novelonline Chapter 1589 As long as you swing the hoe well, no corner is too steep to dig down.
Chapter 1589 As long as you swing the hoe well, no corner is too steep to dig down.
The next day, Han Ling arrived at the company early as usual.
She tidied her desk, made a cup of tea, and was about to turn on her computer to work on the spreadsheet she hadn't finished yesterday when a young woman in the office ran over to tell her, "Sister Han, President Qin wants to go to his office."
Han Ling felt a slight tightness in her heart, put down the cup, and went upstairs.
Qin Hao's office door was ajar. She knocked on the doorframe. Qin Hao was leaning back in his executive chair, flipping through a document. Hearing the sound, he looked up and gestured for her to come in and sit down.
"You're here? Have a seat." Qin Hao placed the documents on the table and leaned back in his chair. "You've been with the company for several days now. How are you feeling? Are you settling in?"
Han Ling assumed Qin Hao wanted to discuss her performance during the probationary period, so she honestly replied, "It was alright."
She paused for a moment, then added, "Well... the work is all pretty basic, so there's nothing I'm not used to."
Upon hearing this, Qin Hao's lips curled slightly.
"So, you feel your current job is too basic? You want to do something more challenging?"
Han Ling was taken aback, then nodded.
It wasn't that she had great ambitions for her career; frankly, she just wanted to pass her probation period as soon as possible and get the 3,500 yuan salary after becoming a full-time employee. Doing these basic tasks was fine for now, but what if Qin Hao thought she was worthless and fired her as soon as her probation period ended?
“Okay.” Qin Hao straightened up from his chair, placed his hands on the table, interlaced his fingers, and looked at Han Ling with a more serious expression. “Since you want something more challenging, I’ll assign you a new task.”
"Starting tomorrow, you will be in charge of planning all my schedules."
Han Ling blinked, not quite understanding at first.
Qin Hao noticed her confusion and patiently explained, "It's about my daily schedule: how long the travel time will be, how much time each activity will take—you'll be responsible for arranging all of that. Of course, you also need to prepare contingency plans for unexpected situations. For example, which detour to take if there's traffic, how to reschedule appointments if someone can't make it, and when to reschedule client meetings—all of these need to be considered."
He paused for a moment, then added, "Simply put, I only need to do the work each day; how to arrange things, how to coordinate, and how to handle unexpected situations—that's all your job."
After hearing this, Han Ling's mouth was slightly open, and she couldn't say anything for a long time.
She then realized that an assistant's true responsibilities went far beyond simply creating spreadsheets and photocopying documents. Qin Hao needed someone to meticulously plan his schedule every day, from who he met and what business he negotiated to the decisions he made. A slight miscalculation, such as a scheduling conflict or an unreasonable arrangement, could potentially jeopardize deals worth hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.
Han Ling's expression gradually changed.
She wasn't afraid of hardship; she was afraid she couldn't handle the pressure. Qin Hao was currently negotiating multi-million dollar deals, and if anything went wrong because of her arrangements, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Even if Qin Hao doesn't punish her, she will still feel guilty.
"This..." Han Ling hesitated, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.
Qin Hao noticed her hesitation but didn't press her. He simply said, "No rush. Think it over and give me your answer. If you don't want to continue, that's fine too; just keep doing your current job."
Han Ling nodded, stood up, said goodbye, and left the office.
As she walked up the stairs, her mind was in turmoil. On one hand, she genuinely wanted to do more valuable work and didn't want to be let go during her probation period; on the other hand, she was afraid that she wasn't capable enough and would mess things up, making matters worse.
This conflicted feeling persisted until I left work.
……
When she got home, Han Ling told Xiao Ran about what had happened that day.
She originally thought Xiao Ran would help her analyze the pros and cons and give her some advice, but she didn't expect Xiao Ran's reaction to be much more intense than she had anticipated.
"No way!" Xiao Ran refused outright, slamming his chopsticks on the table. "You absolutely cannot take this job!"
Han Ling frowned: "Why?"
"Why?" Xiao Ran's voice suddenly rose eight octaves: "Han Ling, can't you use your brain? You're supposed to arrange all his schedules? Doesn't that mean you have to be by his side every second? Wherever he goes, you go; whoever he meets, you meet. You two are practically tied together 24/7. This is clearly a pretext for him to get close to you. I told you long ago he had ulterior motives towards you, and now you see it's completely exposed!"
"Xiao Ran, you're overthinking it—"
"I'm overthinking it?" Xiao Ran sneered. "Han Ling, look at yourself. Are you really blind to the truth, or do you simply not want to see it? Why did Qin Hao specifically choose you for this? His company is so big, couldn't he just find someone experienced? He insists on having a newbie like you, who's only been here a few days, arrange his schedule. Don't you really know what he's up to?"
Han Ling's expression changed.
It's always like this.
Every time Qin Hao is mentioned, Xiao Ran becomes like this—extreme, impulsive, and unreasonable. He already caused a scene once when Han Ling was looking for a job, and now he's going to do it again. Han Ling suddenly felt an inexplicable anger rising from the bottom of her heart, burning her up completely.
"Xiao Ran, can you stop thinking about things in that way?" Han Ling said, suppressing her anger. "Qin Hao trusts me and is giving me a chance to learn—"
"Trust? Training?" Xiao Ran scoffed, his expression carrying an offended anger. "Han Ling, I've worked in purchasing for a few months at the company; I've seen this kind of trick a million times. The boss gives his female subordinate special treatment, assigning her a job that involves her being by his side every day—guess what happens next?"
"you--"
"In short, you're going to resign tomorrow!" Xiao Ran slammed his hand on the table, his attitude resolute.
Both of them were stunned when they heard this.
Xiao Ran realized he had gone too far, but his pride and jealousy made it impossible for him to take back his words. He sat there with a stiff face, his chest heaving violently, like an enraged bull.
Looking at the man in front of her, Han Ling suddenly felt an unprecedented emotion welling up inside her—not anger, not grievance, but an inexplicable sense of resentment.
Why?
Why should she have to get Xiao Ran's permission for everything she does? Why can't she do something just because Xiao Ran says she can't? She is an independent person, not Xiao Ran's appendage, much less a puppet he holds in his hands.
If she doesn't even have the freedom to arrange her own work, then what's the difference between her and a parasite?
“I’m taking this job.” Han Ling met his gaze. “Xiao Ran, I’m in charge of my work. If you’re unhappy, that’s your problem.”
After saying that, she stood up, went into the bedroom, and closed the door.
Xiao Ran sat in the living room, clenching his fists, and didn't move for a long time.
……
The next morning, Han Ling found Qin Hao and expressed her willingness to give it a try.
Qin Hao glanced at her, said nothing more, and simply nodded: "Okay, go find Liu Yuan and have him teach you."
When Han Ling found Liu Yuan, he was in his office cursing on the phone—apparently, another supplier's goods had gone wrong. He saw Han Ling come in, quickly said a few words, hung up, and leaned back in his chair, watching her.
"Old Qin asked you to teach me how to plan the itinerary," Han Ling said bluntly.
“Okay, I’ll teach you.” Liu Yuan stood up, walked to a whiteboard on the wall, and picked up a marker: “Planning an itinerary isn’t that difficult, but it’s not that easy either. The key is one word—steadiness.”
He wrote a large "稳" (steady) character on the whiteboard and then began to explain each point one by one.
"First, leave some leeway in the time. Old Qin never leaves right on time, but you must be on time when planning your trip. If the normal journey from point A to point B takes half an hour, allocate forty minutes..."
"Secondly, priorities must be clear. Not everything is equally important. Meeting with major clients takes precedence, followed by smaller clients; internal meetings can be rescheduled. If there are scheduling conflicts, you must know which to prioritize and which to postpone."
"Third, contingency plans are essential. What if Mr. Qin goes to meet a client and the client cancels at the last minute? What if he drinks too much at a dinner and can't leave? What if he gets stuck in traffic and misses the next meeting? You need to have a plan in advance for every possible scenario."
"Fourth, the information must be comprehensive. You need to know who President Qin meets every day, what they discuss, their backgrounds, and the extent of their previous discussions—you need to know all of this..."
Liu Yuan spoke for more than half an hour straight, and Han Ling took a notebook and wrote down each point.
In the following days, Han Ling began to get into the zone.
Every day before leaving get off work, she would hand Qin Hao a schedule for the next three days. The schedule was very detailed—departure time, route, estimated travel time, who to meet, what to discuss, and how to adjust in case of emergencies. Everything was clearly listed.
After reading it, Qin Hao showed a rare expression of approval.
"Well done." He put down the schedule, leaned back in his chair, and looked at Han Ling. "You're getting the hang of it faster than I expected. Keep up the good work; this job is quite challenging."
Han Ling breathed a slight sigh of relief, but before she could even feel happy, Qin Hao added another sentence.
"But starting tomorrow, you'll be traveling with me everywhere. Are you prepared for hardship?"
Han Ling nodded, but she didn't really care.
Suffering?
She had seen Qin Hao's schedule; half of it was spent at dinners, teahouses, and nightclubs. Where was the hardship in those places? Sitting in private rooms eating and drinking, listening to Qin Hao discuss business—at most, his legs would ache from standing for too long; that wasn't hardship at all.
It's more like enjoying a life of luxury.
It wasn't until she actually went out with Qin Hao for a whole day that she realized how terribly wrong she had been.
……
The first day I went out with Qin Hao started at eight in the morning.
The first stop was Huaqiangbei to meet with a distributor to discuss supply prices for the second half of the year. Han Ling followed behind Qin Hao, holding a folder, sitting quietly to listen to their discussion. After nearly an hour, they finally agreed on a price that Qin Hao had negotiated down by two percentage points.
The second stop was an inspection of goods at an electronic component warehouse. Qin Hao personally inspected the sampled goods and found that a batch of capacitors had significantly deviated from their specifications, so he immediately demanded a return. The supplier was not happy, but Qin Hao was firm, and in the end, the supplier had no choice but to agree to replace the goods.
The third stop was lunch—a dinner party.
The meeting was held in a private room at a high-end restaurant in Huaqiangbei. Qin Hao was treating three distributors from out of town to dinner. Han Ling assumed that such occasions were just about sitting down to eat, drink, and chat, and she was just tagging along for a nice meal.
The result was completely different.
The three distributors each offered Qin Hao three toasts—it was customary for guests to toast their hosts. Qin Hao accepted all offers and downed all three glasses of baijiu in one gulp.
Then came the return toasts. Qin Hao, holding his wine glass, toasted each of them one by one. Each of the three distributors returned three toasts, making a total of nine.
That wasn't all. Several people accompanying the distributor also wanted to offer toasts, and Qin Hao drank a few more glasses. During the meal, they would clink glasses, walk in circles, and play drinking games, with all sorts of activities coming up one after another.
The meal lasted an hour and a half, and Qin Hao drank at least two jin (1 kg) of baijiu (Chinese liquor) by himself.
Han Ling sat beside her, dumbfounded.
She noticed that Qin Hao barely touched his chopsticks—not because he didn't want to eat, but because he simply didn't have the chance. Every time he tried to pick up a piece of food, someone would approach with a wine glass: "Mr. Qin, let me toast you!" He could only put down his chopsticks and pick up the wine glass.
Han Ling, on the other hand, ate quite a lot of food quietly because no one paid any attention to her.
By the end of the dinner, Qin Hao's face was flushed, but his eyes remained clear. He stood up to shake hands with the distributors and say goodbye, his steps steady and his speech at a normal pace, showing no signs that he had already drunk two jin of baijiu (a type of Chinese liquor).
After getting into the car, Qin Hao leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and asked Han Ling, "What time is the next stop?"
Han Ling glanced at her schedule: "I have an appointment with Director Du of Great Wall Power Supply Factory at 3 PM to discuss OEM production capacity."
"Twenty minutes left." Qin Hao nodded and closed his eyes to rest.
Han Ling looked at his slightly furrowed brows and pale lips, hesitated for a moment, then took a bottle of mineral water from her bag and handed it to him: "Have some water."
Qin Hao took the water, unscrewed the cap, took a couple of sips, and said thank you.
I went to two more places in the afternoon, and I have a dinner party tonight. This time it's at a seafood restaurant, and across from me are two Chaoshan business owners discussing a batch of computer cases for export to Southeast Asia. Chaoshan people are known for their hearty drinking; they start with "a deep friendship, bottoms up!" and Qin Hao went on and on, drinking round after round.
Around 9 PM, the dinner finally ended. Qin Hao shook hands with the two Chaozhou bosses to say goodbye, his smile still polite, but Han Ling noticed that after he got into the car, he leaned back in the passenger seat for a while before recovering (of course, he was just putting on an act for Han Ling).
As the car drove out of the parking lot, Han Ling finally couldn't help but speak.
"Old Qin, did you used to drink like this every day?"
Qin Hao opened his eyes and gave a self-deprecating laugh: "More or less."
"And your body..."
"There's nothing we can do about it; that's just how it is now." Qin Hao's voice was calm. "80% of business deals are made over drinks, and the remaining 20% are made in nightclubs. If you don't drink, people think you're clueless; if you drink too little, people think you look down on them. In China, your drinking capacity is your productivity."
Han Ling didn't say anything more. She then realized that even a big boss like Qin Hao didn't have an easy time making money.
She turned to look out the car window, and the Shenzhen night view flashed by—neon lights, billboards, a constant stream of cars, and towering office buildings. This city is always brightly lit and always bustling.
……
In the period that followed, Han Ling's life changed completely.
Before, she could leave work on time and go back to her rented apartment to cook, eat, and chat with Xiao Ran. Now, she follows Qin Hao around every day, leaving at seven or eight in the morning and not returning until nine or ten at night or even later. When she gets back, she is exhausted, quickly washes up, and falls asleep immediately, having no energy to talk to Xiao Ran at all.
At her busiest, she followed Qin Hao to four events a day—meeting suppliers in the morning, having lunch with clients at noon, inspecting the workshop in the afternoon, and a business dinner in the evening. By the time she dragged her aching legs back to her rented room, she barely had the strength to take off her clothes, let alone be intimate with Xiao Ran.
Xiao Ran could tolerate it at first, since Han Ling was indeed at work, not out playing. But as the days went by, the two communicated less and less, sometimes exchanging no more than twenty sentences in an entire week.
Xiao Ran's dissatisfaction grew like a snowball.
He wasn't unaware of Han Ling's hardships, but what he couldn't bear was that Han Ling's hardships were because of Qin Hao. She left early and returned late because of Qin Hao, she was exhausted because of Qin Hao, and she didn't even have the strength to talk to herself because of Qin Hao.
Finally, one night two weeks later, the fuse was lit.
Han Ling returned home later than usual that day, not entering the house until almost eleven o'clock. Her face was pale, and she had dark circles under her eyes. She collapsed onto the bed as soon as she entered, not even bothering to take off her shoes.
Xiao Ran sat at the table, a pile of purchase orders spread out in front of him, but he didn't read a single word. He listened to Han Ling enter the room and fall onto the bed, and remained silent for a while before speaking.
"Why are you back so late again?"
"I went to a dinner party with Lao Qin, and then we went to a nightclub." Han Ling's voice was muffled, her face buried in the pillow.
"nightclub?"
"Um."
"Going drinking with Qin Hao again?"
Han Ling frowned slightly but did not answer.
Xiao Ran suddenly stood up, the chair making a loud thud on the floor. He walked to the bedside and looked down at Han Ling's tired profile.
"Han Ling, do you even realize what kind of person you are right now?"
Han Ling slowly turned over and looked at Xiao Ran. His face appeared somewhat distorted in the dim light, and the veins on his forehead throbbed.
"You leave early and come home late every day, you don't even have the energy to say a word to me. I'm asking you, are you Qin Hao's assistant or his nanny?"
Han Ling's anger flared up instantly.
"Xiao Ran, that's enough!" She propped herself up on her arms, her eyes blazing with long-suppressed anger. "I'm tired because of work, not because of him! Do you think I want to be this tired? What if I don't do this? What if I don't pass my probation period? Can you support us on your meager salary?"
"Han Ling," Xiao Ran said softly, "You should resign. I will definitely succeed. You have to believe me."
"No!" Han Ling's eyes reddened, but her gaze remained stubborn.
Han Ling's voice was so shrill it almost cracked: "What else can you say besides telling me to resign? Have you even thought about what will happen to me after I resign? Have you ever thought about how we'll live? You only care about your pathetic pride; when have you ever considered our future?!"
Xiao Ran was so choked by these words that his face turned pale.
He wanted to argue, but when he opened his mouth, he found that he couldn't utter any powerful words.
But he was unwilling to admit it.
"Then you can continue working for Qin Hao." Xiao Ran's voice turned cold and hard, each word seeming to have been pulled from an ice cellar: "You can continue to be his slave, continue to drink and eat with him, continue—"
"Snapped!"
Han Ling slapped Xiao Ran across the face, making a sharp sound. She glared at Xiao Ran, her chest heaving violently, tears welling up in her eyes, but stubbornly refusing to fall.
“Xiao Ran, let me tell you.” Her voice trembled, but every word pierced the air like nails: “For the past two weeks, I’ve been running around with Qin Hao, meeting so many people, witnessing so many things. Do you know what my biggest takeaway is?”
"The world is much bigger than you think."
"Qin Hao deals with millions or tens of millions of dollars worth of business every day. Following him, I realized for the first time that there are so many people in this world who are desperately trying to make money and change their fate. And you? You just cling to your pathetic pride, thinking that everyone in the world has a problem with you, looks down on you, and has designs on your girlfriend—"
"Enough, shut up!" Xiao Ran slammed his fist against the wall.
The two stared at each other, neither willing to back down, the air thick with the tension of an impending explosion.
In the end, Han Ling made the first move.
She stood up, walked to the wardrobe, pulled out a travel bag, and began stuffing clothes into it.
"What are you doing?" Xiao Ran stared at her movements.
"I'm moving out," Han Ling said without turning her head.
Where are you moving to?
"Factory dormitory."
"Han Ling, you—"
“Xiao Ran, I’m tired.” Han Ling zipped up her travel bag and turned to look at him. Her eyes were still red, but the tears had dried, leaving only exhaustion and a resolute clarity: “Being with you, we argue and fight every day. You ask me to quit my job, and I say no; you suspect Qin Hao, and I say no. Neither of us can convince the other, and continuing like this will only drain us both.”
She took a deep breath and continued, "I'll move out to calm down, and you should calm down too. We'll talk again when you've thought it through."
After saying that, she picked up her travel bag and walked out of the rented room.
The door slammed shut behind me.
Xiao Ran stood there, staring at the tightly closed door, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.
……
After moving into the factory dormitory, Han Ling's life became much simpler.
The dormitory is a four-person room, but currently only two people live there—the other is a girl who works in quality inspection in the workshop, two years older than Han Ling, not very talkative, and quiet. Although the two don't chat much, they don't bother each other, so they get along peacefully.
Han Ling devoted all her energy to her work.
She gets up at 5:30 every day, first checking the day's schedule to make sure there are no omissions or conflicts; at 6:30, she goes to the office and prepares all the documents, materials, and business cards that Qin Hao will need for the day; at 7:00, Qin Hao arrives at the company, and the two of them go out to start their busy day.
She began to observe Qin Hao's rhythm—when he was most energetic, when he was prone to drowsiness, in what situations she should help him avoid drinking too much, and in what situations she should remind him to be mindful of the time. She even added a note column to the schedule, recording key information mentioned by each client during their last meeting, so that Qin Hao could easily refer to it at any time.
Qin Hao didn't openly praise her, but judging from his increasing reliance on her schedule, Han Ling knew she was making progress.
That day, as usual, Han Ling showed Qin Hao her schedule. Qin Hao glanced at it and suddenly said something that surprised her.
"Postpone today's entire schedule."
Han Ling was taken aback: "Postponed entirely?"
"Yes, all of them." Qin Hao's tone left no room for argument.
Han Ling glanced at the schedule, her brow furrowing slightly. "But Mr. Qin, we have a lunch appointment with two representatives from Japanese component manufacturers. It's been several days already; wouldn't it be inappropriate to cancel now?"
The two Japanese company representatives manufacture capacitors, and Japanese capacitors are among the highest quality in their category. It was quite a task to schedule this meeting, and canceling it abruptly could jeopardize future collaborations. After all, business is all about trust; if you make an appointment and then stand someone up at the last minute, your reputation won't be good.
Qin Hao waved his hand dismissively: "If it really doesn't work out, we'll just change suppliers. We buy tens of millions worth of goods a year; they're begging us to do business, not the other way around. Let's reschedule for tomorrow, or have Liu Yuan handle it first."
Han Ling opened her mouth as if to say something, but seeing Qin Hao's gaze, she swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue.
“Okay, I’ll make the arrangements.” She put away the schedule, turned around and left.
At 10:00 AM, Qin Hao instructed the driver to take the car out of the factory area. Han Ling sat in the passenger seat, holding a notebook, ready to record Qin Hao's instructions at any time.
The car drove all the way to Nanshan District, making several turns before entering a narrow street, and finally stopped in front of a warehouse.
Han Ling got out of the car and looked up at the sign at the warehouse entrance—"An'erya Daily Chemical Company".
She was somewhat bewildered.
Isn't this a company that makes daily chemical products? Is Qin Hao expanding into a new business and starting to make daily chemical products?
Qin Hao simply smiled, said nothing, and walked straight into the warehouse.
Han Ling had no choice but to follow.
The warehouse wasn't large, filled with rows of cardboard boxes, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of Chinese medicine. Several workers were moving goods. When Qin Hao came in, one of them ran over and asked, "Who are you looking for?" Qin Hao replied, "Is Zhou Zhenxing here?" The worker then pointed inside the warehouse.
Qin Hao strode inside, with Han Ling following closely behind.
Walking to a desk deep inside the warehouse, a square-faced middle-aged man was sitting there looking through ledgers. He was wearing a faded gray jacket, his hair was neatly combed, and his square face had several deep wrinkles, making him look to be about forty years old.
"Manager Zhou," Qin Hao's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a serious tone, "How have you considered what I told you last time?"
Zhou Zhenxing slowly raised his head.
He looked at Qin Hao, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"You were absolutely right." Zhou Zhenxing closed the ledger, his voice tinged with suppressed helplessness: "Some people, once they achieve success, become arrogant and complacent; they're not cut out for great things."
Qin Hao's eyes lit up slightly, and the smile on his lips deepened.
He held out his hand, looking directly at Zhou Zhenxing: "So, you agree to work for me?"
Zhou Zhenxing looked at Qin Hao's outstretched hand and remained silent for two seconds.
Then he reached out and gripped it tightly.
“I hope you’re different from Lu Ximing.” Zhou Zhenxing’s voice was low, his eyes filled with scrutiny and expectation.
Qin Hao did not avoid his gaze.
Time will prove that this will be the best decision you've ever made.
Qin Hao's voice was steady and powerful. Han Ling stood aside, watching the two men shake hands, and inexplicably felt that this moment was somewhat solemn.
Qin Hao released his grip and turned to look at Han Ling.
"Have you made the restaurant reservations? I'm in a good mood, I must have a good drink with Manager Zhou today."
Han Ling then realized what was going on and quickly nodded, "It's settled, at that Chaozhou restaurant nearby."
Qin Hao patted Zhou Zhenxing on the shoulder: "Let's go, Manager Zhou, let's eat first. We can talk about the salary and benefits while we eat."
Zhou Zhenxing stood up, dusted off his jacket, and followed Qin Hao outside.
Han Ling followed behind the two, her mind racing.
She finally understood—the reason Qin Hao canceled all his appointments today was to invite Zhou Zhenxing to join the company.
But what exactly is this unassuming middle-aged man capable of that Qin Hao would go to such lengths to see him? Even a representative from a Japanese component manufacturer was willing to stand him up just to meet him—this is no ordinary level of importance.
Qin Hao chuckled inwardly.
In the original storyline, Zhou Zhenxing was a pivotal figure. He was originally Lu Ximing's capable assistant, skilled in management and marketing, a rare multi-talented individual. It was precisely because of Zhou Zhenxing's guidance that Xiao Ran gradually transformed from a poor boy into a multi-millionaire boss.
But now, Zhou Zhenxing has been outmaneuvered by him.
Without Zhou Zhenxing, I wonder if Xiao Ran can still succeed in starting his business?
Thinking of this, Qin Hao's smile deepened.
……
In a private room at a Chaozhou restaurant, Qin Hao and Zhou Zhenxing were toasting each other, and the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious.
Han Ling sat to the side, quietly eating and taking notes. She noticed that Qin Hao's drinking behavior today was completely different from usual—usually he was passively forced to drink by others, but today he took the initiative to raise his glass, clinking glasses with Zhou Zhenxing one after another, his smile genuinely joyful.
Although Zhou Zhenxing didn't talk much, every word he uttered hit the nail on the head.
“Lu Ximing is good at making money, but terrible at managing people.” Zhou Zhenxing took a sip of his drink and shook his head. “When we were just starting out, he was fine; he listened to everything you said. But once we got bigger, it was different. He thought he knew everything, and any suggestions you offered were seen as a challenge to his authority.”
"I told him a million times not to do this major soap project he started this year, but he insisted, even saying I had 'no vision.' And what happened? He invested over two million yuan and it all went down the drain, and now he's drowning in debt."
Qin Hao listened and nodded slightly. He didn't rush to express his opinion, but simply poured Zhou Zhenxing a glass of wine and waited for him to continue.
“I don’t have any other skills, except for judging people and managing things.” Zhou Zhenxing looked at Qin Hao with an open and honest gaze. “Since you’ve come to me, you must know me. Let me be clear from the start—I’m not here to be your yes-man. If you’re like Lu Ximing, unable to tolerate dissenting opinions, then tell me now so I can leave as soon as possible.”
Qin Hao picked up his wine glass and clinked it against Zhou Zhenxing's.
“Manager Zhou, I hired you because you're someone who speaks the truth,” Qin Hao said calmly. “I need someone who can point out my flaws and find problems, not a sycophant who just bows and scrapes. At my company's size, what we lack most are people who dare to say 'no' to me.”
Zhou Zhenxing looked at Qin Hao, a hint of emotion in his eyes.
He downed the drink and slammed the glass heavily on the table.
"Fine. For that, I'll stick with you." (End of Chapter)