I met my whole family through Baidu Tieba.

The warm autumn sun streamed in through the window, bathing the small conference room in a soft, fuzzy sheen on the mahogany tabletop, creating a cozy atmosphere.

Bao Yiheng was quite satisfied with the warm atmosphere and even joked, "Old Dai, you even called Sister Zhang over, it's so tense. Actually, it's just two kids having a business dispute, we can mediate it."

Dai Qiu gave a forced smile, "Didn't you also call Lao Liang over?"

Sitting across from her, Liang Zien quickly waved her hand, "I had an appointment with Lao Bao, and I have a dinner meeting later. I happened to be free right now, so I came along. We'll have dinner together after we finish talking."

Zhang Wenxin smiled and said, "That's quite a coincidence. I came here to talk to Lao Dai about the joint efforts between the two institutions, and I just happened to run into you. Well then, Lao Liang, why don't we head out first, find a place to have some tea, and not disturb their business?"

Liang Zien cleared her throat and remained silent.

Bao Yiheng quickly interrupted, chuckled, and said directly, "Old Dai, I think we should mediate for the two kids. Actually, it's a small matter. Although your school's student Shen Kang set up a scheme, business is business. If Xiao Zheng didn't discover it, then Xiao Zheng was simply outmatched, and we'll accept the loss."

"So we'll refund the entire GG fee, and also pay a 30% penalty for breach of contract. Let's call it quits then. Let's not let such a small matter damage the long-standing friendship between our two schools."

Hearing what Bao Yiheng said, Shen Kang couldn't help but speak up: "Dean Bao, I need to correct a mistake in what you said. I didn't set up any schemes back then. Everything was done according to normal procedures. I bought a 'GG' slot on the Yangbei Forum. There were quite a few witnesses at the time. I didn't point a gun at Zheng's head and force him to sign that GG contract. Even the GG period was something Zheng himself brought up."

At this point, Shen Kang looked aggrieved: "I originally thought that signing a one-month contract would be enough, but Zheng took the initiative to suggest that the longer the contract, the cheaper the unit price would be, and the more cost-effective it would be. I was persuaded by Zheng, which is why I signed a long-term contract. There were quite a few witnesses who could testify to this at the time."

Bao Yiheng and Liang Zien were both stunned; clearly, they hadn't known about this news before.

Both of them looked at Zheng Changhao, who was sitting between them.

Zheng Changhao's face darkened, but he couldn't refute it because Shen Kang's words were all true, and there were indeed several people present at the time. He could only nod slightly.

"..."

Although he was somewhat speechless, it was a minor matter and wouldn't have much impact on their negotiations today, so Bao Yiheng didn't say anything.

Dai Qiu, however, spoke up right after Shen Kang: "Old Bao, let the kids handle their own affairs. Why did you have to drag us all into this? Let them deal with whatever they want to do, whether it's going to court or whatever."

"You want to manage this student and that student too? How can you possibly coordinate teaching effectively like this? After all, we're the vice deans; our job is to handle systemic issues..."

Dai Qiu was very happy with what she said, and she pointed and gestured at Bao Yiheng, feeling particularly pleased with herself.

Sitting opposite him, Liang Zien chuckled and said, "Old Dai, if Xiao Zheng really goes through legal procedures and sues, it might be bad for Xiao Shen."

"Xiao Shen's act of setting up his own campus forum and placing an entry point on a second-hand website has completely changed the basis of the contract. According to Article 26 of the Interpretation II of Several Issues Concerning the Application of the Contract Law, which came into effect this year, this constitutes a change of circumstances. Continuing to perform the contract would obviously be unfair to Xiao Zheng's Yangbei Forum."

Shen Kang couldn't understand it either, but he could tell that the other party had obviously come prepared.

Following Liang Zien, Zhang Wenxin's voice came from the side, "Change of circumstances? Lao Liang, you must have seen their GG contract. The contract doesn't restrict Xiao Shen from engaging in other businesses. Therefore, Xiao Shen starting the forum is a normal business expansion activity, not an 'unforeseeable material change of conduct.' The Supreme Court has precedents in this regard, stating that normal business risks do not fall under the scope of change of circumstances."

Liang Zien glanced at Zhang Wenxin, thinking that Sister Zhang had come prepared. Then, Liang Zien lowered her voice slightly, sounding very calm: "But Xiao Shen's actions directly caused the GG value of Yangbei Forum to plummet. We have examples of this. Xiao Zheng, tell us about it."

Zheng Changhao then spoke up: "Our Yangbei Forum already has three GG clients who have come to request a reduction in GG fees. I have their addresses and names here, and I can inquire and investigate at any time."

Liang Zi'en nodded and continued Zheng Changhao's words: "Yangbei Forum has become a tool for Xiao Shen to attract traffic, which violates the original intention of the contract. Xiao Shen concealed the plan to develop Beiming Community when signing the contract, which has actually violated the principle of good faith."

Ordinary people might be fooled by him. For example, Shen Kang and Dai Qiu had no idea about the specific mechanism or whether Liang Zien was telling the truth.

But Zhang Wenxin is sitting here.

Upon hearing Liang Zien's words, Zhang Wenxin retorted directly: "Conceal? The terms in the contract are crystal clear; there's no requirement to disclose future business plans."

"Furthermore, Xiao Zheng requested to terminate the contract but was only willing to refund the GG fee and a small amount of liquidated damages—how can this be considered negotiation?"

As she spoke, Zhang Wenxin slammed her right hand on the table, her eyes sharply fixed on the person opposite her. "This is clearly a unilateral breach of contract!"

Shen Kang glanced at her.

When the three of them were chatting just now, Dean Zhang was very amiable, like an ordinary housewife. But now that she's acting like this, she really has a certain air of authority and presence.

After the two began their exchange, Dai Qiu, Bao Yiheng, Shen Kang, and Zheng Changhao were unable to get a word in edgewise and simply sat quietly on the sidelines, observing the clash between these two legal professionals.

Faced with Zhang Wenxin's words, Liang Zien took a deep breath and adjusted her strategy: "According to Article 113 of the Contract Law, Xiao Shen's actions have caused a significant loss of profits and huge losses to Yangbei Forum—user attrition, GG opportunity costs... We are the victims. Now we are willing to refund the GG fees and proactively add reasonable liquidated damages as compensation, which is already a very sincere solution."

Zhang Wenxin scoffed, "Reasonable? Has Yangbei Forum calculated the specific losses? Produce the evidence first. Until then, you still need to fulfill your contractual obligations. Otherwise, you can unilaterally tear up the contract. Of course, then we'll be the ones suing you for breach of contract. Compared to you suing us, I think we have a much higher chance of winning. What do you think, Lao Liang?"

Liang Zi'en was exasperated. "Sister Zhang, you're just making excuses. Xiao Shen posted the entrance to the Beiming Community on his spare time online, which constitutes unfair competition against the Yangbei Forum. The contractual basis has collapsed. We're already being considerate by offering a refund and compensation. If we really have to go to court..."

Liang Zi'en paused for a moment before saying, "The Yangbei Forum will then present evidence of how Xiao Shen's actions substantially damaged the purpose of the contract. At that point, the court may not support the continued performance of the contract."

Zhang Wenxin laughed, "You should have said so earlier. See you in court then."

As she spoke, Zhang Wenxin stood up. "It seems like we've finished talking. Is there anything else? I remember, Lao Liang, didn't you just say you and Lao Bao had made plans to have dinner later?"

Seeing this, Liang Zien remained silent for a moment, then said helplessly, "Sister Zhang, how about this, let the two of them talk alone for a while? We won't get involved."

It's quite clear that if Zhang Wenxin gets involved in this matter, Zheng Changhao will never be able to reach a reconciliation with Shen Kang.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wenxin turned to look at Shen Kang.

Shen Kang didn't seem to mind and nodded to her, "No problem. It's been a long time since I've seen Zheng; I've been missing him quite a bit."

So, Bao Yiheng, Dai Qiu, Zhang Wenxin, and Liang Zien left first, leaving the meeting room to the two of them.

As she left, Dai Qiu glanced back, paying particular attention to the physique and muscle condition of Zheng Changhao and Shen Kang. A jumble of thoughts flashed through her mind: If these two couldn't reach an agreement and started fighting, could Shen Kang win?

As Liang Zi'en left, he glanced back at the two students in the conference room. However, his thoughts weren't as chaotic and unfocused as Dai Qiu's; instead, he was more concerned with whether Zheng Changhao could persuade Shen Kang.

After the group left, the meeting room fell silent.

Shen Kang smiled at Zheng Changhao across from him, "Long time no see, Zheng. You're still as handsome as ever."

Zheng Changhao forced a smile and didn't waste any more words. "Shen Kang, I believe everything comes with conditions. Name your conditions first. What exactly do you want for you to tear up this contract?"

The conversation between the two did not go well.

When the door finally opened, Zheng Changhao walked out of the conference room in silence, while Shen Kang remained seated there with a smile on his face, just as he had when he first entered the conference room.

Just by looking at this scene, Bao Yiheng knew that the two had not reached an agreement and that the negotiation had failed.

Without saying anything more, Yang Shang and his two companions left.

Dai Qiu watched their dejected figures slink away, feeling quite pleased. He was especially pleased when he thought about how he had been nagging Bao Yiheng in the corridor, and how Bao Yiheng had swallowed his pride for the sake of the negotiation.