Chapter 365: Being your son-in-law, my future is limitless!

Hong Bai Tian frowned, glared at Hong Wenyan, and didn't let her finish her words.

Why the rush? You can't decide a relationship at first glance; spend more time together and you might grow to like each other.

He turned to Lin Yuan again, his tone softer, with a hint of persuasion: "Xiao Lin, my daughter may be a bit stubborn, but she's not ill-intentioned; bear with her a little, being proactive won't hurt."

Lin Yuan shook his head again: "Sorry, Director Hong, I really have no feelings for your daughter; please stop trying to set us up."

This Hong Bai Tian is really bored.

Hong Bai Tian tried again: "Xiao Lin, tell me honestly, what's lacking about my daughter? In looks, who on the street doesn't praise her as eye-catching? In status, the K Group will have a share for her someday—dating her won't leave you at a loss."

Hong Wenyan turned her face away, voice tinged with grievance and stubbornness: "Dad! I don't care!"

Hong Bai Tian said solemnly: "Xiao Lin, I'm being serious—if you're willing to be my son-in-law, I'll hand over the company to you to manage; shares equal to my son's, half each—isn't that sincere enough?"

Lin Yuan paused, glass in hand, looked up at Hong Bai Tian with a calm gaze: "Director Hong, thank you for your high regard, but I have no interest in managing the company, nor do I want shares."

He paused again, then added: "More importantly, I truly have no such feelings for Miss Hong; forced melons aren't sweet, so please stop matchmaking."

Upon hearing this, Hong Wenyan felt an inexplicable surge of fire—not anger, but a confusing sense of loss—and she sprang to her feet: "Who wants to force things with him! Dad, stop pressuring him, and stop pressuring me!"

Hong Bai Tian's hand gripping the glass paused, knuckles whitening, as he looked at the two immovable people before him, finally letting out a sigh.

He set down his glass, voice softer, with a hint of elder's compromise: "Fine, relationships can't be rushed—why not try being friends first? Spend more time together, and you might grow to like each other."

As those words left his mouth, the private room fell silent for two seconds.

Hong Wenyan's hand hanging at her side clenched quietly, nails digging into her palm—

She didn't like Lin Yuan, but her father had already backed down this far; if she kept resisting, she'd inevitably cause a scene.

She opened her mouth, about to agree with her father's words, but the corner of her eye caught Lin Yuan's movement.

Lin Yuan didn't look at her or at Hong Bai Tian; he merely gave a slight shake of his head, a small motion that conveyed an unmistakable refusal.

"Being friends isn't necessary either."

His voice was light, like a feather landing on water, yet it instantly made Hong Wenyan bristle.

Hong Wenyan shot her head up, all her restraint gone, only surging anger remained: "Lin Yuan, what do you mean?!"

She had been holding in the humiliation from last night, and though she'd been tolerating it to spare her father face, this person wouldn't even give her the courtesy of a friendship.

Lin Yuan lifted his gaze to her, tone still flat: "Nothing much, I just feel it's unnecessary."

"Unnecessary?" Hong Wenyan sprang to her feet, chair legs screeching on the floor: "You think I want to be friends with you? If it weren't for my dad…"

She stopped mid-sentence, swallowed her words, chest heaving violently, grabbed the coat from the chair back, and glared fiercely at Lin Yuan.

"This meal is impossible to eat!"

After throwing down those words, she didn't spare a glance at Hong Bai Tian's ugly expression, nor did she mind whether the door guards were still blocking her, and she stormed straight out of the private room.

The bodyguards exchanged glances, instinctively wanting to stop her, but Hong Bai Tian waved them off.

"Let her go."

Hong Bai Tian's voice carried fatigue as he watched his daughter's retreating back disappear at the door, then turned his gaze to Lin Yuan, his brows knotted.

"Xiao Lin, you're being a bit over the top, aren't you? I've already backed down this far—can't you give me some face?"

Lin Yuan picked up the tea cup on the table, took a sip of the now-cold water, tone unruffled: "Director Hong, matters of the heart can't be forced—friendship included."

Hong Bai Tian stared at him for a few seconds, then said nothing more, just let out a heavy sigh, picked up the wine bottle, filled his glass to the brim, and downed it in one go.

The atmosphere in the private room grew even more stiff; the dishes on the table still steamed, the 1982 Lafite swirling crimson in the glass, yet no one had the heart to take a bite.

He picked up the Maotai bottle on the table, poured himself another half glass, the liquor swirling in the cup, reflecting the regret on his face.

"Xiao Lin, I truly think you two are a good match, I wanted to unite our families through marriage, but…"

He trailed off, shook his head, swallowed the rest of his words, then tipped back the glass and drained it dry.

The liquor burned his throat, and only then did Hong Bai Tian collect himself, leaning slightly toward Lin Yuan, his eyes pleading.

"Forget it, I can't control young people's thoughts—let's drop this for now."

"Xiao Lin, help me think of a way, figure out how to pursue Director Su."

"You work at the same company, see her every day—you surely know her temperament better than I do; even just pointing me in a direction would help."

Lin Yuan set down the tea cup in his hand, fingertips lightly brushing the rim, his tone still as flat as before.

"Director Hong, there's really nothing I can do."

"Director Su keeps her personal feelings strictly separate; she won't loosen up just because someone spends time or gives gifts."

"All I have with her is work-related interaction; we've never chatted privately, so I don't know what she likes or cares about."

Hong Bai Tian frowned, fingers lightly tapping the table, unwilling to let go as he pressed further.

"You really have no leads at all? Like, does she have any usual haunts, or anything she particularly values?"

Lin Yuan shook his head again: "Really none, sorry Director Hong, but I can't help."

This dinner was strangely odd.

Lin Yuan casually ate a few bites, then got up to take his leave.

"Director Hong, it's getting late, I'm leaving now." Lin Yuan said, starting to rise.

Hong Bai Tian watched Lin Yuan rise to get his coat, then suddenly lunged forward, his hand darting into his suit's inner pocket, pinching a black bank card and extending it toward him.

Hong Bai Tian handed over the bank card, smiling: "Xiao Lin, take this card—it has two million. Consider it my small thanks for saving my daughter last night; don't think it's too little."

Lin Yuan glanced at the bank card, waved it off: "Director Hong, no need. Saving Wenyan was just chance; I can't accept this money."

Hong Bai Tian leaned in, the card nearly touching Lin Yuan's hand: "Take it, it's just a token. Two million isn't much—you're a deputy director at the company; how many years would it take to earn that? Take it, don't stand on ceremony."

Lin Yuan stepped back again, his gaze meeting Hong Bai Tian's, tone deeper than before but without anger: "Director Hong, there's really no need to mention the money. If I were after money, I wouldn't have refused your car, nor would I be sitting here talking to you like this."

He reached out, pushing Hong Bai Tian's wrist back; the black bank card slipped from the other's fingertips, hovering in midair.

"I have my own principles—I won't touch a penny that isn't mine. I appreciate your sentiment, but please take this card back."

Hong Bai Tian sighed: "You little brat, why are you so stubborn?"

Lin Yuan rose to take his leave.

Only Hong Bai Tian and his subordinates remained in the private room.

At that moment, a crew-cut subordinate stepped forward and whispered, "Director Hong, this kid is way too shameless! You've given him a car and money, yet he won't budge—should we get a few brothers to give him a lesson on the road? Let him know your weight!"

Hearing this, Hong Bai Tian suddenly lifted his head; the helplessness in his eyes vanished, replaced by a sharp edge that made the crew-cut subordinate shut up instantly.

"A lesson? You don't know shit." Hong Bai Tian slipped the card into his inner pocket, his fingers brushing the waist of his suit, his tone tinged with frustration at wasted potential.

"These days everyone's chasing money on the street; someone like Lin Yuan, who isn't greedy and has principles, is hard to find even with a lantern. His character is exactly what my K Group needs as a successor—he's a hundred times better than that good-for-nothing Wuquan!"

Whenever his son Hong Wuquan is mentioned, Hong Bai Tian can't help but sigh.

The last time the group project had a leak, Hong Wuquan's first reaction was to hide or get his underlings to clean up his mess—compared to Lin Yuan's brave rescue of Wenyan last night, he's worlds apart.

"The more I look at this kid, the more I like him," Hong Bai Tian poured himself a glass of white liquor and continued slowly, "From now on, when you see him, show respect—don't go shouting about beating or killing at the drop of a hat. This kid might be my future son-in-law; if you hurt him, Wenyan will be the first to come after me."

Another bespectacled subordinate quickly nodded: "Understood, Director Hong—we'll remember."

"Director Hong, what about this kid and the miss?" a subordinate asked cautiously.

Hong Bai Tian said coldly, "Keep matchmaking, keep looking for opportunities—this son-in-law, I, Hong Bai Tian, have decided on him."

The subordinates nodded repeatedly.

……

Over the next few days, Lin Yuan poured almost all his energy into the work of the Wind Control Department.

A thick stack of Gaode Medicine invoices piled up on his desk, the top sheet marked in red ink with "Outstanding amount: 20 million," the characters striking.

Each day upon arriving at the company, Lin Yuan first spread out those invoices, checking line by line the cash flow from last year to this year, occasionally pausing to highlight key points in his notebook, marking the times when the other side promised repayment but then defaulted.

Once a coworker passing by his desk caught sight of the dense annotations in his notebook and couldn't help whispering, "Deputy Director Lin, the Gaode Medicine accounts are a mess—several people before you couldn't crack them; you really need to put in extra effort."

Lin Yuan looked up, smiled, and casually picked up an invoice: "Even if it's messy, we have to sort it out—we can't let the company's money keep floating out there."

Wednesday morning, after Lin Yuan had just finished contacting Gaode Medicine's finance department, they again used "tight cash flow" as an excuse to dodge; he hadn't even finished organizing the call logs when Lu Chengyu walked into the office.

Lu Chengyu strode in holding a collections task list, walked straight to Lin Yuan's desk, and slapped the list down: "Deputy Director Lin, how's the progress on Gaode Medicine's 20 million drug payment?"

Lin Yuan set down his phone, pointed to the invoice on the desk, and said, "I've already communicated with their finance three times; they keep avoiding specific repayment dates. I'm currently organizing their revenue data from the past six months to assess their actual repayment ability."

Lu Chengyu frowned, tapping his finger on the "20 million" figure in the list, and said, "Judgment ability? The company wants results, not an analysis report."

"Head office wants to see a preliminary bad-debt collection plan this week—with your progress, how will you report back?" Lu Chengyu's voice was colder than usual, and the other coworkers in the office quietly slowed their movements.

Lin Yuan was about to explain……

Lu Chengyu cut him off directly: "Lin Yuan, stop making excuses—I'll give you at most one week. Within that week, you'd better recover that 20 million bad debt! Otherwise, it's your incompetence—don't blame me for taking this to the board; you'll have to face the consequences!"

Lin Yuan stared at Lu Chengyu and sneered, "Fine, since Risk Control Director Lu is incapable and can't settle this collection case, I'll handle it. One week, right? Sure. Director Lu, are you done speaking? If so, you can get lost."

Hearing this, Lu Chengyu's face instantly darkened: "You… what are you saying?!"

He never expected Lin Yuan to be so sharp-tongued!

Lin Yuan leaned back in his chair, lightly tapping the invoice on the desk with his fingers, and said sarcastically, "Director Lu, don't rush to get angry—let's straighten this out."

"This 20 million overdue payment from Gaode Medicine has been dragged from last year to this year—two full years. When you were Risk Control Director, why didn't you resolve it? Why didn't you say you'd report to the board? Why weren't you worried about your own incompetence?"

"Now you dump this unwanted mess on me, give me no client resources, mention no coordination support, just stand by my desk pointing fingers, urging progress more anxiously than anyone, and when problems arise you try to push all the blame onto me—is that what your ability as a director amounts to?"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Lu Chengyu's instantly reddening face, his tone unsoftened: "If you really had the ability, you should have collected this money yourself back then—no need to wait until now for me to clean up the mess you left. In short, what's the difference between you as Wind Control Department director and a waste of space? I still have to step in as Deputy Director."

In terms of scolding ability, Lu Chengyu is no match for Lin Yuan……

Lu Chengyu still wanted to insult Lin Yuan a bit more, but ended up being verbally sparred with by Lin Yuan, causing his blood pressure to spike.

In the end, Lu Chengyu was literally shouted out of the office by Lin Yuan……

Lu Chengyu stormed out, slamming the door……

After Lu Chengyu left.

Lin Yuan's face sank.

In this stack of files, it's not just simple invoices—it's genuine trouble.

This Gaode Medicine mess ultimately can't be avoided.

Lin Yuan raised his hand to wipe his face, his gaze falling on the red seal on the first page of the document reading "Outstanding 20 million," and he felt somewhat helpless.

Twenty million—not two hundred thousand or two million—is a figure that could make the company's financial statements look bad for half a quarter.

He clearly remembered how, when Lu Chengyu tossed the file to him, a smug grin lingered at the corner of his mouth—clearly he was throwing this hard-to-chew bone over to watch him make a fool of himself.

Now the task has landed on his head; there's no dodging it.

Lin Yuan glanced at the clock—it was noon.

He planned to take some time this afternoon to visit Gaode Medicine Group in person to collect the debt.

But before pursuing the debt, Lin Yuan first stopped by the office of Legal Director Fei Fanjin to inquire about legal risks.

Inside the legal office.

Fei Fanjin heard Lin Yuan say he wanted to go collect the debt and directly advised him not to go.

"You really want to go collect from Gaode Medicine? Last time it was Old Zhou from the Wind Control Department who went, and he got into a car accident on the way back! The boss of Gaode Medicine has underworld connections—it's really troublesome!"

Lin Yuan rubbed his fingertips over the Gaode Medicine invoice on the desk and said helplessly, "Twenty million isn't a small sum; we can't just ignore it for fear of trouble, and besides, Lu Chengyu is watching—if I back down, he'll surely latch onto this to give me grief."

Fei Fanjin sighed, stood up, opened a drawer, pulled out a stack of yellowed files, and handed them to Lin Yuan.

"This is the data Old Zhou compiled back then, plus a background check on Gaode Medicine's boss, Gao Qiming—he has dealings with people on the street; take it, and if anything happens, you'll at least have some proof."

"Also, this is a voice recorder—when you negotiate with them, remember to record it as evidence." Fei Fanjin said, handing him a recorder.

Lin Yuan took the files and recorder, pressed the switch, and confirmed it could record properly.

"Thanks, I'll be careful and won't let myself get into trouble."

In the afternoon, Lin Yuan took a taxi straight to Gaode Medicine Group……