Ye Dingguo got into an accident and was admitted to the hospital. His condition was critical, so Ye Zhao had to return to Shenzhen immediately. Zeng Xiang wanted to go back with her, but Ye Zhao persuaded him to stay.
If she and Zeng Xiang did not attend the celebration dinner, she was afraid that other directors and senior executives would have some thoughts. After all, she had just taken over Song Rongji and she still had to take it seriously and focus on her career.
Zeng Xiang was worried, so he got her a mobile phone so that they could keep in touch at any time.
Ye Zhao passed through customs alone and drove directly to the hospital. Aunt He was already waiting for her at the door.
As soon as Aunt He saw her, she came forward and gave her a hug, "Xiao Zhao, I'm sorry, it's bad news. Your dad...your dad is gone."
Ye Zhao's hands were ice cold. In fact, she didn't have much father-daughter affection for Ye Dingguo, but after all, Ye Dingguo's death was too unexpected and she was not mentally prepared.
Aunt He took her by the hand and explained, "Your father came to our house today to discuss factory matters with your Uncle Su. You know we live on the top floor. Maybe because he climbed seven floors and your father has a bad heart, he collapsed at the door. No one knew he collapsed at the door. Your Uncle Su had a cold and a fever and was resting at home. He didn't go out either. I didn't find your father collapsed at the door until I came back. I rushed him to the hospital, but it was too late."
Still in the emergency room, Ye Dingguo was lying straight on the hospital bed, his face sunken, and she almost couldn't recognize him.
When Su Yingmin saw Ye Zhao coming over, he burst into tears and said, "Xiao Zhao, your father is really..."
Before he finished speaking, the doctor asked, "Are the family members here? Come to sign the death notice."
Ye Zhao took over Ye Dingguo's death notice, which stated the cause of death was: sudden cardiac death.
She had always thought that her father had heart problems, but unfortunately he didn't listen to advice and didn't go to the hospital for a check-up. Who would have thought that he died so many years earlier than in the original book.
Ye Zhao went with the doctor to handle various formalities, and Director Liang accompanied them. When they came back, Ye Dingguo's body had already been transferred to the morgue and was waiting for the funeral home's car to come and take it away tomorrow.
Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue both rushed over after hearing the news. They hugged Ye Dingguo's body outside the morgue and cried bitterly, wishing they could tear Ye Dingguo in half. Their respective family members were beside them trying to persuade them...
It’s so lively.
The morgue instantly turned into a stage, and Ye Dingguo became a puppet on the stage.
Or it can be said that this is a case of one's own fault.
Ye Zhao put his hands in his pockets and watched coldly. The little bit of grief in his heart was washed away.
Aunt He has gone back because she has two children to take care of at home.
The north wind was blowing at the entrance of the morgue. January is the coldest season in Shenzhen. Ye Zhao stood behind the pillar, wrapped in his coat, and stood there quietly.
It’s the last day of performance, so be patient.
Su Yingmin looked at his watch and frowned. He didn't want to rush her, so he could only wait.
Bai Yunlian was more sensible. She wiped her tears and walked over with Bai Yunping's help. She walked in front of Ye Zhao, held Ye Zhao's hand, and cried, "Why did your father leave like this? He left without saying a word! Xiao Zhao, you don't have a father anymore!"
Bai Yunlian cried quite emotionally. Ye Zhao's eyes turned red. He swallowed and said nothing.
"Bai Lu won't be able to come back so soon. What should we do next? Old Su, how should we write the obituary? When will the memorial service and cremation be held? We have to buy a cemetery and make a tombstone. Someone has to take care of all these things." Bai Yunlian said this, as if she regarded herself as Ye Dingguo's widow.
Before Su Yingmin had time to speak, Bai Yunlian said to Bai Yunping, "Hurry up and ask Yuan Hongkang to help."
This is not asking for help, this is declaring sovereignty and interfering in funeral arrangements.
Su Yingmin waved his hand and said, "Yuan Hongkang is from the team, he has his work to do. Director Liang and I will arrange Lao Ye's funeral. It's so late and cold outside, you all should go back first."
Bai Yunlian shook her head: "It doesn't matter. How should I sign the obituary?"
She was concerned about whether her and Bai Lu's names would be signed.
Su Yingmin knew what Bai Yunlian was thinking and replied, "Publish an obituary in the name of the company."
"What about the tombstone?"
Su Yingmin took out a cigarette and lit it. "What can we write on the tombstone? It must be written in the identity of the daughter, 'My late father Ye Dingguo, from such and such place...' There are set words, so we don't need to worry about it ourselves."
Bai Yunlian: "It's fine to write the epitaph as a daughter, but Bai Lu's name should be added as the signature. Old Ye loved Bai Lu the most when he was alive. He raised her like his own daughter since she was a child. Everyone knows this."
Bai Yunping comforted her, "It will definitely be Bai Lu's name, don't worry."
"This..." Su Yingmin was reluctant to agree. He knew that Ye Zhao would not give Bai Yunlian this face.
Gao Yueyue sobbed and walked over, stroking her belly. "When signing, leave a space for the name of Dingguo and my child."
Bai Yunlian glanced at her. The current situation was unclear. She had not decided whether to expose Gao Yueyue's affair or Ye Dingguo's suspicion that the child was not his.
Su Yingmin was surprised, "Are you pregnant?"
Gao Yueyue said: "It's almost 3 months."
"From Ye Dingguo?"
Gao Yueyue asked loudly: "What do you mean?"
Gao Yueyue's mother was busy protecting her daughter and said, "If this isn't Ye Dingguo's child, whose else could it be? President Su, how can you say that?"
These people are not fighting for the right to authorship, they are fighting for the inheritance.
Su Yingmin smiled bitterly and said, "Don't get excited. This is not something I should judge. I'm just asking casually."
He didn't want to get entangled with them, nor did he want to cause disputes now. It was annoying to be entangled in shit.
But Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue couldn't just let him go like that.
Bai Yunlian was the first to get angry. She said, "Old Su, let's talk things over before we leave. Why did Old Ye collapse in your house?"
Su Yingmin sighed impatiently and explained, "He didn't fall down at my house. Dingguo came to see me. He might have fallen down before he even knocked on the door. He fell down at my doorstep."
Bai Yunlian asked again: "Where is his mobile phone?"
Su Yingmin: "Old Ye's belongings will be handed over to Ye Zhao later, don't worry about that."
Bai Yunlian shook her head: "This afternoon, I called Ye Dingguo and he said he was at your house."
Su Yingmin blinked: "He should be on his way to my house, right?"
Bai Yunlian said affirmatively: "No, he said you went to the bathroom and he was drinking tea in your study."
Ye Zhao, standing in the dark, stared at Su Yingmin. His eyes flashed slightly, and it was obvious that Su Yingmin was a little surprised.
But Su Yingmin was a smart man. He reacted immediately and said righteously, "Call the police now and ask them to go to my house to check if there are any fingerprints left by Dingguo. He died of a sudden heart attack. This was an accident."
Bai Yunlian hurriedly explained: "I didn't mean to doubt you."
Su Yingmin exhaled a puff of cigarette. "I don't know why Lao Ye lied to you. Maybe he went somewhere before coming to my house and couldn't tell you. I was just thinking, I'm so fat and I can climb seven floors every day without any problem, but how come he collapsed after climbing seven floors? Maybe he did something physically strenuous before coming here."
Ye Dingguo was stimulated at noon, could he really go to seek happiness? Bai Yunlian defended Ye Dingguo: "He is not that kind of person."
Su Yingmin: "I used to think he wasn't that kind of person, but..."
Su Yingmin glanced at Gao Yueyue and said, "It turns out that he is just an ordinary man."
Bai Yunlian: “…”
Su Yingmin was smoking. Bai Yunlian coughed a few times and said, "I have been with Ye Dingguo for more than ten years. At least he and I are in a de facto marriage. So many people can testify to this. I just want to ask, of the inheritance left by Ye Dingguo, Bai Lu and I should at least have a share, right?"
"Oh, Yunlian, Old Ye just passed away and the funeral hasn't even been held yet. Isn't it too early to talk about this now? Isn't it inappropriate?"
Bai Yunlian: "Old Su, it's not that I'm heartless, I'm an orphan and a widow, I can only hope that you can do justice."
Gao Yueyue also said: "The baby in my belly is Old Ye's posthumous child. Brother Su, you and Old Ye are brothers, you can't be partial."
Su Yingmin was overwhelmed. He raised his hands in a feigned surrender and said, "Let's talk again after we finish Old Ye's funeral, okay?"
"What about Old Ye's funeral? Aren't you going to discuss it with us?"
Su Yingmin pointed at Ye Zhao and said, "Old Ye has a daughter, and Ye Zhao is an adult. The funeral is something we should discuss with the next generation, so don't worry about it."
Bai Yunlian refused to give in: "How can I not worry? The tombstone must be signed with Bai Lu's name."
Gao Yueyue also said: "I'll give my child a name and write it in first."
At least his name is engraved on the tombstone. If she really has to file a lawsuit in the future, she will have a case. If he is not her biological son, why would she engrave his name on the tombstone
Su Yingmin could only respond with a laugh. Ye Zhao didn't want to listen to their wishful thinking any more. Just then, her cell phone rang, so she answered it and walked out first.
It was Zeng Xiang who called. He had been worried about her.
Ye Zhao explained the general situation to him: "It's okay, don't worry, Uncle Su and the people in the factory are here to support us. How are you doing?"
Zeng Xiang said: "I find the relationship between Uncle Qi and Zhong Limin quite interesting. Zhong Limin has been saying good things about Uncle Qi today. Uncle Qi is very embarrassed."
Ye Zhao smiled and said, "Don't worry about them. Zhong Limin probably wants to cross the river and destroy the bridge. We just need to follow the plan. Other people and things are not the focus."
Zeng Xiang said: "Yes, I think so too. It's very cold today, you should go back to the car and sit down. I will go back to accompany you tomorrow."
"good."
Seeing Ye Zhao disappear in the corridor, Su Yingmin wanted to discuss something with Ye Zhao, so he quickly pulled away: "I'm leaving first. You guys go back, what to do with the funeral later, wait for notification."
"What about the name engraving?"
"We'll discuss it later."
To discuss further means there is nothing to discuss. You are not children anymore and you can understand.
After Su Yingmin left, Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue looked at each other. Gao Yueyue said, "They won't give us any inheritance. We can only fight for it ourselves."
Bai Yunlian glanced at her and asked, "How are you going to fight?"
They were still standing at the door of the morgue, and Gao Yueyue said, "It's not convenient to talk here, let's go outside and talk."
When they walked outside, they stopped at a corner away from the wind. Gao Yueyue's mother put a coat on her. Gao Yueyue then said, "Your mother and I are both in the finance office of the branch factory. As long as you cooperate with my mother, we can get the money out of the branch factory."
Bai Yunlian stared at her and said, "This is against the law."
Gao Yueyue: "It's not illegal, it's just a family matter of fighting for inheritance. When the time comes, you just need to help prove that the child in my belly is Ye Dingguo's. Who dares to say that I'm breaking the law when I fight for the interests of my own child?"
Bai Yunlian was a little hesitant. Bai Yunping, who was standing next to her, said, "Sister, get the money out first. It's more important to control the financial power. Don't have any illusions about Su Yingmin. He will definitely help Ye Zhao. If Ye Zhao inherits his brother-in-law's estate, the factory will definitely be handed over to Su Yingmin. Then Su Yingmin will be in charge of the factory, the only one in power, and he will have the final say."
Gao Yueyue's mother was also a smart person. She said, "We are not taking the money and running away. Instead, we are controlling the liquid cash and trying to have enough bargaining chips in our hands when negotiating with them."
Bai Yunping asked: "How much money is in the branch factory account?"
Four or five million is a lot of money. If the two of them divide it equally, it will be a lot.
The enemies who had been quarreling at noon now gathered together closely to discuss their next strategy.
On the other side, Su Yingmin took Ye Zhao's car back. Su Yingmin sat in the passenger seat and said, "I didn't expect Gao Yueyue to be pregnant. This is more tricky."
Ye Zhao said: "The baby in her belly is most likely not my father's."
"How to say?"
Ye Zhao told Su Yingmin about Gao Yueyue's affair with another man. Su Yingmin suddenly realized, "No wonder I heard from Secretary Liu that your father, Bai Yunlian, and Gao Yueyue had a quarrel in the office at noon today. Gao Yueyue even said something about proving her innocence... It seems that your father was stimulated at noon and collapsed at my doorstep in the afternoon."
Ye Zhao glanced at Su Yingmin. She had some doubts in her mind, but there was no point in raising them unless she was absolutely sure. Besides, she and Uncle Su were at least allies now.
Ye Zhao said: "If Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue had already fought at noon, then logically, they should be in a hostile state now..."
Su Yingmin nodded: "It's a life-and-death situation."
"But I saw that apart from the confrontation at the beginning when they were crying and clinging to my dad, the relationship between the two of them afterwards was very subtle, with a strong sense of mutual respect."
Su Yingmin is a grown man. He didn’t think about it carefully just now, but now thinking back, it seems to be true.
Ye Zhao asked again: "If they cooperate, what will they do?"
Su Yingmin thought for a moment and said, "Mother Gao Yueyue and Bai Yunlian are both in charge of the branch's finances, each in charge of half of the business. Any financial transactions must be signed by them before the funds can be allocated."
When Su Yingmin said this, he had already taken out his mobile phone from his bag and made a call: "Secretary Liu, notify the finance offices of both factories to temporarily lock the doors and accounts, and send security guards to watch over them. Without my signature, not a single cent can be transferred."
As soon as Su Yingmin gave the order, Gao Yueyue's mother and Bai Yunlian took a taxi directly to the Dujuan Village branch overnight. When they arrived at the finance office, the security guard was locking it.
The security guard had no idea that this was an attempt to seize power. He knew Bai Yunlian's identity and was so scared after being yelled at by Bai Yunlian that he quickly opened the door.
The security team leader quickly contacted Secretary Liu, who ordered the security guards not to let them leave with anything from the finance office, otherwise he would call the police.
When Secretary Liu arrived at the scene, Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue's mother were about to take away the financial seal, the company's passbooks in their names, and more than 200,000 yuan in cash. The security captain had already locked the door and would not let them leave.
Bai Yunlian said all she could to please him, but Secretary Liu refused to give her face and opened the door. Bai Yunlian was so angry that she scolded Secretary Liu: "You conscienceless bastard, have you been wanting to pull us down so you can take over? You were flirting with Su Yingmin, do you think I don't know?"
Although Secretary Liu was angry, she could only suppress her anger and said calmly: "Sister Bai! I am an honest worker! Who wants to rush here in the middle of the night to work overtime and be an ugly person? I will do what my superiors tell me to do. That's all."
"Who is your leader? You only recognize Su Yingmin now, right?"
Secretary Liu was very clear-headed. Only someone with a guilty conscience would come to grab the stamp and the money. She said, "Boss Su is the general manager of the company. When the boss is not here, he is the leader of all of us. When Miss Ye takes over, of course we will listen to Miss Ye."
At the end of the confrontation between the two sides, Bai Yunlian threatened to call the police. Secretary Liu asked her to call. If the police came, she would be arrested directly for openly taking the company's money.
"You don't think you are really our boss lady, do you?"
What a cold-blooded lackey! Bai Yunlian said "Pah" and finally got her hair disheveled. The financial seal, passbook, account book and cash were still taken back.
Because Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue openly quarreled over the finance office, Ye Zhao no longer was polite to them and directly refused to allow them to attend Ye Dingguo's funeral and memorial service.
This caused Bai Yunlian to go to Uncle Ye Zhao to cry and seek justice, but Uncle Ye Zhao, Ye Dingquan, just asked her to be patient for the time being.
Ye Zhao's uncle and aunt came by train to attend Ye Dingguo's funeral. Before coming, the couple had already discussed that they must get some benefits for their family this time.
As soon as they arrived at the funeral home, they created problems for Su Yingmin.
Ye Dingquan and his wife found Su Yingmin and asked, "Have you decided on the inscription for the tombstone?"
Su Yingmin hurriedly pulled Director Liang over and said, "Director Liang, let my second brother see the words on the tombstone."
Director Liang immediately took out the tombstone text from his bag. In fact, it had already been engraved, but he still gave Ye Dingquan face and said, "Take a look. If there is no problem, I will take it and engrave it."
Ye Dingquan took out his reading glasses and put them on. He took a look and saw that the signature only contained the name of the filial daughter Ye Zhao. He said, "The word filial daughter should be preceded by the word filial son."
Director Liang said awkwardly: "The boss only has a daughter."
Zheng Qiuxia: "Dingguo always regretted not having a son. Later we discussed giving my youngest son to him for adoption, so the name of our Ye Xiaobing should be added here."
Ye Dingquan pointed at the words on the paper and said, "Just before Ye Zhao, add a sentence, filial son Ye Xiaobing."
Director Liang had no idea about these things, so he didn't dare to refuse and quickly ran to discuss it with Su Yingmin.
Su Yingmin had never heard that Ye Dingguo had adopted a son, so he asked Ye Zhao again.
Ye Zhao could tell that her second uncle and second aunt were just taking advantage of the situation to get benefits.
Shouldn't I at least give my adopted son some things? This wishful thinking went well.
Her father would never want an adopted son. Unless Ye Xiaobing was very outstanding, he would not even look at him twice. But Ye Xiaobing was a spoiled child. He was not stupid but not smart either. He could not even figure out 1 or 2 in preschool. Such qualifications were not at all acceptable to Ye Dingguo.
Ye Zhao shook his head: "There is no such thing."
Zheng Qiuxia had been following Director Liang and had already reached Ye Zhao. She said, "How could this not happen? Last year, oh, the year before last, you stole your father's household registration book and money and ran away. Your father was so angry that he couldn't eat for the whole day. He said that it was useless to have a daughter and it was better not to have one. He got along well with Xiaobing during those days. On the third night after you left, your father and your second uncle drank some wine and finalized the adoption. Was it Ye Dingquan?"
Ye Dingquan quickly responded: "Yes, yes, Dingguo and I drank a little wine that day."
"The third night after I left Wancheng?"
"Yeah. Your dad spent a few days with the soldier!"
Ye Zhao smiled and said, "On the third night, my dad was already on the train back to Shenzhen."
After being slapped in the face, Zheng Qiuxia was thick-skinned. She smiled awkwardly and said, "Maybe I remembered it wrongly."
Ye Zhao looked at her second uncle.
The second uncle also said embarrassedly: "I remembered it wrong, it might be the next night."
"The next night?" Ye Zhao laughed and said, "I miscalculated. My dad got on the train the next day, so he was on the train the next night and arrived in Shenzhen on the third day."
Zheng Qiuxia: “!”
Ye Dingquan: “!”
Director Liang already understood what was going on. The poor relative came to ask for money and went straight to the temple gate. He forced himself to hold back his laughter and dared not speak.
Ye Zhao continued, "Second Mom, you remembered it wrongly. You and my second uncle also remembered it wrongly. Maybe in your dream, my dad adopted Xiaobing as his son. In fact, my dad didn't even know Xiaobing's name."
Zheng Qiuxia said angrily, "Don't say such harsh words. Isn't it okay for your father to just want to have a son? You make it sound like we are marrying up to you."
Su Yingmin advised: "Do you know what is hanging in Lao Ye's office?"
"What?"
"They are all reports and photos of Ye Zhao winning the award. He has changed a lot in the past year. He always talks about his daughter being his greatest pride."
Ye Dingquan said: "I just feel sorry for my brother, who doesn't even have a son to see him off to his grave. That's why I want to register the soldier under his name, so that he won't be looked down upon in the underworld."
Ye Zhao asked back: "Second uncle, my father has no son, do you look down on him?"
"No, that's not what I meant."
Zheng Qiuxia: "We all have good intentions. This is how society is in China. It's the same everywhere. People look down on those who don't have sons. I wrote this for your father's good. Don't always think that we are trying to steal your things."
"Brother and sister-in-law, this is a new socialist China. This is a big city, not a small rural village. Your idea is extremely inappropriate. I know Dingguo very well. He does not have these feudal dregs in his bones. Besides, the tombstone has been engraved, so there is no need to make trouble. Just leave it as it is." Su Yingmin said the tough words in a gentle manner.
Living under someone else's roof and in an unfamiliar place, Ye Dingquan and his wife had no choice but to give up.
Since the couple started causing trouble as soon as they arrived, and since they had been mean to the original owner before, Ye Zhao was extremely cold towards them.
Bai Yunlian directly took them to live in her home and provided them with good food and drink. After weighing the pros and cons, they couldn't help but lean towards Bai Yunlian.
It’s not that they think Bai Yunlian is good, but they have the same goal as Bai Yunlian, which is to get money out of Ye Zhao.
These three groups of people are like three cobblers, who push and pull together.
Su Yingmin has been thinking about how to balance everyone's interests these days.
That day he and Ye Zhao went to see the cemetery chosen for Ye Dingguo.
After all, Ye Dingguo left such a huge inheritance to Ye Zhao, and Ye Zhao did not treat him unfairly and chose the most expensive piece of land in the cemetery.
Standing next to the cemetery, you can overlook the sea. This place is sunny and has a gentle sea breeze, which is very comfortable.
Su Yingmin asked: "What are you going to do with Bai Yunlian and Gao Yueyue? How much will you give them?"
Ye Zhao knew that Su Yingmin must have some ideas, so she asked, "Uncle Su, what do you think?"
"Bai Yunlian has been with your father for so many years, we can't just give her nothing. Give her the house she lives in, and give her another 200,000 or 300,000 yuan, which is enough for her to spend for the rest of her life. As for Gao Yueyue, give her the house she lives in as well..."
Ye Zhao had never taken care of his father's affairs before. When she looked at the asset list a few days ago, she might have read it too quickly and didn't pay attention to the real estate situation. She asked curiously, "Isn't Gao Yueyue's apartment in her name?"
Su Yingmin laughed, "Oh, your father is such a contradictory person, he is both generous and stingy, even the house is in his name."
"Uncle Su, please continue."
"Give Gao Yueyue the apartment she lives in, and give her another 500,000 yuan. It doesn't matter whether the child is your father's or not. I won't care about him anymore. Once she takes the money, we'll be even. I know this is a bit of a loss for you, but it doesn't matter if you suffer a small loss. It can save you a lot of trouble."
In the past, Ye Zhao would definitely not agree to this.
But since she had money, her mentality changed. Sometimes she is really too lazy to fight to her full potential, and she will solve problems with money if they can be solved with money.
Besides, she didn't want to cause more trouble for Uncle Su. After all, he would have to clean up the mess later.
"As for your second uncle and second aunt, I'll give them 10,000 or 20,000 yuan and send them back."
Ten or twenty thousand was a considerable sum of money in 1990, enough to get rid of them.
Ye Zhao nodded and said, "Okay then. I'll follow uncle's instructions."
After Ye Dingguo was buried, Su Yingmin and Ye Zhao hadn't come to talk to them yet, but these three cobblers started to make trouble first.
Gao Yueyue said that she had a handwritten will written by Ye Dingguo, and she asked all relevant parties to go to the conference room of the Irene Toy Factory to listen to the will arrangements.
(End of this chapter)