Rebirth of the Rich Second Generation's Growth Diary

Chapter 189 The first confrontation
Huang Lingling, who was able to become the president's secretary, was certainly not an idiot.

Although she had only worked for a short time and was not very familiar with many of the unspoken rules of society, she had managed to seize opportunities and rise from a salesperson to become the president's secretary. Her ability to read people and her emotional intelligence were certainly not weak.

Although she wasn't very involved in political infighting—in fact, she had only been Liu Guoqing's secretary for a few months, so she didn't know much inside information—rumors were still circulating. And given that large companies like this inevitably have many unseen power struggles, she had long been on her guard.

She led the way, with Li Xu following behind, but Huang Lingling's heart was heavy. She realized she had made a grave mistake. When Liu Guoqing called her, she was in Xu Liang's office. Logically, as the president's secretary, she should have been constantly by his side, even though he was about to be transferred. And yet, at such a sensitive moment, she was in Xu Liang's office.

What Liu Guoqing thinks is unimportant; the key question is how the newly appointed President Li views him. Will he assume he has a close relationship with Xu Liang? For a president of this caliber, the secretary is directly involved in their work, often arranging their schedules. The secretary is fully aware of their every move. If Liu Guoqing misunderstands this as a close relationship with Vice President Xu Liang, how will he feel?
Thinking about this, Huang Lingling was extremely annoyed and was hesitating whether to explain to Li Xu. But then she thought that the more she explained, the more complicated things would become, and the more she would appear to be trying to cover up the truth, so she held back.

At this moment, Li Xu spoke first: "How long have you been Liu Guoqing's secretary?" Hearing this question, Huang Lingling was stunned for a moment, and quickly replied: "Not long, less than three months at most. I was at the front desk before."

Li Xu nodded and smiled, saying, "I heard from General Manager Liu that you are very meticulous and able to notice details that others might miss." After a pause, Li Xu asked again, "Do you like the job of a secretary?"

Huang Lingling's eyes flickered, not understanding why Li Xu asked that, but she still honestly said, "I like being a secretary." Of course, what she didn't say was that she liked being a secretary in comparison to being a receptionist; if she could be a department manager, she would still be willing to be a manager.

Li Xu casually said, "You're more familiar with the work, so you can continue being my secretary." Huang Lingling's heart skipped a beat; it seemed she had been overthinking things.

Seeing that Huang Lingling didn't respond, Li Xu asked again, "Why don't you want to?"

Huang Lingling nodded and shook her head repeatedly: "I, I, I'm willing, of course I'm willing!"

As they spoke, the two arrived at Xu Liang's office. Standing at the door, Huang Lingling stopped and knocked. After hearing Xu Liang say "Come in," Huang Lingling respectfully opened the door for Li Xu, but made no move to go in herself.

Li Xu entered the office and, seeing that Huang Lingling had no intention of coming in, said, "It's alright, come in with me." Seeing this, Huang Lingling hesitated for a moment before following him in.

Huang Lingling was actually very reluctant to face Xu Liang. She didn't know why, but every time she was in contact with Xu Liang, she would feel particularly nervous. She always felt that Xu Liang's eyes could see right through her, while when she looked at Xu Liang, it was like looking into a fog; you could never guess what he was thinking.

In particular, Xu Liang often looked at him with a half-smile, and his words always carried a hint of mockery. That feeling was especially uncomfortable, as if Xu Liang was always thinking about him, wondering if there was any way he could use him.

Entering the workforce, socializing is truly an unpleasant experience, but if you keep a simple mindset, things will be easier. In comparison, every leader who faces Xu Liang directly must actually feel even more uncomfortable.

Huang Lingling had met many middle-level managers, and those department managers would appear very relaxed and natural when facing President Liu, but would be particularly reserved when facing Xu Liang. Xu Liang always had that same smiling expression, yet it made every manager who faced him feel like they were sitting on pins and needles.

On one occasion, she overheard Liu Guoqing say, "I really don't want to deal with Xu Liang." She wondered if President Li felt the same way when facing Xu Liang. She suddenly realized that this young master of the group was still just a university student.

Just as Huang Lingling was lost in thought, Xu Liang stood up and took the initiative to shake hands with Li Xu. His face beamed with a seemingly sincere and enthusiastic smile as he said, "President Li, I've been eagerly awaiting your arrival! I've heard that President Liu was promoted and that the group was going to send us a leader with exceptional abilities in all aspects. I never expected the chairman to send you! We really need a young and intelligent talent like you!"

Looking at Xu Liang's smiling face, Li Xu said modestly, "You flatter me too much. I've long heard that you are exceptionally capable and have taken on a lot of work for you, Mr. Liu. There are even rumors that the company can function without Mr. Liu, but it can't function without you."

Hearing this, Xu Liang's expression changed slightly. Without showing any emotion, he invited Li Xu to sit down, poured him a cup of tea, and then changed the subject: "People in the group company always like to gossip, haha, don't mind them. You see, this is your first time here, so I should show you around the branch office. However, I have some things to do later. How about we have dinner together tonight? I'll invite all the middle managers." Li Xu chuckled and shook his head, saying, "Tonight? Forget about tonight, I have something to do too. How about tomorrow? I'll treat you tomorrow." Li Xu's tone was unquestionable.

Xu Liang's eyes flickered, and he was about to say something when Li Xu added, "Oh, right, besides the middle management, call everyone in the marketing department as well. In our company, apart from the big shots in the group's R&D department, the sales team is the most important."

Xu Liang fell even more silent. At this moment, Li Xu turned his gaze to Huang Lingling beside him and said, "Lingling, help me count the approximate number of people, and then book a nice restaurant for Chinese food." Huang Lingling was taken aback for a moment, then quickly nodded, "Okay."

Xu Liang didn't speak, but many thoughts were already flashing through his mind. Li Xu said again, "Mr. Xu, you're still busy, so you go ahead and do your work. I'll go and get busy for a bit too. I'm still getting used to many things here. See you tomorrow." Xu Liang could only nod.

Li Xu led Huang Lingling out of Xu Liang's office and said, "Huang Lingling, take me for a walk around the company." Huang Lingling nodded, somewhat bewildered, "Okay."

As Huang Lingling entered the elevator, she glanced at Li Xu again. Beneath his calm, seemingly gentle exterior lay a depth as unfathomable as the ocean. This new CEO, Li, wasn't intimidating, but Huang Lingling inexplicably felt that he possessed a more commanding presence than Xu Liang.

After hesitating for a moment, Huang Lingling whispered, "Mr. Li, what do you need this afternoon?" She originally wanted to ask if there was anything she could help with, since she was going to be Li Xu's secretary, and she should be the first to try to curry favor with him.

Li Xu looked down at Huang Lingling and smiled: "I just arrived in Jindong City and I'm not very familiar with this place yet. Are there any fun places nearby, or landmark buildings, that I'd like to visit?"

Huang Lingling was stunned for a moment, then blurted out, "It's...it's just this?" Li Xu nodded seriously, "Isn't this a big deal?"

Huang Lingling was at a loss for words to express her feelings. Compared to Xu Liang's dinner party, this matter was incomparable. She had actually refused Xu Liang's arrangement for such an absurd reason.

But a moment later, Huang Lingling suddenly realized something: why was Xu Liang's arrangement more important? She realized that Xu Liang was just a vice president, and even if he were to arrange a dinner, he should prioritize Li Xu's schedule.

But when I was discussing this with Li Xu just now, it wasn't a report or a discussion; it was more like a notification. Not only was the time specified, but the people involved were also determined. What's even more absurd is that, as Li Xu's secretary, I didn't realize there was anything wrong with it.

Had Xu Liang's position in the company actually reached this level without anyone noticing? Thinking about it this way, Li Xu's arrangements became quite intriguing. Li Xu not only rejected tonight's dinner invitation but also directly set the date for tomorrow, adding the sales team to the original lineup. Furthermore, his tone wasn't one of discussion but rather a notification.

After going through these details in her mind, Huang Lingling suddenly realized that in just a few minutes, the new young president seemed to have already completed an invisible confrontation with Vice President Xu Liang.

After figuring out the whole story, Huang Lingling was secretly alarmed. She looked up at Li Xu again; his expression remained gentle, and his face carried the humility and intelligence characteristic of young people.

Suddenly, Huang Lingling asked, almost as if possessed, "President Li, what if Vice President Xu had refused just now?"

Li Xu looked at Huang Lingling with a half-smile and said, "What could he possibly have that's more important than my arrangements?"

Huang Lingling blinked. She couldn't help but think of President Liu, the older president who, though always appearing unassuming, was like a still, stagnant pool. Li Xu, on the other hand, gave her the feeling of an ocean with constantly rolling waves.

(End of this chapter)