“Mr. Jacob, the talent has just arrived, why are you in such a hurry to leave?” Edward Ford appeared smilingly, his face not apologetic in the slightest.
Jacob swept a glance at him and demolished him straight away, “Why, didn’t you say that Mr. Ford had just arrived at the gate? I thought I’d just go out and have a look, why is Mr Ford coming out of it instead?”
“I ……”
Edward Ford’s face was embarrassed.
He was afraid that if he said something wrong, he would cause Edward Ford to lose face, but if he didn’t explain, he would have to be scolded by Edward Ford when he returned.
Jacob stopped short and suddenly laughed, “Is it possible that Mr Ford went to the bathroom before calling his assistant?”
“Yes, yes, yes.” Edward Ford saw the steps and immediately followed them down, “I just went to the bathroom and didn’t have time to say anything, but who knew you would come out right away, it’s a good thing we met, otherwise we might have missed it.”
Jacob laughed sarcastically.
Edward Ford, pretending not to see the look on his face, took him by the arm and headed for the booth, “Mr. Jacob, I asked you out on a special date today, you can’t leave.”
“If Mr Ford is sincere then naturally I will be there to the end.”
“If that’s the case that’s great!” Edward Ford smiled broadly and turned to his assistant, “Go and bring in the wine I have stored here, I want to have a nice chat with Mr Jacob.”
The assistant had no say in the matter, so he nodded in response.
Jacob was dragged straight in by Edward Ford, and Jacob had no choice but to go along with him and rejoin the box.
After three rounds of drinks, Edward Ford opened up and said, “Jacob, I know you’ve always been a smart guy, so you must have known what I was thinking before you came, right?”
Jacob smiled, “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”
“No, you’re not stupid, you just like to play dumb,” Edward Ford patted him on the shoulder, meaningfully.
“What does Mr Ford mean?”
“It doesn’t matter if you don’t know, and I can be blunt, Mr Jacob has always had ability and I admire you, so would you be interested in joining forces with me?”
“Team up? With you?”
He squeezed the goblet he was holding wordlessly, his expression natural.
Edward Ford took in all his emotions and his eyes deepened, “Yes, with me, Mr Jacob, you’re young and talented, do you think you’ll always be at the mercy of KL? Or, do you think you’re stuck with Logan Brown for the rest of your life?”
He was too good to be anything more than a waste of time with Logan Brown, so why not follow him when he could give him more opportunities, more of everything he wanted.
“Sir doesn’t do anything to displease me, and will let me do what I want to do, so ……”
“That’s not the same.”
Edward Ford interrupted just in time, even calling him by his first name, “Jacob, you will always stay with Logan Brown as just a second-in-command, you will never be able to take the reigns yourself, do you understand?”
“Dominance?” Jacob frowned, “What is Mr Ford trying to say?”
“My point was obvious from the start!” Edward Ford said word for word, “Join forces with me and take KL, and you will be the true master of KL, and you won’t need to work under anyone!”
“K…… KL!?”
Jacob stammered, clearly intimidated by him, “Mr. Ford, are you serious? And, you’re asking me to betray sir, I told you I won’t ……”
“This has nothing to do with betrayal, it has to do with profit.”
“Mr Ford ……”
Jacob was about to say something else when Edward Ford shook his head at him, “Jacob, never think of morality in business, the person who should think of you first is yourself, and besides, in all your years as Logan Brown’s subordinate, have you never had second thoughts? Or …… want to be above him!”
Jacob’s grip on his glass grew tighter, the backs of his hands bruised, as if he was suppressing his impulses.
Edward Ford saw this and knew there was an opportunity to take advantage of it and continued to speak, “Jacob, don’t blame me for being blunt, I just think you have the ability and you’re not willing to settle for that.”
“Mr. Ford ……” Jacob put down his glass heavily, his hand a little unsteady, and the wine spilled out with it, dripping onto the clean white tablecloth, the burgundy liquid slowly staining out, just like the mind at that moment, once it was stained with other colours, it was never clean again.
“I can’t answer you now, and …… I’m not able to trust you completely, and if I do everything for you and you give up on me afterwards, it will be more than I can afford to lose.”
Jacob was thoughtful and spoke directly to the biggest distrust in his heart.
Edward Ford stared at him blankly for a moment, then burst out laughing, “Sure enough, there’s just no need to beat around the bush when talking to you.”
Jacob tugged at the corner of his mouth and didn’t continue talking.
“Jacob, you need time to think it over I can give you time, but I don’t expect the wait in the meantime to be permanent, understand?” Edward Ford had been speaking in a pleasant manner, only for his words to change in the next moment, sending an inexplicable chill down his backbone.
Jacob put down his cutlery and lifted his glass and tilted it slightly in his direction, “Don’t worry, if Mr Ford is sincere, it’s not a bad thing.”
“Why?” Edward Ford narrowed his eyes and stared at him intently.
Jacob’s lips lifted in a wry smile, “No reason, but as Mr Ford said, no one wants to sit in one position forever, it’s too hard to be …… under one person. …”
The second half of the words he did not say, except that, Edward Ford could clearly understand the meaning of his words.
The two men smiled at each other and hit it off.
Jacob didn’t stay long, but left after a short while.
Only after he had left did the assistant return to the box, where Edward Ford sat in the main seat with a look of concentration that made his heart skip a beat and he quietly hid away without disturbing him.
It was only after a long time that Edward Ford spoke again slowly, “Get someone to keep an eye on Jacob during this period, I want to know if he is sincere in his desire to work with me!”
“What ……” the assistant said with a flash of surprise, “has Jacob agreed to accept Ford’s offer?”
How could it be so swift?
Edward Ford shook his head, “That’s not true, it’s just that, I know he has the intention, it’s just that, he doesn’t fully trust me yet.”
Of course, he doesn’t trust him enough either!