Chapter 512: Incidents in Hengdian (4)

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

As soon as the words fell, the expressions of the other executives sitting there changed dramatically. Gao Ping quickly said, “Boss, please don’t be angry. Director Shang just spoke out of anger!”

Zhou Chao, hearing this, calmly waved his hand and looked at Shang Xiaoqing with deep eyes. He said lightly, “Before I came, I had the front desk call you. Did you know?”

Upon hearing this, Shang Xiaoqing, who had been somewhat annoyed, instantly turned pale. She knew that usually, calls from the front desk were answered by Mr. Chen. She wasn’t aware of this situation, and it was clear to her now why the boss had decided to fire Mr. Chen.

How could a secretary, who had only joined the company two months prior, have had the authority to decline such critical phone calls? If it had been an isolated incident, it would have been manageable. However, since it wasn’t, Shang Xiaoqing inevitably shouldered the responsibility. One could have contemplated the possibility that Mr. Chen had obstructed numerous important messages and calls without Shang Xiaoqing’s knowledge. Alternatively, Mr. Chen might have benefited from this situation, and all these details remained concealed from others.

Gao Ping and the others were not fools; they quickly understood what was going on. When they looked at Shang Xiaoqing, their eyes showed a mix of concern and schadenfreude. After all, if Shang Xiaoqing lost favor with the boss, it might mean a chance for them to ascend to the position of chairman. At that moment, the minds of several executives became active.

“Boss, can I go and ask him?” Shang Xiaoqing had calmed down considerably by now, and her face showed no signs of emotion.

Zhou Chao nodded lightly and said, “Go ahead.”

Shang Xiaoqing quickly stood up and walked out of the office. After she left, the remaining three people began to make their presence felt in front of Zhou Chao.

“Boss, you can’t really blame Director Shang. After all, that Mr. Chen is her nephew, so it’s natural for her to trust him. No one expected this to happen.” Gao Ping promptly came to Shang Xiaoqing’s defense.

“I have to say that Director Shang has abused her power a bit. Just think about it, a fresh graduate who didn’t attend a top-tier university like 985 or 211, and yet he was appointed as the chairman’s secretary and was responsible for the general manager’s affairs. Now that things have gone wrong, it’s not surprising.” Xu Fu added another layer of criticism.

Only Xu Wen’an sat quietly, his thoughts unknown.

In no time, Shang Xiaoqing returned with a grim face and went straight to Zhou Chao’s side. She said, “Boss, it’s my fault. I trusted people too much. I didn’t expect that in less than two months of work, I would be used by the chairman’s secretary to do a lot of things. He took kickbacks from some businesses and partner companies, nearly 200,000 yuan. This is my negligence, and I apologize to you!”

Upon hearing this, Gao Ping and Xu Fu couldn’t hide a hint of delight in their eyes.

“What do you plan to do?” Zhou Chao looked at Shang Xiaoqing expressionlessly.

Shang Xiaoqing clenched her teeth, took a deep breath, and seemed to have realized something. She said, “Boss, that secretary, Chen, is my nephew. I’ll ask him to return all the kickbacks to the businesses. In addition, we’ll terminate his employment at the company. I hope you can give me a chance!”

Zhou Chao didn’t speak immediately but observed the expressions of the three people. After all, the events that had just occurred in Shang Xiaoqing’s absence had shown him that the top executives of Hengde were not a united front. On the contrary, they were all essentially fighting for their own interests, which provided Zhou Chao with an opportunity to gain full control of the company.

Seeing the varied expressions on the faces of the three people, Zhou Chao finally spoke calmly, “Since you’ve personally appealed, how can I not show you some respect? However, there will be a change in your position. You’ll be demoted to the position of acting chairman. As for the chairman’s position, all of you have a chance, depending on how you handle yourselves. But I don’t want to see such a thing happen again. If anyone appeals next time, it won’t work. Do you understand?”

Hearing Zhou Chao’s words, there were mixed feelings among the group. Although Shang Xiaoqing wasn’t demoted entirely, this decision also provided an opportunity for the other high-level executives to rise.

“Understood, Boss!” they all said in unison.