Jiang Shao leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed, raising a brow as he looked up at Zhan Xiao Hui.
Of course he knew this was not Zhan Xiao Hui’s own idea. She had just come out of Qi Mu’s office and was now saying something like this, so it was clearly Qi Mu’s instruction. Jiang Shao was not petty enough to take issue with Zhan Xiao Hui. But Qi Mu…
Jiang Shao’s gaze swept indifferently over the stack of documents, and a cool smile appeared on his lips. As expected, Qi Mu was the kind of boss who exploited his employees. Hardly surprising…
Even Lu Jin Wen had become unreliable. This was the best company he could find?
After delivering her speech with her head held high and her chest out, Zhan Xiao Hui waited for a long while without receiving a response from Jiang Shao. Instead, the man before her maintained an attitude that seemed to say, I don’t care. What can you do about it? When his long, cold black eyes glanced at her, the inexplicable air of authority she had summoned instantly evaporated.
He looked like a troublesome and difficult character…
Whatever. She was only responsible for passing along instructions. Whether he did the work was up to him. This was not something a low-level employee like her needed to worry about. Even if the sky collapsed, the boss would be there to hold it up…
Zhan Xiao Hui coughed lightly. “Submit it to President Qi before next Monday.”
Then she turned and left.
Jiang Shao lazily turned his head to look out the window. A row of lush green camphor trees came into view. The company was located in City C’s high-tech industrial park, where the surroundings were clean, orderly, and neatly planned. The weather was excellent today, and the sky resembled a flawless blue sapphire, somewhat like the cuff link at Qi Mu’s wrist earlier—clear and pristine…
His desk stood beside the window in an unoccupied corner. The area was spacious and quiet, while the raised partitions blocked him from everyone else, enclosing the spot into an independent, secluded little space. As long as no one came over, he could probably sleep there without being discovered.
All in all, it was the perfect workstation for slacking off.
Who had arranged such a seat for a newcomer on his very first day in the President’s Office? If it had been intentional, the gesture was almost excessively considerate.
Jiang Shao withdrew his gaze from his surroundings and looked once more at the stack of documents before him, the corners of his lips curving upward.
He had expected office life to be nothing but boring. It seemed slightly more interesting than he had imagined.
…
Qi Mu reviewed the latest batch of purchase orders for raw materials. After what had happened, he examined them with particular care this time. Some matters could not be entrusted to others. He could only feel reassured after personally checking them.
When he finally finished, he glanced at his watch and saw that it was already past six. He rose to go out for dinner.
As he left, he glanced at the office opposite his own. The door to the President’s Office was closed, which meant everyone had already left. Qi Mu was not angry about that. He never required his employees to stay and work overtime merely because he did. In his view, as long as the work was completed properly, there was no need to use meaningless behavior like that to display a leader’s authority over employees or satisfy his own ego.
Therefore, unless something unusual arose, the employees in the President’s Office generally left on time.
Qi Mu normally paid no attention to such things. He had only looked because of Jiang Shao. Seeing that everything was as usual and Jiang Shao had already left, he relaxed slightly.
When Qi Mu instructed Zhan Xiao Hui to assign Jiang Shao the report, he had already prepared himself for Jiang Shao to come looking for him. Yet Jiang Shao had not only refrained from confronting him, but had even left work early like everyone else. That meant the esteemed young master had not taken the matter seriously at all, which was the best possible outcome.
Qi Mu had never expected Jiang Shao to obediently complete the work. He had deliberately arranged such a workstation for him because he hoped this formidable ancestor would spend his time at the company in comfort and ease. Once Jiang Shao grew bored, he would naturally leave of his own accord.
…
Jiang Shao pushed open the door.
The small room was only a little over ten square meters, but it contained everything necessary. There was a kitchen and bathroom, a single bed, a two-door wardrobe beside it, and a small table near the window for everyday belongings.
This was one of the dormitories the company provided for its employees. Anyone who was not local could apply for one. To ordinary people, it was an excellent benefit, since it could save them a considerable amount in rent every month.
Jiang Shao calmly closed the door behind him. He removed his jacket and casually tossed it onto the bed. With his height and long legs, the room felt somewhat cramped, but he showed no impatience or disdain. He merely walked to the small desk, sat down, and opened a black laptop.
After inserting an encrypted USB drive, dense lines of data quickly appeared on the screen. The curtains were drawn, leaving the room slightly dim. Numbers and code shifted continuously within Jiang Shao’s dark eyes, which lost some of their usual carelessness and gained a steadier focus.
Jiang Shao’s fingers flew across the keyboard. His expression was intent, and the contours of his profile looked cold and severe.
A little over two hours later, Jiang Shao finished his work, shut down the laptop, and removed the USB drive.
He tilted his head and rolled his shoulders, his expression returning to its lazy, unruly state. When he checked the time and saw that it was already past ten, Jiang Shao seemed to remember something. He took out his phone and sent Lu Jin Wen a message.
“Get this report to me before five on Sunday afternoon.” He attached the report requirements as well.
A reply arrived almost immediately.
Lu: “?”
S: “Is there a problem?”
This time, the other party did not answer immediately. The screen displayed typing for a long while before a single word finally appeared.
“No.”
On the other side of the city, Lu Jin Wen stared at his phone screen in prolonged silence.
He knew why Jiang Shao had gone to work. After all, Jiang Shao was currently maintaining the image of someone who had “completely fallen out with his family, had his living expenses cut off, and would rather work than return home.” But Lu Jin Wen had assumed this was merely a strategy, a smokescreen to deceive others. Jiang Shao only needed to muddle through this job, so why was he suddenly taking it seriously? Did he still remember the role he was supposed to be playing?
And as the CEO of Shunjie Technology, someone who usually negotiated contracts worth hundreds of millions, why did Lu Jin Wen now have to prepare such a low-level analytical report?
Lu Jin Wen fell into deep thought, beginning to suspect that there might be something unusual about the company he had chosen that he had somehow overlooked.
Jiang Shao had no idea what Lu Jin Wen was thinking. After sending the message, he lay down on the bed. Yet he had barely closed his eyes when his phone rang.
Jiang Shao opened his eyes and looked over, his expression turning cold. He stared at the screen for several seconds before finally answering when the phone rang for the tenth time.
A deep, resonant male voice came through the receiver. “Why did it take you so long to answer?”
Jiang Shao replied lazily, “I was showering.”
Jiang Zong Chao had no intention of investigating further. Softening his tone slightly, he said, “Come home once you’ve had enough of this. Your mother is very worried about you.”
The corner of Jiang Shao’s thin lips curled. “Mother?”
Jiang Zong Chao could not stand that faintly mocking tone of his. His voice darkened. “What kind of attitude is that? Look at the careless way you carry yourself. She’s the only one still willing to bother with you, and this is how you repay your mother?”
Jiang Shao asked, “So you aren’t willing to bother with me?”
Jiang Zong Chao grew impatient with his unreasonable twisting of the conversation. “She arranged a position for you at the Li Corporation. Stop being willful and come back soon. You’re not a child anymore. How are you still less sensible than your younger brother?”
Jiang Shao paused slowly before letting out a soft laugh. “I thought you already knew I wasn’t sensible.”
Jiang Zong Chao finally lost patience and said coldly, “You’re beyond saving.”
A long beep sounded through the receiver as the call disconnected. Jiang Shao lowered his eyes and stared at the phone for a moment before switching it off indifferently. Now no one would disturb his sleep.
…
On Sunday night, the company’s office building was completely dark, with only the light in Qi Mu’s office still shining.
Qi Mu had already finalized arrangements for reproducing the components, while the internal investigation had also begun to produce results. The manager of the Procurement Department had purchased materials with substandard thermal conductivity in order to pocket kickbacks.
Qi Mu was not particularly surprised by the outcome. Although he was only a minor supporting character, and the destruction of both him and his company had occurred in that dream merely because of a casual remark from Jiang Shao, Qi Mu had still discerned from the scattered clues that the procurement manager was responsible. That was why he had launched the investigation.
But a mere procurement manager probably would not have possessed enough courage to do this alone. There should be someone else behind him.
Qi Mu suspected that the vice president overseeing procurement was also involved.
However, that vice president had been with the company since his father first founded it and was also one of his father’s friends. The man was already nearing retirement age, and Qi Mu’s father was deeply sentimental about old relationships. Punishing him would probably not be easy.
Regardless, Qi Mu first needed more conclusive evidence.
The internal audit investigation was still ongoing.
Aside from handling these matters, Qi Mu also had to find time to reassure the company’s clients.
The batch of components had been intended for more than a dozen companies. Now that the company could not deliver them on schedule, Qi Mu had to provide an explanation.
For some of the smaller clients with whom he had a relatively familiar relationship, Qi Mu explained matters over the phone whenever possible. After hearing his explanation and proposed compensation, most of them understandingly said it was not a problem.
However, there was still one major client—Song’an Group—that Qi Mu found rather difficult to handle.
Song’an Group was one of the largest household-appliance manufacturers in the country. Forty percent of the electrical components produced by Qi Corporation were purchased by Song’an Group, making the company extremely important to Qi Corporation.
Yet to Song’an Group, Qi Corporation was merely one inconspicuous supplier among many. Even if it stopped buying Qi Corporation’s products, other companies could easily replace them. Therefore, Qi Mu had to put considerable effort into maintaining their partnership.
In that dream, it had been one of Song’an Group’s appliances that suffered an accident. After the cause was traced back to Qi Corporation’s components, Song’an Group quickly announced the termination of their partnership. The other clients followed its example, and Qi Corporation soon fell into crisis.
Qi Mu did not dare treat Song’an Group with the slightest carelessness. If the group terminated its partnership with Qi Corporation just as it had in the dream, it would still be a severe blow to the company even without Jiang Shao acting behind the scenes.
It had not been easy for Qi Mu to secure a meeting with Vice President Liu of Song’an Group. They were scheduled to meet next Wednesday so he could explain the matter in person.
That was why Qi Mu was still working alone at the company on Sunday. He had reviewed the contract clauses he had drafted in advance again and again. Since the delayed delivery was his company’s fault, compensation was naturally appropriate, but the amount and form of compensation still needed to be negotiated. How could he persuade Song’an Group to accept the delay while minimizing the company’s losses as much as possible…
Qi Mu frowned in thought.
The industrial park was exceptionally quiet at night. Suddenly, a light rain began to fall.
Drawn by the sound, Qi Mu looked out the window and only then realized how late it had become. Everything outside was pitch-black, with nothing visible except the rainwater winding down the glass. Qi Mu stared blankly for a moment, his mind briefly empty as exhaustion surged over him uncontrollably.
Qi Mu shook his head and rose to make himself a cup of coffee. He had just returned to his desk and sat down when—
A knock suddenly sounded at the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
It rang exceptionally clearly through the silent night. Accompanied by the wind and rain outside, it created an eerie atmosphere that made one’s skin crawl instinctively, as though Qi Mu had suddenly found himself inside a horror film.
Much of Qi Mu’s drowsiness vanished at once.
There should not have been anyone else at the company by now. Who would come looking for him at this hour?
Qi Mu stared fixedly at the door and slowly said, “Come in.”
The heavy wooden door opened.
A tall figure walked inside.
Qi Mu abruptly relaxed. It was Jiang Shao. But a moment later, his heart rose again.
Why had Jiang Shao come looking for him at this hour?
Somehow, the present situation did not feel much better than a horror movie…
Had Jiang Shao finally decided to confront him because he was dissatisfied with the work assignment? Yet Qi Mu remembered that in the dream, Jiang Shao never personally laid a hand on anyone. He merely needed to say a few words, and people would naturally kneel and beg him for mercy. So Jiang Shao probably would not… hit him… right?
Qi Mu was rendered speechless by his own ridiculous imagination. In those few brief seconds, Jiang Shao had already reached his desk and casually tossed a stack of documents onto it.
The tall man then braced both hands against the edge of the desk and leaned forward, closing in on Qi Mu. He looked down at him from above, an unreadable darkness in his long, narrow black eyes.
It was an intensely oppressive posture, instantly tightening every nerve in Qi Mu’s body.
Amid the patter of the rain, even the air seemed to thicken.
Just as Qi Mu wondered what Jiang Shao intended… the man before him suddenly raised a brow and smiled. His languid, careless voice was deep and pleasant.
“President Qi wouldn’t happen to have forgotten about the report he wanted on Monday, would he?”
Futile Devices Scans 
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