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Inside the café, sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows onto Hu Manli's latte. She gently stirred the latte art on the surface with a small silver spoon, her gaze occasionally drifting towards the door.

When Li Qingqing appeared at the door in ten-centimeter high heels, Hu Manli immediately put on a perfect professional smile.

Li Qingqing walked over quickly, her Chanel suit gleaming subtly in the sunlight: "Manli, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, the board meeting just ended."

She placed her Birkin bag beside her chair and snapped her fingers at the waiter, "One Geisha pour-over, no sugar."

"Okay! Please wait a moment."

Hu Manli pushed the folder she had prepared to the other side: "Mr. Li, you're too kind. I just arrived too."

Li Qingqing raised her eyebrows slightly and said with emotion, "I've heard about what happened to you! I didn't expect President Jin to be so ruthless towards you."

"Chen Fang got photos of our private conversations, and then President Jin assumed that I was determined to betray him."

"Strange! How did Chen Fang know that?"

"It's obvious that Mr. Li has his informants around him."

"..." At this moment, Li Qingqing showed a thoughtful expression.

"Mr. Li, I've been blacklisted by the industry for two years now, and I hope you can lend me a hand."

"What do you want me to do?"

“I have the connections and experience I’ve accumulated over the past ten years, and I’m ready to collaborate with a newcomer.”

“Good idea! Newcomers have industry entry requirements, while you, an experienced person, have resources.”

“I selected Su Ning, a newcomer to Lanyang Insurance. Although she was new to insurance sales, she had already secured five million yuan in policies within a month.”

"Oh? That's amazing?"

"But I made one request to him, which was to switch to your Taiying International."

"why?"

"Because I know I can never go back to Blue Ocean Insurance, I might as well prepare to join Taiying International."

"I understand what you mean! But what resources does this young man named Su Ning have?"

"He had no resources whatsoever! A complete newbie! The only reason he was able to secure such a large insurance policy was because of his good image and his ability to get things done."

"Oh?"

At that moment, the waiter brought coffee, and the two fell silent.

Li Qingqing slowly poured light cream into the coffee, creating a perfect swirl.

Li Qingqing suddenly said thoughtfully, "Since you think so highly of this Su Ning, then call him out so I can meet him."

"Okay! I'll call him now."

At this moment, Hu Manli quickly sent a WeChat message to Suning.

Fifteen minutes later, a young man wearing a dark gray three-piece suit appeared in the coffee shop.

His tall and handsome appearance is indeed very eye-catching, and Li Qingqing was immediately impressed when she first saw Suning.

However, when Su Ning approached the table, she gave a slight greeting: "Hello, Mr. Li! I am Su Ning."

"sit."

"Thank you."

Then Li Qingqing scrutinized Su Ning with a critical look: "I heard from Manli that you have a very good relationship with General Manager Li of Yating Clothing?"

Suning accepted the offer with a smile without any hesitation, saying, "It's alright! Ms. Li from Yating is my first client, and she's usually quite supportive of my work."

"Do you have any objections to Manli arranging for you to join Taiying International?" Li Qingqing asked again, seemingly unconcerned.

At this moment, Li Qingqing exchanged a glance with Hu Manli and suddenly smiled: "Manli, you always manage to surprise me. Su Ning is indeed a very good young man."

Immediately afterwards, Li Qingqing extended her hand to Suning in front of her, "Report to the HR director next Monday and start as a level three salesperson."

"Thank you, Mr. Li."

At this moment, Hu Manli clenched her fist under the table: "President Li, what about Suning's salary structure..."

Li Qingqing interrupted her dismissively, "The base salary is based on the standards for mid-level management, with a 10% increase in performance-based bonuses."

She finished signing her name with a flourish, then said, "As for you..."

Suddenly, he tore off a check and handed it to Hu Manli, saying, "This is an advance payment for consulting fees. Once your industry ban period is over, we'll reserve the position of VP of Sales for you."

Hu Manli glanced at the astonishing figure on the check, but remained outwardly calm: "President Li is generous."

Then Li Qingqing looked meaningfully at Hu Manli and said, "Manli, take good care of Su Ning! Taiying International and I will not treat you unfairly, and we will not be jealous of your talent like Jin Zhenhua."

"Yes, Mr. Li."

The coffee cup made a crisp sound as it collided with the porcelain plate.

The sunlight shifted a few degrees, shining on the check in the middle of the three people, reflecting a captivating luster.

……

Chen Fang took advantage of Xue Xiaozhou's naivety to fire Hu Manli, which naturally made Xue Xiaozhou feel very wronged.

Then, in a childish move, he went to complain to Jin Zhenhua, only to be turned around and accused by Chen Fang and Jin Zhenhua. In a fit of pique, Xue Xiaozhou resigned and left Lanyang Insurance Company.

Meanwhile, Taiying International Insurance Company, which was in the process of expansion, was recruiting talents, and Xue Xiaozhou successfully joined this up-and-coming insurance company.

The main reason is that the insurance industry is too lucrative; it's truly an inexhaustible gold mine.

Therefore, the insurance companies ten years ago were quite diverse. With the progress and development of the times, more and more people are accepting this financial management model.

Xue Xiaozhou stood in front of the bright glass doors of Taiying International Insurance Company and took a deep breath.

The early spring sunlight streamed through the glass, illuminating his slightly tired face and revealing a pair of bloodshot but still determined eyes.

He raised his hand to straighten his casual clothes, mainly because he was not used to wearing formal suits.

"New here?" The receptionist at Taiying International glanced up at him, her gaze lingering on his rather ordinary casual clothes for a second.

"Yes! I'm Xue Xiaozhou, and this is my first day reporting for duty." He tried to force a confident smile, but felt his lips were a little stiff.

The receptionist handed him a temporary access card: "22nd floor, Manager Tang Ling's team."

"Thank you."

As the elevator ascended, Xue Xiaozhou's thoughts involuntarily drifted back to his last day at Lanyang Insurance two weeks ago.

Chen Fang's fake smile, Jin Zhenhua's indifferent response, and the way Hu Manli looked at him when she left—it was as if she were looking at a biting wild dog.

His fists clenched slightly at his sides, his knuckles turning white.

With a "ding," the elevator doors opened.

The air was filled with the noise of telephones, keyboards, and conversations.

Taiying International's sales office area was even more bustling than he had imagined. More than twenty salespeople in suits were working like they were on steroids, and the electronic screen on the wall was displaying everyone's performance rankings in real time.

"Are you Xue Xiaozhou?" A sharp female voice came from behind.

Xue Xiaozhou turned around and saw a woman in her forties with exquisite makeup scrutinizing him.

She was wearing a well-tailored dark blue suit with a name tag that read "Tang Ling, Sales Manager" pinned to her chest.

"Hello Manager Tang, I'm Xue Xiaozhou."

"Come with me." Tang Ling interrupted his self-introduction, her high heels clicking rapidly on the floor.

Xue Xiaozhou quickly followed, feeling the curious gazes cast around him.

They walked through the entire office area and finally stopped in front of a small table right next to the printer. It wasn't even a workstation; it was just a table squeezed into the aisle, next to the passageway to the tea room and restrooms.

“The company is short on workstations right now, so please make do here for now.” Tang Ling’s tone left no room for argument. “HR will email you your employee ID and document package. Our team has a morning meeting at 8:30 every day. Being late once will result in a 50 RMB deduction, twice will result in a 100 RMB deduction, and three times will mean you’re fired.”

Xue Xiaozhou opened his mouth, but said nothing.

He noticed several salespeople snickering nearby, one of whom, a young man with dyed yellow hair, deliberately mouthed "bad luck."

"Oh, right," Tang Ling added before turning around, "Company policy stipulates that new employees must close a deal in their first month, otherwise their probation period will end. I've seen your resume; you're an 'Outstanding Employee' in Lanyang Insurance's claims department. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"

A sarcastic smile curled at the corners of her lips.

Xue Xiaozhou felt a rush of heat to her cheeks.

He knew what Tang Ling was implying. During his months working at Lanyang, he knew almost nothing about insurance sales in the claims department.

"I will try my best, Manager Tang."

Tang Ling snorted and then left in her high heels, looking just like a proud rooster.

Xue Xiaozhou slowly put down his briefcase and looked around.

His "workstation" lacked even the most basic privacy; everyone going to the tea room or restroom would pass by him.

The printer hummed, and hot air kept blowing onto his back.

"Hey, newbie!" The blond young man walked over and plopped down on the corner of his desk. "I heard you were kicked out of Lanyang Insurance?"

Xue Xiaozhou raised her head: "I resigned normally."

"Come on," the blond-haired man said in a low voice, "It's already spread throughout the circle that you helped Chen Fang get rid of Hu Manli, and then you turned your back on him. Boss Tang hates people like that who betray their promises the most."

Xue Xiaozhou felt a sharp pain in her stomach.

He wanted to explain, to speak the truth out loud: Chen Fang had clearly used him, and he had no idea that the document would lead to Hu Manli's dismissal.

But when the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back.

Nobody here will believe him.

"My name is Yang Yang!" The blond-haired man suddenly stretched out his hand. "The worst performer in the team. Welcome to hell."

Xue Xiaozhou hesitated for a moment, then grasped that hand.

For the next few days, Xue Xiaozhou felt like she was trapped in a nightmare.

Every morning, he has to arrive at the company half an hour early because his "workstation" is filled with clutter by the night shift cleaners.

During the morning meeting, Tang Ling would review the previous day's performance in front of everyone, and his name was always associated with "zero performance".

"Xue Xiaozhou, another zero," Tang Ling's voice echoed in the conference room. "It seems that Lanyang Insurance's outstanding employees are not adapting well to our environment."

A few soft laughs rang out in the conference room.

Xue Xiaozhou lowered her head, her nails digging deeply into her palms.

He could feel the sympathetic look Yang Yang was giving him, but it only made him feel worse.

After getting off work, Xue Xiaozhou did not go straight home.

He carried his briefcase and wandered aimlessly through the city's business district, trying to sell insurance to everyone who looked like a potential customer.

Office buildings, coffee shops, shopping malls...

He tried almost everywhere, but all he got were cold shakes of the head and perfunctory "I'll think about it some more."

“Sir, we really don’t need insurance.” A bank manager in a suit refused him for the third time.

Xue Xiaozhou stood at the bank entrance, looking at his reflection in the glass door.

His tie was askew, his hair was a mess from the wind, and he had obvious dark circles under his eyes.

He suddenly felt like laughing. Was this the same spirited insurance star he had been three years ago?
My phone vibrated; it was a message from Wu Ya: "What time are you coming back? I'm hungry."

Xue Xiaozhou glanced at his watch; it was already 8:30 PM.

He replied hastily, "I'll bring you a cake right away."

He turned into a high-end dessert shop and chose Wu Ya's favorite Black Forest cake.

At the cashier, he hesitated for a moment looking at the price tag—98 yuan, which was equivalent to his total transportation and lunch expenses for the day.

But thinking that Wu Ya might be happy about it, he gritted his teeth and paid the bill.

"Thank you for coming!" The cashier smiled and handed over the beautifully packaged cake box.

Xue Xiaozhou forced a smile.

At least someone smiled at him, even if it was just because of a purchase.

……

Ding Zhiyuan rarely drives his son Ding Daer to pick him up from school, and he even takes him out to eat with his mistress Qiu Lisu.

Dingdaer returned home very late, and Hu Manli learned that Qiu Lisu not only ate with them, but also bought Dingdaer a game console.

So, an enraged Hu Manli was yelling into her phone, "Ding Zhiyuan, what do you mean? You're letting that woman buy a game console for Daer?"

Ding Zhiyuan's tired voice came from the other end of the phone: "Manli, it's just a meal. Qiu Lisu is an editor at the publishing house, and we're discussing a new book."

"Do I need to bring Dar along when we're discussing business? Do I need to give her a game console worth thousands of dollars?" Hu Manli's voice trembled with anger. "Do you know who she is? She's keeping a lover on the side and made me lose my job!"

"What little man? Manli, can you stop talking nonsense?"

"Hmph! A little puppy named Xue Xiaozhou!" Hu Manli almost shouted. "She used that kid to get close to me, not only spying on my client information, but also secretly reporting me to the leaders, which caused me to be fired by Lanyang Insurance."

She suddenly stopped, realizing she had let something slip.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone: "So you were fired because of your own mistake?"

"What does this have to do with you?" Hu Manli's face turned pale instantly.

She hurriedly hung up the phone and turned around to find Tyndall standing at the bedroom door, holding the brand-new game console in his hands.

"Mom, did you and Dad have another fight?" The fourteen-year-old boy asked, frowning.

Hu Manli took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down: "Dar, give the game console back to Aunt Qiu, okay? Mom has signed you up for the ski winter camp you've always wanted to go to."

"I don't want winter camp!" Tyndall suddenly raised his voice. "I just want this game console! Why are you always like this? You even interfere when Dad takes me out to eat!"

Hu Manli felt a wave of dizziness.

The pressure of unemployment, the crisis in her marriage, and her son's rebellion all weighed on her at once.

She reached out to grab her son, but he dodged her.

“Dal…”

“I’ll have Dad come home for dinner tomorrow,” Tyndall said, fiddling with his phone. “You two should have a good talk.”

Hu Manli gave a wry smile: "There's no need."

She watched her son slam the door and enter the bedroom, then slumped helplessly onto the sofa.

The phone screen lit up with a message from Li Qingqing: "The arrangements at Suning are all set. I'll be starting next week."

This is the only good news today.

Hu Manli closed her eyes, recalling Li Qingqing's evaluation of Suning in the coffee shop.

……

(End of this chapter)