"Which colleague is in charge of market analysis? Come in for a moment." Song Tianyao opened the office door and asked with a smile to the few trading company employees who were silently lost in their own thoughts in the lobby outside.
Although the concept of open-plan offices does not yet exist in Hong Kong, businesses know how to save on rent. For example, Likang Trading Company rented four offices on the sixth floor of the Wan Chai Embassy Building, combined three of them, leaving only one office for Chu Xiaoxin. The rest of the staff worked in the three combined offices.
Because Chu Xiaoxin rarely comes here, this private office was previously used by Chu Xiaozhong's uncle, but now it is used by Song Tianyao.
A man in his thirties stood up from his seat, looked around at his colleagues blankly, and then forced an awkward smile at Song Tianyao, "Secretary Song, I'm in charge of the market."
"Could you please come in for a moment?" Song Tianyao said before returning to his office.
The middle-aged man walked heavily into the office. Song Tianyao had already sat back down at his desk and gestured to the sofa, saying, "Please sit down. What's your name?"
"My surname is Fang, Fang Zhihua." The middle-aged man sat down on the sofa next to him, looking dejected, and said to Song Tianyao with a pale face.
Song Tianyao poured a glass of water from the thermos on the table beside him, stood up and handed it to the other person, asking in a gentle tone, "Brother Hua, excuse me, I have some questions I'd like to ask you. Do you know how many British-owned companies are doing pharmaceutical business in Hong Kong these days?"
"Huh?" Fang Zhihua looked up at Song Tianyao. He thought the other party had come to inform him of his dismissal, but he didn't expect Song Tianyao to ask him a question.
"Brother Hua seems a bit nervous. I wanted to ask, do you know how many British-owned companies are doing pharmaceutical business in Hong Kong these days?"
Chapter 59 The Unhelpful Chu Xiaoxin
Fang Zhihua tried her best to answer Song Tianyao's question, but in the end, she could only give a vague answer, "Eight or nine families."
"Eight or nine?" Song Tianyao frowned and continued to ask.
"Eight... nine families," Fang Zhihua said to Song Tianyao.
Song Tianyao nodded reluctantly. "Does Brother Hua understand English?"
"Knows a few words."
"So how do you deal with Roche or Bayer, or exchange correspondence?"
"Likang has translators, and Roche and Bayer's agents in Hong Kong also have Manager Hua who understand Chinese."
"How much do you know about those British-owned companies that distribute pharmaceutical products? For example, who is the owner, and how long have they been in business?"
"I'm not sure. Likang only works with Roche and Bayer, and doesn't operate in the Hong Kong market, so there's basically no contact between them."
"Besides translators, does the business have anyone who understands English?"
"No."
"Where did Brother Hua work before, and how long did he work here?"
"I worked in accounting at Li Heng for almost ten years in total."
After a conversation, Song Tianyao had figured out the background of the employees of Likang Trading Company. They were all confidants of Chu Xiaozhong's uncle, Uncle Fa. Unfortunately, Uncle Fa seemed to be much less capable. He only knew how to gather these old people who had worked in other Chu Family businesses and were loyal to Chu Xiaozhong. These people were loyal enough, but lacked ambition, and their abilities had become somewhat outdated with the changing times.
The staff of a pharmaceutical company were unaware of how many of its competitors in Hong Kong had British investment backgrounds.
Given their performance, even if Song Tianyao wanted to keep them, he couldn't bring himself to ask. What would be the point of keeping them? Aside from receiving a monthly salary, they couldn't offer any help whatsoever.
While other businesses that wanted to grow bigger were already developing corporate structures, Likang Trading Company was still using its old-fashioned business operation model, which only led to its demise.
After finishing his workday, Song Tianyao left Likang and headed to the Dulles Hotel, intending to meet with Chu Xiaoxin to discuss the various problems he had encountered while working at the trading company over the past few days, and also to plan a trip to the shipyard to check out the cargo ships.
Song Tianyao rang the doorbell of the room Chu Xiaoxin had booked, but to his surprise, it was Chen Judy, a singer from the Lichi Garden, who opened the door. Her hair was slightly disheveled, and her face was flushed. Chu Xiaoxin peeked out from the bedroom and, upon seeing Song Tianyao, swaggered out in his pajamas. "A-Yao? So early? Perfect timing. I'll have Judy invite her sisters to dinner later."
Song Tianyao politely nodded and thanked Chen Judy, who appeared to be of mixed race, before entering the living room. Chen Judy then affectionately told Chu Xiaoxin to go take a shower, before walking unsteadily into the bathroom in the bedroom.
Chu Xiaoxin sat down on the sofa, and Song Tianyao sat to the side. He picked up a cigarette from the coffee table, offered one to Chu Xiaoxin, and lit one for himself. "Young Master Shun, you didn't spend the whole day at the hotel with this Miss Judy, did you?"
"Of course not, I didn't get here until 3 PM. Judy's performing today. A few jerks tried to take it from me, but I still won," Chu Xiaoxin said smugly, a cigarette dangling from his lips, as he whispered to Song Tianyao, "Hey, if you're interested, I can introduce you to Judy's friends."
"Don't try to seduce me. I have a terrible headache right now. There are two things I need you to Young Master Shun." Song Tianyao smiled and didn't talk to Chu Xiaoxin about women. Instead, he went straight to the point.
Chu Xiaoxin leaned forward and looked at Song Tianyao: "What is it?"
"First, I plan to dismiss everyone in the business and recruit a new batch of staff. However, I cannot make the decision on dismissal Young Master Shun. You need to go home and talk to Chairman Chu and Young Master Zhong. After all, those people have been with the Chu Family for many years, and they need to be settled." Song Tianyao took a puff of his cigarette, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke to Chu Xiaoxin.
"Resign them all?" Chu Xiaoxin was taken aback. "Isn't that a bit much? Even if some of them are loyal to my older brother, they're used to working at home, and they're more loyal than outsiders, right?"
"For shady dealings, Fuyixing's loyalty at the docks is enough. But for the legitimate businesses, loyalty isn't necessary; what's needed is ability. Right now, the entire trading company doesn't even have a single person who understands English, and we have to pay a translator a salary. Aren't we afraid of being laughed at if word gets out?" Song Tianyao flicked his cigarette ash and said to Chu Xiaoxin.