章節 229: The Challenge (4)
"What is it, father?" Lin Kang had a feeling this was the real reason behind them, all those build-up was just for this. Lin Kang, caught in the indignation on his wife's behalf thought his father was being unfair towards Xiu Ling. It was him who volunteered to do all those things for his wife so his father should come after him and not his innocent wife.
Xiu Ling though was thankful that Elder Lin came prepared with a challenge. If she was able to complete this challenge then, she would have been able to prove herself to Elder Lin.
Xiu Ling did not stop to ask herself why she was so adamant to prove that she was good enough to carry the Lin surname. The motivation and drive behind her action was something that needed closer examination.
Was it due to simple offense? Perhaps Xiu Ling took offense that people thought she was not good enough for the role that was given to her? Therefore, the resulting desire was just an urge to prove people wrong, or was there a deeper meaning as to why Xiu Ling felt like she needed to prove herself worthy of being called a Mrs. Lin.
In any case, Xiu Ling did not have the time to ponder over that because Elder Lin was ready to announce the challenge that he had in mind. "She will have a week to start up a business and earn 10,000 dollars in economic profit, if she is successful, then she can stay but if she is not, I'm not that unreasonable to ask that she leaves the family but at the very least, she needs to be removed from her post at this company."
The people in the room gasped and Lin Kang was quick to counter, "But father, Xiu Ling is not even a business person and in today's economy, 10,000 in a week is nearly impossible..."
Elder Lin raised his hand to stop Lin Kang. "But she married into a family based in commerce and finance, an acumen in business is expected if she is going to represent the family. Furthermore, you did not let me finish.
"I will provide her with a startup capital of 10,000 as well. She can use them for all her expenses like decoration, interior design, purchase of materials, hiring staff and so on. The company will provide her with the real estate for the business as well.
"The one week limitation is for when the business is in operation only. She could have as much time as she needs to set up the business. The period of one week will start on the first day the business is open to the public.
"You said 10,000 in a week is impossible but you manage to earn that much every 30 minutes, or do you have that little faith in Xiu Ling?"
"I..." Lin Kang was stumped. He did not expect his father to turn the question around on him. Honestly, he was indeed worried about Xiu Ling. After all, his wife had not run a business before so it was understandable that he saw this as his father's way of pushing his wife out from the company.
After he arranged his thought, Lin Kang was about to say something but Elder Lin stopped him by saying, "At the end of the day, this does not directly concern you." Then he turned away from Lin Kang to face his daughter-in-law. "Well, Xiu Ling, what do you think? Are you up for the challenge?"
There was a determination on Xiu Ling's face when she answered, "Yes, father. I shall take on the challenge."
The board of directors was surprised. They did not expect Xiu Ling to accept the challenge extended by Elder Lin. Elder Lin had already provided her a way to excuse herself from the company with grace and humility by denying the challenge but she seemed to misunderstand Elder Lin's intention. However, if she was intent on banging her head against the wall and making a show of herself, they were not going to stop her. If anything, they would sit back and enjoy the show.
No one was more surprised than Lin Kang. It was one thing if his father was acting crazy, he did not understand why his wife was acting crazy with him as well. They could have settled it in private but now that Xiu Ling had announced her desire to accept the challenge before other people, it would have harmed her reputation severely if she decide to bow out of it later.
Only Elder Lin nodded imperceptibly. When he met Xiu Ling's gaze, the latter could see approval in them.
"Good," Elder Lin nodded. Then, he turned back to Lin Kang to warn him in a stern voice, "Lin Kang, I know what you're thinking. You could have siphon some money into Xiu Ling's business account and achieve the target easily but if I catch you doing something like that, the challenge will be canceled and Xiu Ling will be considered as losing the challenge."
Based on the pained expression on Lin Kang's face, it seemed like Elder Lin had guessed his thought. In a much softer voice, Elder Lin added, "But you can help her in any other non-monetary way, I will not take issue with that."
Elder Lin then stood up from the chair and announced, "Now that all the groundwork has been laid, it is time for us to leave." He then ushered the whole board of directors out of the room. "I'm sure they have plenty of things to discuss, let's not disturb them any longer."
The door closed and Lin Kang crumbled back down into his seat. He shook his head and after some time, he turned to ask Xiu Ling, "Well, do you have the confidence to do this? If you don't, we can still back out of it, we'll just go talk to father later at home."
Xiu Ling just looked at him and smiled, "I will figure a way out, don't worry."
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