Quickly, the lawyer drafted and both parties handled a series of tedious contract procedures. Given the current operational status, Leon Chen's twenty million dollars could completely acquire Grace Wang's company. However, Leon had no such intentions; this was Grace's dream, and he wasn't knowledgeable in this field. Even lending the money to Grace was not an option she was willing to accept.
Ultimately, they agreed that Leon would become the chairman of Empress Company while Grace would remain the president.
With everything settled, the city outside the window was already brightly lit.
Although the company was temporarily saved from bankruptcy, Grace's expression remained tense.
"Leon, we need to figure out a way to restore the company's image, especially with the media..."
Receiving no response, Grace turned to see Leon engrossed in reviewing the company's financial statements and other operational and management documents.
"Although I don't want to say it, no matter what the company does now, it's hard to gain anyone's trust. Do you have any ideas?"
"Ideas? Plenty." Leon's eyes sparkled with a strange light. "There's always a way..."
Leon then inquired about the company's operations and the details of the Red Virus incident. From Grace, he learned that Kevin Xie had tampered with the Red Firewall for eighteen large listed companies and pre-installed a virus program under Empress Company's name. This virus was deeply hidden and would only activate when the Red Firewall was launched, leading to the disastrous outcome.
This was also the reason Grace eventually discovered she had been betrayed.
By the time Leon and Grace left the company, it was already late at night. After finishing a phone call, Grace awkwardly said, "Leon, you might as well stay at Red Leaf Apartment for the next couple of days. We have a meeting with those group CEOs tomorrow about the compensation issue, and it would be troublesome for you to go back to school."
Leon had no objections. He was entirely focused on resolving this issue, and it was Grace's reminder that brought him back to the apartment.
Isabella Xiang was still awake, waiting for their return. Having already learned the details over the phone, she was surprised by Leon's investment in Empress Company but didn't say much. She occasionally glanced at Leon with a hint of confusion.
The second floor of Red Leaf Apartment had eight bedrooms. Four had not been used in a long time and served as storage rooms. When Leon reached the guest room where he had been sleeping, he realized that Grace and Isabella's rooms were right next to his. The room opposite his was another girl's bedroom.
Thinking about the two beautiful women sleeping next door made Leon's heart race.
After saying goodnight to Leon, Grace sighed with relief and tiredly rubbed her delicate brows.
"Is Scarlett not coming back tonight?" Grace asked.
"She called. Her family is forcing her to go on a blind date with a man from the Beijing Military District. She wants us to rescue her," Isabella said calmly.
"She's still so troublesome. She should just refuse," Grace laughed. "But it's better that she's not coming back; it would be inconvenient with Leon here."
"Did you really accept Leon's investment?" Isabella asked.
Grace remembered Leon's confidence and couldn't help but smile. Sometimes, having someone go crazy with you in pursuit of a dream felt pretty good.
Lying in bed, Leon tossed and turned, thinking about how to restore Empress's reputation. Remembering Ethan Xu's arrogant face, he knew they had to win this battle beautifully.
Right, if only he had some special abilities.
Leon quickly sat up and checked the time. It was nearly midnight, and he had a bit over ten minutes left. He still had two chances to use his abilities today; he might as well use them to explore new ones instead of wasting them.
He pressed the code.
"NO97SL data loading, ability code: successful application of material acquisition..."
Ten minutes later, Leon was disappointed. This ability was of no help in his current situation. The second ability he tried was also useless, so he gave up.
He had to find a way to solve this problem himself.
Thinking about it, Leon couldn't help but recall that Grace and Isabella were sleeping next door. As a normal man, with two legendary beauties from school in the next room, it was hard not to have thoughts.
The day had been exhausting, and with chaotic thoughts, Leon eventually drifted off to sleep.
That night, he had a dream.
In his dream, Sienna Tang quietly slipped into his room, cuddling tightly against him. Her soft skin was incredibly tactile, and Leon couldn't help but hold her tighter. Sienna wiggled a bit but then stopped struggling.
That night, Leon felt an incredible warmth in his chest.
In the early morning, still dreaming, Leon felt a cool sensation beneath him. It seemed the dream was continuing, as "Little Leon" stood tall and proud, being gently stroked by a soft hand. The electrifying pleasure coursed through his body, making the dream feel all too real. Leon almost believed that if he opened his eyes, the person would be right there.
He hugged Sienna tighter, unable to hold back his breath.
"Elephant, your trunk has gotten hard~," a soft voice whispered in his ear.
Leon jolted awake, almost having a heart attack.
This was no dream—a girl was curled up like a kitten in his arms, hugging him tightly. The worst part was his sleep pants had somehow come off, and "Little Leon" was enjoying the fresh air. The girl was holding him with one hand while gently caressing his "Little Leon" with the other.
To make matters worse, the girl in his arms seemed confused. Why had the elephant pillow's trunk suddenly gotten hard? Slowly opening her eyes, she realized she was holding a real man, and he looked familiar.
Scarlett?!
Leon?!
Their eyes met, wide-eyed and stunned.
Scarlett's grip tightened, making Leon grunt. The next moment was predictable—realizing she wasn't holding an elephant's trunk, Scarlett's body temperature soared, and she pushed him away, screaming in classic fright.
Leon wanted to die. Clearly, he was the one being taken advantage of here.
"What's going on?"
Grace and Isabella burst into Leon's room, just in time for him to hurriedly pull up his pants.
"Scarlett, when did you get back?"
"And what's with you two?"
…
Leon sat helplessly on the sofa, wondering if he had accidentally activated some "peach blossom luck" ability. Grace approached, holding back laughter, and handed him a cup of coffee to calm his nerves.
Leon was indeed shaken, realizing he had slept with Scarlett all night.
"Pervert, lecher..." Scarlett muttered under her breath as she and Isabella went downstairs, her face still red. Her hand, which had stroked the "gun," was still trembling slightly.
"Leon, why are you here?" Scarlett demanded, glaring at him.
"Leon is here at my invitation. But what about you, Scarlett? Shouldn't you be in Beijing?" Grace frowned, clearly trying to defend Leon. "And why did you end up in Leon's room?"
Scarlett pouted, feeling wronged.
"That guy was so annoying. I didn't want to have a blind date with him. He kept boasting about his Maserati and some eagle. It was so irritating."
"What's the deal with Leon?" Scarlett asked.
Grace briefly explained the situation, and Scarlett's anger slowly subsided, though she still muttered in dissatisfaction. From her words, everyone understood how the strange scene this morning had come to be.
Scarlett had sneaked back to Xijing late at night. Not wanting to disturb her sisters, she silently returned to her room. Exhausted and disoriented, she mistakenly entered the guest room. As for why Leon ended up being hugged all night, it was simple. Scarlett had an elephant pillow in her bed and always hugged it to sleep.
Grace watched the embarrassed pair, sensing an indescribable atmosphere. "You two really didn't do anything?"
"Absolutely not," Leon shook his head.
Scarlett quickly nodded to affirm her innocence but felt her whole body heat up again, realizing she had slept in a man's arms without noticing.
In the car, Leon yawned.
"Sorry about that. I didn't expect such a thing to happen. That girl came back without a word..." Grace apologized while driving.
"It's fine. I wasn't at a loss," Leon smiled.
"But it might be best if you don't sleep at the apartment tonight," Grace sighed.
Leon understood. Given what had happened, it was best for him to disappear from Scarlett's sight for a while. He hadn't expected Grace's third roommate to be Scarlett. No wonder she ranked just below Lily Lin in the freshman beauty contest. Lily had won with her unbeatable purity, while Scarlett was right behind her.
"By the way, I thought of a way to restore Queen Company's reputation last night," Leon said thoughtfully.
Grace looked at him in surprise. "Really? What's your plan?"
"Listen to what I have to say..." Leon whispered in her ear. It was the first time a man spoke so close to her, making Grace feel uneasy. Her cheeks flushed, but the color soon faded as she listened.
She looked at Leon in shock.
His idea was incredibly bold!
In Queen Company's conference room, the CEOs of eighteen companies had already gathered.
Leon glanced at their profiles. Some were from certification, some from operations, trade, transportation—various sectors with extensive networks. No wonder they were demanding a billion.
But that billion might soon become a thing of the past, Leon thought with a sly smile.
The bigwigs noticed Leon sitting there, exchanging puzzled looks. Who was this young man? Because Leon's investment in Queen was kept confidential, no one else knew about it.
But once Grace entered the conference room, nothing else mattered.
"President Wang, are you here to respond to us today?"
"We're not trying to be difficult, but the losses are too great. The billion-dollar compensation cannot be reduced."
"We can't help it if Queen Company goes bankrupt. We're all businessmen and can't afford to be sentimental."
Several CEOs began to press the issue.
Grace looked at their questioning faces with indifference, saying nothing. After they finished speaking, she finally spoke slowly.
"The reason I've invited all the CEOs here today is to discuss resolving this matter!"
"Grace, I know Queen Company is very important to you, but are you interested in becoming my company's executive secretary?" One chubby CEO chuckled, thinking the matter was settled.
Grace ignored him, taking a deep breath. She glanced at Leon. Honestly, the script Leon had given her was so outrageous that even she had her doubts.
But with the arrow already on the bowstring, it had to be shot. After all, Leon had the final decision-making power in the company. Grace calmly said,
"After overnight discussions and research, we have decided to retain the right to sue and refuse this compensation demand..."
The shock hadn't even settled when Grace continued,
"However, to fulfill Queen Company's commitment to network security for all your companies, Queen Company promises to unconditionally develop and install new firewalls for each of your enterprises!"
The conference room fell silent, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.