Morning sunlight spilled across the glass walls of the CEO's office, but Zhao Wei barely noticed. He was staring at the email on the monitor.
Subject: URGENT — Financial Irregularities in Port Contract.
Attached were scanned documents, red-lined figures, and a short message from the CFO:
> We need to address this immediately. Huang Min is already leaking it to the press.
Zhao Wei leaned back in the chair, heart thudding. He didn't know the details of the port contract — hell, he didn't even know what half these terms meant — but he knew enough to recognize a trap.
He'd been in this world for less than a week, and already someone was gunning for him.
---
The office door opened without a knock. Gao Fang stepped in, tablet in hand. "It's begun," he said flatly. "Huang Min contacted two major finance blogs this morning. They're hinting at embezzlement."
Zhao Wei's first instinct was pure honesty: I don't even know what this contract is about, let alone if it's clean. But honesty wasn't a luxury Li Shen could afford.
"Is it true?" Zhao Wei asked instead.
Gao Fang's lips tightened. "No. But the numbers are… complicated. The public won't see that."
Zhao Wei tapped the desk. "Then we fight it. Press release, lawyer statements, whatever it takes."
The assistant nodded, but his eyes were sharp. "You're… different these days. The old you would have fired three people before breakfast."
Zhao Wei forced a thin smile. "Maybe I'm trying something new."
---
By mid-morning, the situation had escalated. Online articles speculated about Shen Group's "suspicious accounting," each accompanied by a flattering headshot of Huang Min and an unflattering stock photo of Li Shen.
In the conference room, department heads argued over strategies. Zhao Wei mostly listened, filing away the names of who spoke up and who stayed silent. In his old job, he'd learned one thing about office politics: silence often meant waiting to see which way the wind blew.
Finally, Zhao Wei raised a hand. The room fell quiet.
"We're not going to panic," he said. "We'll release the clean parts of the contract to the public. And we'll do it before Huang Min can twist them."
There were murmurs — some approving, some skeptical. Zhang Bo, the CFO, frowned. "That's risky. It opens us to more questions."
"It shows we have nothing to hide," Zhao Wei countered.
For a moment, Zhang Bo studied him like he was a stranger. Then, slowly, he nodded.
---
By the time the meeting ended, Zhao Wei's head was pounding. He slipped away to the quieter executive lounge, hoping for five minutes of peace.
He'd just poured himself a glass of water when his phone buzzed. A message from the nanny.
> Xiao An refused lunch. Again.
Zhao Wei stared at the screen. He had a crisis in the office, but the thought of the boy sitting at that massive table, picking at cold food, made his chest ache.
He typed back:
> I'll be home early.
---
Back at the mansion, Xiao An was in the library, curled up in a corner with a picture book. The sunlight caught in his hair, making it look almost soft.
"You're skipping meals now?" Zhao Wei asked gently.
The boy shrugged without looking up.
Zhao Wei sat down on the floor beside him. "I used to skip lunch too. Thought I was saving time. All it did was make me tired and cranky."
For a moment, silence. Then Xiao An mumbled, "I'm not hungry."
Zhao Wei nodded slowly. "Okay. But maybe we can eat together later. You pick what we have."
Xiao An's eyes flicked toward him, just for a second, before he looked back at the book.
It wasn't a yes. But it wasn't a no.
---
That evening, Gao Fang arrived at the mansion, clearly unwilling to let the port scandal rest. He laid a folder on the coffee table.
"Huang Min is planning to call a shareholder meeting next week. If he sways enough votes, you could be removed as CEO."
Zhao Wei rubbed his temples. "And what happens to the company then?"
"Control shifts. Deals are renegotiated. People loyal to you are replaced."
Zhao Wei sat back, weighing his next words. In his old life, he'd been a small player, invisible to power struggles like this. Now, the moves he made could decide the future of a billion-yuan empire… and the stability of a boy who'd already lost too much.
He met Gao Fang's gaze. "Then we don't let him win."
The assistant studied him for a long moment. "You've changed, sir. But maybe… not for the worse."
---
That night, after Xiao An had gone to bed, Zhao Wei stood at the balcony, looking out over the city. The skyline glittered, sharp and untouchable — like the world he was now a part of.
Huang Min wanted him out. The boardroom wanted answers. The press wanted blood.
But somewhere upstairs, a small boy had started looking at him with something other than fear.
For the first time, Zhao Wei wondered if being Li Shen wasn't just about surviving.
Maybe it was about earning the right to stay.