Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 625: Chapter 625: Buying Over

The Feng City night carried a hint of early autumn’s chill.

Old Wang rode a rather old electric scooter, humming a little tune as he leisurely made his way home.

He was a veteran employee of Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory, having worked as a warehouse manager for a full twenty years.

Around this time last year, the factory had been on the verge of bankruptcy. They couldn’t pay salaries, and Old Wang was so worried he was losing his hair by the handful.

His son had just graduated from a master’s program in Shanghai. He’d found a job, but the housing prices... they were enough to make anyone despair.

To save up for his son’s down payment, Old Wang and his wife scrimped and saved, even forgoing meat.

Back then, he had even been prepared to lose his job and start sweeping streets.

Who would have thought that the heavens would smile upon them and send Doctor Li?

Doctor Li not only saved the factory, but he also brought about a world of change to their lives.

Now, Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory was a major taxpayer in Feng City, and its employees walked with their heads held high.

Old Wang’s salary had tripled. Combined with quarterly and year-end bonuses, he finally had some spare cash on hand.

’At this rate, if we save for another year or two, we’ll have the down payment secured.’

Old Wang calculated happily.

His scooter turned into a small alley when a figure suddenly darted out in front of him.

"Whoa, careful there, Uncle!"

The man was dressed in a well-fitting suit and carried a briefcase. He looked refined and gentle.

Old Wang squeezed the brakes, eyeing the other man with some suspicion. "What do you want?"

"Uncle, you work at Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory, right?"

The man’s face was all smiles as he offered a Zhonghua cigarette. "I recognize that uniform. I wanted to ask you something—I heard our factory recently came out with a new shampoo?"

Old Wang’s heart skipped a beat.

As the warehouse manager, of course he knew about it.

The new shampoo had just been stocked in the warehouse and was classified as top secret by President Ding. Even veteran employees like him had been repeatedly warned to keep it confidential.

"Don’t know. Haven’t heard anything."

Old Wang waved his hand, pushing away the offered cigarette. He twisted the throttle, about to leave. "I just watch the gate. I don’t know anything about a shampoo."

The man didn’t get angry. He kept smiling and called out as he followed, "Uncle, don’t be in such a hurry to leave. I sincerely want to be friends with you. About this shampoo..."

Old Wang ignored him and sped away on his scooter.

When he got home, his wife had already made dinner.

As Old Wang ate, his mind was racing.

’Who was that guy?’

’How did he know about the shampoo?’

’It seems he’s up to no good.’

He thought for a moment. This was no small matter. He’d have to report it to the workshop director or President Ding at work tomorrow, just in case something went wrong.

Just as he was thinking this, a knock suddenly came from the door.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—

"Who is it?"

His wife went to open the door.

When the door opened, the man in the suit was actually standing there, holding several bags of gifts—liquor, cigarettes, and a few boxes of high-end nutritional supplements.

"Hello, Auntie. I’m a friend of Teacher Wang. I came specially to see him."

The man in the suit’s smile was dazzling.

His wife was a bit bewildered and looked back at Old Wang.

Old Wang’s face darkened. He stood up. "What are you doing? I don’t know you. Take your things and go."

But the man in the suit wasn’t the least bit embarrassed. He put the things down and walked into the room on his own. "Uncle, don’t be so quick to push people away. My name is Zhang Wei. I’m from... a headhunting firm. I’m a great admirer of your abilities in warehouse management and came specifically to pay you a visit."

"A headhunter?"

Old Wang laughed in exasperation. "Do you take me for a fool? I’m just an old man who watches a warehouse. What skills do I have that a headhunter would want to poach?"

Zhang Wei dropped the act. He pulled over a chair, sat down, and lowered his voice. "Let’s not beat around the bush. Uncle Wang, I know you’re a veteran at Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory and you hold the keys. Our boss is very interested in the new shampoo and would like to ask you... for a small favor."

"Out of the question."

Old Wang refused flatly. "I may be poor, but I’ve never done anything to betray my conscience in my life. President Ding has treated me well, and I can’t betray him. You should leave, or I’m calling the police."

Zhang Wei just smiled and held up one finger. "An annual salary of—one million."

"What?"

Old Wang’s hand, which had been about to shoo him away, froze in mid-air. He suspected he had misheard. "How much did you say?"

"One million. After taxes."

Zhang Wei’s tone was calm, as if he were discussing the price of cabbage for the day. "As long as you nod, you can join our company tomorrow as a warehouse consultant. No need to show up to an office; the salary will be paid regardless. And this is just the base salary. Bonuses are separate."

Old Wang’s heart constricted violently.

One million.

He couldn’t earn that much even if he worked at Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory for his entire life.

With this money, plus what he’d already saved, he could forget the down payment—he could buy his son a small two-bedroom apartment in Shanghai outright.

The words of refusal were stuck in his throat; he couldn’t get them out.

He looked at Zhang Wei’s faint, unreadable smile, knowing full well in his heart: ’Warehouse consultant, admiring my abilities—it’s all bullshit. This is hush money, the price for selling my conscience.’

’Should I agree?’

As he agonized over the decision, the phone on the table rang.

It was a video call from his son.

Old Wang hesitated for a moment before answering.

On the screen, his son’s face was pale and his eyes were red-rimmed. He had clearly just been crying.

"Dad... Xiaoli and I had a fight."

"What happened?"

Old Wang’s heart tightened.

"It’s about the apartment again..." his son choked out. "Her mom said that if we don’t buy a place this year, she’ll make us break up. Xiaoli doesn’t want to pressure me, but... Dad, I don’t know what to do. The development I was looking at is about to raise its prices again, and we’re still so far from the down payment..."

"Dad, am I completely useless?"

Listening to his son’s desperate cries and looking at that haggard face, Old Wang’s heart felt like it was being sliced by a knife.

He fell silent.

He glanced at the bag of gifts beside him, then at Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei was smart enough to remain silent, merely watching him with a smile, his eyes full of temptation.

A long moment passed.

Old Wang hung up the phone. He took a deep breath, and it was as if he had aged ten years in an instant.

"Deal."

The word was hoarse, as if squeezed from the depths of his chest.

"But I have one condition." Old Wang stared intently at Zhang Wei. "Send the money first. I want to see it in my account."

"No problem." Zhang Wei snapped his fingers. "Once we get the goods, we’ll sign the contract on the spot and advance you a year’s salary. However... besides the samples, if we could also get the formula..."

"The formula?" Zhang Wei held up two hands. "Ten million."

Old Wang gave a bitter smile and shook his head. "Stop dreaming. The formula... only President Ding, Doctor Li, and that Old Gao from the R&D department know it. They all have shares in the company, and they’re President Ding’s absolute confidants—friends he’d die for. You couldn’t pay me enough to get that."

"Alright, the samples will do."

Though Zhang Wei was a little disappointed, he knew not to push too hard. "Then it’s settled. I’ll come by again tomorrow night, same time."

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