Annual Meeting
In the week leading up to the Lunar New Year, Zhang Yang's various businesses began preparing for their annual meetings.
It's not just his company; in fact, for all companies on the market, this period is annual meeting week, a time when everyone is rushing to hold their annual meetings.
The banquet halls at the Four Seasons Hotel were completely full, with reservations extremely difficult to secure, and bookings were made well in advance until the end of the first month of the lunar calendar.
Zhang Yang was too busy to appear at all the annual meetings to wish all employees a Happy New Year at the same time, so he recorded a New Year's greeting video in advance to be played at the annual meetings of each industry.
Inside the meeting room, Zhang Yang, dressed in a suit and exuding confidence, faced the camera and offered words of blessing to all employees, wishing them a happy new year and a happy family.
"Great, Mr. Zhang, perfect."
The photographer standing nearby exclaimed in surprise.
Zhang Yang nodded, without even checking the results, and casually told him to go back and edit it a bit. The video would then be distributed and played at various annual meetings.
Bite!
Given the approaching annual meeting, the system has allocated a special fund of 100 million yuan for the annual meeting, to be used for all annual meeting expenses of all industries under the host.
Wow!
Zhang Yang blinked.
The shrewd and astute system back in action, generously allocating 100 million yuan as a special fund for annual meetings. Now, this 100 million yuan is earmarked for specific purposes, enough to ensure that the annual meetings of all his subsidiaries are truly lavish.
The decorations, banquet standards, dishes, and even the wine used for the annual meeting must all be of a high standard.
But all of that is secondary. Zhang Yang believes that an important function of the annual meeting is to motivate employees. After all, at the end of the year, who doesn't want to go home for the New Year in a lively and Huanhuan atmosphere?
Therefore, this 100 million yuan is a waste of money; it's better to turn it into prizes and tangible benefits for the employees.
So, don't be stingy with the prizes for the company's annual meeting.
Zhang Yang specifically criticized some companies that, despite lacking the capability, still insisted on creating a bunch of low-quality prizes, ultimately making those who won unhappy and those who didn't even more unhappy—it's truly unnecessary.
Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that everyone receives equal treatment.
The prizes should be high-end and exceptional, ranging from high-end digital products to premium skincare items – we should try to include everything imaginable.
Mid-range prizes should primarily consist of home appliances or small kitchen appliances, such as robot vacuums, cordless vacuum cleaners, air purifiers, etc. They must be from high-end, reputable brands; generic brands are strictly prohibited.
For something even less appealing, rather than offering useless prizes that are neither respectable nor popular and lack sincerity, it would be better to simply convert them into cash rewards.
The principle is simple: strive to ensure everyone gets a share.
He wanted to make the event grand and impressive, so that all the employees of his companies would understand one thing: there was no boss as generous and lavish as him.
Later that day, Zhang Yang relayed the details regarding the annual meeting.
Major industries have begun intensive preparations.
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The annual meeting at the Yinghai Four Seasons Hotel was the only annual meeting in which Zhang Yang made an appearance.
Before the annual meeting started, the hotel was bustling with activity.
The hall of the annual meeting was decorated in a grand and beautiful manner, but that's not the main point. The main point is the prize wall that was set up in advance on the stage.
The hotel staff were already excitedly whispering among themselves.
Especially the female employees.
Because that huge wall of prizes contained so many things that would interest their female employees.
"My goodness, they even have Estée Lauder, Helena Rubinstein, and La Mer... The most expensive one costs tens of thousands of yuan a set! Is our boss really that generous?"
"I don't dare to dream of anything too expensive, but I'd love to get my hands on a Dyson vacuum cleaner; I'm planning to buy one for my home anyway."
The male employees were also quite excited.
"There are DJI drones... and an entire wall of Huawei."
"I really want that handheld console. If any of you manage to win it, I'm willing to trade with you. It'll be a perfect prize for my son's final exams."
Everyone was very happy and kept whispering among themselves, their excitement impossible to hide.
As evening approached, the annual meeting was about to begin.
In the huge lobby, hotel staff entered one after another. Of course, property staff from Star City World Commercial Street, which is also under Zhang Yang's Yinghai, as well as farm staff from the suburbs, also joined in.
Only then did they realize that the Four Seasons Hotel, the landmark building in Yinghai and known as the "ceiling hotel" of Yinghai, was actually a property under their own boss.
Dozens of tables were set up in the hall, and hundreds of people gathered together at this moment.
Everyone sat at the table, glancing occasionally at the Wuliangye and Changyu Aifeibao Red Wine on it, whispering among themselves, and unable to resist taking out their phones to take pictures of the annual meeting and showing off.
Is it something to brag about? Absolutely.
The setup of the reception, the contents of the prize wall, and even the wine served at each table all refreshed their understanding.
They finally realized that their new boss, Mr. Zhang, was truly generous and magnanimous.
Later, everyone arrived.
On stage, the Four Seasons Hotel staff, who were hosting the annual meeting, took the stage.
The Four Seasons Hotel has many young, beautiful, and attractive employees, mostly graduates of tourism programs. Naturally, many of them are capable of hosting an annual meeting with ease.
The first table in the front row.
Zhang Yang sat in the head seat, surrounded by the hotel's general manager and directors of various departments.
"Next, Mr. Zhang Yang, Chairman of our Four Seasons Hotel, will give a speech at our annual meeting." On the stage of the annual meeting, the female host, who had just graduated from the Tourism College last year, looked at the newly hired female employee with eager eyes.
Zhang Yang then stood up from the table and walked onto the stage amidst applause from the audience.
All eyes in the audience were drawn to the stage, focusing on that handsome and dashing figure.
The female employees, in particular, all had sparkling eyes, watching the figure on stage like little fangirls. In their eyes, their boss was much more handsome and dashing than any of those big stars or top celebrities.
They don't idolize celebrities at all; they only idolize their own bosses.
The opening remarks at the annual meeting were naturally very simple, nothing more than those nice words. Zhang Yang also understood the psychology of his employees well, so he kept it short and to the point, finishing in just a few minutes.
When he put down the microphone, the people below hadn't even reacted yet.
But after a brief moment of silence, thunderous applause erupted, almost deafening.
The applause was genuine, not just for show, but truly from the heart, as evidenced by the fact that some of the male employees were so excited that their palms were almost red from clapping.
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Throughout the entire gala, the stage was filled with singing and dancing.
Zhang Yang sat in the audience, enjoying the diverse reactions of the crowd while occasionally responding to the toasts offered by the managers.
Besides the managers, some bolder female employees also dared to come up and offer him a toast, intending to show off in front of him and hope to leave a good impression.
Zhang Yang knew perfectly well what was going on, but he wasn't offended.
Because that's how the world works, and opportunities are always reserved for certain people.
"Mr. Zhang, I'd like to propose a toast to you." A young woman with a rosy complexion, a hotel employee, raised her glass and bowed slightly to Zhang Yang.
Zhang Yang subconsciously picked up his wine glass and glanced at it.
The female employee looks unfamiliar.
"Mr. Zhang, this is Chen Peipei from the sales department. She just joined our hotel last month," the marketing manager quickly introduced. "Chen Peipei just arrived last month and already secured a big order for our hotel."
"Oh?" Zhang Yang became interested.
He has always favored employees who can bring real value to him, but at this moment, his attitude immediately changed.
He raised his glass and clinked it with Chen Peipei's.
Unexpectedly, Chen Peipei raised her glass, tilted her head back, and downed it in one gulp. Her drinking style certainly had the aura of a top salesperson.
"Good drinking capacity." Zhang Yang nodded with a smile. "Keep it up, I'll be watching you."
Immediately, a hint of excitement flashed in Chen Peipei's eyes, and she quickly patted her chest to assure him.
It's quite a coincidence.
I don't know if it was because he spoke to Zhang Yang, or because he benefited from Zhang Yang's influence.
During the subsequent lucky draw, Chen Peipei's luck was truly extraordinary. She won a grand prize right away: a Helena Rubinstein outfit worth nearly ten thousand yuan.
At the dinner table, a chorus of compliments rang out, all saying that Chen Peipei 'Chen Peipei good fortune was due to Zhang Yang's blessing.
Zhang Yang smiled but didn't say anything.
Well, no wonder everyone likes to be flattered. Even though they know it's just empty flattery, it still makes them feel good.
A typical annual meeting includes a raffle interspersed with the entertainment.
It was full of surprises.
Starting with the grand prize, followed by various big-name appliances, and countless small red envelopes starting at 100 yuan, the aim was to ensure everyone received something and everyone had a smile on their face.
The entire hall was filled with laughter and cheerful conversation.
Zhang Yang knew that this wasn't just the case here; the annual meetings of his other businesses throughout the week would likely be similar.
Spending a whopping 100 million yuan will increase everyone's sense of belonging to the company.
The employees were happy, and Zhang Yang was happy too, since he didn't have to pay anything himself; the system covered all the expenses.
In this happy and peaceful atmosphere, Zhang Yang walked out of the hotel lobby.
Along the way, laughter and cheerful voices echoed from every lobby, and Chinese New Year decorations were present in every corner of the hotel lobby.
Outside the Four Seasons Hotel, Zhang Yang stood beneath his own building, looking at the night sky and then at the street in front of him.
The streets of Yinghai seem to be getting more and more crowded. With the Spring Festival approaching, the return-home rush has already begun, adding more vitality to Yinghai, a city with a large outflow of population.
Standing at this juncture of bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new, Zhang Yang felt nothing but joy and ease.
"Huh?"
A slight coolness spread across my face.
Zhang Yang looked up and saw snowflakes falling gently in the night light.
"It's snowing!" Several children in the distance cheered and jumped around, looking up at the sky and welcoming the increasingly large snowflakes.
"It really is true." Zhang Yang chuckled to himself, and unusually took out his phone to capture the scene before him.
I also posted it on my WeChat Moments.
The content on WeChat Moments was very simple: a photo of snowfall accompanied by the caption, "A timely snow promises a bumper harvest."
For an ordinary person, such an unremarkable post on social media would go unnoticed.
But at that moment, he had just posted it on his WeChat Moments.
In the blink of an eye, likes and comments flooded in.
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On the eve of Chinese New Year, Zhang Yang made a special trip back to his old house to finalize the arrangements for the new rural villa he had prepared for his grandparents.
Calling this house a villa is a bit of a stretch, since it's only a little over 100 square meters. However, its advantage lies in its large usable area, which provides a better living experience. Of course, for Zhang Yang, the reason he chose this place was simply because it's close to his old house, has a community market and hospital nearby, and is surrounded by many elderly people of similar age, so they can share common interests.
Of course, the old house also needs renovation; it's the root of the Zhang family, and it can never be abandoned like this.
After everything was settled, Zhang Yang was about to tell the old man.
Unexpectedly, the other end of the phone rang first.
"Zhang Yang, guess who's here?" the old man laughed heartily.
"Who?" Zhang Yang blinked, and a number of names flashed through his mind.
The fact that they would make a special trip to visit the old man, and that they have connections with him, suggests that they might be one of the old man's brothers.
The old man had eight brothers. He settled down in Yinghai, while his other brothers had long since gone to all corners of the country to establish their own branches and leaves.
Therefore, Zhang Yang's generation had little contact with them.
The only time we crossed paths was when I was studying in the Harbor City. I visited my great-uncle's cousin's house, who had settled there, quite a few times. We would go there for a meal every now and then on weekends. But after graduation, since we were in different places, we gradually lost touch.
I still remember that my uncle was doing very well. When he went to university, his older sister, Zhang Yuying, had just graduated and I heard that she was given a very good job.
Lost in thought, the person on the other end of the phone seemed to have changed.
"Zhang Yang..." A hearty laugh came from the other end of the line, sounding somewhat familiar. "Do you remember me?"
Who else could that voice belong to but my uncle Zhang Junwei?
"Uncle?" Zhang Yang smiled. "Long time no see."
"It's been quite a few years. I heard from your grandfather that you were living nearby?" Zhang Junwei said with a smile. "Your sister Yuying just mentioned you. I wonder how you are now?"
"Still two eyes and one mouth," Zhang Yang laughed. "Uncle, I'm coming over now."
Although Zhang Junwei was his cousin, he always addressed him directly as "Uncle," which was simple and clear.
Just as he guessed, it really was his uncle's family.
Before hanging up, he vaguely heard a girl's voice laughing and telling him to hurry over. It must have been his cousin's older sister, Zhang Yuying.
Putting down his phone, Zhang Yang briefly recalled his time studying in the Harbor City.
Back then, every weekend, my uncle would call him enthusiastically to invite him over for dinner. My uncle's older sister, Zhang Yuying, was also very enthusiastic. She always liked to tease him and would occasionally take him out to eat and go shopping, saying she would introduce him to girlfriends and such.
Several years have passed since I graduated from university.
His distant older sister, it seems, is still unmarried? She must be almost thirty, right?