Liu Meng held the documents in her hand. "The Wang Family Head is indeed perceptive—far more so than certain others."
Wang Xiaolin's heart was eerily calm, devoid of even the slightest ripple.
It was as if he had long accepted this outcome.
"Assistant Liu's methods are remarkable. Truly worthy of being President Luo's right hand. I'm impressed. I'm relieved that the doomed corporation found a helmsman like President Luo."
Just as he spoke, Chen Qingtian arrived. The moment she saw Wang Xiaolin, she was stunned.
"President Wang! It's me, Chen Qingtian. I didn’t expect to run into you here."
Of course, Wang Xiaolin knew Chen Qingtian. As the owner of a media subsidiary under the doomed corporation, how could he not recognize a top-tier actress?
Chen Qingtian had single-handedly pulled in massive box office numbers for the doomed cinema chain.
But audiences weren’t exactly flocking for her acting skills. The most common praise she received was, "Her beauty is unmatched."
No one ever really talked about her performances.Wang Xiaolin smiled and extended his hand. "Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm here to discuss matters with President Luo."
Chen Qingtian wasn’t the least bit intimidated. After all, she wasn’t just a star—she was also the heiress of the Chen family, accustomed to rubbing shoulders with tycoons.
"Oh? Aren’t you... currently competing for the Tech City bid?"
Though the results of the Tech City project hadn’t been announced yet, rumors were swirling. Most believed it was already a sure win for Luo Corporation.
"Indeed. But there’s no need for competition anymore—because from now on, the doomed corporation will bear the Luo name."
"Huh?"
Chen Qingtian looked utterly bewildered. Liu Meng cut straight to the explanation.
"The doomed corporation has been acquired by us."
Chen Qingtian... (Disclaimer: Not based on reality. The novel's doomed corporation has no foreign investors.)
"I—what the hell—just kill me already! Here I was, dreaming of becoming a boss, and now my little sister-in-law is out here acquiring whole corporations—AAAAAH—"
Liu Meng nearly laughed. She actually quite liked Chen Qingtian’s personality.
"Miss Chen, Young Master Lin is currently inside with President Luo. It’s best if you don’t disturb them for now."
Chen Qingtian blinked in confusion. "Why?"
Liu Meng lowered her voice. "For the sake of survival."
Chen Qingtian nodded. "Oh—"
But Liu Meng had a feeling she hadn’t understood at all.
Wang Xiaolin was eager to return and finalize the next steps.
"Assistant Liu, since the acquisition is complete, I’ll take my leave now. We’ll issue a statement as soon as possible."
Liu Meng gave Chen Qingtian an apologetic glance.
"I’ll escort President Wang out first. Please wait a moment." With that, she led Wang Xiaolin’s team away, leaving a puzzled Chen Qingtian behind.
Staring at the closed doors of the meeting area, Chen Qingtian rubbed her chin thoughtfully.
"Are they...?"
Time ticked by. When the doors finally opened again, Lin Ran was the first to step out.
After concluding discussions with Wang Xiaolin’s team, Luo Yao had instructed Liu Meng to see them off while she and Lin Ran discussed... other matters. They had completely forgotten about Chen Qingtian.
Lin Ran stretched, feeling like his body was about to fall apart.
"Assistant Liu, Yao Yao wants to see you."
"Understood."
Liu Meng took the documents and entered the meeting room, leaving Lin Ran outside.
"Cousin, did you need something?"
Chen Qingtian had been waiting for a while. Through Liu Meng, she’d pieced together what Lin Ran and Luo Yao had been up to inside.
So she’d wandered around on her own, keeping herself entertained.
When she saw Lin Ran emerge, her gaze held a mix of resentment and envy.
Glancing at the assistants moving about, Chen Qingtian lowered her voice.
"Can you ask them to step away? This is something I can only tell you."
Lin Ran found Chen Qingtian’s behavior odd.
Inside the meeting room...
"How much usable funds do we have left?"
"President Luo, there really isn’t much this time."
Luo Yao nodded. It had been a long time since she’d worried about money.
"Then we won’t wait any longer. Once Wang Xiaolin announces the takeover, find an opportunity to cash out."
Liu Meng agreed.
How ruthless was capital?
Using Luo Corporation’s funds, Liu Meng had helped Luo Yao personally dive into the doomed corporation’s stock market, stabilizing its plummeting shares amid continuous scandals.
Once the doomed corporation announced its acquisition by Luo Yao, its stock would skyrocket. In essence, Luo Yao was using the profits she’d made from the doomed corporation to buy it outright—a brutal display of financial dominance.
Of course, pulling this off required massive capital.
It also helped that the doomed corporation was already on its last legs, making it an easy target.
A company like Samsung would never be this vulnerable—no matter how dire its situation, it would always keep emergency funds.
That’s why crushing the three major families was far simpler than taking down Samsung.
To put it bluntly: despite prolonged attacks, Samsung had held firm, even transferring cooperative funds to the corporate account.
If Samsung lost the bid, those funds would return to them, buying them a brief respite.
But it would only be a delay—not enough to stop Luo Yao from orchestrating their decline, or even their downfall.
"Ah Ran, what secrets are you two whispering about?"
The moment Luo Yao stepped out, she saw Chen Qingtian speaking mysteriously to Lin Ran.
Chen Qingtian felt a sudden chill—though she wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination.
"Little sister-in-law, listen—I’ve uncovered a huge secret."
"You know Uncle Fu, right? He might be a mole. And Jiang Feihua—she could be one too. At least one of them is shady. Maybe both."
"Hmm."
Chen Qingtian blinked. "Hmm? That’s it?"
"What else? You’ve said your piece."
"No, no—I’m not done! Jiang Feihua—do you know how strong she is? Yesterday, she almost @#�0�6%..."
She went on to recount last night’s events, but Luo Yao and Lin Ran remained expressionless.
"You guys already knew, didn’t you...? Fine, seems you’re aware there are snakes in the house. I’ll head out first."
After Chen Qingtian left, Lin Ran and Luo Yao exchanged glances.
"Shouldn’t it be ‘black sheep’?"
Luo Yao replied coldly, "Bird or sheep—it makes no difference to me."
"What do you mean?"
"Both can be crushed effortlessly."
"That’s my wife—always dominant, no matter the situation."
Luo Yao arched a brow. "You and Chen Qingtian seem quite close."
A faint, lethal aura seeped into the air. Lin Ran was acutely sensitive to it.
"Yao Yao, she’s kind of cute, honestly."
Chen Qingtian didn’t deserve death. Besides, Lin Ran had a feeling Luo Yao didn’t entirely despise her... probably.
"Cute? Compared to me?"
Was this even a question?