CFRFGC Chapter 50

⌈”Great wine. I didn’t expect such a mellow red wine in China.”⌋

“Actually, our return to the country this time is just a simple inspection…”

The head of the Lino family took the initiative to discuss business.

Next to him, his eldest son Jin casually negotiated, “There’s not just one option for cooperative enterprises.”

Their words were proud, but both were carefully observing Ji Min’s expression.

The strength of the Ji family was not to be underestimated.

Now that the Lino family wanted to shift their business to the domestic market, gaining the Ji family’s assistance would save them a lot of effort.

Moreover, due to certain reasons within their company, they could no longer afford to delay.

From the moment they sat down at the negotiation table, they had been trying to gauge the depth of this young head of the Ji family.

However, Ji Min’s persistent calm made the two, who had originally been confident, feel a twinge of doubt.

Especially when Ji Min took the initiative to leave the table and headed toward the restroom.

Jin’s heart sank as he realized he might have made a foolish mistake by deliberately putting Lu Ran in a difficult position.

He hadn’t expected that this disabled head of the Ji family would remain unruffled when others mocked him for his injury.

But did he really leave the negotiation table just because someone nearby was being troubled?

His father shot him a reproachful glance in an instant.

But fortunately…

Jin saw the wine in front of him and gradually relaxed.

This head of the Ji family should be quite willing to cooperate with them.

Going to the restroom was probably just to urge that troubled member of the Shen family to come and apologize.

With this thought, a smile returned to Jin’s face.

He raised his glass and took another sip of the “wine” Lu Ran had poured.

He drank slowly, striving to display the noble demeanor of his family.

As he drank, he kept an eye on Ji Min’s expression across the table.

He tried to find a breakthrough in the negotiation from the man’s face.

But upon closer inspection, Jin discovered that this head of the Ji family, who had just moments ago been indifferent and calm, seemed to be…

Spacing out?

Jin felt puzzled for a moment.

He instinctively followed Ji Min’s line of sight.

Ji Min’s gaze was fixed on his younger brother… the wine glass in his hand?

Jin’s younger brother, Yang, was completely clueless about the family business.

He was merely here to get familiar with the environment, so he hadn’t said a word at the table and had just kept his head down to drink.

At that moment, the glass of wine that Lu Ran had poured for him was nearly empty.

Meanwhile, Ji Min looked on with a peculiar and indescribable expression.

He watched Yang and the wine glass in his hand.

It seemed that when Jin also picked up his wine glass, Ji Min glanced over.

Ji Min didn’t respond to Jin’s earlier remarks.

Instead, after pondering for a moment, he turned to the uninvolved Yang and asked, “What does the second young master think of this wine?”

His words came out of nowhere, surprising both Jin and the head of the Lino family, leaving them momentarily flustered and unable to respond.

Yang of the Lino family saw this as his chance to shine.

He immediately swirled his wine glass, tipped his head back, and drank the wine in one go, then smacked his lips and said, “Good wine! I didn’t expect there to be such rich red wine in the country.”

Jin and the head of the Lino family exchanged skeptical glances.

Could it be that this head of the Ji family had an interest in wine?

It was common to flatter someone’s preferences at the negotiation table.

So Jin raised his glass too and took a careful sip.

He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt this wine tasted different from what he usually had.

Yet he couldn’t pinpoint what exactly was different.

Perhaps it was a matter of brand.

Old Lino was increasingly perplexed by the man across from him, prompting him to rein in his eccentric behavior.

He lowered his head to lift the wine glass, first observing the color of the wine closely.

Then he swirled it and inhaled its aroma.

Finally, he took a sip.

After meticulously going through the tasting process and finishing half a glass, he sincerely remarked.

“The aroma is rich, the taste is sweet with a hint of bitterness, and there’s a familiar yet rare scent.”

Ultimately, he summarized, “The flavor is layered and rich; it is indeed good wine.”

After praising the wine, old Lino quickly redirected back to business: “Regarding the promotion of this project…”

He had only said half of it when he noticed the usually reserved and indifferent man across the table suddenly touch his brow with his fingers.

Ji Min chuckled softly with his head down.

The low, deep voice lingered for a long time before finally settling down.

The three people across the table were taken aback by Ji Min’s reaction, left uncertain whether his laughter was a good or bad sign.

As the negotiation took a downward turn, they could only laugh along.

Ji Min chuckled for quite a while.

Even the usually composed Butler Chen raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Finally, the man managed to suppress the itch in his throat and barely stopped laughing.

He picked up the glass of water in front of him, intending to take a sip.

But for some reason, his fingers hesitated and he set the glass back down on the table.

Then he continued discussing business: “You’re not familiar with the situation in the country…”

The negotiation proceeded normally.

However, Ji Min’s mood was completely different from his usual demeanor during negotiations.

This was his first time zoning out during a business negotiation.

It was also the first time he had laughed out loud at the negotiation table.

…

As the negotiation reached a stalemate, old Lino stood up, wanting to secure a few more points.

But Ji Min glanced at the time and decisively refused.

The translator next to him quickly added, “Mr. Ji says your scheduled time is up; he has other commitments.”

Ignoring the few people who suddenly stood up behind him, Ji Min maneuvered his wheelchair away from the round table.

He looked back but did not see Lu Ran’s figure.

The person in charge hurriedly guided him over.

Ji Min made his way to the corner of the banquet.

There, he saw the young man curled up on a sofa in the corner by the window, the heavy floor-length curtains hanging down beside him.

Despite just having pulled off a stunning feat, the boy was huddled behind the curtains like a stray dog avoiding passersby, carefully nestled against the back of the sofa with his eyes closed in sleep.

His light-colored shirt and faded jeans were still stained with traces of red wine.

The stains had formed a purplish blotch.

The boy’s recently developed chubby cheeks were pressed against the sofa.

They resembled a soft stress-relief squishy toy, slightly deformed from the pressure.

The half of his face exposed to the air bore a faint blush.

This pink hue stood out starkly against his creamy white skin.

Ji Min stared at the boy’s overly long and dense eyelashes for a long while before realizing that this child had just drunk a glass of wine.

The red wine wasn’t low in alcohol content.

At this age, he likely wouldn’t be able to resist the drowsiness.

The person in charge reached out to wake him.

But Ji Min made a gesture to stop him.

The person in charge quickly withdrew his hand.

Ji Min remained still.

He continued to watch Lu Ran.

The boy slept soundly.

Yet, thinking about what he had just done, a peculiar sense of absurdity surged within Ji Min.

Not just because of the boy’s actions.

But also because of his indulgence toward Lu Ran.

After a long time, Ji Min shifted his gaze away.

He spoke softly to the person in charge, “Find someone to carry him. Be gentle.”

The person in charge hurriedly called over a security guard.

This was the first time the security guard had received such a request.

He had previously only thrown people out; he had never had to carry anyone.

So, inevitably, he was a bit rough.

He directly scooped the boy into his arms.

The boy had very little weight on him.

The little weight he had was likely gained in the past few days.

Being cradled in the guard’s arms, the boy unexpectedly appeared quite fragile.

The guard’s movements made him furrow his brow uncomfortably as if he might wake up.

Ji Min sat in his wheelchair.

He had to lift his head to see the boy nestled in the guard’s arms.

For some reason, Ji Min found this scene a bit jarring.

It made him feel inexplicably uncomfortable.

Thus, after moving a few steps, his wheelchair suddenly stopped.

Ji Min turned the wheelchair to face the guard.

His tone was slightly cold as he said, “Give him to me.”

The guard was momentarily taken aback by the command.

He understood that the person before him was a big shot with a reputation for not being easy to deal with.

But Ji Min was sitting in a wheelchair, so the guard immediately looked questioningly at the person in charge beside him.

The person in charge was also bewildered.

Even Butler Chen fell silent.

Ji Min looked at the boy in the guard’s arms.

He unfolded the blanket on his lap and repeated, “Give him to me.”

The guard glanced at the person in charge again, finally understanding Ji Min’s intention.

He carefully bent down to place the boy onto Ji Min’s wheelchair.

At this moment, everyone took a closer look and noticed that Ji Min’s wheelchair was quite wide.

Due to his tall stature, he used a specially customized wheelchair.

It had felt stable enough when he was sitting alone, but now, in comparison to the boy’s smaller frame, Ji Min’s broad shoulders appeared even more imposing.

Even though he was disabled and could only sit in a wheelchair, he could still protect the boy well.

Ji Min ignored the gazes of those around him.

He reached out to unfold the dark blue cashmere blanket, covering the sleeping boy.

In an instant, only the boy’s fluffy head remained visible.

His cheeks, set against the cool dark blue, appeared even healthier and fairer.

This made the man behind him, whose complexion was pale and whose eyes were deadened, inexplicably feel a surge of anger.

Ji Min cradled the boy and controlled the wheelchair to move forward.

The few people behind him followed suit, observing quietly.

They reached the elevator.

“Mr. Ji, wait!”

The three members of the Lino family, having conferred briefly, hurried after him.

Old Lino said, “Mr. Ji, regarding the project details, we can still discuss this further. When would you…”

At this moment, the man at the negotiation table, who had been calm and polite, suddenly changed his demeanor.

He frowned slightly, glancing at the sleeping boy in his arms.

He didn’t respond to Old Lino but lowered his voice, saying, “Keep it down.”

What if he woke up and got angry? Then what would he do, make them drink toilet water?

Old Lino looked at him, then at the boy in his arms.

Shock was evident in his gaze.

Ji Min raised his eyes, his voice still low.

In fluent Italian, he replied, “Mr. Lino, I mind very much when someone speaks ill of the people around me.”

The three members of the Lino family froze in place.

Thinking back to their whispering during the negotiation, their expressions turned tense.

Ji Min carried the boy into the elevator.

Butler Chen smiled at the three members of the Lino family and also replied in Italian, “I’m sorry, my master doesn’t discuss work while resting.”

Everyone entered the elevator.

The elevator doors slowly closed, blocking the colorful expressions of the three members of the Lino family outside.

The person in charge, who had observed the entire negotiation, chuckled coldly in his heart.

He particularly disliked the Lino family.

They were clearly Chinese but pretended to be foreign, even going so far as to hire a translator.

Occasionally, they would spout a couple of phrases in Italian.

Didn’t they speak Mandarin well enough?

These three had been away from the country for so long that they probably didn’t know the habits of the man beside him, Mr. Ji.

The Ji family members were polite only at the negotiation table.

In formal settings, they were impeccable.

But once they stepped away from the negotiating table, they wouldn’t recognize anyone.

Trying to gain any advantages from them in private was nearly impossible.

However…

Today, Ji Min had only replied in Italian and hadn’t used his cold, detached voice to strip away the Lino family’s façade.

He had genuinely shown some restraint.

Could it be that the Lino family had already suffered a significant loss at the negotiation table?

Was Ji Min feeling sympathetic and reluctant to hurt them further?

As the person in charge was pondering this, he suddenly heard Ji Min casually instruct, “Today’s cups used by the Lino family…”

“Make sure to throw them all away.”

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