Zhuo Capital was a 15-storey building that stood in the middle of bustling Kowloon, Hong Kong, a prime location.
The drive from Lily’s residence to Zhuo Capital in Kowloon was about an hour’s journey. An hour’s journey was nothing to Lily but this time, with Renren in the car, Lily felt like time was crawling by. She was very unsettled, not knowing what to do or say to ease the awkwardness in the air. In the end, Lily could only remind herself over and over that she would call the security agency after they part ways at Zhuo Capital.
After another twenty minutes of grueling silence, the car finally pulled into the parking space for the VIP clients of Zhuo Capital. Without waiting for Renren, Lily quickly alighted from the car and made her way into the building. She could not let a handsome escort affect her state of mind. Putting on a serious face, she decided to stop thinking about Renren and focus on today’s business.
Lily roamed her eyes inside the lobby of the building. The spread of beige tiles, tall glass panes which allowed natural light into the lobby, together with the lights that were hanging elegantly from the ceiling, immediately caught her attention. The lobby was exquisite, it was vibrant, clean and comfortable. As expected of the top conglomerate in Hong Kong. Inwardly Lily was praising President Zhuo for his good sense of style as seen in the way his lobby was designed.
“Hi, I am Lily Qin of the Facci Group, I have an appointment with President Zhuo at nine this morning.” She smiled warmly at the receptionist.
“Please wait a moment,” the receptionist said as she typed away at her computer before picking up the phone to make a call. “Yes, President Qin is here. Alright.” After the call, the receptionist rose from her seat behind the reception counter and approached Lily. “President Qin, please wait here at the lobby for a few more minutes. Secretary Go, is currently on his way to receive you. He will bring you up to meet with President Zhuo. My name is Li Weiwei. Would you like some refreshments while you wait?” While addressing Lily, Li Weiwei was directing her to take a seat on the couch
“No, thank you,” Lily politely declined the offer. Li Weiwei smiled and gave her a small bow before going back to her seat behind the reception counter. Back at her seat, Li Weiwei glanced at Lily again, feeling a little respect for this woman who was not acting pretentiously.
Li Weiwei had been working as a receptionist in Zhuo Capital for five years and she knew that Secretary Go rarely came down to receive a guest personally. Since Secretary Go was personally receiving Miss Qin, it could only mean that she was a very important individual. Li Weiwei was still looking at Lily meaningfully before her gaze fell on a tall man who just strode inside the building.
It was already nine in the morning and most of the employees had already reported to work and were working at their desks. Hence, the lobby was almost deserted with the exception of a few security personnel who seemed to be ignoring the tall man in a suit.
How could these people ignore President Zhuo?
The receptionist was about to stand up to greet the president when the president shot a glare at her. Sweat immediately started trickling down her back, her face paled as she lowered her head. Li Weiwei was not a very smart person, but she was alert and observant. From the glare that she received from the president, it was obvious that he was forbidding her to greet him.
“Why are you here?” Li Weiwei almost fell from her seat when she heard Miss Qin’s question. Was… was she asking the president why he is here? The receptionist slowly lifted her head to take a peek. To her surprise, President Zhuo was standing behind Miss Qin like a statue.
“Security protocol.” When Li Weiwei heard President Zhuo’s answer, she couldn’t help but let out a small gasp, her mouth agape. Se…security protocol? Was she hearing things? ‘Maybe this… Maybe this person is not President Zhou!’ Li Weiwei could not help but stare at the man who looked exactly like the president. Could he be the president’s twin brother? Seeing as the man’s features looked exactly like the president’s, Li Weiwei felt goosebumps all over her body. ‘What in the world is going on?’
After another minute, Secretary Go arrived. He strode casually in front of Lily and gave her a polite smile. “President Qin, please follow me,” he said without looking at Zhuo Jingren. Secretary Go then led the two into the VIP elevator that would bring them directly to the president’s office.
Seeing that they were gone, Li Weiwei patted her chest and grabbed a bottle of water. She might actually be seeing things! Secretary Go did not even spare a glance at the man who looked a lot like President Zhuo earlier. Could she really have mistaken the man to be President Zhuo? There must be something wrong in her brains ah…
On the outside, Lily’s face was benevolent, a smile was plastered her face, making her look kind and approachable. However, on the inside, she was brimming with displeasure. Renren’s presence was a distraction and she really wanted to kick this man away. However, she could not do it in the presence of Secretary Go. Lily could only sigh inwardly before forcing herself to maintain a calm demeanor no matter what.
She needed to be calm and composed for her meeting with President Zhuo. After all, she was the one in need of something and she needed to leave a good impression.
‘Ding’
The door of the elevator opened leading them into another lobby where four men in suits were busily working behind their desks.
“Those are President Zhuo’s secretaries,” Secretary Go explained before leading them through a tinted glass door. He then opened the door and asked Lily and Zhuo Jingren to enter.
“No it’s okay… he can wait outside,” Lily said before walking inside the office. The office she just entered was almost as big as what she had in Europe. He also had floor to ceiling windows with a view of the harbor.
Towards the left of the office, there was a circular table with ten swivel leather chairs placed around the table and towards the right was a couch. In the center was a rectangular oak table that looked a little too big for just one person to work on. The table look empty apart from a laptop computer and a file of documents.
“I told you to stay outside… why are you still following me? This is a private meeting, you can’t be here.” Lily stated impatiently when she noticed that Renren had followed her inside.
To her surprise, Renren did not answer her. Instead he opened a button on his gray two button blazer and walked towards Lily. “This is indeed a private meeting.” He gave her smile, his eyes sparkling with confidence. “Good Morning President Qin, I am Zhuo Jingren of the Zhuo Capital. Please feel free to call me Renren.”
….
Editor: Swaning
