On the morning of the second day, sunlight filtered through the windows of the dilapidated factory building, slanting onto the dusty floor and leaving mottled patches of light and shadow.
Xia En’s Lark Unmanned Equipment Company was set up in this somewhat remote industrial zone.
The iron door of the factory was pushed open with a sharp, ear-piercing creak, and Smith walked in with heavy footsteps.
He looked around, his gaze sweeping over exposed rebar, piles of discarded parts in the corners, and the solitary desk sitting in the middle of the factory floor.
Seeing the place where he would be working day in and day out, the hint of expectation he had originally felt vanished instantly, as if extinguished by cold water.
Smith’s mouth twitched, and a sense of regret inexplicably rose in his heart.
He felt as though he had accidentally fallen into a carefully dug pit.
He took a deep breath, suppressing his annoyance, and walked toward the only desk.
His tone was full of disbelief.
“Boss, surely we haven’t reached the point where we can’t even rent a decent office building?”
Hearing his voice, Xia En, who had been dozing on the desk, slowly raised his head.
His eyes were bleary, and the corners were bloodshot from lack of sleep; he clearly hadn’t fully recovered from his exhaustion.
No one knew that he had pulled another all-nighter.
In the deep of night, the confusion about the future and the fear of falling behind had wrapped around his heart like vines, making it impossible to sleep.
It was this bone-deep fear that made him throw caution to the wind, completely disregarding his health.
He had sworn to himself that even if he had to give everything he had, he would catch up to the world’s progress.
He couldn’t afford to be left behind anymore.
Thus, throughout the night, he had endured by drinking cup after cup of scalding black coffee.
The bitter coffee slid down his throat, barely dispelling some of the fatigue, but it couldn’t dispel the sense of urgency in his heart.
Sporting heavy dark circles under his eyes, his gaze was nonetheless exceptionally determined.
Facing the computer screen, he had delved bit by bit into the knowledge of electronic engineering and manufacturing—from basic component structures to complex assembly techniques—not daring to slack off for even a moment.
Hard work paid off.
With the help of the massive amount of data available online, combined with his night of dedicated study and repeated deliberation, the research data for the Hummingbird Drone had finally seen a significant breakthrough, successfully advancing to a medium level.
However, the research and development work still had a long way to go.
He still lacked actual manufacturing experience and the precise data accumulated through countless experiments.
These would need to be perfected step by bit later on.
Smith walked up to the desk.
Seeing Xia En’s sunken eyes and haggard face—with his cheeks even looking a bit hollowed out—he called out again in a tone of feigned concern, “Boss!”
He knew exactly what he was doing.
He wasn’t truly worried about Xia En’s health; after all, they were strangers.
What he was actually worried about was that if Xia En kept this up and suddenly collapsed—or worse—his high-paying job would vanish into thin air.
One had to remember that he had a criminal record and was using a fake identity.
Finding a job that wasn’t too strenuous and paid this well was harder than climbing to heaven.
He rubbed his aching temples, his voice raspy from sleep.
“What did you say…
Oh, right!”
He pointed at the dilapidated factory around them, his tone gaining some confidence.
“Don’t look at the company being squeezed into this old factory right now.
We’ve already successfully secured financing.”
Halfway through his sentence, he paused, carefully recalling the time agreed upon with the investors, and then corrected himself.
“The funds will be deposited into the company account exactly nine days from now, without any delay.”
With that, he straightened his back and issued his first official task to Smith.
“Your core mission right now is to go out and rent an office floor belonging to our company.”
He paused and added, “It’s best to choose a location in Brooklyn.
The area is good, and it’ll be convenient for future business operations.
Try to find a floor with a good environment and suitable square footage.”
As soon as he heard that the company had secured financing and that he had a clear task, Smith, as an excellent accountant, instantly perked up.
The annoyance and dissatisfaction on his face were swept away, and he immediately straightened his back, responding firmly, “Understood, Boss!
Rest assured, I’ll head to Brooklyn today.
I’ll definitely find a suitable office building as soon as possible; I won’t delay things.”
Seeing his vigorous and resolute manner, a hint of satisfaction appeared on Xia En’s face.
He nodded and then pulled out two employment contracts he had prepared earlier from the desk drawer.
The two of them sat at the desk and signed their names stroke by stroke.
These contracts involved their future cooperation, but they also hid Xia En’s secret intentions.
There were fundamental differences between the two contracts.
One used Smith’s real identity, while the other used the fake identity he had specifically forged.
The contract for the fake identity was in duplicate, with each of them holding a copy for daily work inspections.
The contract with the real identity, however, was carefully kept entirely in Xia En’s hands; this was the leverage he would use to control Smith.
Throughout the entire signing process, Xia En was exceptionally cautious.
His eyes were glued to every stroke of Smith’s signature, checking it over and over again.
He was terrified that Smith might secretly tamper with it, leaving behind some evidence that could threaten him later or be used against him—he didn’t even overlook an inconspicuous detail in the signature.
Only after confirming that there were no hidden dangers in the contracts and that every clause met his satisfaction did he breathe a sigh of relief.
He then took out the company account information, financial statement templates, and other related financial documents from the drawer and handed them to Smith.
After handing over the materials, Xia En waved his hand for Smith to lean in, and the two of them spoke privately at the desk for a very long time.
The content of the conversation was vague.
Xia En didn’t speak explicitly, but he hinted at some “shady” arrangements in the future, implying that Smith needed to cooperate fully without any objections.
Being as shrewd as he was, Smith instantly understood the deeper meaning behind Xia En’s words.
Taking the company account information, Smith didn’t hesitate to immediately open the computer and log in to check the funds.
However, the balance shown on the screen made him freeze instantly.
He frowned and looked up at Xia En, his tone full of doubt and confusion.
“Boss, where’s the money?
There isn’t a single cent in the company account.”
Xia En blinked with feigned ignorance, his tone innocent.
“What money?”
“The financing money for the company!” Smith explained patiently, pointing at the computer screen.
“Didn’t you say the financing was successful?”
A “how could you forget” expression appeared on Xia En’s face, his tone matter-of-fact.
“Didn’t I tell you?
The funds won’t arrive for nine days.
Naturally, there’s no money in the account right now.”
Smith grew anxious and leaned forward, his tone urgent.
“But renting an office building requires money!
Even the deposit is a significant amount.
I can’t exactly go rent a place empty-handed, can I?”
“Figure it out yourself.
For example, go to the bank for a loan.”
As he spoke, Xia En took out a series of documents from the safe behind him—the letter of intent for investment, company asset certification, and a copy of the financing agreement.
He placed the documents on the desk and pushed them toward Smith, instructing, “You can take photos of these documents for your records to handle the loan procedures, but you absolutely cannot take the originals.
You must return them to me after looking.”
Having said that, he stood up and patted Smith on the shoulder, his tone a mix of teasing and authority.
“You’re a mature accountant with extensive experience.
You have to learn to solve problems yourself; you can’t rely on me for everything.”
Looking at Xia En’s “of course” attitude, Smith opened his mouth to say something, but couldn’t squeeze out a single word for a long time.
He was filled with helplessness and frustration, yet there was nothing he could do—after all, Xia En was the boss, and he needed the job.
Before Smith could react, Xia En waved him off, a hint of impatience showing on his face as he urged, “Hurry up and get to work.
Don’t waste my time here; I have other important things to attend to.”
With no other choice, Smith picked up the documents from the desk, carefully tucked them away, and walked out of the factory slowly with a face full of grievance.
When he reached the door, he couldn’t help but look back once more.
Seeing the silhouette of Xia En slumping back over the desk, he sighed inwardly.
He could only brace himself and head toward Brooklyn.