Chapter 406: Chapter 267: Chen Yuan’s Veto, and Wan Offers Jiang Yao a Brilliant Plan
Jiangg Yao took her older sister to the airport. They knew the routine well, parking the car and heading into the terminal. First, they got the boarding pass and checked the luggage. The whole process took about half an hour. By the time Jiangg Ning had to go through security, the sisters had to say their goodbyes.
They stood before the rows of glass partitions that separated the passengers.
Even though she’d repeated herself several times on the way over, Jiangg Ning couldn’t help but remind her again, "Remember to eat properly. Now that I won’t be home, there’s no one to stop you from snacking. Eating too much of that junk is really unhealthy."
"I know, I know."
"If you really don’t want to order takeout and eat alone at home, you can go find Chen. I won’t get on your case about it. Eating with someone else makes it more of an occasion. I know you—sometimes you think it’s too much trouble and just don’t bother to eat a proper meal."
"I’d love to go see the young master," Jiangg Yao’s eyes lit up at her sister’s suggestion, but they quickly dimmed. "But he always says I’m annoying. If I cling to him at school three times a day, he’ll just start complaining about me again..."
"He won’t," Jiangg Ning said, shaking her head as her slender fingers brushed her sister’s cheek. "He’s never found you annoying. He just gets flustered expressing his feelings, so he shows it in a different way."
"For real?" Jiangg Yao was taken aback. She furrowed her brow, thinking for a moment before speaking softly, "What’s gotten into you today, Sis? You’re actually comforting me about the young master. Don’t tell me you two secretly made some deal to start psychoanalyzing me. Or is it that... you’re about to leave, so you’re being unusually nice? This feels weird."
Her eyebrows shot up in surprise, and she pulled the corners of her mouth down in a mock-horrified expression.
Jiangg Yao’s long braid was tied low, draping over her right shoulder. She wore a striped, form-fitting maxi dress.
At a glance, she surprisingly gave off the air of a mature woman.
"Get out of here, you silly Yaoyao. What kind of nonsense is that?" Jiangg Ning tapped her on the forehead. "I’m just worried you’ll give up before you even try, and then refuse to admit I won."
"Heh, now *that’s* my sister. You should hurry and board your flight. I have to go pick up Wan; she should be getting off work now."
"Okay, I’ll message you when I land."
And with that, the two sisters parted ways at the security checkpoint. They waved to each other in the spacious hall under the towering steel dome. Jiangg Ning quickened her pace, her figure soon vanishing around a corner of the departure lounge. When Jiangg Yao looked again, all she could see were countless strangers.
Jiangg Yao headed back the way she came, got into her car, and drove away from the airport.
...
「Twenty kilometers away, on Wenhua Road, next to Lanjing Shimao.」
In the top-floor office of Bauhinia Company, Chen Yuan sat in a comfortable swivel chair, sipping his coffee. His gaze was profound as he watched the little speeding boxes on the road below with great interest.
Pei Youwen was chattering away beside him and had been for nearly an hour. It was obvious Pei’s mouth was dry, but he still hadn’t given up trying to persuade him.
Pei Youwen picked up the coffee from the table, took a sip, and continued, "Why do we insist on using the title ’Chairman’ to define your position? It’s not just a name. It’s a declaration to everyone that you are the one at the very center of power. Have you ever heard what Sir Cadbury said? ’If a company can only have one person sitting in the swivel chair, that person is the one in charge—the soul of the entire company.’"
"You can dismiss anyone you want, you could even dismiss me. Take the board meeting earlier. Their finance department has some bad apples. You fire a few to make an example of them, and everyone sees them packing their things and getting kicked out of the company. Why didn’t you do it?"
"You have to learn to exercise your authority. You don’t have to speak during the meetings, but you’re at the center of the scale, the ultimate referee for the whole company. My authority comes from you. If I had been the one to speak up, I would have been overstepping my bounds."
He grew more and more agitated as he spoke.
Chen Yuan turned his head and looked up. "But didn’t I give you the authority?"
"But the board members were all watching! Some of those old fossils from headquarters already can’t stand me. They’ll think I’m using you as a puppet to flex on everyone else. I’m not afraid of what people say, but it’s best not to give them any ammunition, right?" Pei Youwen lowered his head, vigorously wiping his glasses. He thought Chen Yuan was perfect in every way, except for one thing: he wasn’t ruthless enough.
’If you’re not ruthless, you can’t stay on your feet.’
The meeting at Bauhinia Company today had been critical. A problem in the finance department had caused several projects to stall, prompting an internal review. That’s why they had urgently summoned Chen Yuan, the chairman, for the meeting.
Pei Youwen had laid out the stakes from the start. All the board meeting required was a decisive cut.
It didn’t matter whose fault it was; what had happened, had happened. The important thing was preventing future mistakes.
But after he had made his arrangements, the company’s CFO, Mo Nana, had managed to find an opening. She slipped into the chairman’s office, poured out her grievances, and appealed to his emotions and reason until she swayed Chen Yuan. In the end, the meeting might as well have never happened.
Pei Youwen was so anxious he broke out in a sweat. He pleaded with Chen Yuan to call another meeting. The second time, he just shoved a document in front of him and had him sign it. Mo Nana was furious. She went after Pei, and the two had a massive argument that half the company overheard.
"So, we still achieved our goal," Chen Yuan said. "My intention was to not wrongly accuse our employees."
"Who cares about that? We spend a fortune on their salaries every day. This isn’t a pig farm. If a mistake is made, the entire department is responsible."
"Fine. You have a point."
"I’m done with it," Pei Youwen said with a wave of his hand, plopping down on the sofa. "Anyway, let’s just use this chance today to get the secretary situation sorted out. I can’t be doing two jobs at once. It’s a miracle the board hasn’t already reported me for this conflict of interest. If they do, I’ll never be able to clear my name."
