The embossed agenda lay open on the polished mahogany desk, its pages smelling faintly of expensive paper and printer toner. Lu Manman traced the line item with a manicured finger: "Executive Restructuring and Oversight Committee Review." Her brow furrowed, a familiar tension tightening between her eyes. The quiet of the grand study, usually a balm after the day's awkward, block-building session with Li Ming, now felt charged with an old, unwelcome energy. She remembered the hesitant touch of Li Ming's small hand on hers, the unexpected warmth that had spread through her. A flicker of something soft, something she hadn't known how to name, had bloomed in her chest. But the sterile, bold font of the agenda dragged her back, pulling her away from that fragile new connection. This was Mrs. Lu's world, the corporate one, the world she had to navigate to maintain the façade, to secure her position for her children’s sake. The Li family conglomerate was a sprawling empire, and her late husband's shares, though held in trust, still demanded her presence on the board. Executive restructuring. It was a classic move, a thinly veiled attempt to strip power, to redistribute influence. She knew the playbook. She had written parts of it herself in another life, in another high-rise office building, where every meeting was a battle for territory. Who would dare? The answer was almost immediately clear. Jiang Mei. Her sister-in-law, a woman whose smile never quite reached her eyes, whose ambition was as sharp and relentless as a razor. Jiang Mei had always resented Mrs. Lu’s position, her wealth, her very existence. The opportunity to capitalize on Mrs. Lu's notorious reputation would be too tempting for her to resist. Lu Manman leaned back in the plush leather chair. The scent of aged wood and old money filled the air. She felt the old gears in her mind begin to grind, the corporate predator stirring from its brief, maternal slumber. This wasn't about feelings or connection; this was about strategy, about power. She picked up her tablet, its screen glowing with financial reports. The numbers danced across the display, a complex ballet of assets and liabilities. The 'Super Rich Mother System' had given her unlimited funds, a tool she'd barely considered for anything beyond her children's immediate needs. Now, she saw a different application, a way to play the game on a level no one else could match. Jiang Mei was about to learn that Mrs. Lu, for all her perceived flaws, was far from a pushover. The board meeting was tomorrow, and Lu Manman had a feeling it was going to be anything but routine. Her fingers tapped on the screen, already formulating a defensive strategy, which she knew would quickly become an offensive one. --- The secure line crackled faintly as Lu Manman held her sleek, black smartphone to her ear. "I need information," she said, her voice low and crisp, betraying none of the domestic uncertainty she felt around her children. "Everything you can find on Jiang Mei's recent financial activities. Particularly anything involving Li Holdings' stock, or any significant personal investments. I need it by morning." The voice on the other end, a disembodied, deferential murmur, assured her it would be done. Lu Manman didn't need to specify payment; the sheer weight of her name, the implicit backing of the Li family fortune, was enough. But she knew the System could, and would, materialize any necessary funds if a direct transaction was required for speed or discretion. She paced the length of her private study, the Persian rug muffling her footsteps. This was familiar territory, the thrill of the hunt, the cold calculations of power. It felt like shedding an ill-fitting skin, stepping back into a role she understood intimately. The clumsy attempts at building a block tower with Li Ming, the hesitant smiles, the quiet struggles to understand Li Wei's fear – those were foreign, challenging. This, however, was home. She thought of Jiang Mei, her saccharine smiles and thinly veiled barbs at family dinners. Jiang Mei had always underestimated her, viewing Mrs. Lu as nothing more than a wealthy figurehead, a woman lost in her own self-indulgence. It was a useful misconception, one Lu Manman was happy to let persist, until now. The System, usually so verbose, remained silent. It didn't offer guidance on corporate warfare, only on nurturing her children. But the unlimited funds, a core function of its existence, were a potent weapon in any arena. Lu Manman didn't need emotional expenditure to buy information, only intent. And her intent was clear: protect what was hers, protect her children’s future, even if it meant battling the wolves in tailored suits. Her fingers flew across the keyboard of her laptop, pulling up company bylaws, shareholder agreements, and recent market trends. She cross-referenced names, dates, and figures, searching for any vulnerability, any legal loophole, any strategic advantage. The intricate web of corporate finance, once a source of burnout, now felt like a challenging puzzle, a game she was uniquely equipped to win. She imagined the surprise on Jiang Mei's face tomorrow, the dawning realization that her target was not the vacant socialite she believed, but a formidable opponent. The thought brought a grim satisfaction, a stark reminder of the person she used to be, before her children and this strange system had complicated everything. --- The boardroom, usually a bastion of hushed decorum, crackled with barely contained tension. The long, polished table reflected the cool, grey light filtering through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Lu Manman sat at the head, her posture erect, her expression impassive. Across from her, Jiang Mei, impeccably dressed in a charcoal suit, launched her attack. "Gentlemen, Mrs. Lu," Jiang Mei began, her voice smooth but edged with steel, "we are here today to discuss the future of Li Holdings. A future that, I regret to say, appears increasingly precarious under the current… stewardship." She paused, letting her gaze sweep over the other board members, a mix of old money and ambitious new blood. Their faces were carefully neutral, but Lu Manman could sense their shifting loyalties, their opportunism. "For too long," Jiang Mei continued, her tone escalating, "Mrs. Lu has demonstrated a fundamental negligence in her duties. Her erratic behavior, her widely publicized… personal issues, and her complete detachment from the day-to-day operations of this company have become a liability. A grave liability." A murmur went through the room. Lu Manman felt the heat of their judgments, the echoes of Mrs. Lu's poisoned reputation. She gripped the cool glass of water before her, her knuckles white. She was not the Mrs. Lu they imagined. But she couldn't explain that, couldn't reveal the transmigration, the system, the fight for her children's lives. "Her children," Jiang Mei pressed on, her voice dripping with false concern, "have suffered demonstrably. Their academic records, their public appearances – or lack thereof – are a testament to an unstable home environment. How can we trust someone who so flagrantly neglects her own family to guide a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate?" Lu Manman’s jaw tightened. The words stung, not for herself, but because she knew, in the original plot, they were true. Mrs. Lu *had* neglected her children. The accusations, though aimed at her, felt like a judgment on the past, a past she was desperately trying to rewrite. Jiang Mei was using the children as a weapon, twisting their vulnerability into a corporate cudgel. It was a low blow, and it ignited a cold fury within Lu Manman. "I propose, therefore," Jiang Mei concluded, her voice ringing with feigned righteousness, "a vote of no confidence. And, further, that the board implement an executive restructuring, placing control of Mrs. Lu's shares and her board seat under a provisional trust, to be managed by a more… suitable, and dedicated, family member." Her eyes met Lu Manman's, a triumphant glint shining in their depths. The implication was clear: Jiang Mei intended to seize control, to carve out her own empire from the ruins of Mrs. Lu's perceived incompetence. Lu Manman simply met her gaze, a flicker of something unreadable in her own eyes. Let Jiang Mei play her hand. Lu Manman was ready to play hers. --- The boardroom fell silent, the weight of Jiang Mei's proposal hanging heavy in the air. A few board members shifted uneasily, glancing between the two women. Lu Manman took a slow, deliberate sip of her water, the ice clinking softly against the glass. The corporate predator had fully awakened. "An interesting proposition, Jiang Mei," Lu Manman finally said, her voice calm and level, cutting through the tension like a finely honed blade. Her words held no emotion, only a cool, professional authority. "However, I believe there are a few details you may have overlooked in your assessment of my… 'stewardship.'" She picked up a slim folder from the table, its contents prepared just hours ago based on the intelligence she'd gathered. "Specifically," she continued, opening the folder, "your recent attempts to acquire a controlling interest in Li Holdings' primary competitor, Horizon Tech, through a series of shell companies and offshore accounts." Jiang Mei's face, usually so composed, paled visibly. A ripple of whispers spread among the board members. Horizon Tech was a critical rival, and any attempt by a Li family member to secretly invest in it was a gross conflict of interest, if not outright corporate espionage. "Furthermore," Lu Manman pressed on, her eyes fixed on Jiang Mei's rapidly draining color, "it appears you leveraged a significant portion of your personal assets, and indeed, some unsecured loans, to facilitate this rather ambitious, and ultimately ill-advised, venture. An venture that, I might add, has failed spectacularly, leaving you in a rather precarious financial position." She paused, letting the implications sink in. The information had been expensive, requiring quick, discreet payments to various informants and data brokers, but the System’s funds had made it effortless. The board members now openly exchanged shocked glances. Jiang Mei's grandstanding had just been turned against her, revealing her own vulnerability and questionable ethics. "In fact," Lu Manman concluded, her voice dropping slightly, imbued with an icy finality, "my legal team discovered a clause in the original Li Holdings charter. A clause that states any board member found to be actively working against the financial interests of the conglomerate, or engaging in significant undisclosed conflicts of interest, forfeits their board seat and any voting rights tied to family shares. Immediately." She pushed the folder across the table, not towards Jiang Mei, but towards Old Mr. Chen, the oldest and most respected board member. His eyes widened as he scanned the documents, his face a mask of disbelief turning to grim understanding. Jiang Mei gasped, a choked, strangled sound. Her scheme, her carefully laid ambush, had not only backfired, but had utterly consumed her. Lu Manman had not just neutralized her; she had dismantled her. --- The air in the boardroom was thick with unspoken shock. Old Mr. Chen, having reviewed the incriminating documents, cleared his throat, his gaze heavy as he looked at Jiang Mei. "I'm afraid, Jiang Mei," he said, his voice laced with regret, "Mrs. Lu's findings are… indisputable. This is a clear breach of the corporate charter. Your position here is no longer tenable." Jiang Mei’s composure shattered. Her face, a moment ago pale, now flushed a furious crimson. She pushed back from the table so violently her chair scraped across the polished floor. Her carefully constructed facade of concern and authority crumbled, revealing the raw, ugly resentment beneath. "You!" she hissed, pointing a trembling finger at Lu Manman. "You set me up! You've always been a viper!" Lu Manman merely watched her, her expression unyielding. She didn't flinch, didn't react to the venom. She had seen this kind of desperation before, in other boardrooms, in other corporate battles. It was the predictable unraveling of a defeated opponent. "The evidence speaks for itself, Jiang Mei," Lu Manman said, her voice calm, almost detached. "Your actions were against the best interests of Li Holdings. My actions were in defense of it. There is a distinction." Jiang Mei glared, her eyes burning with hatred. She knew she was cornered, exposed, and utterly defeated. The other board members, once hesitant, now seemed to lean subtly towards Lu Manman, their expressions acknowledging her decisive victory. She had not only survived the ambush, but had turned it into a weapon against her attacker. With a choked cry of rage and humiliation, Jiang Mei snatched her handbag from the table. She stumbled slightly as she turned, her movements jerky and ungraceful. Her high heels clicked sharply on the marble floor as she stormed towards the double doors, not looking back. The meeting was effectively over, her agenda utterly derailed. Lu Manman turned her attention back to the remaining board members, a faint, almost imperceptible shift in her demeanor. She projected an aura of quiet authority, the kind that came from decisive action and undeniable power. She briefly outlined a new set of oversight measures, subtly consolidating her own influence, ensuring that no such challenge could be mounted again without facing severe repercussions. As Jiang Mei stormed out, her face a mask of furious defeat, a small, knowing smile touched Lu Manman's lips, a stark contrast to the vulnerable mother she was trying to be at home.

Chapter 8: The Boardroom's Viper