Water and Fire~Chapter 37.1: What Do You Want (Second Revision)

 

Chapter 37.1: What Do You Want (Second Revision)

Qi Mingheng from the Legal Department quickly reworked the contract and sent the draft and the revised list to Chu Qianmiao.

Chu Qianmiao carefully reviewed it and discovered that compared to the original draft, there were indeed some omissions and even non-compliance issues. Next, she would have to ask Qi Mingheng to cooperate and resolve these omissions and non-compliance issues as soon as possible. She was secretly grateful that she hadn't been put off by Ji Xia's bad attitude that day, and that she had the sanity to insist on reviewing the Engineering Department's contract.

Otherwise, these undiscovered issues might become roadblocks to the company's IPO when the application was submitted to the meeting.

Thinking of Ji Xia's hostile attitude and uncooperativeness that day, Chu Qianmiao was actually a little curious about how the iron-willed Dong Lan had tamed Ji Xia. An Ruda had previously mentioned that Dong Lan had harshly criticized and berated the HR head for hiring the incompetent and blame-shifting Sui Huan, showing no mercy.

So, she wondered if Dong Lan had also called Ji Xia to her office that day and given him a harsh, unrelenting scolding. If so, Chu Qianmiao would have secretly felt a sense of relief.

But when An Ruda visited the due diligence office again, his chattering wiped out that sense of relief—Ji Xia hadn't been harshly criticized or berated by Dong Lan.

Chu Qianmiao thought An Ruda was a perfect person: efficient, enthusiastic, and mild-tempered. There was only one point of questionability: he simply loved coming to the due diligence office to tell Qin Qianyu and the others about Dong Lan's temper.

Chu Qianmiao wondered if, compared to Jialeyuan's internal staff, intermediaries like them might be a safer third-party target.

When An Ruda visited the due diligence office that afternoon, he explained that he'd knocked on the door to deliver documents to Dong Lan for her signature. He was nervous, fearing she'd ask him questions he couldn't answer clearly. He said that everyone, regardless of whether they were in their thirties, forties, or fifties, felt like a primary school student meeting her teacher, dreading her questions and even more afraid of being scolded for failing to answer them.

He knocked on the door nervously. But when he was allowed in, he saw Ji Xia sitting in Dong Lan's office.

"I haven't seen the chairman in such a good mood in a long time. She and General Manager Ji sat relaxedly on separate sofas, chatting face to face about their past together, laughing and talking about how they built their business together. Their faces were filled with a mixture of nostalgia and cherishment for the present. Taking advantage of the chairman's good mood, I signed the documents smoothly."

An Ruda said, wiping the sweat from the tip of his nose with a tissue.

"I was lucky. The chairman was in a good mood, so I easily got her signature. But HR manager Lao Liu wasn't so lucky. Later, when the chairman was alone, Lao Liu went to talk to her. He asked, 'Will Luo Feng, the head of Design Department, get a raise this year?' He got scolded again. Oh, poor Lao Liu. That night, he dragged me through several cups of bitter baijiu."

Qin Qianyu asked An Ruda in confusion, "There's nothing particularly outrageous about Mr. Liu's question. What's there to scold him for?"

Chu Qianmiao stared quietly at her computer screen, looking conscientious, not even raising her eyelids.

Across from her, Ren Yan, like his reflection, remained silent, his head and eyes fixed, as if unconcerned with the conversation between An Ruda and Qin Qianyu.

But Chu Qianmiao wasn't truly indifferent. She was still listening intently.

An Ruda glanced at the door mysteriously, as if Dong Lan could sense his gossip and would come and capture him. Then he turned back to Qin Qianyu and said, "The chairman scolded Old Liu for being stupid. She said that the labor contract he signed with Luo Feng clearly stated that he would get a certain salary increase every year. Of course, he got one this year. Why did you even bother asking me about it? You're so confused all the time. If it weren't for our long-standing friendship, I'd have let you go home long ago!"

An Ruda mimicked Dong Lan's tone so perfectly that Chu Qianmiao was secretly amazed. She thought about it and remembered that An Ruda had mentioned that Mr. Liu, the head of the Human Resources Department, had also built the business with Dong Lan. She couldn't help but feel a silent pity on Mr. Liu's behalf. They were both from the same business, but Dong Lan treated him and Ji Xia differently.

An Ruda finished his tree hole and prepared to return to the office. Before leaving, he seemed to come to his senses and said to Chu Qianmiao, "Hey? Lawyer Chu didn't chat with me today! I was wondering why something was missing, it's so dull!"

Chu Qianmiao turned and gave him a polite, formal smile. "Sorry, Mr. An, I'll chat with you after get off work!"

An Ruda said, "Okay, you're busy." He couldn't hear anything else from Chu Qianmiao's words.

But Ren Yan could. He raised his eyelids slightly and looked at Chu Qianmiao.

She was writing documents with a calm and serious expression, her eyes fixed on the computer, her fingers clacking at the keyboard.

He knew her subtext was: Sorry, Mr. An, I can't joke with men during work hours, or I'll get scolded.

A breath caught in his throat.

She really did hold a grudge against him.

That night, after being so polite to her, he returned home and felt his 200-square-meter apartment shrink and squeeze him, a tightness in his chest. Later, he poured himself some whiskey and drank it by the window, letting the alcohol clear his stagnant emotions and thoughts.

He thought this might be an opportunity to distance himself from the growing distance between them and the increasingly chaotic feelings they were experiencing.

Before going to bed, he felt like he had found a way out.

But then, during the day, he somehow drove to Jia Leyuan's place. This repetitive cycle of determination and failure continued for several days.

Every time he saw the girl across the street being so polite to him, almost wanting to speak, baring her teeth and bowing repeatedly like a flight attendant, he felt uncomfortable no matter what he looked at or did.

He wanted to say to her several times: "Can you please just be nice? Stop being so sarcastic?"

But he stopped himself in time.

Who was he to say anything about her? In reality, it was he who had seen her on the phone with Zhou Qiqi, and then, for no apparent reason, had lashed out, provoking her.

Even if she was being utterly polite to him now, he'd have to endure it.

Qin Qianyu was the first to be unbearable by Chu Qianmiao's recent changes.

He noticed that Chu Qianmiao had lost her eloquence, her flattery, and her ability to speak to them in as few words as possible.

Especially when she spoke to Ren Yan, he felt almost suffocated for them.

Ren Yan asked, "Lawyer Chu, how have you sorted out the errors and omissions in those contracts in the engineering department?"

She responded with a polite smile, "We've sorted them out."

Ren Yan said, "Have you sent them to me?"

Hearing this, Qin Qianyu wanted to say, "Boss, your tone is off. Can you please repeat it?" Isn't just trying to find something to talk about the same as finding fault...

But Chu Qianmiao didn't stand up to him. She tapped away on her keyboard, then smiled and said, "Mr. Ren, the materials you requested have been sorted and sent to your email. Please check. If there's anything inappropriate, please feel free to point it out."

Ren Yan said again, "I didn't receive the email. Are you sure you sent it?"

Chu Qianmiao smiled even more politely and said, "I sent it again. Please check."

But Ren Yan said again, "I didn't receive it."

And before he said "I didn't receive it," his computer, which hadn't been muted, clearly chimed with a new email.

Qin Qianyu, standing by, was terribly worried for Ren Yan. Did he think Chu Qianmiao couldn't hear that chime?!

He really wanted to tell Ren Yan, "Boss, that's not the way you approach a girl and resolve a conflict. You're just finding fault!"

Chu Qianmiao's smile remained unchanged as she worked on her computer for a while.

A series of incoming email notifications echoed through the office.

Chu Qianmiao then smiled and told Ren Yan, "Mr. Ren, I've sent you ten more emails. Please check them."

Qin Qianyu thought, if Ren Yan insisted he hadn't received them again, he'd have to rush over to fix his computer!

Thankfully, this time, Ren Yan finally said, "Yes. I got it."

Qin Qianyu breathed a sigh of relief. He was truly mortified by these two.

Exchanging glances with his three other comrades, Qin Qianyu saw in them both the embarrassment and the urge to fix Ren Yan's computer.