After lunch, Xia Honglang prepared to go to work.
"Come back early," Aunt Liu reached out to adjust Xia Honglang's suit jacket, her voice gentle and caring. "Don't push yourself; rest if you're tired."
Having spent so much time together recently, Aunt Liu cherished their time even more. Now that they were parting, she felt a touch of feminine reluctance.
"Don't worry, I'll just take a look and give some instructions before returning," Xia Honglang chuckled. He then looked at Xia Qingtian, who was lounging on the sofa eating fruit cut by Xia Qingyu, "Qingtian, you should go back to your room and rest properly. Don't play too much or stay up too late."
"Okay~" Xia Qingtian waved dismissively, leaning half her body onto Xia Qingyu's shoulder and said playfully, "Feed me another piece of melon."
"Eating too much melon will upset your stomach," Xia Qingyu said, though her hand was already reaching for the melon. She skewered a piece from the center with a chopstick and offered it to Xia Qingtian. "This is the last piece, alright?"
"Ah~" Xia Qingtian opened her mouth wide. As she ate the piece of melon, sweet juice burst in her mouth. Her beautiful eyes narrowed happily, like a little fox that had stolen sweet grapes.
Seeing Xia Qingtian like this, Xia Qingyu also smiled.
Watching the two sisters so happy, Xia Honglang and Aunt Liu smiled with relief. Aunt Liu walked Xia Honglang to the door and, after watching him drive away, reluctantly returned to the living room.
Meanwhile, Gu Yaoyang had long since arrived at Gu's Entertainment. After a perfunctory lunch, he began working. These projects, he discovered, had more than a few hidden issues.
It seemed someone had made many subtle changes before his return. If he hadn't been personally involved before and hadn't known these projects so well from his many reincarnations, others would truly not have noticed such minor tampering.
As Mr. Gu's expression grew increasingly serious, Assistant Lin also became nervous. "Mr. Gu, is there a problem?"
When Mr. Gu was away, many projects had passed through his hands. If there were any significant errors, he would also be held accountable.
"Summon the project managers for these several projects," Gu Yaoyang said, highlighting all the problematic ones. "We'll have a meeting in ten minutes."
"Yes." Assistant Lin responded and hurried out to make the arrangements. Before he even reached the door, his phone rang. The content of the call made cold sweat break out on his forehead. "Mr. Gu."
"What is it?" Gu Yaoyang looked at Assistant Lin, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Did something happen?"
"Mhm..." Assistant Lin confirmed before continuing, "There was an accident on the set of our variety show. Due to negligence from the crew, a set of scaffolds collapsed, injuring two artists."
Before Assistant Lin could finish speaking, the office door was pushed open urgently. The secretaries' faces were pale. "Mr. Gu, our projects are in trouble. Three partners have suddenly withdrawn their investments, and two long-term manufacturers have refused to supply us."
At this moment, Wen Ning also walked in with a serious expression. "Mr. Gu, Yin Yin's entire album has been plagiarized. The other party has released it using a virtual idol format, ahead of us."
Taking a deep breath, Gu Yaoyang's eyes narrowed slightly. On his very first day back, so many things were thrown at him.
They were giving him absolutely no room to breathe.
"Okay, I understand." Gu Yaoyang stood up, buttoned his suit jacket, and a long-unseen fighting spirit appeared in his eyes.
He would solve these problems one by one.
Did they really think he had lived all those lives for nothing?
Good. Very good.
On the other side, as soon as Xia Honglang arrived at Xia's, he heard that the board members were waiting for him in the top-floor office.
Upon hearing this, Xia Honglang felt his eyelids twitch.
Why were those difficult people gathering again today?
"Mr. Xia, shall we go up?" Xia Honglang's secretary's expression was also not good. She had seen those directors; they were clearly there to cause trouble.
"Make them wait," Xia Honglang said. "Go to the office first and prepare the recent project reports and progress lists. I'll take a look."
Xia Honglang was not prepared to face those people completely unprepared. He needed to be fully ready first.
"Yes." The secretary went to make the arrangements. Meanwhile, someone who had been watching in the lobby saw Xia Honglang enter the CEO's exclusive elevator and immediately took out their phone to notify the people in the conference room on the top floor to be ready. Xia Honglang had arrived.
Knowing Xia Honglang was coming, the people in the conference room were mentally prepared, clearing their throats and straightening their backs.
But as time ticked by, they grew impatient.
"Where is Xia Honglang?" someone asked first. "He wouldn't have run off, would he?"
"Exactly. Even if he had to climb the stairs, he should have arrived by now."
"Did Xiaodong downstairs see the wrong person?"
"Impossible..."
As the directors were discussing, they received another phone call. The person who answered frowned. "What? You're saying Xia Honglang has been in his office all along? Doesn't he know we're waiting for him here!"
Unsure what the person on the other end said, this director hung up the phone in exasperation. "This is too much! Xia Honglang has been here all along and doesn't even take us seriously!"
"Hmph!" The others also became angry. "Does he think our city is his to control? Who gave him the nerve! Let's go! Let's go find him!"
With cold哼s, these directors walked out and swarmed into Xia Honglang's office.
Xia Honglang's brow was also furrowed. He hadn't been at the company for some time, but he had been tracking important projects online. He hadn't expected such major chaos to occur.
Not only were there unauthorized personnel changes in the projects, but many accounts also didn't add up.
It was a complete mess!
If he had returned any later, the entire company might have been short-sold!
The office door was suddenly pushed open, and the directors flooded in. "Mr. Xia is such a busy man. We waited for you in the conference room for so long, and you couldn't spare a moment. Do we have to personally come to invite you?"
Xia Honglang looked up at the newcomers, his gaze dimming slightly. He thought of the years they had worked together to build their success, how he had provided money and delegated power. What else did he owe these people?
Were they truly planning to collude with outsiders to drive him, Xia Honglang, to ruin?
One by one, they truly chilled his heart...
"Xia Honglang, as the Executive President of Xia's and the Chairman of the Xia's Board of Directors, you appoint relatives and friends, exclude dissenters, and have done nothing. You've been absent for so long, do you think you can still hold onto the position of Xia's President?"