After lunch, Chen Xiao received a phone call informing him that the logistics truck delivering the wine was only half an hour away from Feixiang Advertising Company, so he took a taxi there with Lu Nan. 

At the Feixiang warehouse, the person picking up the goods was Mr. Yang’s brother-in-law, Pei Xuedong. 

Chen Xiao said quietly to Lu Nan, “In the future, look for him when handling small matters.” 

Lu Nan understood what this meant: she still had to seek out Mr. Yang for important matters. 

Pei Xuedong greeted Chen Xiao and waved at Lu Nan, “Hello again, little beauty.” 

“Brother Pei,” Lu Nan returned the greeting, “Please take care of me in the future.” 

“Sure, sure.” 

Every bottle of wine from Yuan Chuan—specifically, each bottle’s cap—has a QR code. This code serves as the factory’s proof of origin, similar to a person’s ID number; each bottle has its own code for traceability. 

Besides preventing counterfeit products, it also helps track the source of unauthorized distribution like cross-regional sales which is often associated with selling below the manufacturer’s guide price. 

For example, in terminal stores, the verification of bottle caps and payment for promotional staff are all based on the QR code on the caps. 

However, when distributors receive bulk shipments from the manufacturer, they don’t need to scan each bottle individually. Instead, each original factory box has a collective code, which is very convenient. 

Chen Xiao showed the Feixiang staff how to enter the data, count different product types, and record the amounts. It’s a simple process; as long as no scans are missed, everything will be fine. 

After teaching them step by step, Chen Xiao saw Lu Nan taking the initiative to check the quantity of goods off the logistics truck without any prior instructions from him, and he smiled with satisfaction. 

This was Feixiang’s first order. At Chen Xiao’s suggestion, Mr. Yang ordered 800,000 worth of Yuan Chuan classic wine. The order mainly consists of fifteen-year-old wine, with a total of ninety-six boxes of three vintage bottles with ten, fifteen, and twenty years. There were also twenty boxes of materials (gift bags, wine sets, tea sets, crystal tables, calendars, magazines, soft-cover notebooks, gel pens, umbrellas), and a total of 116 boxes of goods were delivered. 

After over an hour of checking and handing over, Pei Xuedong signed the shipment list from Yuan Chuan. 

Before leaving, Chen Xiao specifically told Pei Xuedong, “Brother Pei, tomorrow our Manager Lu will come to train the key account managers. Please help keep things in order.” 

“Don’t worry, Brother Xiao. Mr. Yang has mentioned it,” Pei Xuedong replied with a wink, adding, “Mr. Yang will also come to listen tomorrow, so tell the little beauty to show her real skills.” 

Chen Xiao nodded, reached out, and patted the other person’s shoulder, expressing his gratitude wordlessly. 

Pei Xuedong’s attitude clearly shows that he does not take Lu Nan seriously, which means he does not trust her professional abilities. 

On the way back, Chen Xiao frowned slightly. He wondered if it might be too hasty to have Lu Nan train the staff tomorrow. Maybe he should ask Li Li for support. 

But he had just encouraged Lu Nan this morning, and now it seemed like he didn’t trust her abilities. Chen Xiao didn’t know how to address it. 

Perhaps I’ll let Lu Nan try for a day. After all, she did quite well in the trial lecture at Starbucks this morning. Chen Xiao thought, If the response isn’t good tomorrow, I’ll have Li Li come by and say it’s an advanced training session from the provincial office manager. That should work! 

Early the next morning, before the morning meeting started, Sasha sat next to Lu Nan and whispered, “Did Chen Xiao take you to Feixiang again yesterday?” 

Lu Nan nodded. 

“I finally believe that you have no feelings for Chen Xiao at all,” Sasha said, her eyes wide with confusion. “Isn’t he handsome? Isn’t he gentle? Isn’t he a gentleman?” 

“Why are you trying to force Chen Xiao on me?” Lu Nan asked, looking a bit puzzled. “Do you still believe in the idea that ‘what you can’t have is the best’? Are you still thinking about him?” 

Sasha snorted softly, “No, I’m just puzzled. How do you manage to have such an unfeeling heart?” She shook her head. “Forget it, I can’t figure it out. Maybe you haven’t met your Mr. Right yet. On a serious note, Chen Xiao is someone who has his own sense of boundaries and distance. If he senses that you have feelings for him, he will definitely keep his distance. So, if Chen Xiao feels that you have overstepped, he definitely wouldn’t have you handle Feixiang.” 

Lu Nan frowned slightly. “If personal feelings can affect his professional judgment, then he’s really unprofessional. Wait, how did you handle the Haortei Wine project then?” 

“I was good at pretending back then,” Sasha felt she had found her excuse. 

“I don’t think it’s like that. Chen Xiao isn’t as unprofessional as you say,” Lu Nan objectively summarized. 

Soon, the morning meeting began with the usual routine: a report on yesterday’s work and today’s work plan. 

However, while Lu Nan was presenting her report, she could clearly feel several gazes focused on her. 

Wang Xiaoxue was smart enough not to say anything at the meeting. After the meeting, she called out “Brother Wang” and went into the city manager’s office. 

Moments later, Wang Xiaoxue came out with an unhappy expression. 

Dong Hui knew that Wang Xiaoxue must have come back empty-handed. 

“Brother Wang said that both he and Brother Xiao think Lu Nan did very well,” Wang Xiaoxue said angrily. 

At the elevator, Dong Hui tried to comfort Wang Xiaoxue. “You know, some people don’t have any real skills, they just know how to flatter and win people over…” 

Because Lu Nan had been delayed for a few minutes in the bathroom, she and Chen Xiao, who had just left the office, walked out from around the corner of the elevator and heard this comment clearly. 

Chen Xiao glanced at Lu Nan without showing any emotion. 

Lu Nan’s expression didn’t change at all, as if she hadn’t understood who Dong Hui was mocking just now. 

On the other hand, Dong Hui’s face changed slightly when she realized she had been caught, and she quickly continued, “There was actually a girl in our thesis defense group like that. Unfortunately, the teacher fell for it. I tell you, every time the advisor needed revisions, she was the first to get feedback. It was really infuriating. Oh, Lu Nan, you know, the accounting major Professor Jiao particularly likes students who flatter him. He’s especially patient with those girls who know how to play the game.” As if the person she had just despised wasn’t Lu Nan. 

What a rather clumsy attempt to cover up. 

Lu Nan glanced back at Dong Hui and said seriously, “When I was in my freshman year and took the junior accountant exam, I attended Professor Jiao’s class in the neighboring major. If you say he gives a little more attention to diligent and inquisitive students and likes students who flatter him, then I must disagree.” 

At that moment, Chen Xiao thought Dong Hui’s face looked extremely terrible. 

Dong Hui really wanted to argue with Lu Nan, but considering Chen Xiao was their leader, she decided to ‘endure humiliation’ and ‘think it over.’ 

After entering the elevator, Dong Hui chatted with Chen Xiao with a smile, as if the earlier tension had never happened. “Brother Xiao, if you need me to do anything, just let me know. I’m so free right now that my conscience is uneasy.” 

“Once the position is assigned in a few days, you’ll have things to do. For now, just review the product knowledge and take a good look at the materials from Manager Li,” Chen Xiao said as the elevator reached the first floor, giving a nod to Wang Xiaoxue and Dong Hui. He then said to Lu Nan, “Let’s go.” 

Lu Nan stepped out of the elevator with a light and quick pace, knowing that Dong Hui behind her was probably extremely jealous. 

Thinking about the other’s discomfort made Lu Nan feel refreshed. 

After leaving the office and getting into a taxi, Chen Xiao turned back and said helplessly, “You were quite rude to Dong Hui just now.” 

Lu Nan had an expression that said ‘I’m not wrong’ and said confidently, “Professor Jiao is a very good person. I couldn’t stay silent when Dong Hui slandered him like that.” 

“What a little girl…” Chen Xiao smiled helplessly, as he always did with Lu Nan. Though his smile was full of helplessness, it wasn’t bitter. It was more like watching the mischievous little girl with a hint of indulgence. His smile was genuine. “Here, this is for you.” 

“What’s this?” Lu Nan took the black leather folder with the Yuan Chuan Classic Liquor logo on it. “A business card holder?” 

Chen Xiao nodded, “Someone hinted to me yesterday that she still doesn’t have any business cards. So yesterday afternoon, I asked Wu Fang to rush a box for you. I’ve already put a dozen or so cards in the holder. Once this batch of new business cards is done, you can go to Wu Fang to get the whole box.” 

“Thank you, Brother Xiao.” Lu Nan understood that she had already received special treatment, so she should be discreet when necessary. 

***** 

It was a sunny day outside the car window. Lu Nan thought that in her previous life, she was the last one to arrive at work. She interpreted Dong Hui’s affectionate attitude towards her as enthusiasm and kindness and treated her as a good friend. 

But on the day the office assigned the Feixiang project to her, as they were getting out of the elevator and were alone together, Dong Hui had jokingly said, “Being good-looking and able to act cute is an advantage. And since Brother Xiao has hugged and kissed you, it’s only right that he treats you well—after all, he tasted your tofu. Lu Nan, don’t forget us when you become rich and powerful!” 

Lu Nan wasn’t a fool; she could tell the difference between real kindness and malice. After that, she wanted to stay away from Dong Hui. However, since they worked in the same office, they often ended up together. Dong Hui pretended to be friendly, borrowing Lu Nan’s clothes, using her skincare products, and always forgetting to bring money when they ate together. After Lu Nan refused several times, Dong Hui and the girls downstairs started spreading false rumors about her, calling her spoiled, unhygienic, and promiscuous and so on. 

Later, some things happened, and Lu Nan finally exploded with frustration. Unable to tolerate it any longer, she cut off all her ties with Dong Hui. 

After cutting ties with Dong Hui, Lu Nan regretted it and wondered why she had put up with it for so long—what was she even enduring? After several months, she felt like she had almost turned into a ninja turtle! 

So today, confronting Dong Hui, Lu Nan had no regrets. 

Forget about saving face or maintaining relationships; self-respect mattered more. 

These hidden scars and grievances from her previous life were being resolved one by one by the new Lu Nan, as if she were rescuing her past self. 

… 

Facts have proved that Chen Xiao was overthinking. After listening to Lu Nan’s training today, he felt that he could give her a score of 90. He was even glad that he did not ask Li Li for help because he felt that Lu Nan’s training content and pace were even better than Li Li’s. 

Although Lu Nan’s face is quite youthful and she hasn’t deliberately dressed maturely, today in the Feixiang conference room, facing Mr. and Mrs. Yang, Mr. Yang’s brother in law, and the two newly appointed key account managers, her training was much more impressive than when she was holding back yesterday at Starbucks. 

Chen Xiao felt that if Mr. Yuan had met Lu Nan today, he probably would not be satisfied with just adding a WeChat account. 

How should he put it? The most basic aspect of Lu Nan’s training is to speak without a script. 

Chen Xiao didn’t expect that Lu Nan had memorized the content of several PPTs (Lu Nan: I didn’t memorize them; I just remembered the general idea. When the PPT was shown, I glanced at it and recalled it, then organized it in my own words. It’s not memorization, just recounting), and not only had she memorized it, but she also incorporated some interesting brand stories she’d heard during the past six months. 

It’s unclear how much the two key account managers understood from the presentation, but Chen Xiao noticed that Mr. Yang, Sister Pei, and the others listened with great interest. 

The most apparent change was that Pei Xuedong no longer casually called Lu Nan “little beauty” but addressed her as Manager Lu. 

At the end, Mr. Yang took the initiative to say to Lu Nan, “Manager Lu’s training content is very good. I am absolutely confident in Yuan Chuan’s professionalism.” 

Chen Xiao signaled with his eyes, giving Lu Nan a chance to speak. 

Lu Nan smiled, “Mr. Yang, you’re too kind. Actually, this professional knowledge doesn’t need to be memorized. Manager Liu and Manager Meng already have practical experience in this area, so it will be natural for them to speak a few words during the tasting event to add the finishing touch.” 

“Exactly, exactly.” Mr. Yang nodded. “Regarding the professional knowledge of beverages, I am an outsider. I will listen to Manager Chen and Manager Lu.”