Chapter 44: Fate Works in Mysterious Ways
Chapter 44: Chapter 44: Fate Works in Mysterious Ways
The two chatted for a bit to pass the time.
Zhao Xiangjun told Chen Xiao that the company was holding a dinner banquet tonight, so he would have to eat alone.
When he learned that the CEO of Yino Group was coming for an inspection, Chen Xiao couldn’t help but smile. Everything was such a coincidence.
’Fate works in mysterious ways!’
Zhang Shijie’s group came downstairs with him walking at the very front. He subconsciously glanced toward Zhao Xiangjun, but no one found it strange.
A girl like that would be the most captivating sight no matter where she was.
There were three cars for the store tour. Liu Haoran would of course accompany Zhang Shijie, while the head of development sat in the passenger seat, as he was more familiar with the commercial districts.
Wu Ting rode in the Yinuo Jiangzhou Branch’s business van, which was also a Buick GL8.
Since there were many people on the tour, someone had to be assigned to the third row of Zhang Shijie’s car. Li Lei took the initiative to assign Zhao Xiangjun.
He was doing this to curry favor with Zhang Shijie, having noticed that the CEO had glanced in Zhao Xiangjun’s direction several times already.
Zhao Xiangjun shook her head. "I’ll just ride in the car behind, or I can take a taxi."
She didn’t want to be with the top brass; it was too restrictive, and she had no desire to suck up to her superiors.
Li Lei felt he had lost face, unable to even assign an escort for the CEO right in front of him. He was not pleased.
"Zhao Xiangjun, just follow the company’s arrangements!" he said in a stern tone.
Zhao Xiangjun was very unhappy, but she also understood the bigger picture and didn’t want to make things difficult for the executives.
Just then, Zhang Shijie frowned. "President Liu, are all the supervisors at your branch this bureaucratic?"
Liu Haoran immediately broke out in a cold sweat, and Li Lei was already starting to tremble.
Wu Ting chimed in at the perfect moment. "Why don’t you ride with me in the second car? Manager Li, you can take the passenger seat."
Zhang Shijie nodded and got into the car. Liu Haoran hurried to follow, while Li Lei, as if granted a pardon, scrambled into the passenger seat of the second car.
Zhao Xiangjun felt a sense of gratitude toward the CEO’s special assistant for getting her out of that jam. "Thank you, Assistant Wu!" she said.
Wu Ting gave a charming smile. "Don’t mention it! Please, get in."
Zhao Xiangjun found it strange that the special assistant was being so polite. But seeing that everyone ahead had already gotten into their cars, she followed suit. Two more sales associates got into the back row, and the rest took taxis to meet them at the destination.
The second car was unusually quiet, each passenger lost in their own thoughts.
Wu Ting was wondering why Chairman Zhao was hiding out in a store as a sales associate, while Li Lei, having just been reprimanded, was on edge and frightened.
He was terrified that the CEO’s criticism would torpedo his future career prospects.
As for Zhao Xiangjun, she didn’t know what to say. She was naturally a quiet person, and only when bickering with Chen Xiao did she reveal her playful side.
The lead car drove very smoothly, which made it difficult for the car behind to follow. It had to accelerate frequently to avoid falling behind.
After several instances of sudden acceleration, Zhao Xiangjun started to feel a bit dizzy.
Wu Ting, who had been keeping an eye on her, quickly asked with concern, "Are you not feeling well?"
Upon learning she was carsick, Wu Ting instructed the driver, "Stop trying to tailgate them. Drive more steadily!"
Li Lei and the sales associates in the back were stunned. If they didn’t keep up with the lead car, who would be there to assist the top executives when they got out?
But Wu Ting was the highest-ranking person in this car, so of course, her orders had to be followed.
Zhao Xiangjun felt a little bad. "Don’t worry about me. The work is more important!"
Wu Ting said, "It’s alright. Just rest for a bit. I’ll explain it to President Zhang."
She kept using the formal "you," but the others didn’t pay it any mind, simply assuming she was habitually polite to everyone.
The car drove all the way to Wansheng Square. When the CEO was on a store tour, the drivers would typically pull up right to the main entrance of the mall.
Unfortunately, the path from the road to Wansheng Square’s main entrance was blocked by stone bollards, and the car couldn’t pass.
Then, Zhao Xiangjun saw several bodyguards get out of the third car and call over all the men present—except for Liu Haoran—to move the stone bollards.
It seemed a bit over the top, so she turned to Wu Ting and asked, "Do executives always travel with such a large entourage?"
She only asked this because Wu Ting had been acting so friendly.
She had no idea her question had made Wu Ting’s heart skip a beat. The assistant quickly explained, "Chairman Zhao, this must be the subordinates acting on their own initiative. President Zhang doesn’t care for such ostentation!"
Zhao Xiangjun wondered why Wu Ting called her "Chairman Zhao," assuming it was a slip of the tongue. She was also amused by how nervously the assistant stammered through her explanation.
’Is the CEO’s assistant really so concerned with appearances?’
"I didn’t mean anything by it, I was just asking. You don’t have to overthink it!"
Wu Ting finally breathed a sigh of relief. ’Good heavens, how could I not overthink it? You’re the third-in-command!’
The group got out of the cars and began the store tour. The staff from the Jiangzhou Branch all noticed that the CEO’s assistant wasn’t accompanying the CEO, but was instead sticking close to Zhao Xiangjun and talking with her.
Furthermore, it was mostly Wu Ting talking and Zhao Xiangjun listening.
It was strange, but on second thought, they figured that since they were in Jiangzhou, it was enough for Liu Haoran to accompany the CEO. Perhaps Assistant Wu was just enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
Still, they were quite envious of Zhao Xiangjun. After all, even Liu Haoran wanted to be on good terms with Assistant Wu.
What they didn’t know was that Zhao Xiangjun already found Wu Ting too talkative. The chatter was making her head buzz. She preferred peace and quiet; the most talkative she ever got was when she was bickering with Chen Xiao.
But what made everyone truly envious was what happened at the dinner banquet.
Zhao Xiangjun was the only "elite salesperson" specifically invited to the banquet. To be able to sit at the same table as the CEO was an opportunity many could only dream of. Li Lei was so excited he was practically trembling as he spoke.
Those who couldn’t attend the banquet envied Zhao Xiangjun, and Zhao Xiangjun envied them right back. Heaven knew how much she hated this kind of event.
The fact that there would definitely be drinking involved made her dread it even more.
At dinner, Zhao Xiangjun was seated next to Wu Ting. Wu Ting repeatedly tried to get her to move to a more senior seat, but Zhao Xiangjun refused. ’Doesn’t this Assistant Wu understand any workplace etiquette?’ she grumbled internally. ’My rank is the lowest here, how could I possibly move up?’
In the end, it was Zhang Shijie who said to just leave the seating as it was, and only then did Wu Ting give up on her plan to move Zhao Xiangjun to a seat of honor.
A server opened two bottles of Maotai and filled all the decanters. Zhang Shijie then smiled and said, "Everyone can drink a little, right?"
Liu Haoran quickly jumped in, "Yes, everyone can drink! How could we in sales not drink?"
Zhang Shijie deliberately looked toward Zhao Xiangjun, and Wu Ting instantly understood. "Do you drink?" she asked her.
Zhao Xiangjun had already been worrying about the drinking. Hearing the question, she quickly asked back, "Is it okay if I don’t?"
Liu Haoran was a little displeased. ’Aren’t you spoiling the CEO’s mood? And slapping me in the face?’
Seeing Liu Haoran’s dark expression, Li Lei quickly scolded her, "Everyone else is drinking, so you should at least force yourself to have a little!"
To everyone’s surprise, Zhang Shijie waved his hand. "If she really can’t drink, then don’t force her. Have the server bring a hot beverage!"
"Also, Manager Li," he continued, "I’ve been wanting to say this since the store tour. We’re a fashion brand. You don’t need to be decked out in a suit and leather shoes, looking like an insurance salesman!"
Li Lei’s face flushed red in an instant.
The poor guy. To welcome the CEO, he had specifically spent over 10,000 yuan on a high-end suit. He’d thought he was the sharpest-dressed man in the room, but the CEO’s comment about him looking like an insurance salesman completely shattered his confidence.