Lu Qin’s expression was obscure and unclear. Whether the watch was lent to him by Pei Rong for show, or truly given to “Uncle Jiang” by Dundun, it had touched his most sensitive nerve. (T/N: Lu Qin thought that the person he’s talking to was the ‘Uncle Jiang’ Dundun has been talking about.)
In front of children, he shamelessly lied about liking so-and-so, but outside, he had no face left at all.
Secretary Gao knew exactly which limited edition watches existed and who bought them. He smiled and said, “Speaking of which, our President Lu also has one of these. He gave it to his partner, and it’s numbered LP001.”
“A limited edition watch costing over ten million yuan—Mr. Jiang certainly has the same taste as President Lu.”
The people present didn’t know why the conversation suddenly turned to watches. They only heard that President Lu indeed had a son whom he spoiled, and the son’s birth mother should be the partner Secretary Gao mentioned?
It was said that President Lu opened a bottle of wine worth over ten million yuan to introduce his son to his social circle. So now… could he be flaunting his love with a watch worth over ten million yuan?
The baffled team from the other company immediately went along with the narrative, claiming that this watch was the perfect gift between lovers, emphasizing the deep love between Jiang Haotian and his wife.
Unexpectedly, President Lu, being a man of character, was more interested in personal stories than presentations.
The more people praised, the darker Lu Qin’s face became, though most couldn’t tell. Secretary Gao, however, was keenly aware.
Jiang Haotian was sweating profusely. He wasn’t naïve enough to think that President Lu and Secretary Gao were both interested in a watch, especially since this watch had a dubious origin.
Compliments about the watch and about his wife turned into arrows aimed at him, making Jiang Haotian feel as though his wrist were shackled and nailed in place.
His wife’s bargain hunting was going to be the death of him!
How could he fix this… how?
Seeing Jiang’s guilty expression, Lu Qin’s suspicions turned into certainty. He stood up and walked straight out of the signing room.
Secretary Gao said, “The Lu Corporation does not cooperate with dishonest companies.”
The decision was final.
Immediately after, the Lu Corporation’s staff got up and left without a word. In less than thirty seconds, only Jiang Haotian’s team was left, staring at each other in dismay.
“Jiang Haotian, what’s going on?”
“Did you offend President Lu?”
“Ah! Could it be because of that watch? Did you anger President Lu by having the same one? I told you, just wear whatever watch you can afford. Why pretend to be something you’re not?”
“Figure out how to fix this yourself. If the contract isn’t signed, you’re fired.”
Jiang Haotian’s face turned ashen. After leaving the Lu Corporation building, he immediately called his wife upon getting back into his car. “Didn’t you say you traded this watch with the kid willingly?”
“Yes.”
“I went to sign the contract today, and as soon as Lu Qin saw my watch, he walked out! How exactly did you get it?”
The voice on the other end started to stammer.
Jiang Haotian tapped the steering wheel. “Jin Qiao, I heard Lu has a son. Did you trade with him?”
“Lu Qin’s son?!” Jin Qiao mumbled, fear creeping into her voice. “I... I...”
Jiang Haotian flew into a rage. “What are you hesitating for? I’m about to lose my job because of this.”
Jin Qiao thought encountering a troublemaking woman at the manor and ending up at the police station was bad enough. When the watch was sent to the foreign headquarters for verification, she thought she would lose her prized cat for nothing. However, the police informed her that the serial number did not match Ms. Lin’s claim. Since no one else claimed ownership, she could take the watch back.
Jin Qiao was elated. When the case was closed, she couldn’t help but mock Lin Yi, “Ha! Truly wealthy people don’t care about giving away watches. Only shrews would make a fuss about it.”
Lin Yi was furious at the time. The headquarters kept other clients’ information confidential and wouldn’t tell her to whom the serial number belonged. Even if she was certain the watch belonged to Lu Qin, as Jin Qiao said, with Lu Qin’s immense wealth, he might not care about a watch given away casually. If she rashly exposed it, it would make her look petty.
Just then, the Lu family announced that Lu Qin had a son. It wasn’t hard to guess that the son had traded the watch for the cat. Lin Yi investigated Jin Qiao’s husband’s background and found he would likely meet Lu Qin soon. She decided to wait and see. If Lu Qin didn’t react, she wouldn’t stir up trouble.
Jiang Haotian: “How exactly did you trade it? How did you encounter Lu Qin’s son?”
Jin Qiao, frightened, steeled herself and said, “It was your son’s doing! Last month, you adopted that cat. Erbao took it to play at the Greenwood Manor. Your son hit the cat, and the Lu family’s kid interfered. Your son hit him on the head with a rock! The kid wanted the cat, but your son wouldn’t sell it, so he traded the watch for it.”
“Hit him with a rock?”
“It was just a bump.”
Jiang Haotian felt faint. “Why didn’t you watch over our son? What can you do? I told you the cat was from a friend who didn’t want it after moving. You said you wanted it, so I asked. If I had known—”
Jin Qiao: “Watch over him? Isn’t he your mother’s treasure? Didn’t I agree to trade the watch for your sake?”
“I’m coming back now. We need to apologize to Lu Qin together.”
After all, they only needed to deal with a cat, return the watch, apologize, and it would be best if the matter was resolved.
Since President Lu’s son likes cats so much, getting closer to the kid might help, as children were generally easier to deal with than adults.
When Jiang Haotian returned home, his son was wailing and refused to go with him. After getting beaten, he defiantly shouted, “Mom also pushed that little brother! Why don’t you hit mom?”
Jiang Haotian’s head exploded: “You, you also pushed him?”
Jin Qiao egged him on: “Lu Qin hasn’t come looking for us. If it wasn’t for you being seen by him, he wouldn’t even remember this. Why apologize? At worst, just quit and find another company, and avoid Lu Qin in the future. This watch is worth over ten million. How many years would you need to work at that lousy company to earn that much?”
Jiang Haotian: “Idiot! If he didn’t care, would his face have been that dark today? The watch is only worth over ten million if it can be cashed in; otherwise, it’s just a piece of scrap metal! You said this watch has Lu Qin’s number on it. Who are you going to sell it to? Who would dare to buy it? Even if someone dares, as soon as the money hits the account, Lu Qin will sue you for theft. Do you know how many years you’ll sit in prison for ten million? This isn’t just over ten million, it’s a time bomb! I quit today; do you think Lu Qin will let me find another job? Who’s going to pay the eight million mortgage?”
Jin Qiao, bawling from being scolded, had no job and was afraid of ending up homeless if they couldn’t pay the mortgage: “Then what should we do?”
Jiang Haotian: “Admit our mistake.”
