Chapter 17

After venting her frustrations by scolding the scammer, Lin Shu felt much better, and her work efficiency noticeably improved.

She spent some time processing emails, and when the time was right, she left her office to meet up with Wang Tie Niu for their lunch at Lake side. Despite the hazy, smoggy weather that day, Lin Shu walked with confidence, feeling as though nothing could obstruct her clarity and determination.

Lake side wasn’t far from the Tian Hao office building, and Lin Shu and Tie Niu chatted and laughed along the way.

Halfway there, Tie Niu suddenly slapped his forehead and said with frustration, “Sorry, Par Lin, my dad just asked me to bring him my household registration book. I had it right on the table earlier, but then I completely forgot! The reservation is in private room 301. You go ahead, and I’ll catch up after I grab it.”

“No problem,” Lin Shu replied with a smile and waved him off before heading to the restaurant.

When she reached the door of room 301, she straightened her back, checked her outfit, and tidied up her appearance. With a professional smile, she knocked and entered the room.

Inside, there was indeed someone already seated, but it wasn’t Wang Yannian.

Lin Shu had seen Wang Yannian’s face plenty of times, both in The Ten Years of Xinhe and Me and in the news, so she was certain she hadn’t made a mistake.

The man sitting before her looked to be in his fifties or sixties, wearing glasses and looking scholarly. Lin Shu had never seen him before.

Thankfully, when the man saw Lin Shu, he immediately stood up and warmly extended his hand, saying, “You must be Lawyer Lin, right? Hello, hello, I’m Wang Hanzhong, a professor at Rongcheng University.”

Lin Shu smiled and shook hands in return.

As she looked more closely, she noticed that this man seemed somewhat familiar. Upon further inspection, she realized why—he had the same nose and mouth as Tie Niu. If you covered the upper half of his face, the lower half looked just like Tie Niu’s. Plus, his surname was also Wang…

Could this man be Tie Niu’s uncle or elder brother? Did Wang Yannian bring along a relative? And where was Wang Yannian?

The Wang family seemed to be full of accomplished people. Wang Yannian had founded Xinhe, and now his relative was a professor—definitely a family of notable figures.

Since Tie Niu hadn’t arrived yet, Lin Shu didn’t feel it was appropriate to ask Wang Hanzhong about his relationship with Wang Yannian. Instead, she made small talk while waiting for Tie Niu and Wang Yannian to show up.

Unfortunately, since they weren’t familiar with each other, the small talk soon ran out. But for some reason, neither Tie Niu nor Wang Yannian showed up.

In this awkward situation, to avoid uncomfortable silence, they resorted to polite flattery.

“The young people today are truly outstanding. Lawyer Lin, you’re already a partner at such a young age. Our Tie Niu will have to learn a lot from you,” Wang Hanzhong praised Lin Shu generously.

Lin Shu quickly responded, “Oh, learning is unnecessary. Tie Niu is actually very accomplished. Despite coming from a good family, he’s incredibly driven, proving the saying ‘a tiger father begets no dog son.’”

“He has a sharp instinct for the market, even though he’s in a different industry than his father. It shows he doesn’t want to rest on his father’s laurels but strives to build something of his own. That spirit alone is commendable.”

Even though Lin Shu was complimenting Tie Niu and his father, Wang Hanzhong blushed slightly and appeared embarrassed. “I wouldn’t say ‘tiger father.’ Lawyer Lin, you don’t need to flatter me like that.”

Huh?

Lin Shu paused for a second. She wasn’t praising Wang Hanzhong—she was talking about Wang Yannian…

But, considering they were family, maybe Wang Hanzhong felt proud when she praised Wang Yannian. And given Wang Yannian’s stature, his relatives likely heard compliments about him often, so Wang Hanzhong was probably just being modest.

Unfortunately, Lin Shu had only prepared to talk about Wang Yannian, based on his book. She had no idea who Wang Hanzhong was.

Now, with both Tie Niu and Wang Yannian still absent, sitting here with Wang Hanzhong in silence wasn’t a good option.

Maybe she should steer the conversation to a safe topic.

But before Lin Shu could find a topic, Wang Hanzhong, clearly a warm and talkative person, beat her to it. “Lawyer Lin, do you like pigs?”

Huh?

Lin Shu blinked for a second, then quickly understood. They were about to order food, and he was likely checking if she had any dietary restrictions regarding pork. That was considerate.

“Of course!” Lin Shu smiled politely and nodded.

But the moment she nodded, Wang Hanzhong’s eyes lit up like he had found a kindred spirit. “Not many young people appreciate pigs these days!”

Huh? A lot of young people eat pork…

“You know, pigs are actually among the top ten most intelligent animals in the world. Domestic pigs can retain memories for up to five days, and they even have spatial memory! Pigs are also empathetic creatures—they can sense the emotions of their companions and respond accordingly.”

Uh, what? Weren’t we just talking about ordering pork? How did this conversation suddenly turn into a lesson on pig intelligence?

Lin Shu tried to bring the conversation back on track, “Uncle Wang, I—”

But Wang Hanzhong was on a roll, passionately discussing pigs like an expert, giving Lin Shu no chance to interrupt.

“In my research on pigs, I’ve become more and more fascinated with them. I’ve had this interest since childhood, and that’s why I’ve dedicated my career to studying sow reproduction and pig herds. I wanted Tie Niu to follow in my footsteps and inherit my work, especially since I’ve built up some connections in the field. But alas, Tie Niu has no interest in pigs, unlike you, Lawyer Lin, who seems to share my passion for them.”

The more Wang Hanzhong spoke, the more regretful he seemed, while Lin Shu was increasingly unsettled.

Inherit his career? Follow in his footsteps?

Isn’t Tie Niu’s father supposed to be Wang Yannian?

Is there some misunderstanding here?

Wang Hanzhong continued enthusiastically talking about pigs, while Lin Shu stared at his face, which bore such a strong resemblance to Wang Tie Niu’s. A bad feeling began to grow in her gut—something was terribly off.

Struggling to stay calm, Lin Shu asked tentatively, “So… you’re Tie Niu’s father?”

Wang Hanzhong laughed heartily. “Of course! Who else? Look at us, we’re practically identical!”

“And… Wang Yannian…?”

“Wang Yannian? You mean Xinhe’s Wang Yannian?” Wang Hanzhong looked confused. “Why bring him up?”

After a moment, he seemed to have an epiphany. “Oh, right! I remember now—Tie Niu mentioned that Xinhe’s second son works in your team as a colleague. That’s why he kept urging me to buy Xinhe’s stock. Then just the other day, he told me to sell it all, and right after I did, the stock price skyrocketed. Where does he even get his information from?”

Wang Hanzhong kept talking, but Lin Shu could no longer hear him. All she could hear was the buzzing in her head.

Wang Hanzhong was Tie Niu’s father? Tie Niu wasn’t the second son?

Had she mistaken the wrong person all this time?

If Tie Niu wasn’t the “prince,” then who was?

Lin Shu’s mind was in turmoil, and she felt like her brain was about to overheat.

This was a huge mistake!

Oblivious to her distress, Wang Hanzhong said, “Tie Niu, that rascal! He invited us to lunch, but the host hasn’t even arrived yet. How rude. Lawyer Lin,  Let me call him and hurry him along.”

Lin Shu tried her best to stay calm and maintain a smile. “Professor Wang, please sit down. I’ll call Tie Niu myself. I have something else I need to ask him.”

After exchanging pleasantries with Wang Hanzhong, Lin Shu picked up her phone and stepped out into the quiet hallway outside the private room, dialing Tie Niu.

Thankfully, Tie Niu answered quickly. “Hey, Par Lin, sorry about the wait. I just finished a call with a client. There’s also something important I wanted to report to you…”

Lin Shu interrupted him expressionlessly, still clinging to her last shred of hope. “Let’s skip the other stuff. Nothing is more important than what I need to ask you now. Tell me, did Wang Yannian’s son, like that other female employee, leave the team before I joined?”

Tie Niu’s response delivered the final blow to Lin Shu: “No, of course not. Xu Shijia is still here, and Xinhe is still one of our biggest clients.”

“…”

Great. What she feared most had come true.

Xu Shijia was still with them, but Lin Shu had just scolded him today, so he might not be for long. Xinhe was still a major client, but once Xu Shijia left, that might no longer be the case…

Lin Shu had completely misjudged the situation. Xu Shijia was the actual heir to Xinhe.

Not only had she misunderstood, but when Xu Shijia had overheard her misconceptions, he hadn’t corrected her. Instead, he had fueled the misunderstanding, ensuring that Lin Shu barreled down the wrong path.

Now, all she could think about were the harsh things she’d said to Xu Shijia earlier, and how confident she’d been in sending him off. She regretted it so much she wished she could go back in time and silence herself.

As for the things she’d said before… she couldn’t even bear to remember. What had Xu Shijia been thinking when she tried to “advise” him? And in front of Wang Yizhou, too! Neither of the brothers had said a word to correct her!

She was too hasty, blinded by her own assumptions.

Lin Shu’s heart was in turmoil.

Tie Niu, completely unaware, continued in his innocent tone, “What’s wrong, Par Lin? I thought Xu Shijia had been working pretty seriously recently. I even followed your advice—since I knew his family’s situation was worse than mine, I’ve been helping him out. I’ve been showing him how to print documents, serve tea, handle basic tasks. He wasn’t too happy about it at first, but once I told him you wanted me to teach him, he stuck with it and said he’d always remember your guidance. It seemed like he was really grateful. His family’s troubles have really helped him grow.”

His family doesn’t have troubles. We’re the ones in trouble now…

He’s not grateful, he’s probably plotting revenge…

Lin Shu began to recall all the things she had done to Xu Shijia—

The heir to Xinhe hated peach flavors, and she had forced him to eat two peach-flavored jellies, hadn’t she?

He was a germophobe, and she had assigned him the task of serving dishes and making tea. On her first day, she had sent him on a business trip with her; she even joked in front of Wang Yizhou that his brother might have a hereditary hearing disorder…

Xu Shijia must have found it hilarious, watching her mistake Tie Niu for the Xinhe heir! He hadn’t just refrained from clearing things up, he had actively encouraged her to make more mistakes!

How could someone be so devious?

The more Lin Shu thought about how she had treated Xu Shijia recently, the more her scalp tingled with dread.

Regret. All she felt now was overwhelming regret.

Who would have guessed that Wang Yannian’s son didn’t share his surname?

Even worse, this was partly Tie Niu’s fault, too!

“Tie Niu, when I brought up your dad’s book, why did you play along?!”

If his dad hadn’t written a book, he could have just said so! It wasn’t like she’d look down on him for that!

“He did write a book! He’s a professor at Rongcheng University, and his book was a best-seller for a while!”

“…” Lin Shu was dying to know how she had gotten herself into this mess. “What book did your dad write?”

“The Wisdom and Philosophy of Sows! Par Lin, I thought you knew! My dad’s an expert in animal husbandry, but he’s always believed in combining knowledge, so he analyzed sow behavior from a sociological and philosophical angle. He even started a popular online series about it, which eventually led to a book deal because his perspective was so unique. People loved it!”

“It was quite popular because it was so innovative! When you said you’d read my dad’s book, I was thrilled! I had no idea Lawyer Lin had such a broad range of interests! I haven’t even read it myself!”

Tie Niu added enthusiastically, “He’s coming out with a new book soon about social behavior in pig herds. If you’re interested, I can get you a signed copy!”

“My dad always says that the natural world and animal kingdom are fascinating. You can learn a lot about human society just by studying pigs…”

“Even my name, Tie Niu, came from the time my dad was researching cattle. That’s how I got it…”

Tie Niu, you should be thankful your dad wasn’t researching pigs at the time, or you’d be called Wang Tiezhu…

But as she stared at the mess she’d gotten herself into, Lin Shu suddenly thought of an even more pressing issue.

If Tie Niu’s father wasn’t Wang Yannian, then the person who had called earlier, claiming to be Wang Yannian’s assistant…

At that moment, Tie Niu finally rushed over, slightly out of breath. He waved excitedly at Lin Shu. “Par Lin, I’m here! Whatever it is, you can tell me now!”

Now that Tie Niu was here, Lin Shu could hang up the phone. She gestured for him to wait.

Unwilling to give up, Lin Shu expressionlessly redialed the two previous landline numbers.

As soothing background music played, a mechanical female voice gently announced, “Hello, welcome to Xinhe Group…”

…

The answer was now clear.

But Lin Shu still refused to accept it. She turned to Tie Niu and asked, “Did you say your dad has an assistant?”

Tie Niu responded immediately, proud and proper. “Well, technically it’s a teaching assistant, but my dad’s TA likes to call himself his assistant. They’re close, so I started calling him that too…”

“……”

How could this happen? How did everything line up so perfectly, yet so disastrously?

This was like a twisted version of a royal switch!

Had she been cursed?

Could someone really be this unlucky?

This wretched fate… was she about to be sacrificed to it?

But… all the great people throughout history had faced crises without panicking, always managing to pull through. After all, as long as you’re alive, something good is bound to happen eventually.

Lin Shu kept reminding herself of this, trying hard to steady her emotions. She took a deep breath and said, “Forget about that. What was the important thing you wanted to tell me?”

“Oh! Xinhe’s Wang Yannian just arrived at our firm. He said he wanted to meet with you personally,”  WangTie Niu muttered. “I was going to entertain him, but I was worried that my old habits might flare up and give him a bad impression, which could cost our team potential business. Luckily, Chen Parr, the senior partner in charge of the Xinhe account, had just come back. I saw him chat with Wang for a bit and invite him out to dinner.”

“……”

Would kneeling and begging for forgiveness even work at this point?

Her bright future hadn’t even started, and it already seemed doomed to end.

By the time Wang Yannian finished his meal with the senior partner from Tianhao, she might already be fired from the firm.

“Par Lin, do you think Wang Yannian of Xinhe has important business with you? Should we still go to dinner? If not, we can always reschedule. I can ask my dad to send over the signed book first—work comes first, after all!” Tie Niu said thoughtfully.

Work? She was probably about to lose her job.

Lin Shu didn’t respond. She numbly walked back to the private room.

At this point, she might as well eat first.

After all, it’s better to have a good meal before heading to her road.