Shen Mianmian truly hadn’t expected the big boss to react this way—his methods could be described as swift and decisive.
Her voice trembled slightly with excitement as she accepted the offer.
Meanwhile, Pei Ran gave the female lead a mental thumbs-up.
As expected of the female lead—gentle on the outside but strong within, someone capable of great things.
His posture of clinging to her coattails and boosting her favorability was truly brilliant.
Pei Ran gestured to the security guards following him and, after Pei Yucai, also had Pi Qiu “escorted” to pack up his belongings.
From a distance, Pi Qiu’s shouts of “President Pei!” could still be heard.
The reactions in the entire office were split into two types: half were as silent as cicadas in winter, while the other half were beaming with joy.
It was clear at a glance what kind of people they were.
Pei Ran took note of everyone’s changing expressions and then prepared to leave.
However, as he reached the door, he suddenly turned back.
“Oh, I forgot to mention something. For those male employees who think ‘men and women working together makes the job easier’—given your professional skills, I believe the other party would only see you as a burden. This is the workplace, not school. There’s no ‘advanced helping the backward’ here. Stop dreaming about coasting through all day. If you want to rely on your mothers or wives at home, that’s none of my business. But in my company, don’t drag down my female employees.”
Wow!
As Pei Ran spoke these words, nearly all the female employees’ eyes lit up.
They silently gave their boss a thumbs-up in their hearts.
Without targeting the hardworking male employees, these few “underachievers” who were eager to share the same pants as Pi Qiu were utterly unpopular.
This wave of remarks was truly satisfying.
In a work team, regardless of gender, nothing is more annoying than having someone drag you down.
They do little work but end up earning the same salary.
Tsk!
And then they have to endure snide remarks about how “slow learners never learn to slack off” and how “the workplace is all about strategy.”
Honestly… what nonsense!
The company group chat, now free of the boss and his lackeys, exploded once again.
【The boss just went crazy in HR and now he’s in the project department. He fired that Pikachu.】
【I believe it now—the boss really must have taken the wrong medicine.】
【What ‘the boss is crazy’? I think the boss must have been body-snatched. You have no idea what he just said in the project department. It sounded exactly like a woman had taken over his body. The way he ended his speech, I couldn’t help but feel he was about to say, ‘Don’t drag down us female employees!’】
【What are you all talking about? Can’t you see the real point? Is the boss crazy? No, he’s ‘enraged for the sake of a beauty’—he promoted a pretty female employee in the project department!】
【I know, the female lead is Shen Mianmian, a true beauty.】
【Oh, Boss Pei, why are you like this!】
【Attention, Pikachu went to find his brother-in-law. Everyone, get ready for the show—this isn’t over yet.】
…
Having pulled off two major moves early in the morning, Pei Ran felt quite pleased with himself. He dismissed the security guards back to their posts.
He immediately quickened his pace and returned to his office alone.
The first thing he did upon entering was head to the bathroom to look in the mirror.
He really should prepare a small mirror to carry with him. That way, whenever he wanted to check the countdown, he wouldn’t have to specifically go to the bathroom or search for reflective surfaces.
In front of the bathroom mirror.
Pei Ran raised his eyes and saw the reflection above his head in the mirror, instantly performing an on-the-spot vanishing act of his smile.
Poshan Daojishi: 98 days.
Oh, there really is a change—it’s one day less than yesterday.
Unbelievable!
Pei Ran thought to himself, is the female lead’s favor really this hard to earn?
He had already put in so much effort, and even that wasn’t enough?
Maybe he should just fire the female lead outright, make her leave the company, and cut off the source of danger at its roots?
But that obviously wouldn’t work. Firing the female lead would definitely max out the hatred meter, and wouldn’t that just push him onto the path of no return ahead of schedule?
Unless, as they say, a short pain is better than a long one—dying quickly could also be considered a way to solve the problem.
If earning the female lead’s favor wasn’t working, then maybe the place he should focus his efforts was on the male lead?
Should he find an opportunity to become good friends with the male lead?
Pei Ran racked his brains but couldn’t come up with a truly feasible plan.
He sat in his office for a while, wallowing in despair for about five minutes.
Then, suddenly, he slapped the table and stood up. Even the monk Tang Sanzang had to go through eighty-one trials to obtain the scriptures. If changing fate were this easy, the original host wouldn’t have vanished without a trace.
After giving himself a pep talk for a minute,
his fighting spirit was reignited.
Even if it was just for the thirty million in "compensation," he couldn’t give up now.
The countdown hadn’t changed, which must mean his efforts to earn favor weren’t enough yet.
There must still be flaws in what he was doing.
He stood up, ready to deal with another potential problem he knew about. After searching around, he ended up back by the female lead’s side.
A lively crowd was gathered, watching the scene unfold. The poor female lead was surrounded by two men, and for a moment, it was hard to tell what they were saying.
Pi Qiu, and Zhou Guoren, whom he had caught red-handed last night.
"Xiao Shen, we’re begging you, just let us off this once. We’re all colleagues, and we didn’t have any bad intentions."
"Yeah, Xiao Shen, we just have loose tongues sometimes. We really didn’t mean any harm. Don’t be so petty, little girl. If we lose our jobs because of you, will you be able to live with yourself?"
"Xiao Shen, go plead with President Pei. You and President Pei are so close—he’ll definitely listen to you."
"Yeah, yeah."
"We’re all colleagues. Can you really bear to stand by and watch us suffer?"
With this kind of seamless teamwork, if only they applied it to their work, success would be guaranteed.
Pei Ran didn’t listen any longer and walked in.
"Who’s dying?"
Zhou Guoren and Pi Qiu turned pale at the sound of his voice.
Especially Zhou Guoren, who deeply regretted why he had rushed to celebrate the big boss’s birthday last night. Not only had he failed to make a good impression, but he had also lost his job.
And what he regretted most of all was why he had brought Shen Mianmian along last night.
It was the perfect example of trying to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice.
Look at how capable this girl is—she managed to hook the big boss in no time.
Women sometimes have it so easy. This Shen Mianmian usually seemed so proper, never paying attention to the male colleagues in the company. Now it seemed they just weren’t good enough for her.
When it came to the big boss, she showed her true colors!
With just a casual glance at the two of them, Pei Ran could tell they weren’t reflecting on their sexual harassment of a female colleague in the workplace.
Instead, they were resentful that they hadn’t been careful enough and were furious at Shen Mianmian for ruining their plans.
"President Pei."
The moment the employees saw the big boss arriving again, they immediately stepped aside, giving up the center stage.
This was gossip delivered right to their doorstep!
Zhou Guoren and Pi Qiu exchanged a glance and immediately prepared to play the victim.
"Wah, President Pei—"
"Did you call the police?"
Pei Ran directly asked Shen Mianmian, cutting off their words before they could even finish.
Shen Mianmian nodded.
"The police have already been called. They should arrive soon."
"Shen Mianmian, you!"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Guoren was so enraged that he tried to step forward and grab the female lead.
Whack.
Without a second thought, Pei Ran grabbed a long ruler from a nearby desk and struck the hand with force.
"Ow!"
Zhou Guoren's scream was heart-wrenching, sounding almost like a pig's squeal.
"Where are the security guards? Control this person immediately. Let the police handle the matter when they arrive. Violence is absolutely not allowed within the company."
Pei Ran spoke with an air of righteousness.
Zhou Guoren: "…"
As if he wasn't the one who got hit?
Pi Qiu, supporting his brother-in-law, stared in disbelief: "…"
Wow, the boss was even better at twisting the truth than they were.
As the security guards came to drag them away, the two overweight men resisted desperately, causing a chaotic scene.
Pei Ran's ruler twitched in his hand, eager for action.
"Hey, hey, what's going on here? What are you all doing? It's a mess first thing in the morning. Don't you have work to do? Dragging away a department manager and a project team leader—are you trying to start a rebellion?"
From behind the crowd, a man dressed in trendy streetwear suddenly emerged. He didn't look like a company employee but more like a boss.
Jiang Han.
The original owner's childhood friend, his best buddy.
Also the owner of the divine words that led to winning the 8 million lottery ticket.
Because of this connection, this person was destined to have a close relationship with the original owner—
He was now the vice president of the company.
As soon as Jiang Han entered and saw a crowd gathered with security guards trying to drag two people away, he immediately spoke up to stop them.
However, contrary to his expectations, the "orders" he issued were not followed. Everyone, including the security guards, turned their attention to his right side.
He followed their gaze.
And then he met Pei Ran's smiling face.
"How did you…"
Jiang Han was taken aback, wanting to ask, "Why are you dressed like this?"
It was completely different from his usual style, so much so that he hadn't recognized him at first.
"How am I?"
Pei Ran raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.
Jiang Han immediately smiled, reaching out to hook his arm around Pei Ran's shoulder, acting like the best of buddies.
"How did you… dress so handsomely today? Do you have a date later?"
As he spoke, Jiang Han's attention was entirely focused on Pei Ran's face.
Coincidentally, Pei Ran was also sizing him up.
In the original novel's plot, Jiang Han could be considered the original owner's "benefactor." Because of his offhand remark, the original owner casually bought a lottery ticket and won 8 million, setting his life on a completely different path.
Jiang Han was also an exceptionally loyal person. After the original owner won the prize, he suggested splitting the winnings equally.
But Jiang Han absolutely refused.
He kept saying he had only spoken casually and didn't even believe in those numbers himself—otherwise, why wouldn't he have bought a ticket? In the end, it was Pei Ran's fate.
The original owner felt even more that this friend was a true friend, and their relationship grew even stronger.
Basically, they were practically like family.
After the original owner founded the company, this best friend naturally became the company's vice president.
Second only to one, above ten thousand others.
Although this statement is a bit exaggerated, the actual situation was indeed like this.
In this company, everyone knew Jiang Han was the second boss.
At this moment, their gazes collided, and Jiang Han was momentarily stunned.
A flicker of confusion immediately flashed in his eyes.
His childhood friend seemed a bit different from usual.
But he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was different.
Jiang Han's hand, which had reached out to pat Pei Ran's shoulder, now seemed somewhat awkward.
Pei Ran said, "I don'tt have a date, but there is one thing. Since you're here, I'll leave it to you to handle."
Zhou Guoren and Pi Qiu, who had been waiting anxiously on the side, immediately looked at Jiang Han with hopeful eyes.
They usually had little interaction with President Pei, but they had plenty of dealings with Manager Jiang.
Jiang Han didn't think much of it. Pei Ran had always disliked dealing with trivial matters in the company.
This time should be no different.
"No problem, just leave it to me," Jiang Han said, then urged Pei Ran to go about his business while he stayed behind to handle the matter.
But one second, two seconds passed, and Pei Ran remained standing right there, not moving at all.
Pei Ran gestured with a "please" motion: "I'll just look around here casually. You handle it, no need to mind me."
Jiang Han & Zhou and Pi: ??
How can anyone show favoritism like this!
[Author's Note]
Vice Manager Jiang: Why did Pei Ran suddenly become so handsome today?