A Paper Contract GL - Chapter 8

“Ha.” Zhang Manyang laughed, saying, “From what I know of Chen Nan, something like sponsoring a student wouldn’t be low enough for her to scam someone. That amount of money is nothing in your eyes, is it?”

“That’s exactly what I told her. But it was useless!” Chen Nan snorted coldly, “I’ve truly met a formidable opponent this time. No matter what I say, she insists I write an agreement. Grandpa chose well; he picked a thousand-year-old snake demon who is incredibly cunning!”

Zhang Manyang smiled, “If I hadn’t met Jiang Yuetong, I would surely think you were right. But to me, Jiang Yuetong is a nice girl—pretty, obedient, very polite, clear-headed, and articulate. She doesn’t seem as exaggerated as you describe.”

“Ai! I think you’re about to be charmed by her too. Now, I’m the only one who’s clear-headed.”

Just as Chen Nan said this, her phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, it was her grandfather. Chen Nan wondered why her grandfather was calling at this time.

“Hello, Grandpa.”

“Nannan, your uncle and cousins are coming over for dinner later, you should come too. It’s been a while since we all got together.” Chen Yannian’s voice sounded rich and powerful. A voice so strong meant his health must be excellent, so there was no need to make a will so early.

“Uncle? Cousins?” The moment Chen Nan asked, she also remembered who they were. It was the illegitimate son her grandfather had conceived in a moment of youthful confusion.

Chen Nan’s grandfather and grandmother had a deep affection for each other. Otherwise, after her grandmother’s death, her grandfather wouldn’t have steadfastly cherished their love. However, due to business reasons in his youth, her grandfather occasionally visited places of entertainment. The temptations were too much, and he lost control just once, resulting in a child. This was something her grandfather regretted for half his life and the thing he felt most ashamed of regarding his wife.

Her grandmother’s death was somewhat related to that past event. In the beginning, her grandmother had no idea such a thing had happened, and Chen Nan’s grandfather tried his best to cover up the affair and conceal the child’s existence. But walls have ears, and ten years later, her grandmother learned everything, falling seriously ill. Her health then deteriorated day by day. Although she lived for over twenty more years, those two decades were a daily struggle with illness.

Because of this, Chen Nan’s grandfather always blamed that poor illegitimate son for her grandmother’s death. Thus, he not only didn’t give him a penny of the family fortune but also never allowed him to be involved in the operations of any of the Tianqi Group’s industries. However, perhaps as people age, their hearts slowly soften and become kinder. Chen Yannian’s illegitimate son, Chen Jiaxu, had gotten married and had a child named Chen Yiran, which somewhat made up for Chen Yannian’s regret of not having a grandson. Even though he was a boy, Chen Yannian still gave all his love to Chen Nan, but he was now finally accepting Chen Yiran and his father, Chen Jiaxu, being able to sit at the same table for dinner.

“Come back soon, everyone is waiting for you for dinner.” With that, Chen Yannian hung up the phone.

Chen Nan stared at the phone in silence for a second, then said, “My grandpa asked me to go home for dinner.”

“Okay, you go,” Zhang Manyang stood up.

“How quick. That Chen Yiran is already stepping in to take my job,” Chen Nan said coldly.

“Your grandpa really does keep his word,” Zhang Manyang said.

“Of course. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be called the Chairman of Tianqi Group,” Chen Nan rolled her eyes. “Alright, the old man has spoken. I have to rush back.” Chen Nan grabbed her bag, preparing to leave. Zhang Manyang left first. Just then, Secretary Wu ran in frantically, his face full of anxiety. “This is bad, General Manager Chen, something big has happened…”

“What is it?” Chen Nan sat back down in her chair, frowning at Secretary Wu’s constipated-looking face.

“No, Manager… it’s a bomb… bomb…” Perhaps he was stuttering because of nerves. Secretary Wu couldn’t get the words out; he was overly stressed.

“Can you slow down? What ‘bomb, bomb’?” Chen Nan paused slightly, but the bad feeling grew stronger. She seemed to be starting to understand what Secretary Wu’s “bomb” meant.

“It’s a bomb…” Before Secretary Wu could finish, Chen Nan bolted out of her seat like a feeding cheetah. Of course, Chen Nan didn’t run this fast because she was afraid of dying, but because she was afraid of an incident. The Tianqi Group’s reputation was too big to allow for any trouble.

Chen Nan stood in front of the huge multi-screen display in the monitoring center, unable to make sense of anything. With so many people coming and going in the restaurant, how could she tell who might be planting explosives, or where the explosives were hidden?

“Is this a threat or is it real? Damn it! Did they say what kind of explosive it was on the phone?” Chen Nan asked urgently and excitedly.

“I don’t know… How would I know something like that? Only the police would know,” Secretary Wu replied timidly.

“I knew it. Asking you is pointless.” Chen Nan rubbed her temples. “What else do you know? What are the police saying now?”

A staff member behind her quickly replied, “They’re already analyzing the closed circuit. The truth will be revealed soon. The police said it looks very much like a joke, so General Manager Chen doesn’t need to be so nervous.”

Chen Nan wanted to smack him. “A joke? What if it’s real? What if this restaurant is razed to the ground with a bang? Huh? What then!” Chen Nan yelled loudly.

Another employee worriedly said, “That’s right, General Manager Chen, what if it really is a bomb?”

“We can only evacuate the dining guests first. We can’t gamble with their lives, damn it!” Chen Nan didn’t forget to curse. If she had some reservations about her language in life, she was always unrestrained at work. Too many things needed her attention, and the stress often made her irritable and want to swear.

“If we do that, the restaurant will suffer huge losses. It’s dinner time right now, and the entire floor is full, over a hundred tables…”

Before Manager Wu could finish, Chen Nan interrupted, “Even if it were a thousand tables, we can’t consider the losses now, or the loss will be even greater. Do whatever you can to minimize it, but be quick. Also, strictly follow our emergency protocol.”

“Yes,” the subordinates hurried off to work.

While Chen Nan was overwhelmed with work, her family at home was becoming impatient waiting for her. Chen Jiaxu was the most jealous of Chen Nan, wondering why a girl like her could get so much of the Chen family’s assets. Even though he was an illegitimate son, he was a male and yet received nothing.

Chen Jiaxu glanced at his watch and said sarcastically, “Father, why isn’t Chen Nan here yet? What is she doing that takes so long? You did call her.”

Chen Yiran, sitting nearby, nudged his father. “There’s still time. We came too early; it’s just dinner time now.”

Chen Jiaxu glared fiercely at his son for talking nonsense. He continued, “It seems Chen Nan is causing trouble outside as usual. I remember when she was in high school, you always had to go to the police station to bring her back. A girl, fighting every day, I really don’t know what she was thinking.”

Chen Yannian looked coldly at Chen Jiaxu and said, “You’re turning into a woman yourself, nagging like an old mother. What kind of behavior is that? Chen Nan lost her father when she was young, which is why she was particularly rebellious during her teenage years. Besides, it’s normal for children to be competitive and get into a few fights. Does that need to be brought up?”

Chen Jiaxu looked at his father and continued, “Father, I’ve seen Chen Nan hugging and embracing women many times. Be careful, she might not bring you back a son-in-law, but a daughter-in-law instead.”

Chen Yannian took a sip of tea and said coldly, “There’s nothing bad about bringing back a woman.”

Chen Jiaxu was so angry his teeth were itching to see his father defending Chen Nan like this.

“Enough, let’s wait a little longer for Chen Nan. Chen Yiran, come with me to the study.” Chen Yannian stood up and walked toward his study.

Chen Yiran nervously grabbed his father’s hand, but his father pulled away. “You’re a big boy now, why are you still holding my hand? Grandpa told you to go in, so hurry up and go!” As he said this, he practically pushed Chen Yiran into Chen Yannian’s study.

Chen Nan’s subordinates were evacuating the diners, while Chen Nan anxiously waited for the results of the police bomb disposal unit. She clenched her fists, her palms drenched in sweat. This was not a small matter; a “bang” could come at any moment.

“This is bad.” Secretary Wu ran in again like a gust of wind.

“What is it now?” Chen Nan was both anxious and helpless.

“A customer fainted during the evacuation,” Secretary Wu said.

“How could that happen?” Chen Nan was irritated. “Where is the customer? Call 120 immediately.”

After Chen Nan saw the fainting customer put into the ambulance, she was informed that a suspicious person had been identified in the security footage. Following the suspicious person’s movements in the monitor, Chen Nan and the police found a box, which was supposed to be the legendary explosive. The bomb disposal police opened it to find that it was just a toy box. At this point, Chen Nan finally felt relieved. The problem was temporarily solved.

“Um… can we leave now?” A subordinate asked Chen Nan.

Chen Nan glanced at the clock; it was almost nine o’clock. She hadn’t brought her phone with her during the rush, so she didn’t know if her grandfather had called her.

“Everyone, go back to the office first. Go, go, go, all you know is to leave. Where are you going?” Chen Nan impatiently dismissed them, then returned to her office. Sure enough, she had five missed calls: two from her grandfather and three from her mother.

Chen Nan first called Secretary Wu, who was staying at the hospital to look after the fainting customer. She asked about the customer’s condition; apparently, he had fainted suddenly due to high bl00d pressure, and his relatives had been notified.

Chen Nan told Secretary Wu, “Stay there and look after him. Report everything to me in detail. Don’t leave the hospital until his relatives arrive.”

Secretary Wu countered, “Are you telling me to stay here indefinitely?”

Chen Nan unhappily said, “If not you, then who? Me?” She hated bargaining.