CHAPTER 1577: CHAPTER 1629: FINALLY SETTLED

In the end, nothing happened between Li Yifei and Sarama. It wasn’t that Sarama didn’t want to, but she didn’t dare, and it wasn’t that Li Yifei didn’t dare, but he didn’t want to.

After leaning on Li Yifei’s shoulder for a while, Sarama stood up and returned to her room.

Li Yifei ate a couple of pieces of fruit, brushed his teeth, and went to bed early.

Early the next morning, Wu Shuwei came to knock on Li Yifei’s door. Opening the door, Wu Shuwei glanced at Li Yifei and immediately turned around, saying, "Can you put on some clothes before opening the door?"

"Sure." Li Yifei slammed the door shut, went to brush his teeth and wash his face. After five or six minutes, he opened the door again. Wu Shuwei was about to lose her mind. Coming in and looking at Li Yifei, she said, "I’ll give you another ten minutes. You better finish getting ready soon. I just set up a meeting with the officials from Dubai, and we have to go over to discuss and negotiate the final contract documents, otherwise we might not get it signed today either."

Li Yifei shrugged his shoulders and said, "Alright."

A few minutes later, a neatly dressed Li Yifei came downstairs. Wu Shuwei had already had breakfast. Li Yifei went over and finished eating in three minutes, which Wu Shuwei already felt was slow.

"What’s the rush? If we can’t agree today, we just take our time," Li Yifei complained in the car.

Wu Shuwei straightened her neck and said, "That’s not okay. Don’t you know the initial construction has already started? Delaying even one day costs tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands. We need to hurry up."

"It seems we’ve already lost several days before..." Li Yifei said with a frown.

Wu Shuwei immediately widened her eyes and scolded, "There was no way around that before. Now we can completely reduce the loss. At least if we successfully sign today, I can organize the personnel and workers within three days to continue construction."

"Can you do that? What about the workers?"

"They haven’t left at all. These days have been a break, but their wages still need to be paid. So delaying a day means a big sum in wages," Wu Shuwei said helplessly.

Li Yifei gave an "Oh" and said, "Okay, then you handle your matters, and I’ll take care of the contract matters!"

Li Yifei wanted to take on the task to reduce some pressure for Wu Shuwei, but unexpectedly the other party didn’t appreciate it. She rolled her eyes at Li Yifei and said, "Come on, negotiating a contract isn’t that easy. I’ll handle it, and today it’s not just me. The company sent some people to help me."

"What about me?" Li Yifei pointed at himself.

Wu Shuwei tilted her head, thought for a moment, smiled, and said, "Sit next to me and be my bodyguard."

"What?" Li Yifei seemed not to have heard clearly, his eyes widening a bit.

Wu Shuwei nodded seriously and said, "Just like what you heard. The negotiation might get intense today, so if someone gets agitated and wants to hit me, remember to block them for me."

Li Yifei rubbed his hands together, ignoring Wu Shuwei’s teasing. It’s better if they don’t need him; it saves a lot of trouble, otherwise how many brain cells would have to be exhausted.

The car arrived at the destination, Wu Shuwei met up with the company personnel. Li Yifei saw that there were several people, those who had undermined Wu Shuwei in the meeting before, and two others who had said a lot of discouraging words behind her back. But seeing Wu Shuwei now, they were all smiling brightly, wishing they could praise Wu Shuwei to the heavens. Clearly, they thought the project could resume because of Wu Shuwei.

Li Yifei didn’t feel the need to emphasize, those people saw him too but didn’t come to trouble him this time. Li Yifei enjoyed his freedom, leisurely walking in behind the group.

Because the contract needed amendments, both sides had to discuss, or you could say argue, with each other. In any case, the atmosphere at the meeting was lively. Although it wasn’t a fight, the decibel level was about the same.

Li Yifei sat on the side, fiddling with his phone, not getting involved. Wu Shuwei, on the other hand, held her ground firmly.

This was her area of expertise, so Li Yifei wouldn’t interfere.

By around ten o’clock, both sides finally reached an agreement. Although there were still disputes, they were minor, so they decided to hold the signing ceremony at one o’clock in the afternoon.

Li Yifei really didn’t say a word. Several times the officials from the Dubai side asked for his opinion, but Wu Shuwei answered that Li Yifei had entrusted her with full authority to negotiate. Then Li Yifei found himself feeling sleepy, as if he was back more than ten years ago, listening to a teacher’s lecture on the blackboard, drowsy and sleepy.

After the negotiation ended, the other side went to amend the contract and draft a new one. Wu Shuwei stood up and pushed the seemingly asleep Li Yifei, who had his eyes closed and head tilted.

Li Yifei opened his eyes blankly, looked at Wu Shuwei, and asked, "Is it done?"

"It’s done. The signing is at one o’clock. Let’s go get something to eat now," Wu Shuwei said.

Li Yifei stood up, rubbed his face, and followed Wu Shuwei and the others out.

At one o’clock in the afternoon, in the same venue as yesterday, quite a few reporters came, including journalists from Huaxia. But Li Yifei had already told Wu Shuwei that he didn’t want to appear on camera, so reporters could shoot but shouldn’t include him.

"I’m afraid that’s not possible. It’s said today that even CCTV reporters will come, and it’s very likely it will be on the evening news. If you want to sign the contract, basically, you’ll appear on it."

Li Yifei frowned, clicked his tongue, and said, "Then you handle the signing, I’ll authorize you."

"Are you sure?" Wu Shuwei was a little surprised. Appearing on the News Broadcast is quite an honor and very notable. Wasn’t Li Yifei trying to increase his political capital? How could he refuse such a thing?

Li Yifei nodded and said, "You know my other identity, so it’s inconvenient for me to be in this kind of news. It’s better to keep a low profile."

That’s when Wu Shuwei understood and said, "I get it, then I’ll sign it for you. We need to notify the other party to avoid any confusion, and also let the Public Relations Department communicate with those journalists."

Li Yifei said, "Alright, you take care of this."

Wu Shuwei agreed, and after everyone finished eating, she took care of the matters. The Dubai side didn’t mind whether Li Yifei could personally sign the contract; what they cared about was whether Li Yifei’s investment could be realized.

As for this investment, Li Yifei didn’t just take out $150 billion at once; it would be phased in, with the entire plan possibly extending over ten years, following the project’s progress.

Ten years, what will happen after ten years, Li Yifei didn’t know, but he knew one thing: he definitely would be better, and the Li family would be better.

At one o’clock, the signing ceremony began. Li Yifei sat in the auditorium while Wu Shuwei represented the Huaxia side and signed the contract with Dubai officials, securing the energy business deal.

After both parties exchanged the contract, Wu Shuwei finally breathed a sigh of relief. The project she was responsible for was finally completed, recovering a lot of losses. Although some project progress was delayed, it was all within an acceptable range.

The signing ceremony ended, and Li Yifei also breathed a sigh of relief. He had already informed Old Master Su about this, and some senior officials would know about this. This was the purpose Li Yifei worked hard for so many days to achieve.

Of course, in the national scope, this is a very small matter, but it proves that Li Yifei is useful to this country and has the country in his heart. This impression is what’s ultimately important.

Li Yifei swung his arms and walked out of the venue. After wandering downstairs for a while, he saw Wu Shuwei and others, accompanied by Dubai officials, walk out of the venue and down the stairs. The Dubai side invited Wu Shuwei to attend a thank-you dinner, which Wu Shuwei agreed to.

As the groups dispersed, Wu Shuwei saw Li Yifei and asked the driver to bring the car over. Opening the car door, Wu Shuwei got out instead and instructed the driver, "You go back first, Mr. Li and I have some things to discuss."

Li Yifei watched Wu Shuwei quietly, waiting for her to speak. Today, Wu Shuwei was wearing business attire, and her every move was very capable.

Seeing Wu Shuwei hesitating to speak, Li Yifei smiled and asked, "Anything you want to say?"

Wu Shuwei took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, saying, "I really want to say ’thank you,’ but it seems a bit insufficient, so I don’t know what to do."

"I think you should try saying it first," Li Yifei chuckled, "Maybe that’s exactly what I want to hear."

"Then... thank you." Wu Shuwei said very seriously, "Thank you for rescuing me several times, thank you for helping me save this project, and thank you for considering me a friend."

Li Yifei raised his hand to shield his forehead from the sunlight while looking at Wu Shuwei, suddenly asking very seriously, "I accept the first part, but the last part, when did we become friends?"

"Huh?" Wu Shuwei was slightly bewildered as she looked at Li Yifei and said, "Did you not think of me as a friend?"

"Not really, just... thinking of how Sarama initially treated us as cannon fodder..."

"Indeed a scheming wolf! A few words and you reveal your true nature." Wu Shuwei wasn’t angry, glaring at Li Yifei before continuing, "Speaking of which, people’s encounters are truly amazing. If it wasn’t for happening to go to Japan for a meeting and then directly coming to Dubai, maybe I would have been in trouble that day."

"Lucky you didn’t say that it’s because you’re a jinx that I got kidnapped!" Li Yifei joked.

Wu Shuwei shook her head and said, "No way I’d say that, because you’re my friend, one of the few."

"It’s an honor." Li Yifei smiled lightly.

"I don’t know how to tell you, but... it feels so amazing. Since knowing you, I seem to be interested in marriage again." Wu Shuwei suddenly said.

Li Yifei made an "oh" sound, turning his head to look at Wu Shuwei. He remembered that when he first met her, she had mentioned she was a non-marital person.

Li Yifei asked, "Why? Did I, a flirtatious big turnip, bring you some positive energy? Or have these events made you feel that two people are better, being alone is a bit not good?"