“Pfft!” Jacob suddenly burst out laughing, then raised his hand to hide it, his face tinged with a slight apology, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that, I just ……”
Edward Ford sulked a little disgruntled, “What, were my words ridiculous?”
“No.” He shook his head.
“Then why are you laughing?”
Jacob didn’t answer immediately, just slowly poured himself a cup of tea.
“Mr Ford ……”
At that, Edward Ford’s eyes shot up to his.
Jacob looked over as well, and their eyes met in the air with a ripple underneath them, “Can I trust your word?”
Jacob was deeply puzzled.
Edward Ford smiled, “Do you think I can’t be trusted?”
Jacob shook his head unapologetically, “I’ve met Mr Ford many times, of course I know you a little, of course you know everything about me, we know each other, but ……”
“But what?”
“But I’m a small man after all, I can’t guarantee that I really know everything about you Mr Ford, besides I just can’t figure out how someone like me could be of interest to Mr Ford.”
“As I said, you are young and have the strength for it!”
“But there are plenty of people who have the strength and are young.” Jacob poked holes in his words straight away, “Mr Ford, don’t blame me for being too blunt, after all, I’m just afraid you’ll use me.”
Edward Ford shook his head at him and tapped his fingers on the table.
When he raised his eyes again, there was a flash of grim sting, “So what if I said that I was wanting Logan Brown to take a major hit?”
“That ……”
Jacob was silent for a moment, unsure how he should answer.
Edward Ford laughed out loud, “Don’t be nervous, I was just joking, I see you as a person more than Logan Brown, no matter what you think of yourself, I have only one thing to say, I see what you can do, and naturally I will treat you well!”
“Now then, what Mr Ford said, was that also one-sided?”
“What?”
Edward Ford looked puzzled, somewhat unsure of his sudden query.
Jacob hooked his lips, “For so long I stayed by Mr Brown’s side, not that I was heartfelt, but I had nowhere else to go, and I was even less able to trust everyone wholeheartedly, including, of course, you, Mr Ford.”
He swept him along, his gaze frank, “So it never occurred to me to leave Mr Brown’s side, let alone betray him.”
Edward Ford narrowed his eyes dangerously and said, word for word, “And what if I could make you trust me?”
“How would you like to do that?” Jacob was a little confused.
“Time will tell!” Edward Ford said in a stern voice, “Jacob, it’s not that I’m confident, it’s that I’ve never failed to get someone I’ve had my eye on!”
“Time?” Jacob snorted again, but this time instead of apologising, his contemptuous gaze fell on him, “Is that a joke, Mr Ford?”
Edward Ford met his gaze with a flash of embarrassment, “You ……”
I may be a small man, but I am aware that my current position is not a small one, I have all the control of KL and an enviable salary, something that many people have worked for half their lives to achieve, and Mr Ford is now asking me to give that up to start from scratch with you? ”
“Mr Ford!” Jacob’s eyes sharpened, “Don’t treat me Jacob like I’m a fool!”
“Jacob, I didn’t mean that ……”
“Whatever you meant, I said I can’t trust you!” Jacob’s voice went down a few notches.
Edward Ford also fell silent.
Jacob spoke again after a long time, “Mr. Ford, I know the path you’ve given me for the future may be a prosperous one, but in any case, without any guarantee I can only say sorry to Mr. Ford, I prefer to be down-to-earth than that hopeless future.”
“In that case, what terms do you wish to make?”
“That’s for Mr Ford to consider isn’t it?”
Jacob looked at him innocently, “Mr Ford, don’t blame Jacob for being stubborn, I just don’t want to end up with a kick in the ass after I’ve betrayed Mr Brown and got nothing out of it.”
“I’m not that faithless!” Edward Ford said through clenched teeth.
“NO.”
Jacob shook his head at him, “Mr Ford, it’s not about credit, it’s about trust.”
“Then in that case, I can’t trust you either, how do you guarantee that you won’t betray me after I give you what you want!” Edward Ford looked at him suspiciously.
Jacob hooked his lips, as if he had been waiting for this from the beginning, “Don’t worry, Mr. Ford, since I said it, I naturally have the corresponding sincerity.”
He took out a document and placed it on the table, “I know that the Ford Group’s reputation has been tarnished and the stock market has been in turmoil, so I’m sure the company’s shareholders are already talking about it?”
“What’s this?” Edward Ford scanned it, suppressing his eagerness to turn it over.
Jacob smiled, “It’s a piece of land that KL wants to take, here’s the low bid for the competition and the project proposal that KL is prepared to do.”
Edward Ford was a businessman, and he knew better than anyone the importance of this information, not to mention that the Ford Group wanted the land, too, but just couldn’t afford it.
After all, he had enough on his plate dealing with the Ford Group, and even less time to do so.
Edward Ford clenched his hand, “How can you prove that this information is true?”
“So it would also require Mr Ford to trust me wouldn’t it?” He smiled and then said, “I have shown my due sincerity and now the choice is all yours Mr Ford, to believe or not to believe?”
Jacob’s words were like a dilemma that put Edward Ford in a difficult position.
Jacob didn’t push him, he put down the cup of tea he was holding and got up, “Mr Ford, I’ll give you time to think it over.”
He said, one hand moved to his face, leaving a note, “This is the temporary phone card I opened, contact me at this number all this time, the phone calls now will only make the gentleman suspicious if he is contacted too much.”