Out Of Control All The Way - Chapter 3

Seeing that he did not answer, Shang Shixu exhaled a puff of smoke, stepped closer, and teased, “It has only been a few days, and you’ve forgotten me already?”

Shang Shixu only made friends based on his instincts, so immediate rapport mattered a great deal. The moment he first laid eyes on Jiang Muzhou, he felt the man was exceptionally pleasing to the eye.

Tonight, even though he was dressed inappropriately for the occasion, Jiang Muzhou had shown no awkwardness. Instead, he had naturally removed his jacket, unbuttoned his cuffs, and adjusted his formal attire to join the dinner gathering.

Moreover, he was quite easygoing when drinking with others. Even though he belonged to a completely different circle, he was still able to hold a smooth conversation.

Seeing Shang Shixu staring right at him, Jiang Muzhou smiled and replied, “How could that be?”

Jiang Muzhou had consumed more alcohol than usual today. Now that the alcohol was starting to go to his head, he had no desire to linger.

With that, he put his jacket back on and picked up his document folder.

Judging by his attire, he had clearly come here to discuss business rather than to attend a drinking party.

Shang Shixu asked, “Are you friends with Gu Yubai?”

“Yes.”

“Did you and he come here to talk business with Zhang Ning?”

Jiang Muzhou nodded, completely devoid of any frustration over failure. Discussing partnerships was also a matter of fate and could not be rushed; no one succeeded on the very first try.

Shang Shixu asked again, “How are you getting back? Shall I give you a ride?”

Jiang Muzhou shook his head and refused, “I won’t trouble you. I’ll just hail a cab myself.”

Without pressing further, Shang Shixu turned away to arrange cars for his other friends who had consumed plenty of alcohol.

Stepping out to the entrance of the restaurant, Jiang Muzhou discovered it was starting to drizzle outside.

A chilly gust of wind blew past, causing him to sneeze and instantly sobering him up.

Gu Yubai had brought him along today with the intention of helping him meet and network with more people.

Yet after mingling for a while, he realized that he did not belong to their circle, nor did they inhabit the same world.

If not for this banquet, he and this group of people might never even cross paths in this lifetime.

Oh, wait, there was also that car accident.

Jiang Muzhou laughed at himself.

Drinking and chatting with them was fine, but if he were truly expected to actively befriend and socialize with them, he simply could not bring himself to do it.

Fine rain drifted across the pitch-black sky, looking almost like falling snow under the illumination of the streetlights.

A roadside billboard flickered and transitioned to the next advertisement.

Jiang Muzhou suddenly thought of Shang Shixu and Zhongshi Group.

Being able to ride in a car like that and having a dedicated driver meant his position probably wasn’t low either.

Could he, could he possibly get him to invest?

Immediately, he dismissed the thought. He and Shang Shixu could only be considered strangers.

A small-scale production like his simply wouldn’t catch the eye of such a massive corporation.

After Shang Shixu finished arranging rides for everyone, Jiang Muzhou still hadn’t managed to hail a cab.

He pressed his car key fob, and the lights of a Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon in the adjacent parking space flashed twice.

“Let’s go. It’s this late, it’s raining, and cabs are hard to get.” Without waiting for Jiang Muzhou’s reply, Shang Shixu walked straight toward the vehicle.

Jiang Muzhou glanced at his busy ride-hailing app and locked his phone screen.

Sitting in the passenger seat, he turned to Shang Shixu and expressed his thanks, “Sorry to trouble you.”

Shang Shixu fastened his seatbelt and started the engine. “Don’t mention it. Running into you earlier was my oversight.”

Jiang Muzhou smiled. “Could we not mention the car accident anymore? Every time you bring it up, I feel like I actually got the short end of the stick.”

“Would you like me to compensate you a bit more, then?” Shang Shixu joked back.

The two of them chatted casually back and forth, neither awkward nor overly enthusiastic.

Though the road was packed with vehicles, it wasn’t completely congested.

The place where Jiang Muzhou lived was quite a distance away, requiring about an hour and a half of driving.

As they passed a subway station, he proactively asked to get out of the car.

Watching Jiang Muzhou enter the subway station, Shang Shixu was just about to press the accelerator when he glanced over and noticed a solitary document folder left behind in the passenger seat.

Shang Shixu did not head to his residence; instead, he drove to the company. The office had a lounge, and for him, a living place was equivalent to nothing more than a hotel room.

There was no real difference between the two, and most nights he simply slept at the office.

After placing the documents on his desk, he went into the lounge to take a shower.

With the water cascading over his head, Shang Shixu found his thoughts drifting back to Jiang Muzhou and wondered what kind of partnership he could possibly be discussing with Zhang Ning.

Zhang Ning used to live in the same residential compound as him. Ever since childhood, Zhang Ning had been restless, uninterested in studying, and obsessed with visiting Panjiayuan. Later on, he opened an antique company and managed to do quite well for himself.

Jiang Muzhou didn’t look like someone in that line of business; how could he possibly have business to discuss with Zhang Ning?

Thoughts swirled in his mind for a few moments. When he came out, his eyes fell upon the document folder once more.

Had the folder been accidentally left behind, or was it left on purpose?

Once a person developed curiosity about a thing or a person, that curiosity would always bounce around in their heart like a restless itch until the fog was cleared and the veil lifted.

Shang Shixu stroked the cord sealing the document folder, as if pondering how best to open it.

Standing in the corner of a subway carriage, Jiang Muzhou searched online for information regarding Zhongshi Group.

The corporate website was formal and professional, featuring a vast business scope spanning numerous industries. The figures in their annual revenue reports were staggering, yet he couldn’t find a single word of information regarding Shang Shixu.

Listening to the hum of the moving subway train, he leaned against the wall and looked down at his phone.

He suddenly remembered that his materials seemed to have been left in the other man’s car.

After a brief thought, he decided to forget about it. It wasn’t anything valuable; he could just print out another copy.

He called Gu Yubai. The call connected, but the background noise on the other end sounded chaotic and unlike a home environment.

“Where are you?”

“The hospital.”

“Why did you run to the hospital? Who needs a doctor?”

Gu Yubai cursed on the other end of the line, “I beat someone up. Just some absolute idiot. Hey, I’m warning you, if you keep pulling that, I’ll beat you up again.”

A nurse’s voice chimed in with a warning, “Keep it down, this is a hospital.”

Jiang Muzhou asked, “Who did you beat up? Is he going to call the police?”

Gu Yubai retorted irritably, “That bastard whose birthday it was today, would he dare call the police?”

Zhang Ning’s voice drifted from the other end: “Xiaobai…”

“Get lost!”

“Mister, if you keep making a noise, please take it outside…”

Then came a flurry of chaos on the other end, and the call was abruptly disconnected.

Jiang Muzhou frowned. How did Gu Yubai end up getting into a physical fight with Zhang Ning?

Gu Yubai had claimed they knew each other from way back, so they should have been on relatively good terms.

He sent a text message to Gu Yubai: Do you need me to come over and help?

A moment later, Gu Yubai replied: Nothing major, I’ll be leaving soon.

Gu Yubai wasn’t a reckless person; something significant must have happened to make him fly into such a rage. Still, since he said everything was fine, it was probably true.

Returning home, he took a quick shower and collapsed onto the bed.

He stared blankly at the ceiling for a while before curling up on his side, wrapping himself tightly in the blanket, and drifting off to sleep.

When his phone rang in the morning, Jiang Muzhou thought it was just his alarm and almost swiped to dismiss it.

Still groggy, he glanced at the screen and saw an unfamiliar number.

The moment he answered and heard the voice on the other end, he bolted upright in bed.

“Hello, President Shang.”

Transmitted through the earpiece, the other man’s voice sounded exceptionally magnetic and low: “Did I wake you?”

“No, not at all.” Jiang Muzhou raised his head to look at the clock on his bedside table. It was already past eight o’clock.

He had overslept.

Overlooking the question of how Shang Shixu had acquired his phone number, he asked instead, “President Shang, is there something you need?”

Shang Shixu was never one to drag his feet, cutting straight to the point: “I’m very interested in your game. Would you like to come over and talk about it?”

Jiang Muzhou watched the digital numbers on the clock flip to 8:18.

He raised an eyebrow. What an auspicious number.

“Alright.”