Female lead’s Delusion of Starting Over

Chapter 77

Chapter 77: Let Him Cook, Let Him Cook

Humans, as creatures, always like to deceive themselves or rather, prefer to direct their thoughts towards what they hope for. Half a day’s time should have been enough for Zhang Company to respond and potentially raise its stock price, but Zhang Company chose silence. Facing the overwhelming criticism online, not a single word was said.

Chen Xiaoyi washed her face and returned to the office.

“How are things? Has Zhang Company taken any action?” she asked coldly.

“No, Zhang Company hasn’t reacted at all. It’s as if they don’t care about our attack,” the assistant reported with a peculiar look. Just half a day’s time, and their stock had plummeted. Did Zhang Company have a countermeasure, or did they simply lack the ability to resist?

It should be the former; the latter seemed virtually impossible.

Chen Xiaoyi’s brows furrowed. She couldn’t understand Zhang Ziqin’s thinking. It made no sense for her to be unaware of Lu Corporation’s attack on Zhang Company, yet remain unresponsive.

“This must be an act, hoping Brother Lu still has feelings for her and will stop the attack on Zhang Company on his own!” Chen Xiaoyi scoffed. Since Zhang Company was behaving this way, there was no point in waiting any longer.

“Sell off the scattered shares we previously bought.”

“Understood!” The subordinates immediately set to work.

Chen Xiaoyi’s gaze was sharp as she sat at her desk. The attack was aimed at completely ruining Zhang Company, not making a profit. However, if she didn’t take this opportunity to bite off a chunk of Zhang Company, it would be a betrayal of Lu Li’s trust in her.

The stage had been set by Lu Li. Her role was not to disappoint him.

Chen Xiaoyi wondered why Zhang Ziqin, after causing so much heartache for Lu Li, still expected kindness from him.

It could only mean the woman thought too highly of herself.

“Manager Chen, all the stocks have been sold off, but the effect seems limited. The shares we sold were quickly snapped up by retail investors, and even Zhang Company’s stock price has risen slightly.”

“That’s fine. After all, Zhang Company is a large enterprise, and there are savvy investors among shareholders betting on its survival against our attack,” Chen Xiaoyi wasn’t surprised. Given Zhang Company’s size, it was believable that people wouldn’t expect it to keep plummeting.

Unfortunately, those investors were going to be disappointed this time. Being involved in such a significant business conflict usually meant they were prepared.

A scornful smile curved Chen Xiaoyi’s lips, unclear whether she was mocking those investors or Zhang Company itself.

“Zhang Ziqin, I really want to see how long you can endure, what your face will look like when you realize Lu Li won’t spare you any mercy,” she thought maliciously. She had never despised someone so thoroughly.

Zhang Ziqin was the first.

She would not let off anyone who hurt Lu Li.

***.

The secretary watched Zhang Ziqin sitting in the CEO’s chair, admiration in her eyes.

“Truly worthy of being President Zhang. Even now, with things being so dire, she remains unaffected, seemingly unshaken by that man, Lu Li.”

The secretary admired her deeply.

“What’s the current situation?” Zhang Ziqin’s cool voice snapped the admiring secretary back to reality, who then focused intently on Zhang Ziqin.

“The situation has stabilized. Despite massive sell-offs of Zhang Company’s stock on the market, they were quickly bought up, and after an initial drop, the stock price has stabilized.”

“Is that so? Withdraw half of the company’s liquid assets and put them in the stock market to push up the stock price.”

Lu Li had made his move, naturally, it was time for him to earn some profit.

She intended to show Lu Li through her actions that she would not give up.

“Ah!” The secretary was a bit shocked, even doubting she had misheard.

The stock price had already stabilized!

“Just do it,” Zhang Ziqin insisted with a piercing gaze, which made the secretary rush out to execute the order.

Though the secretary didn’t understand why Zhang Ziqin made such a seemingly irrational decision, there must be a deeper meaning that she couldn’t grasp.

After the secretary left, Zhang Ziqin’s gaze started to drift.

She thought back to some events of her past life.

In the past, when had Lu Li ever attacked Zhang Company like this? He was always the man standing behind her, always supporting her.

In her past life, after collaborating with Ye Chen, Zhang Company also faced many challenges.

***

“Lu Li, Sunny Café in half an hour,” she demanded coldly over the phone, not worried that Lu Li wouldn’t come because she knew his feelings for her.

So she was fearless.

Recently, her collaboration with Ye Chen hit a bottleneck. Ye Chen had offered a good deal, promising equal shares on both sides, with a huge return upon success.

But Zhang Company’s current liquid assets were insufficient for the investment, prompting her to call on Lu Li.

Ordering a coffee, she sat quietly, and within less than half an hour, Lu Li arrived, his face as expressionless as stagnant water, causing a flicker of concern in Zhang Ziqin’s eyes.

But she said nothing.

“I have a business deal to make and need about ten billion. How much can you contribute?” Without any pleasantries, not even a greeting, Zhang Ziqin stated her purpose as if the man before her was nothing more than an ATM.

Lu Li’s lips curled into a mocking smile, as if taunting something: “You…”

【Ding! Emotional fluctuation detected in the host, leading to an action that violates the character setup. Please correct it immediately, or punishment will ensue.】

An invisible screen appeared before Lu Li, displaying a photo of a young You Meng and surveillance footage of Li Zichuan.

Lu Li’s words froze mid-air, having experienced the system’s ruthlessness. It could harm him, which Lu Li wasn’t afraid of, but his greatest fear was something happening to the two most important people in his world.

Once, Lu Li had defied the system and violated his character setup. That same day, Li Zichuan ended up in the hospital for unknown reasons and didn’t wake up for a day and a night.

“I understand,” Lu Li gritted his teeth and left the café, his complexion dark, his humiliation almost tangible.

Was this what it was? His crazy gift to Zhang Ziqin and Ye Chen for their wedding, wishing them a lifetime of happiness?

Truly tragic!

Watching Lu Li’s retreating figure, Zhang Ziqin suddenly felt panicked, sensing she was losing something important.

“Did I speak too harshly, making Lu Li unhappy?”

“No, that can’t be. Lu Li wouldn’t be mad at me. I just need to appease him later, maybe take him out for a meal, and he’ll definitely be overjoyed.”