Chapter 261: Annual Meeting (Part 1)

January 22, Minor New Year.

Tianhu Grand Hotel.

The annual meeting for Yuanfang 2005 is about to be held on the third floor banquet hall of Tianhu Grand Hotel.

Today, Tianhu Grand Hotel is completely transformed, adorned with flowers and ribbons fluttering in the wind, creating vibrant light and shadow in the air.

The large screen above the hotel entrance continuously displays various welcome messages.

Even the hotel's original receptionists have been replaced by Yuanfang's own employees.

Yuanfang is a service industry company, so beautiful female employees are not uncommon. The line of long legs at the entrance causes passersby to drool.

Some knowledgeable onlookers can't help but explain, "This is Yuanfang Supermarket's annual meeting. I heard they have several trucks full of prizes this time. They're really loaded!"

"Prizes are nothing. I heard their year-end bonuses are huge. Even a small security guard gets several thousand in bonuses. Store managers get tens of thousands, more than what we earn in a year!"

"Who says? I should have tried to get a job there when they were hiring store managers."

"It's not too late. Yuanfang Supermarket is still hiring. If you want to go, just go for an interview."

...

When Meng Qiping arrived, he was met with this bustling scene.

Looking at the line of long legs at the entrance and then at the tall security personnel, Meng Qiping swallowed hard, realizing the scale of the event.

He then looked back at his own large entourage and felt like crying.

He had only wanted to bring a few people to see the event, but he didn't know why so many people ended up coming!

It's all his fault for bragging. He couldn't control himself, and now his plans to attend Yuanfang's annual meeting have spread throughout his class.

Well, it's bad enough that it spread, but now everyone expects him to bring them too!

Thus, what was originally supposed to be a small group of people turned into a crowd of more than ten.

Cheng Nan, Bai Su, Li Wan, Huang Shanshan...

This is the girls' team, with everyone from Cheng Nan's dormitory present, plus Fang Qingfei, who was picked up along the way and couldn't be left out.

As for the boys' team, several from Dorm 351 came along, and even Li Tie and Yuan Qingfeng's girlfriends insisted on coming, making the group even larger.

With a dozen people, Meng Qiping was in a tough spot.

If Li Dong knew he had brought so many people, who knows if he would be furious?

The more Meng Qiping thought about it, the more frustrated he became. He wished he could slap himself for bragging!

While Meng Qiping was lost in thought, Fang Qingfei asked, "Meng Qiping, can we go in now?"

Meng Qiping forced a smile and said, "Wait here, I'll go find the person in charge."

"Quickly, I see Yuanfang's employees starting to enter. If we're late, it might have already started."

"Got it, got it. Don't rush."

After calming everyone down, Meng Qiping approached a young woman who seemed to be in charge of directing Yuanfang's employees.

"This lady…"

Before he could finish, Shen Qian said, "You must be Mr. Meng, right? Mr. Li informed me in advance. I'll have someone take you in."

It was easy to recognize Meng Qiping, who fit the description perfectly—chubby, with small eyes, and a student. 

Relieved that Li Dong had given a heads-up, Meng Qiping stuttered, "Uh, there's more than just me."

Shen Qian glanced at the crowd behind Meng Qiping and looked slightly exasperated.

However, she didn't say much. Instead, she took out a dozen entry passes from a nearby table and handed them to Meng Qiping, saying, "Wear these passes. Without them, you can't enter the third floor."

She then instructed a tall, beautiful woman behind her, "Xiao He, please take them inside."

The tall beauty smiled and said, "Mr. Meng, please follow me."

Meng Qiping, dazed by being called "Mr. Meng," forced a silly smile until Cheng Nan pinched him, prompting him to lead the group into the hotel.

As soon as they reached the third floor, the group was amazed by the mountain-like pile of prizes.

Phones, computers, TVs, refrigerators, speakers, microwave ovens...

Almost everything imaginable was there, and it looked as though they were all in large quantities.

Li Wan, standing behind Meng Qiping, couldn't help but exclaim, "So many prizes, how much must this all cost?"

The guide, Xiao He, proudly said, "These are just the regular prizes. The real grand prizes are not here."

"Regular prizes? Then what are the grand prizes?" Zhao Tingting asked, intrigued.

"This time, the grand prize is a Honda Accord 2.4 Comfort Edition, worth over 200,000."

"First prize is 100,000 cash, with two winners."

"Second prize is a ten-day trip for two to the Maldives, with five spots."

"Third prize is a 10,000 shopping voucher for the supermarket, with ten winners."

At this point, Xiao He's eyes gleamed as she added, "And Manager Shen mentioned that Mr. Li has prepared a mysterious grand prize, worth no less than the grand prize."

Hearing this, everyone swallowed hard.

Li Dong was really rolling in money!

Just the prizes alone might be worth over a million. Adding the mysterious grand prize, it's likely the total cost of this event is in the millions.

Not only Li Wan, but also Fang Qingfei was stunned.

Knowing Li Dong was wealthy was one thing, but seeing such a display and realizing he manages over 5,000 employees left no room for envy.

When someone surpasses you by countless times, you feel powerless and even lose the capacity for jealousy, because you're simply in different worlds.

...

Meng Qiping and his group's arrival was unknown to Li Dong.

When Li Dong's car stopped at the hotel entrance, it was already past one fifty.

Following Li Dong's car were a string of smaller cars. Besides Shen Qian, who was responsible for on-site reception, other senior executives arrived simultaneously with Li Dong.

As soon as Li Dong stepped out of the car, more than a dozen directors and managers followed him.

The onlookers pointed and discussed, sensing a powerful presence.

Smart ones immediately guessed that these people must be Yuanfang's leaders.

Walking in the front, Li Dong was naturally the most conspicuous. He was very young, and when matched with the rumors, people couldn't help but marvel at their own lives.

At their age, they were still struggling for survival.

But here was Yuanfang's boss, younger than some of their children, yet owning dozens of supermarkets and leading a wealthy life.

The security staff quickly separated the crowd, and Zheng Long, dressed in a black suit, hurriedly approached to greet, "Mr. Li, I'll show you inside."

Li Dong nodded and asked, "Has everyone arrived?"

"Almost everyone is here."

"What about Shen Qian?"

"Manager Shen just went in. Should I have her come out?"

"No need," Li Dong waved his hand and turned to the others, "Let's go. It's our first annual meeting, so let's all be spirited!"

The senior executives, including Sun Tao, straightened their clothes. Today's annual meeting was different from regular meetings, and Yuanfang's first annual meeting needed to be presented with some energy.

Otherwise, if employees saw their leaders looking like this, it would diminish their sense of respect.

...

This annual meeting saw around five hundred people from Yuanfang.

With so many people, the banquet hall felt quite noisy.

But as soon as Li Dong and his entourage entered, the noisy banquet hall fell silent.

Even though some employees didn't recognize Li Dong, with so many senior leaders present, there were those who did.

Plus, store managers whispered among themselves, and Yuanfang's employees quickly realized that the young man who looked like a big boy was indeed the big boss of Yuanfang.

Whether it was planned in advance or spontaneous, as Li Dong's group walked halfway, someone suddenly shouted, "Hello, Mr. Li!"

Immediately, the banquet hall erupted with applause: "Hello, Mr. Li!"

"Mr. Li, you've worked hard!"

"Happy New Year, Mr. Li!"

...

Li Dong waved back with a smile and called out, "Hello, everyone. I also wish you a Happy New Year in advance!"

Li Dong's response made the cheers even louder.

Since the supermarket employed many young female staff, they screamed excitedly when they saw Li Dong.

They heard that their big boss was single, and if they could catch his attention, not to mention becoming Yuanfang's boss's partner, even just getting some benefits from him would be enough for them to live a comfortable life.

Li Dong gestured for quiet, and the cheers and greetings gradually subsided.

When Li Dong and the leaders took their seats at the front tables, it signaled the official start of the annual meeting.

Shen Qian had organized many activities for this annual meeting.

A large stage had already been set up at the front of the banquet hall, decorated festively with balloons and flowers.

As soon as Li Dong and the others were seated, the lights in the banquet hall dimmed, and colorful neon lights flashed on the stage, creating a lively atmosphere.

Soon, a young man and woman appeared on stage with microphones.

The male host, looking quite handsome, lightly tapped the microphone and said, "Please be quiet. The Yuanfang Company 2005 Annual Meeting is about to start

. Please keep quiet!"

The noise from the audience gradually subsided.

The two hosts then gave a few opening remarks. The female host then announced loudly, "Next, let's welcome Yuanfang's General Manager Sun Tao to give a speech!"

Sun Tao, who was seated in the audience, adjusted his suit and, smiling, walked onto the stage.

Taking the microphone, Sun Tao said with a smile, "First of all, I'd like to thank all of our colleagues and friends for coming. On behalf of Yuanfang Company and our chairman Mr. Li Dong, I'd like to greet everyone!"

"Great!"

A wave of cheers erupted from the audience.

Sun Tao waited for the crowd to quiet down before continuing his brief speech.

With many activities planned, Sun Tao wasn't one for lengthy speeches. After a brief four or five minutes, he bowed and left the stage.

As soon as Sun Tao finished speaking, the audience erupted in applause!

The female employees' cheers returned, filled with boundless hope.

Not only was their big boss Li Dong single, but even General Manager Sun Tao was too.

Li Dong might be out of reach, but catching Sun Tao's attention would be a prize worth having.

As for the content of Sun Tao's speech, no one really cared.

It was mostly about the company's achievements over the past year. Everyone sitting here already knew how successful Yuanfang had been.

What mattered more to them was how they could attract the attention of these eligible bachelors.