KC | Chapter 110

Considering Chen Xi’s mental state, Lin Yiran kept his promise and agreed to let the transaction end.

But when the forlorn old man pitifully said to him, “The restaurant for tonight is really hard to book, can we have one last meal together?”, Chen Xi had no choice but to agree to his request.

While eating, the old man who had no appetite said again, “The project we cooperated on needs to be wrapped up. I can handle Pingsheng and Zhongcai, but the new bid for Zaowangcheng was submitted by you, and there are some details that need to be confirmed with Director Zhang.” Since the collaboration amount with a key client was relatively high, Lin Yiran’s request to confirm the handover together with the other side was completely reasonable, and Chen Xi once again agreed to his request.

The above compromises Chen Xi made were all understandable, but the most absurd thing was that at night Lin Yiran asked him, “Can we have a breakup fuck?”, and they naturally ended up doing it.

When he got up in the morning, Chen Xi was very angry, and told Lin Yiran very seriously, “Don’t touch me again!” Lin Yiran agreed, but when he buttoned him up, he always accidentally brushed against his chest.

“……”

Chen Xi charged over toward the Mercedes with great momentum, and was pulled down by Lin Yiran and stuffed into the Cadillac.

Lin Yiran was a good teacher, and even now was still patiently teaching his apprentice: “When you go talk about government affairs and cultural tourism projects, you need to keep a low profile.”

The Cadillac sped along the highway, Chen Xi was driving, Lin Yiran sat in the passenger seat, and under his leather shoe was the brake.

The Mercedes needed to be modified to press the brake, so they were driving the old car today. Today Lin Yiran had originally wanted to go see the doctor with Chen Xi, but he couldn’t find a suitable reason, and was also afraid that Chen Xi would suddenly get emotionally agitated, so he had come up with this last resort.

When a key client could not be won over, only soft persistence and repeated coaxing still had a chance, just like Chen Xi with Xu Dongxu.

Lin Yiran would not cling to Chen Xi, he would only find, or create, some seemingly reasonable reasons to fight for more chances for the two of them to be alone together.

Zaowangcheng’s Zhang Yousheng had grown up playing with Lin Yiran. A phone call at the end of last quarter could get tens of thousands, so a small thing like handover was nothing. Lin Yiran used Zaowangcheng as an excuse, he simply wanted to stay with Chen Xi.

He had agreed to let the transaction end, but he had not agreed to break up.

Everything from yesterday was not a transaction, it was Chen Xi’s willing choice.

Mm, as long as Chen Xi was willing, even if he treated him like a massage tool, that was fine too.

Chen Xi’s phone rang, and he answered it through the car’s speakerphone.

“Hello, may I ask if this is Chen Xi?”

“Mm, it’s me.”

“I am Wu Yeji from Lanhai’s inspection department. I just received a report call from the industry and commerce office saying that your client ‘Shanyao Catering’ is suspected of fraud.”

Chen Xi frowned. “Fraud?”

“Yes. Shanyao Catering impersonated other well-known brand organizations to place advertising and attract investment on online platforms. When franchise customers conducted on-site inspections, they used scripted lines to guide the other party, ‘The brand’s franchise quota is currently full, we suggest you join the A brand under our company.’ The industry and commerce office has asked our company to reply this morning, so I trouble Manager Chen to verify the true situation of ‘Shanyao Catering’.”

Hanging a sheep’s head while selling dog meat? Isn’t Shanyao just fraud! That smiling tiger, Sun Xingshun, tricked me!

Chen Xi said, “I’ve been to Shanyao many times, but I really didn’t know about the situation you mentioned. If the person who reported it has substantial evidence…”

Lin Yiran interrupted, “We need to verify the situation.”

“Alright, please call this number back before noon, thank you for your cooperation.”

Lin Yiran hung up and told him to “concentrate on driving.”

On the highway they could not stop, Chen Xi’s thoughts were in complete chaos, and the little figures in his head started jumping out again.

“Brother Lin, if I had known about Shanyao’s situation earlier, I would never have signed.”

Lin Yiran repeated again, “Concentrate on driving, don’t think about anything else.”

Fraud was the most immoral behavior, a model of morality could not possibly not think about it.

“Shanyao’s average daily ad spend is 50,000, with 200 leads, and 250 calls coming in every day. Judging by a 10% conversion rate, 25 franchisees would be fooled every day. And the way franchisees get information is through the ads placed by Lanhai, it was a cooperation I brought about.”

Seeing that his emotions were unstable, Lin Yiran kept soothing him, “I will handle it, you just need to concentrate on driving now.”

Chen Xi sneered, “What will you handle?”

“Yu City KAQ4’s consumption performance is lacking, it needs a big consumer like Shanyao. The performance plan is a hard deadline, you won’t let Shanyao stop.”

“You’ll find every possible way to deceive the group’s inspection, use every method to make Shanyao keep placing ads, keep harming innocent franchisees, right?”

Chen Xi knew him too well, Lin Yiran could not fool him, so he had no choice but to appeal to his emotions: “There’s only one week left this quarter, the KA overall volume can’t be dragged down by one account. I promise you, after Shanyao finishes its ad placement this week, the cooperation will be terminated at the beginning of next month.”

Key clients with daily ad spending of over ten thousand were truly as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, and advertisers nationwide were all fighting for them. Lin Yiran agreeing to stop the account was already the greatest concession he could make to Chen Xi.

At work, they each had their own principles and their own bottom lines.

Chen Xi said, “Sales used to be the job I hated most, because my mom had once been cheated. The pension she had painstakingly saved for several years was swindled away by someone selling insurance. Most snack franchisees don’t have much money, what Shanyao is doing, isn’t it the same as those people selling insurance?”

The Cadillac sped up to 160. Chen Xi kept his foot on the accelerator the whole time, completely unaware that he was speeding, and continued, “If we keep placing ads for another week, more than 200 people will be cheated. The hard-earned money these 200-plus people worked so hard for, because KA’s performance is poor, is going to be cheated away. Me, the one who facilitated the deal, after discovering Shanyao’s problem, if I still keep helping the evildoer, what’s the difference between that and a beast?”

The moral awareness carved into his bones and blood was Chen Xi’s final persistence, even knowing he would lose personal benefits and miss out on honor.

Chen Xi’s eyes were empty as he muttered, “Brother Lin, I want to be a good salesperson, we can’t do this.”

The scenery outside the window flashed by rapidly, Chen Xi’s thin and resolute face froze inside the car, and he said firmly and fearlessly the words he had spoken at the interview three years ago when he first joined: “I want to change the client’s fixed perception of sales, I want to provide the most suitable products for people who have needs, I want to work with clients for mutual success, I want to spread excellent marketing ideas to the market. I want to be a good salesperson, I want to be a marketer with value.”

“I want to be a good salesperson.”

The Cadillac went off target and veered away from the main lane. Lin Yiran slammed on the brakes, but the speed was too fast and, driven by inertia, it could not stop at all. The front of the car swept across the emergency refuge lane by 180°, and just as it was about to crash into the guardrail, Lin Yiran violently turned the steering wheel to avoid the driver’s seat,

“Boom roar”

The headlights shattered, the front of the car caved in, the door was squeezed and flew off, half of Lin Yiran’s body slammed hard into the guardrail, and the airbag deployed to protect Chen Xi.

The pain from the broken bones gradually brought the unfocused eyes back into focus. In his mind, all sound and movement fell silent, his ears and eyes cleared, the 3 little figures retreated, and in Chen Xi’s line of sight there was only Lin Yiran.

“Brother Lin!!!”

Half of Lin Yiran’s body was lying outside the emergency refuge lane. Vehicles sped past on the road, and Chen Xi kicked open the car door, dragging Lin Yiran’s leg backward.

His leg had no strength, so Chen Xi grabbed one of Lin Yiran’s hands and, scrambling and rolling, shoved him into the emergency lane, narrowly missing a speeding freight truck.

Fortunately, he had been saved.

Chen Xi hated himself for not having trained a strong enough body, unable to carry Lin Yiran, and could only slowly roll him to the side of the guardrail. He grabbed his upper arm and hauled him over the guardrail, pushing him headfirst across.

Luckily, Lin Yiran was sturdy.

His handsome face had a bloody gash, one of his deep eyes could only open halfway, the other was stained red with blood. Lin Yiran’s head had been hit and he was a bit dizzy, and after just being knocked to the ground, he unexpectedly came back to his senses through a kind of twist of negatives making a positive, covering his numb arm and saying, “Call, call an ambulance.”

Chen Xi nodded and, according to Lin Yiran’s instructions, called 120, describing their location in detail. Then he called the car insurance number, clearly explaining the condition of the vehicle.

After doing all this, he stared at Lin Yiran without blinking, that look as if asking: what else do I need to do?

Lin Yiran wiped the bloodstains from his face with his intact left hand, his voice still steady: “For now, just wait here with me for rescue.”

Chen Xi nodded, wanting to wipe his face, but he had no tissues, and he was afraid his hands were dirty and would infect the wound.

Lin Yiran said, “Don’t be afraid, it just looks scary, the injuries are all on the surface.”

His tone was very calm, as if he were saying that the weather today was very good.

The ambulance arrived, and Chen Xi watched as Lin Yiran was lifted onto the stretcher, then followed along with the vehicle to the hospital. The orderly pushed Lin Yiran into the emergency room, and said to Chen Xi, “You also need to be examined.”

Examined? Examined for what?

Oh, so it turned out my left leg was fractured.

Chen Xi had a second-degree fracture of the left leg, displacement of the kneecap, and a crack fracture of the ankle.

After the examination, he got a cast and crutches, and the doctor suggested two weeks of hospitalization for observation and three months of bed rest.

Chen Xi used crutches to handle his own and Lin Yiran’s hospitalization procedures, bought corn and tea eggs, and waited for Lin Yiran at the door of the emergency room.

No one knew how long had passed before Lin Yiran was pushed out, and Chen Xi limped forward following the hospital bed.

Lin Yiran’s arm was in a cast and wrapped in bandages, and at first glance his leg did not seem to have any problem. The orderly hung up the IV drip, and after the hustle and bustle was over, the tea eggs and corn were all cold.

Chen Xi wanted to go buy another hot portion, but was called back by Lin Yiran, who came over leaning on crutches and stood beside the hospital bed.

Lin Yiran’s right face, from the brow bone to the outer corner of his eye, was wrapped in gauze. His face was deathly pale, and his former elegant and handsome bearing was gone, but he still put on a carefree, roguish posture.

“I’m hungry, my hand isn’t convenient, you feed me.”

Chen Xi moved the chair, sat down on it with one leg bent, and fed him a tea egg.

After taking one bite, Lin Yiran asked, “Have you eaten?”

Chen Xi ate the remaining half of the tea egg.

With a salesperson around, there was no need to fear awkward silence, a top-tier KA was always able to appropriately start a topic: “When I first got into the emergency room, I was scared stupid. They hooked me up to a whole bunch of machines, and I thought I had some incurable disease. In the end the doctor told me: it’s just a broken arm.”

“I asked the doctor: can a broken arm still heal? He said: it can, but they’ll need to put in a steel nail, and it’ll go off whenever you go through airport security in the future. I said: that’s pretty good, isn’t it? A disaster turning into a blessing, turning me into Wolverine.”

“The doctor pushed in a big syringe of anesthetic, and then tapped on my arm crack crack like a carpenter. It didn’t hurt, it was just that the sound was pretty scary.”

Chen Xi knew that he was afraid Chen Xi would worry, so he deliberately made it sound humorous. Injured like this, how could it not hurt, he was just being stubborn and refusing to say so.

Lin Yiran, who cared extremely much about his appearance, wasted 10 minutes every morning blow-drying his hair, and this car accident had left a scar on his face.

Chen Xi clearly remembered that in the instant before the car front was about to crash into the guardrail, Lin Yiran violently turned the steering wheel, the passenger seat drifted forward, and his broad shoulders slammed into the guardrail, firmly protecting him.

At the critical moment, he had protected him.

He had left a scar on his face.

“Brother Lin, I’m sorry.” Chen Xi held Lin Yiran’s intact left hand and gently squeezed it.

The anesthetic was almost wearing off, and the shattered bone in his shoulder was very painful. He could not let Chen Xi stay here today.

Lin Yiran squeezed his hand back and said, “It’s fine, it’s all over. I’m a little tired, I want to sleep for a bit.”

The implication was to see him out.

Chen Xi understood, but did not want to leave, and could no longer hold it back, so he threw himself into his chest.

The arm wrapped in bandages was touched and hurt a little, Lin Yiran slightly frowned, but did not push him away.

The true heart he had taken out had been left out to dry for a long time, air-dried and rotted. The lover’s embrace warmed the cracked heart, blood circulated to every limb and bone, and the cold body gradually warmed up.

His arm hurt, but his body was warm.

Chen Xi’s tears kept falling uncontrollably. After going through life and death, he finally confessed to his lover, “Sorry, Brother Lin, there are 3 little figures living in my head, they speak some unpleasant things on my behalf, I didn’t really want to hurt you.”

“At first they only appeared in my dreams, now they have entered my body. I can remember everything they have done, but I have no way to control their actions.”

“I know this is hard to accept, and I was afraid you wouldn’t like me, so I didn’t tell you before we started dating.”

Lin Yiran gently patted his back and asked, “Then are you sober now?”

Chen Xi nodded.

From the moment the car accident happened, Chen Xi had been sober all along. The joy of signing a key client could only last 1 to 2 hours, while Lin Yiran’s safety could mobilize all of his emotions.

Love was the fearless act of protecting one’s partner in a crisis, and it could also turn into a blade hanging in the mind, forcibly stringing together all the split emotions.

The 3 little figures no longer argued, and their standards for action rarely became unified.

Chen Xi loved Lin Yiran, and he wanted all of his personalities to love Lin Yiran.

Lin Yiran said, “That day, I did not look for someone, and I have never treated you as a tool for releasing desire.”

“I stole orders, smeared competitors, and threatened and lured clients… I often did dirty work. I wanted to be good to you, but I didn’t know what you wanted. I didn’t want you to leave, but it seemed like the more I did, the worse it got.”

Avoidance was not a way to solve problems, and while Chen Xi was sober, Lin Yiran laid everything out plainly.

“An incorrect beginning could not get a correct result, binding you with an immoral transaction was my fault.”

During negotiations, when in a disadvantaged position, the way for the second party to fight for the greatest benefit was to give the first party choices.

One moderate choice and one very bad choice, and the first party would most likely choose the former.

“Our transaction already ended yesterday, now while you are sober, I hope you can make the right choice.”

Lin Yiran said, “If you choose to live with me, I will be good to you, and I will satisfy all of your requests as much as possible.”

“If you choose to leave, I will delete your contact information, throw away your things, and clear away all traces related to you.”