Chapter 372 - 234: I Have an Import-Export Trade I’d Like to Discuss With You

After leaving Jiaoda, Lin Jiang bought some fruit before driving to Chen Jingxian’s home.

He happened to run into a food delivery driver at the elevator door and walked in with him.

"Hey buddy, could you scan for the 17th floor?" Lin Jiang asked politely.

Delivery drivers usually had all-access key fobs, so they could get to any floor they needed.

"What a coincidence, I’m headed to the 17th floor too," the delivery guy said, glancing at the order in his hand.

"Are you from 1701? Is this your order?"

"Funny you should ask. I’m going to 1701. I can take that up for you."

"Thanks, man."

The delivery guy handed the takeout to Lin Jiang, scanned for the 17th floor, and left.

Carrying Chen Jingxian’s takeout, he soon arrived on the 17th floor.

The moment he stepped out of the elevator, his phone rang. It was Chen Jingxian.

"What are you up to?"

"I’m at your front door."

"Yeah, right. Don’t think I’m going to fall for that."

"How can you call it a trick? What if I’m telling the truth?"

With nothing better to do, Lin Jiang decided to bait the hook.

"If you’re really here, I’ll cook for you. You can have whatever you want."

"I’ve had your cooking plenty of times. That’s not a very interesting wager."

"Hmph. I knew you’d say that. Fine, then I’ll wear a short skirt and black stockings for you. You’ve always wanted to see that, right?"

"You have short skirts, but I doubt you have any black stockings."

"A while back, I bought two pairs to get free shipping on a clothing order. I’ve never even worn them."

"Then we have a deal. You have to keep your word. No backing out."

"Why would I back out? If you’re really at my front door, I’ll definitely put them on for you."

"You sure? You won’t go back on it?"

"Of course. I won’t just let you look. You can even have a feel. I know you’ve always wanted to... But..."

"But what?"

"But if you’re not really here, then you don’t get such a special treat."

The corners of Lin Jiang’s mouth lifted. He’d successfully hooked his fish.

Instead of answering, he knocked on Chen Jingxian’s door.

"Just a second, my takeout is here," Chen Jingxian said over the phone.

From her tone, it was clear she didn’t suspect it was Lin Jiang, assuming it was just her food delivery.

After about ten seconds, Chen Jingxian opened the door. She was wearing a cotton pajama set printed with little blue bears, exuding the cozy charm of a young woman at home.

"Y-You... what are you doing here...?"

Chen Jingxian froze, stunned to see Lin Jiang at her door.

’Am I really going to have to change into the short skirt and black stockings for him?’

"I told you I was at your door. You’re the one who didn’t believe me."

With that, Lin Jiang walked into the apartment, carrying the things he’d bought and her takeout.

As for the matter of the short skirt and black stockings, Lin Jiang was in no hurry.

The night was long. Things like this were best savored slowly...

"Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? I haven’t made any food."

Chen Jingxian said nonchalantly, apparently trying to gloss over the whole skirt-and-stockings affair.

"You’re a patient right now. You should use the time to get more rest."

"I’m much better. It only hurts a little when I cough. Otherwise, I don’t feel a thing."

"Even though it was laparoscopic, it’s still surgery. You need to rest for a few more days. Don’t be in a rush to come back to the office. Stay home and recover a while longer."

"Since President Lin himself gave me special approval, I won’t rush it."

Chen Jingxian took the fruit he brought to the kitchen and washed some of it.

"I chatted with Tongtong for a bit this morning. She said she’s under a lot of stress from her studies. I think she’s lost a lot of weight."

"Just think of it as a diet. No need to feel sorry for her."

"Right. If she can get into the graduate program at Shanghai Jiaotong University, it won’t be for nothing."

As they spoke, Chen Jingxian finished washing the fruit and brought it over to Lin Jiang.

"I ordered bone broth noodles. Let me give you half; it’s too much for me to eat by myself."

"Sounds good."

At Chen Jingxian’s place, Lin Jiang didn’t stand on ceremony, not treating her like an outsider at all.

Chen Jingxian got another bowl and gave Lin Jiang two-thirds of the noodles.

"Is that little bit going to be enough for you?"

"The doctor told me to increase my portion sizes gradually. Plus, I’ve been eating so little lately, I feel like my stomach has shrunk. This is more than enough for me."

"As long as it’s enough."

The two ate at the dining table. Lin Jiang slurped his noodles and asked:

"Did you call me earlier because you needed something?"

"I did, actually."

Putting down her chopsticks, Chen Jingxian picked up her phone.

"A bunch of videos have popped up online slandering our noodle shop. They’re saying we might be using industrial food additives and that our staff’s handling procedures are careless, creating health risks. It feels like all this news appeared overnight. It has to be a competitor."

Lin Jiang took her phone and had a look.

The account that posted the videos was the one belonging to that restaurant chain association.

"Is there anything else besides these?"

"There are a few other news articles. Let me find them for you."

A few minutes later, Chen Jingxian had pulled up the related news articles and videos from other platforms.

Lin Jiang glanced through them. The content and angle of the smear campaign were all pretty much the same.

But amidst all of it, Lin Jiang noticed a detail.

Many of the articles had originated from a platform called Trendy World.

Qiu Yunong had mentioned that this product was under Xi Yuan, and the person in charge was none other than Zhou Jin.

He was also a member of the CTC Team. He’d lost the race yesterday, and his Ferrari SF90 had been spray-painted.

Considering his relationship with Li Wuyang and Zheng Jianghe, plus the fact that his product’s main competitor was Super Fun Play, it wasn’t surprising that he would pull something like this.

RING RING RING—

Lin Jiang’s phone rang. It was a call from Qiu Yunong.

"Brother Jiang, a lot of news slandering the noodle shop has popped up online. I checked the sources. Some of it is coming from Trendy World, and another part is from an account called the Restaurant Chain Association. A steady stream of these blatant attack videos are being released. Someone must be orchestrating this and has hired paid posters."