Financial freedom starts from graduation

Chapter 536 Kindness and Power
Shen Yutong was still a little weak when she got up, but fortunately she was in good physical condition. After a while, she gradually adapted. Apart from not being able to take big steps, she could walk normally without much trouble.

Zhou Wang seemed to have something on his mind, so he quickly washed up and left the room. When Shen Yutong finally got dressed and came out, she saw the other three sisters already sitting around in the dining room.

The table was laden with a dazzling array of breakfast and tea drinks, but apart from Su Yajing, Cui Min'er and Yu Duo both looked rather listless, especially Yu Duo, who was without makeup, and the traces of a hangover could still be seen in her fair complexion.

"Sister Tongtong, you are so lucky..."

Upon seeing Shen Yutong appear, Yu Duo pouted and said.

Shen Yutong was startled, thinking that Yu Duo also knew something, and immediately panicked, "Ah, I, what am I happy about?"

"Min'er and I were both dragged out of bed by Ranran around 8 o'clock, but you slept until 10 o'clock. Aren't you lucky enough?"

Yu Duo hummed as she spoke.

Shen Yutong breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but glance at Su Yaqing, only to see the other woman looking at her with a half-smile.

Shen Yutong blushed, knowing that Su Yaqing had deliberately let her rest a little longer. She felt touched but also a little strange...

She was still a little drowsy in bed when she realized something was wrong.

Su Yaqing seemed to have anticipated everything. Could it be that she wasn't drunk at all last night?
"Duoduo, where did you sleep last night? Why didn't you go back to your room?"

Thinking this, Shen Yutong went over and poured herself a glass of iced milk, casually asking as if it were nothing.

"I woke up and was sleeping with Sister Ranran. I don't know how I got to the master bedroom... Luckily Zhou Wang wasn't there, or I would have been so embarrassed."

Yu Duo said, blushing slightly.

Yu Duo's answer undoubtedly made Shen Yutong even more certain. Last night, she originally wanted to wait until Zhou Wang fell asleep before taking care of her three sisters, but she was exhausted after being exploited by Zhou Wang and fell asleep in a daze. How could she remember this?
Clearly, both Cui Min'er and Yu Duo were escorted back to their rooms by Su Yaqing.

So, Su Yaqing knew everything from last night, and even deliberately brought Yu Duo back to the master bedroom, just to leave Zhou Wang and herself plenty of space...

Shen Yutong felt grateful, ashamed, and confused. She asked herself honestly if she were in Su Yajing's position, she might not have been able to be so generous.

But perhaps this is the reason why Su Yajing was the first to enter Zhou Wang's inner world?
Biting her lip, Shen Yutong didn't know what she was thinking, but she picked up the hot teapot on the table, quickly poured a cup of tea, and then handed it to Su Yaqing with both hands.

"Ranran, um, you, you'd like some tea..."

Yu Duo and Cui Min'er were both a little confused, because Shen Yutong's posture was rather strange, while only Su Yaqing looked odd.

Shen Yutong has watched too many period dramas; is she serving tea to her "older sister"?

But clearly, Shen Yutong is half a year older than him in terms of birthday.

Although she really wanted to laugh, Su Yaqing tried her best to keep a straight face, accepted the tea that Shen Yutong handed her, and gently patted her hand at the same time.

"You're welcome."

Only then did Shen Yutong realize how absurd her behavior was. Embarrassed, she could only quickly try to change the subject.

"Um...where's Zhou Wang? I haven't seen him. Has he finished eating?"

"He was handling some things in his study."

When Zhou Wang was mentioned, Su Yajing offered an explanation.

"Is that Assistant Huang from yesterday? I think I just heard voices..."

Yu Duo asked curiously.

"Yes, I heard from Butler Charlie that Assistant Huang has been waiting at the door since 5 a.m., which is quite pitiful."

Su Yaqing sighed and said.

"I think this kind of thing is quite normal."

Choi Min-ah picked up a translucent shrimp dumpling, tried to put it in her mouth with an elegant gesture, and said dismissively, "You guys haven't seen the assistants of those chaebols in our Korea. They live in constant fear, because a single word from a chaebol can send them plummeting into the abyss, and their entire family instantly reduced to the bottom of society..."

"Wanting to be superior to others without being willing to endure inhuman exploitation? Where in the world can you find such a good deal?"

"But my brother is not the kind of person who would exploit others. Choi Min-ah, don't judge him with your Korean logic. You don't understand him at all!"

Su Yaqing couldn't stand Cui Min'er's matter-of-fact attitude, and immediately said angrily.

Yes, yes, you know best...

She simply didn't believe that Zhou Wang, who started from nothing and became a billionaire today, could really be a good person at heart!

Cui Min'er secretly pursed her lips, but was too lazy to argue with Su Yaqing. She simply wiped her lips and stood up first, saying, "I'm going to do my makeup first. You guys hurry up too, aren't we going to take photos and go shopping this afternoon?"

……

In the study, dappled light filtered through the curtains, casting a soft, shimmering glow on the tea table in front of him. It also made the tall figure sitting behind the tea table appear dim and uncertain. At least Huang Duming, who was standing in front of the tea table, found that no matter what he did, he could not make out Zhou Wang's face clearly.

In a daze, Huang Duming recalled when he first met Zhou Wang. He was the property manager of Beidu No. 1 Courtyard. At that time, he felt that this peer who had acquired hundreds of millions of assets at such a young age was easy-going and easier to get along with than he had imagined.

Perhaps it was based on this first impression that Huang Duming unconsciously relaxed later on, and when he was handling various affairs for Zhou Wang in Beidu, he failed to keep his guard up...

After a night of reflection, Huang Duming realized that yesterday's incident was just a prelude; Zhou Wang's real dissatisfaction stemmed from some of Huang's actions in Beidu.

Frustrated, Huang Duming, seeing that Zhou Wang remained silent, took a deep breath and continued:

"President Zhou, after much consideration, I still want to request that you transfer me out of Beidu. I believe I need to gain experience in a more junior position within the group for a few more years. With my current abilities, it's actually a bit of a stretch for me to manage Beidu's affairs..."

"Oh?"

Zhou Wang, who was busy brewing tea, paused in his movements and spoke for the first time, "Is that really what you think?"

"With all my heart."

"Any position is fine?"

"Any position is fine."

"You'd be willing to be a security guard?"

Zhou Wang said with a half-smile.

"As long as Mr. Zhou thinks I'm suitable, I'm fine with being a security guard."

Huang Duming gritted his teeth and nodded.

Zhou Wang remained noncommittal, tapping his fingers on the table a few times before suddenly asking, "When you were in Beidu, did you receive any valuable gifts from others?"

"No."

Huang Duming was startled and quickly bowed, replying, "Back in Beidu, quite a few people did give me gifts, but I tried my best to return them all... Only once, Mr. Qiu Zeyu casually gave me two cartons of internal cigarettes. Considering Mr. Qiu's relationship with you, I accepted them. Otherwise, I haven't accepted any gifts of any kind... Those two cartons are still in my home, untouched. If you don't believe me, Mr. Zhou..."

Zhou Wang raised his hand to stop Huang Duming, who was eager to argue.

"Let's maintain the status quo for now. No one is more familiar with the affairs of Beidu than you, so you will remain in this position. However, I will deduct three months' bonus from your paycheck. Any objections?" "No... Thank you for your forgiveness, Mr. Zhou. Please rest assured, I will not let you down again."

At this point, Huang Duming finally felt relieved, knowing that this hurdle was temporarily over. Only then did he realize that his back was already covered in sweat in just a short while.

"However, you should also be prepared. Perhaps later, I will transfer you to Hangzhou to be in charge of Wuyou Media's business segment."

At this moment, Zhou Wang added a casual remark.

Huang Duming felt a little uneasy again, because Zhou Wang's words undoubtedly revealed the meaning of "remaining on probation to observe his future performance," which was to tell him not to think that the past was really over and everything still depended on his subsequent performance.

Just as Huang Duming was feeling somewhat dejected, Zhou Wang suddenly reached out and said, "Sit down."

Huang Duming sat down opposite Zhou Wang as instructed, and only then, with the help of the shifting morning light, was he able to see Zhou Wang's face clearly.

Zhou Wang's expression was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger; he simply pushed a freshly brewed cup of tea in front of him.

"Try it, it's Yingde black tea from the local area of ​​Guangzhou. It's said that it was once the tea served to the British royal family."

"Hey!"

Huang Duming responded, quickly picked up his teacup, took a careful sip, and then exclaimed, "It's really good, it seems to have a sweet potato aroma..."

"I remember you're from Hunan Province, right?"

Zhou Wang suddenly asked at this moment.

"Yes."

Huang Duming quickly put down his teacup and sat up straight.

"You have a younger sister at home, right?"

"Yes, she just started high school this year..."

How are your grades?

"Not bad, considered outstanding in our hometown, but definitely not comparable to the top students in big cities..."

Huang Duming was unsure whether Zhou Wang was just chatting or had some other intention, and he became cautious as well.

"The conditions in your hometown aren't very good, are they?"

"It's just average. My family is from Sangzhi, a county near Zhangjiajie, which is considered relatively poor. That's why I wasn't too willing to go back after graduation. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been too difficult to get a government job in my hometown back then..."

Huang Duming said with a wry smile.

Zhou Wang tapped the tea table a few times, then suddenly smiled and said, "Send your sister to study in Shanghai. You should know that I have a good school there. I've already spoken to Lin Ran. You can just contact her directly. You don't need to worry about the procedures."

Huang Duming certainly knew about Zhou Wang's Pinghe School in Shanghai, which was one of the top private high schools in the country. He was immediately flattered and about to stand up.

"Mr. Zhou, this... this is unacceptable..."

"Don't rush me, I haven't finished yet."

Zhou Wang waved his hand again, gesturing for Huang Duming to sit down.

"In addition, the group recently planned to select a batch of welfare housing exclusively for internal employees in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Mingcheng. The housing will be rent-free and ready to move in, which will help alleviate some of your worries. You are on the first batch of the list. When you talk to Lin Ran later, you can also finalize this matter. From the information they provided, the housing in Beijing is quite good, at least a two-bedroom apartment..."

"Mr. Zhou, this..."

Huang Duming was speechless for a moment.

"Furthermore, in the future, if you or your close relatives—your parents, sister, or spouse—have a serious illness, as long as you are still employed by Wangzhou Group, you can have your medical expenses reimbursed according to a percentage based on your position, and this will not conflict with your medical insurance..."

Zhou Wang then laughed and said, "Of course, I personally recommend that you go directly to Shanghai Jia Hui Hospital for treatment. With your rating, the difference between that and full reimbursement won't be significant."

Huang Duming remained silent, but his eyes suddenly reddened.

He opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything for a long time.

"Alright, if there's nothing else, go ahead and get busy... Oh, and remember to confirm the time with President Mu. Now that we're here, we should have a meal together."

"Okay, Mr. Zhou, I'll ask for your approval after I've made the arrangements."

Huang Duming took several deep breaths, composed himself, and respectfully responded before getting up and leaving.

After the study door was gently closed, Zhou Wang picked up his phone from the tea table. After unlocking it, a message from Qi Jiayi appeared on his screen.

"The investigation results show that during Huang Duming's tenure at Taipei Metropolitan Police Department, apart from a few instances of overconfidence and a dismissive attitude in handling affairs, there were few flaws in his personal conduct... In addition, Huang Duming's mother seems to be in poor health due to years of hard work, suffering from neurasthenia, arthritis, pneumoconiosis, and other diseases..."

Zhou Wang glanced at the words, then exhaled a breath of stale air and put the phone back on the table.

As his team gradually expands, he can't rely on the system's provided resume for everything. Human nature is the same. With Jiang Qingkui helping him share most of the group's affairs, if Zhou Wang can't even manage his own assistants, he might as well just kill himself.

……

"Gogogo!"

"Sister Tongtong, hurry up! You clearly have the best stamina, why are you so slow?"

The weather in Shenzhen was great today, and the four girls, dressed up in their finest attire, looked radiant. They had been listless and lethargic from a hangover this morning, but by noon, when they went out, they were all full of energy again.

The group of five was heading to the nearest city attraction to the hotel, the famous "Window of the World" in Shenzhen.

Zhou Wang lagged behind, looking relaxed. Just as he arrived at the entrance of the scenic spot, he suddenly received a call from Xu Wenqian.

"Hey, Sisi, what's wrong?"

"Boss, I have some good news to tell you."

Xu Wenqian chuckled on the other end of the phone and didn't keep them in suspense, "According to the assessment by authoritative securities institutions in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai this morning, the market value of Wuyou Media has increased by 5% in the latest round of evaluation. This means that the market value of your 10% stake in Wuyou has increased from 190 million to about 200 million... Congratulations, your assets have increased by another 10 million."

Zhou Wang was taken aback, then realized that this must be the boost brought by the [Gemstone Encyclopedia].

Zhou Wang just didn't expect that the positive buff from the [Illustrated Guide] would start to materialize so quickly...

Ten million sounds alright, but Zhou Wang knows that this is just the beginning, since the amplification effect of the [Illustrated Guide] applies to all the assets under his name.

If all of them could achieve this level of growth, the total would be quite a large number.

This feeling of "money falling from the sky" instantly improved Zhou Wang's mood considerably.

He looked up and saw that Su Yajing and the other girls were playing around and not paying attention to what was behind them. He couldn't help but take a few steps forward and lightly patted Shen Yutong's pert buttocks from behind to celebrate.

Zhou Wang's actions caught Shen Yutong off guard, causing her to turn her head and glance at him. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and her legs felt a little weak.

It hasn't been that long, Zhou Wang, is he already thinking of something bad again...?

(End of this chapter)