Chapter 20 Stand By Him
Shi Zhenglin carried Shi Shi into the elevator and glanced at Li Xuan who was standing there. When they got to the underground garage of the shopping mall, Aunt Xu got in the car first. He leaned over and handed the sleeping Shi Shi to her, and told Xiao He, "Drive slowly on the road." He was in a hurry to go back to the company to handle business after coming out of the airport. Xiao He met him at the airport and took him back to Xingtan first, and then took Aunt Xu and Shi Shi home. It was convenient to go this way. It was almost noon when they arrived at Xingtan, so he simply found a place to eat together. Lin Yao looked at the dining room and found that he was not there. There was a phone call, and he ran outside to talk on the phone because he could not see the soundproofing. Shi Shi was a little tired from traveling for a few days, but her mood was much better. After dinner, she fell asleep on him. After closing the car door and watching the car drive away, he breathed a sigh of relief, as if he had overcome a difficult situation. He checked his watch and hurried back to the company. Li Xuan took the escalator and went straight to Fang Siyu's office when he returned to the company. Fang Siyu was about twenty-eight or twenty-nine, a finance major, a straightforward and energetic young man. She had met him a few times. He was extremely intelligent, quick-witted, and professionally competent, though a bit aloof, and conversation was effortless. She had a good initial impression of him, which was why she asked Lin Yao about his background. Secretary to the board of directors of a listed company was a high-ranking executive, and given such a young age, she could tell how important he was in Shi Zhenglin's personnel system. "When did Mr. Shi mention the meeting?" she asked. "A few seconds before I messaged you." Humph, those few seconds—a lackey's quick execution. She calmed down and asked, "Who is in the meeting, and what preparations do I need?" "Just you. No preparations." She finally understood: Shi Zhenglin was giving her a warning, perhaps even a punishment. On the way back, she suppressed her panic and tried to guess his thoughts. He must have been busy right after returning from a business trip, and he must have heard everything about calling her into a sudden meeting. In his urgent matters, she wasn't a top priority, absolutely not. Now he'd even called her into a meeting alone, the implication of punishment even more obvious. He was truly ruthless. One moment he'd make you feel uneasy, the next he'd put you on the spot. It was a hot day, and she was sweating. She shuddered as she thought about it. Lin Yao was even more messy than she was. She'd stayed in the cubicle a few minutes late, wanting to make a phone call. When she heard Li Xuan talking to her, she was completely brain-dead for a few seconds. She'd considered calling him a lackey secondary. She'd mentioned Long Weihe several times during the conversation, and she didn't know if he'd heard. If he had, he'd surely know Li Xuan was Lin He's recommendation. This was truly terrifying. With his narrow-mindedness, it wouldn't just affect Li Xuan's stability, it might also harm Jiang Lingli and Huang Meng. She...
Shi Zhenglin carried Shi Shi into the elevator and glanced at Li Xuan who was standing there.
In the underground garage of the shopping mall, Aunt Xu got in the car first. He bent over and handed the sleeping Shi Shi to her, and then told Xiao He, "Drive slowly on the road."
He rushed back to the company after leaving the airport. Xiao He met him at the airport and took him back to Xingtan first, then took Aunt Xu and Shi Shi home. This was convenient. When they arrived at Xingtan around noon, he simply found a place to eat together.
When Lin Yao noticed that he was not in the dining room, there was a phone call, but he couldn't see the soundproofing, so he ran outside to talk on the phone.
After being away for a few days, Shi Shi was a little tired from traveling, but her mood was much better. After dinner, she fell into a deep sleep on him.
After closing the car door and watching the car drive away, he breathed a sigh of relief, as if he had overcome a difficult hurdle. He looked at his watch and hurried back to the company.
Li Xuan took the escalator back to the company and went straight to Fang Siyu's office.
Fang Siyu was in his late twenties, a finance major with a straightforward, energetic demeanor. She had met him a few times and found him incredibly intelligent, quick-witted, and professionally competent, though a bit aloof. She had a positive initial impression of him, which was why she asked Lin Yao about his background. Secretary to the board of directors of a listed company was a high-ranking executive, and at such a young age, shouldering such a responsibility, she could see his importance in Shi Zhenglin's personnel system.
"When did Mr. Shi say we'd have a meeting?" she asked.
"The first few seconds I sent you the message."
Humph, a few seconds ago, the lackey's execution was really strong. She calmed down and asked, "Who is having the meeting? What preparations do you need me to make?"
"Just you. No preparations needed."
She finally understood that Shi Zhenglin was giving her a warning, or even a punishment.
On the way back, she suppressed her panic and guessed his psychology. He must have a lot of things to do when he just came back from a business trip. He must have heard about some weird meeting he called her to. He must have heard it all. In his emergency chain, she was not the top priority, absolutely not.
Now they actually called her to a meeting alone, the implication of punishment was even more obvious.
It's so vicious. He makes you feel very uncomfortable one second and puts you on the fire in front of him the next second.
It was a hot day and she was sweating. She shuddered at the thought.
Lin Yao was even more disheveled than she was. She had stayed in the cubicle a few minutes late, wanting to make a phone call, and when she heard Li Xuan tell her over the phone, she was brain dead for a few seconds.
She thought that calling the other person a lackey was secondary. Long Weihe was mentioned several times in the conversation, and she didn't know if he heard it. If he heard it, he must have known that Li Xuan was recommended by Lin He. This was really fatal. With his narrow mind, it would not only affect Li Xuan's stability, but might also harm Jiang Lingli and Huang Meng.
She didn't even dare to talk to Long Wei about this, and just endured it alone, blaming herself for making such a low-level mistake despite being so cautious, and counting the seconds waiting for Li Xuan's message.
Unable to resist, she sent a message, "In a meeting? Sorry, sorry, who knew he would suddenly appear like a ghost and remain silent. It's so scary."
Li Xuan replied, "It's okay, I'm not afraid of death."
She went into his office. She managed to act as if nothing had happened.
He had a normal expression on his face and glanced at her. "Where's Fang Siyu? Call him along."
Is it to be eaten raw or roasted over a fire? He even asked his lackeys to come and watch? She smiled, "Okay, I'll go call him."
Fang Siyu took a notebook and sat down in front of him. She was relaxed and sat very still, waiting for him to make fun of her.
"You two are both core members of the company, and you are also new recruits. Preparations for the listing have officially begun. Fang Siyu, please first tell us about the current core work situation on your side."
At first, she thought he was adding the oil, salt, sauce and vinegar first and not in a hurry to put her in the pot. She relaxed a little.
Fang Siyu leaned forward and answered seriously, "I've basically completed the company's financial data and overall compliance status over the past five years. I'm planning to have preliminary discussions with several securities firms, law firms, and accounting firms. Do you have any recommendations?"
The selection mechanism for listing intermediaries may vary from company to company, but most companies at least have a decision-making mechanism to mitigate potential conflicts of interest with recommenders, given the high service fees. If the decision-making mechanism is imperfect, there's a risk that recommenders might be involved in some illicit activity.
Fang Siyu, who had followed IPOs before, had ample intermediary resources at his disposal. She assumed he was simply trying to curry favor with Shi Zhenglin. If Shi Zhenglin truly had made the recommendation, with other departments involved in the subsequent evaluation, he wouldn't have dared to raise any objections.
She sees what those in power say.
"There are only a few professional intermediaries, so I won't recommend any. For law firms, ask the company's general counsel for recommendations. For accounting firms and securities firms, coordinate with the finance department for recommendations. Of course," he turned to her, "Ms. Li Xuan has had successful acquisitions in the past, so she should have come into contact with many intermediaries. If you've come across a highly professional team, you can recommend one."
She nodded awkwardly.
He continued, "All recommended lists will be put up for bidding. Fang Siyu, you will conduct a comprehensive analysis and convene a meeting of the listing team members to jointly evaluate and screen. I will participate and report to the boss for the final decision."
Li Xuan gasped. He was responding to the word "lackey." It was watertight, selfless, yet guarding against the selfishness of others. He was telling her that there was no immoral personal interest between him and Fang Siyu, only a standardized operating system.
"I understand. I'll include it in the listing preparation schedule and complete it according to the milestones." Fang Siyu replied.
He turned to her and she stiffened again.
"Is Mr. Li Xuan adapting to the work at hand?"
"Oh, I'm discussing the overseas expansion of innovative drugs with investment institutions. I'll report back to you next week on the preliminary cooperation model."
He nodded. "There's a biotech company in Tianjin that wants to withdraw and is interested in transferring their commercial rights to clinical drugs to us. I just got back from a negotiation. It'll be Mr. Li's turn to discuss the details next time. My secretary will give you the other party's information later. My boss and I are leaning towards an equity partnership model. This move will affect the IPO equity structure and valuation, so the operation must comply with listing regulations and maximize profits. You will take over the leadership, and Fang Siyu will also be involved. You two should communicate more."
This was a major core task, and he asked her to take the lead. She realized that he was doing the opposite and reusing her.
He was really resourceful, not only giving her a lot of power but also setting up a defense line for her, asking her to work with Fang Siyu. Whether she did well or not, it was all in his eyes.
"Okay!" She should be confident.
She is not afraid of working and has confidence, but she is afraid of the negative energy of others behind the scenes.
Her tense body and mind relaxed. Regardless, he'd resolved the matter quickly, relieved her of her psychological burden, and motivated a seasoned veteran like her to work diligently and earnestly. What a strong man!
Shi Zhenglin concluded, "I highly respect your professionalism. Everyone, stay focused on your goals, get Xingtan listed, and make our overseas expansion strategy a success. For me, there's no distinction between old and new, no distinction between backgrounds, and I don't accept messiness." He paused, looked at her, and emphasized a few words, "I only recognize people who get the job done."
Her face flushed slightly, thinking that what she said to Lin Yao, "I won't stand in either team, I'll just work," must have reached his ears.
"That's it for now, I have something else to do."
He finished the job efficiently in just a few minutes.
She returned to the office and replied to Lin Yao's voice message, whispering very quietly, "Shi Zhenglin is a captivating deep-sea monster, a master at manipulating people's minds. He's more terrifying than you can imagine. I finally understand how he rose to power at such a young age. Sorry, I talked back, but I'm not taking sides. I'm now firmly in his camp. For his ambition and his abilities, from now on, I, Li Xuan, will unquestionably, loyally, and absolutely stand by him!"
The third group of people from Shi Zhenglin's side came to the office to discuss something, and Shi Shilai called.
"Dad, when can I give the toy I bought to Qian Enming?"
She went home and sorted out the toys she had bought on the way. One of them was a set of Lego minifigures she had bought at the airport. She said it was a gift to Qian Duoduo as an apology. Aunt Xu asked her why she gave it to him, and she said she had thrown his minifigure once in kindergarten and wanted to compensate him.
His favorite toy was right in her hands, and she couldn't wait to give it to him.
When the money Aunt Xu gave to Long Weihe was returned, she gave him some advice, saying that Shi Shi had finally taken the initiative to apologize, and it was an opportunity for her to build relationships with other children, so that she would at least have a companion to play with in kindergarten in the future. She also said that the child had suffered so much and had taken a month's leave, so it was only right to take Shi Shi to visit him.
He didn't respond at that time.
"Okay, okay, Dad is at work. He will go back to kindergarten tomorrow. I'll ask the teacher where he lives and I'll take you there." Aunt Xu comforted.
Unable to bear Shi Shi's constant questioning and him not responding, she decided to make her own decision.
She had no idea there was more to this story. She thought, he was always decisive, yet he was hesitant in this one. Simply thinking about it, she thought it was just a simple errand for Shi Shi, no big deal. And even though he apologized, he was actually being self-serving. Shi Shi needed a friend in kindergarten, which would help alleviate her loneliness. He shouldn't have been so confused.
Shi Zhenglin rubbed his brows and said, "I'm busy here. Let's talk about it when I get home tonight."
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