Zhou Ruobing's delicate eyebrows knitted, and her pretty face instantly turned frigid. Meanwhile, Ye Long's expression was resolutely firm, as if he was absolutely going to keep his word.
Zhou Ruobing was consumed by regret. From the very start, the moment she asked Ye Long to pretend to be her boyfriend in the coffee shop, she had made a grave error! She truly shouldn't have involved Ye Long. Otherwise, she wouldn't be in a situation where she was so completely under his thumb!
"Are you threatening me?" Zhou Ruobing snapped irritably.
Ye Long shook his head and responded, "Miss Zhou, we had a clear agreement when we got that marriage certificate. You promised to help me deal with my family, and that's why I agreed to assist you. Since you can't hold up your end of the bargain now, it's only reasonable for me to decline your initial request. Look, take the night to think it over, and give me your answer tomorrow morning." With that, Ye Long spun around, strode into his room, and slammed the door shut behind him.
"You..." Zhou Ruobing gaped at the closed door in disbelief. No one had ever dared to speak to her like that before. What on earth gave this guy the audacity? Just because he'd saved her twice today?
That night, Zhou Ruobing tossed and turned in bed, unable to find any rest. This guy was nothing short of a scoundrel! The more she dwelled on it, the angrier she became. She snatched up her phone and punched in Ye Long's number.
Ye Long was sound asleep when the phone jolted him awake. He was annoyed at the rude interruption. But when he saw that it was Zhou Ruobing calling, a flicker of surprise crossed his face. "Miss Zhou, it's pretty late. What's going on?"
"Asshole! Come to the Zhou Group where I work tomorrow. Do something for me, and I'll agree to help you deal with your family!"
Ye Long's heart skipped a beat with excitement. "What is it?" he asked eagerly.
"You'll figure it out when you get to the company tomorrow!" With that curt reply, Zhou Ruobing hung up. Humph, she thought to herself. There's no way I'm going to meet your family! Zhou Ruobing was dead certain that Ye Long wouldn't be able to complete the task she had in mind.
Ye Long set his phone down, his heart brimming with anticipation. Still, a nagging worry tugged at him. Would Zhou Ruobing go out of her way to make things difficult for him, just to get him to back down?
At seven o'clock the next morning, Ye Long realized that Zhou Ruobing was already gone. This girl hadn't gone to bed until two in the morning. How on earth was she up so early? After freshening up, Ye Long eyed the bucket of dirty clothes in front of him with a frown. There was no washing machine in Zhou Ruobing's place, and he really didn't feel like doing the laundry by hand. He decided he'd have to pick one up soon.
The kitchen was bare, and Ye Long couldn't be bothered to go grocery shopping. He headed straight out the door. He hopped on his electric scooter and zipped over to an American diner across the street from the apartment complex, where he wolfed down some American pancakes. Then, he punched the address of the Zhou Group into his phone and followed the navigation.
Before long, Ye Long found himself at the reception desk on the first floor of the Zhou Group.
"Miss, I was wondering..."
"Are you Mr. Ye Long?" The receptionist cut him off, smiling warmly.
Ye Long nodded. "That's me."
The receptionist beamed. "This is for you. Miss Zhou asked me to give it to you." She handed Ye Long a sealed envelope.
Ye Long ripped it open and was stunned to find an IOU for three million dollars. So, the task Zhou Ruobing had mentioned last night was to collect this debt? Ye Long fished out his phone and dialed Zhou Ruobing's number.
Zhou Ruobing was just about to kick off a meeting when she answered the phone. "Are you at the company yet?" she asked brusquely.
"Just got here. I've got the IOU." Ye Long replied.
Zhou Ruobing said, "Our company's professional debt collectors have been hounding them for more than three months, but they still haven't managed to get the money back. Now this mess is on me. If you can help me recover this debt, I'll help you deal with your family. But if you can't, don't even think about bringing it up again!" With that, Zhou Ruobing hung up.
Ye Long stashed his phone away and stared at the IOU, a knot of anxiety forming in his stomach. Three million dollars was a huge sum. Even the company's pros hadn't been able to get it back in three months. What were the odds that he could? He couldn't shake the feeling that the debtor might not be able to cough up that much cash on the spot.
Ye Long turned to the receptionist. "Miss, what position does Zhou Ruobing hold in the company?"
The receptionist remembered Secretary Chen's instructions. "She's the manager of our finance department."
So, she was a top executive. No wonder she was so free with her money, casually throwing around sums like a hundred grand or two. Ye Long thanked the receptionist and made his way out.
The receptionist watched Ye Long's retreating figure, a suspicious glint in her eye. She picked up her phone and dialed Secretary Chen.
After getting the lowdown, Secretary Chen wasted no time in reporting it to Zhou Ruobing. "President, is it really safe for Mr. Ye to go and collect this debt on his own?" Secretary Chen asked, a worried frown creasing her forehead. "A week ago, two of our company's representatives were chased out and beaten up. They're still off work, recuperating. Mr. Ye could be walking into a really dangerous situation."
Zhou Ruobing had been sure that Ye Long would back out as soon as he realized how tough the task was. But he'd actually taken it on. The company had been trying to get this debt settled for three months without any luck. How could a lowly security guard like him possibly think he could succeed? Zhou Ruobing glanced around at the assembled senior executives. "Let's get this meeting started!"
Secretary Chen nodded and dropped the subject of Ye Long's debt collection mission. She began passing out the meeting materials.
Ye Long zoomed up to the entrance of Ambition Development Co., Ltd. on his electric scooter. Parked nearby was a sleek Hummer, the ride of his disciple, Lu Hu.
A burly man emerged from the vehicle and promptly dropped to his knees in front of Ye Long. "Master!"
"Lao Qi, get up, quick! We don't want anyone seeing this!" Ye Long hastily helped Lu Hu to his feet and scanned the surroundings nervously. Thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed the exchange.
Lu Hu said, "Master, collecting a debt is a piece of cake. You should've just let me handle it. Why did you come all the way here yourself?"
"It's fine. Let's go in together." Ye Long led the way towards the company entrance.
A security guard stepped in their path. "Who are you here to see?" he demanded coldly.
"Li Zhaoming." Ye Long replied. Li Zhaoming was the person who owed the money and also the boss of this company.
"The boss isn't here. Come back later." The security guard said flatly.
Lu Hu's temper flared. "The boss isn't here? Then call him and tell him to get back here!"
The security guard shot Lu Hu a chilly look. Lu Hu stared right back, and the security guard visibly flinched.
The security guard said in a hushed tone, "Guys, are you from the Zhou Group, here to collect a debt?"
"If you know that, then let us in already!" Lu Hu barked.
The security guard looked thoroughly flustered. "Guys, our manager gave strict orders not to let you in. If we do, we'll be out of a job!"
"What kind of lousy manager gives orders like that? Call him out here right now!" Lu Hu seethed.
"Okay... okay." The security guard had no choice but to make the call.
"Lao Qi, take it easy when we're in there." Ye Long cautioned. Lu Hu was a good man, but he had a real penchant for getting into fights, and he often didn't know when to stop.
"Master, don't worry. I won't kill anyone." Lu Hu flashed a grin. So far, Lu Hu had been a good student, following Ye Long's instructions. He only ever went after the bad guys and would never lay a hand on an innocent person.
Just then, a bald man sauntered out, an arm draped around a woman in a sharp business suit.
"Manager Fan, these are the guys." The security guard pointed at Ye Long and Lu Hu.
Fan Biao gave Ye Long and Lu Hu a dismissive once - over. "The Zhou Group really doesn't learn, does it? Looks like the lesson we gave them last week wasn't harsh enough!" he sneered.
Ye Long stepped forward. "Manager Fan, is your company on the brink of going under? Is that why you can't pay back this project debt?"
Fan Biao let out a derisive laugh. He turned to the woman beside him. "Xiao Li, you're in finance. Fill these guys in on our company's performance last month."
Xiao Li sized up Ye Long and Lu Hu. "Last month, our company raked in a net profit of over eight million dollars!"
Fan Biao smirked. "Well, do you still think our company's about to go belly up?"
"That's great news!" Ye Long felt a wave of relief wash over him. He pulled out the IOU and tossed it at Fan Biao. "Since you're swimming in cash, fork over the three million you owe right now!"