Chapter 73: They Will Regret It Deeply

The atmosphere in the company was growing increasingly unpredictable. That morning, at an executive meeting, Deputy General Manager Su had been promoted to Vice President of the company—a prerogative of the owner, which no one could oppose or even attempt to resist.

Now, with Chen Aijia holding both the positions of Chairwoman and President, she no longer needed to worry about anyone interfering or creating trouble; her decisiveness surprised many. Deputy General Manager Su, now Vice President, continued to oversee the company’s finances. This effectively made her the second most powerful person in the group. Several vice presidents, many of whom considered themselves more qualified, had initially wanted to object, but Chen Aijia had made it clear from the outset: this matter was not up for discussion—anyone with objections could resign.

Deputy General Manager Su immediately took her seat as the second in command at the conference table and proposed over a dozen company reforms, focusing especially on personnel changes.

Of course, these couldn’t simply be forced through. To prevent Chen Aijia’s youthful resolve from leading to misguided decisions, the board had established a system that gave the more senior members considerable influence over such procedural matters.

Yet no one expected that Deputy General Manager Su never intended to push all of her proposals through. She only needed two.

Both of these were particularly notable. The first was for the company to consolidate its current business while also expanding into new markets.

Some, the radicals, argued that the company should give up most of its existing business and devote all resources to developing new channels tailored to future market needs.

Everyone knew these people’s intentions were dubious. Their aim was to have the company abandon its foundation, so their associates could swoop in and take over, gradually driving the group into an impossible situation and seizing control for themselves.

Naturally, Chen Aijia vehemently opposed and suppressed such individuals. In the past, the Security Department’s more combative members couldn’t force her to sign off on their strategic decisions, but they could still use their influence to shift the company’s interests toward new channels, inevitably affecting the group’s overall policy—this was a strategy of erosion.

On the other side were the conservatives, who clung tightly to the company’s existing interests and fiercely resisted any attempts to expand into new markets.

These two factions had always been at odds, causing the company’s development to swing back and forth. This gave Wang Hu more opportunities; he would support whichever side he stood to gain from, leading to the company’s direction changing three times a week, leaving middle managers confused about the real strategy.

Now, however, a policy had been set. A resolution would be swiftly issued at all levels.

The company would both protect and expand its current business and actively pursue new markets—there would be no standing still or clinging to the past.

The other major resolution was that Wang Hu should be involved in upper management as much as possible, but the management of the Security Department had to be handed over to the deputy captain within a week.

This resolution was practically a final blow to Wang Hu. Without control of the Security Department, what could he accomplish, even as Vice President? No one dared to object, because Deputy General Manager Su made it clear: if anyone disagreed, perhaps the Security Department’s opinion should be sought.

Wang Hu hadn’t come to work for some reason, and now, if anyone from the Security Department was to attend the meeting, it could only be that new guy named Yang. He was a country bumpkin, quick to resort to violence—inviting him to a meeting was like inviting him to a brawl. No one wanted to tangle with him; these were civilized people, after all.

And so, the resolution passed.

Deputy General Manager Su had achieved her aim. The other dozen or so proposals, while important—perhaps even more crucial than these two—would have to wait until Wang Hu was ousted. Otherwise, even if passed, they couldn’t be implemented.

Now it all depended on how much longer the struggle within the Security Department would last. Hopefully, that roughneck Yang would succeed in toppling Wang Hu.

After all, he was the boss’s man.

Deputy General Manager Su knew about this from the beginning, but she hadn’t realized that Chen Aijia and Wang Hu were no longer sharing a bed. In fact, she wondered about this mysterious man with a deceptively simple yet enigmatic background—perhaps Chen Aijia had chosen him from the start. Back when she’d said she didn’t want to date Yang, perhaps she’d simply been unwilling to trust Su enough to tell the truth.

Yang Changfeng sat idly in his private office, browsing the news online, searching for national policies, feeling that such leisure was unacceptable.

Yes, he should contact the Jiangzhou Garrison and recruit some retired soldiers.

Just as he was about to take action, someone arrived.

Several security team leaders stopped by, supposedly to report on their work, but ended up sitting in the office for over an hour.

Some truly intended to pledge allegiance, but not all shared this motive. Most likely, some were keeping an eye on him for Wang Hu—action was imminent.

Yang Changfeng felt a flicker of excitement. He didn’t fear trouble from his enemies—what worried him were opponents who just sat and waited. Impatient adversaries were the best kind; if they all sat still like stones, how could he keep pace and strike back?

He knew that investigating Wang Hu’s social connections would be costly, both in time and money. It wasn’t worth it. Far better to force Wang Hu to reveal his connections bit by bit—this was the optimal approach.

He wondered what Wang Hu was up to right now.

Deliberately mentioning Wang Hu, Yang Changfeng said with a grin, “Captain Wang must have had too much to drink yesterday. Who knows what he’s up to now—maybe he’s still asleep?”

Some faces darkened with anger, though they forced themselves to hold back; others nearly laughed aloud.

Wang Hu could offer them benefits, but he could also make their lives miserable. Not everyone in the Security Department was his confidant; the uneven distribution of spoils and personal rivalries had been bubbling under the surface, and these last few days, as Wang Hu had repeatedly suffered setbacks, the conflicts were beginning to show. Some of the team leaders were loyal to Wang Hu, others followed him out of necessity—no one wanted to be someone’s scapegoat forever. Most people, faced with something they knew was wrong, couldn’t blindly keep going down the same path. Only those lacking in sense or with no way back would do so.

But such people were a minority even in the Security Department.

All morning, nothing changed. Just before noon, the executive meeting’s resolutions reached Yang Changfeng.

Wang Hu was being sidelined.

By the time he returned, it would be too late—the resolutions would be in effect, and with Yang Changfeng, the intimidating deputy captain, in place, Wang Hu would have no time to object.

But Wang Hu was no fool. As long as he could eliminate Yang Changfeng—the greatest threat—he would have ample opportunity to reclaim power.

Yang Changfeng smiled as he filed the document away, noticing a group of policemen hurrying over from across the street, gesturing towards the company. He understood at once—Wang Hu’s counterattack had begun.

However, these officers from the local precinct would come to regret it. They were jeopardizing their own livelihoods.

What a pity—was it really necessary?