Ice and Fire

Chapter 815 A Meeting

Standing outside the building of the JC Group, Ivy Li looked up at the company's name on the top of

this skyscraper. Almost all young people dreamed of working in this company. Now that she had gotten

this chance, she decided to seize it.

She took a deep breath before she entered the building. She went directly to the front desk.

"Hello, I'm Ivy Li. I am new here," Ivy Li said in a mellow tone.

The front desk staff had already received instructions, so with a diplomatic smile, this young and

gorgeous girl responded politely, "Hello Miss Ivy. I will take you to CEO's office. Please follow me."

"What?" Ivy Li mumbled with mouth agape. She didn't expect to meet the CEO of the JC Group on her

first working day. However, after recovering from the shock, she replied, "Ummm... okay, thank you."

The receptionist took Ivy Li to the lift which directly led to the CEO's office. They entered the empty lift

and reached the destination without any delays.

"Hello. This is your new colleague, Ivy Li," the receptionist introduced Ivy to a woman outside the

CEO's office.

Polly Lin stood up and eyed Ivy Li up and down. Then she nodded at her. In a friendly voice, she said,

"Hello, Miss Ivy. I'm one of the CEO's assistants, Polly Lin. You can call me Polly. From today onward,

we will be working together. I'm glad to meet you."

"Hi, Polly. I'm glad to meet you, too," Ivy greeted back with a smile.

Polly Lin then turned to the receptionist and said, "You can go back to your work. I will handle things

here."

"Okay," the girl responded before taking her leave.

When the receptionist was out of sight, Polly Lin said to Ivy Li, "Wait for a minute. I'll just get inside and

inform our boss that you're here."

"Okay," Ivy Li replied.

She sat on the leather couch beside the door to wait.

After a few minutes, Polly Lin walked out of the CEO's office. She immediately told Ivy Li, "You can

come inside now. Boss is waiting for you."

"Well, thank you!" Ivy Li replied and then walked into the CEO's office.

The instant she got inside, she was astonished by how spacious the office was. She had never seen an

office as big as this one. While looking around, she spotted a figure sitting at the desk not far from her.

'He must be the CEO of the JC Group. I heard his name is Lawrence, ' she thought.

"Hello. My name is Ivy Li. I am your new..." Before she could finish her words, she was stunned when

Lawrence turned his swivel chair to face her. She was slack-jawed.

'What is he doing here? He is Lawrence Chu? Oh my god!' she screamed inwardly.

"Ivy Li," Lawrence spoke out her name. He studied the panic-stricken woman in front of him and

convinced himself that she looked ugly. However, his eyes betrayed her because the moment he

turned to face her, he hadn't taken his eyes off her.

"Yes, I am," Ivy Li replied in a low voice. Then after a short silence, she confusedly asked, "Why are

you here? How could you be the CEO of the JC Group?"

"Is there any problem with that?" Lawrence countered. His beautiful eyes surveyed Ivy Li who was still

standing in front of him with interest.

'What a silly woman! She asked such stupid questions, ' he thought in disdain.

"Please don't get me wrong. I was just surprised," Ivy Li expounded while shaking her head. She was

still confused. Even though she had met Lawrence, she still had no idea why he hired her.

Out of curiosity, she asked again, "Why did you employ me?"

"There is no reason," the aloof CEO replied coldly. He would never tell her his real reason.

Ivy Li didn't know what to say. She lived in an old alley where the buildings might crumble any moment.

Poor girls like her should be satisfied with a stable job and a high salary. After struggling for so many

years in this city, she decided that she better not figure out Lawrence's reason. Her situation didn't

allow her to think too much, she mulled.

Ivy Li took a deep breath before opening her mouth. "Now that I've come here, I will take the job to be

your assistant. What should I do first?" she asked.

"Go to Polly and she will tell you everything especially my likes and dislikes," Lawrence said casually.

He intended to train her first before using her.

"Okay," Ivy Li replied obediently. Then she turned around and walked towards the door.

Staring at Ivy Li's back, Lawrence continued, "My employees don't wear casual clothes here. You know

what to do, don't you?"

Ivy Li stopped instantly. She lowered her head and looked at her clothes. Suddenly she recalled that

Polly was wearing a formal dress today. 'I can't wear casual clothes like these anymore since I already

work here, ' she thought to herself.

Ivy Li turned around and fixed her eyes on Lawrence. "Well, I see. I know what to do, Mr. Lawrence,"

she replied with an earnest expression.

Ivy Li got out of the office and closed the door.

When Lawrence was left alone in his office again, he suddenly remembered the only person he hated

the most, Rebecca Lin. That woman lied to him.

He sat in his chair pensively. All of a sudden, his phone rang. He was brought back to reality by the

sound of it. He picked up his phone and saw an unfamiliar number on the screen.

After a short moment of hesitation, he decided to answer it. "Hello," he began.

"Hello, Lawrence. It's me, Greg Xiao," Greg greeted.

Lawrence was familiar with his name but this was the first time he heard his voice.

As Lawrence didn't respond, he went on, "Alice gave me your phone number."

Upon hearing Alice's name, he decided to speak up. "What's up?" he asked gruffly.

Greg was already prepared for Lawrence's indifferent response. So he directly said, "I want to have a

talk with you. When are you free?"

Assuming Greg's intentions, Lawrence mused for a while. Then he responded curtly, "Come to the bar

at 8:00 tonight."

"Okay," Greg agreed.

Lawrence ended the call immediately.

He rose from his seat and took his phone and keys in his one hand while his coat in the other hand. He

headed towards the door.

When he walked out of his office, he found Polly Lin still talking to Ivy Li. "Call off all the meetings for

today," he ordered, looking at Polly.

"Yes, Mr. Lawrence," Polly Lin answered submissively.

Ivy Li rested her gaze on Lawrence. He entered the lift and the door was closed. "Does Mr. Lawrence

always leave the company like this?" she asked Polly Lin with a bewildered look.

"I have seen the worst. Once he throws a tantrum, we will definitely have a hard time," Polly Lin

answered. Then she handed Ivy Li a pile of files and continued, "So we should do our job properly. As

you know, it's not easy to be paid well."

"I see," Ivy Li replied. She started reading the papers carefully to get familiar with her work.

Meanwhile, Lawrence had arrived at the parking lot. He got into the car and drove out of the building.

Half an hour later, Lawrence stopped his car outside Mike Yu's family residence.

The guards standing at the gate drooped their heads at the sight of Lawrence. "Hello, Mr. Lawrence,"

they greeted.

"Where is Mike?" Lawrence asked while stepping into the gate.

"He is inside," one of the guards replied.

Lawrence didn't say anything more and just walked into the house.

Mike was sitting on the sofa while reading a newspaper, cross-legged. As he heard the footsteps, he

raised his head. He was surprised to Lawrence coming in.

"What are you doing here?" Mike asked with widened eyes. Lawrence had never paid a visit to the Yu

family before.

"Is your Dad home now?" Lawrence asked, ignoring Mike's question. He looked around the house,

hoping to get a sight of Mike's father.

"No he isn't. It's impossible for him to stay home. Perhaps he is gambling somewhere," Mike replied.

Lawrence took the seat beside Mike. "Bring that man to the bar tonight," he demanded frankly.

"What?" Mike froze immediately. He set his newspaper aside and gazed at Lawrence, dumbfounded. Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

"But why? Didn't you say that you need to use him to prove Violet's innocence?" he inquired.

"Greg called me and I'll meet him at the bar tonight," and that was Lawrence's only answer.

Mike immediately understood Lawrence's intentions. 'That man is useful to Greg. Once the two meet,

they could sort things out, ' he mulled.

"I see," Mike nodded his head. He knew what to do next.

Lawrence's forehead creased into a frown. "I didn't expect that Greg would call me," he added

broodingly.

"He probably wants to confess something to you. You are Violet's brother, after all. He and Violet are

not divorced yet," Mike surmised.

"Greg is not a fool. He definitely knows what he is doing," Mike added. The Xiao family was a

respectable family in the city. Greg was a well-educated person. Even though he wasn't as witty as

Lawrence, he must have his own thoughts.

"Perhaps he comes to me for Violet," Lawrence blurted his thoughts.

"I think so, too. I can't think of any other reasons," Mike agreed. After ruminating for a moment, Mike

went on, "I will bring that man there tonight. Through him, we can prove that Violet is innocent. We can

roughly guess what Greg is going to say so it's up to you on how you are going to deal with him." He

was transfixed by Lawrence's profile who was in a deep thought. He was afraid that Lawrence might

scold or even beat Greg up. The two loved Violet deeply, after all. She meant everything to them. They

would risk their lives to protect her. Once they met, they might have a fight.

"All I want is for Violet to live a happy life," Lawrence voiced out his thought on this matter. Once Greg

treated Violet well and loved her wholeheartedly, he would never hurt him. But if on the contrary, he

wouldn't let Greg go.

"I think that Greg is a good husband," Mike defended Greg. "As what Alice and Tim said, Greg loves

Violet with all his heart. You and I both know that as well. It was all Cassie's fault. Greg is also

innocent."

"But the thing is, Violet suffered a lot," Lawrence snapped sharply. He couldn't ignore the fact that his

favorite sister had lost her child and had been bullied.

Mike didn't know how to retort. He couldn't deny that Lawrence's words made sense.

Time ticked by slowly. After a long hesitation, Mike broke the silence. He began, "I'll bring him to the

bar. I'm sure he can prove Violet's innocence. But..."

After a short pause, he advised, "Try to control your temper in front of Greg. It isn't all his fault. He must

have respect for you. After all, you're Violet's brother."

Lawrence remained silent.