DASFAM_82

The car door opened.

Bai Xu saw Shang Yanxiao's figure and deliberately scooted over to make room, "Done for the day, Third Young Master?"

Shang Yanxiao slid into the back seat and jokingly returned the formal address, "Young Master Bai, where would you like to eat?"

Whenever they were out, the two of them had developed the habit of addressing each other by their titles, which in truth carried a small private amusement that outsiders were never meant to notice.

At the same time, Xie Qi took the front passenger seat and exchanged a greeting with Yan Cheng, who was acting as the driver.

Bai Xu said, "Yan Cheng, go ahead and drive. Head to that restaurant you just found."

Yan Cheng turned slightly to exchange a glance with Shang Yanxiao, then replied to Bai Xu, "Yes, Mr. Bai."

Shang Yanxiao discreetly studied Yan Cheng in the front seat, his gaze flickering for a moment.

Bai Xu didn't notice this quiet scrutiny from Shang Yanxiao, and was only focused on following up, "You said earlier you found out a bit more. What do you mean exactly?"

Shang Yanxiao had already guessed this would be the first thing his lover would care about, and had asked Xie Qi to prepare in advance, "Xie Qi."

Xie Qi turned slightly to explain, "Young Master Bai, Third Young Master noticed that Mr. Hassan kept pushing back the time to sign the contract again and again, and suspected there was something fishy going on, so he sent someone to look into it further."

"Aside from Sun Miaochun, who we already know about openly, Mr. Hassan has also met with one other person during this time."

Shang Yanxiao deliberately gave a hint, "Someone familiar."

"......"

Bai Xu caught on immediately, "Shang Qishun? He's set his sights on this project?"

Xie Qi nodded, "We haven't yet been able to find out when the two parties first made contact, but during the Spring Festival period, Mr. Hassan and Shang Qishun met privately on quite a few occasions."

Both meetings between the two parties took place at the most luxurious high-end restaurants in the capital, and the guests who came and went were all people of considerable standing, which made them relatively easy to trace.

The most recent meeting was also, at the same time, a meeting between Hassan and Sun Miaochun.

Bai Xu caught on, "So there's a Shang Qishun hiding behind that group dinner photo too? He's the cooperation partner standing behind Sun Miaochun?"

No wonder Shang Qishun hadn't been seen at the estate around the New Year, he had been quietly busy with this all along.

Shang Yanxiao analyzed it, "The Zhongdi project was originally something Bai Hui had connected Shang Qishun to in the first place. It was only later, after the two of them had a falling out, that Bai Hui deliberately gave this opportunity to us instead."

"From Shang Qishun's point of view, this project belonged to him to begin with, so he's certainly looking for a way to take it back."

Bai Xu fully grasped it now, "When I was talking with Sun Miaochun just now, she let slip that I had taken this project from someone else's hands. So that's what she meant."

Xie Qi chimed in, "As a foreigner, Mr. Hassan probably doesn't understand the situation between Shang Qishun and Miss Bai Hui. On top of that, our cooperation title changed from Shang Group to Zhaoye, which may have caused him some misunderstanding."

As for Shang Qishun's side, he was surely still operating under the name of the 'Shang Group'.

Although Yan Cheng was new to all this, he had some understanding of the Shang family situation. While driving carefully, he couldn't help but ask, "Why would Shang Qishun think to have Chairman Chun take the lead as the main party?"

Xie Qi was puzzled by this too, "That's right, knowing Eldest Young Master's temperament, how could he be willing to stay in the background behind someone else?"

"The circumstances are different now. It's only natural that his way of handling things has changed too," Bai Xu didn't dwell on this point and casually offered an example.

"Think back to when we were in Singapore. Didn't Chu Yate use Zhaoye's name to seize the project from Mr. Chu?"

If it wasn't convenient to act directly oneself, then naturally one would borrow someone else's name instead.

Shang Yanxiao agreed with this reasoning, but still added something, "Still, knowing Shang Qishun as I do, even if he's teamed up with someone else on the Zhongdi project, he would absolutely insist on being the one in control."

Bai Xu's brow furrowed slightly, "You mean that on the surface it looks like Sun Miaochun and the Sun Group are leading this, but in reality she's taking her cues from Shang Qishun?"

How was the latter using her company's qualifications for this? On what grounds?

Shang Yanxiao seemed to have already anticipated Bai Xu's doubts and smiled, "Isn't this exactly why we're so in sync?"

Bai Xu blinked, then said helplessly, "What riddle are you getting at now?"

"......"

Picking up on Shang Yanxiao's hinting look, Xie Qi handed over the materials he had only found that afternoon, "Young Master Bai, take a look at this."

Bai Xu immediately opened the file, and Shang Qishun explained the situation simultaneously, wait, let me correct that.

Shang Yanxiao explained the situation at the same time, "In the second half of last year, the Sun Group's key focus project was the bid for the construction of the Fa'ao Arena, but unfortunately it fell through at the last step."

This was also a major cross-border project.

Within a month and a half of signing the letter of intent, the French side had proposed to terminate the agreement, and chose to pay a certain amount in breach penalties rather than continue, handing the overall construction rights to a different competing party instead.

It was said that Sun Miaochun had poured everything into this cross-border project. After signing the letter of intent, she had already ordered three major domestic factories to begin mass-producing the foundational steel materials.

"The breach penalty the other side paid out wasn't nearly enough to cover the cost of the steel that had already left the factories."

The two sides had wrangled over this for a long time, and even ended up in a cross-border lawsuit.

"......"

Bai Xu understood, "You mean that in order to find a channel to quickly offload the steel that was produced but couldn't be sold, Sun Miaochun agreed to cooperate with Shang Qishun."

Shang Yanxiao raised an eyebrow slightly, "That's only a guess."

After all, he wasn't Sun Miaochun herself, and had no clear idea how the Sun Group intended to handle these hundreds of thousands of tons of surplus steel internally.

Xie Qi added, "I checked the official project materials on both sides. The steel requirements for the Fa'ao Arena and the Zhongdi railway match up, and the qualification reviews match as well."

Bai Xu let out a sigh, "Then it's likely pretty close to the mark."

Shang Yanxiao continued, "If the guess really is correct, then all it would take is to break apart the secret cooperation between Sun Miaochun and Shang Qishun, and get her to voluntarily withdraw from the Zhongdi project."

The overall investment in the Zhongdi railway project was enormous, and there were only a handful of companies in all of China that could even take it on.

Without the Sun Group's help, Shang Qishun would have a hard time finding a new company to serve as a partner front in the short term.

As for the Shang Group, which also held the necessary qualifications, the third branch had long since secured a firm hold over it.

Shang Yanxiao said, "If that happens, our chances will open up again."

Xie Qi thought it over, "But Third Young Master, if the reason Chairman Chun cooperated with Shang Qishun was to deal with hundreds of thousands of tons of surplus steel, most company projects couldn't absorb that much in one go, right? How would we even break this apart?"

Not to mention the sheer amount of money involved.

Bai Xu furrowed his brow in thought and didn't respond right away.

Sun Miaochun had already made it clear earlier, there was no possibility of cooperating with Zhaoye on the Zhongdi project.

Still, since she valued profit above all, if an equivalent benefit could be offered in exchange, it might be possible to get her to give up the Zhongdi project. But finding her a sales channel that large was no easy task.

Shang Yanxiao had already considered this angle, and for once seemed less than fully confident, "The Zhang family might have a project that needs it and could help, but the quantity really is too large."

Suddenly, a spark lit up in Bai Xu's eyes, "I've got it."

Shang Yanxiao looked over at him, "What?"

Bai Xu raised an eyebrow, with a hint of mischief, "Someone is sitting in the chairman's seat holding all that power, and has been living a little too comfortably lately. As his allies, shouldn't we find him something to do?"

Shang Yanxiao caught on and laughed despite himself, "Then he probably won't be getting much sleep tonight."

...

Bai Xu and Shang Yanxiao had dinner out, and only then returned to the estate with the antique porcelain they hadn't managed to give away.

It was still early, and the lights in the main house were still on.

Bai Xu's footsteps stopped at the door.

He looked at Shang Yanxiao beside him, then lowered his eyes and tapped the brocade box in the other's hand, "Why don't you go in and return it? I'm worried that if the Old Master sees the two of us together, he'll get 'angry' again."

Shang Yanxiao saw through his lover's little scheme, tucking the box under one arm while taking a firm hold of Bai Xu's hand with the other, "Young Master Bai, are you planning to let me take the scolding all by myself?"

Bai Xu flatly denied it, "No, not at all."

Shang Yanxiao held his hand even more firmly, "We took it out together, so naturally we'll bring it back together now. Don't even think about slipping away."

With that, he pulled Bai Xu along with him into the house.

The lights in the small living room were still on, with international financial news playing on the large electronic screen. The Old Master, wearing a pair of reading glasses, sat in his wheelchair watching intently.

Old Madam Shang sat by his side, knitting a scarf to pass the time.

The servant attending nearby was the first to notice Shang Yanxiao and Bai Xu, and quietly alerted the others, "Old Madam, Third Young Master and the others are here."

Old Madam Shang looked over and immediately broke into a gentle smile, "You're back? Have you eaten?"

Shang Yanxiao approached with Bai Xu in tow, "We already ate outside."

With some difficulty, Old Master Shang scanned them from the corner of his eye, and upon catching sight of the familiar brocade box in Shang Yanxiao's hand, let out a muffled grunt.

"......"

Shang Yanxiao hurried closer, "Grandfather, this afternoon A' Xu and I were in the wrong. The antique was only taken out for show, and I've brought it back to you completely intact. Take a look?"

Old Master Shang narrowed his eyes, his speech still somewhat slurred, "Dis, disgraceful."

Shang Yanxiao made no attempt to argue, while Bai Xu stood off to the side stifling a laugh.

Though Old Master Shang's mobility was limited, his eyes remained as sharp as ever, and he immediately caught Bai Xu enjoying the show without a care, "You..."

The right hand resting limply on his wheelchair moved slightly, his fingertip pointing toward Bai Xu.

— You, come here.

Bai Xu caught the hint from Old Master Shang and quickly put on an obedient act, stepping closer, "Old Master, I was in the wrong too. I won't dare do it again next time."

"......"

Won't dare again?

Who would believe such pretty words?

He had only ever heard of people bringing nice things home, never of people sneaking nice things back out!

Old Master Shang let out an irritated grunt and scolded Shang Yanxiao in a halting, stumbling manner, "Soft, soft eared!"

Seeing her husband's childish stubbornness, Old Madam Shang couldn't help but speak up for her grandson, "Alright now, didn't the young couple bring it back to you?"

"Look at how petty you're being, getting stingier the older you get."

"You barely even glance at these antiques sitting in your room most days, so what's the harm in the kids taking one out to use when they like it? You've been going on about this since the afternoon and you're still at it now, aren't you tired of talking?"

"......"

Old Master Shang opened his mouth, but couldn't manage to squeeze out a single word.

Watching Old Master Shang sit there looking thoroughly chastened, Bai Xu instantly dropped his obedient act and couldn't help bursting out laughing.

Old Master Shang's eyes snapped wide open again.

Worried his grandfather would feel he'd lost face and truly get angry, Shang Yanxiao quickly spoke up in a low voice to stop him, "A' Xu?"

Bai Xu wasn't the least bit afraid, and instead turned mischievously to Old Madam Shang, "Grandmother, look at him, just a moment ago he was calling Yanxiao soft eared*, but has he forgotten whose grandson Yanxiao actually is?"

*t/n; Soft eared (軟耳朵, ruǎn ěrduǒ) is a Chinese expression describing someone who is easily swayed or influenced by what others say to them, especially by a romantic partner, often implying they can be talked into things easily or are pushovers when it comes to people close to them.

Catching the teasing in this, Old Madam Shang glanced at her husband and started laughing along.

Shang Yanxiao let out a quiet sigh of relief and smiled as he changed the subject, "Grandmother, since when did you start knitting Grandfather a scarf?"

"The doctor said your grandfather's neck can't take any more cold, so he needs to keep it warm with a scarf every day. I had nothing better to do, so I knitted him one."

"Though it's been so many years since I've done this kind of thing, my hands are a bit out of practice. Back when we were starting out in business, I used to even knit your grandfather's sweaters myself."

Bai Xu dutifully chimed in with kind words, "Grandmother's so skilled with her hands, it must be the Old Master's good fortune and good eye."

Hearing this, Old Master Shang's brow finally relaxed completely, and he let out a satisfied sound from his throat.

...

Shang Yanxiao and Bai Xu sat with the elderly couple for a little while longer, and once it was nearly time for the old couple to rest, they finally left the main house and made their way slowly back to their own villa, hand in hand.

Bai Xu's phone buzzed, and he casually opened the message list.

Shang Yanxiao asked idly, "Who is it?"

"Yan Cheng, reporting on work," Bai Xu answered honestly, feeling rather satisfied with this newly appointed assistant.

"Yan Cheng's quite good. His work efficiency is excellent, and he's pretty responsible for someone so young."

"......"

A flicker passed through Shang Yanxiao's eyes, "Responsible? How can you tell that?"

Bai Xu said, "He told me his family member is sick, and that's why he came back to work in China, to make it easier to take care of them."

Shang Yanxiao responded with a flat, noncommittal sound, then deliberately added, "He's quite handsome too. Pretty refined-looking."

"......"

This time, it was Bai Xu's turn for his expression to shift.

He couldn't help but stop in his tracks and turn to look at Shang Yanxiao, "You two only met for the first time today, right? I didn't realize Third Young Master judged people by their looks."

Shang Yanxiao met his gaze, "Yan Cheng's only been on the job for two days, right? So how does Young Master Bai already know about his private family matters?"

The two of them stood there staring at each other for two seconds, then both burst out laughing in unspoken understanding.

Bai Xu caught on and leaned in teasingly, "Shang Yanxiao, how old are you, exactly? How can you still get jealous over something this small? So boring."

"And what about you?" Shang Yanxiao wrapped one arm around his waist and pulled him into his embrace, "Weren't you jealous just now too?"

Bai Xu let out a pleased little hum and refused to admit it, "I'm not that petty. Third Young Master, don't go getting jealous over nothing in the future~"

Shang Yanxiao saw right through him but didn't say so, and gave him a light kiss on the lips, "Alright, Young Master Bai."

Previous | TOC | Next