91: The chief architect of revenge

"Your business model is as fragile as a bubble," Su Li's voice was icy, as if delivering a death diagnosis to a corpse. "The Alliance doesn't even need to use force. A small financial attack would be enough to make you and your 'Concept Empire' vanish into thin air."

"What makes you think you can win?"

Faced with this question laced with ice, Chen Feng's response took her by surprise.

He didn't argue back. Instead, he calmly nodded.

"You're right."

"At our current scale, any financial attack would be fatal. Hanhai Trade is like a ship without a keel right now—it looks intimidating, but a single wave could shatter it." Chen Feng's gaze calmly swept over the cold data in the meeting room. "So, what I need isn't an employee, but a master architect who can design a 'keel' for this ship."

A mocking sneer curled at the corner of Su Li's lips. "Why me? There are plenty of financial experts and managers in the universe stronger than me."

She didn't believe this empty flattery. In her view, it was just another form of empty promises—cheap and hypocritical.

Chen Feng didn't answer her question directly. Instead, he switched to a seemingly unrelated topic.

"Your family is remarkable."

There was no pity in his voice, only a nearly academic tone of statement.

"Whoever designed that 'Court Style Encryption' wasn't an ordinary merchant. It's a... a legacy that treats business as art and plays with rules to create beauty."

"And The Alliance," Chen Feng's voice lowered, "only knows how to destroy all of that with brute leverage and mergers."

"Court Style Encryption."

These six words were like a scalding key, instantly thrusting into the long-rusted lock deep within Su Li's heart.

It wasn't just a simple technical term. It was the result of her father's late-night research, the one thing he would put aside his dignity for at family dinners and boast about like a child. It was the last vestige of noble glory that distinguished their Su Family from those upstarts who only knew how to pile up money.

Beneath the cold shell of hatred, the forcibly suppressed nostalgia and attachment to her family's honor surged into her heart like a bursting dam.

Her eyes reddened without warning.

Chen Feng caught this momentary change.

"What I want to do isn't just revenge," his voice became low and powerful, as if reciting an oath. "It's to rebuild an order. One... that allows the 'art' of your family to survive and thrive."

"I don't want to smash the old world. I want to create a new, higher-level world."

As his words fell, Chen Feng silently pushed a pre-drafted electronic appointment letter in front of Su Li.

The light screen lit up, the words in the position column glaringly clear:

"[Hanhai Trade chief operating officer (COO) and Master Architect of the Revenge Plan]"

In the authority column, only one sentence was written:

"[Possesses the highest decision-making authority over all company operational matters, except for the founder's final veto power.]"

Absolute trust.

Complete authorization.

This appointment letter formed a stark, dizzying contrast with her past days of hiding, being a pawn for others, and barely surviving in the shadows.

Grand ideals, a platform for revenge, and the power to realize personal ambitions... three heavy burdens pressed down at this moment, completely shattering the last line of defense in her heart called 'hesitation.'

Su Li took a deep breath, her chest heaving violently once before she forcibly calmed it.

When she looked up again, the redness in her eyes had receded, replaced by that professional, emotionless calm.

She didn't say "I agree."

She simply extended a slender finger and lightly swiped across the light screen, deleting a confidentiality clause from the appointment letter.

Then, she added a new clause, her voice clear and cold, as if issuing her first command.

"I need complete, unencrypted access to all of Hanhai Trade's underlying data on assets, personnel, and technology."

She paused, looking directly into Chen Feng's eyes, emphasizing each word.

"Now."