Lin Xingwan turned around and saw a dignified, mature, and steady middle-aged man walking towards them.
Beside the middle-aged man was a woman in a black lace evening gown.
She was impeccably maintained, her face glowing, and every smile and gesture was charming and captivating, giving off an air of enduring allure.
"Mr. Xie, long time no see," Lin Xingwan smiled slightly. She naturally recognized the man, who was Xie Guanglin, the boss of Jinlin Company, mentioned by Liu Mengqin just now.
They had collaborated before, and this man was straightforward and honest.
It was the woman beside him, however, that Lin Xingwan was unfamiliar with.
"This is my wife, Ms. Jin Shun Ci," Xie Guanglin immediately introduced her to Lin Xingwan.
"Mrs. Xie, hello." Lin Xingwan politely greeted Xie Guanglin's wife and extended her hand for a handshake.
Jin Shun Ci wore a distant yet polite smile, merely nodding slightly.
Her demeanor was aloof and arrogant, much like a superior to Gu Wan Ci.
Lin Xingwan awkwardly lowered her hand, while Xie Guanglin explained, "Shun Ci dislikes physical contact, I hope President Lin doesn't mind."
"It's alright, it's alright," Lin Xingwan said, though in her mind, she recalled the fleeting disdain in Jin Shun Ci's eyes just now.
She had met all sorts of people. Jin Shun Ci didn't dislike contact; she looked down on her, even harboring a subtle hostility, yet Lin Xingwan had never met this woman before.
Xie Guanglin then began to discuss work matters with Lin Xingwan.
"When Huanyu Company was revived under your leadership, I knew President Lin's future was limitless. I didn't expect my guess to come true so quickly. With Top Entertainment now collaborating with Oriental Consortium, the future holds infinite possibilities, and it's not impossible for it to become a leading entertainment company in the country."
Xie Guanglin was very confident in Lin Xingwan's work ability, even stating that when this woman worked seriously, she could outshine many company CEOs.
"Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Xie," Lin Xingwan replied frankly, not being modest.
Top Entertainment had a beautiful start, and she was full of anticipation and hope for the company's future.
"I'm a straightforward person, and I won't beat around the bush with President Lin. I plan to invest in and shoot a martial arts film. I happened to see two actors at Top Entertainment who are very suitable. I learned about them and discovered they are actually descendants of a martial arts family. Both their appearance and their martial arts skills are very suitable for my film, so I intend to discuss signing them with Top Entertainment."
Xie Guanglin's direct approach was like a godsend to Lin Xingwan.
After she took over Top Entertainment, Ge Xuan Si, having played the second male lead in "Immortal Path," had already become a hot commodity.
Over a dozen directors had contacted Lin Xingwan, and there were more than twenty endorsement offers. These days, they were all busy with Ge Xuan Si's matters at the company.
Ye Zong and his daughter Ye Ran Ran, although also employees of the company, had not yet been contacted by any brands or directors.
One actor could sustain a company; however, for a company to develop long-term, it couldn't rely solely on one actor.
"Mr. Xie has excellent judgment. Although Ye Zong and Ye Ran Ran are not well-known in the entertainment industry, their martial arts skills are genuine. Moreover, Ye Ran Ran is still young and has unlimited potential in the future."
"No, no, no. All my foresight in this life has been used on my wife. If it weren't for my wife's advice, I wouldn't have thought of these two actors from your company," Xie Guanglin said, looking affectionately at Jin Shun Ci. "Thank you, my dear."
Jin Shun Ci shyly lowered her head, and Xie Guanglin felt he could never pamper his wife enough.
"Mr. and Mrs. Xie, you are truly a devoted couple," Liu Mengqin's tone was full of envy. Despite the rampant rumors about Jin Shun Ci outside, Xie Guanglin never doubted his wife.
In this regard, he surpassed ninety-nine percent of men.
"In this life, I love only my wife, because my wife has suffered so much and sacrificed so much for me."
Xie Guanglin held Jin Shun Ci's hand, their fingers intertwined.
Jin Shun Ci's expression, however, was much calmer.
She spoke, "Miss Lin, since that's the case, I will have someone go to Top Entertainment tomorrow to discuss the collaboration."
After speaking, she glanced at Xie Guanglin, who immediately understood. "President Lin, we'll be going to attend to other matters then."
"Alright," Lin Xingwan replied, watching Xie Guanglin and Jin Shun Ci leave.
Only when their figures were swallowed by the crowd did Liu Mengqin speak, "I really envy this Jin Shun Ci, finding such a good husband. My ex-scumbag husband, if he were even half as good as Xie Guanglin... no, even a tenth as good, I wouldn't have divorced him."
"It will happen in the future," Lin Xingwan patted Liu Mengqin's hand and said, "It's getting late, we should head back."
Tonight, having secured such a satisfactory collaboration, Lin Xingwan was very pleased.
Besides, Zhou Jin Bai was waiting outside.
"Got it, got it. Who doesn't know your man is waiting outside?" Liu Mengqin teased Lin Xingwan. "Although I know you young couples have plenty of energy, you should still take care of yourselves."
Lin Xingwan: "..."
Soon, Lin Xingwan and Liu Mengqin left the main venue.
The night air was a bit cool. When Lin Xingwan and Liu Mengqin reached where they had parked, they saw Zhou Jin Bai leaning against the car door, his head down, seemingly lost in thought.
Beside Zhou Jin Bai, four or five women were chatting with him.
"Handsome, really won't give us your contact information? Don't worry, I promise I won't bother you, I'll just quietly send you red envelopes and transfers."
One drunken woman said to Zhou Jin Bai in a slurred voice.
Her friends beside her chimed in, "Yeah, what's wrong with giving us your contact info? Don't be so stingy."
They surrounded Zhou Jin Bai, giving the impression that if he didn't agree, they would resort to force.
"There's too much high-tech on your face, it's ugly. Look at the fake implant in your nose, it's about to fly out. And your augmented breasts, aren't you afraid they'll explode?"
Zhou Jin Bai slowly raised his head, his face, which had captivated them, uttered heart-wrenching words.
"My wife is the most beautiful woman in the world," Zhou Jin Bai said, then walked towards Lin Xingwan, taking off his jacket and draping it over her shoulders.
Seeing Lin Xingwan, the women reluctantly left.
It was no use; their wives were truly beautiful.
"Why did you come out so early?" Zhou Jin Bai looked at Lin Xingwan's reddened nose tip and immediately grasped her hands.
They were as cold as ice!
He should have arranged for a car to take her home earlier.
"If I didn't come out early, you would have been snatched away by someone else," Lin Xingwan smiled, her breath misting in the air, adding to her charm.
"If my wife doesn't snatch me, I'll obediently follow her; as for other women, even if they kidnap me, I'd rather be a shattered jade than a whole tile!" Zhou Jin Bai's deep voice was particularly seductive in the night.
"Alright, alright. I've had enough to eat tonight, I don't want to be force-fed dog food anymore."
Seeing the affectionate display between the two, Liu Mengqin quickly opened the car door and got in.
Lin Xingwan followed closely.
Soon, the car turned back in the direction they came from.
On the top floor of the Vienna Hotel, Chen Yu Chu pushed aside the telescope and couldn't help but exclaim.
Why does it feel like the young master is having too much fun playing the game of changing identities?
But sometimes, one must be careful not to 'play with fire and get burned.'
Zhou Jin Bai dropped Liu Mengqin off at her apartment building and watched her enter the elevator with Lin Xingwan before getting back into the car.
This time, however, Lin Xingwan was already in the passenger seat.
Whenever she was happy, she would hum a song, her smug demeanor like a small cat basking lazily in the sun after a satisfying meal of dried fish.
"I wonder what happy things Mrs. Zhou encountered tonight?"
"Guess?" Lin Xingwan looked at Zhou Jin Bai expectantly.
"If I guess right, can I sleep with you? I promise I won't do anything."
"Mr. Zhou, do you think your words have any credibility right now?" Lin Xingwan pouted, deciding not to let this presumptuous man guess anymore. "Jinlin Company plans to invest in and shoot a martial arts film, and Uncle Ye and Ran Ran have been chosen. The contract will be signed tomorrow. The two people I was most worried about have also secured roles, so I can confidently recruit other artists."
As long as they were artists under Top Entertainment, and as long as they didn't slack off and worked hard, Lin Xingwan would not treat them unfairly.
Moreover, Lin Xingwan valued quality over quantity.
With her current energy, she could still find four or five more artists to nurture.
"Is this company any good? Compared to Ouhuang, which one is better?" Zhou Jin Bai repeated the company's name in a low voice. It was an unfamiliar company he had never heard of.
Lin Xingwan, however, was amused by Zhou Jin Bai's comparison. "How can Jinlin compare to Ouhuang? Ouhuang is an internationally renowned entertainment company. Nine out of ten artists are Best Actor/Actress winners, and the remaining one is a super Best Actor/Actress winner rarely seen in a century! In our China, only three artists have been signed in fifty years. Two of them have already retired behind the scenes, leaving only Jiang Wen Yuan.
Jinlin Company is merely the number one ranked company in Rongcheng and among the top ten in the country. However, for such a company to collaborate with Top Entertainment is considered the second respectable partner after Oriental Consortium. The roles they've given Uncle Ye and Ran Ran won't be very substantial, but Xie Guanglin, as a director with the most sentiment in the past five years, has always had good reviews for his films. This is a great start for Uncle Ye and Ran Ran."
Lin Xingwan looked as if pie had fallen from the sky, but Zhou Jin Bai couldn't help but shiver.
His next step was to have Ouhuang sign with Top Entertainment, but doing so would actually cause a lot of trouble.
It seemed he had to let his wife grow slowly.
"Wife is amazing," Zhou Jin Bai praised Lin Xingwan, then changed the subject, asking again, "Were there any other interesting things tonight?"
Lin Xingwan shook her head. "Nothing else particularly interesting."
Zhou Jin Bai's expectant expression immediately turned to disappointment.
He had gone to extraordinary lengths, having a stylist meticulously style him, even grooming every strand of hair, and using a voice changer to adopt a perfect male voice, but none of it seemed to have surprised this woman at all?
Zhou Jin Bai even began to doubt if she would divorce him immediately if he revealed his true identity.
"I thought such a grand banquet would have many interesting things happen. It seems it's no different from an ordinary banquet,"
Zhou Jin Bai's tone was undeniably dejected.
His wife didn't even praise him?
Then what was the point of him hosting this banquet?
Lin Xingwan frowned and thought for a moment. "There weren't any interesting things, but there was one shocking event."
"Oh?"
"The trusted executive of Oriental Consortium is actually only 28 years old! I always thought that report was false, but reality slapped me in the face. Some people are born in Rome, and they are also smart and hardworking."
"How did he look?" Zhou Jin Bai, after waiting for so long, finally heard himself mentioned by Lin Xingwan, feeling an impulse to cry tears of joy.
But why was the adjective 'shocking' and not 'surprising'?
"He was wearing a mask, so I couldn't see his appearance. However, his aura was very powerful, clearly indicating he was a decisive and efficient person. Most importantly, he overheard everything when Qin Jie and I discussed how ugly and old he was, and that he had sexual orientation issues. After he said a few words on stage, he left. I don't know if he was angry because we spoke about him like that. I'm very worried Oriental Consortium will terminate their cooperation with Top Entertainment."
Lin Xingwan felt a pang of anxiety thinking about it.
"How could he be angry?" You've said things like that to me so many times, I'm numb to it now.
"You're not Dongfang Junze, how do you know he's not angry?"
"What if I am?"
Lin Xingwan looked at Zhou Jin Bai seriously, then, as if petting a small pet, she stroked his hair. "Good boy, even though it's night, let's not have such daydreams."
Zhou Jin Bai didn't want to continue this topic and said to Lin Xingwan, "Open the document on the car window and take a look."
Lin Xingwan then noticed that a manila envelope lay quietly on Zhou Jin Bai's car window.
She took the envelope and saw it had the logo of XX Hospital.
"What is this?" Lin Xingwan asked.
"Open it and you'll know," Zhou Jin Bai said mysteriously. Lin Xingwan had no choice but to open the envelope.
As she casually scanned it, her gaze became fixed on the information in her hand.