Chapter 45#
Dismissal#
Regarding that question, Qin Mu ultimately did not give an answer.
There are no ‘ifs’ in this world, he wouldn’t ponder hypothetical questions.
But to make him look into Qin Zhao’s eyes and tell her, “You won’t be a whale baby, and Mama won’t like you.”
He couldn’t do that either.
It wasn’t because he was soft-hearted.
It was just that Qin Zhao’s endless crying annoyed him.
After the outing, he took Qin Zhao home. The child remembered treats but not blows; a mere day had passed, and Qin Zhao seemed to have completely forgotten Qin Mu’s previous actions, clinging to him, her hands wrapped around his neck, refusing to let go even in her sleep.
The old Qin family mansion was very large. Yu Shu didn’t live with Qin Zhao. When he returned, the place where Qin Zhao lived didn’t even have its lights on.
The servants had gone to rest even earlier than her.
Qin Mu didn’t speak, he put Qin Zhao back in her room. When he came out again, the butler was already standing in the great hall.
Only he was there.
He rubbed his somewhat sore arm, glanced at the butler indifferently, and softly instructed: “Dismiss these people in the room. I’ll send a few people tomorrow.”
Qin Mu usually didn’t concern himself with these matters, so his sudden remark today surprised the butler, who immediately understood and nodded.
After speaking, Qin Mu left.
The next day, something neither big nor small happened.
When Qin Mu went to work, his ID card suddenly became invalid and couldn’t be recognized.
No one dared to stop him, but the car couldn’t enter the garage, so he called Wen Xing.
As expected of the versatile assistant, Wen Xing had arrived an hour earlier than him and had already figured out the whole story.
Simply put, the video incident had displeased Qin Yanchen, and the first thing he did upon returning from his business trip was to dismiss Qin Mu from his position.
And dismissed Wen Xing along with him.
How much of Qin Zheng’s influence was behind this was unknown, but Qin Yanchen’s intention was very clear.
Having worked with him for this period, Wen Xing’s work ability was indeed good, but he didn’t give in so quickly, only telling him to wait for a reply.
Turning the car around, he drove back to the Qin mansion.
The morning’s daily meeting hadn’t even finished when Qin Yanchen received a call from the Old Master.
He knew that dismissing Qin Mu would certainly displease Qin Linze.
But his business trip this time was precisely to secure the cooperation with “Shi Qi”.
With the financing finalized, the balance within the company subtly began to tip.
Qin Linze had held control of the Qin family for far too long, so long that he had forgotten he was already old.
Even if the Old Master still held shares, it was only a matter of time.
He wouldn’t live much longer.
Qin Yanchen recalled the family doctor’s report on Qin Linze’s health, and his eyes deepened.
He answered the phone.
The voice on the other end of the phone was indeed extremely displeased.
However, Qin Yanchen no longer felt the fear he once did. Having been suppressed by the Old Master for nearly forty years, he finally dared to rebut him with confidence.
“Qin Mu made a mistake, why shouldn’t he be punished? Just because he’s my son? I don’t have a son like him.”
Qin Linze was silent for two seconds, his tone heavy: “Do you still consider Qin Mu your son? I thought you only had Qin Zheng left in your eyes.”
“Is a child raised by a shameless woman worth you doing so much for him?”
“Dad!” Qin Yanchen sharply interrupted him: “Qianqian isn’t that kind of woman, you know nothing about what happened between us.”
“Hmph!” A heavy snort came from the other side, the tone filled with disdain: “A bed-climbing vixen has you completely smitten. All these years I’ve taught you have been for nothing.”
“The most taboo thing for a businessman is to be emotional. You’ve been blinded by your selfishness and have long been biased towards that bastard!”
Seeing Qin Linze’s words become increasingly excessive, Qin Yanchen no longer bothered to hide the coldness and impatience in his tone: “Dad, your health isn’t good, don’t meddle too much in company affairs. I’ve finalized cooperation with ‘Shi Qi’, and they’ve made additional investments. I have the ability to make the company better and better.”
“As for Qin Mu, he made a mistake this time, and there’s no room for turning back. When he becomes as excellent as Qin Zheng, I will let him return to the company.”
He hung up the phone after speaking.
Qin Linze looked at the phone, which was now emitting a busy signal, his heart rate accelerating a few beats from anger. The monitor by the bed “beep-beep-beeped” an alarm.
A group of nurses and doctors rushed in again, hastily adjusting the medication dosage.
Qin Mu, meanwhile, sat leisurely on a nearby sofa, eating an orange.
It was a bit sour, so he took one bite and put it down.
A few minutes later, the Old Master slowly recovered, his face somewhat ashen, but the sharpness in his cloudy eyes was unmistakable as he looked towards Qin Mu’s position.
He couldn’t see clearly, only vaguely making out a figure sitting in the backlit spot by the window.
Everyone else withdrew, leaving only the two of them in the spacious room; it was very quiet.
Qin Linze raised a hand towards him.
Qin Mu was backlit. He could only vaguely see a tall, slender figure walking towards him step by step. As the distance closed, Qin Mu’s features gradually became clear. Qin Linze looked at this familiar face, his heart a mixture of emotions.
Qin Mu curved his lips into a smile, his expression appearing somewhat helpless: “Grandpa, it’s not that I’m unwilling to help you. President Qin kicked me out, and I’m out of options.”
He sat down.
In the early days of “Zhaohui”’s founding, Qin Linze invested a significant amount of capital, and even secretly provided many conveniences, otherwise “Zhaohui” wouldn’t have started so smoothly.
Qin Mu acknowledged this favor.
The Old Master’s only request was that he could join the Qin Corporation and help him counterbalance Qin Yanchen’s influence.
During this time, he had indeed figured out the internal power structure of the company.
To be honest, standing with Qin Linze now would yield no benefits at all.
Qin Yanchen had managed the company for so many years; his former subordinates were either dismissed, transferred, or had already retired. Those who could truly remain in their positions and side with Qin Linze were doing so out of the old camaraderie from when they started the company together.
But now, Qin Linze was almost at his end.
The balance had already begun to tip, even if Qin Linze stubbornly held onto the few shares he had.
In reality, it wouldn’t have much effect.
But for him to put on a show of deep father-son affection with Qin Yanchen like Qin Zheng did.
Spare him that.
“Qin Mu.”
The old man’s deep voice softly rang out. Even though he was confined to his sickbed, his firm and cold demeanor remained undiminished, as if he was looking through him at someone else.
He finally smiled with satisfaction.
Qin Linze raised his hand and pointed to the drawer beside him: “There’s a document inside.”
Qin Mu’s eyebrow twitched slightly. He opened it and indeed found a kraft paper envelope lying quietly inside.
He opened the paper seal, his gaze sweeping over the documents inside, his fingertips pausing slightly.
A hint of a helpless smile escaped him: “This…”
“Keep it.”
The old man’s undeniable voice interrupted him.
“I believe in you; you can do it well.”
Qin Linze closed his eyes. Three months ago, when Qin Mu visited him, he had already noticed the difference.
His grandson, how could he not understand him?
The person before him was not Qin Mu, yet possessed extraordinary abilities.
Such a person would not do poorly in anything they undertook. What if it were taking over the Qin Corporation?
When he opened his eyes again, his gaze became even more resolute.
The Qin Corporation was founded by him.
It could not be easily destroyed by his foolish son and that lowly bastard.