Chapter 33: Being Scolded

Lin Ran hesitated at the top floor of Yutou Tower, taking deep breaths, preparing herself mentally.

She politely knocked on the door of Fu Xingjian’s office, and only after hearing a muffled “Come in” did she dare to push the door open.

Fu Xingjian pointed to the sofa beside him, signaling for her to sit. Lin Ran, feeling awkward, kept her legs together, organizing the draft in her mind before glancing at him. From this angle, she appeared much shorter than Fu Xingjian, who looked like a person in a higher position. This made her even more nervous.

The last time she had been this nervous was when reporting to Manager Zhou.

“Mr. Fu, a small product requirement came up today, which wasn’t part of our previous discussions, but Manager Mao insisted on proceeding with it. We think… uh, it’s possible to meet this requirement, but… Yutou would need to increase the budget.”

After speaking, she nervously rubbed her hands together.

Although this proposal was something she had suggested to Zhou Xu, she knew full well that it was somewhat far-fetched. The contract had already been completed, and now asking for a budget increase would likely anger any other client.

She wasn’t sure how Fu Xingjian would react—would he slam the table?

She hadn’t seen Fu Xingjian lose his temper before. He seemed to have a strong sense of authority. What if he actually slammed the table? Should she kneel down and beg for mercy?

While Lin Ran’s mind was running wild with these thoughts, Fu Xingjian had already seen through her brief words. He realized that the problem stemmed from a lack of clear communication between Xinruan and Mao Quanan, which had caused the dispute.

He suddenly recalled the vague face he had seen at the coffee shop at noon. As he had suspected, a person who doesn’t focus on their work would only shift the blame onto others when problems arise.

Fu Xingjian put down his pen and raised an eyebrow. It was at that moment that he truly realized how capable Lin Ran was.

“So, is this Zhou Xu’s idea or yours? Do you think that because we have a classmate relationship, I’ll ignore Yutou’s interests and help you?”

His words were blunt and harsh.

“Lin Ran, do you think I can’t tell whose fault this is just because you tried to be vague? You really overestimate yourself.”

Lin Ran’s face turned pale with a tinge of red. She had expected Fu Xingjian to reject the idea, but she hadn’t anticipated that he would be so merciless. She stammered, “I didn’t overestimate myself. I… I was just asking for your opinion. If you think it’s not feasible, then… then I’ll discuss it with Manager Zhou.”

She had encountered more difficult and ruthless clients before, who would scold her and she’d let the insults go in one ear and out the other. But today, Fu Xingjian had only raised his voice a little, and she felt terribly wronged.

Suppressing the sour feeling in her heart, Lin Ran quietly stopped speaking.

The large CEO office fell into a silence, with even a needle drop being audible.

After a while, Fu Xingjian rubbed his brow, “Go back for now. Let me think about it. I’ll give you an answer in a few days.”

Lin Ran nodded and quickly walked out of the office. From Fu Xingjian’s perspective, it seemed as though she was storming out in shame and anger.

He sighed lightly. Had he been too harsh? He had only spoken a few truths.

Yi Ming came to escort him out. Seeing that the office door was open, he bravely approached and reminded Fu Xingjian, “Mr. Fu, the meeting with external clients is about to start. Will you attend on time?”

Fu Xingjian leaned back in his chair, his back fully pressed against the artificial leather, and asked faintly, “Did I speak too harshly to Lin Ran just now?”

“Ah, well…” Yi Ming was caught off guard by the sudden question. How could the boss suddenly bring this up?

He glanced at his boss, seeing that his mood wasn’t as bad as he’d imagined, so he decided to give a neutral answer, “If it were me, I wouldn’t think it was harsh at all. But Miss Lin is a girl, and girls tend to be more sensitive, so it might have felt a bit harsh to her.”

Yi Ming then stood quietly to the side.

“A girl is more sensitive?” Fu Xingjian snorted coldly. Other girls might be fragile, but Lin Ran certainly wasn’t—her temperament was quite tough now.

He thought for a moment and said to Yi Ming, “By the way, after the meeting, check the progress of the fund project and discreetly ask Mao Quanan about his thoughts.”

“Also, don’t let him know Lin Ran came to see me.”

Yi Ming was stunned. Was the boss planning to help Miss Lin? He clicked his tongue inwardly. It seemed that Fu Xingjian, who often said the harshest things, was actually doing something quite warm. This was not the cold-faced king of hell he was used to.

He would have to carefully reconsider the relationship between the boss and Miss Lin.