Chapter 14
On the first day of work, there was no trace of the holiday atmosphere in the office. Everyone was meticulously reviewing their materials, preparing for the upcoming negotiation.
At ten o’clock in the morning, Song Qiming arrived at the company’s meeting room with his lawyer, right on time. He was still dressed casually, as if he had just come for a visit.
On the side of Yong Xing Group, both Shao brothers had other engagements and couldn’t attend. They probably knew that reaching an immediate agreement on the acquisition would be difficult, so they let Shao Guangjie take charge.
At the negotiation table, the two brothers skipped unnecessary pleasantries. Shao Guangjie quickly presented the latest offer from Yong Xing Group: “50 million US dollars.”
Upon hearing this figure, Song Qiming nodded, showing no emotion. “So, the deal is in US dollars now.”
“Because we are very sincere about this acquisition,” Shao Guangjie said, as if he had accomplished his mission, and he signaled to Lin Yushu beside him.
Lin Yushu knew it was his turn to speak and continued, “Mr. Song, you can also discuss your conditions.”
His tone was steady and emotionless, like a negotiating machine. Song Qiming probably didn’t expect him to speak up and gave him a puzzled glance before turning back to Shao Guangjie. “Let’s put aside the acquisition price for now. What are Yong Xing’s plans for S-power in the future?”
“We will establish the SP department, and Mr. Song will serve as the Chief Engineer,” Lin Yushu answered again.
In theory, such crucial questions shouldn’t be answered by Lin Yushu. After all, the boss hadn’t spoken, and there was no reason for an employee to interject.
But he answered so naturally that even an observant person could see that Shao Guangjie had given him the authority to negotiate.
“I disagree,” Song Qiming finally shifted his gaze to Lin Yushu. “I demand the establishment of an SP subsidiary, with me holding 70% of the shares.”
“Sev…” Shao Guangjie had already stopped talking, but upon hearing Song Qiming’s demand, he widened his eyes, looking incredulous.
Lin Yushu, on the other hand, remained calm and delivered three words to Song Qiming without changing his expression: “It’s not possible.”
His composure was like a shot of adrenaline, instantly relieving Shao Guangjie’s tension.
“Not possible?” Song Qiming raised an eyebrow, his tone carrying a hint of competition towards Lin Yushu. “There’s no room for discussion on this matter from my side. Are you sure you can say ‘not possible’ so quickly?”
“Not possible means not possible. There’s no room for discussion on this matter from Yong Xing’s side either,” Lin Yushu replied calmly. “Mr. Song, negotiations require sincerity from both sides. If the outcome of the acquisition is you holding 70% of the shares, then is this an acquisition or a merger?”
Song Qiming pursed his lips, a strong sense of displeasure flashing across his face.
Even when he was fooled by the previous lawyer, he had never been this unhappy.
“Why would Yong Xing want to merge with a modification factory?” Lin Yushu maintained the pace of the negotiation, each of his words sharp and logical. “If the cooperation ultimately proceeds in this manner, how will the outside world view Yong Xing’s management? They will lose confidence in Yong Xing, and that is not beneficial for the development of S-power. So, in this acquisition, I hope Mr. Song considers how to maximize the interests of both parties rather than just your personal interests.”
“Manager Lin,” Song Qiming’s tone carried a hint of gritted teeth. “Has my cousin even spoken yet? Do you think you’ve gone too far?”
He emphasized the last tWowords, as if reminding Lin Yushu of what he had said privately.
If they weren’t separated by the wide conference table, Lin Yushu even suspected that Song Qiming wanted to grab him by the collar.
“Manager Lin’s words are a bit straightforward,” Shao Guangjie interjected with a flushed face. It seemed like he was blaming Lin Yushu, but he was actually saying it for Song Qiming’s benefit. “We are family. How could Qiming only consider himself?”
“This acquisition can benefit both parties,” Lin Yushu continued. “Mr. Song can make some concessions, and Yong Xing can also make some concessions. A win-win situation is not difficult to achieve.”
In fact, with these words, Lin Yushu was also reminding Shao Guangjie not to always try to take advantage of Song Qiming.
However, Shao Guangjie clearly didn’t catch the hidden meaning in Lin Yushu’s words. He felt like Lin Yushu and he were on the same side, saying to Song Qiming, “Of course, who doesn’t want a win-win situation? It depends on whether your side can make some concessions.”
“Fine,” Song Qiming stood up and gave Lin Yushu a meaningful glance. “I’ll think about it and get back to you.”
The second round of negotiations ended quickly as well.
After Song Qiming left, Shao Guangjie could no longer hide his victorious posture and said to Lin Yushu, “Did you see Song Qiming’s expression? You actually made him back down. I truly have a newfound respect for you.”
Actually, Lin Yushu knew deep down that Song Qiming was not backing down, but rather choosing not to engage with him.
If it were Shao Guangjie saying those things to Song Qiming, there is no way Song Qiming would have backed down. He probably would have brought up the lawyer and left Shao Guangjie speechless.
But Song Qiming left just like that, as if he was genuinely reflecting on himself.
However, Lin Yushu believed that Song Qiming wasn’t really going to “consider” anything but was waiting to go home and confront Lin Yushu.
Sure enough, after Lin Yushu finished work and returned home, just as he stepped out of the shower, someone rang his doorbell.
He was wearing casual home attire, towel-drying his wet hair when he arrived at the entrance and opened the door. There stood Song Qiming, arms crossed over his chest, leaning against the door frame, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Lin Yushu and asked, “What do you mean? Are you so happy to argue with me?”
Lin Yushu couldn’t help but think that this person was quite proficient in Chinese, even knowing the meaning of “argue.”
But this matter couldn’t be explained in just a few simple sentences. He turned and walked towards the house, saying, “Come in and let’s talk.”
The sound of Song Qiming entering the house and closing the door came from behind. Lin Yushu walked towards the refrigerator and said, “What would you like to drink?”
“Anything is fine.” Song Qiming changed into slippers, surveying the furniture and decorations as he walked to the living room and sat down on the sofa.
Lin Yushu took two cans of tonic water from the refrigerator and returned to the living room, handing one to Song Qiming. Then, as usual, he crossed his legs and sat on the sofa.
Due to just having taken a shower, his feet were still slightly reddened. When Song Qiming’s gaze intentionally or unintentionally swept over Lin Yushu’s feet, he suddenly realized that it was inappropriate. He had invited Song Qiming in to discuss something, so why did he cross his legs?
He quickly adjusted his sitting posture and said, “Today–”
Before he could finish his sentence, Song Qiming’s phone suddenly rang, interrupting Lin Yushu.
Song Qiming glanced at the caller ID, said, “Wait a moment,” and then answered the call next to Lin Yushu, “Okay, it’s nothing… Alright, we’ll meet another day.”
Less than ten seconds later, the call ended. Lin Yushu brought the tonic water to his lips and casually asked, “A friend?”
In truth, Lin Yushu didn’t really care whether that person was Song Qiming’s friend or not. He just wanted to find out if the person he was talking to had any relevance to their negotiations. After all, negotiations had finally made some progress, and he didn’t want any unexpected circumstances to arise.
However, Song Qiming’s response surprised Lin Yushu, “No, it’s a date.”
“A date?” Lin Yushu paused with the drink at his lips.
“Just met a captain from Singapore Airlines,” Song Qiming put down his phone and said as if it was nothing unusual. “He asked for my contact information as soon as we got off the plane.”
Lin Yushu took a sip of the tonic water and said, “It seems like you’re never short of companions.”
At this point, Song Qiming’s Chinese suddenly became awkward, and he looked puzzled. “What do you mean by ‘never short of companions’?”
“I mean you have a lot of boyfriends,” Lin Yushu said, “One after another, no breaks.”
“You misunderstood. When did I have many boyfriends?” Song Qiming pondered and continued, “Or is it that in your eyes, every date is a boyfriend? It’s just dating, not a relationship. The purpose of dating is to see if you’re compatible and if you want to further engage. If both parties feel it’s right, then a formal relationship begins.”
Lin Yushu didn’t accept the Western way of thinking. In his eyes, there should at least be mutual attraction before entering the dating stage.
If you don’t know anything about each other, what kind of date is that? It’s clearly an arranged meeting.
But Lin Yushu couldn’t be bothered to discuss the difference between “dating” and “arranged meeting” with Song Qiming. He decided not to respond, and at that moment, Song Qiming looked at him with interest and asked, “Are you single?”
Lin Yushu naturally wouldn’t answer. He used a corner of the towel to wipe his wet hair at the back of his head and casually said, “It’s none of your business.”
“I heard you’re a workaholic,” Song Qiming said, “You probably don’t have time for dating.”
Lin Yushu frowned slightly, “You’re quite meddlesome.”
“And you’re gay too,” as if sensing Lin Yushu’s resistance to discussing love topics, Song Qiming casually exposed Lin Yushu’s little secret, “Did Shao Guangjie take you to Singapore because he wanted to pursue you?”
“Are you done?” Besides his former object of affection, Lin Yushu had never come out to anyone, and he didn’t appreciate Song Qiming’s blunt way of speaking. However, he knew this was just how Song Qiming was, so he had to bring the conversation back on track himself. “He took me to Singapore, just like how you took me to the mountains, to seek my advice and help in the negotiations.”
“It’s not the same,” Song Qiming immediately retorted.
“What’s different?” Lin Yushu asked.
“He wants to sleep with you.”
Lin Yushu was slightly taken aback. What was this talk about sleeping together? Was it an appropriate topic to discuss?
Interpreting Song Qiming’s words, Shao Guangjie wanted to sleep with Lin Yushu. Song Qiming, on the other hand, was different, which meant he didn’t want to sleep with Lin Yushu.
Listening to it that way, it seemed like he was just stating a fact.
Encountering a blind spot in his knowledge, Lin Yushu didn’t know how to respond. He could only glare at Song Qiming and say, “Are you going to talk about work or not?”
Song Qiming picked up the tonic water and hid his laughter behind the can. “Let’s talk. You tell me.”
It seemed like he had already forgotten that he had come to see Lin Yushu late at night to settle the score for today’s negotiations.
