Half an hour later, Chen Xinxin changed into a business suit and entered Chen Guangwei's office. Her hair was still wet. Chen Guangwei genuinely liked this daughter. She was smart, beautiful, and eager to learn. She had performed very well since taking over management work recently. Although she had some shortcomings, she had adapted to the situation and was now able to handle the group's affairs.
“Don’t go to the workshop anymore. You’re the chairman; the inspection work can be handled by the quality control department,” Chen Guangwei reminded his daughter.
Chen Xinxin didn't give Chen Guangwei a friendly look. To this day, she still can't forgive him: "I can go wherever I want. The company isn't your business. In terms of technology, it's all Zhao Qiang's patent; in terms of capital, how much have you invested in the company?"
Chen Guangwei was both angry and ashamed. If the person in front of him wasn't his own daughter, he would have jumped up long ago. Although he was usually a very good-tempered person, Chen Xinxin's words hit him where it hurt. Baiyuan City Bafang Chemical Group and Baiyuan City Bafang Rubber Industrial Park—nominally, he was in charge of their establishment, but in reality, the technology and funding didn't come from him. This made him feel guilty every time he saw Zhao Qiang. He had initially thought giving him 30% of the shares was outrageous, but now he realized that those 30% shares were essentially a handout from Zhao Qiang. Of course, Chen Guangwei had also invested a great deal of effort in the group and the industrial park, but he hadn't kept his promises. The construction funds for the industrial park were almost entirely raised by Zhao Qiang, which made Chen Guangwei feel that he hadn't contributed anything.
Chen Guangwei went from being angry to feeling helpless, and finally sighed. He felt he owed his daughter something, and even if she beat him up, it wouldn't erase the shadow he had cast on her childhood. Chen Guangwei said, "Take a break. We'll be heading to the municipal government banquet hall soon. Tonight, high-ranking government officials will be hosting a celebration. Here are the test data for synthetic rubber and dozens of finished products. Take a look at them first and try to remember them. There might be reporters asking questions at the celebration, so you can't make any mistakes."
Chen Xinxin didn't even glance at her, turned around and prepared to leave the office, saying, "I have a date tonight, you go by yourself."
After saying that, Chen Xinxin opened the door and left. She drove her X5 out of the industrial park. Chen Guangwei stood at the window, his lips twitching slightly. After thinking for a moment, he picked up the phone and called Zhao Qiang. "Xiao Qiang, it's Uncle Chen."
Zhao Qiang was playing billiards in the Lingdong Entertainment Building. Several girls were chattering away. He gently waved his hand, and the girls stuck out their tongues and quieted down. Zhao Qiang walked to the side and said, "Uncle Chen, what's up?"
Chen Guangwei said, "It's nothing serious. Everything is normal in the industrial park, so don't worry. All the test reports are out, and the data is very satisfactory."
Zhao Qiang chuckled and said, "That's good. With you and Xin Xin in charge, I believe Bafang Chemical Group will definitely get better and better."
Chen Guangwei said, "The municipal government held a celebration party to show its attention to our group company."
Zhao Qiang said, "I know a little about this. It's a good thing. We can take this opportunity to promote our company, and I believe it will bring in a lot of orders."
Chen Guangwei said, "Yes, but Xin Xin refused to participate. I can tell that she still has a lot of opinions about me."
Zhao Qiang chuckled awkwardly, "Uncle Chen, Xin Xin is still young. She will understand your good intentions in the future."
Chen Guangwei said, "Please help me persuade her to attend tonight's celebration party, since there will be reporters and TV stations there. Also, I want to find out what Xin Xin wants in order for her to forgive me."
Zhao Qiang said, "Uncle Chen, don't worry, I'll ask around for you. I think things will work themselves out, so there's no need to rush."
Zhao Ling put down her phone and walked over with a giggle. "Oh, it's Xin Xin's dad. What are you two arguing about now?"
Zhao Qiang said, "Never mind that, let's do our own thing and talk about it later."
Several scantily clad girls gathered around, giggling, "Brother Qiang, keep showing us your 'one shot to the end' technique! You played so well!"
Zhao Qiang said, "What's the use of my own performance? You all need to learn too. Otherwise, how can you make the guests happy when you play ball with them? If the guests are unhappy, they won't give you tips. Do you think you can refuse to learn?"
The girl smiled and said, "Of course we want to learn. Brother Qiang, you can teach us step by step."
Zhao Ling cursed, "You guys are trying to seduce my man right in front of me, don't you deserve a spanking?"
Zhao Lingping usually joked and laughed with these billiards practice partners, so her words were not threatening.
Zhao Qiang had only been teaching everyone for a short while when Chen Xinxin pushed the door open and came in. Seeing Zhao Qiang hanging out with several girls, she started to make trouble for Zhao Ling: "You dragged him here to play pool again?"
Zhao Ling said, "Who made you angry this time? Why don't you take it all out on me?"
Chen Xinxin threw her bag at Zhao Qiang: "I'm taking it out on him."
Zhao Qiang caught Chen Xinxin's bag and said, "I'm your punching bag, so why aren't you attending tonight's celebration party?"
Chen Xinxin gritted her teeth: "Chen Guangwei called you? I despise that tattletale!"
Zhao Qiang waved his hand, and the girl who was accompanying him quietly left. Zhao Qiang said, "He's doing this for your own good. This publicity opportunity will help your image. Besides, the participation of municipal government leaders is also a way of giving face to our Bafang Chemical Group."
Chen Xinxin said, "I don't need them to give me face. I earn my own face, not others give it to me."
She even started saying philosophical things, leaving Zhao Qiang speechless. Zhao Ling said, "If Xin Xin doesn't want to go, then she doesn't want to go. Why are you taking Chen Guangwei's side? That guy isn't on our side. You tell me, apart from needing his guidance in the early stages of building the factory, Xin Xin did almost everything else. What does it have to do with him? He didn't even invest any money. I despise him too."
Chen Xinxin hugged Zhao Ling: "Zhao Ling, you really are my good sister. Zhao Qiang, look, even Zhao Ling says this."
Zhao Qiang was speechless again; it was almost impossible for him to win an argument with these two.
The billiard room door was pushed open with a bang. Not many people dare to enter without being notified, so Zhao Qiang and his two companions didn't pay any attention. Sure enough, Zhang Wenjing entered. When he saw Chen Xinxin and Zhao Ling hugging each other, he was stunned for a moment, and then exclaimed, "What are you doing? Two beauties hugging each other, what a waste! If you can't solve the problem, you can come to me."
Someone coughed behind her, and Zhang Wenjing immediately shut up. However, she then put on a serious face and said to the person behind her, "Jingjing, why don't you say hello to Brother Qiang?" Ever since she had witnessed Zhao Qiang's prowess, Zhang Wenjing had started calling him "Brother Qiang."
Li Jingjing was somewhat reluctant, but she had been trained by Zhang Wenjing to give him face in public, so she stepped forward and awkwardly called him "Brother Qiang." Facing this half-princess of the Chen family, Zhao Qiang also had to give her a smile: "Hello, don't learn from Zhang Wenjing. She's becoming less and less refined. She's been corrupted by Zhao Mingming and the others."
Li Jingjing's appearance is only average; she didn't inherit any of the Chen family's good genes. Look at Chen Xinxin; the two are related by marriage, one is a celestial beauty and the other is an ordinary person. Moreover, Li Jingjing's chest is a bit flat, which is completely incomparable to Chen Xinxin's full figure.
Li Jingjing glanced at Zhang Wenjing and said to Zhao Qiang, "I like anything Wenjing likes, and I'll do whatever he asks me to do."
Zhang Wenjing was quite pleased with herself and said to Zhao Qiang, "Brother Qiang, alright? Look at my wife, how gentle and virtuous she is. I'll treat you to dinner later, my dad won't be home tonight." Since the last incident, Zhang Wenjing usually doesn't go out at night, but tonight Zhang Feng is attending a celebration party, so he won't be able to watch over his son.
Zhao Qiang checked the time and said, "Anyway, I have nothing else to do, let's go now. I'm a bit hungry after playing pool all afternoon."
Zhang Wenjing said to Li Jingjing, "Hurry up and call Ming Ge and Dong Ge and tell them the location."
Zhao Qiang quickly declared, "Don't go to Shangri-La, I hate those formal occasions."
Zhang Wenjing laughed and said, "Don't worry, Brother Qiang. This time we're going to a new place. There's a boiled fish restaurant near the Dongqi Road Farmers Market. Jingjing and I went there once, and it was pretty good. We'll eat there tonight. We really need to go early, or we won't be able to get a table."
The farmers' market on Dongqi Road is very large, with tens of thousands of people coming and going every day. The place called Xiaocaowu Boiled Fish is especially bustling. When Zhao Qiang and his group arrived, there were no parking spaces left, so they had to find a spot a little further away to get out and walk in.
Even before entering, Zhao Qiang could see a large crowd through the glass window and exclaimed in admiration, "Business is really good!"
Zhao Ling said, "Tch, it's far inferior to our Lingdong Entertainment."
Zhang Wenjing said, "By the way, I heard that your Lingdong Entertainment recently signed a few good celebrities and models? They're all the kind who have appeared on TV shows."
Zhao Ling said, "What? Now you're into celebrities?" Many celebrities are involved in the business of escorting and sleeping with clients, and it's all arranged by their management companies. It's normal for Zhang Wenjing to have this idea.
"Don't talk nonsense," Zhang Wenjing glanced back at Li Jingjing and was a little worried when she saw her half-smile. Although Li Jingjing gave him face in front of others, she was determined to torment Zhang Wenjing at night. She wouldn't make a fuss or cause any trouble, she would just cling to him and make him do it nine times a night. Even the strongest man couldn't stand it.
Just as they entered the front desk, Zhang Wenjing called out to the owner, "I'd like a large table and bring out our signature dishes."
The woman in the front bar, dressed in a flamboyant manner, said, "I'm so sorry, we only have small tables for four people left. Would you like to wait a bit, or perhaps we could put two tables together in the main hall? We're really sorry we have a lot of customers tonight."
Volume 2 [517] Helping You Do Some Business
[517] Helping you build a career
Zhang Wenjing looked around the hall. It was very noisy and people were coming and going, so it wasn't a good place to talk. He said, "Could you spend a little more money to give us a big table? We don't want to eat in the hall; it's too noisy."
The older woman said, "There's no other way. Why don't you gentlemen go and look at other shops?" What do you mean by "big shops bullying customers"? No one wants to serve them anymore.
Zhang Wenjing felt very embarrassed. Although Li Jingjing's status was not ordinary, it was impossible for her to call and ask for favors just because she couldn't get a seat at a meal. Wouldn't that be brainless?
Bang! Someone forcefully pushed open the glass door and came in shouting, "Brother Qiang, Zhang Wenjing, what kind of lousy place did you choose to eat? There are too many people. Didn't we eat quite well in Shangri-La before?"
Zhao Mingming and Sun Dongming barged in, startling the waiters at the door who backed away. The receptionist hurriedly went out to greet them, saying, "Brother Ming, Brother Dong, what brings you here?" It seemed the two were quite familiar with the place.
Zhang Wenjing snorted coldly and said to Zhao Mingming, "They won't let us eat here, they won't even give us a seat."
Zhao Mingming's expression changed, but before he could speak, his older sister immediately said, "How could that be? He was just joking. Xiao Niu, Xiao Niu, take the guests to the Chunlan Hall on the second floor right away."
A waitress named Xiao Niu whispered a reminder: "Auntie, the Chunlan Hall is booked."
The older woman straightened her face and said, "I told you to go, so go."
The young calf dared not argue anymore and led the way. The older woman bowed and scraped as she served the food. Only then did Zhao Mingming nod in satisfaction. Sun Dongming said to her, "Hurry up and make something delicious. If it doesn't taste good, I'll smash up your shop."
The older woman escorted the guests into the Chunlan Hall before emerging with a bitter expression, muttering, "My god, even my little place has to have these two plagues." She then turned to the waiter in the private room and said, "Be careful, give them whatever they want, don't cause me any trouble."
Zhao Mingming insisted on sitting in the host's seat, saying, "I'm treating, Dongming will keep me company."
Zhang Wenjing didn't compete with him and took the initiative to lead Li Jingjing to sit to Zhao Mingming's right as guests, saying, "You two are really something, eating and drinking for free in Baiyuan City without spending any money, we're really benefiting from your generosity."
Zhao Mingming scratched his head and said, "Where? If I don't pay, my sister will beat me to death. I have to give them the cost price."
Regardless of how much money they were offered, the woman's behavior just now fully demonstrates that Zhao Mingming and Sun Dongming have been doing quite well lately.
Zhao Qiang, Chen Xinxin, and Zhao Ling sat to Zhao Mingming's left. Chen Xinxin said, "Zhao Ling, your reputation as general manager is not as good as Zhao Mingming's and Sun Dongming's. They have conquered the neighboring cities now."
Zhao Qiang warned, "You two had better follow the rules, otherwise I won't be responsible for you if something goes wrong."
Zhao Mingming and Sun Dongming said honestly, "Brother Qiang, don't worry. We've kept the Three Main Rules of Discipline and Eight Points for Attention in mind. We definitely won't cause you any trouble. We've already smoothed things over with the government officials. Besides, we're running a legitimate business. Those officials all applaud us. If we don't rapidly expand our business, we won't be able to achieve the profit and tax targets you set for us by the end of the year."
Early capital accumulation often involves unconventional methods, so Zhao Qiang didn't mind too much, as long as nothing serious happened. After all, in this society, the kind are bullied, and the wicked have a good life.
Knock, knock, knock. Someone cautiously knocked on the door from the outside. Sun Dongming, who was standing close by, got up and opened the door. It was a waitress who had come to deliver the food. They remembered their boss's instructions to knock before entering, otherwise they would be in trouble if they saw or heard anything they shouldn't have.
"Is this boiled fish?" Sun Dongming curiously scooped up the bowl of vegetables. "It's all oil in there!" The bowl was half full of bright red oil, with fish meat in the middle and chili peppers floating on top. The waiter gave everyone a bowl, and everyone tasted it. The taste was not bad. No wonder there were so many customers. The delicious food was the main reason.
The waiter introduced, "Please try this braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens. Don't be fooled by its fatty appearance; it's actually not oily at all."
Chen Xinxin was the first to reach for her chopsticks: "Really? Let me try it."
She didn't dare to use her chopsticks to grip the pork belly, but after taking a bite, Chen Xinxin nodded repeatedly: "Mmm, it tastes really good, I like it."
Li Jingjing looked at her cousin, who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and said, "Be careful not to gain weight."
Chen Xinxin also disliked her cheap cousin, saying, "I like to gain weight." After saying that, she deliberately stared at Li Jingjing's chest, which had no flesh at all. No wonder Zhang Wenjing's gaze kept lingering on Chen Xinxin and Zhao Ling.
It seemed the two women would start arguing if they continued talking, so Zhang Wenjing quickly gave Zhao Qiang a pleading look. Zhao Qiang said, "Hurry up and eat. Don't worry about getting fat. I still have a few packets of slimming tea here."
The waiter had already closed the door and left, so there was no need to hold back in speaking. Li Jingjing had no problem with Zhao Qiang, and she had also heard that he had slimming tea. Of course, the slimming tea she was referring to was the Little Bee brand; she, Miss Li, didn't care about other brands at all. "Really? Brother Qiang, can I have a few boxes? It's hard to buy in Shanghai; it's always a hassle to get a slip from my grandpa." Little Bee slimming tea is now a state-supplied medicine for treating diarrhea, and it's impossible to buy it on the ordinary market.
Zhao Qiang laughed and said, "Giving you a few boxes is impossible. That stuff isn't like cabbage. Otherwise, I would send you a few truckloads. Wenjing, have you ever thought about starting a business?"
Zhang Wenjing said, "Of course I've thought about it. I studied abroad for a few years so that I could come back and do something decent. But as you know, Brother Qiang, I'm not suited for anything. My dad is so worried that he can't sleep at night. How about I take a stake in Bafang Chemical Group?"
Chen Xinxin was the first to shake her head in opposition: "Zhang Wenjing, don't set a precedent for us. Bafang Chemical has no outside shareholders. If you invest in it, the city and province will follow suit with their connections. How are we supposed to operate then?"
Zhang Wenjing asked, "What about Lingdong Entertainment?"
Zhao Ling also objected, saying, "No, we don't need to attract investment."
Zhang Wenjing spread her hands at Zhao Qiang and said, "Brother Qiang, look, no one is helping me."
Zhao Qiang coughed and asked, "Who is the most profitable company right now?"
Li Jingjing answered for Zhang Wenjing: "The daily income of the 'Youth Health Products Company' is many times higher than that of PetroChina and Sinopec."
Zhao Qiang said, "Yes."
Zhang Wenjing said, "No way, Brother Qiang, you're planning to let me open one too? I don't have the skills."
Zhao Qiang said, "Are you stupid? Why don't you become their distributor?"
Zhang Wenjing said, "But as far as I know, they don't need an agent."
Zhao Qiang said, "You're wrong. There are still many untapped cities in the south, and that's where your potential lies."
Zhang Wenjing's eyes lit up, and she immediately looked at Li Jingjing. Li Jingjing pondered for a moment. She knew the reason for those blank cities. The two factions in the north and south had always been at odds. Although the youth health products could set up branches in big cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou, they still couldn't take care of second- and third-tier cities. Of course, this was also related to the limited supply of youth health products.
Li Jingjing said, "If we were to become agents for youth health products, we would definitely make money, but how do we convince Zhang Lingfeng? His products are already in high demand and short supply, so it's impossible for him to give up the opportunity to Zhang Wenjing instead of making money himself."
Zhao Qiang said, "I have some business dealings with him, and I can help you with this."
Zhang Wenjing was overjoyed: "Really? Brother Qiang, you really are my brother!"