Su He hadn't expected her adoptive father to be so resolute.
He was willing to give up company shares just so her adoptive mother could live comfortably.
This kind of decisiveness was truly moving.
Her partner, Mr. Zhao, initially thought he was joking. Was it really worth throwing a tantrum over inviting a few uninvited guests without prior consultation?
But Su Dazhi wasn't one to just talk; he was serious.
The next day, he informed the other company shareholders about the equity transfer.
Mr. Zhao became anxious.
A large part of the company's success was due to Su Dazhi's financial support, as well as his marital ties with the Lu Group. If business partners knew he was leaving the company, they would surely stop approaching him for future projects.
"Dazhi, we've been partners for so long, why are you suddenly withdrawing your investment?"
"I didn't know they had a falling out with you; can't we find some common ground?"
"Old Su, we started this company together, you can't just quit like that. How about this, I'll give you another five percent of the shares, what do you say?"
Facing Mr. Zhao's persistence, Su Dazhi remained firm. "It's precisely because we're old friends that I'm offering to sell my shares to you first, rather than selling them to someone else."
"My health has been declining these past two years, and my family is very worried. After a lifetime of hard work, I plan to retire and enjoy life. I'll leave the company to you."
Seeing that he couldn't persuade Su Dazhi, Mr. Zhao had to give up.
However, he couldn't gather that much money in a short time. He tried borrowing from relatives and friends, but he was still short by several million.
At this point, the Tang family somehow got wind of the situation and approached him, offering to help. Their condition was to purchase twenty percent of the company's shares at ten percent below market price.
Under normal circumstances, Mr. Zhao wouldn't have even considered such a request. But he was desperate for money right now, and couldn't afford to negotiate. It was enough to secure the funds.
Besides, the Tang family's request wasn't unreasonable. Even after selling twenty percent of his shares, he would still be the largest shareholder.
Within three days, Mr. Zhao had the money and transferred it to Su Dazhi's account.
Former close friends, now estranged.
Of course, Su Dazhi didn't care.
In his heart, family was the most important thing.
"Mr. Zhao actually let the Tang family get involved? Isn't he afraid of inviting a wolf into the fold!" Tang Jiaojiao couldn't help but shake her head after hearing the inside story. Those Tang family members were always looking for their own gain.
Whatever they set their sights on, they would obtain. Just wait and see, it wouldn't be long before the company changed hands. And then Mr. Zhao would regret it.
The appearance of the Tang family didn't have a substantial impact on Tang Jiaojiao's life.
It was just that this family seemed determined to develop in B City, spending lavishly to build connections and investing in numerous small companies. Even the company where Su He used to work reportedly received a substantial investment.
"The Tang family is intentionally entering the B City market..." After hearing more and more discussions, Su He's attention was naturally drawn.
"Is the Tang family that wealthy?" Su He muttered softly.
Tang Jiaojiao replied, "With generations of accumulation, they should have quite a bit. However, in terms of strength, they definitely can't compare to the Lu family. With Tang Ren's intellect, he might be good at opportunistic maneuvers, but in a real competition, he's no match!"
"I'm not afraid of overt competition; I'm worried about them playing dirty behind our backs." Tang Jiaojiao knew they weren't here with good intentions, so she offered a kind warning. "You'd better remind your husband to be on guard."
The Tang family's business practices were not exactly above board.
A significant reason Tang Jiaojiao ran away from home was her disapproval of their methods.
"I heard the old matriarch is seriously ill. Are you really not going back to see her?" Su He was worried they might use this to their advantage.
Mentioning the Tang family's old matriarch, Tang Jiaojiao's expression remained unusually calm. "We'll talk when they issue a critical illness notice."
She wasn't sure if the news was true.
What if it was Tang Sese trying to trick her into returning? She had support in B City, but once she returned to the Tang family's territory, she would be at their mercy. At that point, she would become a pawn to control them.
Su He was inwardly shocked. It seemed the feud between her adoptive mother and the Tang family had reached an unresolvable point. What kind of grudge made her so wary of her own birth mother?
*
During the days Lu Yanbei was away on business, Su He could only talk to him before sleeping.
During the day, he was so swamped that he had no free time to maintain their relationship.
Su He understood; he wanted to finish his work as quickly as possible, so she tried not to disturb him. However, every night, when she was alone in bed, she missed him terribly.
Habit was a terrible thing.
Lu Yanbei had spoiled her too much, to the point where she couldn't be without him.
"Husband, when can you come back?" One day, after showering, Su He got into bed early and video called Lu Yanbei.
Across the thousand-kilometer distance, they could only comfort each other this way.
On the other end, Lu Yanbei was still busy in his office. People occasionally passed by, phones rang incessantly, and the room was brightly lit, making it seem like daylight.
"Still working overtime?" Su He felt a pang of concern when she saw him.
"Yes, a sudden issue, but it should be resolved soon." Lu Yanbei spoke to her while shoveling a few bites of food into his mouth, his eyes darting to the next document.
Seeing how stressed he was, barely having time to eat, Su He was worried. "You don't need to rush back; take your time with your work, and take care of yourself over there."
"What have you been busy with lately?" Lu Yanbei looked up at her for a moment.
"Not much, besides clocking in at the company and accompanying Ms. Jiao Jiao shopping..." Su He briefly reported her schedule. "There's a new sci-fi movie that's quite good; when you get back, I'll take you to see it."
"Okay." Lu Yanbei smiled and nodded.
"Mr. Lu, we've received news from DK..." Cheng Jue hurried over with a document, not noticing that his boss was on a video call with his wife.
Su He knew they had business to discuss and ended the call. "You get back to work, and rest early when you're done."
"Mm, you sleep early too." Lu Yanbei wanted to chat with her more, but work was piling up, and he couldn't afford to be willful. Moreover, so many subordinates were waiting for his decisions; he could only take this brief respite.
He put down his chopsticks and plunged back into his intense work.
That night, the office lights never went out.
Fortunately, hard work paid off!
By dawn, all the difficulties had been resolved. Only some finishing touches remained.
Lu Yanbei sat in his swivel chair, rubbing his throbbing forehead, and asked, "What time is it?"
Cheng Jue checked his watch. "Quarter past five."
"What's the earliest flight?" Lu Yanbei asked again.
"Six forty-eight," Cheng Jue replied.
Lu Yanbei calculated the time. If he moved quickly, he should be able to catch the earliest flight. "Go back to the hotel to pack, and then head to the airport."