C34

FLASHBACK

It had been two weeks since Li, Mei and Shishi had started living together in the penthouse apartment in Cinea.

They were getting ready to go shopping. Today they were going to buy a vehicle for themselves. They reached the showroom early. The salesperson showed them a few models before Mei finalized a red Range Rover.

Next, they decided to buy one for Yang Li. However, nothing caught his attention. He decided to buy a black jeep and modify it later.

After buying the cars they decided to have lunch at a new Saian restaurant that had recently been opened. It was owned by the eldest granddaughter of the Long family, Long Nui.

After having lunch, they left the restaurant. Li separated from them to complete his pending work.

First was the matter regarding his car.

He found a car modification shop in the capital and called them. He told them about his requirements. He paid them in advance and called the car dealer to deliver the car to the modification shop.

He wanted his car to be bulletproof even against high-caliber bullets. For that, he required special material. He contacted Bureau 107 to help him get the required material. He also asked the bureau to help him in getting a registration no. of his choice, to which the bureau agreed.

The next matter was to contact suitable professionals and start the construction of his workshop. He had found some people but they were not to his satisfaction.

Finally, he had to coordinate with his mother regarding the requirements of the research lab- the size of the lab, equipment that was necessary, and other auxiliary requirements.

He had already found a suitable location for the lab and her mother had agreed to it. The location was 50 miles away from Stephens college en route to his workshop.

He was going to meet with the owner of the land to finalize the deal. The land was owned by the Bing family of Zijin. The Bing family was in the electronics and semiconductor business. Its Chairman, Bing Jian was in the capital for some business. Yang Li had an appointment with him in the evening.

He met the chairman in the evening. There was another interested party but when Li quoted double the market price the other party bowed out. Li closed the sale before leaving the venue.

He sent a message to her mother with the details of the sale. The land deed was in her name. He also asked her to send the construction plans and equipment requirements as soon as possible.

Then he went back to his apartment.

When he reached home, Mei and Shishi had not yet returned. He received a message that they went shopping and would be late.

He started working on the construction plans for his workshop in the living room. He removed his mask and cap as no one was present. After some time, he fell asleep on the sofa.

After an hour Mei and Shishi returned home.

When the lift opened and they entered the living room they saw someone sleeping on the sofa. Of course, they were aware that it was Yang Li.

However, Shishi yelped in surprise, when she saw Li's face. This was the first time she was seeing his face in its full glory. She was mesmerized by his gorgeous face. She had never seen a man so beautiful in her life.

Hearing the commotion Li woke up and looked at them. He had removed his contacts after reaching home.

When Shishi looked at his amber eyes she was further bewitched by him. Mei had to shake her to break her trance.

Yang Li told Mei that the dinner was kept in the microwave. He picked up his laptop and went to his room.

Only after he left did Shishi come back to her senses.

She was flabbergasted and asked Mei, "Why is your brother so beautiful?? And why does he cover his face and those beautiful eyes all the time."

Mei replied, "Because he does not like to attract unnecessary attention. Without a disguise he will always be the centre of attention wherever he goes. And your reaction just now proves that point."

"Hence the mask, cap and the contacts."

Shishi paused for a second and said, "You are right. If he doesn't want to stand out, he will have to wear a mask for the rest of his life...teheeeee..."

"But why didn't you tell me he looked like that."

Yang Mei replied, "You never asked."

Shishi stared blankly at Mei and said, "You both really are siblings."

The next day when they sat down for breakfast Li was wearing his disguise.

Mei told him, "Don't wear these at home anymore. Shishi will get used to it."

On the side Shishi was nodding her head vigorously in agreement. On hearing Mei's words, he removed his disguise and continued with his breakfast.

Meanwhile, Shishi gulped when she saw his face again. She was trying very hard not to stare.

After breakfast Shishi and Mei went to study for their exam and Yang Li went to his room. He called his mother to finalize the details of the research laboratory. His mother sent him a detailed document listing all her requirements.

Now his main focus was to find a qualified team for the construction of his workshop and his mother's research facility.

He used his contacts and found that the Song family had a subunit which specialized in the construction of research facilities and other high-end infrastructure.

However, it was not a publicly known unit. They only took internal projects or those projects recommended by the Song family. He decided to contact the Song family for his mother's facility.

For his own workshop he decided to get assistance from the Bureau.

He sent his proposal and made an appointment with the CEO of Nexus International (NI). The following day when he reached NI there was a recruitment drive in progress. A lot of college students were present. NI was the dream company especially for engineers and managers. NI had a stellar reputation not only nationally but also internationally as well.

It had one of the highest remunerations, best working conditions and great opportunities for advancement. On top of that their current CEO was a very charismatic and capable person.

NI had its offices in the most expensive commercial park in Cinea. The area was known as Reddington Park. It was a 20-story building. The Chairman and the CEO's office were on the 20th floor.

When Li reached the reception, the girl at the desk pointed him to the direction of the line for the recruitment drive.

However, Yang Li walked towards the girl and said, "I already have an appointment with the CEO. Can you please direct me to his office?"

The surrounding people were stunned and started mocking him. They believed that he was scamming the girl into letting him meet the CEO.

Yang Li was wearing a white hoodie and brown baggy jeans. He was wearing white sneakers. Today he was wearing light brown contacts and a white mask. The girl was initially surprised but after looking at him carefully she became annoyed.

She again pointed him towards the line and said, "Sir, please get in the line and wait for you turn."

He said to her, "You should check your records first. If later you are fired because you caused NI to lose a huge business opportunity, don't complain."

When she saw his confidence, she became unsure and decided to check. After 5 minutes, Li was led to a private elevator. After he left, the girl sighed in relief. She was glad that she didn't act rashly.

The CEO, Song Xuan had just finished a virtual meeting with a foreign client. Before Li entered his office, he removed his mask but he was still wearing a disguise. When Li walked in the office, he noticed that everything was meticulously arranged. The entire office had greyish undertones. With the exception of the huge dark grey ebony table the rest of the office had minimalist interior design.

The office had huge tinted windows from which one could view the entire city's skyline. It had a better view that Li's apartment.

Song Xuan sat behind the ebony table. He didn't look his age. His face was full of vigour. His gaze was sharp and focussed.

Li walked up to him and sat down after he was offered a seat.