Qian An was not a reckless person. He was not impulsive, especially when it came to large company purchases. He had to weigh the pro and cons, because the capital requirement was quite high. The initial payment was 10 million yuan. Economic growth has slowed down recently, but the selling price was indeed reasonable. It was close to 3 million yuan cheaper than the market price, or even more.
He was a little tempted. He saw that Uncle Li was still in his office, he asked, "Do you want to eat with us at the canteen?"
"Sure. I haven't eaten at the company canteen before. I haven't seen my niece and nephew in a long time." He did not have much of an impact on those children. He only remembered one face. He had a deep impression of Qian Shuishui. He knew that she had a very fierce temper and was not on good terms with his sister. He didn't know why. They were both his sister's children, but why did she treat them differently? He himself wouldn't allow his children treat him so harshly. He couldn't fathom how Qian An could tolerate the way Shuishui treated her mother. He felt that it was a very passive way of disciplining the children.
He had to get closer to the children so that it would not be difficult for him in the future. Qian An seemed to love Shuishui more. He often saw Qian Shuishui visit Qian An. When it came to serious discussions, he noticed that she would always go out. He rarely saw Momo. He heard that Momo went out all the time.
As they walked out of the office, Qian An waved to Shuishui and Anzhi and said, "Let's go. Your uncle will come eat with us."
"Uncle, why are you here?" Qian Anzhi asked curiously.
"Yes, I will work here in the future. I also want to share in your father's burdens," Uncle Li said in a dignified manner.
Shuishui felt that there was something fishy about her uncles's words and behavior. It all seemed superficial. She recalled that Uncle Li had entered Qian An's office several times without her permission. She also found it peculiar how the secretary made too many decisions on her own.
However, she could give him the benefit of the doubt. She greeted him politely. Then, they walked towards the canteen together. The canteen was very clean. The words "Don't Waste" were framed and hung on the walls. Employees would bring trays on which their chosen foods are placed. Everyone could choose what they wanted to eat, but there was a fine for those with leftovers.
It was the first time Shuishui had been to the company canteen. "Although it's not big, it's quite clean," she said.
"Hygiene is very important here. Come. What do you want to eat? Go and help yourself," Qian An said to his two children.
They grabbed a set meal and added a few more of their preferred foods. Shuishui picked her favorite sweet and sour dishes, which she liked a lot. They only had sweet and sour meat, which she tried. She was still choosing what to add when Qian Anzhi picked up a large drumstick and placed it on her plate. "Sis, this is delicious. Eat this!" he said.
Shuishui looked at the large drumstick and her expression changed slightly. "You can eat it yourself."
"Just two drumsticks," Qian Anzhi proudly said, as if he had snatched the drumstick.
Shuishui looked at the drumstick, but she couldn't put it back for it would be impolite to do so.
After she got what she wanted, she carried her tray and sat next to Qian An. "Dad, I'll give you a large drumstick."
Anyway, she couldn't eat so much. She didn't want to waste food. There were fewer meat dishes to choose from in the canteen, so she let her father eat more. Qian An saw that Shuishui wasn't very hungry and gave him the drumstick, so he simply accepted it.
Qian Anzhi returned with a lot of food. "Dad, Sis, let's eat together."
Then, he started eating.
Qian An shook his head. 'This child,' he thought, frustrated. "Do you know that you can't waste food here?" he asked Anzhi.
"I think I will be able to finish it, Dad. Don't worry," Qian Anzhi said confidently. After a while, however, it was obvious that he couldn't eat any more.
Shuishui pinched Qian Anzhi's face. "I told you, but you didn't listen. Now you know."
Shuishui knew that her father would have to pay a fine if they would not be able to consume their food, so she helped Qian Anzhi finish all the meat. She didn't really mind eating food from other people's bowls. She was not used to it in the past, but when she got closer to Mu Zilin, it became normal for her. He always liked to eat and grab food from other people's pots and bowls.
If Mu Zilin saw something that he wants to taste on another person's bowl, he would simply reach out his chopsticks. He seemed to only eat from her bowl. He had never touched Mu Qing's bowl, so perhaps he wasn't very comfortable with Mu Qing yet.
Shuishui was unlike Mu Zilin. She could only do that to people who were very close to her. She wouldn't do something of that sort to someone she didn't really know and wasn't familiar with.
Qian An was also helping Qian Anzhi eat. "You child, be careful next time. Control the amount of food you get. You should know how much you usually eat. Just get enough to satisfy your appetite."
"I know, Dad. I know I'm wrong this time. I shouldn't have taken so much. I really couldn't finish it." Qian Anzhi felt tired. He couldn't eat anything anymore. The food was good, but he was too full to continue eating. The dishes were slightly sweet, and he found the dishes very delicious in the beginning. After a while, he was already too full.
Shuishui placed her chopsticks on her bowl and watched as the others are the remaining food.
Uncle Li ate less. He looked at Qian An and his two children. They were indeed very close, and they were joking around. He couldn't say anything. He slightly understood why his sister couldn't fit in.
He gloated at the thought that their happiness would be short-lived. He felt that they would soon lose everything.
Shuishui noticed his cold gaze, but she didn't look at him. She just glanced at him casually and continued to chat with her father.
After resting for a while, they went to the office. Qian An also had to work, so he let Shuishui and Anzhi play by themselves on computers.
Shuishui saw that her father was reading documents, so she went up to him. "Dad, is there anything I can help you with?"
"Sure. Help me calculate these accounts. If there are any problems, draw them out. I'll check them later." Qian An took out a document and gave it to Shuishui.
Shuishui took it and glanced at the printed data. "Okay."
She walked over to a desk, sat down, and pored over the document.
She flipped through it. Actually, there weren't any major problems. Usually, the problems would appear in the details. She asked her father for a list of their company's expenses and income statement and compared them. She marked any data with discrepancies so her father could recheck the data later.
She found a few discrepancies in several accounts.
Usually, amounts are allotted for social events. Shuishui checked the data under that column and noticed that there was a difference of 10,000 yuan. After that, she saw that the subsidy fee for the previous month had also increased by more than 20,000 yuan. However, there were no receipts and data to justify the increase. It was an unexpected increase. Someone could have embezzled public funds. Although it did not seem much, it must have grown larger over the course of several months. She went online and looked it up. It was about misappropriation of public funds. Generally, misappropriation of a larger amount of public funds would result in imprisonment of more than ten years. She glanced back at the document. It was only 10,000 yuan.
She was annoyed. Public funds could not be used for personal concerns. She marked the data. Her father had given her data covering a five-month period. Data for the first month was relatively clear. In the succeeding months, however, there seem to have been missing amounts of money and undeclared expenses.
She pored over the areas she marked. She soon found that for the current month, a total of 50,000 yuan had gone missing. She glanced at it again. Was it signed by the secretary? She looked at the records, and the secretary did not state what the money was used for. The finance department probably didn't question her and simply overlooked it because she was the CEO's secretary.
The amount was not large, but Shuishui thought that the people around her father seemed to be in cahoots with each other.
Shuishui studied the data for a few hours.
She took the document and approached her father. "Dad, can your secretary withdraw money from the finance department at any time? Is there a limit?"
"Hmm? What's the matter?" Qian An asked.
"Your secretary seems to have withdrawn money every month, but she didn't say where she used it. I checked, but she didn't even attach receipts. She withdraws money in your name." Shuishui showed the marked areas in the document to her father.
"Look. I've printed out every month. And this month, it was a total of 50,000 yuan," Shuishui said.
She pointed at some data. "And these few parts of the data are obviously fabricated. Dad, could this be considered embezzlement?"
Qian An nodded seriously. He had casually looked at the document before, but he did not see anything wrong with it. He did not pay much attention to it. He wanted to give his daughter a simple task, but he did not think or expect that she would be able to find anything wrong with it. He felt a little awkward, but he was confused how his secretary had actually embezzled the public funds.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He slammed his fist on the table. "I know about this. Shuishui, thank you. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have known about this at all. You did a good job. I am old, and I did not carefully look over these documents. I am also very curious about your thoughts on this matter."
"Me? I just felt that Secretary Wen was a trusted subordinate of yours. Her offense couldn't be forgiven. Maybe someone else is involved. If you let them off, they would have the nerve to do something more outrageous. They should be severely punished, and others should know about it. Dad, I think you should be wary of Uncle Li. Even though he is a relative, we should not trust him too much. Who knows what they are thinking?" Shuishui said to her father. She didn't like her uncle. She simply had a bad feeling about him.
She didn't trust her uncle. She couldn't understand how he seemed gentle but superficial at the same time. She trusted her instinct, even though there were times when she had been wrong. But what she saw in the documents was definitely not wrong.
It made her think of the relatives who plotted against her family in her previous life. They simply wanted to steal her family's assets. She didn't know why, but she associated her relatives from her previous life to this new set of relatives in her current life. She covered her mouth and tried to brush her thoughts aside. It was really annoying to remember bad and unhappy memories.
Their kinship had become a conspiracy. All the kindness and love they showed her were tricks they used to deceive her. Therefore, she was wary of everyone, especially those close to her.