Deep Fog Kiss

So why did she agree to this marriage?

Was there some kind of exchange that forced her to accept the engagement?

Thinking of this, Gu Zhishen's eyes narrowed slightly. "How did the Xiang family treat her?"

"Since Mr. and Mrs. Xiang Yaojie found Ms. Li abroad two years ago, they haven't had much contact with her, but they've always treated her quite well in public."

After finishing his sentence, Yin Ming added, "However, the couple is quite shrewd and worldly in the business world; they know how to flatter and get things done."

Gu Zhishen flicked the ash from his cigarette but didn't say anything.

On the seat next to me was a manila envelope.

He tapped the file folder and asked in a deep voice, "Has the stuff been sent?"

"It has been sent to Ms. Shu's email address."

After finishing speaking, Yin Ming mustered his courage and added, "Boss, these things might further facilitate the marriage between the Xiang and Tang families. If Miss Li doesn't want to get engaged, will she blame you if she finds out you've interfered?"

Gu Zhishen glanced at him. "She's smarter than you."

"..." Yin Ming was speechless, then nodded and shut up.

Gu Zhishen had a smile on his lips, his dark gaze fixed on the file folder beside him.

"She knew how to use these things to get herself out of the mire."

......

10:00 AM.

Jiang Li arrived ten minutes early and parked her sports car downstairs at Shile Media.

As soon as I entered, the receptionist told me that Director Luo was in a meeting and asked me to wait a moment.

Jiang Li nodded with a slight smile and sat quietly in the reception room to wait.

Unexpectedly, this "moment" lasted for a full hour.

When the receptionist entered the meeting room, Jiang Li remained calm and polite with a smile.

"Excuse me, has Director Luo's meeting concluded?"

"I'm so sorry, Ms. Jiang," the receptionist said with a troubled expression. "Director Luo went to dinner with an important client after his meeting, so you..."

He deliberately made her wait for an hour, then went to have dinner with a client, leaving her there waiting.

This is to give her a warning.

Since we've come all this way, there's no reason for us to leave empty-handed.

Jiang Li's smile remained unchanged. "It's alright, I can wait until Director Luo finishes his meal."

She remained firm in her stance, and the receptionist didn't say anything more, simply bringing her another glass of water before leaving.

Jiang Li leaned back in her chair, replying to the message sent by Shen Nianchu.

Shen Nianchu: [So, what did Luo Hui say?]

Jiang Li: [That old man left me hanging for an hour while he went to eat, and I still haven't seen my noodles.]

Shen Nianchu sent a shocked emoji: [He's gone too far! I don't think we can finalize the contract today. Why don't you come back first?]

Jiang Li lightly tapped the screen with her slender fingertips, a smile playing on her lips: "Whether we can reach an agreement or not, we'll have to talk about it first."

Jiang Li turned off her phone, took a sip of water from her glass, and gazed softly at the sunlight outside the window.

She is best at waiting.

When I was little, I would wait for my dad to come home for dinner every day, and then he would take me to the amusement park when he had some free time.

When she was eight years old, her maternal grandmother came to adopt her.

When she was ten years old, she waited for Gu Zhishen to come and pick her up.

When she was eighteen, Gu Zhishen fell in love with her.

At the age of twenty-two, I finally let go of this illicit relationship.

She has been waiting for so many years.

These few hours meant nothing to her.

The sunlight outside the window gradually slanted down from directly above.

The shadows cast into the reception room also subtly shifted their positions.

When the receptionist entered the meeting room, the young and beautiful girl inside still had a faint smile on her face, showing no sign of impatience.

"Ms. Jiang, Director Luo requests your presence in his office."

"Thanks."

Jiang Li thanked her politely and glanced at the time discreetly.

2:30 p.m.

......

Jiang Li arrived at the director's office. Through the half-open door, she saw a middle-aged man in a suit sitting on the sofa, whispering intimately to a young and beautiful girl.

Jiang Li recognized them at a glance: Luo Hui, the director of Shile Media, and Ren Youyou, a rising star in the entertainment industry.

Ren Youyou is young and beautiful, and speaks in a gentle voice. She has been dubbed "the nation's first love" by netizens.

She has a huge fan base and is Luo Hui's go-to leading lady.

The script for Jiang Li originally wanted to cast Ren Youyou as the female lead, but Luo Hui turned it down, saying that the script from her small company didn't match Ren Youyou's value.

"Director Luo, hello."

Jiang Li gently knocked on the door to remind the two of them.

Noticing someone enter, the two, who had been behaving intimately, quickly created a suitable distance between themselves.

Luo Hui gave Ren Youyou a look, signaling her to leave first.

He looked at the excessively beautiful woman before him, his gaze sweeping over her slightly. "Jiang Li?"

Jiang Li immediately put on a polite smile, two shallow dimples appearing at the corners of her mouth, and extended her hand to him, "Director Luo, hello, I am Jiang Li, the head screenwriter of Echo Studio."

Their previous collaborations were all conducted via video, and Luo Hui had praised her for being beautiful and having the potential to be a star.

"Jiang Li, seeing is believing, she really is a great beauty."

Luo Hui smiled and took her hand, his fingers lightly gliding across the back of her fair and delicate hand.

"I've been so busy today, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Jiang Li subtly withdrew her hand, her smile unwavering. "Director Luo is a very busy man, I understand."

She always approaches things with courtesy first, then gets straight to the point: "Director Luo, Echo is very sincere about working with you, and the script price was already agreed upon. Now that we're about to sign the contract, it's not appropriate for you to try to lower the price, is it?"

Jiang Li is beautiful, and her voice, though neither too loud nor too soft, carries a hint of amusement, yet it also conveys a sense of pressure.

Her energetic personality piqued Luo Hui's interest even more.

His gaze was ambiguous as he looked Jiang Li up and down at her shapely figure, then chuckled, "Jiang Li, you have no idea how tough things are in this industry right now. We're in a difficult position too."

"The decision to change the price was made by our team. Your script is decent, but your writing team isn't very well-known, so it would be a big risk for us to use your script."

He gestured for Jiang Li to sit down at the tea table next to him and began to brew tea.

"You know Tianze Capital, right?"

He asked a question, then said, "You've just returned to China, so you might not be familiar with the domestic market. Tianze Capital is currently the largest investment bank in China. If we can get investment from Tianze Capital, then Shile Media will thrive in the film and television industry, and naturally, the price we give your team will double."

Jiang Li's lips twitched slightly as she listened to Luo Hui's empty promises.

Of course she knew about Tianze Capital, a renowned investment bank not only domestically but also internationally.

Gu Zhishen, the boss behind Tianze Capital, is a god on Wall Street.

Back when he created a financial miracle in the United States and returned to China as a legend, it was Jiang Li who secretly went to pick him up at the airport.

Luo Hui handed her a cup of tea. "Tianze Capital is very optimistic about our Shile Media. We're just one step away from securing investment."

"Oh? Really?" Jiang Li smiled and took the cup. "That's wonderful."

"However, this final step is a bit difficult." Luo Hui looked somewhat troubled.

As the cup moved, Luo Hui took the opportunity to touch Jiang Li's hand.

Jiang Li's fingers trembled, and the tea spilled out.

She heard Luo Hui say, "I've heard that Mr. Gu of Tianze Capital is not interested in women, but what man doesn't love beautiful women?"

Luo Hui's naked gaze lingered on Jiang Li's beautiful and alluring face without any attempt to conceal it. "If screenwriter Jiang is such a stunning beauty, I'm afraid no man could resist her."

He gave a meaningful smile, "If someone as beautiful as screenwriter Jiang could sleep with that CEO Gu for one night and whisper sweet nothings in his ear, once the investment deal is finalized, we'd be willing to pay several times the original price of the script, let alone keep it at the original price!"