Just as they arrived at the golf course, a familiar figure came up to greet them. Guan Du smiled broadly and said, “He just got here.”
The matter at hand was mainly about operational issues with a subsidiary. Liu Duanhe had grand ambitions, although the company was just a practice venture handed to him by his grandfather, he hoped to take it public through an IPO.
Liu Duanhe’s target was Zhan Wenqi, who had recently returned to China to develop his career. Zhan had served as president and CEO of several multinational conglomerates and was exceptionally capable.
He had single-handedly revived the former albatross subsidiary of the Leyton Group. By the time he returned to China, that albatross had transformed into the primary revenue driver of the once-declining Leyton Group.
Guan Du had attended university abroad and happened to be Zhan’s alumnus, so he helped make the connection.
Liu Duanhe nodded. “Good, thanks. Once this is settled, I’ll treat you to a meal.”
Guan Du shook his head. “What are we to each other? No need for thanks. But, ” He winked slyly. “A meal is still required.”
Liu Duanhe chuckled lightly. “Fine, you won’t be left out.”
The course manager stood in a line with the caddies, and Liu Duanhe and Guan Du casually picked two familiar faces.
Zhan Wenqi proved even more capable than Liu Duanhe had imagined, sharp and incisive in conversation. The more they talked, the more satisfied Liu Duanhe became. He wished he could immediately recruit him into the company to make him money.
Indeed, compared to a rough gem still needing polish, he preferred a flawless, brilliantly polished jade.
He also keenly sensed that Zhan Wenqi was equally interested, a meeting of talents, an instant rapport.
Guan Du listened beside them and exchanged a glance with Liu Duanhe, both smiling with satisfaction.
In the end, Liu Duanhe successfully secured him, and both sides felt they had won, and won big.
During the round, Liu Duanhe even scored a hole-in-one. Zhan Wenqi applauded, saying, “President Liu’s golf skills are outstanding. Unfortunately, I’m not on my game today.”
Liu Duanhe replied with a smile, “That’s nothing. How could it compare to the brilliance of the project President Zhan delivered last year? It’s now a classic case study in business textbooks.”
He instructed Secretary Wei behind him, “Swipe the card to spread some good fortune. Eighty-eight thousand for the caddie who served me, eight thousand eight hundred for the other caddies, and eight hundred eighty-eight for the service staff.”
Wang Jing, the caddie following Liu Duanhe, widened his eyes in delight and stammered, “Thank you, thank you so much.”
Although golf caddies earned their income from tips, a boss who could drop hundreds of thousands in one go was rare, after all, plenty of wealthy people were stingy.
Secretary Wei went with the manager to swipe the card, while the other caddies looked at Wang Jing with envy and jealousy.
Who knew what incredible luck he’d stumbled into? He was plain-looking and utterly unremarkable, yet Young Master Liu always requested him every visit, and Liu was good-tempered and generous to boot.
After a morning of golf, with the deal essentially agreed upon in principle, everyone was hungry, so they arranged to have lunch together.
On the way to the locker room, they walked slowly because they were still discussing business. By the time they reached the facility, they heard a cacophony of shouting.
Guan Du frowned, his expression souring. The noise was coming from the staff changing area. This golf course was his family’s property, he was the host, and in front of Liu Duanhe, he felt a pang of embarrassment.
He called over the manager. “Go see what’s going on and handle it properly.”
Liu Duanhe’s expression remained indifferent. He had no taste for playing judge, especially not in internal matters of a friend’s business. He nodded at Guan Du and reassured him, “When there are too many people, things get troublesome, disputes and chaos are bound to happen. Let’s head off and let the manager deal with it.”
They had only taken a few steps when the noise inside grew louder after the manager entered, and someone even mentioned Liu Duanhe.
“Aren’t you just using Young Master Liu as your backing? Don’t think I’m afraid of you!”
Liu Duanhe paused. Guan Du’s expression, which had been improving, turned grim in an instant.
He turned around and said, “This racket is getting out of hand. I’ll go check.”
Liu Duanhe stopped him reassuringly. “It’s others who are stirring up rumors. Don’t let it weigh on your mind.”
Guan Du’s brow relaxed, and he smiled. “I’ll go in and handle it now.”
After a moment, the noise gradually subsided, and Liu Duanhe and the others waited at the door.
When Guan Du came out, several people trailed behind him, looking disheveled and evasive, shrinking behind him and not daring to meet Liu Duanhe’s eyes.
Guan Du said bluntly, “Apologize for what you said without evidence just now.”
The group trembled and bowed together. “We’re sorry. We were talking nonsense.”
Having stood at the door listening for a while, Liu Duanhe had pieced together what had happened. Because he habitually always requested Wang Jing, Wang Jing had consistently earned the highest income among all the caddies. Someone had taken the lead in ostracizing him, and today it had escalated, they’d doused the clothes in his locker, including his uniform, with water and thrown them on the ground.
The changing room had no surveillance cameras, and most of those who had witnessed the incident were unwilling to come forward as witnesses. After Wang Jing entered and saw the mess on the floor, an argument broke out.
Workplace bullying, Liu Duanhe disliked it intensely. Such things had never happened in his company. Whenever there was even a hint of it, he would have the troublemaker pack their bags and leave immediately. If employees wouldn’t work properly and instead played political games and schemed against each other, it affected their work efficiency, which in turn affected the company’s profitability. That was something he could never tolerate.
Of course, this golf course wasn’t under his name. He had no right to interfere, nor did he have any standing to say anything.
It was only because this incident had dragged him into it that he had a legitimate voice in the matter, but the final decision still rested with Guan Du.
Liu Duanhe said, “I forgive your careless words today, but I hope you’ll remember the lesson that trouble comes from the mouth. If you keep working like this in the future, it’ll be too late by the time you offend someone who isn’t so easy to deal with.”
The few of them nodded gratefully, swearing they would never spread rumors again.
Guan Du understood his implication. After they returned to the changing room, he called over the manager and instructed, “Have these people leave with their proper severance pay. We run a high-end establishment serving clients of a different caliber, we don’t need employees who can’t keep their mouths shut.”
Seeing that he had understood, Liu Duanhe couldn’t help but smile.
The driver took them to a nearby large shopping mall. To facilitate their business discussion, they had Cantonese cuisine and didn’t order any alcohol. As they were heading downstairs, they passed by a luxury goods store.
Liu Duanhe suddenly had a thought, remembering the gift he had promised Feng Xingyun during the basketball game.
He gave them an apologetic smile. “Sorry, something just came up. I remembered I need to pick out a gift for a friend. I don’t want to waste your time, so I’m afraid I can’t continue on with you.”
Zhan Wenqi gave him an ambiguous smile. “I understand, for a girlfriend or someone you’re seeing? Then we won’t disturb you.”
The contract and compensation issues had already been largely settled anyway, and they were originally going to part ways at the entrance, Liu Duanhe back to his company, Guan Du and Zhan Wenqi to their respective destinations.
But the moment Zhan Wenqi said those words, Guan Du’s radar went off, and he became fully alert.
He smiled nonchalantly. “Wow, no trace at all? You suddenly have someone?”
Liu Duanhe seemed to tacitly confirm it, smiling as he said, “I’m heading in.”
Guan Du followed him. “I’m not too busy either, let me help you pick something out.”
Secretary Wei and Guan Du went in with Liu Duanhe, leaving Zhan Wenqi alone at the entrance, his arm frozen mid-air as he tried to call Guan Du back. He awkwardly rubbed his nose. They had been chatting so well just moments ago, and now he was walking off alone.
Zhan Wenqi felt like he was being left out. He sent a message to his wife seeking comfort.
Liu Duanhe browsed around and eventually settled on a white gold bracelet with a black cord.
Guan Du was initially relieved, thinking it really might be for a friend, but then he reconsidered, after all, Liu Duanhe hadn’t refuted Zhan Wenqi’s words earlier.
On the way back, Guan Du still couldn’t find a reason to ask him, so they parted ways at the mall entrance.
Liu Duanhe, meanwhile, knew exactly what he was thinking. His tacit confirmation was done deliberately for Guan Du to see, hoping he would back off.
Back at the company, Liu Duanhe didn’t finish his day’s work until nightfall. After a full day of work, even someone as tough as him would be exhausted.
He took off his glasses, went to the restroom to wash his hands, dried them, and then picked up the eye drops on his desk to relieve his dry eyes.
A message suddenly popped up on his phone: [Feng Xingyun: I happened to be passing by and ended up right outside your office building]
Liu Duanhe thought to himself, was it really that coincidental? He just happened to be at his office building.
He considered what answer Feng Xingyun might want to hear. [Xiao He: Do you want to come up? I just finished work.]
Actually, he had been about to leave for the day. The employees had all gone home at five, though the secretarial staff had stayed an extra hour with him.
Feng Xingyun also noticed that the dozen or so floors belonging to Liu Duanhe in the building had mostly gone dark. His tall, imposing figure standing at the entrance of the building was quite eye-catching.
[Feng Xingyun: Are you about to clock out? Have you eaten?]
Liu Duanhe stood by the floor-to-ceiling window looking down, vaguely spotting a familiar figure, wearing a black hoodie and gray cargo pants.
After deliberating, he replied: [Xiao He: I’m off work now, haven’t had dinner yet. Have you eaten?]
[Feng Xingyun: Perfect, I haven’t either. Let’s eat together then.]
[Xiao He: Okay]
Pocketing the jewelry box from his desk, Liu Duanhe grabbed his gray coat from the rack, dressed himself properly, and quickly headed downstairs. Secretary Wei was still tidying up; the other secretaries had already left. Liu Duanhe gave him a nod and strode out.
Someone was waiting for him, someone he shared an intimate relationship with, and he had brought him a gift. The feeling was somewhat novel to him.
Feng Xingyun held his phone in one hand, the other tucked into his pocket to keep warm. Every few moments, he glanced at the phone screen, then fixed his gaze on the entrance and the elevator.
At this hour, the vast majority of floors in this building were still brightly lit, all workers still putting in overtime.
Very, very few people came out.