Chapter Ninety-One: Change

Readers pointed out a few issues with the previous version, so I revised the first two chapters again. Anyone interested can take a look. The version after 6:30 p.m. is the revised one.

This is the third chapter promised to readers, so it counts as keeping my word. Tomorrow I need to organize the outline, and the update may be a little late, but I will still make sure to post two chapters.

At the Zhongtong branch in the Elegant Courtyard complex of the capital...

In the days since Zhang Wei left, the Zhongtong branch had undergone a great change. Not only had the staff doubled, the place had also become much livelier, yet the atmosphere inside the store grew more and more heavy, carrying the stifling sense of a storm about to break.

Early in the morning, Xu Ming, as usual, took the bus to work. After getting off at Elegant Courtyard Station, he saw the mobile food cart beside the stop sign and habitually reached for his wallet, wanting to buy a pancake. But before he even got close, as if remembering something, he withdrew his hand resentfully and put the wallet back.

"That Su Ning is getting more and more arrogant. Now she is even saying no one is allowed to eat in the store. It's just... hateful." Xu Ming had wanted to curse her harshly, but considering his own position, he swallowed the rest of the words.

Since the other branch manager, Su Ning, had brought her team to the Zhongtong branch in the Elegant Courtyard complex, Xu Ming's life had lost its former ease. Su Ning had even proposed that employees were not allowed to eat inside the store, in effect suppressing Xu Ming through the smallest details of daily life.

This made Xu Ming feel extremely awkward, but the rule did indeed help the store's image. Su Ning was making a reasonable suggestion from the company's standpoint, and Xu Ming could not openly oppose it, so he could only agree to her request.

"Good morning." Xu Ming entered the Zhongtong branch and greeted everyone as soon as he stepped inside.

"Morning, Brother Xu."

"Good morning, Manager Xu!"

No sooner had Xu Ming spoken than two different forms of address answered him. Those who called him Brother Xu were Li Lin, Wang Min, Wang Jianfa, Guo Bin, and Wen Fang. Those who called him Manager Xu were the team members Su Ning had brought with her. The two sides were clearly divided, like water and oil.

After greeting everyone, Xu Ming sat down in a corner at the back of the store. That seat was his new spot, while his old office had been taken over by Su Ning.

Every time he thought of that, Xu Ming became even angrier. When he heard that Su Ning's team was to be transferred here, he had already felt displeased and even harbored some resentment. But he did not dare bring it up with his superiors, so he merely wanted to give Su Ning a little lesson in who was in charge.

On the day Su Ning and her staff moved into the Elegant Courtyard branch, Xu Ming happened to be off on leave. It was, one might say, a blatant refusal to give Su Ning any face. Yet Su Ning was not the sort of woman who swallowed losses. Taking advantage of Xu Ming's absence, she moved in and occupied his office.

When Xu Ming came to the store the next day, he found the office lock had already been changed, and all his belongings had been moved to this spot. He was furious, but he himself was partly at fault in this matter. If the situation escalated and reached the ears of the higher-ups, neither of them would come out looking good in the end. In the end, Xu Ming could only swallow the bitter result himself.

The first clash between Xu Ming and Su Ning could be said to have ended in Xu Ming's crushing defeat. In the days that followed, the two had several more skirmishes, all over trivial matters that hardly mattered. One could say they had their wins and losses on both sides.

"Manager Xu, you drank quite a bit last night. We were worried you might not come to work today," said Liu Ziqi, one of the five beauties, with a laugh.

The so-called five beauties referred to Su Ning and her four female sales agents. Those four were Liu Ziqi, Fang Wenjun, Zhang Shaohan, and Han Xue. The remaining two male agents were jokingly called the Twin Generals, namely Liu Yunlong and Zhang Heming.

Though they were called the five beauties, not every one of them was especially beautiful. Su Ning and Fang Wenjun could be considered beauties, while the other three were of average appearance, though each had her own distinctive charm.

Liu Ziqi, the one who had just spoken, was a little plump, with a round face and not very tall, but she smiled adorably and had a very lively personality. She could be said to be the little sunshine among the five beauties.

"After I got home last night, I sobered up. Nothing happened," Xu Ming said, a trace of unnaturalness flickering across his face. Just thinking of what had happened the night before made him feel deeply vexed.

It turned out that after Su Ning's team moved into this store, within only three or four days they closed two deals in a row, enough to count as a strong opening. But not a single person in Xu Ming's team had closed a deal, which inevitably made him feel rather embarrassed.

Last night, because their team had closed two deals in succession, Su Ning had suggested treating everyone to dinner. Xu Ming did not want to go, but since it was the first time the two teams were dining together, he could hardly refuse. If he did not go, it would also seem ungenerous.

That night, apart from Su Ning's team, four people from Xu Ming's side went. Wang Min had something to do and did not come. Including assistant Wen Fang, there were twelve people altogether, making for a very lively gathering.

Since it was a meal, drinking was unavoidable. Between the two teams there was also bound to be some open and covert competition. Among them, Wang Min was absent, Li Lin and Wang Jianfa could not drink, and assistant Wen Fang remained neutral. In the end, only Xu Ming and Guo Bin were left to face the seven people on the other side.

At first, Guo Bin did not think much of it. He felt that out of the other seven, five were women, so perhaps he and Brother Xu together would not be unable to handle them. But to his surprise, those five women were all formidable drinkers, and before even three rounds were over, they had drunk him under the table.

Once Guo Bin had been knocked out, Xu Ming was left to fight alone. Even with all his experience, he could not possibly outdrink seven people. In the end, he had no choice but to invoke his position as branch manager to pressure them, and only then did no one dare keep forcing him to drink. Even so, he still drank quite a lot, and after returning home he was tormented for the better part of the night before finally settling down.

"Manager Xu, it's getting late. Shouldn't we start the morning meeting?" A woman in her late twenties walked out of the office. She wore a black business suit, giving off a mature and capable air, and her delicate face carried a hint of alluring charm. This woman was none other than the other team's branch manager, Su Ning.

"Yes, let's start the morning meeting." Xu Ming glanced at his watch and answered. Then he stood up, clapped his hands, and said to everyone, "Everyone gather at the store entrance. We're starting the morning meeting."

In the real estate business, a team's morale and confidence are very important, and the morning meeting exists to boost that morale, so that every agent can receive clients in the best possible condition. That was why almost every real estate agency held a morning meeting for its agents every day.

Aside from assistant Wen Fang, the other agents gathered outside. Xu Ming and Su Ning had already agreed that the two teams would hold the morning meeting together, with the two branch managers taking turns to lead. Today happened to be Su Ning's turn, so Xu Ming could only stand with the other agents.

"Today's morning meeting will be hosted by me. Before we play any games, let's first review the results from these past few days of showings, and then exchange experiences," Su Ning said, standing before everyone. Her bright eyes swept over the group, and she pointed to a pretty girl at the far end. "Fang Wenjun, you just signed a deal yesterday, so you go first."

"Yes, Sister Su." A beauty around twenty, slender and graceful, lifted her long legs and stepped forward, smiling as she said, "The deal I signed yesterday was with a client I received only after moving into the Elegant Courtyard branch. That client..."

The moment Xu Ming heard Su Ning ask them to summarize the results of their showings, he felt somewhat unhappy. Not a single person on his team had closed a deal, while the other team had closed two in a row. Wasn't this clearly showing off their accomplishments? And once Fang Wenjun opened her mouth to say that the client had been received at the Elegant Courtyard branch, didn't that make it even more obvious that his team was useless?

Just as Xu Ming's expression was growing darker and darker, suddenly the sound of a car horn rang out. A black BMW 730 drove toward the Zhongtong branch and stopped right beside it. The luxurious, flamboyant, and imposing BMW instantly drew the attention of everyone at the Zhongtong branch.