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At 4 p.m., Suning sent a carefully prepared Excel spreadsheet to Zhao Zhiqiang's email address.

The list contains fifty names, contact information, and brief notes, forty-five of which are "shared resources" provided by Liu Na.

Of course, these so-called potential customers are unlikely to be high-quality resources; if they were, they wouldn't have been given away to Suning for such a small amount.

However, these fifty players just meet Suning's current needs, at least they don't have to be kicked out by team leader Zhao Zhiqiang.

"Not bad, you've got it done pretty quickly." Zhao Zhiqiang glanced at the printed list and circled a few names. "We can contact these first. They just bought basic insurance last month, and their renewal period is approaching."

"Yes! Team leader."

Su Ning nodded and noted it down, but her mind was already on the dinner party that evening.

Liu Na's message was concise: "Seven o'clock, Banyan Tree, dress smartly."

Before leaving get off work, Liu Na slid over to him on her chair and handed him a paper bag: "Change into this! Your suit is too formal; it's not suitable for tonight's occasion."

Inside the paper bag was a dark blue casual shirt and a pair of slim-fit trousers.

In the dressing room, Su Ning looked at herself in the mirror. The shirt perfectly outlined her shoulder line, and the two unbuttoned buttons revealed her collarbone.

This outfit falls somewhere between formal and casual, carrying a subtle, understated hint.

“Perfect.” Liu Na whistled and handed him a bottle of cologne. “Just a little bit, not too much. Remember, tonight you’re my cousin, a recent college graduate, innocent, ambitious, and passionate about the insurance industry.”

"clear."

The Banyan Tree's private rooms were dimly lit, with abstract oil paintings hanging on the walls.

Two people were already seated around the round table. One was a woman in her early forties, wearing a Chanel suit, with a Patek Philippe on her wrist gleaming coldly under the light; the other was younger and was pouring tea for her, clearly an assistant or secretary.

"President Li, this is my cousin, Su Ning, a high-achieving student who just joined our company." Liu Na's voice was eight degrees sweeter than during the day.

"clear."

Mr. Li's gaze swept over Su Ning from head to toe like an X-ray, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly: "Not bad! Little Su, come and sit next to me."

She patted the empty seat next to her.

The next two hours were a meticulously planned performance.

Liu Na was responsible for introducing the new products, while Suning was asked to "briefly explain the insurance concept".

Whenever he got to a technical point, Mr. Li would "casually" place his hand on his arm; when he looked down to eat, he could feel something gently brushing against his calf under the table.

"Young people have potential." After signing a simple insurance policy, General Manager Li stuffed a business card into Suning's shirt pocket, his fingertips seemingly casually tracing across his chest. "Xiao Su, I'm having a girls' get-together next month. Could you come and talk to us about financial planning?"

"Okay, Mr. Li."

"Don't call me General Manager Li! Call me Sister Li."

"Miss Li."

On the taxi ride home, Liu Na counted the zeros on the check: "Three hundred thousand in premiums, that's enough for you to pass your probation period. Mr. Li is a VIP client of our Lanyang Insurance Company, and his annual premiums are at least around two million."

Then she glanced at Su Ning and said, "What? You're not happy? I didn't actually ask you to sleep with me."

"No! I was just thinking that insurance should be a respectable job." Su Ning rolled down the car window, letting the night breeze dispel the scent of her perfume.

"Ha!" Liu Na laughed so hard she almost fell over. "Do you know why ordinary people hate insurance salespeople? Because 90% of them, besides being persistent and using their bodies, don't understand what real insurance planning is at all."

"Then what we're doing now isn't completely pointless?"

"You're wrong! You didn't understand what I meant. In addition to understanding the insurance business, you also need to make good use of your own resources."

"Sigh! I used to dislike insurance salespeople, I never thought I would become one of them one day."

"Just get used to it."

"Thank you for today! I'll treat you to a big meal later."

"It's a deal! Once you close a deal on your own merits, you have to treat me to a big meal."

"no problem."

The next morning, Su Ning stood at the matchmaking corner of People's Park, holding a stack of flyers in her hand.

The surrounding area was plastered with marriage advertisements: "Master's degree from a 985 university, owns a house in Jing'an," "Chinese American, seeking a gentle and virtuous wife"...

"How old are you, young man? What do you do for a living?" an auntie asked him warmly.

"22 years old, working as a financial planner at Lanyang Insurance." Su Ning smiled professionally.

The auntie recoiled as if she'd been electrocuted: "Oh? An insurance salesman!"

Then she turned and left, as if avoiding a plague.

The same scene repeated itself seven times throughout the morning.

Occasionally, people are attracted by his appearance, but their expressions change immediately upon hearing the word "insurance".

Around noon, an elderly man dressed in Tai Chi uniform kindly told him, "Young man, try a different approach. Don't say 'selling insurance,' say 'financial planning' or 'asset protection,' understand?"

"Uh? Thanks for the tip, sir! Would you like to learn about insurance products?"

"Huh? Did someone just call me?"

"Have it?"

"It really is! Looks like my kid is calling me home for dinner."

"Grandpa, don't worry! You can take some flyers back to learn more. Insurance isn't the scam industry that everyone thinks it is."

"Okay! I'll go back and take a look." The old man accepted the flyer with a perfunctory expression.

"Thank you for your support, sir! This is my business card. Please feel free to call me if you have any questions."

"well."

The old man had only been gone a short while with the flyers and business cards when he casually stuffed them into the trash can.

Su Ning, who noticed the old man's actions, felt helpless and realized that this job was really challenging.

At the departmental meeting in the afternoon, Zhao Zhiqiang announced: "Manager Hu will be coming from the Jiangcheng branch next week to share his experience. Everyone must attend; no leave is allowed."

The meeting room immediately erupted in commotion.

At this moment, Su Ning's eyes lit up, after all, Hu Manli was the female lead in "A Good Life".

What impressed me most about her was her courage to defend her marriage and her constant efforts to save it.

Of course, a man destined to change his mind cannot have passion, but Hu Manli's performance still impressed Su Ning.

At this moment, Liu Na whispered to Su Ning, "Hu Manli is a legend at our Lanyang Insurance Company. She has sold 300 million yuan in premiums over 20 years. Last year, she insisted on getting the client to cancel the signed contract for an 8 million yuan annuity insurance policy, even though the client originally wanted to buy from a competitor."

"How did you do that?" Su Ning asked curiously.

Liu Na smiled mysteriously: "It's said that the client's son had an accident in the United States, and she contacted the best lawyer there overnight. Of course, some people also say..." She suddenly stopped talking because Zhao Zhiqiang was staring coldly at them.

You should know that these rumors are all slanders against the strong. In this industry, performance is always the only true measure of success.

Three days later, Suning met the legendary Hu Manli for the first time in the elevator.

She was around forty years old, wearing a Hermès suit, her hair neatly styled up, and a Cartier bracelet jingling on her wrist.

Surprisingly, a short man in a plaid shirt was standing next to her, carrying a thick file bag.

"Xue Xiaozhou, from the claims department." The man nodded to Su Ning, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

“Suning, salesperson from the Eagle Team.”

"Just arrived?"

"Yes! I just joined Lanyang Insurance a few days ago."

As for Hu Manli, she didn't even glance at them. Instead, she fixed her hair in front of the elevator mirror and said, "President Jin told you to follow me, so learn properly. All those rules and regulations about claims are nothing compared to a real big deal."

"Yes, Manager Hu."

The sharing session was held in the large conference room, which was packed to capacity.

Hu Manli's first slide of the PPT was stunning—accumulated premiums of 3.2 million yuan over twenty years, a customer renewal rate of 98%, and the highest single premium of 800 million yuan.

"Insurance doesn't sell products, it sells humanity." The female protagonist, Hu Manli, spoke with a strong and powerful voice, and the agents present seemed to be injected with energy. "Do you know what customers are most afraid of? It's not death, but dying without meaning; it's not illness, but being sick and having no one to care for them. I receive a handwritten card for every customer's birthday, I help their children get into schools, and I arrange appointments with specialists for their elderly relatives when they are sick."

During the Q&A session, Suning raised his hand and asked, "Manager Hu, how can a newcomer with no resources acquire their first batch of customers?"

Hu Manli looked at him properly for the first time: "Going door to door, going to the street, going to matchmaking corners, all newlyweds go through this process."

She paused for a moment and then continued, "Of course, if you can get to know a client like Mr. Li, that's a different story."

A knowing laugh rippled through the conference room, and Su Ning realized that what happened that night was no secret at all within Lanyang Insurance.

Of course, Suning, who had long been accustomed to great storms, did not feel too embarrassed. After all, when humans are insignificant, their self-esteem is the most insignificant thing.

After the sharing session, Suning saw Hu Manli hurrying towards the parking lot, where a yellow Cadillac was parked.

The man in the driver's seat was wearing gold-rimmed glasses and reading a philosophy book.

“That’s her husband, a professor at Donghua University.” Liu Na appeared behind her at some point. “I heard that Director Hu is currently running for some industry award and even invited reporters to his home for an interview.”

"Sister Na, isn't it impolite of you to tell your colleagues about what happened that night?"

"Does it matter? You, a newcomer, landed a big deal on your very first day. Do you really think your other colleagues are fools?"

“Their speculation is one thing! But your leak is another, Sister Na. I don’t want this to happen again.”

"What? Are you angry?"

“Sister Na, we are colleagues, and we will definitely have more and more cooperation in the future. If you can’t keep the secret, it could cause a lot of trouble.”

"I understand! I was wrong! I formally apologize to you."

……

Hu Manli was exceptionally selected as a candidate for this year's Nanyang Star Award in the insurance industry, which is the highest honor for insurance agents. A reporter from the popular "Business New Power" website came to her home for an exclusive interview.

Hu Manli deliberately turned her best side towards the camera, and she talked at length about her achievements over the past twenty years in the industry, showing off her trophies one by one.

After the interview, Hu Manli wanted to say a few words to her son through the camera. Her son, Dingdaer, is thirteen years old and attends a top bilingual school in Shanghai.

That evening, Suning saw the interview on the "New Forces in Business" website.

Hu Manli in the video is radiant, displaying a wall full of trophies.

When the camera panned to the study, a detail caught her attention: when her husband, Ding Zhiyuan, was recognized by reporters as a popular online philosophy lecturer, Hu Manli's face showed a hint of unease.

Even more subtly, when the reporter was looking through the bookshelf, something fell out of the books.

Hu Manli's quick action of stuffing it back in was unintentionally captured by the camera.

The next day at noon, Suning met Xue Xiaozhou from the claims department in the cafeteria.

The timid-looking young man sat alone in the corner, with a thick stack of documents spread out in front of him.

"Are these all Director Hu's insurance policies?" Su Ning sat down opposite him.

Xue Xiaozhou hurriedly closed the document: "Routine inspection... requested by General Manager Jin."

He pushed up his glasses. "Are you new to Suning? Mr. Li handled that deal brilliantly."

"Have you heard of General Manager Li?"

“I handle all the claims for major clients of Lanyang Insurance Company.” Xue Xiaozhou’s voice was still very soft, but it carried a strange certainty. “Last year, her hospitalization claim stated ‘lumbar disc herniation’ on the medical record, but she actually had buttock augmentation surgery.”

Just as Su Ning was about to ask further questions, her phone suddenly rang.

It's Liu Na.

"Get back to your office quickly! Team Leader Zhao wants to see you. He says General Manager Li has introduced a new client!"

After hanging up the phone, Xue Xiaozhou had already packed up her documents and was ready to leave.

Before leaving, he said meaningfully, "The more glamorous the industry appears on the surface, the more fascinating it is behind the scenes."

Back at her desk, Su Ning found a beautifully packaged box of chocolates with a card that read: "A small cocktail party at my house tonight at 7 pm. Looking forward to your financial advice. — Li"

Underneath the box of chocolates was a Hyatt Hotel room key.

"My grass!"

At this moment, Suning really didn't know what to say. He never thought that he would become so insignificant one day.

Of course, this is the real world for ordinary people, where everyone is doing their best to survive.

Of course, sometimes such efforts seem ridiculous to some people. Suning used to think the same way, but only today has he truly experienced the misery of ordinary people.

Liu Na, worried that Su Ning might not be able to accept it, advised her, "Su Ning, this is a rare opportunity! I hope you can seize it."

"Sister Na, what will happen if I refuse?" Su Ning asked thoughtfully.

"The consequence was leaving Lanyang Insurance within three months, and then becoming utterly dejected, like a drowned rat."

"..."

Suning didn't foolishly ask Liu Na what compromises she had made, after all, Liu Na's success and performance had already spoken for themselves.

This is also the fundamental reason why Liu Na was willing to get close to Su Ning; she didn't detect a trace of disgust in Su Ning's eyes.

...(End of chapter)