyun knew that the conversation could not continue and got up to leave.
After returning to the group, she immediately summoned the legal advisor and once again studied the contract with a professional.
The conclusion remained the same: they either had to complete the project according to the contract's requirements or face enormous compensation.
With no other options, she had to grit her teeth and complete the project.
She then called all the personnel from the network company for a meeting. From their expressions, it was clear they were not happy.
Zhang Yuyun also knew that they were people sent by the Xie family. She promised that if they could think of a solution, she would increase their compensation and would not treat them unfairly.
A network technician, seeing that Zhang Yuyun was more considerate of them than Zhao Jianhua, offered his idea, "Ms. Zhang, it's actually unrealistic for us to break through the technical difficulties in a short period. The only way to solve the problem now is to cooperate with the network department of the Aoxiang Group. The scheme that the Huangfu Group requires us to implement is actually the bid scheme of the Aoxiang Group."
"How can you be so sure?" Zhang Yuyun asked urgently.
The technician said, "I have a university classmate working in the Aoxiang Group's network department. I originally wanted to ask him some technical questions, so I showed him the scheme we needed to implement. He immediately recognized it as a scheme created by their network department manager. He also doesn't know some technical issues, only their manager understands them. It is said that their network department manager is a technical master, and there are very few people in the country who can compare to him."
Zhang Yuyun understood. So that's how it was.
In fact, the Huangfu Group was interested in the Aoxiang Group's bid scheme but had awarded the contract to them and was unwilling to give up the optimal plan.
The Huangfu Group had played a cunning game, wanting to have their cake and eat it too, but in the end, their group gained nothing.
Zhao Jianhua, the fool, thought his petty cleverness could outwit the Huangfu Group!
The Huangfu Group wanted to force them to find Aoxiang and cooperate on this project.
But why would Aoxiang cooperate with them easily? They would definitely seek benefits. With them winning the bid at this price, their own profit would be negligible.
Now there was no other way. She asked, "What is the name of the person in charge of the Aoxiang Group's network department? Can your classmate relay a message and arrange a private meeting with him?"
"I heard his name is Ai Yifeng, I can try," the technician replied.
"Good, everyone else can leave, you stay," Zhang Yuyun said, pointing to the technician who made the suggestion.
She needed to talk to this person alone, tell him how to persuade his classmate, and naturally, she would also give some benefits to him and the person who would relay the message.
...
Ai Yifeng waited anxiously for several days. When he saw the lawyer again, the reply made him even more distressed.