Chapter 8- Reviewing a document is the same as eating for me

"Suyan, don't be capricious next time." The Old patriarch massaged his head. Lilian's little clothes didn't bother him one bit.

But the stoic silent young man's face had some ripples. He took off his robe and placed it on her lap.

Lilian finally remembered that she was only wearing a white shirt. Clutching the robe on her thighs, she gave the young man a grateful nod.

The young man nodded back and tapped the table with his knuckles. "Third uncle since Suyan is here. We can start the meeting again."

The Elder sitting opposite them gripped the teacup tighter. He looked over at the Feng Xiaohua who was wearing a suspicious expression before replying. "Yes, how about making the two candidates display their abilities."

Some Elders stifled their laughter making the Old Patriarch dissatisfied. What ability does Suyan possessed? This thought made the opposing elders filled with glee.

"Silence!"

Lilian could feel a piercing gaze directed at her. She traced and found a young woman in a red qipao. Her auburn long hair was held in a side bun. Curled tendrils fell at the sides of her face. There was a beauty mark below her left eye enhancing her features. She was very beautiful than those modern celebrities of her world. But, for some reason her looks was a little familiar.

Where did she see it?

Wait a minute!

The girl on the poster of the Otome game! An 80% resemblance!

"Suyan, Third Uncle is asking you a question." There was a whisper in her ears.

"What?" Lilian replied her hands gripping the robe under the table.

Feng Tianlu, the Elder of the third branch noticed her anxiety and became more confident.

"Eldest Miss, pardon my words. My intention is not to demean you but the business will better off in Second Miss's hands."

"What makes you reassured of that conclusion?" Lilian raised her brows. The man's words irked her. Doesn't his statement imply that she was lacking?

"I have seen Second Miss' abilities in analysing the accounting records. We often also talked about business matters on our free time. Therefore I can vouch for her capabilities." Feng Tianlu took a sip of his tea.

Xiaohua followed his actions and also savoured the tea with elegance. Her eyes held laughter.

The side of the Old Patriarch was dissatisfied at his remarks. But before anyone could say anything, Lilian spoke first.

"Then is the business you're talking about an Accounting Firm or Auditing Firm?" Lilian was confused. Seventeen people are inside the room and was meeting over who's taking over the firm without a single document? "Shouldn't you look at the credentials instead? Her remarks at the board exam, her experience for the past years, her work etiquettes, interpersonal abilities with the clients, and other things should be taken consideration. A firm's success will depend on the head's skills in selecting and associating with potential clients, his skills in distributing workloads and authority to the team. The industries nowadays are corrupt and some inside operations are filled with issues. It would be detrimental if the one at the top would be easily swayed with wealth otherwise the firm would go down along with the company you colluded."

What did Suyan say? None of the people in the room could catch up.

There was silence in the room. Even the young man was startled at her words. Though he couldn't understand majority of it, but Suyan's serious expression couldn't be overlooked. Also, she didn't flare her temper at Feng Tianlu's provocation like she usually does. Thiswhat surprised him the most. He had little care for the Feng Clan's wealth, but regarding Suyan's sudden changes he was in bewilderment.

The Old Patriarch however was processing her speech. A sense of nostalgia flooded his heart. "Suyan who'd taught you those things?" Bliss and pride were evident in his tone.

"I learned it in my accounting classes. Thought majority of the knowledge about analysing records I've gained was picked up by constantly interacting with my auditor."

The Old Patriarch nodded and his face lightened. "Good! Good! You're finally considering learning some business matters." Though he didn't understand what she was referring to, he still supported her.

The last sentence echoed in her head. Xiaohua placed the tea cup on the table. Her eyes are filled with aggressive light. "Eldest Sister, are you saying you doubt me of having malicious intentions? My heart cares for the Feng Clan. Your words are too much."

"When did I mention your name? You're making up things." Lilian replied. This woman is twisting her words. Her intention was good. She even shared them some of her ideas. To let her spoke a paragraph, some people would even pay for it.

"We are the only two heir candidates. If it wasn't me, then who is it?"

"Slandering Xiaohua with baseless accusation, Eldest Miss' conduct is lacking." Feng Tianlu added oil to the fire.

Some Elders immediately nodded at Feng Tianlu's words.

"Eldest Miss meant well. It is Second Miss who is defaming Eldest Miss."

A round of debate soon began. Lilian's temples pulsed while listening to their arguments.

"Hold on!" Lilian yelled. This sort of talks will not make any progress.

The ruckus died down but glares were sent to her way.

"How about we review the business' documents? Let's stop this useless discussion and have a serious talk." Wasting time was wasting money. She valued this principle.

"Suyan is right. Rather than moving your mouths, use your head instead." The Old Patriarch threw Suyan a wink. His mood greatly improved. Who knew this hot-tempered granddaughter of his would be the one keeping her cool while Xiaohua was losing her composure.

Lilian smiled with stiffness. She was unaccustomed to such gesture.

"Grandfather…" Xiaohua gripped the corner of her qipao wrinkling it in the process.

Raising his white brows, the Old Patriarch was filled with inquiry.

Feng Tianlu coughed to calm her down.

Xiaohua lowered her head in reluctance after his reminder.

"Since Eldest Miss wants to. How about having the two of you analyse the records in front of us. Whoever is better will be appointed as heir immediately."

"Aren't you taking the matter lightly? Being able to analyse documents doesn't conclude one is proficient at managing a business. It requires experience, knowledge, skills, and even luck." She established the AspireTech from a scratch. She fought teeth and nails for every business opportunity. She crawled from the bottom for every loss, had stand in line for hours under the sun's extreme heat just to get approval for a loan, had to type unending computer codes until my hands were sore. The difficulties don't end there. It took an approximate 5 years to be at where she was and the storms she experienced were too many that she lost track.

"Why is Eldest Miss nervous that you wouldn't be able to analyse a single page? Don't worry even if Eldest Miss failed, the Clan will still feed you." The fourth elder intervened. His lips tugged upwards into sarcasm.

"Fourth Elder, the results are not set yet." The young male made an eye contact with the Fourth Elder causing the latter to flinch.

"I'm only telling the truth. Eldest Miss only knows how to eat and spend. The business will be sucked dry by her someday if you still let her have access to it. Xiaohua had been exerting her energy in associating with the other business partners, persuading them to continue their contacts but Father still wanted this good for nothing to be the heir! What's so good about her?"

"You!"

Old Patriarch nearly released an attack on him but it is a good thing Old Xiu managed to pat his shoulders on time. "Rascal, look at youself first before saying those things to Suyan. You haven't even done a single accomplishment yet and only know how to leech off the second branch. You're such a shame!"

"Father is so biased!" The fourth elder retorted.

Indeed The Old Patriarch was so biased of Suyan. No matter what she does, he never gets angry at all.

Lilian sensed another verbal warfare was starting soon so she immediately made a concession between them. "That's enough! Accusing each other won't produce any results. We should set aside these personal feelings first and deal with the urgent matter at hand. Regarding the documents, have someone deliver it to the room. Everyone will bear witness of this afternoon's wager."

"Lastly, does anyone object to the condition suggested by the man- Elder earlier?"

The people in the room were stunned again. Suyan had displayed another remarkable composure as if she was not the subject of the earlier argument.

Old patriarch was beaming with joy. Suyan had developed a calm personality which was good. "Suyan asked of your opinion." He raised his voice when the Elders didn't answer her yet.

Everyone regained their senses and agreed to Suyan's proposal.

"What the Feng Tianlu said was right."

"I agree."

"It's the same for me."

The young man whispered words in Lilian's ears. "Call me if you need anything."

Lilian detected the some unknown emotion from his voice. But, she kept the thoughts in her head and lowered her voice to reply. "That won't be necessary. Reviewing a document is the same as eating for me."