Li Ru suddenly spoke up, and Ling Zhenfei was stunned. He never expected Li Ru to say such words, and so seriously at that, leaving him somewhat at a loss.

Then, Li Ru burst out laughing, "Haha, how about that, scared you, didn't I? I was just teasing you. Look how frightened you are, I'm fine on my own, big sister me."

Ling Zhenfei truly felt like breaking out in a cold sweat. Thank goodness Li Ru was just joking, or else what would he have done?

At that moment, Chu He came back with the plane tickets. "Alright, I've got the tickets, let's go."

"Yes, let's go," Li Ru said, somewhat reluctantly.

Perhaps sensing her reluctance, Chu He laughed, "Li Ru, why are you acting like a little girl? Have you fallen for my buddy Zhenfei and now don't want to leave?"

Li Ru and Ling Zhenfei both paused, could it be that Chu He had noticed something?

Li Ru said somewhat angrily, "Chu He, you dare to joke about me, just wait until I tell your wife when we get back."

"No, please don't, I'm really scared," Chu He hastily begged for mercy.

"Okay, brother and sister, stop kidding around, have a safe trip," Ling Zhenfei reminded them as he checked the time.

"Goodbye!" Chu He said with flair.

"Goodbye," Li Ru said with mixed feelings, making Ling Zhenfei feel a tinge of regret, regret for the proudly aloof Li Ru who lacked love in her heart.

Ling Zhenfei drove toward the agreed-upon Green Apple Restaurant. It was said that there were a total of five people in charge of Green Apple Restaurant, originally founded by a group effort.

The five of them worked hard and, with Binyang as the center, opened dozens of restaurants, becoming Binyang's largest restaurant chain.

Most of these five people had now stepped back from the front lines, handing the reins over to their children. It was precisely because of the many stakeholders that Green Apple Restaurant's operation had always been fraught with problems, which had allowed other businesses to encroach on their territory.

Once glorious, Green Apple Restaurant now found itself in an awkward position, like fallen nobility unwilling to bow to commoners but not recognized by its own class, caught in a state of decline.

Despite numerous issues, Chen Qian's choice of Green Apple Restaurant did make some sense.

After all, Green Apple Restaurant had its days of glory. Although it had fallen, it still had dozens of chain restaurants; with the right opportunity, there was potential to rise again.

Ling Zhenfei didn't know which of the five managers he was meeting today, or which of them was truly in charge.

When he arrived at the restaurant's entrance, it was almost the time they had agreed upon.

Upon seeing the restaurant, Ling Zhenfei was taken aback, as he finally understood why the person in charge of Green Apple had chosen this particular restaurant for their meeting. This restaurant was their flagship.

As the largest and most upscale of the Green Apple Restaurant chain, choosing to meet at this location obviously had strategic intent.

As Ling Zhenfei pondered these matters, he entered Green Apple Restaurant with the things he had prepared.

Once inside the restaurant, Ling Zhenfei was surprised. Though it was afternoon and not peak dining time, the place was still quite busy—it turned out to be a coffeehouse as well.

At this time, many people were drinking coffee there, and many looked up at Ling Zhenfei as he walked in.

A waiter promptly approached and very politely said, "Do you have a reservation, sir?"

"Hello, I'm here to meet someone," Ling Zhenfei answered truthfully. "Our person in charge at Green Apple has arranged to meet here."

"Then may I ask your surname?" The waiter clearly had been informed about this matter beforehand.

After stating his surname, the waiter led Ling Zhenfei towards the back. The restaurant, being Green Apple's flagship store, was divided into two sections.

One part was the restaurant, and the other was the headquarters of Green Apple. Now, Ling Zhenfei was escorted by the waiter to one of the rooms.

Perhaps deliberately arranged, Ling Zhenfei was taken to a meeting room, which was devoid of people, and so he could only wait quietly.

Shortly after, Ling Zhenfei began to hear footsteps, and along with them, several people entered the room.

Three individuals led the group, followed by secretaries and the like. It seemed that these three were the persons in charge at Green Apple.

He had thought he would meet just one of them, but unexpectedly, all three had arrived. It seemed Green Apple's affairs were indeed complex; their decline hadn't been without reason.

The three first shook hands with Ling Zhenfei and introduced themselves. The woman was named Sun Wen, and the two men were Zhu Jiaming and Cui Qingmu, all of whom had taken over their elders' positions to become the leaders of Green Apple.

However, Ling Zhenfei could tell, despite all three being in charge, Sun Wen held a higher status, and both Zhu Jiaming and Cui Qingmu didn't seem too concerned about this matter, with only Sun Wen being the true decision-maker.

"I really didn't expect Boss Ling to be so young. It's quite a surprise," Sun Wen said with a smile.

For some reason, Sun Wen reminded Ling Zhenfei of Qin Lan. There were striking similarities between the two.

Both were very beautiful, of a similar age, not very old, yet managing a large enterprise with a powerful presence that seemed to command the room.

Thinking this, Ling Zhenfei felt a tinge of disappointment, sensing that the affair would not be so easily settled. If Sun Wen's personality was also akin to Qin Lan's, then today would likely end in failure again.

"Manager Sun is too kind," Ling Zhenfei humbly said. "My little enterprise pales in comparison to yours; it's hardly worth mentioning."

But to Ling Zhenfei's surprise, upon saying this, Zhu Jiaming actually laughed, "Of course, in Binyang, what enterprise can compare to our Green Apple Restaurant?"

Ling Zhenfei realized then why Sun Wen was a head above the others. From their way of speaking and handling matters, it was clear these two had some issues with their thinking, nowhere near Sun Wen's level.

Anxious to move on, Sun Wen hurriedly said, "Boss Ling, don't mind him; that's just how he is. Let's not talk about that anymore. Let's get straight to the point. Tell us why you're here."

"Cooperation!" Ling Zhenfei said distinctly.

"How do you propose we cooperate?" Sun Wen inquired.

"We sell you vegetables, and you make money using the produce from Xi Shan Manor—a win-win," Ling Zhenfei said with ease.

Sun Wen smiled, "Boss Ling, we understand what you mean, and we certainly like to cooperate with others, but your Xi Shan Manor is so famous in Binyang, we've all heard of it, and we've tasted its vegetables. But the price is too high."

Ling Zhenfei knew the price would be an issue for Sun Wen, and smilingly replied, "A higher price has its benefits. It can elevate the status of Green Apple Restaurant. This is a great opportunity,"

Corner of her mouth curling into a smile, Sun Wen said, "I'm sorry, Boss Ling, if it were your company, which vegetables would you choose? Would you opt for the ones that are seven to eight times more expensive?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.