In the Procurement Department, Zhang Huowang looked at Che Yingying with a heavy heart, his eyes betraying a sense of schadenfreude and satisfaction, as he deliberately approached and asked, "Manager Che, I heard there was a big problem with the product this time. Didn’t President Liu scold you?"
Che Yingying glanced at Zhang Huowang with his gloating expression, frowned, a flicker of annoyance crossing her eyes. However, she had no way to deal with him and hummed an acknowledgment before turning to another man in the office and saying, "Old Li, call President Wang and have him send over the raw materials today."
"Yes, Manager," Old Li replied, then hurriedly picked up the phone to make the call.
Zhang Huowang’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing this, and a sinister gleam flashed in his eyes.
The next day, the Qinglan Cosmetics warehouse was bustling with activity as forklifts unloaded production materials from trucks and transported them to the storage area.
"Everybody, be careful with that!" Zhang Huowang, the former head of the Procurement Department, had shed his previous air of dejection and complaints and was now briskly advising and checking inventory with vigor, prompting Che Yingying to involuntarily reveal a trace of doubt in her gaze.
Could this man have changed his ways?
Unnoticed by anyone, once all the raw materials were stored, Zhang Huowang had an extra small gourd bottle in his hand, with a yellowed piece of paper attached that bore strange characters.
Gently peeling off the yellowed paper, Zhang Huowang suddenly felt a chill envelop his body, sending a shiver through him.
Yet, the corners of his mouth curled up into a cold, cunning smile.
The first time he did this, he was unaware of what Li Bisheng was up to, thinking it was just some superstitious nonsense. The second time, he realized that the little gourd bottle had profound effects.
Thinking this, Zhang Huowang shuddered again and hastily threw the little gourd bottle away as though it were a poisonous snake.
"Liu Jiayao, you wretch! You demoted me just for a pretty boy. I’ll make sure you lose everything!" After discarding the gourd bottle, Zhang Huowang returned to the Procurement Department, laughing smugly to himself.
...
Time flew past New Year’s Day, and the year 1999 began, quickly proceeding to the coldest time of the lunar calendar, the Great Cold.
The Great Cold is the last of the twenty-four solar terms in Huaxia Country, a time when the sun reaches 300 degrees of celestial longitude. It’s the coldest period of the lunar year, hence the name Great Cold, signifying that the weather has reached its extreme in coldness. Find more to read at freewebnovel
On this day, sitting in the conference room, although the heating was fully on, Liu Jiayao’s heart felt as cold as the Great Cold weather outside.
Ever since the first instance of product quality issues, after working overtime to expedite two more batches, the situation was identical to the first.
There was no problem with the raw materials, no issue with quality control, and the production process was error-free as well.
No one knew where the problem was.
As the year drew to a close, it was the season for major malls to hold sales promotions, but Qinglan Cosmetics’ distributors around the country had begun to run out of stock one after the other. Not to mention promotions, even normal sales were problematic.
Yet this wasn’t the main issue. The main concern was the consecutive appearances of product quality issues three times, with no identifiable cause, leading to significant losses not to mention, Qinglan Cosmetics Company didn’t dare resume production before the problem was found.
But where was the issue? No one knew. Even the third time around, all shareholders, including CEO Liu Jiayao, personally oversaw the first production line.
However, the third batch of products still had issues.
That faintly present stench was nauseating at first whiff!
"We can’t go on like this, our cash flow is now problematic. If the next batch fails again, what do we do? Li Fang’s Li Bisheng wants to partner with us, right? Let’s work with him. It’s the only way out for our Qinglan Cosmetics now," Ren Chenle broke the oppressive silence of the meeting room.
"Perhaps this is indeed our only way out at the moment," most shareholders sighed upon hearing this and then nodded in agreement, except for Liu Jiayao and Uncle Hua.
Even Uncle Hua showed a wavering expression at this time, but after looking at Liu Jiayao and seeing her stern face, he refrained from nodding.
"Hmph, I said it earlier, when Li Bisheng came to discuss the partnership last time, Jiayao should have consulted us. We had the upper hand back then, and since he took the initiative, negotiations would have been very favorable for us. But now, after this incident, negotiations will definitely be at a disadvantage for us," seeing that everyone but Liu Jiayao and Uncle Hua agreed, a hint of smugness appeared on Ren Chenle’s gaunt face as he spoke with a tone of reproach and dissatisfaction.
"I’d rather halt production to find the cause than agree to partner with Li Bisheng," Liu Jiayao’s gaze swept over the shareholders in the meeting room and finally rested on Uncle Hua’s face, speaking with firm conviction.
Uncle Hua looked at Liu Jiayao, a bitter smile crossing his face, and hesitated for a long while before saying, "I support Jiayao’s decision."
"Old Li, Jiayao is young and impulsive—don’t you think you should think twice about following her lead?" Ren Chenle furrowed his brows and spoke.
Ren Chenle had never really respected the young woman Liu Jiayao for taking over her father’s business. Furthermore, after Liu Jiayao ruthlessly dismissed his cousin’s husband, Zhang Huowang, from his position last year, he felt that Liu Jiayao was deliberately trying to embarrass him, harboring resentment against her ever since.
Originally, Liu Jiayao had absolute control of the stock, and overall, Qinglan Cosmetics thrived under her leadership, with most shareholders supporting her; thus, he dared not speak out. However, now that Qinglan Cosmetics faced an unprecedented crisis, Ren Chenle no longer suppressed his dissatisfaction and contempt and assumed the stance of an elder.
"Vice President Ren, I respect you as an elder, thus I’ve always spoken to you courteously. But please mind your language!" Liu Jiayao’s pretty face turned cold when Ren Chenle publicly accused her of being young and impulsive, displaying the assertiveness and dominance befitting a chairman.
"Am I wrong? The situation is clear. With cooperation, our Qinglan Cosmetics might still have a chance. But if we continue to be stubborn, Qinglan Cosmetics will ultimately be ruined by your hands," Ren Chenle adjusted his glasses and said coldly to Liu Jiayao.
"Old Ren, let’s say less, we can discuss this matter further," Uncle Hua intervened to mediate as the atmosphere became tense.
"Hmph!" Ren Chenle snorted coldly, about to add more, when a knock on the meeting room door was heard, and then the tall and handsome Li Bisheng walked in.
Follow current novℯls on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.
"Sorry for the interruption, hope your meeting is going well," Li Bisheng said with a smile as he entered.
"Who let you in? Get out!" Liu Jiayao didn’t know why, but now, seeing that smile on Li Bisheng’s face, she found it especially detestable. On his arrival, her pretty face suddenly turned as cold as frost.