Two trickles of blood crossed down his forehead and traversed further across his nosebridge and unto his chin.

"I had only given you two instructions, and you failed both! First, I told you to focus on the selling end ONLY and retreat when you are nearing your limit. And second is to get that Chen guy! You failed both! What a great son I have!"

"And now, you've created even more problems! I'll enumerate for you. One. The s.h.i.+pping lines are either not cooperating or hiking their prices. Two. The company is losing more money without edge over our compet.i.tors! Three. We are losing our market share! It's good if all of us oil players are losing but it's only us! Do you know why?"

"It's because they've teamed up, Father."

How would he react if he learned that the gamechanger that made him lose face, and lose entirely in his own game was none other than Chen Linyun? How would he have faced the fact, that his rival for Teng Man Rui had been helping his archnemesis, Chen Linyun?

Chairman s.h.i.+ continued in castigating his own son.

"Four. The person I told you to get, you not only failed to get! Now, you've even intruded the sourcing side YOURSELF even if you don't have the expertise! Look what happened! Smuggling? I told you to ONLY focus on the selling end, yet you inadvertently did not heed my advice and acted on your own. Now even the government's attention is on us! You're simply brilliant! Grand Slam, it is!" He was. .h.i.tting the table with his fists. He was throwing his own fit of rage.

"I wonder if this business can still be saved!"

"I must have been cursed! Just when I thought I had a spare, this son turned out to be useless!"

"I'm doing everything I could, Father. Please be patient." s.h.i.+ Fan Hai retorted silently when in fact he was seething in his own rage. He was holding it in.

"How can I be patient? We are losing money. We are falling! Am I only going to watch? Especially if you commit one mistake after another!"

"That's what your arrogance led you!"

"Just when I thought I brought back this family's only hope! The hope turned out to be a bane! I should have left you to the dogs before!"

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai was quiet but he was trembling with too much rage. Clenched fists, he was trying so hard not to talk back or beat the h.e.l.l out of his exemplary father. 'You're not the best father either.' He retorted in his mind.

'You should have left me alone then. That would be much better.'

'But then, Man Rui… I'm doing everthing for Man Rui but she's not even here anymore.'

'd.a.m.n it! d.a.m.n this life.'

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai whined and cursed inside his head. On the outside, he stayed rooted to where he was standing.

"You still find the audacity to glare at me, b.a.s.t.a.r.d!" Chairman s.h.i.+ spitted angrily.

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai slowly curled her lips into his gaudy grin and tilted his head slightly upward. "Regretting your decision of taking me in, Father? Should I just leave?" He taunted. "Should I just return to gutters where I came from?"

"b.a.s.t.a.r.d! After all this mess you created! Clean it up first! We were leading when I handed the company to you!"

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai frowned a little. "I bet you knew the company is bound to fall. Otherwise, you wouldn't have loosen your reign on it. You are only searching for someone to put the blame on. Unfortunately that someone is me."

"Am I right, Father?" He ended his little speculation jeering with his taunting smile again.

"What do you know?" Chairman s.h.i.+ reb.u.t.ted. "This company will be pa.s.sed on to you eventually. Why would I do that?"

"Stupid child."

"I don't know, Father. What do I know, right, Father? Maybe, you're using every bit of me feeding your own avarice. I'm just a tool anyway. Not a family."

"Being sentimental, now, are we? It doesn't suit you, b.a.s.t.a.r.d!" Chairman s.h.i.+'s fave was contorted with rage.

"Well, well. Since you brought it up, why don't we start some father-son pact, sort-of? On second thought, I don't mind you going out with that lady from the Tengs." Chairman s.h.i.+ was exuding such dark, devious aura.

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai crumpled his face as well, upon hearing his father's words. He could only surmise what his evil father would want from the Tengs.

"Not Man Rui! Leave her alone! Leave the Tengs alone!" He was losing sanity. Coupled with his gory face, and still bleeding wound, he looked as if he came out of a zombie movie – a zombie who's still thirsty and full of bloodl.u.s.t himself.

Regaining his calm, he said, "I'll clean this mess, father."

"You better. Or else, be prepared to marry into the Tengs." Chairman s.h.i.+ left the room after saying his piece.

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai clenched his fists. It would have been a happy event if the situation wasn't as dire as where they currently were. However, he had an impression that his father would leech his way out of this situation through the Tengs, and the easiest backdoor was marriage through their only daughter.

But because s.h.i.+ Fan Hai cared too much for Teng Man Rui, of course he would be displeased of this plan.

'I tried to raise my station by joining my father. I only did that to be worthy of Man Rui, to be her equal. I've tried to conquer other empires to have something of my own. It's for our future together- Man Rui and I.'

'Father can't get what she has from her family. I cannot even give her anything I can be proud of.'

Still rooted to the ground, with his gash still bleeding profusely, s.h.i.+ Fan Hai continued clenching his fists, lost in thought.