An Zi Yan leaned back in his chair, lightly tapping the pen in his hand against the documents. He looked completely distracted by the executives’ grand and flowery speeches, as though he were not worried in the slightest about what he was about to face. Maybe An Zi Yan simply did not care anymore. What did getting fired really amount to for him?
After the long, tedious speeches, it should have been time for the department managers to report their plans and implementation progress, but Manager Cui interrupted. He glanced at President Zhang beside him, who had once attended school with him. President Zhang nodded, looking as though he already knew what Manager Cui intended to say.
“Sorry, everyone. Before you continue, I’d like to announce something.”
Everyone looked at him and waited. Manager Cui cleared his throat. “First, I want to say how regrettable President Wang’s situation is. He’s unable to continue working right now, and thanks to the trust of the executives, I’ve been allowed to temporarily take over his position. President Wang rarely comes down to Public Relations, so there are many things in the department he doesn’t know much about. I’m different. Manager An frequently violates company rules, and there have also been incidents where he refused to cooperate with other departments. That isn’t even mentioning the excessive behavior he displayed toward me in front of President Ji and President Wang. Everyone here can testify that I’m not making any of this up. Now Manager An is dissatisfied that I’ve taken President Wang’s place and keeps opposing me at every turn. I’m concerned Public Relations will be negatively affected by him, so I’ve decided to dismiss Manager An, effective immediately. I have the authority to handle internal matters within Public Relations. Manager Ji shouldn’t have any objections, right?”
“You really do know how to mock people.” Ji Meng glanced at Manager Cui and gave a short laugh.
“And Manager An? I assume you’re unhappy about this. Oh, sorry. You’re no longer Manager An. We’re holding an internal company meeting. Would you please leave?” Manager Cui smiled and gestured toward the door for An Zi Yan.
An Zi Yan slowly turned his chair. In the silent conference room, the only sound was his pen tapping against the documents.
Mai Ding stared without blinking at An Zi Yan on the screen, biting down hard on his lower lip. Why was he sitting here? He should charge upstairs, curse the executives who were silently allowing this, curse the smug Manager Cui, then grab An Zi Yan and pull him out of there, just like An Zi Yan had once pulled him out of his internship company. Now An Zi Yan was the one being bullied just as Mai Ding had been. Mai Ding had just started to rise when An Zi Yan spoke. Resting his elbow on the armrest and propping his face against his hand, An Zi Yan looked lazily at Manager Cui. “You talk too much.”
“What?! You…”
“It’s my turn now. Before I’m fired, I just want to ask you one question. About several cases you handled with Manager Bi Sheng Lin years ago: I went to that so-called factory. It’s been abandoned for at least ten years. So where did the money that was paid out actually go?”
The executives looked suspiciously toward Manager Cui. Manager Cui remained calm. “Still making a last struggle? You’re smearing me with ridiculous accusations like this. Where’s your evidence?”
“You took all the files away, so of course I don’t have any concrete evidence. Besides, it’s been several years.” An Zi Yan admitted it with a shrug.
“How embarrassing. Are you trying to make the company investigate every old case one by one just to drag this out? Someone go get Bao Ning and have this shameless thug thrown out!”
A young woman from Human Resources pushed the door open in a panic. She kept apologizing to the executives as she walked over to the HR Manager and whispered several sentences into his ear. The HR Manager looked surprised for a few seconds, then waved a hand. The young woman hurried out, secretly glancing at An Zi Yan as she left. The HR Manager looked at the paper she had just handed him, stared hesitantly at Manager Cui, then turned toward his own superior. “President Zhang, something has happened in Public Relations.”
“Stop hesitating. Say it. What happened?”
“It seems quite a few people are unhappy about Manager An being removed from his position. They’ve submitted resignation letters.”
“What the hell is going on?” President Ji frowned and took the paper from the HR Manager. Manager Cui’s temple throbbed. “It must be that bunch of lazy young people under An Zi Yan. If they want to leave, let them get the hell out. They’re all useless anyway. Public Relations doesn’t need them!”
Mai Ding had no idea what was happening. He turned to Guo Ping. “Didn’t you say even if we wrote resignation letters, it wouldn’t help? Then how did…” Guo Ping looked just as confused. He stared at Feng Fei Meng and the others. “Was it you?” Everyone shook their heads.
“Then who was it?”
“Forget that for now. Let’s keep watching.” They turned their attention back to the screen.
With a strange expression, the HR Manager muttered, “They’re your subordinates.”
“Old Cui, can you explain what’s going on? The people resigning are all senior and outstanding employees in Public Relations. If all of them leave, how is the department supposed to function? We need manpower more than ever right now.”
Manager Cui snatched the paper out of President Ji’s hand and stared at it in disbelief. “There must be some mistake. This is fake. It was you, wasn’t it, An Zi Yan? You bribed them.” Mai Ding and the others were just as unable to believe it. Mai Ding looked up in astonishment at the senior employees across from them. They appeared as though nothing at all had happened, staring seriously at their computers.
“I bribed them into resigning? Unless the seniors were willing to accept a bribe purely because I’m good-looking, I can’t think of any other reason they’d agree.”
Mai Ding was not sure whether he imagined it, but An Zi Yan seemed to glance casually toward the camera. A snort of laughter came from one of the seniors across the room. “That brat. Look at the situation we’re in and he still has time to joke around.”
Manager Cui crumpled the paper into a ball. “I’m calling them up here and getting this straight. Otherwise I won’t believe it. They’re my subordinates. Why would they help you? This has to be one of your tricks, trying to drag things out until President Wang comes back to protect you. Too bad. President Wang can’t come back to save you for the time being. Why haven’t the security people arrived yet?!” An Zi Yan finally stood. Ignoring Manager Cui, he walked straight to the conference-room doors and placed a hand on the handle. As he pushed them open, he said, “Who told you President Wang couldn’t come back for the time being?”
Mai Ding could clearly hear the sharp intakes of breath both inside the conference room and around him. President Wang walked into the room without the slightest sign of illness. He looked sideways at Manager Cui. “What? Didn’t expect me to still be alive?”
“H-how could that be?” Manager Cui’s face turned deathly pale. He suppressed the tremor in his voice and forced a stiff smile onto his face. “This is wonderful. President Wang, you’re all right. I’ve been worried about you this whole time.”
President Wang walked toward Manager Cui. Manager Cui gave up the seat, and President Wang sat once again in the position that had belonged to him all along. President Zhang leaned over. “What’s going on?”
“That’s something we need to ask Manager Cui very carefully.”
“President Wang, I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Disappointed you failed to poison me to death?”
“President Wang…” Manager Cui had not even finished when Cao Cheng Yi switched on the large screen in the conference room. The footage was from the day they had bought the donuts. While everyone had crowded around Ya Ya, the camera had remained stubbornly fixed on Manager Cui. Everyone stared in shock, then the room erupted into angry voices and discussion. Manager Cui’s eyes went blank. It was over. Everything was over. Why had he not noticed earlier? Everything had gone too smoothly. But he had clearly watched An Zi Yan and President Wang eat the donuts with his own eyes. What had happened? This trap could not possibly have been arranged by President Wang. It was him. Manager Cui’s bloodshot eyes widened as he stared at An Zi Yan. “You set me up?”