Xiao Ming lifted his eyelids and glanced at Yan Yongxing, speaking indifferently, "When I was young, my neighbor had a dog."
The dog liked to bite but was also good at guarding the house, so its owner treated it well; it never worried about food and drink, but after over a decade, it still died.
"Does Boss Yan know why?"
"I don't give a damn why," Yan Yongxing dismissed with a wave of his hand, "Scram if you can't make a viable bid. I don't have time to play games with a brat here."
"Because," Xiao Ming answered his own question, "the dog grew old without realizing it, got greedy and ate too much at once, couldn't digest it all, and died from overeating.
An old dog should have the consciousness of an old dog. Does Boss Yan think there's sense in that?"
Only then did Yan Yongxing realize that he was being insulted, and he suddenly became furious, slamming the table as he stood up.
"I'll fuck your..."
Suddenly, there was a light snap, the cigar in his mouth broke off with the noise, and the burning end hit his face, scorching him as he hissed in pain.
But he didn't care to check his skin; instead, he turned his head and saw a new black spot on the white wall to the side, and a stub of a cigar rolled to the edge of his shoe on the cleanly tiled floor.
That was the cigarette butt Xiao Ming had flicked with his finger!
To knock a thick cigar in half with a cigarette end was enough to demonstrate his extraordinary finger strength, not to mention the impressive precision.
Clearly, even Cao Zhining could tell that Xiao Ming was skilled in martial arts. In a one-on-one fight, Yan Yongxing would definitely not come out on top.
At that moment, Xiao Ming spoke again, his tone indifferent, "Either scram or sit down and talk properly with manners. If you spew crap from your mouth again, I'll make you a crippled dog today!"
Yan Yongxing's face turned from red to green, looking extremely ugly.
Those familiar with the ways of the street knew that only the naive greenhorns were impulsive. Anyone who'd been around for a longer time understood the importance of not suffering immediate losses.
After a long silence, he gritted his teeth and said, "Fine! Very well! Xiao Ming, right? Go back and tell your family and friends to be more careful when they go out. The streets these days aren't safe!"
Xiao Ming laughed offhandedly, "Thank you for the reminder, Boss Yan."
Yan Yongxing's forehead throbbed with popping veins as he forcefully contained his rage, then said to Cao Zhining, "Two billion, 17%. That's my final offer.
If you agree, come to my office to sign the agreement. I take my leave!"
After speaking, he turned and strode away.
Cao Zhining quickly stood up to see him out but couldn't catch up.
When he returned, Xiao Ming had already stood up and was stretching lazily.
"Mr. Xiao, aren't you going to try again?"
Xiao Ming shook his head, looking at him with an utterly dismissive gaze, "Mr. Cao, let's not beat around the bush. We both know the real reason you called me here today.
With Yan Yongxing gone, why keep up the pretense? Isn't it tiring?"
Cao Zhining's face darkened instantly, "Was it you who leaked the news about my paternity test to the media?"
"It was me," Xiao Ming admitted without hesitation.
"You think with just this little incident, you can make me, Cao Zhining, bow my head? You're underestimating me," he retorted.
Xiao Ming shook his head again, "Believe it or not, the reason I made you two offers was actually out of goodwill.
After all, the one who offended me is that bastard Cao Bangxi. You may be responsible, but you don't deserve death.
Unfortunately, there is a reason you've unknowingly been raising someone else's son for over twenty years with a head full of green grass.
You are not only foolish but also blind."
"Xiao Ming!" Cao Zhining couldn't contain his anger, "Don't think that just because you have some ability and the favor of a few important figures, you can disregard me.
The dirty tricks you pull from behind are all things I grew bored of long ago."
"Like leaking the park's planned development to the residents of the shantytown and covertly inciting them to make trouble at Maohe?"
Cao Zhining faltered, a sinister premonition rising in his heart.
Although this matter was no longer a secret, Xiao Ming must have already known about it, but bringing it up at this moment was clearly not just a casual mention.
Sure enough, Xiao Ming continued, "Mr. Cao is definitely well aware of Ruiye Holdings taking over Qianshan Group. Why don't you guess how I managed to do it?"
Cao Zhining furrowed his brows, pondered for a moment, then suddenly a lightbulb went off in his head, and he exclaimed in horror, "Shen Siqi!
If he hadn't embezzled those extra twenty million, Shen Anhe would have definitely been able to save him.
It was you! You... you told him about the park strip planning, and then he came to me with those twenty million.
It was you... who sealed his fate!"
Xiao Ming gave a cold laugh, "I've said that the mistakes your son has made need to be paid for with blood.
Also, I did warn you back then. It was you who were blind and oblivious. Not only did you fail to atone for your son's wrongdoings, but you even tried to harm me.
Cao Zhining, as of today, everything is your own doing.
One hundred million, 15%, this is the greatest and last mercy I will show you.
After midnight tonight, even if you personally minced Cao Bangxi into meat paste, there would no longer be any chance for you."
Having said that, he left the conference room with large strides.
At this moment, Cao Zhining had figured everything out and finally understood how terrifying Xiao Ming was.
From the moment he got excited about the park strip planning brought by Shen Siqi, every step thereafter had been under Xiao Ming's control.
This meant that there was likely a big problem with the shantytown land, a problem big enough to doom Dabang Group once and for all.
What could it be?
Or, was Xiao Ming bluffing, setting a trap to take control of Dabang at a low price?
Cao Zhining sat in stunned silence for a long time, collapsing onto the chair, his mind in chaos.
At noon, Xiao Ming went to Kanjiang No. 1, where Jiang Xue had been supervising the construction almost every day, and joined her for a meal at a braised pork small eatery.
Nearing the end of the meal, Jiang Xue seemed to want to say something several times, but then she would close her mouth again, hesitant to speak.
Finding it amusing, Xiao Ming asked, "What's up? Hemming and hawing, do you have someone on the side?"
"Pah! Like a dog can't spit out ivory," she retorted.
After giving him a glare, Jiang Xue lowered her face again and fumblingly asked, "What... what's your current salary?"
"I don't have a fixed salary."
"What?" Jiang Xue was stunned, and then indignantly said, "How can you not have a salary? Even if you are close to Yu and Siyi, that doesn't mean you should work for nothing!"
Xiao Ming smoothed the frown from her brow with his hand, "You're about to be a mom, don't get so worked up. Your husband is as clever as a monkey - he wouldn't possibly work for free!"
"Then what do you mean by saying you don't have a salary?"
"Just what it sounds like. Haven't you seen the news that some big company bosses only have a yearly salary of one yuan?
Because there's no salary, there's no tax to pay."
"But you still have to get paid, right?"
"The company is still in its early stages, only spending money and not yet making profits, but my main income in the future will be mostly from stock dividends.
Don't worry, as long as everything gets on the right track, you'll be a billionaire's wife in no time, definitely not lacking money to spend."
"Oh."
Jiang Xue pouted, "I thought once you became a big boss, we could start living the high life right away, turns out it's all just empty promises!
Then you really shouldn't have bought me a car. Four or five hundred thousand, why not save it for something else?"
It was then that Xiao Ming realized what she was getting at, and asked quite surprised, "Wife, do you need money for something?"