late at night
Ren Xiao overheard discussions among other project staff in his department that Sijian hadn't simply hired senior executives from foreign companies; it was a significant investment from two major capital firms. Sijian was now essentially owned by the foreign company M&K, and its management model and project selection criteria were completely copied from foreign pharmaceutical companies.
In the chemical and biological medicine sectors, even research and development is outsourced, so cutting the entire traditional Chinese medicine division is almost a logical step.
When Ren Xiao learned that another shareholder of Sijian was Leading Capital, and that the president of Leading Capital was Zhong Yunxi, he spent an afternoon and an entire night researching as much information as possible about Leading Capital and M&K.
This level of capital is beyond the comprehension of a researcher like her.
All she knew was that M&K was a foreign-invested company that had invested in many pharmaceutical companies worldwide. Zhong Yunxi's venture capital firm had recently made two investments: Tiansheng Shipbuilding, a company with a market capitalization of hundreds of billions, and an offshore wind power project co-invested with a state-owned enterprise.
She had always known that Zhong Yunxi was extraordinary, but seeing just the tip of the iceberg still shocked her.
Ren Xiao didn't dare ask Bai Yi; she felt the matter was very complicated.
It remains to be seen whether Zhong Yunxi was unaware of Sijian's collaboration with Professor Wu's team, or whether he knew but didn't care.
She fantasized about the former, but reason made her lean more towards the latter.
Bai Yi treats going to work like a joke. A capitalist like Zhong Yunxi wouldn't change the management of a company just because of his fiancée's project, especially since it's a company he's invested billions in.
Ren Xiao wouldn't be foolish enough to go to Zhong Yunxi to confirm, so she went to Wen Ying instead.
More than an hour after work, Wen Ying was still in a meeting with management. Her secretary had made countless trips in and out of the meeting room just to pick up coffee for delivery.
In the conference room, someone finally opened the blinds, and after the crowd filed out, she saw the secretary turn off the computer and projector and leave as well. Only Wen Ying remained at the conference table.
The door wasn't closed, but Ren Xiao still knocked. Wen Ying sat slightly to the side in the chair, her right hand supporting her temple. She frowned slightly, her eyes lazily lifting as she said, "Please come in."
Ren Xiao walked in and closed the door.
She didn't sit down, and Wen Ying also stood up, picked up the coffee next to her, took a few sips, and casually threw the paper cup into the trash can next to the wall.
"Is something the matter?" Wen Ying asked.
Ren Xiao had met Wen Ying a few times at the company, but they didn't talk much.
Wen Yingsheng had a beautiful and intelligent face, and an air of wealth and arrogance.
Ren Xiao was actually in a state of confusion; she didn't even know what the point of seeking confirmation was. Did she really think that such a large company's board of directors could possibly reverse its decisions?
In particular, standing in the meeting room after the management team has finished working overtime, every inch of the air here is filled with data analysis of project benefits and performance.
Ren Xiao suddenly felt a pang of regret, and also a sense of resignation. She felt as if she had been pierced by the suffocating atmosphere.
Wen Ying spoke first: "Ren Xiao from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Division, I'm sorry, but a company isn't a charity. You don't need to study Sijian's financial statements, understand its cash flow and profit and loss statement, or take any responsibility for the company's operations. That's not your fault, but the management is not. The board of directors has approved that Quehe will compensate you according to the maximum standard."
Capital is high above, and every word it utters articulates a philosophy that is both incredibly correct and incredibly ruthless, even making people doubt themselves.
Ren Xiao's brain had already lost its logic in Wen Ying's cold and hard statement. She pressed her left hand on the edge of the table and took a breath before speaking, "There is a project that is a collaboration with Professor Wu's team at Yuegang University of Chinese Medicine. Professor Bai Yi is in charge. She is President Zhong's fiancée, President Zhong of Leading Venture Capital."
Ren Xiao was unaware of what she was saying, nor were Zhong Yunxi or Wen Ying aware of it.
Wen Ying was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly lowered her head and smiled: "Zhong Yunxi is a shareholder of Sijian. He knows everything that Sijian's board of directors decides."
Ren Xiao went even further and asked, "Does President Zhong know...?"
Wen Ying interrupted her: "Whether he knows or not, it makes no difference and won't change anything. He will unconditionally approve of my expertise and decisions at work."
Wen Ying knew what Ren Xiao was insisting on asking. She wanted to know if Zhong Yunxi knew that he had cut his fiancée's project.
He will approve unconditionally.
Wen Ying uttered these words, relying on a self-deceiving fantasy.
She wanted to completely dispel Ren Xiao's expectations.
Since taking over Sijian, Wen Ying has made every decision with professionalism and precision.
However, in handling Sijian's traditional Chinese medicine division, it cannot be said that she was completely without personal bias. While the projects in this division were indeed of varying quality, the decision to retain not a single one out of seven or eight projects was undeniably arbitrary and harsh. This is one of the reasons why her decision was criticized by Sijian's board of directors.
Ren Xiao breathed a sigh of relief, barely able to speak.
Wen Ying, a seasoned veteran of Wall Street's capital markets, possessed an aggressive and domineering presence that made her virtually invincible in the workplace. Ren Xiao was no match for her.
"Since you care so much about whether President Zhong knows or not, why don't you just ask him directly? Or are you afraid of getting an unsatisfactory answer in person and feeling ashamed for Bai Yi?" Wen Ying composed herself, a slight smile appearing on her lips.
She picked up her phone from next to the computer, scrolled through social media, brought up her chat with Zhong Yunxi, and handed it to Ren Xiao, pausing for a few seconds.
Two weeks earlier, while Zhong Yunxi and Bai Yi were still on vacation in northern Xinjiang, Zhong Yunxi's answer to the question of laying off the traditional Chinese medicine division was "okay".
Not only during the conversation, but when Ren Xiao saw Wen Ying's chat background image, she felt a sting between her brows, and almost unconsciously reached for Wen Ying's phone.
"Isn't it clear enough? I'll send you a screenshot."
"Ren Xiao, you don't understand Zhong Yunxi. He comes from a wealthy and powerful family in the capital, with three generations of deep roots in the industry. He separates business from personal feelings; he knows exactly what he's doing. Even if Bai Yi gets into a fight with him over a project, Zhong Yunxi isn't short of money for luxury brand shoes, bags, and jewelry worth millions. And women are easy to appease. Besides, we're all friends. Bai Yi and I often play cards and have drinks together. You should understand that some things are better left unsaid; it's not a good look to break the ice."
Mockery, contempt, arrogance.
Ren Xiao's expression also calmed down. In that instant, she understood why Bai Yi disliked Wen Ying. Bai Yi was not good at conflict with people, so she just avoided them.
"President Wen, I really don't know Zhong Yunxi. After hearing what you said, I really feel like I've stumbled into your home by mistake." With that, Ren Xiao left the meeting room.
In the elevator, she seemed afraid of the bright lights, clutching her phone tightly and not glancing at it more than once.
Only after getting into the car did she zoom in on the screenshot Wen Ying had given her. With each millimeter of zoom in on the chat window's background image, her hands trembled and she gasped for breath, feeling guilty.
In a foreign neighborhood, on a stormy, snowy night, the lights of an apartment building shone through the arched windows. Zhong Yunxi was carrying Wen Ying in his arms, one foot just stepping onto the steps in front of the door.
It's not very clear because it's not a photo, but a screenshot from surveillance footage.
Ren Xiao had previously reminded Bai Yi that the interests and favors of the wealthy were always entangled in complicated matters, but when she actually encountered this kind of situation, she was more flustered than the person involved. Whether she spoke or not, she felt like she had a fishbone stuck in her throat.
After Ren Xiao turned and left, Wen Ying sat back down in her chair. The air conditioning was turned off after the meeting, and after half an hour, the damp cold filled the room again.
She felt her toes starting to feel unbearably cold and damp, but she forced herself to endure it. It was as if she was competing with herself, punishing herself, wondering why she was still internally conflicted and unwilling to accept it, and why she was being so undignified.
She was being judged and questioned by another part of her soul: what could such behavior change?
She knew perfectly well that no matter how hard she tried to create a rift between them, Zhong Yunxi could easily smooth it over.
She had witnessed Zhong Yunxi's favoritism towards Bai Yi. Money, power, methods, affection, gentleness—he would give Bai Yi anything she wanted, in any way he could.
These unresolved and increasingly out-of-control thoughts of hers, like the unbearable damp cold, suffocated within the small space around her, gradually engulfing her reason.
But she still smiled slightly, licking her lips. She couldn't use the last knife in her hand to stab herself.
Bai Yi sat on the sofa that night, chatting with Senior Brother He, unsure of how to bring up the fact that the new drug project with Si Jian had been halted.
She and He Cheng had been researching the use of solanine in the treatment of lung cancer since the beginning of their thesis. Later, they spent countless hours in the laboratory screening triterpenoid saponins and polysaccharides to determine the basic framework. Although He Cheng was much more diligent than her, he always told Professor Wu that she deserved more credit.
A few months ago, she had a fight with Zhong Yunxi. Lu Xin mentioned it in the research team group chat and was scolded by Senior Brother He, who said that Lu Xin had introduced her to some scoundrel. Then he comforted her and said that if things didn't work out, she could go back to Xiangcheng.
A few days ago, she sent some local specialties from northern Xinjiang to the research team in Xiangcheng, and her senior colleague He even gave her a red envelope (a monetary gift).
Later, as they chatted idly until she got sleepy, she didn't mention the new drug.
Before going to bed, she texted Ren Xiao again and made plans for tomorrow.
If the R&D contract is terminated, she wants to know as soon as possible how Sigen plans to handle it: whether the new drug will be completely released from both parties' responsibilities, or transferred to another pharmaceutical company to continue the project with a different partner.
Bai Yi doesn't really like anything outside the lab, but in Yuegang, these are her jobs.
She lay on the bed, using a StellaLou doll as a pillow.
Zhong Yunxi had a dinner engagement tonight and had just called her to ask what she had for dinner. She gave him a perfunctory answer, but Zhong Yunxi could tell she was in a bad mood. He tried to comfort her by saying there was a limited edition Labubu at the card game and he would win it back if she wanted it. She thought Labubu was ugly and said she didn't want it.
The next day, when Bai Yi came downstairs, Zhong Yunxi was already sitting at the dining table, peeling a boiled egg for her.
"So early? Didn't you say the marketing department didn't have any academic meetings this week?" Zhong Yunxi knew that if she didn't go to the academic meetings, she would be late or leave early without asking for leave.
Bai Yi approached and smelled Zhong Yunxi's perfume. "Don't you get tired of wearing it every day? I'm sick of it. Doesn't anyone at your company complain about it?"
Zhong Yunxi smiled and said, "They all came to ask me what brand it was."
Bai Yi glanced at him. "What did you say?"
He said his girlfriend bought it from a small workshop.
Bai Yi nodded with a satisfied smile.
Taking the opportunity, Zhong Yunxi asked, "If you get tired of it, can you buy me another bottle? I can switch between them?"
"Christmas has only been over for a few days, and you already want a gift? I earn money slowly, so wait for me to save up and wait until Chinese New Year. I'll use my year-end bonus to buy it for you."
Zhong Yunxi: ...
After finishing their meal, Zhong Yunxi offered to ride with her to work.
Bai Yi then remembered: "I'm going to the East Tower on Hong Kong Island to meet Ren Xiao."
Zhong Yunxi smiled and opened the car door for her. As she got in, he casually lifted her skirt and said, "Then come with me to the East Tower. What do you want for lunch? I'll order in advance. If you're free this afternoon, come to the 108th floor and keep me company while I work?"
“No, I want to stay in the coffee shop.” She doesn’t like being in Zhong Yunxi’s social circle.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
