Jiang Jingchen lay on the bed, also in his pajamas, idly toying with a white slip of paper.
"Are you up? What are you busy with?"
"You said you'd pay me back the salary you owe me when we returned to Nan City. You came back yesterday, why didn't you call? What are your plans for today? You're not going to drag this out, are you?"
To his surprise, someone showed up at his door first thing in the morning to collect a debt.
Pei Kexin's sadness was instantly shattered by him, leaving her only with annoyance.
"Calculated by the day, less than a month, less than two hundred thousand. Don't worry, I, Pei Kexin, wouldn't default."
"Send me your account number, and I'll get it to you by 5 PM. And don't call me again, okay?"
After saying that, she was about to hang up, when Jiang Jingchen’s voice blared from the other end.
"What do you mean less than two hundred thousand? Are you kidding me? What about the five hundred thousand from Ha City? It's all in writing on the IOU, are you trying to renege on that too?"
Pei Kexin reminded him, "Excuse me, take a good look at the IOU, Mr. Jiang. If it really says Pei Kexin's name, then I can't deny it. But what if it doesn't?"
"I don't remember any five hundred thousand. If you want, you can sue me with it, as long as you can."
It was only when Jiang Jingchen was idle last night, looking at the IOUs, that he realized how calculating this woman was.
She had written it in front of him, intentionally misspelling her name. He hadn't even noticed at the time.
Pei Kexin had written it as Pei Shixin, and his own name was also fake. This IOU was clearly a farce.
He had never been so openly tricked in his life.
To be honest, he was quite angry.
Women could be smart, but not cunning, and certainly not deceitful, or else they weren't cute.
He heard that Old Master Pei had passed away, and he was curious about her current situation, so he called early in the morning to annoy her.
"I'm not suing you. The Pei family is in the spotlight right now. Due to the passing of the Old Master, the entire Nan City is watching. I'm going to attend the funeral, and at the same time, I'll make your good deeds public."
"A contract to buy a husband and an IOU with a deliberately misspelled name. Vice President Pei, do you think I'll become famous overnight if I show up with these two things?"
Pei Kexin had underestimated the explosive power of someone driven mad by money.
She was actually going to the funeral...
She sat up and said, "Where are you now? Tell me a place, and we can talk properly."
Zhan Jingchen gave an address, and less than an hour later, they both appeared.
It was a relatively secluded teahouse. After they sat down and ordered tea, Pei Kexin took out the contract and threw it on the coffee table.
"I'll give you what I owe you, not a penny less, and don't even think about getting what you're not owed. Jiang Jingchen, I'm not as rich as you think, to be extorted so casually."
"As I said, I acknowledge this contract, but you can forget about the IOU. We've worked together after all, and you know how the Pei family treats me. The Old Master is gone, and I have no relationship with them now. I'm not attending the funeral. If you don't find it shameful and think it's useful, then go ahead."
The IOU for five hundred thousand was, in itself, a joke.
Jiang Jingchen had not asked her out today for money, so he didn't argue with her further.
"I know you're not favored in the Pei family, and I also know that such a scandal is nothing to you when you already have so many troubles, so I was just joking."
"Joking?"
"Yes, Vice President Pei. Although my background is not as good as others, I am capable and not short of money. The reason I chose to cooperate with you before was not because I was after your money."
Pei Kexin was suddenly confused by his words.
"Then what were you after?"
Don't tell me you developed feelings for me from sleeping together.
Jiang Jingchen could see through her narcissistic thoughts from her expression and interrupted with a smile.
"Of course, I wasn't after you either. We're not at that stage yet."
"...Then I don't understand. Mr. Jiang, why don't you speak plainly? If you're not after this or that, are you perhaps after moral high ground?"
Jiang Jingchen was amused by her interesting choice of words.
"There are so few people with high moral ground these days. If you don't want to be virtuous, why should I?"
"However, President Pei, I am a man after all, and I don't want to bicker with a woman too much. You don't need to repay these debts."
Pei Kexin was not stupid; he hadn't finished speaking.
As expected, Jiang Jingchen looked at her for two seconds and added,
"Let's renegotiate a cooperation."
He was dressed quite smartly today.
A Versace custom-made light white shirt, matching suit pants, Italian designer handmade leather shoes, and a perfectly slicked-back hairstyle.
He looked young, handsome, clean, and sharp, with an aura of an elite.
He looked nothing like a delivery man, and more like a business elite.
He even looked like he was from a wealthy family.
He possessed a natural confidence and elegance. The more Pei Kexin looked at him, the more she belatedly blamed herself, wondering why she hadn't realized earlier that he was not simple at all.
"Renegotiate cooperation? What kind of cooperation?"
Jiang Jingchen sat there leisurely and dominantly, like a client.
"You, the most valuable thing you possess is your professionalism. To be frank, President Pei, I'm interested in your skills."
"If you can provide me with a detailed sharing report on the professional sales skills you've accumulated at Pei's over the years and an analysis of Pei's strengths and weaknesses, not only will I not take your money, but we'll also be friends."
Pei Kexin had envisioned many possibilities, but she had never expected that the cooperation Jiang Jingchen wanted to discuss would be...
He wanted her skills?
He wanted Pei's comprehensive professional analysis?
What use would he have for this, being someone unrelated to the electrical appliance company?
Could it be that he intended to sell it to someone else?
After listening to him, Pei Kexin pondered for two seconds, leaned forward, and looked him directly in the eye.
"It's more realistic for us to talk about money directly. Jiang Jingchen, are you planning to change careers? Using my report to jump to an electrical appliance company to find a high-paying and respectable job? I'm sorry, but it's probably not as simple as you think."
"Although I, Pei Kexin, am not a highly valued person in the Pei family, I would never betray them. Not for this small amount of money, not even for two more zeros, it's impossible."
Jiang Jingchen knew she was a person of principle.
The reason he was willing to cooperate with her was precisely because he valued this trait.
A person of principle wouldn't suddenly change their mind after a few words.
He had only come today to test the waters and didn't expect to succeed in one go.
Therefore, he wasn't surprised by whatever Pei Kexin said today.
"President Pei, aren't you being too hasty in shutting the door completely?"
Pei Kexin looked at him disdainfully.
"There is no room for maneuver between us, so it's not hasty. I can pretend you didn't say that foolish wish earlier. Now, let's talk about your compensation. This is the contract, take a good look. Sixteen days in total, paying you sixteen thousand, right?"
Her complete rejection left Jiang Jingchen somewhat displeased.
He sighed lightly, leaned forward in the same posture as her, and met her gaze up close.