138: Chapter 138 Let the storm rage, I remain steadfast (Part 1)

Meanwhile, in a special care unit at the hospital, Wang Hongtai kept a worried vigil by the bedside. His brows were tightly knitted, and his gaze never left his son on the hospital bed.

Wang Hao lay on the bed, covered in tubes, his head shaved clean. The crimson blood seeping through the gauze on his head and chest was glaring, mingling with the brownish-yellow of the medicine. An IV drip was connected to his hand, while the cardiac monitoring equipment nearby emitted a mechanical and cold "beep, beep" sound. The numbers and curves on the display screen fluctuated with Wang Hao's weak heartbeat, creating an exceptionally wretched scene.

Seeing his son in this state tore at Wang Hongtai's heart.

He hadn't slept all night, his eyes bloodshot. At this moment, he kept his head bowed, hands tightly clenched, silently praying that nothing would happen to his son and that he would wake up soon...

Suddenly, the door to the patient room was gently pushed open. Secretary Wu appeared at the entrance, holding a briefcase, nervously poking his head inside, his face full of anxiety.

At this moment, a young police officer in uniform stood at the door. It was no longer Sun Yizhong, who had been on duty last night; presumably, this officer had come to relieve him.

The young officer said to Wang Hongtai inside the room: "Mr. Wang, a Mr. Wu is here to see you; he claims to be your secretary."

Upon hearing this, Wang Hongtai slowly stood up from his chair. Due to the exhaustion of staying up all night, he could barely straighten his back. Supporting himself on the chair, he stood up with difficulty, then walked over slowly and waved at Secretary Wu, signaling him that they should go outside to talk. Immediately after, he turned back and took one last deep look at Wang Hao on the bed. Then, the two of them tacitly walked toward a quiet, secluded corner nearby.

"Chairman, how is the Young Master's condition?" Secretary Wu asked with concern as they walked.

"Sigh," Wang Hongtai sighed deeply and shook his head: "He just came out of the operating room and hasn't woken up yet."

"Chairman, you must take care of your own health too..." Secretary Wu consoled him, a flash of worry in his eyes.

"Ahem, let's not talk about that." Wang Hongtai waved his hand and looked at Secretary Wu, asking: "What brings you here?"

The two stood in a quiet corner. Secretary Wu nervously took out his phone, tapped the screen, handed it to Wang Hongtai, and said in a low voice: "Chairman, something has happened... Early this morning, a post suddenly appeared online, detailing our company's bid-rigging, collusion, and corruption of officials over the years, accompanied by a large number of photos. This includes the content from the 'Acquisition Letter of Intent' that Lawyer Wang gave you yesterday..."

"What?!" Wang Hongtai exclaimed, his eyes wide, his face full of disbelief. He quickly took the phone and browsed through the post, his face gradually turning pale. He asked urgently: "How is this possible? Didn't I already agree to their demands? Why are they still doing this?"

Secretary Wu also appeared very confused and shook his head: "I don't know either. Logically speaking, exposing these things wouldn't benefit them either..."

Wang Hongtai paced back and forth anxiously, clearly extremely distressed. Suddenly, he stopped and asked: "Is there any movement from Vice Mayor Qian's side?"

"Secretary Wang called me before five o'clock," Secretary Wu replied. "He said Vice Mayor Qian is very dissatisfied and is questioning us about what is going on. However, I have carefully reviewed the content of the post, and the parts involving Vice Mayor Qian have been censored. It seems the person who posted it does not intend to bring down Vice Mayor Qian."

"Damn it!" Wang Hongtai cursed angrily. "Then this is clearly aimed at me!"

Secretary Wu nodded and said worriedly: "Chairman, it's already causing an uproar online. Vice Mayor Qian certainly won't be able to withstand the pressure, so we must prepare early. Once this matter is investigated by the police, the China Securities Regulatory Commission will immediately find out, and our company's listing plan will likely have to be shelved..."

Wang Hongtai took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. After frowning and thinking for a moment, he said: "Contact Lawyer Wang immediately and tell him I want to see his boss. Right now, he is likely the only one with the ability to suppress this matter. If Hongtai Construction cannot go public, the forty percent equity promised to him will also go down the drain! We are currently grasshoppers tied to the same rope!"

"Very well, Chairman," Secretary Wu immediately replied. "I will contact him right now!" With that, he hurriedly took out his phone and started making the call.

Not long after, in the luxurious presidential suite of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in the Magic City, Zhao Lintai leaned lazily against the headboard, rubbing his temples with an exhausted look on his face.

His phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID; it was from Wang Ming. The moment he answered, he frowned unhappily, a trace of irritation showing in his eyes. "Wang Ming, you'd better have something important." Zhao Lintai's tone carried obvious impatience; he had tossed and turned all night and was now suffering from a severe headache.

Wang Ming sensed Zhao Lintai's dissatisfaction and laughed sheepishly: "Sorry, Boss, for disturbing your rest. But there is indeed an urgent matter; Secretary Wu just called to say that Wang Hongtai wants to meet with you."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Lintai raised an eyebrow slightly, a glint of amusement flashing in his eyes: "Oh? Wang Hongtai wants to see me? Did he say what it was about?"

"He didn't specify," Wang Ming replied, "but I suspect it might be related to the post exposing dirt on Hongtai Construction that appeared online early this morning."

"An online post? What post?" Zhao Lintai's brows knitted slightly; he was clearly unaware of the matter.

"You don't know yet, Boss? I thought you were the one who arranged for that post to be published..." Wang Ming appeared somewhat surprised. "It's like this: early this morning, a post suddenly appeared online exposing Hongtai Construction's bid-rigging, collusion, and issues with corruption among some officials. Some of the photos included are the exact documents from the 'Acquisition Letter of Intent' you gave me."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Lintai's brows locked tight. He sat up abruptly, his tone serious: "What's going on? How could it have been leaked?"

Learning that it wasn't something the boss had specifically arranged, Wang Ming fell silent on the other end of the line. After a moment, he spoke again, pondering: "Boss, I am also very confused. I only gave those Materials to Wang Hongtai, and also gave some copies to Vice Mayor Qian. I swear, these Materials were definitely not leaked from my side."

A dark look flashed across Zhao Lintai's face: "Vice Mayor Qian wouldn't leak it. If it wasn't you, then the problem must be on Wang Hongtai's side. Could there be a mole inside Hongtai Construction?"

Wang Ming carefully chimed in: "That's hard to say. After all, just like Secretary Wu, isn't he your person, Boss... Perhaps it's a competitor of Hongtai Construction playing tricks."

"That is possible." Zhao Lintai snorted coldly, a glint of cunning in his eyes, and continued: "Fine, tell Wang Hongtai to come to the hotel to see me." He paused, then added: "By the way, how is the equity acquisition contract coming along?"

"It's already prepared, Boss." Wang Ming replied crisply, his tone carrying a trace of relief.

"Very good," Zhao Lintai's tone revealed satisfaction. "Then you come over too, and we'll sign the contract while we're at it, to avoid any long delays."

"Hehe, alright, Boss. Boss is wise!" Wang Ming replied with a smile, his tone tinged with sycophancy.

After hanging up, Zhao Lintai gently rubbed his chin, lost in thought. He secretly pondered who could have beaten him to the punch in exposing the Hongtai Construction matter.

He had intended to wait until the equity acquisition contract was signed before selectively exposing those Materials, at which point Hongtai Construction's listing plan would naturally be aborted.

However, the exposure now had actually helped him in a roundabout way. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but curl his lips into a smug, cold smile.

With this thought, Zhao Lintai took out his phone and began searching for the exposé post about Hongtai Construction. He carefully read the content of the post, a satisfied expression appearing on his face.

A moment later, he muttered to himself: "This poster is actually quite smart, not exposing everything. However, what's here is enough; it's sufficient to derail Hongtai Construction's listing plan."

As he said this, he flipped through his phone contacts, locked his gaze on a number, and dialed it.

The call was answered quickly. Zhao Lintai said in a deep voice: "President Chu? This is Zhao Lintai. You must have heard about the Hongtai Construction matter by now, right?"

"Hmm, I just saw it too." A thick, middle-aged man's voice came from the other end of the line, laughing flatteringly: "Young Master Zhao, great tactics. I am very curious, how did you obtain these Materials?"

Seeing that he thought it was his own doing, Zhao Lintai didn't refute it and took the opportunity to laugh smugly: "Haha, well, I naturally have my own channels and methods."

"Yes, yes, yes," President Chu flattered. "Young Master Zhao is indeed exceptionally capable! I am deeply impressed."

"President Chu, you flatter me." Zhao Lintai responded modestly. "Wang Hongtai will come to meet me later. Once I finish handling things on my end, President Chu can proceed with the plan to force Wang Hongtai to step down. By then, the entire Hongtai Construction will be yours for the taking."

"Hahaha!" President Chu laughed heartily. "Then I will await your good news, Young Master Zhao! Happy cooperation!"

On the other side, after Wang Ming finished his call with Zhao Lintai, he quickly called Secretary Wu back: "Secretary Wu, tell Wang Hongtai that the Boss has agreed to meet with him. Tell him to come to The Ritz-Carlton Hotel; I am heading over there now."

Upon hearing this news, Secretary Wu's voice carried a hint of joy: "Very well, Lawyer Wang. I will go report to Chairman Wang right away!"

"Hmm, don't rush," Wang Ming added. "The Boss's intention is to sign the equity acquisition contract directly at this meeting. Secretary Wu, don't forget to bring the official seal of Hongtai Construction."

Secretary Wu was slightly taken aback and said with some difficulty: "Oh, bring the official seal... I have to report this to Chairman Wang..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ming frowned, his tone carrying a hint of displeasure: "Report? Secretary Wu, whose side are you on exactly? As the Chairman's secretary, you can't even take out an official seal?"

After being scolded by Wang Ming, Secretary Wu felt somewhat awkward. He secretly glanced at Wang Hongtai, and seeing he wasn't paying attention to him, he hurriedly explained in a low voice: "Uh, I am naturally on the Boss's side, Lawyer Wang, I understand. Please tell the Boss not to worry; I will bring the official seal."

"Hmm, that's more like it." Wang Ming nodded with satisfaction. "Alright, go notify Wang Hongtai quickly, don't let the Boss wait too long."

After hanging up, Secretary Wu checked the time, secretly calculating the time to return to the company to get the seal and come back. He took a deep breath, turned, and returned to Wang Hongtai's side, a slightly apologetic smile on his face: "Chairman, Lawyer Wang said he couldn't get through to Boss Zhao, who might still be resting. He will try calling again in half an hour, and asked us to be patient."

Upon hearing this, although somewhat disappointed, Wang Hongtai could only nod helplessly: "Is that so... Alright then, let's wait a bit longer. Being anxious now won't help matters."

Seeing this, Secretary Wu quickly suggested: "Chairman, why don't I go buy you something to eat? You've stayed up all night and must be hungry."

Upon hearing this, Wang Hongtai touched his stomach; he was indeed a bit hungry, so he nodded in agreement: "Now that you mention it, I am actually a bit hungry. Thank you for your trouble."

"It's no trouble at all." Secretary Wu hurriedly waved his hand and smiled. "Then I will go buy you breakfast." With that, he turned and jogged out of the hospital, drove his car, and headed in the direction of the Hongtai Construction Building.

Twenty-plus minutes later, Secretary Wu returned to the hospital carrying a steaming hot breakfast.

Wang Hongtai was currently resting his eyes against the lounge chair outside the patient room. Secretary Wu walked quickly to his side and handed him the breakfast: "Chairman, please eat something first. Also, Wang Ming has called back, saying that Boss Zhao has agreed to see you. He wants you to meet him at the presidential suite of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel."

Wang Hongtai took the breakfast. Hearing this news, he didn't give a second thought to why it had taken Secretary Wu so long to buy breakfast. A hint of joy appeared on his face: "Good, I understand. You go wait for me downstairs first; I will go check on Wang Hao again before I head down."

"Yes, Chairman." Secretary Wu replied. He turned and walked toward the elevator area, his pace noticeably lighter than when he arrived.

Wang Hongtai quickly returned to Wang Hao's room. Seeing his son lying on the bed, still unconscious, he felt a sharp pain in his heart. He gently took Wang Hao's cold hand, his eyes flickering with worry and helplessness: "Son, this time both of us father and son have encountered big trouble. If we can't get past this hurdle, the good days for our family will come to an end..." Speaking of this, his voice couldn't help but tremble slightly, yet a flash of determination crossed his eyes. "However, rest assured, Dad will definitely do everything possible to solve this problem."

Wang Hongtai patted Wang Hao's hand heavily, then gently placed Wang Hao's hand back on the bed, and turned to walk out of the room.