webnovelvip Chapter 344 The Interrupted Vacation
Chapter 344 The Interrupted Vacation
January 13, 2000, 9:00 AM.
Sentosa, Singapore.
Sunlight shone on the white sand, and waves gently lapped against the shore. Several seagulls flew overhead, occasionally swooping down before flying away again.
Ling Yun lay under the parasol, her eyes closed. Beside her was a blanket, on which An Shiyu sat, applying sunscreen to her daughter. The little one was wearing a pink swimsuit, her round belly exposed, covered in white sunscreen from her mother's application.
"Mom, it's cold." She twisted her body.
"Don't move, it's not finished yet." An Shiyu held her down.
Ling Yun opened her eyes and looked at them.
His daughter noticed him watching, grinned at him, and showed him a few tiny teeth.
"dad!"
Ling Yun smiled as well.
After An Shiyu finished applying the lotion, she patted her daughter's bottom.
"Alright, go have fun."
The little guy got up and wobbled towards the sea. After running a few steps, he turned back to see if Lingyun was following.
Ling Yun stood up, walked over, and took her hand.
The seawater was ankle-deep and cool. My daughter was a little scared at first and held his hand tightly. After a while, she got used to it and started kicking the water, splashing water everywhere and giggling.
An Shiyu sat on the beach, watching them.
My phone rang under the parasol.
She stood up, walked over, picked up her phone, glanced at the caller ID, and headed towards the beach.
"Lingyun, phone call."
Lingyun took the phone; the screen displayed two words: Dell.
He answered the call.
"Ling." Dell's voice came through the receiver, sounding a little unnatural.
"What is it?"
"There's something I need to tell you," Dell paused, "several shareholders have objections to the Middle East Institute's proposal."
Ling Yun didn't speak.
"They think the investment is unnecessary and want you to convene a board meeting to discuss it," Dell said. "I don't have any problems with that, but... you need to know."
Ling Yun looked at the sea. A speedboat sped by, leaving a long white trail behind it.
"Who suggested it?"
"Goldman Sachs," Dell said, "and Morgan Stanley agreed too."
"Ling," Dale's voice lowered, "I don't think this is right. How much does the Middle East Institute cost? It's only a few tens of millions. They wouldn't go to such lengths to cause you trouble over this."
"I understand, I'll get back as soon as possible."
hang up the phone.
Ling Yun stood there, deep in thought, and seemed to sense a dangerous atmosphere himself.
An Shiyu walked over and stood next to him.
"What's wrong?"
Ling Yun frowned deeply. "Someone's up to no good."
The daughter was still kicking in the water, having a great time, and shouting, "Daddy, look!"
An Shiyu looked at him, waited a few seconds, and asked, "Is someone causing trouble?"
Ling Yun turned around. "I have to go," he said.
An Shiyu was taken aback. "Where to?"
California.
An Shiyu looked at him without saying anything.
His daughter was still calling "Daddy, look!" When he ignored her, she ran over and grabbed his hand.
"Dad, look!"
Ling Yun lowered his head and looked at her.
"Dad has something to do," he said. "Let Mom play with you."
The daughter pouted, looking unhappy.
An Shiyu picked her up. "When are you leaving?"
"The sooner the better; we need time to investigate some situations."
An Shiyu nodded. "Then let's go back to the hotel and pack up."
2 PM, hotel room.
The suitcase lay open on the floor as An Shiyu packed her things. She carefully folded and put away her daughter's clothes, shoes, and toys, one by one.
Lingyun stood by the window and made a phone call.
"Sophia, book me the next flight to San Francisco."
"Yes, Mr. Ling."
hang up the phone.
An Shiyu zipped up her suitcase and stood up.
"Zhao Hu contacted Lin Xiaonan for me," she said. "She's coming to Singapore tomorrow to accompany us back."
Ling Yun looked at her and said, "I'm sorry, I wanted to spend a few more days with you and your child."
An Shiyu shook her head. "It's nothing."
She walked over and stood beside him. "Won't those people target you? Will you be in danger?"
Ling Yun nodded. "Don't worry, their actions were expected."
An Shiyu looked at him and said, "Be careful and pay attention to your safety. If things go wrong, get out of there as soon as possible."
Ling Yun nodded.
Four o'clock in the afternoon, at the airport.
Lingyun squatted down, looking his daughter in the eye. "Daddy has to go on a business trip," he said. "You and Mommy go home first."
His daughter looked at him, blinking her eyes, and asked, "When is Daddy coming back?"
"Daddy will finish his work soon and come home to be with our little princess."
She reached out, hugged his neck, and kissed him on the cheek.
Ling Yun hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, stood up, and looked at An Shiyu.
An Shiyu didn't speak, she just looked at him.
"Call me when you get there," she finally said.
Ling Yun nodded.
He turned around, walked towards the security checkpoint, took a few steps, and then looked back.
An Shiyu was still standing there, holding her daughter, looking at him, and her daughter was waving.
He waved and turned to walk into the security checkpoint.
8 PM.
On the plane, Ling Yun leaned back in his seat, his eyes closed, but his mind was racing.
The Middle East Institute, with an investment of $70 million, is building an adaptation center in Dubai specifically for optimizing the Arabic version. It's not a big deal; it doesn't even require board approval.
But some people wanted to bring it up for discussion at the board meeting—not discussion, but opposition.
Who is pulling the strings behind the scenes?
He remembered Anderson's smiling face. He remembered Winston's words, "600 billion, the stock will definitely go up at the open." He remembered how readily HP acquired his 10% stake.
From financing to listing, everything went too smoothly. Lingyun felt something was off back then, and now the fox's true colors are finally about to be revealed.
Now that they've finally arrived, who could it be?
Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are merely tools in the foreground. They have no direct interest in ousting Ling Yun; on the contrary, the internal turmoil will cause their stock prices to fall, resulting in financial losses for them.
Dell and HP will be the direct beneficiaries. Whoever acquires Lingyun's shares will become the controller of Xingchen and the absolute major shareholder.
Currently, I own 22% of the shares, and employees hold 13%, giving me 35% control, which is more than a third. I still maintain the upper hand, and I need to meet with each shareholder individually to gauge their attitudes.
He opened his eyes and looked out the porthole at the night sky. Below were clouds, and he couldn't see anything.
The plane flew eastward, chasing the direction of the sun.
He is getting further and further away from Singapore and closer and closer to California.
The battle, which has not yet begun, is drawing ever closer.