Chapter 1: Position

Inside the private room, Shang Zhu hung up the phone. A middle-aged man with a big belly held up a wine glass and walked towards him, saying, “Director Shang, come, let me toast to our pleasant cooperation.”

The collaboration partner who just signed the contract treated them to dinner. Shang Zhu usually avoided smoking and drinking, but he didn’t want to lose face. He took the wine glass and said politely, “Pleasant cooperation.”

He took only a sip, and the middle-aged man beside him smiled, lowering his voice, “I heard Director Shang and Director Wen of the Leeds Group don’t seem to have a good relationship?”

“It’s just competition between the groups; Director Chen is overthinking.” Shang Zhu put down the wine glass, and the reflected light fell on the dark screen of his phone.

Director Chen chuckled dismissively, “Director Wen came to me a few days ago to discuss this new project. He, you know, I heard he used to be abroad and never dealt with domestic real estate enterprises before. He might not do well on this project, so I asked him to leave first.”

He implied his disdain for Director Wen, and Shang Zhu furrowed his brow, “He is in charge of Leeds’ domestic division, and he wouldn’t have reached the position of division Director if he didn’t perform well.”

“That’s not necessarily true.” Director Chen suddenly raised his voice, “In my opinion, Director Shang, young and promising, is different from those showy guys who come from overseas!”

“Come, let’s toast Director Shang.”

Director Chen initiated, and the toasts continued around the table. Shang Zhu didn’t engage much, glancing at the silent phone on the table during the toasting interval.

Throughout the entire dinner, Shang Zhu was absent-minded. His secretary and executives by his side intercepted a few glasses of wine for him, and each chatted with the people around them.

Amidst the noisy atmosphere, there was a gentle knock on the private room door. A student-dressed young man pushed the door open, blushing and timidly said, “Hello, everyone.”

“At last, you’re here!” Director Chen beckoned to the young man, a malicious smile on his meaty face, “I heard Director Shang doesn’t like young ladies, so I specially arranged a university student to accompany you.”

“This is a top-notch student; it’s not easy to invite him.”

Director Chen twirled his fingers, and people around burst into laughter. Some even directly handed the young man a glass filled with white wine, patted his waist, “Go, have a drink with Director Shang.”

The young man stumbled forward, and the white wine spilled out of the glass. The pungent smell of alcohol spread in the confined space.

Shang Zhu stood up, his icy gaze sweeping over the young man’s face, “No need.”

Director Chen’s face changed slightly, the young man awkwardly stayed in place, holding the wine glass, not knowing whether to advance or retreat. The atmosphere instantly cooled.

Shang Zhu’s secretary next to him quickly picked up a wine glass and approached, “Director Chen, let me toast to you.”

“Director Shang is drunk. We appreciate your kindness, but we don’t need the person.” The executive from next door also joined in, “Yeah, Director Shang is like this when he drinks too much; we’re used to it.”

The two of them sang in harmony, pulling Director Chen away to chat casually, leaving the young man standing awkwardly by the door with his wine glass, slowly moving a few steps toward the exit.

Until the glasses in hand were emptied, the executives waved their hands, saying, “It’s getting late, and we have to catch a flight tomorrow. Let’s call it a night for today.”

Shang Zhu supported his secretary, whose steps were unsteady, and nodded slightly to the few people in the room, “Goodbye.”

Shang Zhu, accompanied by his secretary and executives, left the stuffy atmosphere of the dining table. As soon as they got into the car, the slightly tipsy executives revealed their true selves. One of them, with a stiff neck, shouted, “These people are so unscrupulous, keep pouring drinks and even sending escorts over. What do they think of us?”

“Yeah, and mentioning Director Wen like that, thinking we can’t hear them speaking softly?” The secretary grabbed a bottle of water from the backseat, gulping down a big mouthful.

“The secondhand smoke is giving me a headache. Boss, I want to open the window.”

After sending the message, Shang Zhu casually lowered the window. The cool night breeze rushed into the car along with the direction of the moving vehicle, diluting the unpleasant smell of smoke and alcohol.

The secretary and executives complained incessantly, while the assistant acting as the driver occasionally chimed in. Shang Zhu gazed calmly and indifferently at the swiftly flashing streetlights outside the car window.

The hotel they checked into wasn’t far away. When the secretary almost vomited in the car for the third time, the car stopped steadily at the hotel entrance.

Supporting each other, the secretary and executives walked into the elevator. Shang Zhu stood behind them, glancing at his phone.

“Is Director Shang waiting for a message?” the assistant asked softly.

“Yeah.” Shang Zhu nodded, “Personal matter.”

The assistant wisely kept silent until they got out of the elevator, then initiated conversation with Shang Zhu to confirm the schedule for the next day.

“…We booked a return flight at 3:30 in the afternoon, leaving for the airport around 1:30.”

“Got it.” Shang Zhu let the assistant go back to rest first, then watched as the secretary and executives, who were full of nonsense, swiped their cards to enter their rooms before turning back to his own.

The closed bathroom door echoed with the sound of running water. Shang Zhu washed away the smell of alcohol and smoke from his body. With a cloud of steam around him, he emerged from the bathroom, his half-dry hair disheveled, with droplets of water dripping from the tips.

Before leaving, he left half of the balcony window open. The night breeze fluttered the half-drawn curtains, revealing the shadowy moonlight outside the window.

Shang Zhu stood in front of the window, wiping his hair for a moment. He heard the intermittent nonsense from the secretary next door, then reached out to close the half-open window.

“Buzz—” The phone placed on the counter behind him vibrated twice, the screen briefly lit up before dimming again.

Shang Zhu paused in his hair drying motion, disregarding the water droplets on his hand, and directly touched the phone to unlock the screen.

The phone, silent all night, received two unread messages from the Director Wen mentioned at the dinner table.