The Self-Cultivation of a Reborn Massage Therapist

Chapter 396 The Last End of the Turmoil

The deputy mayor was newly appointed, and to some extent, he was one of the beneficiaries of the storm that Zhao Xiaochui had brought down Old Lou. Therefore, he felt a natural affinity for Zhao Xiaochui, and by extension, he regarded Director Liu, who had risen to power without any faction affiliation and purely through a "relaxed and leisurely" relationship, as one of his own.

After everyone dispersed, the deputy mayor's tense expression relaxed, and he pointed to the sofa next to him:

"Old Liu, sit down for a while."

The two sat down on the sofa, and the atmosphere shifted from the previous formal setting to a more casual and private conversation.

"I heard that because of what happened three days ago, that kid won't let those top-level technicians go too far away from him?" the deputy mayor asked after the secretary served tea.

He had never met Zhao Xiaochui, but he felt a natural affinity for him. Calling him by his name felt too formal, and calling him anything else felt awkward—after all, the kid was only nineteen years old.

Therefore, "that kid" became the common way people of their age referred to Zhao Xiaochui.

“That woman raised him, and now she has influence in the local area and can protect him.”

Director Liu explained, "The most crucial point is that two of the thirteen girls are from Sichuan and Chongqing. Little Hammer must have asked them for their opinions before making this decision."

The vice mayor nodded knowingly, took a sip of tea, and tentatively asked in a low voice, "Do you know which will open first, Financial Street or Hai... oh, you mean the site of the former Red Star Supermarket?"

“None of them will open!” Director Liu said with certainty. “The investors must have offered huge benefits to secure the property exchange rights in Financial Street. Even if Little Hammer accepts the official offer, given his attitude towards those people, he will never allow the Financial Street branch to open in the short term.”

"You mean..." The deputy mayor hesitated for a moment, then pointed to the west.

Director Liu shook his head decisively: "It's too conspicuous to open the first branch at the original site of Hongxing Supermarket. Knowing Xiao Chuizi as I do, the first branch will definitely be located in Sichuan or Chongqing!" He took a sip of tea and lowered his voice: "That woman is a workaholic, and Xiao Chuizi has always been worried about her health."

Upon hearing this, the deputy mayor finally gave up and smiled easily: "That's fine, let's just focus on doing a good job in service."

At this moment, as if he suddenly remembered something, he asked curiously, "By the way, Lao Liu, is the salary information circulating online about the employees of 'Slow Weaving Life' in Jinghai that was posted recently true?"

He was well aware of how extravagant the "relaxed and leisurely" employee benefits were in Beijing, but everyone assumed those were exceptions. But for a textile factory in Jinghai to pay its ordinary workers such wages was somewhat contrary to common sense.

Based on my understanding of that child's character and conduct, this was definitely not out of kindness. But risking offending the entire industry to give such high pay to a junior employee is truly incomprehensible.

Director Liu didn't rush to answer; he pondered for a while before slowly speaking:
“I’ve discussed this with my niece. He’s not some saint, nor does he need to treat his employees well to find satisfaction. He’s just a young man who loves his work and enjoys life, and he meets up with girls every now and then. If it weren’t for his skills, he would just be an ordinary citizen.”

“It makes no sense that he’s trying to curry favor with the officials,” Director Liu said with a wry smile. “Now we have to watch his face. So after thinking it over, there’s only one explanation…”

"He did this not because he liked anything, nor for any lofty ideals. It was because he loathed, even hated, a certain type of people. It was precisely because of this loathing that he deliberately went against them and used this method to draw a line between himself and them."

At this point, Director Liu looked meaningfully at the vice mayor and whispered the key point:

"Just think about it, Jinling, Ugly Donkey..."

“That doesn’t make sense,” the deputy mayor frowned.

“Yes, it doesn’t make sense.” Director Liu leaned back on the sofa, his tone filled with the same confusion. “That child’s resume has been thoroughly investigated. Growing up in Sichuan and Chongqing, he was protected very closely by that female tyrant; after arriving in Beijing, he was lucky enough to meet… another woman.”

He vaguely glossed over Chen Guifen's sensitive identity.

"I've heard that even the top psychological profilers can't figure out where his deep-seated loathing comes from. It's like... he was born to be on the opposite side of those people."

...Although Zhao Xiaochui's rebirth was ultimately pointless and utterly useless, his rebirth will forever remain a secret.

……

Chen Guifen subtly conveyed Zhao Xiaochui's PTSD condition. All the outside noise was firmly kept out by the long-time employees of the "Relaxed and Slow" office area.

To create a safe and comfortable working and recuperating environment for Zhao Xiaochui, two more security guards were added to the store entrance. The tedious daily tasks were simply not delivered to him.

The veteran employees were well aware of Zhao Xiaochui's style of doing things, so while they regarded his will as an ironclad rule, they left the specifics of how to do things and to what extent to leave it entirely to everyone to use their own ingenuity.

This is precisely why all the long-term employees have a question they can't understand:

The boss provides top-notch treatment in the industry and gives everyone full authority to showcase their talents. With such a great company and boss, why would anyone be dissatisfied or even harbor disloyal thoughts?

This question has finally been answered today.

This question has finally been answered today.

The atmosphere in the brand-new, luxurious office area was somber.

Ou Xiaokui stared blankly at the pale-faced old employee in front of her.

He was the mole who, during the online storm, used his authority to secretly approve the appointment requests of those "special" old customers. It was those same people who later allowed the Ugly Donkey rider to break into the store and intimidate the girls.

When Zhao Xiaochui returned, he held his first meeting and expressed extreme disgust for him based solely on the sensation of heat. He wanted to fire Zhao Xiaochui at the time, but lacked concrete evidence, which is why the matter has been delayed until now.

"Why are you firing me! I've contributed to the store's success, and I'm asking the labor bureau to sue you!" the veteran employee shouted hysterically, making a last-ditch effort.

Ou Xiaokui looked at him coldly and handed him a document. The investigation report sent by a certain company was frighteningly detailed, including Master Zhang's unusual bank statements and details of his secret transactions with external forces.

"Take a look at this. You think you've been discreet? From the moment you accepted the first payment, the outcome was already decided."

Faced with the overwhelming evidence, the veteran employee's attempts to argue ceased abruptly, and he collapsed to the ground. Two uniformed officers then approached and took him away.

If he had admitted defeat and apologized the first time he made a mistake, he might have only been expelled.

But now, there is no room for maneuver.

"Your boss's illness won't get better until he loses everything and spends his life in jail."

These are Zhao Xiaochui's original words after learning the whole truth.

Ou Xiaokui's gaze swept over all the veteran employees present, her voice not loud but clear:
"As our business grows and we have more and more new employees, everyone here has taken on management roles. From now on, we will all appear before the boss as a group every quarter."

She paused, then pointed in the direction where the person had been taken away:
"The lessons of the past are right here. If anyone has any improper thoughts in the future and gets caught by the boss... think about whether you can bear the consequences."

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire office area fell silent, except for the hurried footsteps of the new employees passing by outside the door.

(End of this chapter)