The person who called Xu Shi was the youngest son of a Shark Tooth Group director, He Yuqiang.
He was the same "Young Master He" who had colluded with Shen He before.
And judging by how he addressed Xu Shi, the two seemed to be quite close.
That was indeed the case. At least during the first twenty-five years of Xu Shi's life, he had once regarded him as his "best drinking buddy."
It was precisely because of that relationship that, no matter how he was plotted against in the original story, he rarely suspected He Yuqiang.
Yet it turned out that from the very beginning, the other man had been a vicious wolf hiding at his side.
That made Chairman Xu feel a little sick. Being a villain like this was truly... something else.
Painful. So painful!
Fortunately, he would not repeat the same mistakes now... He adjusted his mood and acted thoroughly surprised. "Old He, what did you say? What attack?"
"You didn't know?"
He Yuqiang was dumbfounded. He knew Xu Shi had always ignored Serpent Coil's affairs, but he had not expected him to care so little.
Was he really the sort who would not even pick up an overturned oil bottle?
"It's just... forget it. I'll come over and explain it to you in person."
But after thinking it over, he still decided to make a trip to Serpent Coil himself.
Less than ten minutes later, he arrived at Xu Shi's office.
"Old Xu!"
"Old He!"
The two greeted each other with an enthusiastic hug, as close as could be.
"What happened that made you come all the way here yourself?"
"Come on, listen to yourself. We're buddies. Would it look right if I didn't come?"
He Yuqiang waved a hand and briefly told him what had happened earlier.
"This is pretty outrageous. Your own factory got attacked, and I, an outsider, had to tell you about it... Director Su didn't tell you either?"
He knew Su Lin's ability, so he could not help finding it strange.
"Yeah. Such a major incident happened. Why didn't you report it to me?"
Xu Shi was furious upon hearing that, glaring at Su Lin in displeasure.
"I... Young Master, you said you had something to do today and that there was no need to report the company's situation to you..."
Su Lin froze, then immediately caught on. She put on a troubled expression. "That's why I..."
"And you still dare talk back?!"
Xu Shi flew into a rage. "Useless trash! What am I keeping you around for, huh?"
"It was this subordinate's dereliction of duty. Please punish me, Young Master."
Su Lin looked terrified. "But our defenses were sufficient, and the Inspection Bureau also helped. The matter has been resolved, so Young Master need not worry."
"...Fine. I'll deal with you later."
Only then did Xu Shi's expression ease somewhat. He turned to He Yuqiang. "Look at this... I really have you to thank, Old He. The servants are useless and made you witness this joke."
"It's nothing, it's nothing. We're buddies."
He Yuqiang was completely relieved now, convinced that Xu Shi genuinely knew nothing.
After all, that reaction did not look the least bit faked.
"I heard in the reports that it was probably people from Sin City causing trouble. You should be more careful lately. Those mad dogs would do anything."
He even put on a show of offering a few reminders. "I heard you were attacked before too. Everything all right?"
"What could possibly happen?"
Xu Shi waved dismissively. "They're just a bunch of pigs. Do they really think they can turn the world upside down?"
"Give them a hundred more chances, and they still wouldn't be able to take a single hair from me!"
"...True. What are they compared to you, Old Xu? There's nothing to fear!"
He Yuqiang chimed in, and the two burst into laughter.
But Su Lin, standing nearby, hesitated as if she wanted to say something. "Um, Young Master..."
"What now?"
"Perhaps you should talk with Young Master He first. I'll tell you afterward."
"What are you saying? Is Old He an outsider? Say whatever you need to say. Why are you hemming and hawing?"
"...We did lose some things. In the chaos, ten Sea Crane drones went missing. It's very likely they were... taken by them."
He Yuqiang could clearly see the embarrassment on Xu Shi's face.
"Are you useless or what?! Huh?!"
Chairman Xu's voice instantly rose. "You actually let those ants steal something?!"
"Is this how you do your job?! I'm going to teach you a proper lesson today!"
"Old Xu, Old Xu, Old Xu!"
Seeing him grab something and prepare to throw it at Su Lin, He Yuqiang played the good guy and hurriedly stopped him. "Calm down, calm down! Don't get angry, don't get angry!"
But he was actually quite surprised as well.
The reason he had come in person was, on one hand, to probe Xu Shi's attitude, and on the other, to get a sense of the specifics.
As one of the people behind it, he could not rest easy without figuring everything out... But now, it seemed there was no need to worry about that.
Xu Shi had not suspected him at all, and Su Lin probably had not investigated anything either.
But another matter kept him from remaining calm.
They had really lost something? Ten drones?
Hadn't Spark told him the operation had failed?
He did not suspect Xu Shi at all. In his view, Xu Shi had no reason to lie to him.
Then the truth was obvious.
...You little bastard, Shen He! You dared lie to me?!
"Calm down? What am I supposed to calm down with?!"
Xu Shi shook free, loosened his tie, and looked around for something handy. "I was going to invite you to a party tonight, but how can I go now... Old He, you should head back first. Let me deal with her!"
"...Take care of yourself, then. I'll be going."
He Yuqiang had no mind to stay any longer. After being played by Shen He, his mood was no better than Xu Shi's. He even felt as though a pair of donkey ears had sprouted from his head.
"Fine, we'll talk about the rest after this!"
"Young Master He didn't suspect you at all, Young Master."
Once He Yuqiang had left, the two no longer needed to keep acting.
"That's because I acted well. That kid's pretty crafty too."
Xu Shi smiled without the slightest modesty. "Of course, Su Lin, you did great too."
It had all been an act put on for He Yuqiang, and now it seemed he had taken the bait easily.
He Yuqiang would never know that during their hug, Xu Shi had already used his ability to amplify the anger in his heart.
That way, without Xu Shi needing to do anything, He Yuqiang would definitely not let Shen He off.
Wonderful. Let the dogs tear each other apart!
Besides, he had no other channels through which to learn the details—the media had long since been sealed off by Xu Shi, and even the Inspection Bureau had been notified in advance.
Tang Shuang had actually contacted him first, and all the arrogance was gone from her voice.
She was probably afraid he would badmouth her again, so she had come to apologize ahead of time.
Xu Shi did not make things difficult for her. He would still need that free labor in the future, so there was no need to push her too hard.
But he had noticed something interesting—the bureau chief's tone had sounded rather strange during the call, halting and intermittent. He had no idea what was going on.
...Forget it. What did it have to do with me?
"But I truly didn't expect He Yuqiang would also make a move against you..."
Su Lin did not know what he was thinking, but she was quite unhappy now. "This was my failure of duty. Do you need me to..."
"No. I'll deal with him personally."
Xu Shi shook his head. He would not let this "good brother" of his off the hook.
But He Yuqiang still had his uses for now, so there was no need to rush.
"Yes."
Su Lin responded, but then noticed an issue. "But no matter what, Spark still got the drones.
"If Spark is as you said... then that is still somewhat unfavorable, isn't it?"
"The fish was caught. Do you think the bait can't be reeled back in?"
Xu Shi stretched lazily. "However he swallowed it, I'll make him spit it back out."
He knew very well that after Shen He got the drones, he would have only one choice.
Perfect. He could deal with that engineer as well.
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