The Substitute Bride

"Rachel, you know I've been swamped with work recently. I barely even have time for myself, I can't even relax properly! Do you know how low-spirited I am right now?" Lance decided to start off by playing nice. If he could get Rachel to listen to him, that would of course be best. But if she was too stubborn to listen, he would have to take a more forcible approach.

To Lance, the most important thing was his own interests. He didn't give a damn about others.

"Hah!" Rachel burst into laughter. "Oh Mr. Zhan, I didn't know you were such a joker. I know you call all the shots in the Silver Corporation. But since you're such a busy man and have no time, then maybe I shouldn't be here talking to you right now. If you feel that I'm wasting your time, just let me know and I will come back at a better time. In the meantime, I can't decide what to do with this video..." She let her voice trail off, smirking.

"What video?" Lance had managed to maintain a calm and composed facade the whole time, but Rachel's words had him on guard. He wondered if Rachel had managed to record anything from the time when they were together. 'That must be it, ' he thought to himself. 'What other video could she threaten me with?'

"No, no, you focus on your work first. I'll come back some other time when you're less busy. Then we'll discuss the contents of the video." Rachel gave him a charming, innocent smile and turned to leave.

Rachel actually hadn't planned on using the video to blackmail Lance. Unfortunately it didn't seem like she had a choice. If she didn't use the video, she might not get Lance's help. Without it, Tarsan Corporation would be doomed. It was a risk she didn't want to take.

She was glad that she had recorded the whole thing. Otherwise, she would be totally helpless in this situation. At least now she had a backup plan.

"Rachel, wait! I can make some time for you right now. Have a seat and we can talk about it," Lance said quickly. He got up and walked over to Rachel. "Yes, I am very busy with work, but regardless of how busy I am, it doesn't mean I'm willing to abandon you. Do you want to know what I have been working on recently?"

Rachel was highly aware of the effect of her earlier words on him. However, she was mature enough to drop the blackmail act. She didn't want Lance's help to be insincer

l pass some of Silver Corporation's grey transactions to you. That should be enough to keep Tarsan Corporation alive for a while.

Lance was really going all out to pacify Rachel.

"Couldn't you just hand over the grey transactions right now? Why do we have to wait for the other companies to reject us?" Rachel wasn't a total idiot. She knew enough about business to know exactly what she wanted. She also knew that she had to fight hard to achieve her plans.

"Signing the contracts are no problem at all, but like I said, these are grey transactions. These are all shady deals as it is, we can't risk exposing them. We need to work carefully and plan out every move. If these deals are revealed, not only will Silver Corporation face legal issues, Tarsan Corpotation will get dragged along as well. That's why we must be extra careful and wait for exactly the right time." Lance's serious expression and gentle persuasive tone gave Rachel second thoughts.

She couldn't tell if he was bluffing or not, but he had a very good point. She went over his words several times in her head and couldn't find anything suspicious. She had no choice but to trust him and take his word for it.

"Very well, Mr. Zhan. I will follow whatever you say. But please, try to make it fast. When a company goes too long without any business, not only will the directors cause a scene, I fear the employees will also realize something is not right. And well, once I lose my prestige in front of the employees, there's not much that can be done to restore it in the future."