Chapter 520 - 311: The 11th Friend Slot, the Iron-Headed Fool...

Chapter 520: Chapter 311: The 11th Friend Slot, the Iron-Headed Fool...

He was mentally prepared for this.

’The boss wouldn’t make a losing investment. He has to consider the return on investment, right?’

At that moment, hearing this, the men who had remained all perked up their ears, listening intently.

Lin Chu glanced at him, thought for a moment, then raised his coffee cup and clinked it against Li Rui’s.

"Not for now."

"It’s a spare piece on the board."

"Consider it a bonus for the guys."

"You seem pretty eager, huh?"

Lin Chu asked with a half-smile.

’I don’t need to explain too much,’ he thought, ’but I do need to lay the groundwork for the future. It’ll come in handy eventually.’

’A spare piece?’

Li Rui licked his lips, somewhat at a loss for words.

’Then what would a main piece be?’

He had a vague feeling that the young President Lin was playing a grand game of chess, but after a moment’s hesitation, he didn’t ask.

’That’s not something I should be asking.’

’You can never guess what these big shots are thinking.’

’He’ll tell us when it’s time.’

"We’re all a bit overwhelmed by your generosity. To be honest, the company was already giving us a lot. But buying us houses... we truly never expected that, never even dared to dream of it. The guys all thought a huge job had come up and we’d have to risk our lives for it."

Li Rui’s gaze swept over his subordinates, who all wore smiles.

In this line of work, you traded your life for money. Although most missions weren’t dangerous, you could never be sure.

To put it another way, the nature of the job meant that the more money was involved, the greater the danger.

"What the hell are you thinking?"

"If there really was a huge job, I wouldn’t send my own guys to do it. There are plenty of channels for that on the dark web."

"Besides, I run a legitimate business. What kind of ’huge job’ could I possibly have?"

"Just relax and put your minds at ease. Settle down, start a family here, have a few kids—that’s what living is about. Do you all have girlfriends?"

Lin Chu’s eyes swept across the group, his teasing tone like that of a family elder.

"Hahaha, I think most of us do."

"With a monthly salary of ten thousand euros, after taxes, that’s definitely a high income here. As long as there’s no language barrier, it’s easy to find someone."

"Of course, from what I know, they also know how to have a good time."

Li Rui didn’t shy away from the topic, smiling candidly.

Among the others, a few also gave embarrassed smiles.

They were all young men in peak physical condition, bursting with energy. Here in the capital of romance, how could they possibly short-change themselves?

"Alright, that’s good too. I’ll have President Gao buy a few more sports cars later. Go out and have some fun in your free time; who knows what opportunities might come of it."

"You’re all tall and handsome. It would be perfectly normal to win over a few socialites, right?"

Lin Chu chatted and laughed casually.

To him, this truly was a spare piece on the board—an action taken on a whim. But there was still plenty of time, and no one knew what kind of fire a single spark could become in the future.

The best investment, of course, is in people.

Amidst the laughter, Lin Chu added, "My development of the European Company focuses mainly on two sectors: luxury goods and banking. If any of you are interested, you can start building up your knowledge in those areas. They’re all under the group’s umbrella. If you want to transfer to a different position, just apply directly with President Gao."

"That way, you’ll have a place to retire when you’re older. As long as you don’t make any critical mistakes, I don’t like to lay people off."

"We have this bond now, and I hope it lasts a lifetime."

"Of course, if you find better opportunities, I certainly won’t force you to stay. If I can help, I absolutely will."

Lin Chu said this all with an air of casual confidence.

Do good deeds, ask not about the future.

Place enough pieces on the board, and they will naturally form an overwhelming force.

Hearing this, Li Rui and the others felt an indescribable emotion, a sense of his immense vision.

They had met plenty of wealthy clients while on missions before.

After all, this industry primarily served wealthy clients, whether corporate or individual.

But someone with President Lin’s kind of vision... they had truly never seen anything like it. ℯ

’Rich people are so shrewd!’

’How else would they have gotten rich?’

’Who acts like this?’

Staring at Lin Chu with a burning gaze, Li Rui was incredibly moved.

Just then.

A virtual panel suddenly materialized before Lin Chu’s eyes.

[Liu Chenhui’s Favorability toward you has exceeded 90]

[Eleventh Friend Slot Unlocked]

[Friend: Liu Chenhui]

[Intimacy: 96]

Huh?

Lin Chu paused, slightly stunned. He glanced at the men. He hadn’t asked for their names earlier, and they hadn’t introduced themselves; he had only been talking with Li Rui.

But he didn’t expect a pleasant surprise at a time like this.

’Then again...’

’After a speech like that, it would be a lie to say no one was moved.’

Lin Chu thought to himself that if he’d had a boss like himself back when he was an employee, he really would have given his life for him!

"Who’s Liu Chenhui?"

Looking at the panel’s notification, Lin Chu asked casually with a smile.

’Since he’s been certified by the panel, I should definitely have a good chat with him. I’ll feel more at ease entrusting him with important tasks.’

"Huh?"

"President Lin, you know my name?"

The biggest man in the group asked in surprise. He had a square face and a slightly simple, honest look, his black T-shirt stretched taut over his massive pectoral muscles.

"Mm."

Lin Chu nodded casually. As the boss, he naturally wouldn’t explain himself. "Where are you from?"

"Shandong."

Liu Chenhui said, pleasantly surprised, his eyes filled with the look of someone being recognized by an important person.

"Good place. What did you do before this?"

"I... I didn’t finish high school. I followed my uncle over here to open a Chinese restaurant. Later, my uncle passed away, and the restaurant went out of business. I taught boxing at a gym, and when the company was hiring locally, I applied and got accepted. This is my fourth year now."

Liu Chenhui scratched his head, looking a little shy.

"Mm."

Lin Chu nodded. "Can you drive?"

"Yes, I can."

"Let’s go. Come with me, I have an errand to run. The rest of you wait here for President Gao. Just tell him I had something to do and left first."

Lin Chu gave the casual instruction, then had Liu Chenhui drive him away.

Li Rui: ...???

’What’s going on?’

He was even more confused now.

He only felt that this President Lin was becoming more and more mysterious.

’Liu Chenhui, that honest oaf... how did he manage to catch President Lin’s eye?’

...

Lin Chu got in the car. Liu Chenhui drove steadily, grinning from ear to ear and revealing a mouth full of pearly white teeth. "Where to, President Lin?"

At this very moment, his mood could be described in two words: Pure joy!

’The big boss actually knows my name!’

’It’s amazing.’

He didn’t know why President Lin had singled him out, but he had no other thoughts in his mind, just one: Do a good job!

’When you get a boss like this, what else is there to say?’

’You work your ass off for him!’

"Just drive around. I need to think about something."

Lin Chu sat in the passenger seat and waved his hand, looking at him with a smile. "You said your uncle brought you here? What about your parents?"

Liu Chenhui took a deep breath. "They’re gone. They passed away when I was very young; I never even met them. My uncle raised me. Our family were fishermen for generations. My uncle was a capable man. Somehow, he managed to make his way over here, get his papers, and bring me along too."

Listening to this, Lin Chu nodded.

His life had been both difficult and remarkable.

"Alright, from now on, stick with me. Are you married?"

Huh?

Liu Chenhui was stunned by this. ’The boss... he’s taking me in just like that?’

’What does that mean?’

"N-No, I... I’m not interested in that stuff. When they go out to have fun, I don’t go. I just work out, and I’ve taught myself some fighting techniques."

"I did once know a female college student who used to eat at the restaurant a lot. She pursued me, and we’d hold hands and walk around town and stuff, but it never went all the way."

"Later, she found a local boyfriend and dumped me. In the end, she even borrowed five thousand euros from me and never paid it back."

"Heh, she didn’t like a guy like me. I guess I was just a meal ticket to her."

Liu Chenhui recounted his one and only romantic experience truthfully to Lin Chu, without any trace of bitterness. It was all in the past, anyway.

Lin Chu shook his head and smiled. He could see it now.

This was an honest man.

An utterly honest man.

’No hidden agendas.’

’The "all brawn, no brains" type.’

"Don’t worry about it. Stick with me, and you can have all the fun you want. I’ll make sure you have enough money, and there will be no shortage of women. You can have any type you want."

Lin Chu said with a casual laugh.

He quite appreciated this kind of honest man, so he naturally wouldn’t treat him poorly.

"I... I don’t want to play around. I just want to find a good wife, love her, dote on her, and have two kids, a boy and a girl, hehe... I guess I’m not very ambitious."

Liu Chenhui said, sounding a bit embarrassed and unsure of himself.

Lin Chu glanced at him, once again marveling at how pure this guy was.

’Men like him are pretty rare these days.’

’What a good person!’

’A good man, too!’

’When the pool is large enough, if you pan for gold long enough, you’re bound to find some nuggets.’

And just like that, he’d recruited another great subordinate.

...

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