章節 358: Chapter 358: Don’t Be Too Reckless
At the Hong Kong Fire Department headquarters, in the office of the Fire Chief.
An Englishman in his sixties, with gray hair and a face full of wrinkles, sat at his desk, staring absently at the telephone, completely ignoring everything else.
He had been in this state for quite some time. Except for a quick bathroom break, he hadn't paid any attention to work reports or signature approvals brought by his subordinates. It seemed as though there was something even more important on the other end of the line.
*Ring, ring, ring!*
At that moment, the phone rang. Cyril snapped to attention, looked at the incoming number, and saw it was from the well-remembered Jiuding Securities Company.
He was a loyal client of Jiuding Securities, having invested 200,000 HKD in the original Huizhong No.1 fund. After tasting success, Cyril had even more confidence in Jiuding Securities and Xia Yu's capabilities. Thus, at the second fundraising banquet, he didn't hesitate to invest 1,000,000 HKD in the Evergreen No.1 fund.
Naturally, he had memorized the Jiuding Securities Company number.
"It's here!"
Cyril thought to himself, cleared his throat, put on a smile, and answered the phone.
The moment the call was answered, Xia Yu's voice came through the receiver.
"Hello, is this Mr. Cyril? This is Xia Yu!"
"Mr. Xia, hello. I can't believe I'm receiving your call; I'm truly delighted…"
Cyril responded with enthusiastic surprise. His attitude made Xia Yu on the other end of the line pause for a moment. Xia Yu couldn't help but glance at Chen Jinping, the confident and authoritative head of the Kowloon Fire Brigade, before continuing with the situation.
"…"
Hearing Xia Yu's words, Cyril was quite surprised and quickly denied, "Mr. Xia, how could that be? I've been to your company before to pay for the subscription. The fire safety facilities at your company are quite adequate. Moreover, given our relationship, I would never allow anyone to inspect your company."
"Who's leading the team… Chen Jinping? Oh, he's the head of the Kowloon Fire Brigade. Please have him take the call…"
The situation was twofold.
At Jiuding Securities Company, upon hearing Cyril's words, Xia Yu's eyes darted around, and he thought of many things. He smiled and said, "Alright, just a moment."
Xia Yu then turned to Chen Jinping with an amused expression, lifted the receiver, and motioned for Chen Jinping to come over. He said casually, "Your boss wants you to take this call."
Seeing Xia Yu's expression and hearing his words, Chen Jinping suddenly sensed something was off. He was a bit uneasy as he approached to take the call.
"Sir, this is Chen Jinping…"
"What? You're the one who sent us to inspect? Otherwise, we wouldn't have come… Yes!"
Hearing Cyril's command to withdraw and that there was no prior arrangement for him to be on duty, Chen Jinping instinctively glanced at Xia Yu and swallowed hard.
He suddenly realized he had been set up. He wanted to argue but was forcefully cut off by Cyril. He recalled how Cyril had previously mentioned that the Yi He consortium wanted to target Jiuding Securities, and he had volunteered for the task. Cyril had only agreed without providing further instructions.
Now that he thought about it, Cyril's attitude seemed off at the time. However, he had been seeking to show his worth to Charles and gain some support. The first thought in his mind was to seize the opportunity, and he hadn't pondered Cyril's attitude thoroughly.
Seeing Chen Jinping's increasingly grim expression while he was on the phone, Xia Yu could guess what Cyril had likely said without actually hearing it.
"Interesting, Cyril is indeed cunning. The current guy is just a fool!"
Xia Yu's lips curled into a faint smile as he folded his arms, thinking to himself.
After a while, Chen Jinping, with a dark expression, hung up the phone and wanted to hand it to Xia Yu but didn't know how to start.
Xia Yu, without saying much, directly grabbed the phone and answered it.
"...Alright, next time I'll definitely visit you for a cup of tea!"
After ending the call, Xia Yu turned his attention back to Chen Jinping, who was now looking quite uncomfortable.
This time, seeing Xia Yu's playful smile, Chen Jinping no longer had the earlier contemptuous attitude but appeared somewhat flustered. He forced a strained and awkward smile.
Noticing the curious and questioning looks from the surrounding firemen, Chen Jinping felt even more pressured.
"Captain Chen, did you understand what your superior said? Is there anything else that needs to be clarified?"
Xia Yu said coolly, his gaze towards Chen Jinping becoming indifferent, but this only made Chen Jinping feel more stressed and anxious.
He had genuinely offended Xia Yu, the new tycoon. He had initially thought that with Cyril backing him up, he could complete his mission, demonstrate his capabilities to Charles, and seek more support.
But Cyril had sold him out. He didn't dare disobey, even though Cyril might not directly remove him from his position, he could still make things difficult and ruin his career prospects.
Additionally, given how obvious the situation was, the other ordinary firemen would likely back off, so he couldn't play the "orders don't apply outside" game.
Having failed to complete his mission and instead gaining a bad reputation while offending a big shot like Xia Yu, he was deeply regretful.
"Sorry for the disturbance!"
Chen Jinping squeezed out a forced apology and said awkwardly.
"We're leaving!"
He then turned and left without looking back. The other firemen quickly followed, their pace brisk, as if eager to leave the troublesome place.
Watching the group of firemen leave in defeat, Wang Qi and the others were dumbfounded, unsure of what had just transpired.
Wang Qi had a vague suspicion that there was some internal chaos within the Fire Department.
"Boss, you were amazing!"
Gao Peng said with admiration on his face.
"Heh!"
Xia Yu smiled but did not elaborate. Instead, he watched the departing firemen and shook his head slightly.
"A brainless fool, still too young, got taught a lesson by Cyril."
"Compared to Cyril, he's still too green!"
Xia Yu thought, his impression of Chen Jinping dropping sharply.
"However!"
"Although Cyril plotted against me a bit, he has shown his hand. Clearly, between Yi He consortium and me, he leans towards my side. Indeed, interests are the strongest bonds!"
…
Meanwhile, at the Hong Kong Fire Department headquarters.
After hanging up the phone, Cyril, with a smile on his face, leaned back in his chair, evidently in high spirits.
"Chen Jinping, don't think that just because you're clinging to Charles Kessick's leg, you can ignore me. I am still your superior!"
Cyril sneered to himself.
Cyril was nearing retirement and had abandoned any aspirations to climb the political ladder. Instead, he focused entirely on making money and planned to retire comfortably.
As he saw his time in office drawing to a close, his subordinates began to stir. Chen Jinping, who seemed to be cozying up to Charles Kessick of the Kessick family, had been quite cocky and disrespectful to Cyril. Although Cyril did not voice his dissatisfaction, he was clearly upset.
In politics, the most feared thing is being ignored. Even though Cyril had not retired yet, his subordinates treated him as if he were irrelevant, which naturally annoyed him.
Since Cyril had not found an opportunity until now, he seized the chance to teach Chen Jinping a lesson, making him realize who the real boss was and not to disrespect him just because he had connected with someone influential.
If Cyril had the chance to attach himself to the Yi He consortium when he was younger, he would have done so without hesitation. But Yi He consortium didn't look at him at all!
The Hong Kong Fire Department was a minor department and, with future organizational reforms, would likely become a part of the Hong Kong Police Force, turning into a fire brigade, its status and power diminished.
Such a character would naturally be disregarded by the Yi He consortium, so Cyril had no interest in seeking their help. He simply aimed to retire comfortably and make money.
As the saying goes, "contentment is strength." Even if Yi He consortium was powerful, they only contacted him when they needed him, and he received no real benefits. Offending them was no great loss.
Moreover, although Cyril had contacted him, his tone had been somewhat condescending, suggesting Chen Jinping needed more training. Cyril was naturally displeased.
Of course, to avoid completely offending the Yi He consortium, Cyril had his subordinates act and then called them back, ensuring at least a formality was observed, leaving Yi He with no grounds for complaint.
Ultimately, Chen Jinping was just a fool!
…
With the fire department gone, Xia Yu stretched lazily and received a call from Yan Wenhan. The call informed him that the Jiuding Press Company and its printing factory had also received a fire safety inspection. However, the inspection was very polite and was merely a formality.
Xia Yu said he understood, advised Yan Wenhan to stay vigilant, and hung up.
"It seems this is the work of the Yi He consortium, trying to divert my attention and cause trouble!"
"It's a pity they chose Cyril, who's not cooperative. Heh!"
Thinking of Cyril's clumsy act, Xia Yu smiled, unsure if he was laughing at Chen Jinping's foolishness or Yi He consortium's miscalculation.
After the smile
faded, Xia Yu's expression grew serious and contemplative.
"However, to discern the leopard from its spots, Yi He consortium is now trying to play dirty. Besides fire inspections, there must be other schemes and tricks to be wary of!"
"Not everyone is like Cyril, with no ambition beyond making money!"
"Next time, I might not be so fortunate to encounter one of my fund's clients!"
"Yi He consortium…"
Xia Yu murmured the name, his eyes narrowing as he pondered what vulnerabilities he might have that Yi He consortium could exploit.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票