Chapter 317 - 218: The Leader is Leaving (2)

With that as a comparison, Wang Qing couldn’t just force the spot on us. It would have been hard for him to answer to the board. That’s why he gave the NLB location to Yanghe Commerce, and we only managed to get a spot for Erke."

Dan Biao didn’t fully believe Li Yang. From what he knew, Yang Hui’s relationship with Wang Qing was also quite good. Otherwise, why would Yida Department Store have given them nearly a million in group-buy sales at the end of last month? Besides, Li Yang was the type to take all the credit for any success. If something went wrong, it was always because his subordinates were incompetent or didn’t work hard enough.

"Let me tell you, I signed a contract with Yida Department Store for a guaranteed sales minimum of 15 million for this Erke store. You and Zhang Li had better make it happen. Otherwise, you’ll answer to me."

Dan Biao’s eyes widened. ’Has this idiot lost his mind? Does he have no fucking clue what kind of brand power Erke has right now? Is he unaware of the state of our own frontline employees? The Erke store at Xinyue Square barely pulls in 300,000 a month in sales. On what grounds does he think the Qingzhou Pedestrian Street store can do over a million a month?’

Qingzhou Pedestrian Street has more foot traffic than Xinyue Square, but the customer quality can’t even compare. The NLB store was already enough to run him and Zhang Li ragged, and now here comes an Erke with a 15 million sales guarantee.

’Everyone in the company must have misunderstood Li Yang. They all said he looked out for his nephew, but lately, he’s been working him like a beast of burden.’

"Look at you, getting scared at the mere mention of a tough fight. How did I end up leading such a pack of cowards? Get back to work. Also, inform Zhang Li that the Qingzhou Pedestrian Street store must be staffed with our best people. Poach the most outstanding talent from our other stores. I have only one criterion: they can’t be any worse than the staff at Yanghe Commerce next door. Otherwise, I’ll make sure you and Zhang Li meet a nasty end."

{’Fuck’s sake. If you want me dead, why not just get it over with now? Why torture me for a while only to have me accept my death sentence later? You demand my employees be no worse than Yanghe Commerce’s, but you don’t even pay a third of their salary. I can’t even find the people you’re asking for, and even if I could, wouldn’t they all just quit and run off the second they hear about the pay next door at Yanghe Commerce?’}

But he only dared to curse inwardly. He’d been a coward for over a decade; it was a habit he couldn’t break now.

After Dan Biao left, Han Chao came in. He was Li Yang’s new favorite, very much in the boss’s good graces. Even Cai Miao was exceedingly polite to him.

"Boss, Yanghe Commerce filed a complaint against Zhao Rui last week. Looks like the two sides are about to clash."

Li Yang sneered. "Heh. The kid’s never suffered a real setback; his journey has been too smooth. He has no idea that his success today is all thanks to Xinyue Group. If Xinyue Group wants him to win, he wins. If Xinyue Group wants to crush him, he’s dead. And at a time like this, he still dares to file a complaint? What a reckless fool."

Han Chao chimed in from the side, "You’re right, Boss. Zhao Rui will probably face disciplinary action this time. The feud is well and truly on now."

He didn’t know that the true source of Zhao Rui’s hatred for Yang Hui was that his dream girl, Shen Meng, had been swept away by him. Li Yang lit a cigarette. "What damn good is a reprimand? It won’t cause any real harm. Remember, if you’re going to take someone down, you either finish them in one decisive blow or you don’t make a move at all. Anything less is just scratching an itch for them.

"You did a good job with that regional matter. You found the right opportunity for a single, fatal strike and brought that Old Tian down. It’s a shame Zhang Chun wasn’t implicated, though. That would have been perfect."

Cold sweat beaded on Han Chao’s forehead. ’Li Yang is really audacious, thinking of entrapping Zhang Chun. If word of this ever got out, Futong Commerce would be completely finished.’

"Xiaohan, Xinyue Group is definitely announcing personnel appointments this week. Tell Zhao Rui that when President Zhao arrives in Qingzhou, we’ll host a reception for her."

"Yes, Boss. I’ll tell him as soon as I head out."

"Good. You’ve been doing well lately. Zhao Rui is worth winning over; he should be a useful contact within Xinyue Group’s Qingjiang Region in the future."

Han Chao quickly agreed. "He’ll definitely be a help. I expect that once President Zhao arrives, Zhao Rui will soon be promoted to Project Vice President. In the future, he might even have a chance to climb higher."

"Good. I’ve settled things with Wang Qing for the Yida Department Store’s Qingzhou Pedestrian Street location. We’re going to open an Erke store. You need to get in touch with the store management right away. Wang Qing is doing me a personal favor, so don’t let anything go wrong. As for Zhao Rui, call him in a bit and invite him to stop by the office for a chat when he’s free."

While they were talking, Zhao Rui was also being called into a meeting with HR.

On Saturday, President Zhang had called to tell him that Yanghe Commerce had filed a complaint with the regional office and that HR would be speaking with him today. He hadn’t given it a second thought.

The head of regional HR rushed over to San Yang Xinyue Square first thing in the morning and was now in President Zhang’s office. When Zhao Rui entered and sat down, he heard President Zhang say, "I’ll leave you to it."

The HR manager smiled. "There’s not much to discuss, so let’s just get straight to the point. Zhao Rui, the company is ’optimizing’ your position. You’ll receive all the compensation you’re entitled to. Do you have any questions?"

"You... what did you say?"

The HR manager’s face instantly turned cold. He repeated himself. "You’ve been terminated. Do you have any questions?"

Zhao Rui’s pupils contracted. He had never imagined that a meeting with HR would one day be about this.

{’How could this be? How could the company fire me? My aunt is about to become the regional general manager. Even in her old position, the regional office would have shown her some deference.

How dare they fire me right before my aunt starts her new post? Aren’t they afraid she’ll make them pay for it when she arrives?’}

But regardless, once his employment was officially terminated, it would be very difficult for his aunt to bring him back after she started her new role. After all, he was being fired, not resigning voluntarily.