Novel Bin Chapter 138
At this moment, Qin Jiuyue was almost exploding with anger. She initially thought Su Lin had returned the jade porcelain she believed he took from her grandfather.
She was secretly happy about it and had even slightly changed her opinion of Su Lin. However, she was shocked to find that the box he gave her was empty.
She could clearly tell that the box in her hand was weightless. She knew exactly how heavy her grandfather’s box was, and Su Lin had taken the jade porcelain, leaving her with just an empty box.
This was the first time she had encountered such a situation in all her years. Qin Jiuyue was extremely angry, but since it was her birthday, she couldn’t openly show her anger.
At this moment, Lin Tian, who was watching the scene from a distance, suddenly said, “They’ve all opened their gifts. Why not open this one and take a look?”
It was inappropriate for Lin Tian to comment in such a scenario, but the majority of the attention was already focused on the exquisite gift box given by Su Lin.
The attendees were mostly young people; the older ones were discussing business matters. For them, such gatherings were more about integrating resources and forging alliances.
Therefore, no elders intervened, leaving only a group of young people surrounding Qin Jiuyue.
“Yeah, Xiaoyue, we also want to know what’s inside the box.”
“Right, right, open it and see.”
Qin Jiuyue looked at Su Lin and asked, “Can I open it?”
Su Lin was somewhat surprised that Qin Jiuyue even sought his opinion. Hesitating for a moment, he said, “You can open it, but you should be mentally prepared. My gift is quite special.”
“What’s so special about it? Is it like ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’?”
Qin Jiuyue, eager to potentially embarrass Su Lin, hurriedly opened the package.
Many young onlookers watched eagerly. They all wanted to know what gift Su Lin had given, whether it was expensive, and if it might outshine their own gifts.
As soon as Qin Jiuyue opened the box, a realistic-looking toy snake crawled up her hand, its body cold and able to flick its tongue, just like a real snake.
“Ah! It’s a snake!”
“Damn, that’s awesome, it’s a snake.”
“Su Lin’s got guts to gift this. He’s done for.”
“Gifting this for a birthday? Has he lost his mind? I thought at the least it would be a diamond necklace.”
“Tsk tsk… If you’re stingy, just say so. Who gifts a toy snake?”
At this moment, they had already realized that the snake in Qin Jiuyue’s hand was fake, but it was made very realistically, with fine craftsmanship, almost indistinguishable from a real snake.
Su Lin completely ignored the whispers around him. He knew Qin Jiuyue’s character very well – although she appeared gentle and charming, she was quite wild at heart.
She loved to tease people, sought thrills, and was fond of peculiar and bizarre things. The reason Xiao Chen could catch her eye was because he took her street racing in the rain one night, thrilling her and piquing her curiosity about him.
Indeed, Qin Jiuyue was now fiddling with the toy snake in her hands. As she touched it, the snake automatically wiggled its tail and flicked its tongue. Her eyes narrowed instantly, and she could barely contain the smile at the corners of her mouth.
“Su Lin, it’s a bit inappropriate to gift a toy snake for a young lady’s twentieth birthday, isn’t it?” Lin Tian once again stirred the pot.
Su Lin felt that the roles between him and Lin Tian had completely reversed. Normally, as the villain, he should be the one constantly being provoked, but due to the severe reduction in Lin Tian’s protagonist aura, Su Lin was now the center of attention.
He looked at Qin Jiuyue and said, “If you don’t like it, I can take it back and exchange it for something else.”
Qin Jiuyue quickly hid the toy snake behind her back, “Who… who… How can you be like this? You can’t take back a gift once it’s given.”
Su Lin almost laughed out loud at her barely maintained composure, whispering, “Pretending to be a lady must be tiring. If I were you, I’d rather be dead.”
Qin Jiuyue glared at Su Lin with her almond-shaped eyes and pouted. She couldn’t believe Su Lin had seen through her disguise so quickly.
Su Lin chuckled, “Since you like it, let it be your birthday gift then. No objections, right?”
Qin Jiuyue put the toy snake back in the box and handed it to a waiter, “Who said I liked it? It’s just that I didn’t want to be unhappy on my birthday. Also, the matter of you tricking my grandpa isn’t over yet. I will settle the score with you.”
“So, you were the one in the room just now,” Su Lin realized.
When Su Lin was in Qin Delin’s private room earlier, he had already sensed someone else was there, but he hadn’t expected it to be Qin Jiuyue.
“Hmph, you knew there was someone in the room?”
Su Lin nodded, “I have a very keen sense of smell.”
“Heh! So keen, yet you couldn’t smell my scent.”
Su Lin smiled lightly, “I couldn’t before, but I won’t forget it now.”
“You…”
Watching Su Lin and Qin Jiuyue whispering to each other, many people around them were dumbfounded. They hadn’t expected Qin Jiuyue not to be angry, and even seemed to be chatting happily with Su Lin.
They soon attributed it to the fact that it was Qin Jiuyue’s birthday; after all, nobody wants to create a scene on their birthday.
Lin Tian, seeing Su Lin chatting with Qin Jiuyue, was somewhat speechless. He turned to look at Luo Sihai, who gave him a meaningful glance, and Lin Tian quietly left the crowd. This time, he was going to snatch Su Zhengou’s rice bowl.
In a small conference room upstairs, Qin Deshu was allocating the contracting rights for three railway lines. Just as he was assigning the third line, the door opened. Li Ziyan, Lin Tian, and Luo Sihai entered together.
Li Ziyan, with a formal smile on his face, said, “Grandpa Qin, sorry to interrupt.”
Qin Deshu looked at Li Ziyan with surprise and asked something that seemed cryptic, “Ziyan, did your dad send you here?”
Li Ziyan paused, then smiled, “Grandpa Qin, does it matter?”
Qin Deshu nodded, “Indeed, your presence here makes whether it was your dad’s idea irrelevant.”
He then raised an eyebrow, “You want a railway line?”
Li Ziyan shook his head, “I don’t want it.”
He wasn’t foolish enough to openly ask for the railway line from Qin Deshu. Doing so would result in a chain reaction of complications, potentially costing his family significantly. Therefore, he had brought Lin Tian along.
Lin Tian then spoke up, “Mr. Qin, I heard that you’re outsourcing the railway line contracts. Since it’s a matter of contracting, it should go to the highest bidder, right? You wouldn’t turn down money, would you?”
Qin Deshu nodded, “There are three railway lines, divided into six sections, with construction to start simultaneously on both ends. Which one do you want, young friend?”
As everyone’s gaze turned to him, Lin Tian’s confidence surged. Despite achieving a net worth of tens of billions in his past life and even going public, he had never had such direct interaction with top-tier figures like Li Ziyan. He never imagined he’d have such an opportunity today.
Seeing Lin Tian’s newfound confidence, Qin Deshu was surprised yet somewhat relieved. If Lin Tian hadn’t possessed some level of capability, Li Ziyan wouldn’t have brought him along.
“Mr. Qin, everyone here is a big player, each capable of developing an entire line on their own. However, I recall Mr. Su has already bought six plots of land this year. Mr. Su, do you still have the funds for a new project?” Lin Tian challenged Su Zhengou.
Su Zhengou, aware of Lin Tian’s and Su Lin’s rivalry, wasn’t surprised by the confrontation. He smiled wryly, “To be honest, I didn’t really want to come to this resource allocation meeting. But Mr. Qin invited me, and I couldn’t refuse.”
“You might not know this, but Mr. Su is the only developer among us six who doesn’t need to show proof of funds or even provide capital.”
“What? How is that possible? Are you saying he’s just given tens of billions for free? What makes him so special?”
Su Zhengou remained silent, knowing that battling with someone like Lin Tian was a no-win situation. He turned to Qin Deshu, “Mr. Qin, I apologize for the children’s squabbles reaching this far.”
Qin Deshu shook his head, “No need to apologize, Mr. Su. Our Qin family might rely on you for a living in the future.”
“Mr. Qin, you flatter me.”
Li Ziyan, seeing Lin Tian’s confusion, realized his words no longer held sway. He turned to Qin Deshu, “Grandpa Qin, what’s going on here? Why would you give away tens of billions for free?”
Qin Deshu chuckled, “Ziyan, I can tell you’re a talented young man. Unfortunately, sometimes when you play with pigs for too long, you become one. Today, since you’ve called me ‘Grandpa Qin’, I’ll let you in on a secret.”
“Mr. Su’s research institute has developed a complete 4G communication technology. The official documents will be issued soon, and Donghai City will be the first 4G pilot city.”
Li Ziyan’s mind was blown. Although he didn’t fully understand the significance of 4G technology, the fact that Qin Deshu placed such importance on it meant it was no trivial matter.
His exclusion from this key information indicated he had been ousted from the core circle of his family.
Lin Tian was equally shocked. Having lived through the 4G and even 5G eras, he knew how groundbreaking this technology was.
Just as he was about to question Su Zhengou about possessing 4G technology, he suddenly felt a sharp spasm in his internal organs. He collapsed, coughing up blood and bits of flesh.
Within half a minute, Lin Tian’s pupils lost focus, and he lay motionless on the floor.