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When Li Shensi arrived at Jin Chen Capital to take charge of the New Business Department, Zhou Qingyu, the deputy director of the Comprehensive Group 2, knocked on his office door carrying a thick stack of project documents.

The purpose was naturally to get closer to the new leader, but when Zhou Qingyu pushed open the door, he was stunned.

On Li Shensi's desk, instead of a mountain of documents and an open computer screen, there were several kinds of health-preserving ingredients...

Goji berries, red dates, yams, and a small stew pot steaming hot.

Li Shensi himself was holding a bowl of porridge, sipping it slowly.

Seeing Zhou Qingyu come in, he waved with a smile: "Little Zhou! You've come at the right time. Come, try my health-preserving porridge, yam and goji berry porridge, it's good for your stomach."

Zhou Qingyu was dumbfounded. He stood there holding the documents, unsure whether to go forward or back.

"Mr. Li, I...I'm here to report on my work," he stammered.

"Don't rush with work, have some porridge first." Li Shensi took out a small bowl from the side, scooped out a spoonful and handed it to him, "Drink it while it's hot, it's good for your health."

"Thank you, Mr. Li." Zhou Qingyu had no choice but to put down the documents, take the bowl, and force himself to take a sip.

The taste... was pretty good.

"How is it?" Li Shensi asked.

"It's delicious, it's delicious," Zhou Qingyu said quickly.

"Then drink more." Li Shensi took another sip, then picked up his phone again. "Wait for me to record a video! It'll be ready soon."

As he spoke, he opened his phone camera, adjusted the angle, and smiled at the lens. "Hello children, I'm Grandpa Li. Today we're going to play a game. How many steps does it take to put an elephant in the refrigerator? First, open the refrigerator door; second, put the elephant in; third, close the refrigerator door. Isn't that easy? Okay, that's all for today's game. See you next time!"

After recording, he watched the playback with satisfaction and then clicked send.

Zhou Qingyu was completely dumbfounded.

He wondered if he had gone to the wrong office. Was this really the legendary "King of Unicorns," Li Shensi?

Why does she look like a kindergarten teacher?

"Mr. Li, what's wrong?" he couldn't help but ask.

“Oh, I recorded this for my daughter’s kindergarten.” Li Shensi put away her phone and smiled naturally. “They were having an event where parents were asked to record short videos for their children. I thought about it for a while and then recorded this one. It’s simple and easy to understand.”

Zhou Qingyu didn't know what to say, so he took a deep breath and decided to get down to business. "President Li, these are a few projects that our second team has been working on recently. We would like to ask you to take a look and give us some advice."

As he spoke, he pushed the stack of documents in front of Li Shensi.

Li Shensi didn't even glance at it, shoving the documents back to him. "Xiao Zhou! I know your group's capabilities very well. You can decide on these projects yourselves. I trust your judgment."

“But Mr. Li, you are the general manager, so you still have to make the final decision…” Zhou Qingyu said anxiously.

"What's wrong with the general manager?" Li Shensi waved his hand. "I'm here to provide logistical support, not to boss you around. Go ahead and do your work with confidence. If you need any support, just come to me. As for the specific projects, you can decide for yourselves."

He spoke casually, but his meaning was clear: he wasn't involved.

Zhou Qingyu was completely dumbfounded. Holding the stack of documents, he stood there, unsure whether to leave or stay.

"Is there anything else?" Li Shensi asked.

“No…that’s all,” Zhou Qingyu said mechanically.

"Then go ahead and get busy." Li Shensi picked up the bowl of porridge again. "Oh, and finish your porridge! Don't waste it."

Zhou Qingyu numbly finished his porridge, then walked out of the office with the documents in his hand.

In the corridor, he ran into Lin Yuming, who was on his way to find Li Shensi.

Seeing his dazed expression, Lin Yuming asked, "President Zhou, what's wrong? Did you see President Li?"

Zhou Qingyu nodded, his voice trembling: "I saw him... He was drinking porridge, recording a kindergarten video, and said he wouldn't be involved in the project, only doing logistics..."

Lin Yuming was also dumbfounded: "What?"

The two looked at each other and saw shock and confusion in each other's eyes.

……

In the fourth office area, Lin Yuming ran over with an incredulous look on his face. "Boss, I heard that Li Shensi is cooking porridge in his office to maintain his health, and he's also recording kindergarten videos! Zhou Qingyu went to him to report on his work, but he didn't even look at it and said he didn't care and told his subordinates to decide for themselves!"

Wu Kezhi showed no surprise at all after hearing this.

“I told you long ago, he’s here to retire,” Wu Kezhi said calmly.

"Retirement?" Lan Qianyi asked, puzzled. "He's only in his early sixties, isn't he? How can he be retiring?"

"Being in his early sixties is considered 'old' in the investment world," Wu Kezhi said. "Li Shensi entered the industry in his twenties or thirties and has been working for over thirty years. What storms hasn't he weathered? He's made enough money and gained enough reputation. Isn't it normal for him to find a big company, hold a senior management title, and wait for retirement in peace?"

Sun Yiqiu was stunned: "So... President Li came to our company just to coast along?"

“Most likely,” Wu Kezhi nodded. “Think about it. If he really wanted to get things done, he would have called a meeting with all the teams on the first day to understand the project and make a plan. But he’s been here for three days and hasn’t done anything except make a brief appearance. Does that seem like someone who wants to make a big impact?”

Lin Yuming thought for a moment: "That makes sense... But Chris Ferry went to so much trouble to invite him here just so he could retire?"

“Chris has his reasons,” Wu Kezhi said. “Maybe it’s to leverage Li Shensi’s reputation to improve the company’s image; maybe it’s to check and balance President Qu; maybe… it’s simply to give the senior a stable future. Who knows?”

Lan Qianyi frowned: "Then what will happen to our department in the future? If the general manager doesn't take charge, who will oversee the projects? Who will make the decisions?"

“Let whoever is responsible do it,” Wu Kezhi said. “When General Manager Wang was in charge, he didn’t really manage the specific projects; each group decided on their own. Now that we’ve replaced him with someone who’s even less involved, it might be a good thing for us, at least no one is giving orders blindly.”

“But…” Sun Yiqiu hesitated and said, “If President Li is really here to retire, then in the end, won’t it be us, the ones who do the work, who suffer? If something goes wrong, he might just walk away, and we’ll have to take the blame.”

That hit the nail on the head, and the office fell silent for a few seconds.

Wu Kezhi looked at Sun Yiqiu and suddenly smiled: "Yiqiu, you've improved. You can think about things now."

“That’s right. If Li Shensi is really here to retire, then we need to be even more careful. Because he won’t be responsible for the department’s performance, nor will he cover for our mistakes. In the future, we need to be more cautious in our work, keep more evidence, and protect ourselves.”

Lin Yuming sighed, "Sigh! I thought a big shot had arrived who could carry us, but instead, a laid-back guy showed up. The difference is just too big."

"Whether you're taking a Buddhist approach or working your butt off, we still have to do what we're supposed to do." Wu Kezhi turned around. "Alright, stop overthinking and get back to work. What happens to Li Shensi isn't really our business. Doing our own jobs well is what really matters."

Everyone dispersed and returned to their workstations.

But a shadow fell over everyone's heart.

If the general manager is really just here to retire, then the future of the new business department is even more uncertain.

Those who work on the front lines bear an even heavier responsibility.

……

On his first day at the company, Li Shensi did something that left the entire company speechless.

At 10 a.m., everyone in the energy group's office area was busy.

Suning was discussing the technical parameters of a photovoltaic project with Zhao Boqian when suddenly the entire office area fell silent.

Looking up blankly, I saw Li Shensi carrying a large thermos and walking towards me with a smile.

Everyone was stunned. Ma Jianguo rushed out of his office: "President Li, what brings you here? You could have just called me over if you needed anything..."

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Li Shensi waved his hand and walked straight to Suning's workstation. "Suning! I brought you something."

Then he placed the thermos on the Suning table, opened the lid, and inside was a large bowl of steaming hot health porridge. You could see goji berries, red dates, and yams, and it smelled delicious.

“I just made this, but I made too much. I brought you a bowl,” Li Shensi said casually. “Drink it while it’s hot; it’s good for your stomach.” Su Ning was completely stunned. He looked at the bowl of porridge, then looked around…

All his colleagues stared at him, their eyes filled with shock, curiosity, and inquiry.

Xu Taiping's mouth was wide enough to fit an egg.

Zhao Boqian pushed away, his expression complicated.

Zhou Ming's eyes widened in surprise.

Ma Jianguo stood to the side, his face stiff.

"Mr. Li, this...this is too much trouble." Su Ning smiled wryly, at a loss for words. "You're too kind."

"Why are you being so polite with me?" Li Shensi said sternly. "What, calling me President Li? Didn't you always call me Uncle Li? It's only been a few days, and you've become so distant?"

The voice wasn't loud, but it was loud enough for everyone around to hear.

As soon as the words "Uncle Li" were uttered, a collective gasp filled the office area.

Su Ning smiled bitterly to himself, knowing that he could no longer hide it from the public.

He had no choice but to change his words: "Uncle Li, thank you. I just feel that... in the company, it's more appropriate to use your job title."

“Don’t worry about titles or anything, just call me whatever you want in private.” Li Shensi’s tone softened. “I had dinner with your dad last month, and he said you’re doing a great job here, and he’s very pleased.”

“Uncle Li…” Su Ning could only go along with it.

Li Shensi patted him on the shoulder, "Su Ning! Take my advice, no matter how busy you are with work, you have to take care of your health. Look at you young people, you stay up late all the time and eat takeout. Your stomachs will be ruined in the long run. From now on, come to my office twice a day for some porridge. I have plenty of ingredients there, I can help you recover."

These words sound like an elder giving instructions to their own child, so intimately familiar.

Su Ning could sense that the gazes directed at her from around her were no longer just curious, but carried a complex mix of emotions...

Envy, jealousy, vigilance, scheming...

But Su Ning knew that from this day forward, his days at Jin Chen would no longer be peaceful.

"Uncle Li, there's really no need to trouble yourself..." Su Ning wanted to decline.

“No trouble at all, it’s just a quick thing.” Li Shensi interrupted him. “Alright, you’re busy! I’m leaving. Remember to drink your porridge! Don’t waste it.”

"Thank you, Uncle Li."

After Li Shensi finished speaking, he turned and left.

As he passed by Ma Jianguo, he even stopped for a moment and said, "Mr. Ma, Suning from your team is quite good. Give him a good chance to develop."

"Yes, yes, Mr. Li, don't worry, we will definitely train him well!" Ma Jianguo said hurriedly.

Even after Li Shensi had walked away, the office area remained completely silent.

Everyone was looking at Su Ning and the bowl of porridge on his table.

Xu Taiping was the first to come over, his face beaming with smiles: "Little Su! No, Brother Su... you're so familiar with President Li?"

Su Ning looked at the bowl of porridge and sighed: "My dad and Mr. Li are old friends, but they've only met a few times."

“Oh… an old friend…” Xu Taiping’s eyes flickered, “So, Brother Su, your father is…”

"Just doing some small business," Su Ning said casually. "Alright, everyone get back to work. I can't finish the porridge, anyone want to try some?"

No one dared to speak; that bowl of porridge was now a hot potato, and anyone who touched it would be embarrassed.

In the end, Zhao Boqian said, "You can drink it yourself! President Li brought it especially for you."

Suning nodded, picked up the spoon, and forced himself to start drinking.

The porridge was indeed well-cooked, soft, sticky, and sweet, but he found it tasteless and bland.

He could sense that although his colleagues had all returned to their workstations, their attention was still on him.

"Did you hear me? Call him Uncle Li..."

"No wonder Chris met with him in person..."

"The background is not simple..."

Ma Jianguo couldn't sit still in his office.

He came out and stood by the Suning workstation for a while, wanting to say something, but in the end he didn't speak.

He simply patted Suning on the shoulder and went back.

The meaning was clear: I won't dare offend you again.

After finishing his porridge, Suning went to the tea room to wash the thermos.

Along the way, people from other groups looked at him strangely.

Back at his workstation, he sent Lan Qianyi a WeChat message: "Oh no, I've been exposed."

Lan Qianyi quickly replied, "What's wrong?"

“Li Shensi came to our group and brought me some health-preserving porridge. He even told me to call him Uncle Li. Now the whole company knows that my relationship with him is special.”

"...Then what will you do in the future?"

"I don't know! Anyway, I definitely can't stay at Jin Chen Capital anymore."

"Su Ning, I have never asked you whether your family background is very prominent?"

"It's alright! My parents just run a small business, and their situation is similar to Hao Shuai's. They have a good relationship with Chris's father and President Li."

"I really didn't realize! My boyfriend is a rich kid."

"Stop it! I'm so annoyed."

"Come to my place tonight, I'll give you a good talking to."

"It's a word."

After posting this, Suning leaned back in his chair, staring at the computer screen, but couldn't concentrate on a single word.

He knew that Li Shensi was doing it on purpose, using this seemingly intimate way to publicly reveal his relationship with the Su family.

What is the purpose? It could be to support him, or it could be to put someone in their place, or... it could be a game of chess, and he is one of the pieces.

But whatever the purpose, the result is the same: at Jin Chen, he can no longer keep a low profile.

Previously, I was just a capable newcomer, but now I've become someone with connections and influence.

What will his colleagues think of him? How will his boss treat him? How will he continue to work?
Suning suddenly felt very tired.

He took out his phone again and looked at the WeChat message Li Shensi had just sent: "Su Ning, is the porridge good? Come to my office for some tomorrow."

"Thank you, Uncle Li, your cooking is really good."

...(End of chapter)