"What!" Qin Yongchao thought he had misheard, "Didn't Li Sichen limit them?!"
He quickly skimmed through the news report. The chip concept proposed by the Li family sounded different from Qin Corporation's proposal in its wording, but in essence, it was the same concept, just repackaged.
This was blatant plagiarism!
When Qin Yonghao had told him about finding Li Sichen, he had been hesitant. But Qin Yonghao had assured him that everything would be fine, which was why he had tacitly agreed to Qin Yonghao using people.
He hadn't expected things to go wrong!
"It was Li Sichen himself who led the press conference and announced the news!" said the marketing department manager.
Qin Yongchao: !!! Da Feng Fiction Network
"Has he forgotten that he signed a cooperation contract with us? The contract includes confidentiality requirements and a non-compete clause during the contract period?!" Qin Yongchao said sternly, "He's even stolen our design plans!"
"I don't think it can be considered outright theft, though," the head of the technical department scratched his head.
He was a fan of both 'S' and Wuyou, and he was somewhat biased towards them.
"When 'S' and Wuyou submitted this plan, Fourth Master didn't approve it and sent it back for revisions. But the plan was actually quite good. Fourth Master just wanted to make it perfect. I didn't expect 'S' to take it and use it for the Li family."
When the plan was sent back for revisions, Qin Yonghao had only suggested revisions without specifying the direction, which was intentionally making things difficult for them.
"But regardless of whether Fourth Master approved it at the time, this plan was developed by them for Qin Corporation. How can he take it and use it for himself?" the marketing department manager argued. "His using it for his own company means he has violated the non-compete clause and the confidentiality agreement."
"The problem is, the contract that Fourth Master signed with 'S' doesn't have a non-compete clause," the head of the technical department said.
Typically, project development with employees includes confidentiality and non-compete clauses. During their tenure, employees are not allowed to engage in activities that compete with or harm the company's interests.
Qin Yongchao had his secretary retrieve the contract Li Sichen had signed and discovered that this clause had indeed been deleted by Qin Yonghao!
Even with the clause removed, most people would have professional ethics and wouldn't easily breach an agreement. But they had encountered the lunatic Li Sichen!
Furthermore, Qin Yonghao was taken away for investigation, and it was unclear when it would end. Leaving such a mess behind gave Qin Yongchao a severe headache.
"Even if his contract doesn't have a non-compete clause, he's still plagiarized our plan!" the marketing department manager insisted.
"But..."
"Enough, stop arguing!" Qin Yongchao interrupted their quarrel. "Summon everyone involved in the project for a meeting. Butler Qin, go and call Yu He over as well."
As soon as he finished speaking, the HR manager knocked and entered. "Chairman, Yu He just sent a resignation email to the entire company, stating she will no longer develop new chips for Qin Corporation!"
Qin Yongchao: !
Resigning at this critical juncture, Yu He was doing it deliberately, wasn't she?!
The issue with Qin Corporation's shares hadn't been resolved yet, their main project had been stolen, and now key personnel were resigning. These severe blows were all concentrated at a time when Qin Corporation was most in need of people. Was Heaven trying to destroy Qin Corporation?!
"Don't approve it. Find every way to keep her," Qin Yongchao said with a grim expression.
He then proceeded to instruct people to handle several urgent matters before personally organizing the meeting for the new chip development.
Busy until late at night, Qin Yongchao returned to his office, where a pile of unapproved documents awaited him. All matters of the conglomerate seemed to have piled up on his desk, suffocating him.
He desperately needed manpower, but the person he most wanted to use refused to return. He could only shift his focus back to Qin Yonghao and his son; at least he had to find these two first.
—
Meanwhile.
In a private room at a barbecue restaurant, Yu He, Qin Beiting, Ruan Tianxin, Mo Zhao, and a few other friends were gathered.
"To Xiao Hemiao's discharge from the hospital, cheers." Ruan Tianxin stood up, raising her wine glass.
Although Yu He had been discharged from the hospital for several days, everyone had been busy with their own affairs. Tonight, they finally had time to get together.
They all raised their glasses, except for Yu He, who held up a glass of juice to clink with them.
After drinking, they all sat down again.
"Eat to your heart's content. I'm treating tonight, no one tries to pay," Ruan Tianxin declared generously.
Shen Yao: "Tch, why would anyone try to pay? This barbecue restaurant is under my Shen family. Tonight's bill is on the house."
"No! When I eat out, I feel uncomfortable if I don't pay the bill. This bill must be mine!" Ruan Tianxin insisted.
"Alright, no one will compete with you." Yu He knew her wealthy friend's peculiar habit of feeling uncomfortable if she didn't pay. If they argued further, she might end up paying for all the customers in the restaurant.
"Xiao Hemiao understands me best," Ruan Tianxin smiled.
Yu He poured herself a cup of tea and, holding it up with one hand, said solemnly, "Thank you all for your help before. My alcohol tolerance isn't great, so I'll toast you all with tea instead."
Her rare politeness surprised everyone.
Mo Zhao was the first to react. "Hey, Fairy Sister, what's with the formality between us? What I did was just a small gesture. You're the one who truly helped me before."
"His was a small gesture, but mine wasn't!" Shen Yao seized the opportunity. "I was ordered around by you. I put in a lot of effort to ensure that Qin Jincheng would behave. So, you have to compensate me!"
He thought for a moment. "Hmm, you can be my personal doctor. Whenever I have a need, you have to be available at any time!"
"You wish. Yours was just manual labor. Li Sichen is the truly busy one! He stole Qin Corporation's design plans for his own use and is directly confronting Qin Corporation. He's too busy to join us for dinner right now," Mo Zhao retorted.
Shen Yao: "Damn it, what did Li Sichen give you that you're speaking up for him?"
"Alright, stop arguing. Lord Qin Qi's contributions are even greater than yours! Did you hear him say anything?" Ruan Tianxin interjected.
Then the argument became even more intense.
Qin Beiting sat beside Yu He, unusually quiet. He reached under the table and intertwined his fingers with Yu He's right hand, one by one, until all ten fingers were clasped.
No matter how much they argued, it was useless. The little girl was his and his alone!
As they were talking, the waiter knocked and entered with the dishes. Plates of beef and lamb were brought to the table.
Seeing the bright red slices of meat, Yu He suddenly remembered the bloody scene at the Huang Corporation a few days ago, and she couldn't help but feel nauseous. "Gag—"
The lively scene instantly came to an abrupt halt. Everyone's eyes turned towards Yu He, who was frantically covering her mouth with a tissue and rushing to the restroom.
Qin Beiting also paused, his mind racing through several possibilities.
The little girl used to love steak, so why would she feel like vomiting at the sight of beef slices?
Could it be…
He suddenly thought of a possibility and immediately put down his chopsticks, getting up to follow her to the restroom.
As he left, the remaining people exchanged glances.
"Xiao Hemiao actually vomited at the sight of meat! Could she be pregnant?!" Ruan Tianxin exclaimed in shock.