303: Chapter 33: Let it end there.

Mei Jinning made no attempt to hide the contempt in her words.

The male lead could sense that the contempt in Mei Jinning's words was not aimed at him, but at Gu Hui.

But if Mei Jinning truly looked down on Gu Hui, why would she still cooperate with him?

Shen Yan pondered Mei Jinning's intentions while saying to her, "But I am only cooperating with him on a software project. This... shouldn't involve personal safety, right?"

Mei Jinning let out a cold laugh.

"Do you really think he only wants to cooperate with you on a software project?"

"If it were just about cooperating with you on a software project, he wouldn't need to introduce you to us, nor would he need to go to such lengths to give you so much money through a bet."

Indeed.

Before entering the wooden door, his assets consisted only of the few stocks he had just invested in the market.

After leaving the wooden door, his assets had increased by over one hundred million.

"President Mei, if you have something to say, you can say it directly to me. There's no need to beat around the bush."

Mei Jinning picked up her chopsticks, took a bite of food, and said to Shen Yan while chewing, "It's not that I don't want to speak to you directly, it's that we haven't confirmed a cooperative relationship yet."

"What if I tell you, and then you immediately turn around and go cooperate with Gu Hui? Wouldn't I suffer a loss?"

Shen Yan also picked up his chopsticks, took a few bites of food.

"Then what do you want me to cooperate on?"

Mei Jinning looked up and thought for a moment, then replied, "Since he approached you for software, I'll approach you for software too."

"How much did he offer you?"

Shen Yan did not hide it; he replied, "Five hundred million."

Mei Jinning nodded and said, "Then I'll offer five hundred million too."

Hearing this, Shen Yan swallowed hard.

He knew these people were rich, but he hadn't realized they were this wealthy.

The matter of spending several hundred million on software seemed as easy to them as... buying a favorite doll for a few hundred yuan.

"Then what kind of software do you want me to develop?"

Mei Jinning gestured with the hand holding her chopsticks.

"I don't know. I don't understand these things, and I don't do this kind of work. Just develop any software for me."

"Anyway... let's cooperate for now. When I find a use for you, I'll come find you then."

Having said that, she suddenly smiled at Shen Yan and asked, "No problem, right?"

Shen Yan rubbed the table with his fingertip and replied, "No problem."

...

When he got home, it was already past midnight.

Shen Yan collapsed tiredly onto the sofa and brought up the system's electronic panel. The four words were still there—"Emergency Upgrade."

After confirming that the system had not finished upgrading,

Shen Yan put away the electronic panel and walked into the bathroom.

Although he didn't know what Mei Jinning's ultimate goal was, after interacting with her, he confirmed one thing.

That is, although these four people appeared to be in a cooperative relationship on the surface, their private relationship was not that harmonious.

After all, people with harmonious relationships wouldn't invite him out for dinner to poach him right after Gu Hui introduced him.

After a simple wash, Shen Yan returned to the bedroom to sleep.

As the saying went, the world is big, but sleep is the biggest priority.

Whatever needed to be dealt with could wait until after he slept.

— —

The next day.

Shen Yan went to work on time.

Not long after he entered his office, Chen Guangke pushed open his door and said in astonishment,

"Are you possessed today?!"

Shen Yan glanced at Chen Guangke and said, "If you have something to say, spit it out."

Chen Guangke smiled and placed the documents in his hand on Shen Yan's desk. "I was just joking, seeing you arrive on time for a change..."

"By the way, didn't you go out with Gu Hui yesterday to meet people? How was it? Did things go smoothly?"

Shen Yan put down his phone and replied to Chen Guangke, "We won't have to worry about funding for the next stage."

Hearing this, Chen Guangke was full of doubt.

"What do you mean?"

Shen Yan told Chen Guangke about what happened yesterday.

After listening, Chen Guangke was horrified.

"You mean he not only gave you money, but the person he introduced is eagerly trying to cooperate with you?!"

Shen Yan nodded and said, "Regardless of their motives, the funding for the first phase of our project is secured."

Chen Guangke was not as optimistic as Shen Yan.

He didn't believe that something for nothing existed in this world.

He believed that any benefits they received now would have to be repaid twofold later.

"Why do I feel like something is very wrong with this? Maybe we shouldn't cooperate with them?"

"As for the money... let's think of another way and see if we can find other investors."

Shen Yan said with a wry smile, "The contract is already signed. We'll have to pay a breach of contract fee if we back out now."

Chen Guangke frowned and said, "Then we'll only work on the project Gu Hui gave you, and ignore everything else. If he asks you to go out with him again in the future, just refuse."

Shen Yan shook his head.

"This isn't that simple. If we fall out with them now, that project might not go smoothly either."

Chen Guangke tried again, "Then don't cooperate with the person he introduced. That should be fine, right?"

Shen Yan continued to shake his head.

"No, we can't refuse money that's being given to us for free."

Chen Guangke gave up. "This won't work, that won't work either. What if they conspire to trap us later?!"

Shen Yan replied with a smile, "I said it already: we'll deal with whatever comes our way, one step at a time. Besides... I don't think Mei Jinning and Gu Hui are on the same side."

Chen Guangke didn't think the fact that Mei Jinning and Gu Hui weren't a team was a good thing.

As the saying went, the more complex the relationship, the more dangerous it is.

He didn't want Shen Yan to get involved in anything dangerous.

"Old Shen, just listen to my advice. This kind of situation is not something we can meddle in."

"Even though we can be considered rich now, we have no power or influence. What if we're pushed out to be scapegoats?"

Shen Yan picked up the pen on his desk and tapped the table, saying, "I won't let myself become a scapegoat. If they want me to enter the game, I'll play for them to see."

"After all, everyone is in the game; who lives and who dies is still uncertain..."

Seeing Chen Guangke about to continue persuading him, Shen Yan changed the topic to Wu Ya.

"Did Xiao Wu go to the Branch Company today?"

Chen Guangke nodded and replied, "I just sent her a message asking if things were okay there. She said everything was fine and everyone at the Branch Company misses her very much."

Shen Yan was satisfied. "As long as everyone still remembers her, starting her work there will be a bit easier."

"You remember to keep in close contact with her. If she needs any help from our side, remember to lend a hand."