Chapter 99: Busy Days

In April, Yuanfang was bustling with activity.

Sun Tao was busy inspecting the market in Tongshan, while Qi Yunna was occupied with taking over Fucheng.

Qin Hai was tied up with reports. Almost every few days, a report landed on Li Dong's desk, and every single one was about money!

Buying cars, buying cars, all he wants is to buy cars!

Li Dong had privately complained countless times about how his father-in-law seemed obsessed with buying cars.

Despite having refused many times, his father-in-law still wouldn't give up. Yuanfang doesn't have the money to buy cars right now.

Even if they had the money, Li Dong wouldn't buy the cars for him.

Despite explaining this several times, his father-in-law remained obstinate, which made Li Dong grind his teeth in frustration.

Throwing Qin Hai's report aside again, Li Dong said to the new executive assistant, Liu Qi, "Next time Manager Qin submits a report about buying a car, don't even show it to me."

Liu Qi quickly nodded and asked, "Manager Qin called and said he wants to meet you. Mr. Li, should I arrange the meeting?"

Li Dong rubbed his temples and said, "What's the point of meeting? If we meet, my father-in-law might end up throttling me."

He waved his hand, dismissing the topic, and asked, "How's the recruitment fair coming along?"

Liu Qi flipped through her notebook and replied, "We've already contacted three universities. The recruitment fair will be held jointly with Jiangda at the end of April."

Li Dong nodded, leaning back in his chair and lazily said, "When is Sun Tao coming back? I'm about to go crazy without him."

Seeing her boss's relaxed demeanor, Liu Qi suppressed a smile and said, "Sun Tao mentioned he'll be back in at least another two weeks."

"Two weeks..."

Li Dong muttered to himself. He finally understood why Sun Tao was so eager to find someone to take over. It's not just tiring; there are too many trivial matters to handle, which is incredibly annoying.

No wonder Sun Tao, despite being in his thirties, is still single—he's just too busy.

Li Dong chastised himself a bit, realizing he was exploiting Sun Tao as his boss. It's a bit pitiful that Sun Tao, in his thirties, still has to rely on Li Dong for personal matters.

After the self-reprimand, Li Dong said, "Call Sun Tao and tell him to delegate the remaining tasks. A general manager shouldn't be wandering around all the time."

Liu Qi nodded and went out to make the call, wondering if she should reveal Li Dong's true intentions to Sun Tao.

Sitting on his chair, Li Dong pondered for a while before the phone on his desk rang.

He glanced at the caller ID and answered, "You fatso, what are you bragging about now?"

Li Dong was overwhelmed with work these days, while Meng Qiping kept showing off.

"Today I went shopping with Nannan, tomorrow I'm going hiking, and the day after, I'm planning to go to an amusement park..."

Li Dong was seething with frustration. If he hadn't been so busy recently, he would have made sure to help Meng Qiping shed some pounds.

Meng Qiping didn't have his usual cheerful tone and sounded a bit dejected, "Dong Ge, I got eliminated."

"Really! It's a miracle!"

Li Dong laughed heartily, feeling a bit refreshed from the exhaustion.

Meng Qiping actually made it to the semifinals of the singing competition, which was quite surprising to Li Dong.

If he wasn't eliminated in the semifinals, Li Dong would have suspected that Meng Qiping bribed the judges.

But thinking about it, Meng Qiping didn't have the money to bribe anyone. Li Qian's tastes were high, and a few thousand yuan wouldn't impress her.

Hearing Meng Qiping still pretending to be upset, Li Dong taunted him again, "Being eliminated was fair. If you weren't, I'd report you for vote-buying!"

"Come on! Dong Ge, are you still human? I'm so sad, and you're still mocking me!"

Meng Qiping cursed and then chuckled, "But it's not all bad. Nannan is planning something exciting for tonight to cheer me up."

"Beast!"

"Better a beast than you staying celibate!"

"Fatso, you're getting quite bold lately, aren't you?"

---

After exchanging a few more insults, Meng Qiping got down to business.

"Teacher Fang asked me to check if Yuanfang is attending the finals tomorrow."

Li Dong raised an eyebrow. Why was Fang Qingfei relaying messages through Meng Qiping instead of contacting him directly?

Not thinking too deeply about it, Li Dong said, "Of course, we need to attend. It's a great opportunity for publicity."

The finals were held in the school auditorium, which could accommodate over five thousand people.

Even if the hall wasn't full, a turnout of two to three thousand would make it worthwhile to promote Yuanfang. Otherwise, the money spent in advance would be wasted.

Although there wasn't much money left after paying Li Qian's appearance fee, even small amounts count.

After chatting with Meng Qiping a bit more, Li Dong tapped his desk and called out, "Liu Qi!"

Liu Qi quickly entered and said, "Sun Tao said he'll be back as soon as possible, probably in another two to three days."

Li Dong nodded and instructed, "Inform Manager Hu to attend the singing competition finals at Jiangda tomorrow."

Liu Qi hesitated, as if about to say something.

Seeing Li Dong's curious look, Liu Qi quietly said, "Mr. Li, there's been a rumor that Manager Hu is looking for a new job and is sending out resumes."

Li Dong frowned. Whether the rumor was true or not wasn't as important as the fact that Liu Qi, who reported it, believed it was likely true.

Since the last incident, Li Dong had not yet spoken to Hu Yong, but it seemed Hu Yong was wavering first.

Sighing, Li Dong waved his hand, "Let him go. The market department's deputy manager can attend the finals."

Liu Qi agreed and left to notify the relevant person.

Li Dong sat back in his chair, contemplating the need to find a new candidate for the market department manager.

---

In the evening, Li Dong went to check the progress of the Wan Yuan Phase II construction on his way home.

The renovation was nearing completion, with workers installing the lighting fixtures.

When Li Dong arrived, the foreman approached and said, "Mr. Li, it should be done in about a week. After airing out the place, it will be ready for occupancy in a month at most."

Li Dong nodded, handed the foreman a cigarette, and chatted for a bit before heading downstairs.

Coincidentally, he ran into Wang Jia again at Wan Yuan, marking the third time he had seen her there.

Wang Jia greeted him with a smile, "Li Dong, I heard you betrayed your mentors?"

Li Dong shot her a glare, suspecting that Fang Qingfei must have been badmouthing him.

Not wanting to argue with Wang Jia, Li Dong said, "Aren't you still waiting for your house to be renovated? Why are you here so late?"

Wang Jia had bought a house in Building 11, not far from Building 8—just a minute or two on foot.

Wang Jia sighed, rolled her eyes at Li Dong, and said, "Not everyone has as much free time as you. I work during the day, and I come here in the evenings to check on the house and design the renovation plans to save some money."

"Oh, didn't realize you had this skill!" Li Dong teased and then asked, "By the way, where are you working now?"

Wang Jia looked a bit embarrassed and after a while replied vaguely, "None of your business. I have to go check the house now."

Without waiting for Li Dong's response, she quickened her pace and hurried away.

Li Dong shrugged. Her job must not be impressive; otherwise, she'd probably be bragging about it.