"Let's go to the Zhang Family." Feng Yichang said this with truly mixed feelings, and then walked out of the Li Heng Company's conference room.
When the two powerful families, the Zhang Family and Chu Family, clashed, it was the lesser villains who cheered them on from the sidelines who suffered the most.
Chapters 145: Appearance of Madness and Calmness
Taking advantage of the chaos caused by the arson in the morning, Zhang Yuliang calmly left the Zhang Family and disappeared completely until evening, when he changed into a clean gray-blue suit and appeared at Likang Company.
As he entered Likang's office area, he happened to peek inside and saw Song Tianyao sitting in his open office, placing a teacup in front of the empty seat opposite his desk.
Upon seeing Zhang Yuliang appear at Likang Company, Song Tianyao was taken aback for a moment, then laughed. Zhang Yuliang also laughed and stepped into Song Tianyao's office, but was blocked by Rotten-Life Ju.
"Brother Ju, politely invite Fourth Young Master Zhang in," Song Tianyao said loudly to Rotten-Life Ju.
His words seemed to silence the entire Likang Company.
Rotten-Life Ju stepped aside, said "please" to Zhang Yuliang, and Zhang Yuliang stepped into Song Tianyao's office. He naturally sat down in the guest seat opposite Song Tianyao's desk, pointed to the teacups that Song Tianyao had just set out, and asked with a smile, "Who are you waiting for?"
"After something like this, someone from the Zhang Family has to come out and talk to Likang. I don't know who will come, but it's always good to be prepared." Song Tianyao sat back down in his seat, rested his hands on his desk, and smiled back at Zhang Yuliang.
In the golden light of the setting sun, two young men smiled at each other in silence for a good ten seconds. Although they were both smiling, their smiles were distinctly different. Song Tianyao's smile was peaceful and calm, while Zhang Yuliang's smile seemed to carry a hint of self-mockery, or perhaps a sense of relief.
Zhang Yuliang broke the brief silence first, giving Song Tianyao a thumbs up. "Secretary Song, your acting was superb. I still remember the panicked look on your face when you were in my office, when you heard me cut off the supply of the deworming medicine from Likang. You used those details, expressions, and actions to lure this stupid fish into taking the bait. Now you should know how much I paid for taking your bait."
"Young Master Liang is also excellent at playing the role of a spoiled brat, the kind of arrogant and impatient character. If Dai Feng hadn't shown up to kill me, I wouldn't have known how much of a scheme Young Master Young Master Liang was playing. When Lawyer Pan told me about the Hong Kong stock index, I was stunned for several minutes," Song Tianyao said sincerely.
Song Tianyao truly admired Zhang Yuliang's stock index from the bottom of his heart. You see, Zhang Yuliang was not a reborn person like himself. At the age of twenty-five, he had such keen insight and was working alone with Shanghai people to prepare to become the leader of the Hong Kong stock market.
Regarding this matter, Song Tianyao only wants to say that there were countless business tycoons in Hong Kong during the post-war 1940s and 50s.
Whether Zhang Yuliang wins or loses this round, his vision, methods, and planning are impressive enough. Most importantly, Zhang Yuliang is young enough that he can afford to lose.
When Zhang Yuliang heard Song Tianyao say that he was pretending to be a playboy, he chuckled, took out a Marlboro cigarette from his pocket, handed one to Song Tianyao, put one in his own mouth, and then took out a United States Zippo lighter, which was still relatively rare in Hong Kong. With practiced ease, he lit Song Tianyao's cigarette with one hand, then lit his own, and finally flicked out the flame with a flourish. Holding the cigarette between his fingers, he said, "If I don't pretend to be a playboy or an idiot, what can I do in the Zhang Family?"
"Regarding the stock index, you could have brought it up with your three older brothers in the Zhang Family and gradually expanded your influence. Speaking of which, what kind of hatred could possibly drive you to scheme against even your own Big Brother?" Song Tianyao asked curiously, a cigarette between his fingers.
Zhang Yuliang leaned back in his chair, scoffing, "The Zhang Family is full of idiots. They're completely out of touch with this new era after World War II. My Big Brother acts like a Qing Dynasty emperor, my mother like an empress dowager ruling from behind the curtain, my second brother like a prime minister and military advisor, and what are my third brother and me? Eunuchs, just errand boys. Do you think my Big Brother understands what stock indices are? He doesn't, and he doesn't plan to. He thinks my involvement in stocks is a shady business, speculation, gambling. He forbids me from doing it, and the whole family can't mention it again. When I first brought it up with him, he told me I was too much of a gambler and to be careful, or he'd break my arms and legs if he found out. There's no way to communicate with such an arrogant and outdated person. There are many similar stories, but I don't want to talk about them, and you don't want to hear them either."
"So now you've come to see me?" Song Tianyao picked up the teapot beside him and poured some tea into the other person's teacup, asking.
Zhang Yuliang ran his hand through his hair, lowered his head with a hint of guilt, and said, "I made a mistake, a business mistake, and that's it. I shouldn't have let Dai Feng kill you. Instead, I came to see you myself. In the end, I was too inexperienced. Thinking about it now, it's too late, but I still have to apologize. The first thing I did when I came here was to say sorry to you."
"Dai Feng didn't kill me, but he killed someone close to me." Song Tianyao slowly wiped the smile from his face. "What do you think I should say to you?"
"It doesn't matter. You can say you'll kill me, and I don't care. I apologize, but it's not like you have to accept it." Zhang Yuliang sighed. "My eldest and second eldest brothers should have already returned to Hong Kong. They might be seeing my mother now. After they see her, they should decide whether to continue dealing with Likang or sit down and talk it over."
"That's a matter between Likang and the Zhang Family now. As for you, Liang Young Master Liang, you probably don't have much of a chance to get involved in things like the Zhang Family anymore. You should be more concerned about where you run off to and avoid getting your limbs broken by your older brother." Song Tianyao said to Zhang Yuliang in a calm tone.
It's not accurate to say that Song Tianyao felt any sympathy or pity for Zhang Yuliang, nor could he possibly hate him to the core. In terms of Zhang Yuliang's style of doing things, it suited Song Tianyao's taste. However, when it came to actually implementing Zhang Yuliang's plans, his methods and experience were far from sufficient. In the business world, if execution goes wrong, it often leads to a complete loss.