The three followed Jiang Chen to the reception area.
"Sit," Jiang Chen said, gesturing for the three to sit down after he had taken his seat.
The three sat down upon hearing him, looking at Jiang Chen. Although they didn't know why he had called them, they were all quite uneasy. Ji Jun's expression was calm, but his involuntarily clenched fists betrayed him.
The moment Ji Jun saw Yang Fan and Li Ziyan, he knew something was amiss. So many high-ranking executives in the Group were waiting to report, yet he only called him, the Director of Finance, and the Director of Administration.
In a company, Human Resources and Finance are often the boss's people. It seemed Jiang Chen was likely targeting these two crucial departments. He then thought about himself; he had been personally promoted by Xu Jinzhong.
"Maybe even I will..." Ji Jun thought pessimistically.
Jiang Chen nodded at Ji Jun. Because of Xu Shizhong, he had already approved of him. If Jiang Chen were not around in the future, all matters, big and small, in the Group could be entrusted to him. If Jiang Chen knew what he was thinking now, Jiang Chen would definitely say, "You're just overthinking it."
Then, Jiang Chen spoke to the only female executive present, Li Ziyan, the Director of the Administration Department:
"President Li, I would like to ask how many employees the Group currently has."
Li Ziyan, 38, as the Director of the Administration Department of Xinghe Group, had served Xinghe for over ten years. She knew all the data by heart and spoke without hesitation:
"The Group has approximately three thousand employees internally, with about one thousand outsourced employees. If we consider the entire Group, there are 80,000 officially registered employees.
Xinghe Daily Chemicals and Xinghe Home Appliances actually have the most employees, over twenty thousand, but most of them are factory workers and not official Group employees, so they are not recorded..."
Jiang Chen directly waved his hand, interrupting her further explanation: "So, it's roughly one hundred thousand people, correct?"
"Yes, including all outsourced personnel, it's about one hundred thousand. To be precise, it's around one hundred and ten thousand," Li Ziyan calculated briefly and told Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen nodded, indicating he understood.
"Hmm, do you smoke? Want one?" Jiang Chen asked after confirming. He always liked to have one whenever he was about to start something.
After speaking, he unhurriedly took out a pack of Seven Stars and offered them to the three. All of them, except Li Ziyan, were seasoned smokers. Ji Jun and Yang Fan took them with both hands, but to their surprise, Li Ziyan, a lady, also reached out and took one.
Jiang Chen couldn't help but glance at Li Ziyan as she took one. Don't misunderstand; it was just that Jiang Chen rarely saw women smoke.
In truth, Li Ziyan only smoked when she was under immense pressure. The pressure Jiang Chen had put on her just now was enormous, and combined with it being her boss's first day and the boss offering a cigarette, she didn't dare refuse, so she simply accepted it.
"Clack," the sound of a lighter echoed.
Ji Jun personally lit Jiang Chen's cigarette, and everyone began to smoke along.
Taking a puff, Jiang Chen continued, "Actually, the reason I called you here is about something. I've decided to personally invest 1 billion yuan to give all Group employees a welcome gift."
He took another puff, exhaled smoke, and continued to speak:
"Regarding this, President Li, I'll leave it to you to implement. After you've tallied all the employees, come to me for the money. Everyone, whether they are official employees or not, will receive it. Remember, it's for all employees, including factory workers."
The three were momentarily stunned, their uneasy feelings instantly vanishing. So, he wasn't looking for trouble with them, but rather assigning a task.
Li Ziyan accepted the order, assuring, "No problem, President Jiang. I'll have the statistics ready before noon tomorrow."
Then she asked Jiang Chen, "President Jiang, for the one billion, should we buy gifts, or distribute cash directly?"
"Distribute cash. Buying gifts is too much trouble, and money is more practical.
Distribute it equally among all employees," Jiang Chen added.
Yang Fan, the Director of Finance, on the side, secretly marveled at Jiang Chen's capability. As expected of the man who could take over Xinghe, his welcome gift alone was one billion yuan in bonuses for all employees.
Ji Jun, flicking the ash from his cigarette, also spoke, flattering, "President Jiang, it's truly our honor to work under you. With a boss like you who cares for his subordinates leading us, Xinghe will reach new heights in no time."
Looking at the fawning Ji Jun, Jiang Chen smiled, "President Ji, I have an even more important task for you that needs your attention."
Upon hearing this, Ji Jun immediately put out his cigarette, sat up straight, and pulled out a small notebook and pen from who knows where, saying with a firm tone,
"Tell me, President Jiang, I guarantee it will be completed."
Jiang Chen looked at Ji Jun, who was earnestly preparing to take notes, and stated his decision, which was made due to Xu Shizhong's experience:
"I will personally invest another 10 billion yuan. I need you to establish the 'Xinghe Xushi Zhong Charity Foundation' in the Group's name, specifically for aiding the disabled, helping abducted children, sponsoring orphans, and so on.
Hmm... For now, these few aid targets will be the focus, and subsequent actions will be handled according to actual circumstances."
Jiang Chen considered himself not a great person, but the image of Xu Shizhong was still imprinted in his mind. He wanted to do something for Xu Shizhong, to contribute his small part to society, and even more, to ensure Xu Shizhong's name was remembered by more people.
Ji Jun quickly wrote down Jiang Chen's words, greatly surprised by his decision:
"President... President Jiang, are you sure it's in the name of 'Mr. Xu Shizhong'?"
Jiang Chen affirmed, "Confirmed!"
"Alright."
Jiang Chen added, "Submit the proposal before Friday. Once the funds are in place, President Yang, you will be fully responsible for the financial management. I want to see every single fund used where it should be."
Hearing Jiang Chen call his name, Yang Fan, who had thought he was not involved, immediately said, "Understood, President Jiang. I will personally monitor the movement of every fund."
"Hmm, you don't need to do it personally. Your focus should still be on the Group. Just record every fund movement then."
Yang Fan quickly agreed, "No problem, President Jiang."
"Hmm, you and President Li can go busy yourselves first. President Ji, please stay; I have something to discuss with you," Jiang Chen said, dismissing the two, and then spoke directly to Ji Jun.
Upon hearing this, the two knew Jiang Chen wanted to speak with Ji Jun alone, so they both got up and left the office.
After the two left, Jiang Chen told Ji Jun the purpose of keeping him: "President Ji, I'm preparing to give you more responsibility. In my absence from now on, you will be fully in charge of Group affairs, and you only need to report to me."
After speaking, Jiang Chen lit another cigarette and paused, saying,
"I hope you won't let down Mr. Xu Shizhong's expectations, nor my expectations of you."
Ji Jun understood immediately upon hearing this and asked the question he cared about most: "President Jiang, is it about that letter? I want to know where Old Xu went."
Jiang Chen found this question difficult. He couldn't very well tell him that Xu Shizhong had returned to his own world, could he?
First, he confirmed, "Yes."
Then he mused, "I don't know where Mr. Xu Shizhong went, but from what I know, he is doing very well now, happy and fulfilled."
Jiang Chen could only answer in this way.
—
Ji Jun left, carrying Jiang Chen's orders.
Jiang Chen recalled his actions today. Everything was almost perfectly flawless, but only Jiang Chen knew that these were merely based on his past experience as a minor leader and his strong ability to adapt on the spot.
If he had to handle some major matters alone, without experience, he would certainly reveal his true colors.
He still needed to learn. Initially, before taking over Xinghe, he planned to take things one step at a time, then slowly find people, cultivate his own trusted subordinates, and then replace the current executives. However, with Xu Shizhong's assurance in the video, he temporarily changed his plan. In the future, with the system, he would definitely have more industries, and he felt at ease entrusting Xinghe to Ji Jun.