Chapter 1405 - 528: Confession (2)

Chapter 1405: Chapter 528: Confession (2)

This seems more like a symbol, a symbol of the team’s internal status.

If it were Mercedes, anything Toto says, he would never delegate this power to the driver.

Moreover, Toto can’t understand why Ferrari would grant Qin Miao this power. As the team leader, he knows very well just how intense the desire for power is within the Ferrari team.

What exactly are you Ferrari people aiming for by doing this?

Did Vassel really go through and straighten everything out internally after he came in?

Among the conditions Qin Miao mentioned, some are things Toto can also offer, and even he can offer more.

But there are some things that Toto indeed cannot offer.

It’s at this moment that Toto suddenly realizes that he might really lose Qin Miao, the genius driver he discovered himself.

The smile that was originally on Toto’s face couldn’t be maintained; although it appeared to transition to a blank expression, Qin Miao knew that Toto’s heart must be in turmoil at this time.

"I’m sorry to tell you this news, but Ferrari has indeed offered me a proposal I can’t refuse." Seeing that Toto remained silent after hearing the conditions Ferrari offered, Qin Miao said, "After all, you know my contract happens to expire at this time."

After Qin Miao finished speaking, Toto instinctively reached to touch his pocket, but remembering that Qin Miao doesn’t smoke, he forced himself to suppress his craving for a cigarette.

He took another sip of the tea in front of him, and at that moment, Toto felt the tea was much more bitter than when he first tasted it.

After swallowing the bitter tea, Toto waved his hand and said, "No, you don’t need to apologize for this, instead the one who should be saying sorry is me, I couldn’t convince the board to offer you the same treatment."

After saying that, Toto leaned back in his seat and started rubbing his temples, "And maybe I should say thank you to you, at least you were willing to inform me of this news in advance."

"You don’t need to feel guilty or anything about it, F1 is essentially just a commercial alliance, any commercial behavior here is normal."

Toto even started to actively comfort Qin Miao.

While pouring water for Toto, Qin Miao gratefully said, "Thank you for your understanding."

...

For the next while, Toto kept frowning and thinking, occasionally sipping the hot tea.

After more than five minutes, Toto suddenly asked, "Is it convenient to tell me when this happened?"

Qin Miao recalled for a moment, "It was after the race last week when Vassel suddenly called me."

"At that time, it was only Mercedes and Ferrari negotiating the driver contracts with me. When I received Vassel’s call, I thought Vassel was trying to negotiate the price, but he directly said Ferrari agreed to all the conditions I proposed."

Hearing what Qin Miao said, Toto also took a deep breath.

Toto also knows exactly what kind of contract Ferrari agreed to. As the team owner, he knows that when negotiating with drivers, the contracts usually start at a very high point, and then gradually move towards the middle ground.

And the fact that Ferrari agreed to Qin Miao’s contract demands early in the season shows just how lenient and favorable this contract from Ferrari is to Qin Miao.

How desperate is Ferrari for a world championship after all?

"I don’t know why, but after hearing you say this, I’m suddenly less resistant to Ferrari poaching you away. At least compared to Ferrari, we indeed can’t present so many chips or such boldness."

Honestly, just hearing the chips Ferrari offered makes Toto lose even the inclination to discuss ideals, the future, or emotions with Qin Miao.

Ferrari truly offered too much, if Toto were in Qin Miao’s shoes, he would also accept Ferrari’s contract without hesitation.

There’s a saying in China: "Better to be the head of the chicken than the tail of the phoenix."

Let alone the fact that the Ferrari Qin Miao is going to is no ordinary chicken...

Although Ferrari often makes basic errors on the track, although Ferrari’s cars frequently have bizarre issues, although Ferrari’s pit strategies seem not of human design, but that’s still Ferrari.

The team with the most fans worldwide, and also the team with the most venerable standing in F1 history.

At this moment, Toto can’t even think of a reason to keep Qin Miao.

"Honestly, I also don’t understand why Ferrari agreed to my demands, because I made those demands fully expecting to haggle and argue."

Toto at this time instead sees things in a clearer light, after Ferrari offered such a high bid, Qin Miao is utterly unretainable. He wouldn’t, nor could he, offer the same conditions as Ferrari.

Even if he went crazy and agreed to these conditions, Mercedes’ board wouldn’t approve it, and Daimler wouldn’t agree either.

So given that, the best choice is to part amicably, although Qin Miao’s contract runs until the end of the season, and every team and Qin Miao need to ensure they give their best on the track till the last lap, Toto hopes that Qin Miao will have no regrets in his last season with Mercedes.

"I can actually understand Ferrari’s thinking over there. Vassel has just joined and the hearts aren’t unified, it’s exactly the time to make sweeping reforms, and he doesn’t have the assurance to lead Ferrari to achievements in a short time, but he has the power to allocate sufficient resources to the driver. And within the paddock, the only driver who can lead a non-championship contending team to a win on the track is you, Qin Miao." Toto explained his guess to Qin Miao.