"Gao Bo, go check the surveillance footage right now."
With Lu Chuanbai's words, Gao Bo finally came to his senses.
Gao Bo and the driver went to check the surveillance. To their dismay, they found that the surveillance on the top floor had been maliciously turned off last night, and nothing was captured.
Gao Bo watched all the surveillance footage from start to finish. The more he watched, the more dejected he became, for there was no sign of who had called the driver.
While Gao Bo was checking the surveillance, Lu Chuanbai tried to remedy the situation. He immediately contacted the airport, hoping to borrow a car to pick up Mr. Smith.
However, the customer service representative on the phone told Lu Chuanbai that Mr. Smith had been picked up as soon as he got off the plane.
Lu Chuanbai frowned tightly. "Who picked up Mr. Smith?"
"It was Lu Fenglin. He came in person."
Hearing Lu Fenglin's name from the customer service representative, a shadow of gloom and anger flashed across Lu Chuanbai's eyes.
Lu Fenglin really would stop at nothing to take revenge on him!
"Do you know where he is now?"
"I'm not sure about that..."
Learning that Mr. Smith had been picked up instead of being left waiting at the airport, Lu Chuanbai let out a sigh of relief. But at the same time, he grew even more disgusted with Lu Fenglin.
Lu Chuanbai immediately sent someone to track Lu Fenglin's whereabouts and found that he was taking Mr. Smith to the museum of the Bird - Human Statue.
The assistant who brought the information looked at Lu Chuanbai's expression carefully. "Mr. Lu, should I stop him now?"
"No need." Lu Chuanbai waved his hand, and his expression returned to its usual calm.
"He can't get in without me."
Lu Fenglin and Mr. Smith had arrived outside the museum, only to be stopped by the staff.
The staff member told Lu Fenglin, "You can't enter without a work permit. The museum is temporarily closed to the public."
Hearing this, Lu Fenglin was a bit reluctant and tried to push the staff member aside to force his way in.
"You're so unfair!"
"Lu Chuanbai is not an archaeologist either. Why did you arrange a visit for him without a staff ID?"
The staff member wore a polite and amiable smile. "Mr. Lu, we're not being unfair.
"Although Lu Chuanbai is not an archaeologist, he has the staff ID of Xu Qingqing, a member of the special action team, so he can enter the museum.
"Moreover, Mr. Lu Chuanbai postponed the hotel construction on Weishan Island to protect the ruins of the Bird - Human Statue. He's a hero in this regard.
"And you..."
At this point, the staff member gave a meaningful smile.
The fact that the second young master of the Lu family had gone tomb - raiding for money had spread throughout the archaeological circle.
Lu Fenglin naturally understood what the staff member meant. He felt annoyed but couldn't show it.
Lu Fenglin looked at Mr. Smith apologetically.
"Mr. Smith, I'm very sorry. There's a problem with today's itinerary, and it has to be postponed..."
Mr. Smith's originally expectant face instantly stiffened, and his face was full of displeasure.
Since Lu Chuanbai didn't come to pick him up in person this morning, he had felt ignored.
And now the scheduled itinerary was canceled due to insufficient preparations.
Mr. Smith felt that the Lu Group had no sincerity in doing business with him.
"Mr. Lu, you told me that I could see the bronze ware of the Bird - Human Statue, so I flew all the way to your country!"
Mr. Smith's fair skin turned red with anger. His high and straight hooked nose wrinkled, and his face was full of complaints.
"But now your arrangements are full of loopholes and are wasting my time!"
"I'm going back." Mr. Smith angrily turned around and left. He didn't forget to leave a harsh word. "I can't hand over the GH5 chip technology to you. You're so insincere!"
"Mr. Smith, please don't be angry!"
Lu Fenglin chased after him reluctantly.
He had thought that the itinerary was well - arranged, but he didn't expect such a big flaw.
If Mr. Smith left, he was afraid that he would be scolded to death by those shareholders!
Anticipating this, Lu Chuanbai immediately took Xu Qingqing's staff ID and drove to the Bird - Human Statue Museum.
Just before Mr. Smith was about to leave, he drove in front of their car, blocking their way.
Lu Chuanbai got out of the car after tidying his tie. There was a humble and polite smile on his face. He spoke fluent and standard English with a unique magnetic tone.
"Mr. Smith, I'm very sorry for being late."
Lu Chuanbai stepped forward and opened the passenger - side door where Mr. Smith was sitting.
Mr. Smith was not easy to be appeased. His blue - ocean - like pupils were sharp. He spread his hands angrily.
"Mr. Lu, you're late. I don't think there's any point in continuing our talk."
"Mr. Smith, I don't think this counts as being late." Lu Chuanbai propped his hand on the car door. There was no trace of guilt on his face, and he still looked as calm as ever.
Lu Chuanbai knew that if he admitted the mistake directly, Mr. Smith would take advantage of it.
"Although the driver suddenly fell ill and couldn't pick you up, I sent our company's manager to pick you up and bring you to the museum.
"The time difference is not that big."
Mr. Smith sneered and pointed at Lu Fenglin, whose face was gloomy.
"Mr. Lu, stop making excuses. Your company's manager said that you had forgotten about this.
"I can't cooperate with someone who has no sense of time!"
Lu Chuanbai pretended to be stupid. He turned his head and looked at Lu Fenglin in the driver's seat. There was a hint of threat in his tone.
"Did I ever say that to you?"
Although Lu Fenglin didn't buy Lu Chuanbai's act, his goal today was to win over Mr. Smith. If he messed this up, the shareholders probably wouldn't let him off easily.
Instead, it would make his path to power even more difficult.
Lu Fenglin had no choice but to swallow his anger and cooperate. He impatiently took all the blame on himself. "It was my poor expression that made Mr. Smith misunderstand."
Mr. Smith didn't expect Lu Fenglin to change his story so quickly. He was so angry that his face turned green.
"You..."
"Mr. Smith, there are significant differences between foreign languages and Chinese in translation. It's very likely that Lu Fenglin didn't express himself clearly and made you misunderstand."
Lu Chuanbai smiled and tried to smooth things over.
Although Lu Fenglin wanted to plot against him, he could still tell what was more important.
While Mr. Smith was still in a daze, Lu Chuanbai directly pulled him out of the car and dragged him into the museum.
Lu Chuanbai showed Xu Qingqing's staff ID to the staff member who had blocked their way before, allowing Mr. Smith to enter the museum smoothly.
Although the exterior of the museum was under construction, the bronze ware unearthed from the ruins had been placed in glass cases, and there were dedicated staff to clean it every day.
In the center of the museum stood a two - meter - tall and one - meter - wide bronze Bird - Human Statue. Its two huge wings were outstretched, exuding a sense of oppression.
Mr. Smith was extremely excited when he saw the long - awaited Bird - Human Statue. While browsing the relevant history, he also saw a photo of Xu Qingqing on the photo wall.