The Pieces (18)

The limo soon arrived at its destination. They were in the middle of the city's business district, office buildings of famous brands and companies crowded the area. There were office workers in formal attires going to and from work. This was the commerce hub of the city, the location where million dollars deals and contracts were broken up and made every day.

"Miss Qing Qing, please." The security guard, who got out of the car first to help Qing Qing with the door, said.

'So the person I'm going to meet is in one of these buildings? Who could it be?' thought Qing Qing as she crawled out of the limo. The business world was one dominated by men and there were only few powerful women in business. Qing Qing went through the names in her mind and none of them seemed particularly related to Joann or even the entertainment industry.

The security guard pointed down towards one of the buildings and bowed, "Miss Qing Qing, this way please."

Qing Qing followed the direction of the man's finger and she found herself looking at the tallest building in the area. Her eyes climbed up the glittering facade of the wall of window panes and at the very top was the logo of the company.

'Lin Corps?!' Qing Qing read to herself with a frown. Lin Corps and its CEO, Lin Kang was so ubiquitous in the country that even the public would have heard of them much less Qing Qing who followed the news of the country and the world.

That was also the reason why she frowned. Lin Corps' face had always been Lin Kang and Elder Lin before his son took over, neither of them were women so why did the security guard used the female gender when referring to his boss. It made no sense to Qing Qing.

'Could it be Lin family's female member who is behind this? But in that case, why would they bring me to the company office, a place where normally only the men of the family are allowed?' Qing Qing could not figure it out but it didn't really matter because if the one promising to lend her aid was indeed a Lin, then she was going to get the support of the most powerful entity in their nation.

Qing Qing could not contain the excitement just imagining the status that she would rise to when she had this person from Lin family under her control. It would help her rise even higher than when she was using Joann. In her mind, Qing Qing had already bid Joann farewell, the whole revenge plan she had set up after leaving the cafe was abandoned completely. She did not have time to deal with them anymore, she needed to focus on bringing this mysterious Lin family member under her spell. Joann was used and abandoned like a piece of yesterday's news.

Qing Qing walked up the steps leading to Lin Corps, her confidence gaining with each step.

...

The elevator doors opened and the security guard who followed Qing Qing into the elevator signaled for her to leave. Qing Qing had been following the number on the elevator and they had arrived at the top floor. This held special significance because only the most important individuals had their office space on the top floor.

It was as if they needed the high elevation to prove that they not only look down on others figuratively but literally as well.

Qing Qing stepped out of the elevator and to her surprise, the guard did not follow. Qing Qing turned around and the man said, "Look for Meeting Room 2." Then the elevator doors closed.

Qing Qing stopped and examined her surrounding. As expected of the nation's most powerful company, the place was spacious and wide. The tiled floor was shining brightly, reflecting the lights that were embedded into the ceiling.

There were offices with closed doors and large tables outside of them that were probably reserved for the executive secretaries.

Qing Qing knew nothing about this mysterious benefactor that she was supposed to meet so she knew she needed to gather more information first. After all, as the Art of War said, knowing your enemy is winning half of the battle.

Qing Qing looked around the place and locked her eyes on the table that was next to the biggest office. A man in a suit was working tirelessly on the computer.

Qing Qing wandered over and asked in a sheepish voice, "Erm, big brother, can you please help me?"

Every man suffered from the hero's complex and Qing Qing knew how to work that into her advantage. She was going to act in the role of a helpless girl who needed aid from her big brother.

The man looked up from his computer and when he saw Qing Qing, he asked professionally, "I'm sorry but how can I help you?"

"It's like this... I'm supposed to find the Meeting Room 2 but I'm afraid I'm lost... Big brother, can you help me? Pretty please... I'll forever in your debt!" Qing Qing pleaded with a cute pout. She wobbled her body left and right like she needed help to even stand upright.

The man coughed and tried his best to be as professional as he could but he couldn't help puffing up his chest as he jumped up from his seat and claimed a bit too forwardly, "No problem, leave this to me! Meeting Room 2, you say? Follow me!"

The man's protective instinct had taken over. It was then that Qing Qing knew she had the man hook, line and sinker.

As she followed behind the man, Qing Qing moaned with a cute pout, "Big brother, you're walking too fast. Do you mind slowing down? You know a girl like myself cannot keep up with big, strong man like you."

A blush rose to the man's face as he apologized and slowed down to match Qing Qing's speed. Qing Qing couldn't have the man walk too fast, after all, she needed to siphon as much information from him as she could before they arrived.

"By the way, what's your name, big brother?"

"It's Yi Nian."