Blazing Sun~Chapter 18

 

Chapter 18

At that moment, Lin Yusen and I were on our way back to my dorm after dinner. Lin Yusen had just finished a phone call.

I had mentioned Rongrong and Sheng Xingjie's relationship to Lin Yusen on my last trip back to Suzhou, but he hadn't reacted much then. I don't know why he brought it up today.

"Yeah. Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

Lin Yusen pondered for a moment and pulled the car over to the side of the road. My heart skipped a beat; a bad feeling washed over me. "What's wrong?"

Lin Yusen asked me, "Xiguang, how much do you know about your classmate?"

"Not much. You told me about her. I lived at my uncle's house for most of university."

"Her father used to be the second-in-command at a large state-owned enterprise in Nanjing. About seven or eight years ago, he was reported for economic crimes and dismissed from his public office. He's since had several jobs in private companies."

I was stunned. "How do you know?"

"I asked after your classmate's wedding. Someone told me, of course. Back then, I had high aspirations, didn't I?" He said, slightly embarrassed. "People around Sheng Xingjie would do some basic research, especially since she's practically crossed my mind."

"So?" I asked, puzzled. "What are you trying to say? Will Rongrong's family background affect her relationship with Sheng Xingjie? Will Uncle Sheng and Aunt Qian object?"

That's a possibility.

However, Lin Yusen shook his head: "I have absolutely no good feelings towards your classmate, but I must inform you. Xingxiu mentioned on the phone just now that Sheng Xingjie has been going on blind dates since the Spring Festival, and it seems he's recently found someone and is pursuing her—not your classmate."

"What?" I was utterly shocked, unable to speak coherently. "You...you mean him, two-timing?"

"He probably hasn't won her over yet. A few days ago, he invited someone back to his old house for dinner, ostensibly as a friend, but..." He left the meaning unsaid.

It took me a while to process this, and I murmured, "How dare he? It's shameless and outrageous."

"Indeed, incredibly audacious, beyond my expectations. Actually, when I was at Shengyuan, he was relatively well-behaved and methodical in his actions," Lin Yusen pondered. "Perhaps he'd suppressed his true nature for too long, and once he felt his position was secure, he acted recklessly."

"Is his position secure?"

Lin Yusen chuckled. "A secure position is never given by others."

He lightly stroked the steering wheel. "How do you plan to handle this?"

"Of course, I'll tell Rongrong immediately. We can't delay," I answered without hesitation. "I'll call her when I get back."

Lin Yusen affirmed, "That's how it should be."

"But Xiguang, I must remind you, from what I've observed, your classmate doesn't have any goodwill towards you. If she doesn't want others to tell her the truth, how will you handle it?"

I was taken aback: "How could that be? Although she's annoying, she's always been very proud."

Lin Yusen raised an eyebrow: "So sure? You don't know her."

This time, I thought about it carefully before answering, "I'm sure. She wouldn't tolerate something like this. And no matter what kind of person she is, I have to tell her if I find out, otherwise it'll feel like I'm Sheng Xingjie's accomplice."

Lin Yusen's eyes lit up with a smile, and he reached out to pat my head. "Sorry, I was being petty."

"No, you told me right away without a second thought."

"Then are you going to call her now?"

"Let's go back," I said after considering for a moment.

Back in the dorm, I realized a problem: I didn't have Rongrong's phone number.

They all changed their numbers when they went to Shanghai. I had everyone else's new numbers, but I didn't have Rongrong's. This… should I ask Xiaofeng for it in the middle of the night?

Would Xiaofeng be surprised by what I was thinking?

Actually, I considered asking through a third party on the way. Rongrong and I aren't close. If I told her directly, she'd definitely feel embarrassed, and might even think I was laughing at her.

But asking any classmate about the Sheng family would be pointless; Rongrong would inevitably guess I was the source. Besides, the fewer people who know, the less likely it is to spread rumors. Even though Sheng Xingjie is shameless, in today's society, girls always suffer in the end when it comes to public opinion.

I started thinking about how to naturally ask Xiaofeng for her contact information, but I couldn't think of a suitable reason.

Or other ways to contact her?

Ah…

My eyes suddenly lit up. How stupid of me! Why didn't I think of email!

And email can be anonymous! As long as I register a new account, Rongrong won't know it's me. That way, there won't be any awkwardness between us later.

Luckily, I don't have her number.

I patted my forehead, thankfully turned on my computer, quickly registered a new email address, and sent a simple message to Rongrong's email address.

"Sheng Xingjie is pursuing another girl recently. Don't be fooled by him."

Thank goodness the dorm recently got internet!

Next came the waiting for a reply. The next day at work, I checked the email three times, worried she might not be using it anymore.

Thankfully, on the morning of the third day, I secretly logged onto the external network again and found the email had been read.

Even faster than I expected! I read the "read" message several times before finally feeling relieved.

With the matter resolved, I hummed a song softly and got back to work with peace of mind. Now I'm incredibly fast at bookkeeping, no longer the slowpoke I used to be. I quickly processed most of the documents, but then I stopped when I saw a large payment for auxiliary materials.

I frowned at the amount. Strange. Last year, when someone sent me to do a factory inventory check, I remembered this auxiliary material being plentiful. Why such a large purchase?

I immediately asked Xiao Su in the factory office for the inventory records for this material for the past two years. Looking at the records, my memory was indeed correct; there was still a lot of stock in the warehouse. So, I called the purchasing department again. Their reply was that they'd been purchasing at this pace for the past few years, and the company had a long-term purchase contract with the other party.

I found this unbelievable; it completely defied the logic of production and operations. I really wanted to see how the original contract was signed, but there was no copy attached to the payment slip, so I had to resort to back channels.

I messaged Lin Yusen: "Have you and General Manager Dai returned from your meeting?"

They were both summoned to a meeting by the industrial park this morning.

"It's not over yet. Could you get two lunches for me and Xiao Dai?"

The industrial park calls people to a meeting and doesn't even provide lunch... Wuxi is much more polite then!

So, at noon, I went to the cafeteria, got three lunches, and went to Lin Yusen's office to wait for them.

Everyone in the main office had gone to eat and rest. I went into Lin Yusen's office, first pulling the blinds closed.

Actually, after we really got together, I rarely went to his office anymore; after all, I had to be mindful of appearances. But it was lunchtime, so no one saw me. I waited for over half an hour; the food was practically cold before Lin Yusen and Xiao Dai finally pushed the door open and came in.

Xiao Dai immediately shouted the exact same thing I said: "The park is holding meetings and not providing meals? They're so cost-cutting!"

I chuckled inwardly and stood up. "I brought you some food, come and eat."

Lin Yusen came over and handed Xiao Dai a boxed lunch. "President Dai, go back and eat."

Xiao Dai slowly took the lunch, his eyes filled with heartbreak. "I can accept cold food, but can't we at least share a little bit of human warmth?"

President Lin said calmly, "We need to hold a shareholders' meeting."

Xiao Dai: "..."

He gave a thumbs-up and ran off.

Me: "..."

The shareholders' meeting was a success.

I quickly recounted my discovery while eating. Lin Yusen listened for a few moments, then got up, went to the computer, did a few things, and showed me the contract.

I sat in the general manager's office chair, eating my lunchbox while glancing at the contract. One look was enough to make me speechless and lose my appetite. "This is outrageous! The global financial crisis was already brewing when this contract was signed, and raw material prices were clearly trending downwards. How could they lock in six years' worth of prices and supply?"

Lin Yusen then explained, "This company belongs to my aunt's brother."

Me: "..."

Fine, a nepotism case.

I sat back down with my lunchbox, pondering how to handle the situation.

Sheng Yuan and my father aren't stupid. Even if they were taking care of relatives, they wouldn't go this far. There must be some other exchange of benefits involved. They got the benefits, and now we have to bear the consequences.

But ignoring the written contract is impossible. I can only look for loopholes in the contract or problems with the product quality to have room for negotiation. I also need to find out the prices other suppliers are offering.

"Did you know this before?" I asked Lin Yusen.

"I inquired about the situation. There was no need to deal with it before, and there's no rush now," Lin Yusen said simply.

I nodded in understanding. Previously, he was just a deputy general manager seconded to the company, so he didn't need to offend anyone. Now, having just taken over the gifted shares, wanting to terminate the previous contract is obviously inappropriate.

In the afternoon, I still had to dutifully enter payment slips. However, before pressing the confirm button, I remembered to check the final payment date and realized there was still more than a week to go, so I decisively canceled the entry and tossed the slip aside.

I'll do the accounting on the third-to-last day, spend the remaining day on the section chief's approval, and the next day on the cashier's payment…

Being in finance requires meticulous calculation!

After get off work, I headed to the parking lot, intending to wait for Lin Yusen in my car. On the way, I received a call from Aunt Huang, telling me that all the furniture was finally finished, including all the pots, pans, bedding, and other items purchased according to my requirements, and asking when I would like to visit Shanghai.

There's no time like the present, so during dinner that evening, I told Lin Yusen the good news and invited him to my new house for a small housewarming party on Saturday.

Lin Yusen's expression was indescribable. "Is this what you call a surprise?"

"Isn't it? So close to you."

Lin Yusen succinctly characterized the situation: "This can only be called running away from home, but not going far."

Then he fell silent, eating as if deep in thought.

I couldn't help but ask, "What are you thinking about?"

"Oh, I'm thinking," he said thoughtfully, "My apartment in Shanghai has been under renovation for a long time, is it about to leak?"