Zhao Chen was stunned for a moment.
He didn't expect this question to be asked in this session.
He glanced at the expectant eyes in the audience - a thousand pairs of eyes, a thousand families, a thousand expectations.
He smiled and picked up the phone, "I didn't have it originally."
There were a lot of "Ah" sounds from the audience, with disappointment.
Zhao Chen changed the subject. "But if this is the wish of all employees--"
There was an instant roar and tsunami under the stage.
"Yes!"
"This is our New Year wish!"
"Zhao Zong, please!"
Sounds came from all directions, and the entire banquet hall was like a boiling pot.
Lin Xiaoman stood on the stage and was also infected by the atmosphere. His voice was much louder than before:
"Zhao Zong, my New Year wish is - there will be Special Bonus in 2018!"
Zhao Chen looked at her, and then at the excited faces under the stage.
He was silent for a few seconds, then picked up the phone.
"Okay. Special Bonus, yes."
The cheers nearly lifted the roof.
Zhao Chen waited for a few seconds, raised his hand and pressed it.
The cheers gradually died down, but everyone's eyes were bright.
"But," Zhao Chen's voice became serious,
"There must be conditions for Special Bonus. Last year I said the debt ratio would be reduced to below 50%, and everyone did it. This year, the conditions are even higher."
The banquet hall became quiet, and everyone listened carefully.
Zhao Chen said, "At the end of 2018, the debt ratio of Henglong Consolidated Statements must be reduced to less than 25%."
Someone in the audience took a breath. Lin Xiaoman stood on the stage, the smile on his face stiffened--
Although she has only been here for less than a year, she has some idea of what the 25% figure means.
Zhao Chen continued, "At the end of last year, our debt ratio was 49%.
Off-Balance Sheet Liabilities has all been cleared. So it will be very difficult to reduce it from 49% to 20% this year."
He looked around and his voice slowed down a bit:
"This goal cannot be achieved by me alone.
It depends on everyone - Finance Department must calculate every account well, Engineering Department must do every project well, and Sales Department must sell every Suite well.
Everyone is within this goal."
He looked at Lin Xiaoman: "Do you have confidence?"
Lin Xiaoman was stunned for a moment, then tightened his grip on the microphone and said loudly, "Yes!"
Zhao Chen looked at the audience. "Do you have confidence?"
The audience burst out with an overwhelming voice. "Yes!"
A thousand people, a thousand voices, merged into one word.
The voice echoed in the banquet hall for a while before slowly calming down.
Zhao Chen smiled, "Okay. It's settled then. We'll see the result at the end of the year."
There was another burst of cheers from the audience.
Zhao Chen stretched out his hand to Lin Xiaoman and shook her hand.
Lin Xiaoman's palms were all sweaty, but he held them firmly.
"Come on." Zhao Chen said.
Lin Xiaoman nodded vigorously.
Zhao Chen turned around and was about to leave the stage, but the host stopped him:
"Zhao Zong, let me ask the last question for the employees - if the target is reached at the end of the year, will the bonus still be 20%?"
Zhao Chen thought for a while and smiled, "Yes."
There was another burst of cheers from the audience.
Zhao Chen walked off the stage and returned to the main table.
Shen Zhiyi looked at him with light in his eyes.
"What you just said was so nice." She whispered.
Zhao Chen sat down, picked up the tea cup and took a sip:
"They did a good job. I just made a condition."
Zhou Xiaowen came over from the side with bright eyes:
"Chairman Zhao, is your company still hiring? I want to come too!"
Chen Shuhua pulled her back. "Don't make trouble."
Zhou Xiaowen said seriously:
"I'm not making trouble! More than two months' salary is Special Bonus, what kind of fairy company is this!"
Li Jing whispered from the side, "The condition is to reduce the debt ratio to below 20%."
Zhou Xiaowen thought for a while, "Forget it, I'm not good at math."
Several people laughed.
The program on the stage has started.
The first program is a sketch written and performed by Henglong employees. It tells a true story from last year when working on Rights Issue -
Finance Department worked overtime for a month and finally prepared all the materials before the deadline.
The skit was a bit rough, but when it came to the overtime part, some people in the audience had red eyes.
Zhao Chen looked at the stage and said nothing. He remembered that when Rights Issue was done last year, Chen Qiming and Finance Department stayed up all night for three consecutive nights.
At that time, he had just taken over Henglong, and everyone was waiting and watching. No one knew whether this 22-year-old young man could sustain the company.
Now, one year has passed.
Song and dance shows come one after another.
There were several lottery draws interspersed in the middle. The third prize was a mobile phone, the second prize was home appliances, and the first prize was a cash red envelope.
Every time the lottery was drawn, people in the audience screamed.
Zhou Xiaowen shouted "Choose me, choose me" the whole time, but didn't win any of them.
Shen Zhiyi was very lucky and won a third prize - a new mobile phone.
When she came back with the prize, Zhou Xiaowen's eyes were red. "Zhiyi, what kind of luck are you doing!"
Shen Zhiyi smiled and said, "Give you half."
Zhou Xiaowen immediately laughed, "Then I want the charger."
At around ten o'clock, the annual meeting was coming to an end.
Zhao Chen did not leave early. He sat at the main table and watched the last program with the employees.
When the show was over, more than a thousand people were walking out one after another. Some were still discussing the show just now, and some were already calculating what needs to be done to reduce the debt ratio to 20%.
Zhao Chen stood at the door of the banquet hall and greeted every employee who passed by.
Some people were so nervous that they couldn't speak, some held his hand and said, "Zhao Zong We will definitely reach the standard next year", and a little girl ran over and said, "Zhao Zong Can I take a photo with you?"
Zhao Chen said, "Okay."
The little girl immediately took out her mobile phone, and the colleague next to her helped take a picture.
She looked at the photos on her phone and smiled until her eyes turned into crescents.
The crowd gradually dispersed. Shen Zhiyi and her roommate were also ready to leave.
Chen Xi arranged a car to take them back to school.
When Zhou Xiaowen left, he turned around and shouted to Zhao Chen:
"Chairman Zhao, can there be more prizes at the next annual meeting? I didn't win any tonight!"
Zhao Chen smiled, "Okay. I will give you a special award next year."
Zhou Xiaowen left with satisfaction.
Chen Shuhua and Li Jing followed behind, one shaking his head helplessly, the other covering his mouth and laughing.
Shen Zhiyi is at the back.
She walked up to Zhao Chen, hesitated for a moment, and then whispered, "You are... very handsome tonight."
Zhao Chen looked at her. "Just tonight?"
Shen Zhiyi blushed, turned around and ran away.
When he ran to the door, he turned back and waved to him, then disappeared into the night.
Zhao Chen stood at the door of the banquet hall and watched the car disappear under the street lights in the distance.
Su Wantang walked out of it, holding his coat in his hand. "Put it on, it's cold outside."
Zhao Chen took the coat and put it on. Su Wantang stood next to him, looking at the car lights that gradually dispersed in the distance.
"Tonight's Special Bonus conditions, are you serious?" she asked.
Zhao Chen said, "Seriously."
"A debt ratio of 20% is not easy."
Zhao Chen nodded. "That's why everyone needs to work together.
What I can't do alone can be done by a thousand people together."
Su Wantang said nothing.
She had seen his ups and downs in Meeting Room, and she had also seen him silent when Tesla plummeted.
But tonight, the Zhao Chen standing at the door of the banquet hall, shaking hands with every employee, taking photos, and saying "come on" is another him.
A person she rarely sees.
"Let's go." Zhao Chen said, "Since we promised our employees tonight, we will hold a Executive Meeting meeting tomorrow to detail a specific plan to reduce debt.
20% is not easy to achieve!"