Two-Pronged Approach

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Chen Zhi's palms.

Zhang Yiming was still smiling, waiting for his reply.

Pei Ningxue leaned back in her chair, legs crossed, gently tapping the tip of her pen against the cover of her notebook.

"Mr. Chen?" Zhang Yiming prompted when he saw Chen Zhi hadn't responded.

"We'll go. We absolutely must go."

Chen Zhi wasn't the one who said that.

Pei Ningxue answered for him.

She stood up and smiled politely at Zhang Yiming. "How could we not give you face, Mr. Zhang? Mr. Chen was just telling me that he's always wanted to meet this Miss Lin Wanwan in person."

Chen Zhi nearly bit his own tongue.

When did I ever say anything like that?

Zhang Yiming, clearly oblivious to the murderous intent hidden behind those words, nodded happily. "That's wonderful. Tonight at seven, I'll have my assistant book a private room."

"Thank you for the trouble, Mr. Zhang," Pei Ningxue said courteously, walking him to the elevator.

Chen Zhi followed behind, feeling like a little part of him had just died.

The moment the elevator doors closed, Pei Ningxue turned around.

They were the only two left in the hallway.

"President Pei..." Chen Zhi called out tentatively.

Pei Ningxue didn't respond.

She walked up to Chen Zhi, lifting her chin to look at him.

"What are you so nervous about?"

"Am I nervous? I'm not nervous at all," Chen Zhi said, straightening his back.

"Your left index finger is twitching."

Chen Zhi quickly shoved his hands into his pockets.

Pei Ningxue let out a cold sneer and turned to walk toward her office.

"President Pei, you don't have to go tonight. This kind of social event..." Chen Zhi hurried after her, making one last desperate struggle.

"Why shouldn't I go?" Pei Ningxue didn't even turn her head. "I am the CFO of Deep Space Tech, and Musical Beat is our important partner. Is there a problem with me attending a business dinner?"

Chen Zhi was speechless.

Her logic was flawless, but he knew this woman was absolutely going because of Lin Wanwan.

Chen Zhi simply decided to play the rogue and leaned against the doorframe.

"Well, since you're going, I won't go."

He had already made up his mind. If Pei Ningxue insisted on going, he would just ask Lin Wanwan out somewhere else so the two women wouldn't meet. If I can't afford to offend them, can't I at least hide?

Chen Zhi thought Pei Ningxue would be angry.

Instead, Pei Ningxue didn't even look up. She opened a document on her desk and casually threw out a sentence, "Don't go if you don't want to."

Chen Zhi was stunned.

Such abnormal behavior definitely meant something was up!

With Pei Ningxue's temperament, how could she let him off the hook so easily? This woman was definitely brewing some wicked scheme waiting for him.

But he was out of ideas. Tonight, he had to lure Lin Wanwan away; he absolutely couldn't let her attend this business dinner.

Chen Zhi retreated to his own office, locked the door behind him, pulled out his phone, and quickly sent a message to Su Man.

"Sister Su, does Lin Wanwan have a dinner tonight? With the people from Musical Beat?"

The reply came almost instantly.

"You're quite well-informed. Zhang Yiming organized the dinner himself, saying he wants to discuss the splash screen endorsement for all their product lines."

"Is Lin Wanwan going?"

"Don't worry," Su Man sent a long voice message. "I wouldn't bear to let Wanwan attend these messy drinking parties. The waters of entertainment industry dinners are very deep. She just won the championship and is at the peak of her popularity right now. If she gets photographed doing something she shouldn't, or runs into a few investors with wandering hands, it would be a huge problem. Usually, I handle these occasions myself while Wanwan just rests at the hotel."

After listening to the voice message, Chen Zhi let out a long sigh of relief.

So it was just a false alarm.

Su Man thought Chen Zhi was worried about Lin Wanwan encountering the casting couch, so she deliberately explained at length. Little did she know, Chen Zhi wasn't guarding against unspoken industry rules at all; he was guarding against a catastrophic love triangle showdown.

Since Lin Wanwan wasn't going, this impending disaster was fundamentally dismantled.

Chen Zhi felt alive again.

Once he was out of mortal danger, his innate urge to court death began to stir.

He opened Pei Ningxue's WeChat chat window.

"After thinking it over, it's really not good to let you face that old fox Zhang Yiming all by yourself. Call me a good brother, and I'll accompany you."

Ten seconds later, the screen lit up.

Pei Ningxue: "Get lost."

However, even though Chen Zhi knew Pei Ningxue was definitely plotting something wicked, he decided to set up a double insurance policy just to be safe.

He would ask Lin Wanwan out on a date.

As long as Lin Wanwan was by his side, even if the sky fell, it would be impossible for her to appear at Zhang Yiming's dinner.

Chen Zhi switched chat windows and clicked on the pinned conversation.

"I'm taking you out for good food tonight to celebrate you landing the big endorsement."

...

Inside a suite at a five-star hotel near Wangfujing.

"Ahhhhh!"

Lin Wanwan rolled around on the sofa twice while hugging her phone, her face covered in an unconcealable, silly smile.

Poor Lin Wanwan actually thought Chen Zhi was missing her and had specifically pushed aside his work to keep her company.

"Sister Su! Sister Su!" Lin Wanwan jumped off the sofa barefoot and dashed all the way into the walk-in closet.

Su Man was sitting at the bar counter outside, touching up her lipstick in the mirror to prepare for the evening dinner. Hearing the commotion, she helplessly put down her lipstick.

"What is it now, my little ancestor?"

"Chen Zhi is taking me out to dinner tonight!" Lin Wanwan pulled several dresses out of her suitcase and held them up against her body. "Sister Su, which one do you think looks better on me? Is this white one too plain? Is this red one too flashy?"

Su Man couldn't help but sigh.

"He'd think you looked good even if you wore a potato sack." Su Man walked over and put the red dress back. "The temperature is dropping tonight, so dress warmly. Also, you must wear your mask and hat properly."

"I know!" Lin Wanwan picked out a white waist-cinching dress that showed off her figure without being too cold.

Su Man looked at her acting like someone in the terminal stages of being love-struck and shook her head.

"I'm going to meet the executives from Musical Beat tonight to discuss the details of your endorsement. Be careful when you go out and don't get photographed by the paparazzi," Su Man instructed. "Chen Zhi is a huge financial backer right now. If you keep him happy, it'll be more useful than taking on ten endorsements."

Lin Wanwan pursed her lips. "I'm not doing it for his money."

"Yes, yes, you two are true love." Su Man couldn't be bothered to argue with her. "Go on, have fun, and come back to the hotel early tonight."

...

At 6:30 PM.

Chen Zhi arrived early at a high-end private dining restaurant near Wangfujing.

This place was called Cloud Hide, tucked away in an inconspicuous alleyway. It had no signboard and only received regular customers. Most importantly, the privacy here was excellent; each private room had its own independent entrance and exit, ensuring you would never run into paparazzi or acquaintances.

Chen Zhi sat in the private room, poured himself a cup of tea, and mentally calculated today's operations.

It was simply flawless.

Pei Ningxue was going to Zhang Yiming's dinner party, and Lin Wanwan was firmly tied to his side. They were two parallel lines that could never intersect in this lifetime.

"I'm a damn genius," Chen Zhi took a sip from his teacup, unable to resist giving himself a mental pat on the back.

The door to the private room was gently pushed open.

Lin Wanwan threw herself at him like a gust of wind.

"Hubby!"

Lin Wanwan took off her hat and mask, revealing a face so exquisite it was absolutely flawless. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him.

"Did you miss me?"

Chen Zhi naturally wrapped an arm around her waist and playfully tapped the tip of her nose.

"I did. Every single day."

"Liar." Lin Wanwan wrinkled her nose. "You've been replying to my WeChat messages so slowly these past few days. Did some pretty new female intern join your company and steal your heart?"

Chen Zhi's heart skipped a beat.

What kind of radar system was this woman's intuition running on? A new female intern really had started just this morning, and she was even Li Zhiyi's classmate.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Chen Zhi replied, not betraying a single hint of panic. He casually picked up a piece of the freshly served pastry and popped it into Lin Wanwan's mouth. "I've been busy negotiating a partnership with Yinfu Tiaodong, the company that wants to sign you as their brand ambassador. I even threw in some extra investment just to get you a higher endorsement fee."

Chewing on the pastry, Lin Wanwan mumbled, "I knew my hubby treats me the best."

The two of them cuddled and flirted in the private room for a while, the atmosphere growing perfectly intimate.

Looking at Lin Wanwan's flushed cheeks, Chen Zhi was just about to lean in and claim a little "interest."