How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 138 - 99: Making Overtures

After coming to Qin Miao’s side, he laughed and patted Qin Miao’s arm, saying, "Well done! Qin, I knew I had a good eye for you."

This confident and knowing demeanor made it seem like he had always been optimistic about Qin Miao’s talent from the start, and not just approaching Qin Miao with a hit-or-miss mindset.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Lawson." Although Qin Miao was a bit bewildered by the crowd’s enthusiasm after completing the test, he still politely greeted Lawson upon seeing him.

Lawson responded with an encouraging look at Qin Miao, and then he directly put his arm around Qin Miao’s shoulders and said to the people gathered around, "Gentlemen, I think we must host a banquet tonight to celebrate Qin Miao’s joining." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

The underlying meaning of this statement was actually: disperse, don’t hover here like flies, if you want to discuss matters with Qin Miao, you’ll have plenty of time at tonight’s gathering.

Those around naturally laughed and agreed, then smiled their goodbyes to Qin Miao, agreeing to meet again in the evening.

After everyone left, Lawson still had his arm around Qin Miao’s shoulders.

He turned with Qin Miao, and the two faced the red Ferrari 488 that Qin Miao had just driven for the test.

Looking at the elegantly lined red supercar in front of them, Lawson asked, "Qin Miao, what do you think of this car?"

After a brief moment of thought, Qin Miao replied, "It’s a very good supercar. I really like the 488 model. The acceleration is stable, cornering is precise, and turning off CST makes it really fun to drive."

Upon hearing this, Lawson slightly raised an eyebrow and looked down at the steering wheel of the 488; at this moment, the pointer on the mode selection above the steering wheel was indeed pointing at CST OFF.

Despite the evidence before him, Lawson still asked, "During the test, you chose CST OFF all the time?"

Qin Miao nodded while feeling a bit puzzled, as if wondering what there was to be confused about.

Lawson glanced at Qin Miao. You see, when this mode of the 488 is engaged, the car is essentially a beast. Controlling it requires not only adequate driving skills but also sufficient understanding of the car itself. Otherwise, forget about achieving any results; with one wrong move on the gas pedal, it could spin out and crash into the nearest wall.

Yet Qin Miao... drove in this mode during the test?

After the initial shock, a brilliant smile suddenly broke out on Lawson’s face.

This is truly a gem found by chance!

"Very good, it seems you really like this car." Lawson was ready to steer the conversation and just hand over the car to Qin Miao.

This wasn’t about lending the car to Qin Miao to drive, but directly transferring ownership to him. Although Qin Miao didn’t have an Italian driver’s license yet, with Ferrari’s resources, and Qin Miao already having a license from his home country, acquiring a legal license in half a month wasn’t a big deal.

When the time comes, gifting the sports car, providing a house, throwing in some benefits—it would undoubtedly increase the sense of belonging young Qin Miao felt toward Ferrari rapidly, along with boosting his personal goodwill towards the team. Consequently, Lawson’s position would become secure due to his merit in nurturing two brilliant Ferrari drivers.

"That’s right, because I also have a 488." Qin Miao went along with Lawson’s words: "But my 488 is a Pista version, gifted by a friend."

Lawson: ???

...

Even though Qin Miao already had a 488, that car wasn’t in Italy, so the key to this car eventually ended up in Qin Miao’s hands.

However, Lawson knew that by putting this specifically acquired 488 into Qin Miao’s hands this way, it merely amounted to giving Qin Miao a decent-looking means of transportation, without leaving any additional emotional impact on a young man who already had a 488 Pista.

But no matter—there’s plenty of time ahead, and Lawson felt he had enough opportunities to strengthen his relationship with Qin Miao.

After that, it was banquet time.

After all, Lawson was involved in youth training, and he noticed that Qin Miao might not be very social, so on their way to the banquet, he explained to Qin Miao why people were so enthusiastic and taught him how to deal with it.

These people, although holding important positions within Ferrari, barring any significant achievements, could be stuck at their current level their whole career.

Since the conventional path for promotion was no longer an option, naturally they would find other ways to climb up and earn more, which almost became instinctive for those hoping to rise higher.

Forming good relations with potential drivers and investing in promising newcomers became one of the choices.

Their idea wasn’t that by getting along well with Ferrari’s internal drivers, they’d all ascend when the driver made it into F1.

Instead, if the driver ended up at another team and that team happened to be in need of personnel for their position, because of their relationship with the driver, they might directly switch jobs and get promoted.

Though the chances are slim, it’s something to do, and given Qin Miao’s remarkable talent, it paints the current picture.

Another layer is that many want to pull Qin Miao into their camp, so that in future internal struggles, their influence would carry more weight. After all, a genius like Qin Miao would be taken very seriously, even by Ferrari.

But Lawson did not explain this part to Qin Miao because for a young man who just came of age, it’s a bit early to expose him to these internal conflicts.

Moreover, it’s not appropriate to reveal the darker, filthier side of their team to a newcomer who just joined Ferrari.

Lawson’s method was simple: whatever the other party says, just nod and show that you listened, but don’t agree to any of the requests, no matter how tempting the offers are.

In fact, listening to Lawson’s teachings, Qin Miao was somewhat skeptical.

Once the banquet officially began, it wasn’t long before someone approached Qin Miao and started chatting.

The topics were fairly normal at first, opinions on Ferrari’s future, Qin Miao’s preferences, career plans, etc.

As the conversation grew warmer and right when Qin Miao felt that the young man talking to him could be a harmonious friend, the person started proposing to offer Qin Miao a substantial driver’s loan.

Low interest, low requirements; during his stint in F2, Qin Miao just needed to put the company’s logo on his racing suit and participate in their promotional shoots.

But the moment the guy showed his true intentions, Qin Miao snapped back to reality. Despite the really generous offer, considering Lawson’s advice, Qin Miao declined politely using a uniquely reserved Chinese approach.

The person wasn’t upset, merely smiled, expressing hope for future cooperation if the opportunity arose.

Qin Miao promised the next time it would happen, seeing the person off.

Then, no sooner had half a minute passed when, with his stomach growling since he hadn’t had dinner, Qin Miao prepared to head for a table with food to nibble on when someone else called out to him.

The same routine, although the conversation was different.

Those who proactively engaged Qin Miao always found topics and could steer the chat unconsciously toward their agenda.

Yet Qin Miao always managed to halt the conversation just in time and advance a significant step toward the table with food.

Unfortunately, Qin Miao didn’t choose his spot well and ended up not eating much by the time the banquet was over, drinking his fill of fruit juice instead.

Fortunately, the banquet wrapped up after two hours.