Chapter 153 - 113: New Intern
"President Chen!" Zhu Jianqing strode excitedly over to Chen Lin, grabbing his hand with both of his. "The value of this proposal to us at Huan Run is immeasurable!"
Seeing this, Chen Lin maintained his calm, unruffled smile and discreetly pulled his hand back.
He didn’t hesitate, immediately taking out his phone and sending Huang Yiyi a message on WeChat.
[Send over our technical services contract with Huanrun Pharmaceutical. The amount is one million.]
Huang Yiyi replied almost instantly with an "OK" hand gesture emoji.
In less than ten seconds, a standard PDF contract file was sent to Chen Lin’s phone.
Chen Lin handed his phone to Zhu Jianqing and smiled. "Chairman Zhu, let’s stick to our original agreement. Business, after all, is built on integrity."
Zhu Jianqing looked at Chen Lin’s clear, frank gaze, and an indescribable sense of admiration welled up inside him.
’A young genius with exceptional mathematical skills, yet he handles himself with such composure and tact, neither arrogant nor rash.’
’This young man will definitely achieve great things in the future!’
He said no more. He took the phone and had Zhou Lele print and stamp the contract. Then, right in front of Chen Lin, he personally called the group’s chief financial officer and demanded that one million be transferred to Yanhai Company’s corporate account with the utmost urgency.
The efficiency was astounding.
In no more than ten minutes, Chen Lin’s phone went DING. He had received a WeChat message from Huang Yiyi.
[President Chen, the one million has arrived. [Confetti.jpg]]
"Chairman Zhu, it’s a pleasure doing business with you." Chen Lin put away his phone and extended his hand.
"A pleasure! A pleasure!" Zhu Jianqing shook his hand firmly, his smile as radiant as a blooming sunflower. "President Chen, to be honest, I’m not just being polite. I’m the one who should be thanking you! The value of your proposal is far, far greater than this mere one million in project funds!"
"The fee we agreed upon is the fee we agreed upon," Chen Lin said with a smile.
’That was what he truly believed.’
’Although he wasn’t some seasoned veteran of the business world, the variety of part-time jobs he’d worked during his first two years of university had taught him a profound lesson—jacking up the price on the spot was the most classless and foolish thing a person could do.’
Professor Gong, watching from the side, chuckled and took a sip of his tea. As if he couldn’t stand to see Zhu Jianqing acting humble after getting such an incredible deal, he chimed in, "Old Zhu, just saying thanks doesn’t show much sincerity."
"If you really feel indebted, use that network of yours to introduce Chen Lin’s little startup to a few more reliable projects. That would be far more substantial than saying ’thank you’ ten thousand times."
"Hey, Gong, what are you even saying!" Hearing this, Zhu Jianqing immediately seized the opportunity and slapped his thigh. "You think I need you to tell me that? President Chen and I hit it off right from the start!"
"We have to stay in close touch from now on! Who knows, we at Huan Run might have a lot more business to send Yanhai’s way in the future!"
Chen Lin watched as these two old hands from the worlds of business and academia settled his future collaborations for him with their back-and-forth, feeling like he couldn’t really get a word in.
’In this kind of social maneuvering, he was still a bit green, after all.’
Although he was the undisputed star of the show, right now all he could do was stand by with a polite smile, nodding in agreement from time to time and murmuring pleasantries like "Thank you, Professor Gong," and "Thank you, Chairman Zhu."
Seeing that it was getting late, and guessing this could go on forever, Chen Lin took the initiative to speak up. "Chairman Zhu, Professor Gong, Shen Yan and I have a return flight that takes off in two hours. We need to get ready to head to the airport."
"Oh, look at me! I was so caught up in my excitement I almost forgot what’s important!" Zhu Jianqing slapped his forehead and immediately instructed Zhou Lele at the door, "Lele, arrange for a company car to take President Chen and Miss Shen to the airport right away! Make sure to use our most comfortable executive van!"
Chen Lin and Shen Yan stood up, shook hands with everyone to say their goodbyes, and then left the office, escorted by Zhou Lele.
...
...
The air conditioning was blasting inside the smoothly moving black executive van.
Chen Lin and Shen Yan sat side-by-side in the spacious, comfortable back seats. The constant travel and intense mental exertion had left them both feeling a bit tired.
Chen Lin took out his phone and opened the four-person WeChat group: "Yanhai Startup Squad."
A faint smile on his face, his fingers tapped rapidly on the screen.
Chen Lin: [Everyone! Let’s celebrate the company successfully landing two major deals! To recognize everyone’s hard work, I’ve decided to treat you all to dinner tomorrow night! You pick the place, budget is unlimited!]
The message had just been sent when Sun Yu’s reply popped up, enthusiastically hyping him up.
Sun Yu: [Our boss is so generous.jpg]
Just then, Chen Lin felt Shen Yan stir beside him.
He turned his head and saw that she was also looking down, her fingers tapping lightly on her phone screen.
Shen Yan: [Thank you, boss. [Happy]]
Huang Yiyi: [Thank you, boss. [Rose]]
Huang Yiyi: [But President Chen, I think tomorrow we should be celebrating a double dose of good news.]
Chen Lin paused, then typed a question: [Oh? What’s the other good news?]
Huang Yiyi sent a playful winking emoji: [I’ve already followed your instructions and hired a new administrative assistant for the company. It’s the perfect chance for her to meet everyone tomorrow at the celebration dinner. It can be her welcome party, too.]
Chen Lin saw this and couldn’t help but smile.
’Huang Yiyi’s efficiency was truly impeccable!’
Chen Lin: [Then it really is a double celebration! Quick, add the new person to the group so we can all get acquainted.]
He did feel that the group was a bit quiet with only four people. Sometimes sending a message felt a little lonely. Another person would liven things up.
Huang Yiyi: [Well... the new hire said she wants to give you a surprise in person tomorrow.]
A surprise?
Looking at those two words, Chen Lin didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
’Interns these days are pretty interesting,’ he thought. ’Making such a mystery out of starting a job.’
However, the instant that thought flashed through his mind, his heart suddenly lurched. He felt a strong sense of unease.
’Wait a minute...’
’This unconventional way of doing things...’
’Plus, Huang Yiyi and I decided together that, for convenience, the new hire would also be an intern from Yannan University...’
A beautiful, fashionably dressed figure with a bright and sunny smile appeared in Chen Lin’s mind.
Chen Lin secretly sucked in a sharp breath.
’It can’t be, can it?!’
He subconsciously snuck a glance at the person beside him.
Shen Yan must have been truly exhausted. She was leaning back against the soft seat, her eyes lightly closed. Her long eyelashes cast a small, quiet shadow on her fair cheeks, and her breathing was steady. She seemed to have dozed off.
Looking at her tranquil sleeping face, Chen Lin only felt a headache and a wave of internal conflict coming on.
Chen Lin rubbed his throbbing temples. He had a feeling that the day-to-day life at his company was about to become far more complicated than any world-class mathematical problem.