Chapter 117 - 82: Huang Yiyi
After hanging up, a "DING" sounded from Chen Lin’s WeChat as a friend recommendation popped up.
It was a contact card from Peng Yifeng.
[Huang Yiyi]
Without the slightest hesitation, Chen Lin clicked ’Add to Contacts’.
The friend request was accepted almost instantly.
She even took the initiative to send the first message.
Huang Yiyi: [Mr. Chen Lin, hello. I’m Huang Yiyi. President Peng has already filled me in on your situation.]
This straightforward opening bolstered Chen Lin’s confidence in her professionalism.
Chen Lin: [Hello, Miss Huang. I appreciate you taking this on.]
Chen Lin: [So, about registering the company—I’ll need to coordinate with the university staff first. All the registration documents will probably need to be approved by the school.]
Huang Yiyi: [No problem.]
Huang Yiyi: [I’ll be in Jinmen next Monday. We can schedule a time to meet in person. How does that sound?]
A satisfied smile spread across Chen Lin’s face as he read the concise and efficient reply on his screen.
’Working with smart, professional people is just so much easier.’
Chen Lin: [Of course. See you on Monday, then.]
After settling things with President Peng, Chen Lin sent a WeChat message to Principal Chang Kai.
He briefly updated Principal Chang on the outcome of his conversation with President Peng.
Then, he proposed the next steps.
[Hello, Principal Chang. President Peng has arranged for a professional legal advisor to handle the preliminary matters for the company’s formation. Would you be available on Monday? I’d like to arrange a meeting between her and the university.]
Principal Chang Kai, who clearly held Chen Lin in high regard, replied promptly.
[No problem! Just come to my office at nine a.m. on Monday. I’ll also have the head of our university’s Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center join us. We’ll try to fast-track the process as much as possible!]
Reading the decisive reply, the corners of Chen Lin’s mouth lifted slightly.
’This Principal Chang is a decisive man of action.’
With that matter settled, Chen Lin finally breathed a sigh of relief. He tossed his phone aside, collapsed onto the sofa, and his thoughts drifted back to his graduation thesis.
After the all-night grind he’d just pulled, the first draft of his thesis—which had been barely halfway done—was now just one final push from completion.
’Today is the 1st,’ Chen Lin silently calculated. ’My meeting with Huang Yiyi is on the 4th. That gives me a little over two full days.’
’Even if I don’t force myself into that hyper-focused state that shuts out the world, I can probably finish the rest of it just by playing fewer games, scrolling through fewer videos, and squeezing out a bit of time here and there.’
’Then I can just package it up and send it to Professor Gu Ming. After that, my part in graduating early will be more or less done.’
...
...
「August 4th. Monday, 8:50 a.m.」
At the impressive entrance of Yannan University, Chen Lin stood under a lush camphor tree, yawning as he idly kicked at the pebbles by his feet.
He had stayed up until one in the morning the previous night to finally finish the first draft of the thesis, a project he had poured his heart and soul into.
After checking it twice to confirm there were no major problems, he sent it straight to Professor Gu Ming’s email.
Now, all he could do was wait for Professor Gu’s feedback. If there were no major issues with the content, then the rest—the abstract, the bibliography, and such—was just tedious grunt work.
Chen Lin and Huang Yiyi had arranged to meet at the university gate at nine, and he was to take her to see Principal Chang.
Waiting was always a bit boring.
Chen Lin pulled out his phone, habitually opened his WeChat chat with Shen Yan, and scrolled to a photo she had sent him two days prior.
In the photo, Shen Yan stood in the middle of the vast Gobi Desert with the world-renowned Crescent Spring behind her.
She wore a simple white dress, and a gentle breeze was lifting her long hair. A faint smile graced her face.
His mood lifted unconsciously as he gazed at the familiar, pretty face in the photo.
Just then, a clear, pleasant female voice spoke from beside him, tinged with a hint of uncertainty.
"Chen Lin?"
Chen Lin instinctively looked up toward the voice.
He froze for a moment.
A woman who appeared to be around thirty was standing before him, a polite smile on her face.
She was the quintessential career woman, exuding an aura of success from the inside out.
Her features were refined and her bearing poised. A tailored white blouse paired with a black business skirt outlined an impeccable, slender figure.
The white blouse, in particular, drew his attention; several buttons strained as if under immense pressure, and Chen Lin couldn’t help but let his gaze linger for an extra two seconds.
’Ahem... It’s only human nature, perfectly natural.’
After chiding himself internally, Chen Lin quickly retracted his wandering gaze, cleared his throat, and asked tentatively, "You are... Miss Huang Yiyi?"
"I am."
Huang Yiyi smiled and nodded, extending her hand naturally. "Hello, Chen Lin... President Chen. President Peng already mentioned that he hopes I will resign from Tiansheng Group and formally join your new company once it’s established."
Tiansheng Group.
Chen Lin remembered the name. President Peng had mentioned it on the phone—it was the parent company of his design firm.
Apparently, in another two months, President Peng was scheduled to transfer from the design firm to Tiansheng Investment, a group subsidiary, to take an executive position.
And the woman before him, Huang Yiyi, was a key employee at Tiansheng Group’s head office. She specialized in liaising with government departments and handling official documents, and could also manage the company’s administrative affairs with great efficiency.
In President Peng’s words, she was the "perfect versatile talent for a startup like yours."
"Yes." Chen Lin shook her hand lightly, the contact brief and professional.
Huang Yiyi was the consummate professional. With hardly any small talk, she cut straight to the chase.
Her tone remained gentle, but her words were direct. "President Chen, regarding the matter of joining your new company, I’d like to state my position first. To begin with, I’m not opposed to the proposal. However, my job at Tiansheng Group is excellent, both in terms of compensation and career prospects. Therefore, I also have the right to decline President Peng’s request. I hope you can understand."
Her words were perfectly poised—neither servile nor arrogant. She made it clear that she wasn’t obligated to accept, but she also didn’t close the door, leaving herself plenty of room to maneuver.
Far from feeling offended, Chen Lin’s estimation of her rose even higher.
’Professional!’
He smiled, his expression warm and his tone sincere. "Miss Huang, I completely understand your concerns. To be honest, I am very sincere in my invitation for you to join my startup team."
He looked Huang Yiyi in the eye and, without beating around the bush, asked directly, "Pardon my asking, but what is your current monthly take-home pay at Tiansheng Group, after taxes?"
Huang Yiyi didn’t seem to expect such a direct question. A barely perceptible flicker of surprise flashed in her eyes, but she answered quickly.
"Twenty thousand."
"I’ll give you thirty thousand," Chen Lin blurted out, his tone flat. "After taxes. With social insurance and housing fund contributions paid at the highest standard."
For the first time, the professional smile on Huang Yiyi’s face froze.
She fell silent.