Chapter 5

After two encounters that ended in social awkwardness, Lin Yushu began to reflect on whether the problem lay with him or Song Qiming.

He asked himself honestly, and based on this recent encounter, it was clear that Song Qiming had a bigger problem. Unlike other bosses from the Shao family, he didn’t speak recklessly in front of Lin Yushu.

Perhaps when they meet again at the negotiating table, Song Qiming wouldn’t be so unguarded.

The time for departure arrived quickly. Twenty warm-up tires were ready as the race cars lined up in the starting positions, waiting for the signal lights to illuminate.

Shao Guangjie finished his phone call and returned to the seat between the two. He leaned slightly towards Lin Yushu and whispered in his ear, “What were you two talking about just now?”

The surrounding noise was loud, and speaking at a normal volume was equivalent to whispering.

Lin Yushu didn’t want to deepen any misunderstandings. He initially wanted to create some distance, but when he glanced at Song Qiming, he noticed that Song Qiming’s gaze was fixed on the race track, completely uninterested in the situation here.

It was understandable because within a few seconds, all five red lights would extinguish simultaneously, accompanied by a deafening roar. At this moment, Lin Yushu, like Song Qiming, couldn’t help but stand up and watch the start of the race.

The struggle for position in the first corner was the most intense. Suddenly, a car slipped and collided with two other cars, causing an exclamation from the spectators.

The trackside personnel waved yellow flags, indicating that the safety car would soon be deployed to lead the pack at a reduced speed.

As a dozen cars gradually left the first corner, the area around the starting grid quieted down. Lin Yushu sat back in his seat and replied in the same volume, “He asked me who I am.”

Shao Guangjie nodded lightly and asked, “Did you tell him?”

Lin Yushu replied, “I said I work at Yong Xing.”

The young master seemed satisfied with this ambiguous response. It was clear that he didn’t want Lin Yushu and Song Qiming to engage in deeper conversation.

On the large screen opposite the grandstand, the safety car began leading the way, forcing the race cars to drive in a zigzag pattern on the track to maintain tire temperature.

“I noticed just now,” Shao Guangjie maintained his posture with his head tilted towards Lin Yushu, “He has his friend sitting next to him.”

Today, Song Qiming was not traveling alone. The person sitting to his left was the founder of the hedge fund whom Lin Yushu had met last night.

Shao Guangjie lowered his voice even further and asked, “Do you know that person?”

It was quite surprising that both brothers had a similar curiosity about the people around each other.

Lin Yushu tilted his head towards Shao Guangjie, slightly raised his chin, and leaned closer to Shao Guangjie’s ear, parting his lips slightly.

His response was already on the tip of his tongue, but at that moment, the safety car suddenly emerged from the final corner, drowning out his words.

During the deployment of the safety car, overtaking was not allowed, so the dozen or so race cars were tightly packed together, creating thunderous engine noise that made communication impossible among the spectators.

Everyone’s gaze followed the cars from left to right, including, of course, Song Qiming.

He naturally turned his head, and at that moment, Lin Yushu, who had been thinking about his response, quickly shifted his attention back to the track. As a result, the two locked eyes from across Shao Guangjie’s head.

Lin Yushu maintained his close proximity to Shao Guangjie as they conversed, but he didn’t know how Song Qiming would interpret the situation.

Just as he was about to give his prepared response, his words got stuck because Song Qiming was looking directly at him with a playful glint in his eyes, as if asking, “Are you two talking bad about me?”

Lin Yushu subtly twitched the corner of his mouth and replied with his gaze, “You’re overthinking.”

Although he executed the microexpression perfectly, Lin Yushu couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty because he and Shao Guangjie were indeed discussing Song Qiming.

“I don’t know him,” he unexpectedly changed his answer when he spoke again.

There were two reasons behind this decision. First, his guilt played a role, and secondly, he suddenly realized that if Shao Guangjie asked him to investigate the relationship between Song Qiming and the other person, he would be unnecessarily stirring up trouble. It was better to claim ignorance and save himself some trouble.

Shao Guangjie, oblivious to the eye contact that had occurred behind him, didn’t ask any further questions and idly started scrolling through his phone.

After two hours of racing, Ferrari ultimately took the first and second place in the Singapore leg of the race.

After the race, it was a tradition to walk around the track, and visitors could pick up some rubber worn off the tires as a souvenir. However, Shao Guangjie’s secretary had booked their flight for tonight, and they had to return to work at the company tomorrow, so they had to quickly wrap up this journey.

Lin Yushu didn’t mind much. He would rather go back earlier than wander around the track with Shao Guangjie. However, as he watched Song Qiming’s disappearing figure on the racetrack, he couldn’t help but feel a bit regretful. Perhaps in the future, when work became less demanding, he could enjoy races like Song Qiming.

The plane landed in Zhuhong City at around 4 am. Lin Yushu had a short nap at home and then, as usual, arrived at the company full of energy to start his workday.

He heard that Shao Guangjie missed the morning meeting at the company, wondering if he had taken half a day off directly. Lin Yushu could have taken leave as well, but he didn’t want to. He was recognized as the workaholic among the employees at the company, and unless it was a major event, he wouldn’t let go of his work.

In the afternoon, he followed the usual routine of visiting Shao Zhenbang to report on the progress of the negotiations. Shao Zhenbang didn’t have any special instructions, and Lin Yushu knew that it meant he had handled things well.

He returned to the company and worked until 6 pm, becoming the first person in the department to leave. It wasn’t because he was in a hurry to go home and rest, but because he had originally planned to go home for dinner on the weekend. However, due to accompanying Shao Guangjie to Singapore, they had to reschedule it for today.

Lin Yushu was already accustomed to the traffic congestion during the evening rush hour. After about an hour, he parked his Civic in the underground parking lot of an upscale residential area. The surrounding cars were all Mercedes S-Class or higher, making his Civic seem quite shabby.

However, Lin Yushu could afford a luxury car if he wanted to. He just liked his little “steel cannon” as it was.

When he entered the house, his sister-in-law had prepared a table full of dishes, and Lin Yize came out of the study, looking displeased as he stared at Lin Yushu and complained, “How are you busier than me?”

“Brother,” Lin Yushu’s tone had a hint of appeasement, “you know, the company has been busy lately.”

Before Lin Yize could continue nagging, Lin Yushu sat at the dining table and said to He Yanjun, “Sister-in-law, can we start? I’m starving.”

“Eat, eat, don’t mind your brother,” He Yanjun handed Lin Yushu a pair of chopsticks.

Lin Yushu was mostly raised by his older brother, Lin Yize, who was now forty-one, twelve years older than him. Both their parents had passed away early, so Lin Yushu only had Lin Yize as the elder in the family.

“Take your time eating, don’t choke,” Lin Yize sat down beside Lin Yushu, his expression not particularly pleasant, but his tone filled with concern.

After swallowing a mouthful of food, Lin Yushu said, “Sister-in-law, you’re such a great cook. Brother, you had a good eye back then.”

“Don’t flatter me,” Lin Yize picked up his chopsticks and asked, “What have you been busy with lately, acquisitions?”

“Well,” Lin Yushu sighed and put on a helpless expression, “If this acquisition fails, Yong Xing might collapse.”

“The Shao family is a big business, it’s not that exaggerated,” Lin Yize grumbled, “If it really collapses, you can come work at the family business. How many times have I said it? The company needs people, but you insist on staying at Yong Xing.”

Lin Yushu looked embarrassed. “My mentor asked me to go, and I can’t refuse.”

Lin Yize didn’t hold back. “I think you just find our family company too small.”

“I heard that the sales in the third quarter were about 300,000 vehicles?” Lin Yushu promptly changed the topic. “Our family company is doing well even without me.”

Lin Yushu’s father used to work in the battery industry, but Lin Yize took over the business and transformed it into a new energy vehicle company. With strong government support for new energy vehicle enterprises, Lin’s Swift Electric Cars had developed rapidly in recent years and become one of the fastest-growing automobile brands in terms of sales volume in the country, even surpassing Yong Xing.

However, Swift Electric Cars focused solely on electric vehicles and adopted a strategy of low profit margins and high sales volume. The price range was low, with most electric cars priced between one hundred thousand to two hundred thousand yuan, so they didn’t compete with Yong Xing.

Yong Xing also didn’t see Swift Electric Cars as a rival. Although Shao Guangjie had tried to develop electric vehicles, Yong Xing’s cars couldn’t possibly be priced as low as a hundred thousand yuan. Therefore, there was a gap between the high-end and low-end segments, and there was no real competition between the two.

At the beginning of this year, Swift Electric Cars successfully went public, transforming from a small workshop into a listed company.

From an outsider’s perspective, Lin Yushu was definitely a second-generation wealthy individual. He had been raised in luxury, attending international schools since childhood, and completing his undergraduate and graduate studies abroad.

It was precisely because of this background that he quickly made a name for himself in the financial industry and was adept at handling the affairs of the Shao family. He had the talent for it.

“Now that the company is listed, we need you even more,” Lin Yize said. “You’ve accumulated enough experience there, it’s about time you come back.”

Lin Yushu chewed his food and mumbled, “Hmm.”

“I heard that Yong Xing is bound to win this acquisition, right?” Lin Yize had had enough of nagging and started chatting casually with Lin Yushu. “I’ve noticed that Yong Xing’s stock price is slightly rising.”

Finally escaping the monotonous conversation, Lin Yushu spoke more freely. “It’s not a sure thing that we’ll win, but we must succeed. Otherwise, Yong Xing’s stock price will plummet again.”

After all, the news had already been released, and if the negotiations failed in the end, it would only make the shareholders lose trust in Yong Xing’s management.

“By the way,” Lin Yize added, “You can meet your idol now, right?”

Lin Yushu’s chopsticks paused. “What idol?”

“Song Qiming, of course,” Lin Yize said. “Aren’t you always mentioning him? Winning some award in a race, the horsepower of his modified engine…”

Lin Yushu put down his chopsticks and quickly interrupted Lin Yize. “He’s not an idol.”

“What idol? That’s admiration. Song Qiming is the automotive engineer you admire the most,” He Yanjun chimed in. “I remember you even said you wanted him to modify your car.”

“That’s not true,” Lin Yushu said, widening his eyes, emphasizing seriously, “I follow him because of work. Work is work, and hobbies are hobbies. I won’t mix work and hobbies together.”

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