Seduced the Obsessive NPC and Ran - chapter 8

Yan Jinge waited a while but still didn’t get a message back from that person surnamed Bai.

He was probably busy.

And it was getting late anyway.

Yan Jinge didn’t think much of it. He glanced out at the heavy, overcast sky, decided it was time to clock out, picked up the files on his desk, and headed for Yan Wei’s office, planning to have a talk with him.

He had just reached the door when a man’s loud voice boomed from inside.

The secretary saw him and immediately came over. “Young Master Yan…”

Yan Jinge made a small gesture for her to wait and listened to the voice inside.

“President Yan, I’ve worked for this company for so many years now. I’ve been running around doing everything, always right there in the thick of it. Even if I don’t have great achievements, I’ve put in the hard work, haven’t I? I work hard, I’m conscientious, and I finally made it to a manager position. And then what? Your son comes back and kicks me out. Don’t you think that kind of behavior really chills the hearts of your long-time employees?

“And what, if you have some nephew or niece who shows up later, we old staff all have to give up our seats too? Where exactly do you think that leaves us??”

In a low voice, Yan Jinge asked, “That the former technical department manager?”

The secretary nodded. “Yes. His name is Xu Wu…”

“I know.” Yan Jinge inclined his head and pushed the door open.

The man standing in the office had been in full rant. At the sound of the door, he paused, then turned around.

Expression cool, Yan Jinge crossed the room on long legs and set a stack of documents down on Yan Wei’s desk.

He stayed where he was, unhurried, lifting his wrist to glance at his watch. “Six-oh-one. It’s already off work. Dad, what are we having for dinner?”

While he spoke, he didn’t spare the man beside him so much as a look.

Standing not far from him was exactly the man he’d displaced when he returned to the company this time-the former technical department manager, Xu Wu.

Xu Wu had joined Yan Corporation five years ago and been promoted to manager two years back, a relatively fast climb for Yan Corporation. He’d always been proud of his rise, especially at team-building events, where he loved to hold court recounting his promotion story and bask in everyone’s admiration.

He’d thought that even if he didn’t keep climbing in Yan Corporation, he could at least hold on to his current position. Who would have thought that the moment Yan Jinge came back, Yan Wei would directly transfer him to another department!

The whole thing had come out of nowhere. Xu Wu could have swallowed it if it had been a lateral move.

But it was a demotion.

His salary shrank; the title didn’t sound half as impressive as “manager” anymore. How was he supposed to face the old colleagues he used to manage without feeling embarrassed? And on top of that, the one who’d pushed him out was Yan Jinge.

Xu Wu exploded.

The rank-and-file might not know much about Yan Jinge, but Xu Wu, gossiping with Yan Corporation’s higher-ups and people from Rongding, had heard a thing or two.

Yan Jinge was Bai Wei’s lapdog.

After graduating from university, he’d gone straight into Bai Wei’s company-only to make zero waves. He just trailed around behind Bai Wei, slogging away as a little secretary.

They’d even joked about it before, saying if Yan Jinge went over there to be a secretary, it was probably the kind of secretary who works under the desk.

A useless piece of trash like that.

Just because his background was better than Xu Wu’s, just because he was Yan Wei’s son, he got to parachute in and push Xu Wu out!

On what grounds???

Xu Wu was furious. Right before the end of the workday, he’d bumped into some of his former subordinates. They hadn’t said much to each other, but just seeing the look in their eyes had been enough to make his blood rush straight to his head. He came straight over to confront Yan Wei.

Thinking of the olive branch Rongding Technology had extended a few days ago, Xu Wu figured, worst case, he’d just quit.

Because he had a safety net, he was all the more brazen.

In his mind, losing an able general like him was Yan Corporation’s loss.

And then this Yan Jinge-first thing he says walking into the office is that it’s quitting time.

Six-oh-one and he’s already thinking about what’s for dinner…

Heh.

Xu Wu had already looked down on him because of those rumors, and now, seeing Yan Jinge ignore him completely, his anger flared even hotter. But in front of Yan Wei, he couldn’t lose his composure, so he only let out a cold little laugh to remind them he was still there.

Yan Jinge then acted like he’d just noticed him. “Ah, you must be the former technical department manager.”

“That’s right.” Xu Wu answered coolly, but inside he was secretly pleased.

See?

Even Yan Jinge had heard of him. That meant he already had some real name recognition in their circle.

No wonder Rongding had the sharp eye to recognize talent and wanted to poach him.

But before he could savor that feeling for long, he saw Yan Jinge give a slight nod. “I’ve heard your name for a long time but never met you in person. Now that I have, I can see the rumors outside were right on the mark-first thing I hear when I walk in is that ‘even if there’s no merit, there’s hard work’ kind of bullshit line.”

“?” Xu Wu blinked, completely blindsided that Yan Jinge would come at him with that kind of edge.

Instinctively, he looked over at Yan Wei, but Yan Wei had already turned his gaze away, staring out at the rain beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows.

With Yan Wei silent, the field was all Yan Jinge’s.

Calmly, he said, “Listening to you, you’d think the company never paid you a salary. The company covers your social insurance and housing fund, you take home over thirty thousand a month, plus all kinds of benefits. What we’re buying is the value you create for the company. We spend that much money, time, and effort training you, having the former manager mentor you, arranging a team to train you, funding you to go abroad for further study-was all that investment just so you could sit here and rack up ‘hard work’ for us? From where I’m standing, someone who thinks like that really doesn’t need to stay in this company any longer. Yan Corporation’s a small temple; we can’t house a great monk like you who’s only interested in ‘hard work.'”

Yan Jinge always spoke at an even pace, but the words came out in one smooth stream, leaving no room for interruption. When he finished, he turned his head to look at Yan Wei, almost like he was acting spoiled. “Dad, don’t you think so?”
Yan Wei: “Huh? Ah… mm, if that’s how it is, then we’ll do as you say.”

Xu Wu: “???”

What?

That’s not right.

Xu Wu’s eyes went wide.

When he first walked into the office, he’d already made up his mind: even if he didn’t get a raise this time, he was at least going to make Yan Wei and Yan Jinge apologize to him. If they refused, he’d quit on the spot.

He’d go to Rongding!

Become Yan Corporation’s rival!

Crush Yan Corporation on every front!

How did the plot suddenly twist into him being the one getting fired???

“What do you mean… why are you firing me!?”

Veins bulged on Xu Wu’s forehead.

Right now, being looked down on by Yan Jinge and thrown out of Yan Group like trash made a fierce urge surge up in him-to prove his own worth.

He was just about to start listing all the contributions he’d made to the company when he heard Yan Jinge say, “What’s there to question? Obviously because your work capabilities can no longer create value for the company, and they don’t match the position you currently hold. I don’t care about your process, only your results. Since you were promoted to manager, how have the company’s numbers looked? I’ve got a detailed report here. Take a look yourself.”

Yan Jinge glanced at the stack of files at his elbow, picked one out, and tossed it to Xu Wu.

Xu Wu caught it, opened it, and his face went a little pale.

His lips moved, but he couldn’t come up with any rebuttal.

-The report Yan Jinge handed him singled out the projects he’d played a leading role in and laid out an exhaustive comparison. Mixed in with all the big and small projects Xu Wu had done over the years, those ones didn’t seem like many and didn’t take up a large share.

But once you pulled them out and lined them up on their own, it was a different story.

The numbers weren’t abysmal, strictly speaking, but there was nothing worth praising either-and they’d been slipping year by year.

If Yan Jinge hadn’t compiled this, Xu Wu wouldn’t even have realized he’d become this useless.

Yan Jinge said lazily, “Even if you hadn’t brought it up today, I was already planning to dismiss you. I just hadn’t had the chance to tell my dad yet, and then I heard you questioning him outside the door.”

He lowered his eyes, fingers tapping a steady rhythm on the desk. “You’re an old employee. The company isn’t going to treat you too badly. According to the labor law’s economic compensation rules, after we terminate you, the company should pay you five months’ salary. I can add one more month on top of that. If Mr. Xu has nothing else, you can leave the office now. Close the door on your way out. Thanks.”

When Yan Jinge issued the order, his tone was flat and brooked no refusal. It carried a strange kind of authority that made people instinctively obey.

Xu Wu, hearing this, walked toward the door almost on autopilot.

It wasn’t until the door shut with a dull “bang” that he snapped back to himself.

…He’d been fired just like that??

Xu Wu stood there, dazed.

Thinking back over the conversation he’d just had with Yan Jinge, he realized he’d been led by the nose from start to finish, never once gaining the upper hand, arranged and dismissed cleanly, neatly, and completely.

And there was still this report in his hand…

Was this really that so-called idiot the outside world talked about?

Alongside his growing doubt, anger slowly rose.

Yan Jinge sure was something.

If you’re going to fire me, then don’t blame me for being ruthless. I’ll just go straight to Rongding!

…

After Xu Wu left, Yan Jinge went over the report he’d read, his own thoughts, and the projects he planned to take part in with Yan Wei. The two of them worked overtime in the office until eight-thirty before finally clearing their desks.

Yan Wei was full of emotion. “To think that in just two years since graduating, you’ve grown this much…”

Yan Jinge smiled.

Of course he’d grown fast.

Back when he was at Rongding, in his previous life, he averaged only three to four hours of sleep a night. When he’d first started a business with Bai Wei, he’d only just graduated university and didn’t know a thing, but reality had forced him to learn.

There had been no mentors to guide him; there were even people who deliberately made things difficult. Every bit of his experience had been earned by slamming headfirst into brick walls, over and over.

When he got home, Yan Jinge had dinner with his parents. After resting for a bit, he went back to working overtime.

Close to midnight, he finally stood up to stretch. He went to the bathroom to wash up, then collapsed face-first onto the soft, huge bed.

Heavenly.

Yan Jinge rolled around twice, then found a comfortable position. His breathing gradually evened out and he was just slipping into sleep when his phone suddenly rang. Half-asleep, he groped for it and answered directly.

The quiet bedroom was instantly filled with noise.

Over the rumble of club music, a man shouted hoarsely, “Hey, Yan Jinge? Where are you right now?”

Yan Jinge was dead tired and managed only a weak “mm.”

The man either didn’t hear or didn’t care. He barreled on, “Bai Wei got drunk at Qulan Bar on Huanghe Street by the East Third Ring. He’s looking for you right now, so hurry over and take him home! Oh, and bring plenty of cash. He puked all over one of their sofas, and the boss is holding him there, demanding compensation.”

Author’s Note:

Bai Cheng: I must maintain my dignity. I can’t just casually accept other people’s friend requests.

…

I dreamed I won the lottery…

Even if it was just a dream, I woke up feeling really touched QUQ

…

Teasing the Paranoid Little Wolfdog (9)

Yan Jinge was baffled.

Bai Wei getting drunk in a bar and puking all over someone’s sofa-what did that have to do with him?

Before he could say anything, the man went on, “Bai Wei looked pretty miserable tonight. He’s been downing drinks by himself, seems like he’s regretting not treating you right back then. If you ask me, couples’ quarrels never last long; there’s nothing you can’t get past. Now that Bai Wei’s already taken a step back, returned all the money you spent on gifts back then, and even apologized to you, you shouldn’t keep holding a grudge. Come on over, yeah?”
Those words were originally meant to be warm and comforting, but the background noise was so loud the man could only shout at the top of his lungs. To anyone listening in, it sounded like he was in a shouting match with Yan Jinge.

Yan Jinge: “?”

Yan Jinge was totally lost.

Brother, who even are you? And you’re already trying to talk sense into me?

Besides, that whole speech of his-his logic was so skewed it had flown into outer space.

You hurt someone, and all it takes is a “sorry” to make it right?

So I can smack you across the face for no reason, then toss you a quick “sorry” and we’re good?

Anyone can move their lips.

Yan Jinge couldn’t agree with that guy’s theory at all. He couldn’t be bothered to argue, so he just let out a short, mocking laugh and said, “Who are you? You talking about Bai Wei? Didn’t he die a long time ago? You scammer, trying to cheat me? No way.”

As soon as he finished, Yan Jinge hung up.

He shut his phone off, tossed it aside, rolled over, and went back to sleep.

“Hello?? Yan Jinge??”

The man calling out to him yelled once more, but got no reply.

Realizing something was wrong, he pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at the ended-call screen, looking a little dazed.

-Yan Jinge actually hung up on him?

Beside him, Bai Wei was sitting on the couch, eyes red. “What did he say?”

The man on the phone was Bai Wei’s friend, Wang Bin.

Wang Bin frowned, hesitated for a moment, but when he saw the expression on Bai Wei’s face, he said, “I think I heard him say something at the end, but the bar’s so loud I couldn’t really catch it. Still, judging from the situation, I’d say he panicked and is probably on his way over to find you.”

He was guessing as he went.

Who didn’t know that Yan Jinge liked Bai Wei so much it had seeped into his bones?

Bai Wei was drunk, he’d even thrown up-he was clearly miserable right now. The second Yan Jinge heard that, he’d be too distressed to think straight. Of course he’d come running over to take Bai Wei away and look after him.

You didn’t even have to think about it.

Bai Wei narrowed his eyes and hummed in response.

His legs were spread, elbows propped on his knees. He’d been leaning forward, body tense, but after hearing his friend’s answer, he finally relaxed a little and leaned back against the sofa.

“Brother Bai, want a smoke?” Wang Bin asked.

Bai Wei shook his head. “No.”

Something occurred to him, and he warned Wang Bin, “You’re not allowed to smoke either. Jinge doesn’t like the smell of smoke.”

Wang Bin: “?”

Wang Bin looked around at the smoke-filled bar and was speechless.

Since when did Bai Wei care this much about Yan Jinge?

Even if they’d really broken up, shouldn’t it be Yan Jinge chasing after Brother Bai and begging to get back together?

Besides, at the last get-together, he hadn’t seen Bai Wei care about Yan Jinge at all.

-Back then, a dozen people were smoking, and Yan Jinge was the only one sitting off to the side, coughing and covering his mouth from all the smoke. Didn’t Bai Wei complain that he was killing the vibe?

Wang Bin couldn’t help turning his head to look at Bai Wei.

Bai Wei was in a bad mood tonight. He was drinking like it was plain water, one glass after another. He’d had a lot, but after knowing Bai Wei for so many years, Wang Bin knew one thing very clearly: Bai Wei was the type who could hold his liquor-truly a thousand-cups-never-drunk.

Even if he drank himself into a stomach perforation and landed in the hospital, Bai Wei would still be perfectly clear-headed, ready to jump straight into a meeting without batting an eye.

If Bai Wei ever looked drunk, then it was definitely an act.

Right now, Bai Wei was lounging casually, his index finger tapping lightly against his thigh. His beautiful ash-gray eyes were misty with moisture and intoxication as he stared at the singer on stage belting out rock.

He closed his eyes now and then, looking exhausted.

Anyone watching would think he was actually drunk.

Yan Jinge wasn’t even here yet, and he’d already started putting on a show.

Wang Bin was honestly impressed.

“Oh, right, Brother Bai.”

Wang Bin suddenly said, “That money you borrowed from me before-don’t forget to pay it back soon, okay? My dad doesn’t know anything about it yet. You know how it is, it’s not exactly pocket change. If he finds out the money’s gone, he’ll break my legs.”

Bai Wei paused, a flash of impatience flickering in his eyes. He only turned to look at Wang Bin after he’d smoothed all his emotions away.

Hadn’t it been less than a day since he’d borrowed the money?

And he was already being chased for repayment?

Was this what passed for brotherhood now?

He’d only borrowed it because something urgent came up. If he had the money, why wouldn’t he pay it back?

Bai Wei stayed silent, but seeing his expression, Wang Bin knew exactly what he was thinking.

He let out a light “hey,” scooted closer, and slung an arm around Bai Wei’s shoulders. “Brother Bai, I was just saying. We’ve been brothers for so many years, of course I know what kind of person you are. And your abilities now-everyone can see that. That few tens of millions? That’s just a few days’ turnover for your company, right? I’m just… well, your brother here’s been beaten enough times to be scared, you know how it is…”

Only then did Bai Wei’s expression ease a little. “Once I have the money, I’ll definitely pay you back.”

“Of course. Brother Bai’s not the type to stiff someone. Like I don’t know you? Come on, let’s have a drink, just the two of us.” Wang Bin handed Bai Wei a glass of wine. Seeing his mood settle, he quietly let out a breath of relief.

He really had been afraid Bai Wei would take the chance to get mad at him and then, nice and proper, decide not to pay him back.

These days, the one who owes the money acts like the boss, while the one who lent it is the one who ends up having to grovel.

The two of them drank for a while.

Wang Bin glanced at the time, then turned toward the bar’s entrance and muttered, “It’s already past one? It’s been this long, how come Yan Jinge still isn’t here?”

Thinking back over how Yan Jinge had been acting recently, Bai Wei had a faint, bad feeling in his chest.

And sure enough, the two of them sat in the bar waiting until three or four in the morning. The place slowly emptied out, but Yan Jinge never showed.

They tried calling again with Wang Bin’s phone.

It was turned off.

…

Unlike Wang Bin and Bai Wei, who spent the whole night wide awake in the bar, Yan Jinge slept straight through until seven in the morning. Sunlight streamed in through the uncovered windows, flooding the entire room with bright light.
Yan Jinge rolled around in bed for a bit before finally getting up, bright-eyed and alert.

After washing up, he turned on his phone and saw over a dozen missed calls.

There were also a bunch of texts.

He scrolled through them. All from unfamiliar numbers, and almost every one was demanding to know why he hadn’t shown up at the bar last night. He hit “Mark as read” with one tap.

Then he opened WeChat. The friend request he’d sent to that Mr. Bai in charge had actually been accepted.

But the chat window was completely blank. Nothing at all.

Lowering his head, Yan Jinge started typing.

When he talked work, he always put efficiency first. He was never big on small talk and preferred to get straight to the point. From the bedroom all the way down to the living room, he typed out every issue with this joint collaboration in one go and fired the whole thing off to Mr. Bai.

Then he waited for a response.

After breakfast, Yan Jinge and Yan Wei headed to the company together.

Yan Wei had been in a good mood lately. He smiled the entire way. He lowered the partition between the front and back seats, pulled out his tablet, and went over the plan they’d discussed last night with Yan Jinge, refining the details.

Just then, Yan Jinge’s phone buzzed.

He glanced down. It was a reply from President Bai of Nirvana.

…Just one word: “Okay.”

Yan Jinge froze.

What was that supposed to mean?

So simple?

Did that mean they’d do everything exactly as he’d suggested?

When he’d been messaging President Bai earlier, he’d deliberately opened with fairly high conditions, but still within negotiable range. The original plan was to haggle back and forth in person. He hadn’t expected the other side to just agree in one go.

Yan Wei asked curiously, “What is it?”

The way Yan Jinge looked right now obviously meant he’d just seen some good news.

His eyes curved slightly, starry light flickering in them. He was all confidence and good looks. Hearing Yan Wei’s question, Yan Jinge turned his head and explained, “The person in charge at Nirvana made a lot of concessions on this collaboration. But the scale of it feels a bit unreal to me. It’s very likely there’s some kind of trap waiting down the line. We can save the celebration for after the contract is truly finalized.”

Yan Wei nodded. “Right. This is our first time working with their company. We’ve had no prior dealings at all. Concessions like this are definitely strange. We should dig deeper, see if there’s a catch somewhere.”

“I’ll set up a meeting with him,” Yan Jinge said.

Talking as they went, the two arrived at the company.

As soon as he parted ways with Yan Wei, before he’d even had time to warm up his office chair, someone knocked and walked in. “President Yan, hello, I need to talk to you about something.”

Yan Jinge turned and saw that it was an employee from the tech department, a man named Lin Xiaoxu.

He remembered him clearly-just yesterday, in the break room, Lin Xiaoxu had been trying to rally other employees to resign together and jump ship to Rongding. At the time, Yan Jinge had been grinding coffee just outside the door and had heard pretty much everything.

So he’s finally here?

The corners of Yan Jinge’s lips quirked. With interest in his eyes, he said, “If you’ve got something to say, just say it.”

Lin Xiaoxu had decent features, a lean build, and was wearing a suit that was neat enough. At those words, he walked over, scratching his head a little awkwardly, putting on a sincere, simple expression. “President Yan, this is my resignation letter.”

He offered it up with both hands.

Taking it, Yan Jinge pretended not to know anything about yesterday and asked in mild confusion, “This is…?”

The fact that Lin Xiaoxu was turning in his resignation so early said enough about his impatient temperament.

Afraid that President Yan wouldn’t approve so easily, he hurried to explain, “President Yan, please don’t misunderstand. I’ve got some family issues going on, and I really have no choice but to resign. Don’t worry, I’ll complete all my handovers within the required time frame. I definitely won’t delay anything for our company! After all, Yan Corporation has treated me really well all these years…”

As he rambled on, he happened to look up and saw that Yan Jinge was watching him with a faint, unreadable smile.

For some reason, a chill crept up Lin Xiaoxu’s spine.

He suddenly felt as if he’d been seen through, exposed down to the bone.

His heart thudded against his ribs, and his lips went a little dry.

Just when he thought President Yan would start pressing for details, the other man merely skimmed the resignation letter, nodded, and said, “Oh, alright. Got it. Just take this over to HR and get your paperwork done.”

With that, Yan Jinge dropped his gaze and went back to work.

Lin Xiaoxu: “???”

He stood there a little dazed. He hadn’t expected it to be that easy.

Still, getting out of Yan Corporation cleanly and neatly was the best outcome!!

Just thinking about how he’d soon be at Rongding, working alongside that legendary tech department-the team that people in the industry practically worshipped, the guys who could realize anything the design department or the clients could put into words-made his blood boil with excitement.

In the office.

Barely a moment after Lin Xiaoxu stepped out, Yan Jinge’s phone rang.

The man who, in Lin Xiaoxu’s heart, was practically a myth, was now talking at the top of his lungs, sounding utterly wronged: “Hello? President Yan!? How come you left without saying anything to us!? We ran into some issues with the project we’re handling and were waiting for you to come save our asses. We waited and waited, and it turns out you resigned. Some comrade-in-arms you are. Ugh, this dumbass Rongding, we can’t stay here either-”

Author’s note:

Bai Cheng: This time I said a nice ‘okay.’