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Chapter 156: Chapter 139 Don’t Ask for Reasons, Everyone is a Friend!_1
Although Zhou Li and his companions had never been to the second floor of Zhengyuan Grand Hotel before, they had heard of the title of the largest indoor banquet hall in Qingyan City.
They originally thought that Tang Qing’s Company was just a small one, with probably only dozens of people. After all, Tang Qing was still in school. How could he possibly have time to manage a company? Let alone the livelihood of dozens of people was not a trivial matter. They assumed that he must have just booked this place using his family’s money.
However, as soon as they stepped through the main gate and saw hundreds of people in the banquet hall, the three were dumbfounded.
What was going on?
Were all of these people Tang Qing’s employees?
Are they joking? This looked like a gathering of hundreds of people.
Did they go to the wrong place?
But the reality told them they hadn’t, because only the second floor of Zhengyuan Grand Hotel had such a large banquet hall.
"Little Tang, are ... are these all employees of your company?" Zhou Li asked in amazement. Of course, he knew his question was absurd, but he was genuinely shocked by the scene before him. The number of people here was even larger than his factory. Even with Yan Guangting’s factory combined, they did not surpass this number. And most importantly, these hundreds of people might not even be all the employees of Tang Qing’s Company.
However, this huge company, at least from his perspective, actually belonged to the young man in front of him!
Just how indulgent were his parents to let this happen?
Yan Guangting and Yan Fei on the side also felt equally astounded. Yan Guangting admired the scene, whereas Yan Fei felt even more terrified. Giving the livelihood of hundreds of people to a high school student, just how terrifying the family’s power and strength has to be? Only a family or clan with a net worth in the billions would dare to do such a thing.
Thinking about the time when Tang Qing slapped him, Yan Fei now felt that he could completely accept it. A person who controlled the livelihood of hundreds or even more people didn’t proceed to harm him, after all, it was just a few slaps, which was already giving him some face.
Damn it, he would leave this city after the New Year. Thinking about having to live within Tang Qing’s sphere of influence in the future, Yan Fei felt a strong sense of unease. Especially when he thought of Zhang Jing might often see Tang Qing, if one day she revealed his embarrassing past and if Tang Qing happened to hear it and decided to deal with him, then he would be in big trouble. With this thought, Yan Fei’s face turned pale.
"Yes, follow me, I’ll introduce you to my company’s general manager and other people. Next year our company will be adding footwear and bag products. As the saying goes, why not keep the benefits within our own circle?" Tang Qing said with a smile.
He was very satisfied with Yan Fei’s reaction. As for the shock of the other two, he had no interest at all. If it wasn’t to intimidate Yan Fei, he wouldn’t indulge in such a boring trick. It was disgraceful to flaunt without a purpose.
"Fine."
Zhou Li and the others hurriedly followed him.
Seeing that most of the women around were girls, Zhou Li and Yan Guangting couldn’t help but dazzle. Working in design, these girls naturally had a knack for dressing up. Even if they couldn’t afford luxurious clothes, they would DIY a suitable dress for themselves. The scene was like a blooming flower garden.
Compared with the other male employees in their ’ugly’ suits, it was a stark contrast. If these male employees knew that their carefully purchased expensive suits were rated so lowly by the girls, they might wish to bang their heads.
Although Yan Fei was also boiling with enthusiasm and had indecent thoughts, he didn’t dare to stare too blatantly. After all, he was on their turf. He also couldn’t help but sigh at the disparity between levels. Compared to the uniformed female employees at their factory, the women here clearly outshined them in terms of femininity. This led Yan Fei to feel deep inferiority.
Tang Qing led several people to Yang Kai’s table. By this time, Qi Yan and others had already completed their make-up. Seeing Tang Qing bringing people over, everyone was naturally surprised. An observant deputy manager quickly poured wine for the leaders.
Just when Tang Qing was about to make introductions.
"Uncle Zhou." Qi Yan surprisingly said looking at Zhou Li behind Tang Qing.
"Sister Yan, you know each other?" Tang Qing asked in surprise. It was also a stupid yet unavoidable question. But as soon as he finished speaking, he remembered that Zhou Li’s shoe factory was very close to Qi Yan’s factory, just minutes away. It was not unusual for them to know each other.
"Yes, Uncle Zhou’s factory used to be next to our factory. They later moved to the current place. How did you get to know each other?" Qi Yan happily said. During high school, due to the close distance and no competition, the two families were close. She used to play in the shoe factory frequently and Zhou Li often gave her shoes, making them very familiar with each other. But she rarely saw him after entering university, so seeing him now naturally felt very cordial.
"It’s the same as how I got to know you. It’s even better now that you know each other. When I met Zhou Li, I was thinking our company will have shoe and bag business after the New Year and intended to make an introduction. This would facilitate future cooperation." Tang Qing said with a smile. In front of his subordinates, he naturally introduced business, so it could not be too casual.
"Little Tang, you really have found the right person. Uncle Zhou is famously honest." Qi Yan praised. She immediately thought of Tang Qing’s lending business. Previously, she had some qualms about Tang Qing doing such things. But seeing that the help this time was actually given to Zhou Li, she felt very grateful. Sometimes people’s standpoints can change very quickly.
"Niece Yan is too kind. I am just doing what is needed." Zhou Li said with a smile. Now that they were all acquaintances, things became easier. He’d heard before that Qi Yan was involved in design. Looking at the situation, she appeared to be in charge of Tang Qing’s design department.
"Ok, things will be easier since everyone knows each other. Zhou Li, let me introduce you. This is our company’s general manager, Yang Kai. Yang Kai is highly capable. As you know, I don’t deal much with the company affairs. We will have a lot to cooperate in the future. Yang Kai, this is Zhou Li, the owner of a shoe factory near our factory, and a good old friend of mine. If there are future businesses under the same conditions, we can consider his shoe factory first." Tang Qing introduced. He naturally wouldn’t directly say it would be given to their factory to do. That would have been crazy and would also make Yang Kai uncomfortable.
"Manager Yang, I hope to have your guidance in the future." Zhou Li took the initiative, extending his hand in a humble gesture.
Though he had the allure of ’royal kinship’ to some extent, he was not foolish; he knew that it was more essential to please the current leaders, so he naturally wouldn’t dare be neglectful.
"No worries, we each have our needs," Yang Kai shook hands with Zhou Li and laughed.
Next, the other company’s managers were introduced. Rather than toasting one by one, there was a final group cheers. Tang Qing shamelessly drank fruit beer all along.
Zhou Li knew it was inappropriate to linger at this place. If he attended Sheng Tang’s annual meeting as a business partner next year, it would be fine. Yet, currently, he lacked such status. It was good for people to know when to withdraw; even though he knew Qi Yan and Tang Qing, he had future dealings mainly with those he didn’t know. Thus, he decided to take an early leave and build relationships gradually.
So, after all the toasts, Zhou Li excused himself and, alongside Yan Guangting, left. They had genuine tasks upstairs; after all, many people were waiting for them.
Zhou Li’s departure marked the beginning of Qi Yan’s performance.
Surprisingly, Qi Yan chose to play the ocarina. Indeed, she was a versatile woman.
As Tang Qing was wondering what Qi Yan was about to play, a familiar tune resonated.
Tang Qing was surprised that Qi Yan could play this piece. It wasn’t technically demanding, but it was a classic.
In his previous life, he had stored a high-quality sound file of this tune in his computer.
He couldn’t help it... The melody was so compelling that he would listen to it repeatedly, engulfed by the emotions evoked by the instrumental music.
It was "the Original Scenery of the Hometown" that had appeared in numerous classic works before.
Whenever Tang Qing heard this melody, he would reminisce about his hometown and its people. Then, he would play this tune on loop until dawn.
...
After four and a half minutes, the ocarina music ceased.
There was a round of continued applause from the audience. This piece was apt for the occasion as it invoked homesickness. The next day, everyone would be heading home. Some out-of-state employees, like the female employee who had heard Tang Qing sing earlier, had smudged their makeup with tears. Nevertheless, they felt it was worth it.
"Thank you, everyone. I hope you all will spend good time with your families when you return home, revisit your hometowns. In the coming year, let’s work hard. Thank you." Qi Yan’s eyes welled up with tears as she spoke into the microphone. The same melody could evoke different memories in different people. She recalled the dumplings her grandma and grandpa used to make for her in her hometown, along with numerous other affectionate nostalgic moments. Her grandparents had passed away, and she could no longer feel that homesickness. Halfway through her performance, she had nearly broken down in tears, but she held back.
Right after Qi Yan ended her speech, there was an even louder round of applause.
Tang Qing, too, had tears in his eyes. He reminisced about the slingshot his grandpa used to make for him, the sugar gourd candies he used to buy, the morning school alarms set by his grandma, and all the other memories. Everything had faded away, the once kind faces were distant, existing only in his memories. Tang Qing wanted to cry. Perhaps, the cost of growing up was just so painful. Just like love, affection penetrated the soul, causing a pain that transcended time.
As Qi Yan came down from the stage, Tang Qing quickly stood and handed her a tissue. Seeing that Tang Qing’s eyes were also red, she couldn’t help but laugh, which made the tears in her eyes spill out.
Seeing Qi Yan shed tears of laughter, Tang Qing also laughed.
Both didn’t utter a word.
Everyone was moved by the same song, making no one a stranger.
To lighten everyone’s mood, the following performances were more cheerful, including a children’s song, "Catching Loach," which amused everyone.
Of course, what the ladies enjoyed most was Tang Qing being ’assaulted’ by a group of women in turn.
So, Sheng Tang’s first annual meeting ended in joy and surprise.
Formal vacations start tomorrow.
PS: Today’s first Chapter made me miss my grandpa. Everyone, please cherish the people around you. Do not wait until they are gone before you realize how much you care about them.
