Chapter 140: Roll Call!

After hanging up on Fang Qingfei, Li Dong still felt a bit annoyed.

But there was no point in sulking over something that had already happened, so Li Dong comforted himself by thinking of it as a bit of exercise.

After chatting with Zhang Hao for a few more minutes, Li Dong decided to leave.

As Li Dong was about to leave, Zhang Hao casually asked, "Dong-ge, did your girlfriend leave?"

Li Dong paused, confused. "What girlfriend?"

Zhang Hao looked even more puzzled than Li Dong and said, "Your girlfriend! She came to the school looking for you. We even ran into her. Don't tell me you don't know?"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Li Dong snapped, annoyed. Qin Yuhan was out of town for an internship. 

She hadn't returned to Pingchuan, and even if she had, she wouldn't come to the school to find him. Qin Yuhan had the keys to Wanyuan; since Li Dong didn't stay in the dormitory, she wouldn't have any reason to come to the school.

Just as he was about to tell Zhang Hao that he must have made a mistake, Li Dong suddenly had a thought. "What did she look like?"

"She was gorgeous! A real beauty... just like... like a fairy or something," Zhang Hao stammered, struggling to find the right words. Finally, he just said, "Anyway, she's even prettier than Bai Su, tall, wearing a white dress, just like a fairy."

Li Dong had a vague suspicion of who it might be, but it didn't make sense.

Feeling a bit unsettled, Li Dong lit a cigarette and took a drag before asking, "Where did you guys meet her? Why didn't you call me?"

"We ran into her right outside the dorm building. Lao Yuan tried to chat her up, but she didn't even acknowledge him. Then, somehow, she asked if we knew Li Dong..."

Zhang Hao quickly recounted the incident and finally added, "We told her you didn't live in the dorm, and then she just left. Chenzi wanted to give her your phone number, but she said she already had it."

"Did she not call you?" Zhang Hao asked.

Li Dong didn't respond. He crushed the cigarette underfoot and said, "I'm heading out. Talk later."

...

On the way back, Li Dong thought about calling her several times but couldn't bring himself to do it.

He pondered for a long time, and just as he was nearing Wanyuan's entrance, he finally mustered up the courage to dial her number.

"The number you have dialed is currently unavailable..."

Li Dong was bewildered. Her phone was out of service?

After hesitating for a moment, Li Dong dialed Chen Yue's number.

When Chen Yue answered, she sounded excited, "Li Dong, what a surprise! What made you think of calling me today?"

Li Dong forced a laugh and chatted with her briefly before casually asking, "What about Yuan Xue? You're both in Beijing; have you seen her recently?"

"You don't know?" Chen Yue sounded surprised.

Li Dong's heart skipped a beat. "Know what?"

"Xiao Xue went abroad a few days ago!"

"Abroad?" Li Dong was stunned.

"Yeah, she's an exchange student from Renmin University. They start in their second year. Xiao Xue went over there a bit early to get acclimated. She'll be in the U.S. for the next three years, and if she's lucky, she might even settle there permanently. I'm so jealous! Going to a prestigious university really is different..."

Chen Yue continued talking, but Li Dong wasn't paying attention anymore.

All he could think about was that Yuan Xue had gone abroad, possibly with the intention of staying there permanently. Maybe she would never come back.

No wonder she had acted so strangely the last time they met in Beijing.

Li Dong thought for a long time before finally sighing and saying nothing more.

...

On June 20th, at the headquarters of Yuangfang in the Global Building.

The conference room at Yuangfang wasn't small—about 60 square meters—but it was packed with people.

Store managers, assistant managers from various branches, department heads, and supervisors—nearly eighty or ninety people in all.

When Li Dong arrived, it was almost impossible to squeeze in.

He hadn't noticed the growing size of Yuangfang until now, when everyone was gathered in one place.

And this was just the leadership team. If they included the regular employees, the company must have at least a thousand people.

Looking at the crowded conference room, Li Dong considered whether he should get a bigger headquarters soon.

But after some thought, he decided against it. The investment would be too large and not cost-effective. Besides, they didn't have the money, and even if they did, there were still many things that needed to be done.

When Li Dong entered the room, everyone greeted him.

Li Dong nodded with a smile but said nothing as he walked toward his seat, passing by Qin Hai along the way.

Qin Hai just sat there, looking at Li Dong with a strange expression but not saying anything.

Li Dong felt a bit awkward, but it wasn't the right time for a private conversation. He nodded at Qin Hai and Yang Yun before continuing to his seat.

As soon as he sat down, the first thing Li Dong said was, "Let's start with roll call. Anyone who's absent is fired, and anyone late will have their bonus docked for a month!"

Everyone's heart skipped a beat. Something wasn't right!

Firing people for not showing up? That's too harsh!

The conference room, which had been buzzing with chatter moments ago, fell silent. The atmosphere grew tense.

No one dared to speak. With Sun Tao absent, Li Dong's words were law, and no one dared to object.

Even Liu Qi, who might usually interject, didn't dare say anything. She did, however, softly explain, "The manager of the Beishan store in Fucheng couldn't make it due to some construction issues and called in advance to request leave. The operations supervisor, Mr. Chen, also requested leave for personal reasons."

Li Dong glanced at her and said calmly, "Start the roll call."

Liu Qi didn't know what Li Dong was thinking, but she had done her duty. Saying anything more would only harm her, so she began calling names.

"Li Hongmei!"

"Present!" Financial Director Li Hongmei responded loudly.

Despite the almost school-like feel of the roll call, no one dared to laugh.

As Liu Qi called out names one by one, those present let out sighs of relief.

As for those absent, well, they wouldn't know what happened until later. If they had friends present, they might get a text message to warn them. If not, they were on their own.

After about ten minutes, Liu Qi reported, "Mr. Li, six people are absent."

Li Dong didn't say anything. He glanced at the time, paused for a moment, and then said, "It's now 9:08. I set the meeting time for 9:00, didn't I?"

Without waiting for a response, Li Dong continued, "I'll give them one last chance. If they arrive by 9:30, they'll be marked as late. If not, they'll be marked as absent!"

No one dared to speak, though a few people's faces changed slightly.

With less than half an hour to go, unless they were already in Pingchuan, there was no way they could make it in time unless they could fly.

For the next half hour, Li Dong said nothing and didn't start the meeting.

Since he remained silent, everyone else had to stay quiet too.

People exchanged uneasy glances, sensing that today's meeting might be a trap, with Li Dong planning to make an example out of someone.

As time ticked by, around 9:25, two of the six absent individuals arrived.

Seeing the tense atmosphere in the conference room, the two quietly found seats in a corner without saying a word.

Finally, at 9:30, Li Dong broke the silence. "Let's start the meeting."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The four who didn't make it were on their own now. They just hoped Li Dong wouldn't drop any more bombshells during the meeting.