Financial Workplace Survival Guide – CH 040

Chapter 40 ☆, Some Things Need to be Held Onto Tightly.

Xin Xin had been working in finance for nearly ten years, and this was the first time she had experienced the unpredictable and turbulent world of business struggles firsthand.

Back then, graduates who entered securities companies were inevitably filled with enthusiasm and a lack of clear understanding of the world. They talked about Keynes and Friedman all the time, thinking that life was like the sand table simulations they had done in class and that they could manipulate the capital market by learning some candlestick chart techniques.

Who knew that once they joined the company, it would be either endless overtime or endless socializing? Joining the investment department might seem glamorous to outsiders, but those inside suffered unspeakable hardships, becoming frequent flyers, venturing into the Gobi Desert, and traversing mountainous regions. They had witnessed worker strikes and ruthless business battles.

It wasn’t particularly high-end, but they did see plenty of the most primal and cruel aspects of human nature.

But nothing like Su Chengjie.

It was rare to see a businessman who used a legal facade to commit murder and robbery.

Xin Xin put in an exceptionally strong effort on this matter.

Working like a beast of burden during the day and solving cases overtime at night, she could be described as a modern-day model worker.

Wang Zhuo was even more interesting. As the investigation deepened, he even applied for a new mobile phone number and pretended to be a lunchbox vendor. He agreed on a code word with Xin Xin and took Su Chengjie’s code name as H. Their daily conversations were all about things like “Today we have H-flavored chicken rice” or “Today’s H-flavored lunchbox has no meat.”

Zheng Zaochuan and Xin Xin discussed the clues head-to-head.

“Why is Su Chengjie’s code name H? The first letter of each character doesn’t match up.”

Xin Xin explained earnestly, “Brother Wang said that the initials are too easy to expose. ‘H’ means ‘bad person’; the first letter of ‘bad’ is ‘H.'”

In just a few days, Xin Xin and Wang Zhuo’s relationship progressed rapidly, with their way of addressing each other evolving from “Mr. Wang” and “Ms. Xin” to “Brother Wang” and “Sister Xin.”

Zheng Zaochuan’s eyes widened. “Then what’s chicken rice?”

Xin Xin glanced at him with a “you’re hopeless” look. “It’s obvious, isn’t it? If there’s meat, it means there’s a new clue. If there’s no new clue, it means there’s no meat today.”

Zheng Zaochuan laughed. “That’s quite interesting.”

“Of course, an interesting soul is still an interesting soul even at fifty.”

Zheng Zaochuan suddenly had a brilliant idea: “If I can’t continue working at Hanhai, I’ll start an information and data company. I can even secretly solve cases in my spare time.”

Upon hearing this, Xin Xin’s heart sank, and she cautiously asked, “What’s wrong? Are you really going to lose?”

Zheng Zaochuan looked up at the sky and sighed, “It seems we’re going to lose. I’m so unwilling to accept it.”

Although what he said was very sad, Xin Xin could not see any sense of loss in Zheng Zaochuan’s attitude.

“If I were you, I would be heartbroken.” Xin Xin put herself in Zhao Xi’s shoes; she was heartbroken for a long time when Zhao Xi kicked her away.

Zheng Zaochuan smiled and said, “That’s life. You can’t take anything too seriously. Gains and losses are normal. If you carry too much of a burden, you can’t start over. Follow the natural way and don’t force things.”

Xin Xin stuck out her tongue. “Wow, you’re terrifying. You can be so ruthless to the company you built from scratch. Does that mean you have no attachments in your life and nothing you can’t give up?”

Zheng Zaochuan glanced at her. Usually, when she went to work, she would tie her hair neatly back and wear a casual suit. One could tell her profession from her appearance, and from that, you could infer her personality: professional, rigorous, and meticulous.

At home, however, she was much more casual; her hair was always messy, and there was always a strand of hair that would stick out from behind her ear or the top of her head and hang in front of her eyes.

At this point, she would unconsciously furrow her brows and impatiently tuck the strand of hair back in.

She was just like she was when Zheng Zaochuan first met her.

Just when he was caught in an emotional farce he couldn’t be bothered to deal with, Xin Xin appeared out of nowhere, making him say without hesitation, “I choose her.” At that moment, she looked at him with bewildered eyes, her expression one of utter astonishment at not knowing what was going on.

Years later, Zheng Zaochuan realized that he had truly fallen for her back then.

Time and again, she existed in his life in a natural yet dramatic way, domineeringly.

“It’s not that I can give up everything. One can start over in one’s career. But there are many things in life that one has to hold on to tightly. Once lost, it’s hard to get them back.” Zheng Zaochuan’s gaze fell on Xin Xin’s face. If she looked up at that moment, she would see the indescribable attachment in his eyes.

Xin Xin didn’t even look up, pouting as she looked at the documents. “God, I really can’t imagine it. If I were to leave the company now, I’d be depressed until I find a better job next time.”

Zheng Zaochuan’s fleeting emotion vanished in an instant, and he laughed. “You still have the nerve to call me heartless? I’m only swallowing my bitter pill because I’ve already lost. You, on the other hand, see the company you’ve worked for for so many years as something that only the highest bidder wins.”

Xin Xin raised her eyes, looking intently at Zheng Zaochuan. “For us working people, the worst thing is to fall in love with our company. It’s terrible; it’s even worse than being love-struck and losing everything. People who fall in love with their jobs will suffer the consequences.”

As fate would have it, Xin Xin never expected that the one to suffer the consequences would be Fu Meng, not herself.

Before Fu Meng arrived, Xin Xin was known throughout the company as a workaholic. But since Fu Meng came, the title of workaholic had become Fu Meng’s well-deserved crown.

The investment banking department was known for its long hours, but those like Fu Meng who never left work were truly role models in the industry.

Rose had previously told Xin Xin about rumors of layoffs at head office. Xin Xin didn’t take it seriously, because head office was in the north, and although the Haining branch was nominally a branch, it actually helped head office maintain business throughout the Pearl River Delta region. Its geographical location was excellent, and its business scope was quite diverse, making it a crucial branch nationwide.

Even if layoffs were necessary, they should start in some less-performing, remote cities.

But unexpectedly, before any layoffs could be carried out, the names of those on the layoff list were leaked in an informal manner.

How this list got leaked was now unknown.

But as soon as Xin Xin arrived at work, she heard that among all the middle and senior managers in their branch, only Fu Meng was on the layoff list.

Xin Xin was extremely shocked. “Is the news true?”

Although Mary was dedicated to dating and devoted a third of her energy to work, she was far more well-informed than Xin Xin.

“I saw the news, and it’s true. Look at that list. It says it’s for the company’s business development, but anyone with eyes can see it’s because of factional infighting.”

Xin Xin humbly inquired, “Which faction does she belong to?”

“Nonsense, she’s definitely one of Lin Chong’an’s people. You know that when she was an intern, she was pouring water for the leaders, and Lin Chong’an took a liking to her at first sight. Later, he specially transferred her to his side and carefully trained her.”

Lin Chong-an was the risk officer at the head office.

In a flash, Xin Xin suddenly realized something and tentatively asked, “Does Lin Chong’an have a bad relationship with Zhao Xi?”

Mary smiled knowingly. “How can they have a good relationship? Zhao Xi is such a proud person.”

Xin Xin had always disliked listening to others speculate about the relationship between female colleagues and male leaders. In the financial industry, which woman with a bit of looks and a good career hadn’t been the subject of rumors?

Mary shook her head in disagreement. “No, no, no, she’s not like you or me. We two are just spreading rumors, but what she did is true.”

“Nobody crawls under someone’s bed, so who knows if it actually happened?”

Mary’s eyes widened. “You and Zhao Xi are so close; has he never confided in you about his troubles?”

“No, that’s really not the case,” Xin Xin honestly shook her head.

Mary was stunned for a long time before exclaiming, “I never expected that Zhao Xi, who looks so perfect that he seems like a mannequin, is actually a true gentleman.”

It turned out that it wasn’t just Mary; quite a few people knew about Fu Meng’s relationship.

The story began when Fu Meng interned. Students who graduated from prestigious universities tended to be a bit arrogant. Some had already achieved considerable academic results after graduating with a master’s degree, while others had high academic qualifications and resources, so there was quite a few who considered themselves extraordinary.

But in the financial industry, where people from good schools with high levels of education and good family backgrounds were concentrated, that kind of aloofness was all too common.

Fu Meng, however, was an exception.

From the moment she joined the company, she was extremely diligent and meticulous, completing every task assigned by her seniors without complaint. She was impeccable in her attention to detail, handling everything from major reports to ensuring sufficient printing paper.

What’s most remarkable was her remarkably stable self-esteem. Even when she first joined the company and was ridiculed for her background and attacked for her personality, she remained composed and focused on doing her job well.

This was a significant difference from Xixi. Although they were very similar in their methods, they were very different in their core principles.

She and Lin Chong’an became acquainted at a very important meeting. The meeting was attended not only by all the senior executives of the head office, but also by government officials and other securities firms. As a meeting organizer, Fu Meng not only observed that Lin Chong’an only drank water but also cleverly noticed his discomfort that day and gave him a danshen pill.

This was not just keen observation; it could even be said that it not only helped Lin Chong’an out of his immediate predicament but also saved him face.

Xin Xin commented, “It’s more than just romantic love; it’s a life-saving grace.”

Mary nodded. “Who can argue with that? Maybe at first Lin Chong’an really valued her because of her personal abilities. Later it turned into admiration, and then he fell in love with her.”

As for how the whole company knew their relationship was not simple, it was all because of Lin Chong’an’s wife.

At that time, Lin Chong’an was not young anymore, almost fifty years old. At that age, having a girl in her twenties would at most be nothing more than a shameful romantic affair.

Unexpectedly, Lin Chong’an truly loved Fu Meng and insisted on divorcing his wife.

His wife, of course, couldn’t agree to it and immediately caused a scene at the company, sending evidence of Lin Chong’an’s infidelity to every department’s external email address. This matter caused quite a stir. Although Lin Chong’an tried his best to protect Fu Meng, there were many rumors circulating at the time, and competitors took advantage of this opportunity to launch a relentless attack on Lin Chong’an.

Xin Xin had no idea about the stories behind this; her mouth was so wide an egg could be slipped into it. She asked, “Back then, I wonder if Zhao Xi and Fu Meng were married yet then.”

Mary gave Xin Xin a meaningful look. “I heard that Zhao Xi married Fu Meng because of this incident.”