Disobedience To Control chapter 33
Cake in the Fridge
February 14th, Valentine’s Day.
Song Siheng arrived at the company early. Such moments were rare throughout the year.
When Li Ke opened the office door, Song Siheng was already seated behind the desk, with a cup of coffee ready.
Li Ke didn’t ask much, just helped him tidy up the documents on the desk.
“The operations team is already checking for traces of internal files, and I’ve also arranged for someone to keep an eye on EM’s movements. Don’t worry,” Li Ke said.
Song Siheng mechanically nodded without speaking, his mind seemingly occupied with other matters.
The incident had already happened, and what needed to be done had to be done.
In the morning, Song Siheng held an online meeting with executives from each department to discuss the upcoming arrangements. Just because one part had gone wrong didn’t mean the whole company had to come to a standstill. If this medical technology company in North City wasn’t cooperating, they had to find other ways to get ahead.
After the meeting, Song Siheng handed the notebook to Li Ke. “I’ll think about the next steps. We can’t just sit and wait.”
“Do you have any ideas?” Li Ke asked.
“Keep an eye on EM’s movements, especially their loopholes in intellectual property. Make sure Legal and the external law firm are prepared. If he’s not righteous, don’t blame me for being unjust.” Li Ke immediately understood what Song Siheng meant.
“Understood.”
The two returned to the office. Song Siheng leaned against the desk, twirling a black ballpoint pen in his hand. Five seconds later, the pen flew out of his fingers and hit the acrylic pen holder on the opposite side of the desk accurately.
“Get Jin Shuming to Jiangcheng,” Song Siheng suddenly spoke.
“Jin Shuming? When?” Li Ke asked.
“Now!”
“Okay.” Li Ke turned around and immediately opened his phone.
On the other hand, Song Siheng shook his coat on the back of the chair and put it on, heading out.
Before the call was even connected, Li Ke saw him leaving and hurriedly asked, “Where are you going? Shall I drive you?”
“No need. I’m going to see someone.” Song Siheng said and pushed the door to leave on his own.
Song Siheng drove his black sports car, speeding through the streets of Jiangcheng.
Valentine’s Day coincided with a workday, but the streets were still lively. Couples walked hand in hand, and the LED screens in the commercial center projected giant red hearts, like a fire burning through the entire CBD. Young people selling roses crowded the sidewalks near traffic lights.
When the red light turned green, Song Siheng stepped on the accelerator, leaving all of this far behind.
Half an hour later, the car stopped in an outdoor parking lot in Binjiang New City. Song Siheng put on his coat again and got out of the car. In the opposite Binjiang Garden Hotel, someone was waiting for him in a private room.
“You didn’t have enough fun last night? Why are you here again today?”
Song Siheng pushed open the door, and Young Master Lin was already lounging on the sofa, giving him a frivolous smile.
“No, I had a great time. You were very considerate.” Song Siheng took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack by the door, complimenting casually.
Two waiters saw the arrival and brought over a bottle of fine wine, one pouring while the other waited beside.
“I’m driving today, so I won’t drink.” Song Siheng waved his hand when he saw this.
“Alright, what’s the matter? You’ve specially invited me for a private meeting.” Young Master Lin pointed to the sofa opposite, indicating him to sit down.
“I want to start a new company,” Song Siheng got straight to the point. “I don’t know if you’re interested in joining.”
“Huh, I don’t understand your business. Why me?” Young Master Lin picked up the wine on hand and took a sip.
Young Master Lin was a social butterfly who flitted from one opportunity to another, but he lacked substance, even his business degree was obtained through family connections.
“You don’t need to manage it yourself; I’ll take care of the operation. If you’re interested, you can invest. You’ll be a major shareholder, and you’ll get the lion’s share of the annual dividend.”
“So, you just want my money?” Young Master Lin might not have read many books, but he could still sense the implication.
“Yes.” Song Siheng didn’t beat around the bush. “We’ll split profits seventy-thirty; you invest seventy percent, and I invest thirty percent. You’ll have a veto in major decisions, but I’ll handle the day-to-day operations.”
“What project?” Young Master Lin looked up at him.
“Smart wearable devices,” Song Siheng said calmly.
“Song Siheng, are you out of your mind?” Young Master Lin put down the Bordeaux glass in his hand. “Aren’t you already working on this in ThoughtWorks? What’s the point of starting another company?”
Song Siheng didn’t explain but changed the subject. “True. But for you, Young Master Lin, it’s all benefits and no drawbacks.”
Young Master Lin glanced at him. “Go on, tell me.”
“Investing in ThoughtWorks, you’ll only get some dividends at most. But if you partner with me to create a brand new brand, you’ll be the founder, and this brand will belong to you in the future. I know the Lin family has been wanting to enter the technology field for the past two years. If you rely solely on investments, it may be too passive. If this substantial breakthrough is achieved by you, it’s uncertain who the Lin family’s industries will ultimately fall into the hands of.”
Song Siheng spoke calmly, but the more Young Master Lin listened, the brighter his eyes became.
The eldest and second eldest of the Lin family were both working in their family’s real estate group. Although the third eldest, Young Master Lin, seemed carefree on the surface, with a wild style and a detached attitude, he wasn’t immune to ambition. Being born from the same parents, no one didn’t hope to grab a big piece of the pie.
“But why are you doing this?” he still had doubts.
“Of course, to lend you a hand,” Song Siheng smiled.
“Tsk, do you have any truth in you?” Young Master Lin pretended to be angry and tapped the coffee table beside him.
Song Siheng looked up at him, paused for a few seconds, then spoke, “I want to drive Xu Lang out of Jiangcheng.”
Young Master Lin subconsciously touched the back of his hand. “Damn, you’re ruthless. Don’t you two know each other? What’s the big feud?”
“He stole my upcoming project plan and took away the core supplier I had negotiated with. At this point, there’s no need for me to hide anything,” Song Siheng revealed everything to the other side.
“I can’t believe he’s that kind of person,” Young Master Lin thought for a moment, then realized something was amiss, “Wait, but if we cooperate, he’ll soon get the news. Aren’t you afraid he’ll target you again? EM is behind him, and their influence is not limited to Jiangcheng.”
“So I have another request.” Song Siheng turned to the side, took out his laptop from his bag, and opened a page, pushing it in front of Young Master Lin.
“What request?”
“I won’t appear on the shareholder list, and I’ll arrange for a proxy to handle it. He’ll be responsible for all the projects on the surface. The operations behind the scenes will still be under my control. Young Master Lin, all you have to do is wait for the money.”
With that, Song Siheng stood up and pointed through the glass to another office building next to Binjiang Garden, “By then, there will be another building on the South River with the Lin surname.”
Young Master Lin stared at the computer screen for a while, clenched his hands tightly, then slowly loosened them, and exhaled a breath, shifting his gaze to Song Siheng’s face. “So, how much money do you need?”
Song Siheng extended his fingers. “Seventy million.”
Half an hour later, the two walked out of Binjiang Garden. Finally, there was some sunlight in the afternoon, and the outdoor front yard of Binjiang Garden was just facing the South River.
Instead of going directly to the outdoor parking lot to get the car, Song Siheng walked to the railing in the front yard and looked towards the South River.
Spring had arrived, and the South River was starting to rise. The water covered the mudflats, appearing closer due to the zoom lens effect. However, the water quality of the South River was not as good as before due to industrial development. It was visible to the naked eye how turbid the river water had become.
Young Master Lin stood beside Song Siheng, tilting his head and asking, “Aren’t you leaving?”
Song Siheng shook his head and turned back to look at him, “I’ll stay here alone for a while.”
Young Master Lin chuckled and patted him on the back, “Take it easy, it’s windy by the river!”
After saying that, Young Master Lin left first.
Song Siheng’s palm pressed against the cold alloy railing, and the river breeze brought a slight fishy smell. Whether it was because of the strong wind or some other reason, Song Siheng’s eyes began to feel sore.
He pressed the base of his palm against his eye sockets, took a deep breath, and then turned away from this place.
His original plan was to go straight back to the apartment in the city, but there were still many of his documents left in the suburban villa. After some thought, he turned the steering wheel and headed east.
As evening approached, the sky was filled with rich hues of sunset, and pink-purple clouds hung in front of the car window. When Song Siheng arrived at the suburban villa, the last rays of sunlight had just fallen below the horizon.
He entered the password and opened the door, and the interior was cold and quiet. The living room still maintained the appearance from last night, with the table flag on the dining table yet to be removed. There were candles on both sides, but even their wicks hadn’t been lit.
Song Siheng took a glance and went straight upstairs. He pushed open the study door, and the window facing north was not covered by curtains. The rising moon hung above the window, round and bright.
Suddenly, an image flashed through his mind. That day, Yang Xiaobei was also under such a moon, holding his waist and frivolously saying that his body was more suitable for swimming.
Song Siheng shook his head, driving that image out of his mind completely. He turned around and began to tidy up the documents on the desk, putting each one into transparent folders.
It wasn’t until everything on the desk was organized that he noticed the vase on the corner of the desk.
There was a bouquet of blossoming flowers in the vase. However, unlike before, this bouquet was obviously not the wildflowers that grew everywhere like daisies and evening primroses; it was a newly bought bouquet of red roses.
Song Siheng’s breath paused for two or three seconds, then he pulled out all the roses and threw them into the trash can at his feet with a clatter.
The branches of the roses soaked in water for a long time, and the flower heads plunged into the trash can with the water flowing back onto the clean floor. Song Siheng watched the slowly flowing water mark for a moment before looking away.
He picked up the folders and went downstairs. Originally, he was going to leave directly, but inexplicably, he returned to the dining room, took two more steps inside, and walked into the northernmost kitchen.
With a bang, he opened the refrigerator door. The light inside the refrigerator instantly came on, and on the top layer of the cold fresh layer, there was a square box placed neatly.
Song Siheng took out the box and placed it on the dining table. The box had obviously been carefully wrapped; the snow-white paper box was tied with two wine-red ribbons and had a beautiful bow tied on it.
Song Siheng untied the bow, opened the box, and inside lay a six-inch small cake.
The cake was simple in design, with a round base and a circle of beautiful flowers piped with off-white cream around it. In the center were three equally sized strawberries, dripping with bright red color.
Next to the strawberries was a paper flag, with a handwritten line of small words.
“Happy birthday, Siheng ge.”