"And why would I necessarily work hard?"
Xu Wu rolled her eyes. ’He talks as if he’s some kind of saint.’
"With benefits this good, you wouldn’t just throw it away, would you? A job like this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You’ll definitely work hard for me!"
’Work hard for him?’ Xu Wu wondered if he was being deliberate or not.
This man was so improper when he talked!
From a purely professional standpoint, she quite liked Chen Xiao’s arrangement. Full autonomy would allow her to perform at her best.
Little did she know, Chen Xiao was simply self-aware. He knew he wasn’t a business management genius. To have someone as skilled as Xu Wu and not use her, instead trying to do it all himself? He’d have to be out of his mind.
After Xu Wu left the office, Chen Xiao wiped the sweat from his forehead.
He had to admit, with his Endurance Value at 100, the "side effects" were becoming very obvious. Especially when Xu Wu would occasionally and deliberately flash a bit of her allure.
’I can’t take this!’ he screamed internally. If this wasn’t Xiangjun’s office, which gave him a guilty conscience, he probably would have already reached out his sinful hands toward Xu Wu.
He glanced down at his "Demon-Subduing Pestle," which was already raring to go, and silently chanted "Amitabha Buddha" a thousand times.
「Yinuo Jiangzhou Branch」
Fang Qiang called Zhao Hui to go to Liu Haoran’s office with him. Liu Haoran had told him to get Zhao Hui.
Fang Qiang noticed that despite making things difficult for Zhao Hui several times, the man was still very respectful toward him. ’He knows his place,’ Fang Qiang thought. ’He understands he can’t compete with me in this company!’
On the way to Liu Haoran’s office, Fang Qiang said to Zhao Hui, "Ah Hui, I’ve realized you’re a decent guy. In the future, come to the expansion department and stick with me. I’ll look out for you!"
Zhao Hui gave him a puzzled look, wondering where he got such confidence.
Fang Qiang thought he was hesitating and continued, "Don’t worry. With me looking out for you, there’s nothing in this company that can’t be sorted out! You saw it for yourself in front of Boss Liu, right? I carry a lot of weight around here."
Zhao Hui just hummed in response. ’I carry more weight than you do,’ he thought, ’and even I wouldn’t dare say I could look out for someone.’
"Ah Hui, be honest with me. Are you getting ready to leave the logistics department?"
Zhao Hui thought for a moment and nodded.
Chen Xiao had already talked to him. Once the acquisition of Jiangzhou Wansheng Square was complete, he would likely be sent there for training. Naturally, that meant leaving the logistics department here.
Zhao Xiangjun had originally sent him to the logistics department to temper his character. Looking back, though it hadn’t been long, the results were excellent.
Chen Xiao was indeed in need of people at the moment. If Xiangjun’s brother was willing to walk the straight and narrow, he would certainly give him his full support.
Looking like he was some kind of master strategist, Fang Qiang laughed. "I knew it! You’re definitely coming to the expansion department soon. Don’t worry, just stick with me from now on. If you run into any trouble, I’ll be the one to sort it out for you!"
Zhao Hui shook his head, not wanting to continue the conversation. Just as they were approaching Liu Haoran’s office...
...a group from the retail department was just coming out of a conference room. The retail department manager, Li Lei, had been holding a kickoff meeting for the upcoming sales promotion.
"Brother Hui!"
Zhao Hui turned at the sound of his name. "Xu Jia!"
As Zhao Xiangjun’s best friend, of course Zhao Hui knew her. She often hung out with Zhao Xiangjun and had even spent the Spring Festival at his family’s home a few years back.
Since they worked in sales, they had to be at the store even during the Spring Festival. It was unrealistic to travel back to their hometowns thousands of miles away after their shifts, so Zhao Xiangjun had dragged her home with her for the holiday.
Xu Jia knew Zhao Hui worked here, but since neither Chen Xiao nor Zhao Xiangjun had mentioned anything about Xu Jia, he was quite surprised to see her.
But he quickly figured it out. ’This must have been arranged by my sister or Chen Xiao. Otherwise, there’s no way a sales associate could land a management position in the corporate office straight away, just like me!’
He heard someone nearby greet Xu Jia, calling her "Manager Xu."
’She must be like me,’ he thought, ’receiving "special treatment."’
It wasn’t the place to catch up, so after a brief greeting, Xu Jia went back to her workstation with the rest of the retail team.
Fang Qiang asked Zhao Hui, "You know that new deputy supervisor in the retail department?"
Zhao Hui nodded without elaborating.
"Stay away from the retail department from now on. They’re a bunch of idiots."
Zhao Hui knew Fang Qiang was arrogant, but he didn’t think he’d be this reckless with his words. ’Even if you don’t like them, you shouldn’t just run your mouth in public.’
He was deeply displeased. Xu Jia was his sister’s friend, and his sister, though working in a store, was also technically part of the retail department.
"President Fang, I don’t like to talk about people behind their backs."
Fang Qiang was taken aback for a second, then a malicious grin spread across his face. "Well, well! I didn’t realize you had such a backbone. Once you get to the expansion department, I’ll be sure to teach you a lesson about how rank can crush a man."
Zhao Hui scoffed. ’If I hadn’t already decided to turn over a new leaf, I’d be teaching *you* a lesson right now about how someone a head taller can beat you to death!’
’Insulting one or two people from the retail department is one thing, but you can’t just write off the entire group.’
Liu Haoran had called them over because Ganglong International had confirmed the location for Yi Rui, and they had already sent over the contract.
Liu Haoran was extremely satisfied with the commercial terms; they far exceeded his expectations. Of course, he also knew exactly why Huang Guangyuan was being so accommodating.
The contract was Ganglong’s standard template. As a large corporation itself, Yino Group required all contracts to be reviewed by its legal department.
As everyone knows, the party that drafts the contract always has the advantage. So, Yino’s legal department had made a dozen or so symbolic revisions to Ganglong International’s contract.
Liu Haoran found this unbelievable. In the Jiangzhou business world, only top luxury brands dared to challenge Ganglong, some even demanding to use their own "Party B" contracts. Other second-tier international brands wouldn’t even dream of pushing back.
What right did Yino have to challenge them on this matter? But after some thought, he decided he should at least try. After all, it was a directive from corporate, and immediate surrender wasn’t the proper attitude for a professional manager.
Hearing this, Fang Qiang quickly interjected, "Boss, Ganglong International never accepts changes to their contracts. Has our corporate legal team lost their minds?"
He really didn’t dare to go. In the past, when he tried to get a meeting with one of their managers, they wouldn’t even give him the time of day.
This time, although the other party had been polite, he could feel that they still looked down on him deep down.
Asking him to go and battle them over contract clauses... he felt they weren’t even in the same league.
Liu Haoran frowned but didn’t blame him too harshly.
In Fang Qiang’s past experience, he’d never had to go head-to-head with a giant like Ganglong International, so a little timidity was normal.
"You two go and negotiate first. I’ll accept whatever the outcome is. Just treat it as practice."
An idea struck Fang Qiang. He stepped forward and suggested, "Boss, I think we should let Xiao Zhao take the first crack at this. If he messes it up, then I’ll step in."
"This will give him some practice, for one. And then later, when I take over, I’ll bring him along to show him how a real negotiation is done. Let him learn a thing or two."
Liu Haoran glanced at Zhao Hui, who looked indifferent, so he agreed.
’It might be better for Zhao Hui to go, anyway,’ Liu Haoran thought.