He Mingxue sped furiously, but they still arrived at the company an hour late.

As soon as they arrived, a secretary hurried over and said anxiously, "President He, you're finally here! President Mi has been waiting in the reception room for a full hour. She's getting impatient and looked like she was about to leave. You'd better go see her right away!"

With that, the secretary quickly led the way, guiding He Mingxue and Liu Ergou toward the reception room.

After hearing the secretary's words, He Mingxue turned and shot Liu Ergou a fierce glare before following the secretary.

They quickly reached the door to the reception room. Just as He Mingxue was about to push the door open, an impatient voice drifted out.

"When is your President He going to arrive? I've been waiting here for a full hour! A full hour! If your President He doesn't show up soon, I'm leaving!"

Standing at the doorway, He Mingxue heard this and immediately pushed the door open and walked in.

Following behind her, Liu Ergou fell into deep thought. That voice coming from the reception room sounds so familiar, he thought. But for the life of me, I can't place it.

Just as Liu Ergou was about to ponder it further, He Mingxue, who had already entered the room, noticed he wasn't behind her. She turned back and dragged Liu Ergou inside.

The moment Liu Ergou entered the reception room, he spotted a familiar figure. Taking a closer look, he realized the person sitting there was none other than Mi Xiaoying.

No wonder her voice sounded so familiar. It's Mi Xiaoying, he realized.

Instantly, the corners of Liu Ergou's mouth curled up into an indescribable smile.

Mi Xiaoying, who was sitting there, also saw Liu Ergou trailing behind He Mingxue. The smile on his face sent an involuntary shiver down her spine. But she quickly composed herself and pretended not to recognize him.

Meanwhile, He Mingxue had already hurried over to Mi Xiaoying's side, saying with an apologetic expression, "I'm truly sorry, President Mi. Something came up, which caused the delay. I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting!"

However, Mi Xiaoying showed no reaction to He Mingxue's apology. Instead, she wrinkled her nose and said with a strange look, "Um, President He, let's put aside the issue of your lateness for a moment. Do you smell something… odd?"

As she spoke, Mi Xiaoying sniffed the air a few more times, trying to locate the source of the smell.

Seeing Mi Xiaoying's reaction, He Mingxue's face instantly flushed red. She dared not speak and quickly took several steps back, stopping only when she was nearly a meter away.

Her behavior puzzled Mi Xiaoying.

"Hm? President He, what are you doing? Why did you suddenly move so far away?"

He Mingxue quickly shook her head. "Nothing, nothing, I'm just finding a place to sit."

With that, she sat down in a chair behind her.

Liu Ergou, watching the interaction between He Mingxue and Mi Xiaoying, almost burst out laughing, but he managed to hold it in.

Seeing that He Mingxue had sat down, Mi Xiaoying stopped searching for the peculiar odor. Instead, she got straight down to business.

"President He, we had an appointment today, yet you arrived a full hour late. Do you have any idea the kind of losses an hour's delay can cause?" Mi Xiaoying said, her face serious. "If you don't want to cooperate, there's no need for this charade. You could have just said so directly!"

He Mingxue immediately shook her head. "That's not it, President Mi, please let me explain. Today's circumstances were truly exceptional. I'm normally never late. Look, how about this? I'm willing to concede another five percent of the profits. What do you say?"

After speaking, she looked at Mi Xiaoying nervously.

But Mi Xiaoying just shook her head. "Forget it, President He. Since you're not serious about this partnership, let's just leave it at that. We're done here."

Without any hesitation, Mi Xiaoying stood up, turned, and left the reception room, leaving a stunned He Mingxue in her wake.

He Mingxue didn't snap out of her daze until Mi Xiaoying's figure had completely vanished. The first thing she did upon coming to her senses was to march over and punch Liu Ergou hard in the chest.

"Liu Ergou!" she roared. "Look what you've done! Because of you, I've lost such an important client! AAAGH! I'm so furious! What are you going to do about it!"

Facing the furious He Mingxue, Liu Ergou gave a sly chuckle, then stood up and pulled her into an embrace. He began to console her in a soft whisper.

"Alright, President He, don't be angry. It's just one deal. There's no need to get so upset; getting angry is bad for your health. Here, just wait. I'll go get the woman who just left and bring her back. I'll make her cooperate with you, alright?"

Hearing Liu Ergou's words, He Mingxue couldn't help but roll her eyes dramatically.

"Er Gou, can we stop boasting?" she said, unamused. "Do you have any idea who that woman is? She's one of the most famous entrepreneurs in the city, a real local powerhouse. You think you can just call her back? And even if she did give you the time of day, what makes you think you can get her to cooperate with me?"

Before Liu Ergou could reply, He Mingxue continued, "Ah, forget it. If the deal didn't happen, so be it. It's not like I'm desperate for this one deal, but offending her isn't worth it. It's going to be so awkward if we ever meet again."

As she spoke, she sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead.

Seeing He Mingxue looking so distressed, Liu Ergou said no more. He just gently patted her shoulder, guided her to the sofa to sit down, and then stood up and headed for the door.

When He Mingxue saw Liu Ergou about to leave, she asked quickly, "Er Gou, where are you going? Don't leave! I wasn't blaming you, I just…"

Liu Ergou cut her off before she could finish.

"I know you're not blaming me. I'm just going to bring her back and make sure she cooperates with you. Wait here. I'll be right back!"