Meanwhile, He Xiaoyuan spent the entire day running between Finance, HR, and PR.
He met several people: managers and supervisors from HR, supervisors in Finance, and the colleague from PR whom Lü had assigned to brief him.
He was rarely in the office, and when he finally sat down, he was glued to his computer, working with precision. Curious colleagues, Zou Fanping and Yuan Miao, peeked over.
He Xiaoyuan looked up briefly and replied: “I was reviewing Finance’s current core business.”
“Finance is downsizing, right?” Yuan Miao murmured. “But when I went there yesterday, the supervisors were vague. So you looked at their public reports from the past two years?”
He Xiaoyuan: “Yes. That’s how I inferred Finance is indeed shrinking.”
Zou Fanping asked: “Any staff reshuffles or departures? Yesterday in the elevator, HR mentioned that many people left or were reassigned this year.”
Everyone fell silent. He Xiaoyuan continued studying the data. Yuan Miao patted his shoulder: “Need help? Just say.”
But He Xiaoyuan didn’t need help. With HR coordinating and his own diligence, he gathered the information he needed.
So far, he confirmed:
- Finance is indeed downsizing; since Q3 last year, the whole department, even the company, has undergone major changes. Several business units were cut.
- The scope of Finance’s operations is smaller than he imagined and differs from his prior understanding—what he thought Finance was and what it actually is are quite different.
- His bias against PR came from preconceived notions and some hearsay during rotations—like staff drinking with clients late into the night or arguing with supervisors while hungover.
After learning more, he realized PR does involve client entertainment and business dinners, which he found off-putting. But he also discovered the department covers a very broad scope of business, touching high-level “ceiling” operations as Zhu Xuanmin had mentioned.
He Xiaoyuan, cautious, asked the PR colleague assigned by Lü to allow him to review relevant materials, even partially, to understand these high-level operations. The colleague found it inconvenient and lacking authority, so they sought Lü Shishi’s approval.
Lü Shishi was eager for He Xiaoyuan to truly see how impressive the PR department was. With a decisive gesture, she approved him to enter the PR archive room, strictly stipulating that he could only read the materials—no other actions allowed, especially no photos with a phone.
So He Xiaoyuan spent the entire afternoon in the archive, not even touching his phone. That explained why he hadn’t contacted Lu Chen all day.
To him, the archive was like a vast pond, and he was a fish swimming through it—an insider in a “Grand View Garden,” exploring everything with curiosity and awe. Every detail was fresh and fascinating, each discovery more astonishing than the last.
He quickly grasped that while the PR department naturally handled corporate image and client-facing tasks, it also participated in significant, even decision-level projects, such as company acquisitions. He was amazed: was this really allowed?
He carefully examined every related document, word by word, never missing a detail. Despite the complexity and volume of the business data, he found it engaging rather than dull.
For instance, one investment proposal had been repeatedly rejected by the project team, who deemed it unnecessary to fund. Yet the PR department had pushed back, sending the case back up for reconsideration, ultimately prompting a new investment review meeting. The subsequent equity negotiations were handled by the business department, reaching figures satisfactory to both the company and the investee.
While reviewing the investment files, He Xiaoyuan stumbled upon something amusing. He wasn’t sure how it had ended up in the archive, but it revealed a bit of the tug-of-war between the PR department and the project team.
It was a handwritten note by Lü Shishi on A4 paper:
“President Lu, just approve it, okay?!!!”
— Lü Shishi, flourish signature
Below it, in bold, strong handwriting:
“Not approved.”
— Lu
Then Lü’s note again:
“I demand a review meeting!!!”
— Lü
Fourth line:
“Go submit the request.”
— Lu
Fifth line:
“Peh!”
He Xiaoyuan laughed quietly. Lü was Lü Shishi, and could “Lu” really be Lu Chen? He guessed the final “Peh” was Lü Shishi’s addition, never sent to Lu Chen. He had always assumed executive correspondence was restrained and rational—apparently not always.
Immersed in the projects, he lost track of time. Only when the PR colleague came to knock on the door did he realize it was already evening, past dinner time.
“Not leaving yet?” the colleague asked, surprised he had stayed so long.
“Oh, right,” He Xiaoyuan replied, finally standing and carefully returning the documents, secretly reluctant to leave. He genuinely wanted to stay and continue exploring the project cases.
Even on the way back to the office, his mind lingered in the archive. The immersion in the project details had been exhilarating—he felt as if he were part of the PR and project team. When a project stalled, he felt tension; when progress occurred, he felt joy; when setbacks arose, he analyzed the cause; when a project succeeded, he celebrated.
It was like he had transformed. By the time he returned, he wasn’t thinking about PR or Finance departments at all—his mind was consumed by project cases, eager to dive back into the archive.
Stepping out of the elevator, he didn’t even notice Jiang Weiwei and the others waiting.
“Xiaoyuan,” Xin Rui called. He Xiaoyuan only responded absentmindedly: “Ah?”
Jiang Weiwei quickly said, “Xiaoyuan, the rotation in Group 2 ended. Qin Chengfei scored the same as you, 9.2.”
He Xiaoyuan seemed not to register the news, nodded lightly, and kept walking.
The girls were puzzled.
Jiang Weiwei wondered, “What’s his mindset?”
Xin Rui guessed, “All in?”
Jiang Weiwei shrugged: “No idea.”
Little did they know, He Xiaoyuan wasn’t chasing the 400,000-yuan bonus; he was now fixated on something far more compelling, leaving no attention for anything else.
He skipped dinner, went straight back to the office, poured water into the cup Lu Chen had given him, and sent a message:
【Lu Ge, could you let me see the project cases from the project team?】
A voice call immediately came through. He hurriedly put down the cup and answered:
“Hello, Lu Ge.”
Lu Chen’s tone was faint: “After a whole day of silence, now you remember me?”
He Xiaoyuan, setting the cup by his computer, replied in his straightforward, oblivious style: “I spent the day visiting Finance and PR, stayed the whole afternoon in the PR archive, just got back now.”
Lu Chen’s focus shifted slightly: “No meals?”
He Xiaoyuan paused, momentarily forgetting what else he wanted to say, then answered: “Haven’t eaten.”
Lu Chen’s words were simple and direct: “11th floor. Bring yourself.”
He Xiaoyuan instinctively glanced out the window. “Now?”
It was already past eight in the evening, and the sky was dark.
“Yeah. Now.”
He Xiaoyuan took the elevator up to the 11th floor, didn’t linger in the lobby, and walked straight down the corridor to the terrace. He found the light switch, flicked it on, and everything on the terrace became clear.
Lu Chen hadn’t arrived yet. He Xiaoyuan casually looked around and noticed the terrace had been tidied: the clutter in the corners was gone, the tiles were spotless, the iron table and chairs had been rearranged slightly inward, several potted plants lined the edge, and a long sofa had even been placed inside, next to a water dispenser.
?
He Xiaoyuan was surprised. Had Lu arranged this?
Before he could ponder further, the glass door behind him slid open.
He turned to see Lu Chen entering, carrying two cups of water and a bag.
“Lu Ge.”
This time he didn’t hesitate and greeted him immediately.
Lu Chen approached and nodded once. “Eat first.”
He placed the cups and the bag on the table, opened the bag, and revealed its contents—meal boxes.
He Xiaoyuan walked closer, realizing Lu Chen had brought him dinner, already sat down, and calmly unpacked a disposable pair of chopsticks, handing them to him.
He Xiaoyuan sat down, took the chopsticks, feeling a little embarrassed but also very touched that Lu had thought of him, knowing he hadn’t eaten.
“Thanks, Lu Ge.”
Lu Chen leaned back in his chair. “Eat.”
He Xiaoyuan opened the meal box and glanced up. “Have you eaten?”
Lu Chen nodded once, eyes resting on him, and repeated, “Eat.”
He Xiaoyuan lowered his gaze and quietly ate, chewing slowly and neatly.
Watching him, Lu Chen noticed his long, delicate eyelashes, casting soft shadows on his eyelids under the overhead light.
Is he too thin?
He Chen thought, recalling how he had been distracted during the afternoon meeting, briefly halting the discussion because of thoughts of the young man. He pursed his lips slightly.
He also realized He Xiaoyuan hadn’t contacted him all day because he had been absorbed in the PR archive. How much had he seen? How long had he stayed there to skip dinner?
Lu Chen waited until He Xiaoyuan had eaten half his meal before calmly asking, “You were in the PR department this afternoon, right? Why suddenly ask me for the project cases?”
He Xiaoyuan looked up, his clear, bright eyes meeting Lu’s, swallowed, and said, “I was in the PR archive this afternoon, saw a lot of cases involving both the PR department and the project team.”
“I could only read those there, couldn’t take them away. I didn’t know if I could get in tomorrow, so I thought I’d ask you if it was possible.”
He blinked, eyes shining with anticipation. “Is that okay, Lu Ge?”
Lu Chen gave a single, unambiguous answer: “Yes.”
He Xiaoyuan hadn’t expected such an easy response. His eyes lit up like a startled fawn. “Thank you, Lu Ge!” His voice bounced with excitement, and his whole demeanor brightened.
Lu Chen watched, expression neutral, yet he felt quietly pleased, affected by the young man’s enthusiasm.
He added casually, “How did you get interested in the project cases?”
He Xiaoyuan continued eating while explaining, “I’ve been learning about the Finance and PR departments the past two days. The PR department’s scope is wide, so I used their archive to explore more. While reading, I came across these cases.”
He added, “I found them really interesting, so I wanted to see if I could check out your copies too.”
Lu Chen calmly asked, “Not every project in the project team collaborates with PR. Do you want to see the ones that collaborated or all of them?”
He Xiaoyuan, nearly choking on his food, quickly replied, “All of them, all of them. Not only the ones with PR.”
Lu Chen nodded slowly. “So you’re genuinely interested in the project cases.”
He Xiaoyuan nodded without hesitation. “I spent the whole afternoon. They’re fascinating.”
Lu Chen studied him. “What’s so interesting?”
He Xiaoyuan, ignoring his meal, set down his chopsticks and said without thinking, “Everything.”
He elaborated: “For example, in the review meetings, the minutes detail how everyone evaluates a case—the strengths, weaknesses, and issues…”
Even though he was slightly cautious in front of Lu Chen and usually reserved, when talking about projects, He Xiaoyuan became animated and articulate.
His face lit up with energy, his eyes sparkling as if discussing his favorite subject.
Lu Chen listened quietly, occasionally prompting or guiding the conversation, but mostly letting him speak.
By the time He Xiaoyuan had talked himself dry and drank a large sip of water, Lu Chen finally smiled and asked, “Since you’re so interested, want to join the project team?”