Dawn of Life

To improve efficiency, one must either increase employee productivity and boost company revenue, or reduce labor costs and cut company expenses. The healthiest approach is undoubtedly the former, but the fastest is certainly the latter. Without a doubt, Qu Liang chose the latter, because he didn't care about Dasheng's long-term development; he only cared about quickly completing the tasks assigned by headquarters.

Of course, there was another very important reason: he knew that headquarters wanted to use him to reshuffle the personnel at all levels of Dasheng. During this period, headquarters and Shengxing had been engaged in a series of back-and-forth battles; headquarters asked Shengxing for performance targets, and Shengxing asked headquarters for budgets.

For the senior executives who led the acquisition at Wenxing at the time, the company also questioned them due to the unfavorable economic environment, so they did not dare to invest too much in the early stages.

Qu Liang submitted a "strategic layoff" plan to headquarters. First, the layoffs should be focused on departments that are not currently profitable, such as the human resources and administration department, the technology department, the internal control department, and the legal department. Second, high-paid senior executives should be laid off, and pure management director positions should be eliminated in each department. Managers should report directly to VPs to reduce the number of levels. Finally, employees with high risk factors should be laid off, such as female employees of marriageable and childbearing age.

The entire process, on the surface, appeared to be based on convenient management, cost control, and risk reduction, and headquarters quickly agreed.

After headquarters agreed, he took the plan to Shengxing. After all, structurally, Shengxing was the CEO of Dasheng, and Qu Liang reported to him. Although he had the immunity from headquarters, such a large-scale move as layoffs still required Shengxing's support. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to complete it. Even if he was anxious, he understood this principle.

In early April 2024, in Shengxing's office, Shengxing and Qu Liang were drinking the freshest pre-Qingming Longjing tea. The two had been exchanging pleasantries for half an hour, but hadn't gotten to the point.

In the end, Sheng Xing couldn't hold out any longer. After drinking a pot of tea and making two trips to the restroom, he said to Qu Liang, "Minister Qu, you just said you came in to talk to me about strategic layoffs. If it's not urgent, we can talk about it another day. Look, we've been talking for half an hour already, and I still need to look at a few documents."

Qu Liang panicked upon hearing this, thinking that a normal work report usually starts with at least half an hour of introduction. This has only just begun, why is he already ending it?

So he quickly said with a smile, "President Sheng, this is mainly because headquarters is anxious. When I sent you the plan, I copied it to headquarters. As a result, they called me directly after seeing the plan, and they kept saying that the plan was good and could quickly help Dasheng solve the current problem. But I said that won't do. I am reporting to President Sheng. It has to be your approval to be considered good."

When it comes to the art of flattery, Qu Liang is the best. Although he was using the headquarters to pressure Shengxing, he managed to absolve himself of all responsibility and even took the opportunity to express his loyalty to Shengxing. There was not a single fault to be found in him.

While they were talking, Qu Liang had already projected the plan onto the TV screen. Sheng Xing looked up and his face immediately darkened. The first slide of the PPT had the words "Strategic Layoffs" written in large letters, followed by a line of smaller print: 40% reduction, to be completed within a month.

After Qu Liang finished his report, Sheng Xing's expression grew increasingly grim, but he still forced a smile and slowly said, "Old Qu, you're a veteran at Wenxing, and more than ten years older than me. Logically, I shouldn't question your professionalism. But layoffs are indeed a major issue, and as the helmsman of Dasheng, I have a few concerns. With such a high percentage, and the compensation not being based on legal regulations, are there any legal risks? Also, without a director in the team, can the manager effectively manage the team? Finally, you planned to hand over the entire project to Lin Yue, but you changed her position to recruitment manager. Aren't you worried she might have a rebellious attitude and not cooperate with your work?"

Qu Liang waved his hand, a sly smile playing on his lips, and replied, "President Sheng is truly merciful, but if I may presume to say something I shouldn't, it's true: an entrepreneur who isn't ruthless can't achieve great things. Look at history, both ancient and modern, which emperor wasn't ruthless? First, there are plenty of ways for a company to get rid of employees; it doesn't necessarily require financial compensation, you can also win their hearts. Second, managers can do the work of directors, and you can save on one person's expenses; finally, I'm planning to cut the HRBP in the HR department."

"The core functions of the HR department are recruitment, payroll calculation, social security payment, and onboarding/offboarding. If you can't even do your own job well, how can you expect to manage other business operations? That's a false premise. I've seen Lin Yue's resume; her main experience is in HRBP, so she should have been laid off. I gave her a recruitment manager position because she has some ability, but only if she can successfully complete the layoff project."

Sheng Xing stared at Qu Liang for a long time, speechless. He used to think this man was incompetent; last time Lin Yue wasn't around, the plans he made were a complete mess. Now, however, he seemed to know how to manipulate people's hearts. He had grasped the reality of Lin Yue being divorced and raising a child, and calculated that she wouldn't dare to resign easily.

Secondly, with the restructuring of the Human Resources Department, its position has been lowered. Those routine tasks can be handled casually, causing no major problems. They can just coast along at Dasheng and then return to headquarters to wait for retirement. As for how well the project is completed, or whether there will be any legal risks, it will ultimately be Lin Yue's fault. He will say that his plan was flawless, that he considered costs to the greatest extent possible, and that it was Lin Yue who failed to execute it properly, handling the blame-shifting and credit-grabbing so smoothly.

Shengxing was not going to argue with him anymore. Since it was a decision made by headquarters, he could not refuse it directly. But if he agreed, whether it was Qu Liang's responsibility or Lin Yue's fault, he, as the CEO, would have to pay the price in the end.

As for the headquarters, Dasheng was an insignificant project to them; at worst, things would get a little muddier, and they could just replace the CEO. But Dasheng was his life's work, and he would never allow that to happen.

He chuckled at Qu Liang and said, "Minister Qu is indeed professional; you've thought of everything. It's just that the people on your list are all long-time employees of mine. It's not that I'm being overly sentimental, but the circle is small, and mishandling the aftermath could affect the market. You're not in the marketing field, so you might not understand, and reputation is also very important. So give me some time; I need to think about it some more."

Since things had already come to this point, Qu Liang couldn't insist any further. So he gave Shengxing a thumbs-up and complimented him, "You really have to say, President Sheng is a business genius. He thinks things through much more thoroughly than an old man like me. Human resources is my own department; may I make the first move?"

Sheng Xing nodded in agreement, thinking that this was a good idea. He had just been figuring out how to bypass Qu Liang and discuss a plan with Lin Yue first. Now he didn't have to do it himself; Lin Yue would come to him. Thinking this, a meaningful smile crept onto his lips. In this way, he could simply sit back and reap the benefits.

It's Friday, and Lin Yue went straight home after get off work. She hasn't been feeling particularly well lately. Qu Liang has started picking on her again, always seemingly targeting her, whether intentionally or unintentionally. He always finds fault with her, like nitpicking an egg, which is incredibly annoying. If he can't find any logical flaws in a solution, he'll start focusing on typos, punctuation, and formatting issues. Even a single incorrect punctuation mark can become a pretext for him to criticize her for half an hour.

As soon as Lin Yue entered the house, she heard Xiao Yu making a phone call to Gao Ming on the speakerphone of Xiaotiancai (a children's learning device). So she could hear the conversation clearly.

Xiaoyu: "Dad, it's the weekend tomorrow, I want you to come play soccer with me."

Gao Ming remained silent for several seconds before declining, saying, "I have something to do tomorrow, let Mom accompany you."

Xiaoyu pouted and pressed, "What do you have planned for tomorrow?"

Lin Haifeng couldn't stand it anymore, so he moved closer to Xiaoyu and said to the little genius, "The last time you saw Xiaoyu was when he had the flu, which has been more than two months, right? He wants you to play with him, so why don't you play with him?"

Gao Ming was silent for a moment, then asked, "Xiao Yu, are you sure you really want to play football? It's just inconvenient for me to come to your place."

Xiao Yu said confidently, "I'm sure. I'll have Mom take me to your place." He looked up at Lin Yue with expectant eyes. Lin Yue felt a pang in her heart, and then nodded to Xiao Yu.

After the divorce, Gao Ming bought a storefront in Lin'an and moved his small supermarket there. It takes about an hour to drive from Hangzhou to Lin'an, but there's a direct light rail line that takes only forty minutes. Lin Yue always encouraged Xiao Yu to call his father anytime if he missed him, or to go see him directly. But Gao Ming always made excuses, saying it was too far.

The next day, Lin Yue handed Xiao Yu over to Gao Ming at the light rail entrance and arranged for Gao Ming to take Xiao Yu back. Lin Yue had made plans to see a movie with Xiao Feng that afternoon, and this arrangement would allow Gao Ming to spend an extra hour with Xiao Yu.

When the movie was halfway through, Lin Yue's phone screen lit up and Gao Ming sent her a WeChat message: "You should leave now to pick up Xiao Yu. I'll still drop him off at Qingshanhu subway station at 6:30."

Lin Yue frowned and replied, "Didn't we agree that you would deliver it? I don't have time right now."

Soon, Xiaoyu, the little genius, called, his voice trembling with tears: "Mom, Dad said he has something to do and asked you to come pick me up. Please come quickly, I want to go home."

Upon hearing Xiaoyu's tone, Lin Yue's heart tightened. She covered her mouth and quickly whispered, "Okay, I'll do it now."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Yue looked up and met Xiao Feng's resentful gaze. She took his hand and whispered in his ear, "Honey, I'm sorry, I can't go to the movies with you. I have to go to Lin'an to pick up our son now."

Xiao Feng grabbed Lin Yue's hand and squeezed it tightly, as if to express his dissatisfaction: "This is the second time you've stood me up for a movie." Then he sighed and said, "Let's go."

Xiao Feng originally insisted on going to pick up Xiao Yu with Lin Yue, but Lin Yue hadn't told her family about having a boyfriend yet, and she didn't want Xiao Yu to know either. She looked at Xiao Feng seriously and said, "I've only been divorced for less than a year, and I don't want Xiao Yu to think that his mother has found another man so quickly. Besides, I'm worried that your sudden appearance might make him feel repulsed by you."

Xiao Feng nodded helplessly and said, "So when do you plan to formally introduce me to your family?"

Lin Yue leaned close to Xiao Feng's face and gently kissed him, as a way of comforting him. Because she hadn't yet started planning this, she didn't answer his question.

After picking up Xiaoyu, Lin Yue noticed he seemed downcast. On the subway, Xiaoyu rested his head on Lin Yue's shoulder. Through Xiaoyu's fragmented description, Lin Yue learned that Gao Ming hadn't taken him to play soccer that day. Instead, he'd let him watch cartoons at the shop while he played video games. For lunch, Gao Ming ordered takeout for Xiaoyu and then went out, not returning to the shop until after 4 PM.

Lin Yue pieced together all this information and was furious. She even regretted sending Xiao Yu there.

On Monday, Lin Yue had just arrived at the company when Qu Liang summoned her to his office.