Chapter 450: Bonds Amid Company Affairs

Xie Bingran naturally spotted Su Rong and flashed her a cool smile.

“Bing Ge!” Su Rong saw Xie Bingran in the crowd and instantly beamed with joy.

But she glanced at the group of guys smoking around Bing Ge, who looked a bit intimidating, making the young girl hesitate to approach and shrink back behind Xu Chen.

Xu Chen found it amusing:

“Don’t worry, they don’t bite!”

…

Zhao Feng and the others didn’t want to scare the young girl, so they quickly stubbed out their cigarettes and put on their most upright and friendly faces, smiling at Su Rong.

Xie Bingran stepped forward, pulling her right hand from her pocket and extending it toward Su Rong.

Su Rong had been hiding behind Xu Chen, but when she saw Bing Ge reach out, she happily bounced forward, grabbed her hand, and then clung affectionately to Bing Ge’s arm.

Xu Chen just shook his head, feeling like these two were flaunting their affection again.

Zhao Feng spoke up in his gruff voice:

“Bing Ge, Xu Chen, we’ll head out and get back to work. Just call if you need us!”

Xu Chen remembered something:

“Hold on!”

He walked over to the car’s trunk, and the group of guys naturally followed.

From the trunk, Xu Chen pulled out a few packs of cigarettes he’d brought back from Beijing and handed them to Zhao Feng and Li Rui.

“Thanks, Xu Chen!”

The guys all looked a bit embarrassed and chimed in.

“Appreciate it, Xu Chen. We’re off to work now!”

With that, Zhao Feng led the “Security Department” guys away, handing out the cigarettes as they went.

Li Rui got into his car and moved it to the parking area.

…

As Xu Chen turned to head back to Bing Ge and Su Rong, a cough sounded from behind.

He looked around and saw Fang Jun and Wu Yue, the two sisters, stepping out of the bar building.

Fang Jun still had her expressionless face, her ponytail tied high, wearing a plain long down jacket.

Wu Yue wore her usual warm and enthusiastic smile and quickly called out, “Young Xu Chen,” as soon as she saw him.

Xu Chen was quick to greet the two sisters politely.

Fang Jun spotted Su Rong and walked over with a smile.

Su Rong saw another familiar face and naturally lit up:

“I heard that bar is yours, Fang Jun. That’s so cool!”

Fang Jun: “I’ll take you for a drink tonight!”

She introduced Wu Yue to Su Rong, and since it was Su Rong’s first time meeting a stranger, she felt a bit shy and reserved at first.

But seeing Wu Yue’s kind and approachable manner, Su Rong soon dropped her guard.

Wu Yue had work to do, so she said goodbye to the group and headed back to the Comprehensive Building alone.

Fang Jun wrapped her arm around Bing Ge’s.

Now, both Fang Jun and Su Rong had turned into Bing Ge’s “accessories.”

Fang Jun said to Xie Bingran:

“I found a spot that serves great fish. I’ll take you all there tonight.”

Xie Bingran: “Sounds good, thanks, Fang Jun.”

Xu Chen: “Is my dad on his way back?”

Fang Jun: “We’ll head to the restaurant first; he’ll join us midway.”

Xu Chen: “Sounds like Dad’s rushing from one meeting to another!”

Fang Jun: “Your dad’s been swamped this year-end. Make sure to have a few drinks with him.”

Xu Chen: “Of course.”

He glanced back at the Comprehensive Building:

“Is General Manager Guo still at the company? I should say hi.”

General Manager Guo referred to Guo Liang, Gu Xinxi’s mentor.

Fang Jun: “He’s there.”

She looked at Bing Ge and Su Rong:

“I’ll show you two around.”

Su Rong exclaimed excitedly: “Awesome! Your park looks huge!”

Bing Ge just smiled without saying anything.

Su Rong remembered something:

“Do you have electric bikes? Can I ride one around the park?”

Fang Jun: “I’ll grab three from the warehouse. We can all ride around the park together.”

Su Rong was so excited she nearly jumped: “Yes! Let’s go, let’s go!”

…

In the third-floor meeting room of the Comprehensive Building, Guo Liang was holding a meeting with a group of subordinates.

Besides Guo Liang, there were nearly thirty young colleagues in the room.

Currently, Guo Liang was in charge of expanding distribution channels and market promotion for Chenfeng Ice Power, and they needed more people to roll it out across the north.

It was already evening, well past quitting time, but Guo Liang’s marketing and distribution team was under immense pressure and had been working overtime.

As soon as Xu Chen walked in, Guo Liang stood up with a smile:

“Young Xu Chen!”

Xu Chen held a box of Daoxiangcun pastries:

“You’ve been working hard, Guo. I brought some snacks for everyone!”

Guo Liang greeted him warmly:

“Young Xu Chen, that’s thoughtful!”

A few young people who knew Xu Chen quickly came over to say hello to “Young Xu Chen.”

Most of them were former subordinates from Guo Liang’s pharmaceutical distribution days and knew Gu Xinxi personally.

A couple more were new hires Guo Liang had brought on; Xu Chen had met them during last year’s National Day break.

Some original Bright Factory sales staff had been there too, but due to lower overall skills, they’d been reassigned to admin and logistics after talks with HR…

The meeting room still had about twenty people, all strangers to Xu Chen.

Guo Liang introduced:

“This is our Young Xu Chen! I’ve mentioned him to you all before!”

Those twenty or so new colleagues hurried over to greet Xu Chen.

Most of them were from sales or marketing backgrounds, naturally chatty and good at networking, so they warmed up to “Young Xu Chen” right away.

They already knew that even though Young Xu Chen was still in university, he held significant sway in company decisions.

Finally meeting him, they eagerly chatted and introduced themselves.

As Xu Chen talked with them, he learned that these twenty-plus people were talents Guo Liang had specifically poached.

Some came from competing electric vehicle factories and had handled market expansion in Beijing and Tianjin.

Another seven or eight were former employees from electric vehicle dealerships in Hebei and Henan provinces.

With these additions, Guo Liang’s future market distribution efforts would likely go much smoother.

After some lively chat, Guo Liang sent the young subordinates off for dinner and stayed back to talk with Young Xu Chen privately.

Guo Liang lit a cigarette and updated Young Xu Chen on the recent distribution and market expansion for Chenfeng Ice Power.

Young Xu Chen didn’t ask questions, but Guo Liang knew he was interested.

After the initial launch, they’d secured the Provincial Capital and Tiancheng as solid bases.

Leveraging connections from the Provincial Capital, Tiancheng, and Xu Zhiquan’s networks in the city and province, rolling out Chenfeng Ice Power across Shandong Province shouldn’t be a problem.

So, in the next six months, the production line’s output could gradually cover the entire provincial market.

But Chenfeng Technology aimed bigger—targeting the entire north and national market.

Guo Liang’s target for the year was to use Shandong as a base to expand northward.

Clearly, the pressure on Guo Liang was huge:

“I consulted with President Nie, and he helped connect me with some contacts and resources privately.

It’s been a big help!

I never expected President Nie to have such wide reach. A lot of the talent from competing companies in our team came through his introductions.”

“The first half of the year will focus on distribution in Shandong.

But we need to start expanding channels in other northern provinces…”

“It’s still pretty pressured, mainly from the competition.”

“Especially pushing into Beijing and Tianjin, where two major electric vehicle factories have deep networks.

We’ll face pushback trying to grab market share.”

“We’ve anticipated all this when your dad and I go north for market runs.”

…

…

Xu Chen listened carefully while munching on pastries.

Beyond getting company updates, he took the chance to encourage Guo Liang.

“Young Xu Chen” trusted Guo Liang’s abilities, or he wouldn’t have brought him on board initially.

Xu Chen had asked his father, Xu Zhiquan, and he spoke highly of Guo Liang too.

Still, expanding electric vehicle channels was a tough challenge.

Especially breaking into other provinces with their tangled local networks and tough local players.

Luckily, Guo Liang’s years in sales had exposed him to all sorts of people and situations, so Xu Chen had faith in him.

Guo Liang shared his recent work stresses with Young Xu Chen and felt a bit relieved.

For Guo Liang, Young Xu Chen was someone he could truly trust.

After all, he’d joined Chenfeng Technology because of Young Xu Chen…

“Young Xu Chen, you’re only here for a couple of days this time. Wait till your winter break!

Then I’ll pick your brain properly on our market strategy.”

Xu Chen smiled and said:

“I’m not much help on that front. I can at least offer some moral support and cheer you on.”

He thought for a moment and added:

“Maybe I can get Fei Jie to come over for a few days of business trips and join your meetings.”

Guo Liang: “That’d be fantastic! If President Nie comes, your dad will be thrilled too!”

Guo Liang knew Xu Chen had dinner plans with his dad and Xie Bingran, so he didn’t invite him to join.

Xu Chen was just dropping by for a chat, so Guo Liang walked him downstairs with a smile and headed to the cafeteria himself.

…

In the park, dusk was settling in.

When Xu Chen saw Xie Bingran, Su Rong, and Fang Jun again, he couldn’t help but feel speechless.

Two Chenfeng Ice Power electric bikes were there, with Xie Bingran and Fang Jun each riding one.

Su Rong sat behind Xie Bingran, arms wrapped around her waist…

The three spotted Xu Chen from afar and rode over.

Xu Chen looked at Su Rong:

“Weren’t you going to ride one yourself? How’d you end up as a passenger?”

Su Rong leaned against Xie Bingran’s back and hugged her tighter:

“I prefer letting Bing Ge give me a ride.”

Xu Chen: “…”

Fang Jun: “I’m starving. Let’s eat!”

She added, “It’s a bit far, so we’ll need a car.”

With that, she turned to Xu Chen.

Xu Chen quickly realized Fang Jun would be drinking at dinner, so he’d have to drive.

He joked:

“You told me to have a few drinks with my dad tonight!”

Fang Jun, straight-faced: “Just use tea instead.”

She handed Xu Chen her Audi keys.

Xu Chen: “…”

…

The three arrived at the parking area.

They left the electric bikes there for now.

Xu Chen pressed the key fob, and a shiny white Audi A4 flashed its lights.

“Looks like you’ve upgraded your ride, Fang Jun.”

Fang Jun had previously driven a white Audi A3 hatchback, but now it was an Audi A4.

Given Fang Jun’s mysterious background, swapping to a Maybach wouldn’t surprise anyone.

Fang Jun, still expressionless, said casually:

“The old one was a hatchback without a proper trunk—hard to store wine in.”

Xu Chen: “…”

Fang Jun popped the trunk of the white Audi A4 and showed Xu Chen, still straight-faced.

Xu Chen stared at the packed Moutai, Guojiao, and Wuliangye bottles, completely stunned.

He glanced back at the two-story bar and joked:

“That bar’s like your arsenal, and this trunk is just a mobile version.”

Xu Chen got into the driver’s seat, and Fang Jun sat in the passenger side to give directions.

Xie Bingran and Su Rong climbed into the back.

Knowing they were heading out, Xie Bingran put on a baseball cap to hide her identity as a sports star and Asian Games champion.

Su Rong sat next to Xie Bingran, quiet as a little cat, not fussing or crying.

…

…

The dinner spot was one Fang Jun had picked.

Xu Chen had always thought that in China, as long as you followed Fang Jun for meals, everything would go smoothly.

This restaurant sat on the north side of Tiancheng, tucked inside an unassuming large compound.

The exterior looked plain, no signboard, almost like a typical wealthy family’s courtyard.

But pushing open the wooden door and stepping in revealed a hidden gem.

Inside, there was a grand Chinese-style facade with a massive gold plaque hanging high:

“The Ultimate Feast.”

Su Rong read it aloud and asked:

“‘The Ultimate Feast’—that’s a bold name!”

The female server greeted them with a smile:

“‘The Ultimate Feast’ isn’t boasting about our restaurant; it’s for our signature dish…

Braised turtle.”

Su Rong thought for a moment and turned to Xu Chen:

“Can I eat that?”

Like a kid asking permission.

Xu Chen smiled: “Of course!”

…

The private room was spacious.

The courtyard outside had traditional Chinese decor, but the room inside mixed modern simplicity with Chinese accents.

The head seat was saved for Old Xu, and the other four young people sat wherever.

Xu Chen had wanted to sit next to Bing Ge, but Fang Jun and Su Rong had her flanked on both sides.

The enthusiastic restaurant manager came in and politely addressed Fang Jun as “President Fang.”

Fang Jun brought a bottle of Guojiao and handed it to the server to open and pour.

The manager knelt beside Fang Jun, noting down the order.

Laughter boomed from outside the door.

That was Old Xu arriving.

…