Chapter 208 – Finally Arrived
Despite Chen Li’s paintings having soared to a very high price in the circle and his name becoming increasingly prominent, Chen Li, the central figure in the whirlwind, remained unaware of all that was happening.
He still attended school and went home after classes, setting aside a day each week to join Zhuge Yu to go up the mountain and learn ink painting from Old Master Sun, leading a simple life.
In the blink of an eye, a month had passed. The temperature gradually rose, and the footsteps of spring had quietly departed. Only in the evening, the slightly cool breeze made one feel the reluctant departure of spring.
Chen Li and Wei Chen strolled hand in hand in the park of the community, listening to the most popular music of the moment. A group of aunties danced to the music, and children ran in the park, followed by their parents, watching their children play with a tender and indulgent look in their eyes.
It was an ordinary evening, and though the sounds were somewhat noisy, the scene that reflected in the eyes was filled with warmth.
The two of them didn’t know when they fell in love with this feeling. Walking on the park’s path and watching the people come and go, they felt a sense of closeness to their home.
Wei Chen and Chen Li found a spot to sit down, fingers interlocked. Chen Li slowly moved to sit next to Wei Chen and naturally rested his head on Wei Chen’s shoulder.
Neither of them spoke, but the cozy atmosphere tightly surrounded them.
In the distance, a real estate agent was showing a handsome young man around the houses.
“Mr. Jiang, the houses in this community have always been in high demand compared to other high-end communities. As you just saw, the security here is excellent, with strict access control, and the cars are parked in the underground garage. The house you’re interested in is a river-view unit with good lighting. Standing by the bed, you can see the distant lush green mountains and meandering green water…” The agent passionately introduced the houses in the community, most of which were true. Having worked as a real estate agent for many years, he naturally had a knack for judging people. Despite this young man looking about twenty years old, his demeanor was extraordinary, and though he was casually dressed, it was all top international brands.
Moreover, there was a young man his colleague didn’t have high hopes for who wanted to buy a house. He was also around twenty years old, and after seeing the house, he immediately paid in full on the spot. He even paid the entire amount.
Back then, this deal made his colleagues envy him. No one expected that a young man who looked like a college student, without the presence of his parents, would be so extravagant as to suddenly pull out millions to buy a house without even batting an eye.
So, upon seeing this young man now, the real estate agent also approached the situation with great seriousness, wondering if this young man would be as generous as the one from two years ago.
“This is a park specially set up in the community, no worse than other parks. The infrastructure inside is complete. If Mr. Jiang’s family moves in together in the future, this park will be a good choice for an evening stroll. How about we go in and take a look, Mr. Jiang?” the agent continued.
The young man addressed as Mr. Jiang nodded and followed the agent into the community’s park.
The agent and Mr. Jiang toured the park, and as they were leaving, they coincidentally encountered Wei Chen and Chen Li, who were ready to go home. Mr. Jiang stopped when he saw the two of them.
Wei Chen also stopped in surprise, looking at the young man in front of him. “Young Master Jiang, what a coincidence,” Wei Chen said, never expecting to encounter Jiang Ye in their own community.
“It’s a small world,” Jiang Ye said with a smile, equally surprised to encounter Wei Chen.
The two had been in contact a few times after the Chinese New Year due to the A Zone project in Shanghai. However, every time they contacted each other, it was work-related, and they didn’t have much personal interaction. After exchanging greetings this time, they went their separate ways.
Upon hearing the young man who bought a house with him before refer to the one accompanying him as “Young Master Jiang,” the agent felt reassured. His judgment was indeed correct; this young man before him was not an ordinary person.
“This is it. Let’s proceed with the paperwork,” Jiang Ye glanced around and made up his mind.
The community was well-landscaped, close to Q University, and had responsible property management. The surroundings were pleasant, so buying a house here, Jiang Ye thought, should suit his liking. He also needed to put in more effort to win the person over.
The agent was delighted upon hearing Jiang Ye’s decision, but he managed to contain his joy. He respectfully escorted Mr. Jiang to sign the contract.
Mr. Jiang purchased a duplex, and with the house prices in this community, it amounted to exactly five million.
Jiang Ye took out his card from his wallet and handed it to the agent.
“Mr. Jiang, full payment or mortgage?” the agent asked, although he already suspected that Mr. Jiang would pay in full.
“Full payment,” Jiang Ye replied, without a hint of hesitation.
As suspected, the agent deftly swiped Jiang Ye’s card.
When Jiang Ye left with the contract in hand, the agent breathed a sigh of relief. With this deal sealed, he was on track for a good bonus this month.
Colleagues who had witnessed the entire signing process couldn’t help but envy. They hadn’t expected this young man, whom they initially deemed too young to afford a house, would actually make such a lavish purchase without the presence of parents. It turned out the agent had made a keen observation.
He picked out one before, and now he picked out another this year. Was it that the agent had exceptionally sharp insight, or were the young people of today truly extraordinary?
*
Night fell, shrouding the sky in darkness, and the stars and moon were absent.
Chen Li returned from his walk and immersed himself in painting in his studio. Wei Chen sat on the living room sofa, the faint glow from the computer screen casting on his face. Reflected through the glasses on Wei Chen’s nose, his face was veiled in light, making it a bit difficult to see clearly.
His slender fingers tapped on the keyboard, the sound of typing resonating crisply. The documents on the computer scrolled rapidly.
At this moment, he was working on a marketing plan. Cooperation with Max was underway, and Max’s cars had cleared customs and arrived in China. They would be grandly launched in the Chinese market this month. The marketing department where Wei Chen worked was responsible for promoting and selling Max’s cars.
His phone, placed next to the computer, vibrated softly. Wei Chen paused his work, picked up the phone, and saw a call from Sheng Jiaqi.
“Uncle Sheng,” Wei Chen greeted.
“Achen, there’s some bad news. Brace yourself,” Sheng Jiaqi’s tone wasn’t very good, clearly upset by this so-called bad news.
However, Wei Chen showed no emotional reaction. “Uncle Sheng, go ahead, I’m listening.”
“The transfer order has been issued from higher-ups. You are promoted to Deputy General Manager of the company, with the position of Marketing Director being taken over by the newcomer, Chen Yunzeng,” Sheng Jiaqi informed Wei Chen with a rather grave tone.
Although Sheng Jiaqi was the Chairman of Changfeng Group, it was ultimately a state-owned enterprise with complex dynamics and various vested interests. Some matters were beyond Sheng Jiaqi’s control.
On the surface, Wei Chen’s promotion from Director of the Marketing Department to Deputy General Manager seemed like a good news—how could it be bad news? However, let’s not forget that when Wei Chen was tasked with integrating the Marketing and Sales Departments, he removed a part of the Deputy General Manager’s authority. The new Marketing Department directly reported to the Board of Directors. In other words, the Deputy General Manager’s position was almost on par with that of a Director, and in some aspects, it was even lower than that of the Marketing Department’s Director.
So, Wei Chen was actually demoted. If this wasn’t bad news, what could be?
“I understand,” Wei Chen responded calmly, contrary to Sheng Jiaqi’s expectation of showing dissatisfaction.
Sheng Jiaqi caught on to something and raised an eyebrow. “Did you anticipate this beforehand?”
“Yes,” Wei Chen admitted.
Sheng Jiaqi didn’t press further but quickly realized the situation. He was somewhat surprised inside, realizing that Wei Chen knew the true origin of the internal forces within Changfeng Group.
Before Sheng Jiaqi became the Chairman of Changfeng Group, it had always been controlled by the Chen family. Sheng Jiaqi had gone through significant struggles to wrest control of Changfeng Group from the Chen family.
Even so, the Chen family’s influence hadn’t disappeared from Changfeng Group. Now, they inserted their people into Changfeng Group at every opportunity, proving that the Chen family’s influence within Changfeng Group was still significant.
As for why they parachuted someone into the position of the Director of the Marketing Department instead of Deputy General Manager? The answer was simple.
Firstly, the position of Deputy General Manager had lost much of its real power, which the Chen family disliked. Secondly, and most importantly, the Chen family wanted to claim credit for Max from Wei Chen.
While Wei Chen had indeed signed the exclusive contract for Max’s cars in China, at this moment, he couldn’t do anything about selling these cars or maximizing profits for the company. Therefore, the Chen family wanted to appropriate the marketing efforts after Max’s involvement, ensuring that the benefits brought by Max would serve the Chen family’s interests within Changfeng Group to a greater extent.
If Wei Chen knew about the Chen family’s influence within Changfeng Group, predicting this matter was very easy.
After pondering over the situation, Sheng Jiaqi let out a sigh of relief, realizing that he hadn’t been as visionary as Wei Chen.
“Since you’ve already anticipated this, I believe you have a backup plan. It seems I worried for nothing.”
“Rest assured, Uncle Sheng.”
Sheng Jiaqi chuckled. “Indeed, I should have full faith in how you handle things.” Now he felt that he had overreacted a bit.
After some more conversation, they hung up the phone.
Wei Chen placed his phone on the table and looked at the marketing plan he had typed out. He lightly pressed the delete key.
What was destined to happen had finally come.
Chapter 208 – Finally Arrived
Despite Chen Li’s paintings having soared to a very high price in the circle and his name becoming increasingly prominent, Chen Li, the central figure in the whirlwind, remained unaware of all that was happening.
He still attended school and went home after classes, setting aside a day each week to join Zhuge Yu to go up the mountain and learn ink painting from Old Master Sun, leading a simple life.
In the blink of an eye, a month had passed. The temperature gradually rose, and the footsteps of spring had quietly departed. Only in the evening, the slightly cool breeze made one feel the reluctant departure of spring.
Chen Li and Wei Chen strolled hand in hand in the park of the community, listening to the most popular music of the moment. A group of aunties danced to the music, and children ran in the park, followed by their parents, watching their children play with a tender and indulgent look in their eyes.
It was an ordinary evening, and though the sounds were somewhat noisy, the scene that reflected in the eyes was filled with warmth.
The two of them didn’t know when they fell in love with this feeling. Walking on the park’s path and watching the people come and go, they felt a sense of closeness to their home.
Wei Chen and Chen Li found a spot to sit down, fingers interlocked. Chen Li slowly moved to sit next to Wei Chen and naturally rested his head on Wei Chen’s shoulder.
Neither of them spoke, but the cozy atmosphere tightly surrounded them.
In the distance, a real estate agent was showing a handsome young man around the houses.
“Mr. Jiang, the houses in this community have always been in high demand compared to other high-end communities. As you just saw, the security here is excellent, with strict access control, and the cars are parked in the underground garage. The house you’re interested in is a river-view unit with good lighting. Standing by the bed, you can see the distant lush green mountains and meandering green water…” The agent passionately introduced the houses in the community, most of which were true. Having worked as a real estate agent for many years, he naturally had a knack for judging people. Despite this young man looking about twenty years old, his demeanor was extraordinary, and though he was casually dressed, it was all top international brands.
Moreover, there was a young man his colleague didn’t have high hopes for who wanted to buy a house. He was also around twenty years old, and after seeing the house, he immediately paid in full on the spot. He even paid the entire amount.
Back then, this deal made his colleagues envy him. No one expected that a young man who looked like a college student, without the presence of his parents, would be so extravagant as to suddenly pull out millions to buy a house without even batting an eye.
So, upon seeing this young man now, the real estate agent also approached the situation with great seriousness, wondering if this young man would be as generous as the one from two years ago.
“This is a park specially set up in the community, no worse than other parks. The infrastructure inside is complete. If Mr. Jiang’s family moves in together in the future, this park will be a good choice for an evening stroll. How about we go in and take a look, Mr. Jiang?” the agent continued.
The young man addressed as Mr. Jiang nodded and followed the agent into the community’s park.
The agent and Mr. Jiang toured the park, and as they were leaving, they coincidentally encountered Wei Chen and Chen Li, who were ready to go home. Mr. Jiang stopped when he saw the two of them.
Wei Chen also stopped in surprise, looking at the young man in front of him. “Young Master Jiang, what a coincidence,” Wei Chen said, never expecting to encounter Jiang Ye in their own community.
“It’s a small world,” Jiang Ye said with a smile, equally surprised to encounter Wei Chen.
The two had been in contact a few times after the Chinese New Year due to the A Zone project in Shanghai. However, every time they contacted each other, it was work-related, and they didn’t have much personal interaction. After exchanging greetings this time, they went their separate ways.
Upon hearing the young man who bought a house with him before refer to the one accompanying him as “Young Master Jiang,” the agent felt reassured. His judgment was indeed correct; this young man before him was not an ordinary person.
“This is it. Let’s proceed with the paperwork,” Jiang Ye glanced around and made up his mind.
The community was well-landscaped, close to Q University, and had responsible property management. The surroundings were pleasant, so buying a house here, Jiang Ye thought, should suit his liking. He also needed to put in more effort to win the person over.
The agent was delighted upon hearing Jiang Ye’s decision, but he managed to contain his joy. He respectfully escorted Mr. Jiang to sign the contract.
Mr. Jiang purchased a duplex, and with the house prices in this community, it amounted to exactly five million.
Jiang Ye took out his card from his wallet and handed it to the agent.
“Mr. Jiang, full payment or mortgage?” the agent asked, although he already suspected that Mr. Jiang would pay in full.
“Full payment,” Jiang Ye replied, without a hint of hesitation.
As suspected, the agent deftly swiped Jiang Ye’s card.
When Jiang Ye left with the contract in hand, the agent breathed a sigh of relief. With this deal sealed, he was on track for a good bonus this month.
Colleagues who had witnessed the entire signing process couldn’t help but envy. They hadn’t expected this young man, whom they initially deemed too young to afford a house, would actually make such a lavish purchase without the presence of parents. It turned out the agent had made a keen observation.
He picked out one before, and now he picked out another this year. Was it that the agent had exceptionally sharp insight, or were the young people of today truly extraordinary?
*
Night fell, shrouding the sky in darkness, and the stars and moon were absent.
Chen Li returned from his walk and immersed himself in painting in his studio. Wei Chen sat on the living room sofa, the faint glow from the computer screen casting on his face. Reflected through the glasses on Wei Chen’s nose, his face was veiled in light, making it a bit difficult to see clearly.
His slender fingers tapped on the keyboard, the sound of typing resonating crisply. The documents on the computer scrolled rapidly.
At this moment, he was working on a marketing plan. Cooperation with Max was underway, and Max’s cars had cleared customs and arrived in China. They would be grandly launched in the Chinese market this month. The marketing department where Wei Chen worked was responsible for promoting and selling Max’s cars.
His phone, placed next to the computer, vibrated softly. Wei Chen paused his work, picked up the phone, and saw a call from Sheng Jiaqi.
“Uncle Sheng,” Wei Chen greeted.
“Achen, there’s some bad news. Brace yourself,” Sheng Jiaqi’s tone wasn’t very good, clearly upset by this so-called bad news.
However, Wei Chen showed no emotional reaction. “Uncle Sheng, go ahead, I’m listening.”
“The transfer order has been issued from higher-ups. You are promoted to Deputy General Manager of the company, with the position of Marketing Director being taken over by the newcomer, Chen Yunzeng,” Sheng Jiaqi informed Wei Chen with a rather grave tone.
Although Sheng Jiaqi was the Chairman of Changfeng Group, it was ultimately a state-owned enterprise with complex dynamics and various vested interests. Some matters were beyond Sheng Jiaqi’s control.
On the surface, Wei Chen’s promotion from Director of the Marketing Department to Deputy General Manager seemed like a good news—how could it be bad news? However, let’s not forget that when Wei Chen was tasked with integrating the Marketing and Sales Departments, he removed a part of the Deputy General Manager’s authority. The new Marketing Department directly reported to the Board of Directors. In other words, the Deputy General Manager’s position was almost on par with that of a Director, and in some aspects, it was even lower than that of the Marketing Department’s Director.
So, Wei Chen was actually demoted. If this wasn’t bad news, what could be?
“I understand,” Wei Chen responded calmly, contrary to Sheng Jiaqi’s expectation of showing dissatisfaction.
Sheng Jiaqi caught on to something and raised an eyebrow. “Did you anticipate this beforehand?”
“Yes,” Wei Chen admitted.
Sheng Jiaqi didn’t press further but quickly realized the situation. He was somewhat surprised inside, realizing that Wei Chen knew the true origin of the internal forces within Changfeng Group.
Before Sheng Jiaqi became the Chairman of Changfeng Group, it had always been controlled by the Chen family. Sheng Jiaqi had gone through significant struggles to wrest control of Changfeng Group from the Chen family.
Even so, the Chen family’s influence hadn’t disappeared from Changfeng Group. Now, they inserted their people into Changfeng Group at every opportunity, proving that the Chen family’s influence within Changfeng Group was still significant.
As for why they parachuted someone into the position of the Director of the Marketing Department instead of Deputy General Manager? The answer was simple.
Firstly, the position of Deputy General Manager had lost much of its real power, which the Chen family disliked. Secondly, and most importantly, the Chen family wanted to claim credit for Max from Wei Chen.
While Wei Chen had indeed signed the exclusive contract for Max’s cars in China, at this moment, he couldn’t do anything about selling these cars or maximizing profits for the company. Therefore, the Chen family wanted to appropriate the marketing efforts after Max’s involvement, ensuring that the benefits brought by Max would serve the Chen family’s interests within Changfeng Group to a greater extent.
If Wei Chen knew about the Chen family’s influence within Changfeng Group, predicting this matter was very easy.
After pondering over the situation, Sheng Jiaqi let out a sigh of relief, realizing that he hadn’t been as visionary as Wei Chen.
“Since you’ve already anticipated this, I believe you have a backup plan. It seems I worried for nothing.”
“Rest assured, Uncle Sheng.”
Sheng Jiaqi chuckled. “Indeed, I should have full faith in how you handle things.” Now he felt that he had overreacted a bit.
After some more conversation, they hung up the phone.
Wei Chen placed his phone on the table and looked at the marketing plan he had typed out. He lightly pressed the delete key.
What was destined to happen had finally come.
