The conference room on the twenty-second floor of Zhen Group was colder than usual that morning.
Not because of the air conditioning, but because everyone knew Liang Zhen was in a bad mood.
The long glass table was surrounded by senior managers and department heads, each one carefully reviewing the documents in front of them. No one dared to speak unless necessary.
At the head of the table sat Liang Zhen.
Tall, calm, and unreadable.
His dark eyes slowly moved across the room as the presentation continued.
"According to this quarter's report," one manager said nervously, "our marketing department suggests increasing investment in the new project."
Liang Zhen tapped his finger lightly against the table.
"And the risk analysis?" he asked.
The manager hesitated.
"We are still… working on it."
The room fell silent.
Liang Zhen didn't raise his voice, but the disappointment in his expression was obvious.
"You are suggesting millions in investment without proper analysis."
The manager swallowed.
"We will complete it soon, President Liang."
"Soon isn't good enough."
Mei Lin sat quietly beside Zhang Ming, taking notes as part of her job as the meeting secretary. She had only joined the company a few weeks ago, and this was her first time attending such an important meeting.
She tried to stay invisible.
Unfortunately, that plan didn't last long.
Across the table, Liu Xinyi suddenly spoke.
"President Liang," she said smoothly, "I believe the problem might be with the meeting preparation."
Several people looked at her.
"What do you mean?" Liang Zhen asked.
Liu Xinyi glanced briefly at Mei Lin before answering.
"Some important documents were missing this morning. The meeting materials weren't organized properly."
Mei Lin's pen stopped moving.
She looked up slowly.
The documents Liu Xinyi was talking about had been prepared by the secretarial team.
Which included her.
Zhang Ming frowned slightly.
"That's strange," he said. "I checked the files earlier."
Liu Xinyi gave a polite smile.
"Maybe someone forgot to include them."
Her eyes briefly shifted toward Mei Lin again.
The implication was clear.
A few managers started whispering quietly.
Mei Lin felt her face grow warm.
She knew she had organized everything carefully the night before.
"I…" she began, trying to explain.
But before she could finish, Liang Zhen suddenly spoke.
"Enough."
The room instantly became silent again.
Liang Zhen leaned back slightly in his chair.
His gaze moved from Liu Xinyi to Mei Lin.
Then back to Liu Xinyi.
"The meeting materials were approved by me before this meeting began," he said calmly.
Liu Xinyi's confident expression faltered slightly.
"If there was a problem," Liang Zhen continued, "I would have addressed it already."
No one spoke.
Liu Xinyi forced a small smile.
"I was only pointing out a possible issue."
Liang Zhen's voice remained calm, but colder now.
"And I'm pointing out that blaming others without proof is unprofessional."
Several managers quickly lowered their eyes to their papers.
Mei Lin stared at the table, surprised.
She hadn't expected him to defend her.
Especially not so directly.
Liu Xinyi nodded stiffly.
"Understood, President Liang."
Liang Zhen turned his attention back to the meeting.
"Now, let's return to the actual problem."
The discussion continued for another forty minutes.
When the meeting finally ended, the managers quickly left the room.
No one wanted to stay longer than necessary.
Mei Lin gathered her notes quietly.
She was about to leave when Liang Zhen suddenly spoke again.
"Mei Lin."
She stopped.
"Yes, President Liang?"
"Stay for a moment."
Zhang Ming raised his eyebrows but quickly slipped out of the room with a small grin.
Soon the large conference room was almost empty.
Liang Zhen looked at her calmly.
"You handled the situation well."
Mei Lin blinked in surprise.
"I didn't really do anything."
"You didn't argue."
"I didn't want to create more trouble."
Liang Zhen studied her for a moment.
"You didn't make the mistake she accused you of."
It wasn't a question.
Mei Lin shook her head.
"No."
"I know."
That answer surprised her again.
"You do?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't you say it earlier during the meeting?"
Liang Zhen stood up from his chair.
"Because it wasn't necessary."
He walked past her toward the door.
Mei Lin frowned slightly.
"I still appreciate it."
Liang Zhen paused for a moment.
Then he said something unexpected.
"No one in my company gets blamed unfairly."
Mei Lin watched him leave the room.
Her heart felt strangely lighter.
Across the hallway, Liu Xinyi stood near the elevators, watching everything with narrowed eyes.
She had seen Liang Zhen defending Mei Lin.
And she didn't like it.
Not one bit.