Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Just before winter break, my youngest aunt and her husband came back. Their business had been going smoothly, and they brought back countless goodies from Russia to hand out to relatives. Most of what they brought didn't interest me, but I couldn't put down a pair of extremely powerful binoculars. I'd kept myself so busy all this time that I'd forgotten such a wonderful tool for spying on people existed. I couldn't very well ask my aunt for them, since a pair cost at least five hundred yuan. Zhang Xiaotong watched from the sidelines, saw what I was thinking, and asked for them on my behalf.

Only after getting the binoculars did I cry out in regret. It was winter, and all there was to see was frost on windows or thick curtains. Even peeping would be difficult.

Zhang Xiaotong also saw what I wanted the binoculars for and sneered from beside me. "Wait until summer."

That one sentence scared the life out of me. "Sis, nothing gets past you..."

"Who told you to give me so many books to read?" Zhang Xiaotong casually picked up the binoculars. "Look if you want to."

I hurriedly changed the subject. "All you can see with these is people's flesh. The really fun kind of spying is peering into people's minds."

Zhang Xiaotong blinked and said nothing.

I said, "For instance, those people running our company. Do you think you understand them?"

Zhang Xiaotong punched me with a grin. "You haven't taken a fancy to those pretty ladies, have you?"

"Of course not." I sniffed as though smelling jealousy in the air. "When it comes to looks, they couldn't possibly come first, right? Have you seen Sharon Stone's Sliver (note 1)? It came out last year."

"I've seen it."

As soon as she said those words, Zhang Xiaotong blushed. Sliver counted as an erotic film, after all. When a girl admitted she'd seen an erotic film, she always had to blush appropriately to show that she was actually innocent.

I gave her a thumbs-up. "Fine acting. Impressive skills." Before Zhang Xiaotong could pinch me, I immediately asked, "What did you think of the part where the heroine sat in front of the monitors watching her neighbors' lives?"

Zhang Xiaotong thought for a moment without speaking.

I asked again, "If it were you, would you watch?"

This time, she didn't hesitate. "Yes."

"So human nature is basically the same," I concluded. "Given the chance, you wouldn't turn down an opportunity to spy on other people, either. We're all much the same in that respect."

"Mm..."

I wagged a finger. "So... don't you think our senior people are all very interested in us two?"

This time, Zhang Xiaotong nodded. "That's only natural. The better they know us, the stranger they ought to find us. We're both strange enough."

"Exactly! So what we're discussing now isn't the psychology of voyeurism, but how to use that psychology to keep earning these comrades' trust."

Zhang Xiaotong asked in puzzlement, "Aren't they all very impressed by your decisions?"

"The more convinced they are by my decisions, the more curious they become about me," I explained. "Do you think people who can put all our ideas into practice in such a short time are pushovers? Besides professional skills, quick reactions, thinking skills, adaptability, and a healthy curiosity are all essential. They must have been endlessly curious on their own for ages. I just don't think they've reached the point of discussing it yet."

That was more or less how things stood. I'd originally meant to steer the conversation away from peeping, but ended up talking about the current state of the company's employees, especially what Liu Mingyao, Lu Wei, Cai Qing, Yu Chunrong, and the others were thinking. I felt we now needed an effective way to address this problem, to minimize their curiosity while keeping their trust in our decisions.

Ever since joining the company, these people had all been busy, each with their own work, so they hadn't had much attention to spare for anything else. Now that most of the business was stabilizing, they had time to indulge their curiosity. I had to take this opportunity to address the problem first. Even if I couldn't solve it, I needed to ease it, or I really wouldn't feel comfortable.

Zhang Xiaotong asked me, "What are you planning to do?"

I shrugged. "What else can I do? Reassuring them one at a time isn't the answer. We'll hold a private get-together and talk openly. Everyone will feel valued, and it'll put us on equal footing."

"All together? Won't that create confusion?"

I broke into a smile. "I don't think we've even held a senior management meeting before. Let's set a precedent."

On the day exams ended, I slipped away in a taxi while neither Xu Jiajia nor Zhang Xin was paying attention. A few minutes later, Zhang Xiaotong and I met at Sun Electric Appliance City. In the top-floor conference room, everyone sat stiffly upright, waiting for us.

Zhang Xiaotong and I arrived last. The two empty chairs at the round table were ours. I sat down without ceremony. The chair was still a little too big for me, making me look somewhat comical.

Everyone present was an old comrade by now. As I'd envisioned it, the conference room was currently just a place for everyone to communicate. We didn't need a long table and all that intimidating mystique yet. When they saw me trying to sit a little taller, none of them could keep the smiles off their faces.

As I settled into my seat, I looked at them and said, "Actually, I think I look pretty ridiculous myself."

That put everyone at ease.

Not many people had come this time: Liu Mingyao, Lu Wei, Cai Qing, Yu Chunrong, and Xu Jun, the original director of the MSG Factory. After a period of settling in together, he now counted as one of us too.

Including Zhang Xiaotong and me, there were only seven of us, still some way short of King Arthur and his Twelve Knights at the Round Table.

There wasn't really an agenda today. The main purpose was to answer everyone's questions, so I took it upon myself to speak first. "You all have some idea what this is about, don't you?"

Several people nodded. None of them were fools; they could guess some of it.

I tossed over a document I was holding. "This is as far as I can explain your biggest question. As for anything else, ask whatever you like. This is our last meeting of the year, so consider answers to these questions my New Year's gift to you. I'll answer anything. There should be complete trust between us, don't you agree?"

What I'd tossed over was a load of nonsense mixed with a few medical reports. The gist was that stimulation from uncertain external factors could cause subtle changes in the human brain, manifested in physical changes such as enlargement of the inferior lobe, as well as significant increases in IQ and emotional intelligence. I'd also given a "profound" self-analysis of an entirely fictitious heavy blow to the head during childhood, explaining that it was probably from then on that I'd begun understanding everything I heard and learning quickly. Zhang Xiaotong had already heard my nonsense once. This version was slightly different, and she gave me an inscrutable smile that made my skin crawl...

Pretending not to see Zhang Xiaotong's smile, I spoke leisurely to the others at the meeting. "That's about all I can explain. What I've learned is general knowledge. I haven't reached the level of specialized brain research yet. In short, all I can say is that I do have something of a photographic memory. In other respects, I still seem to fall short of you all."

After reading the document, Liu Mingyao passed it to Cai Qing beside him. "You should've said so sooner. I've only been idolizing you for a few days, and now you've gone and ruined the image. At first, I wondered why Zhang Xiaotong was bringing such a little kid around. Only later did I realize you were the one hiding the most."

Lu Wei gave me a baffled look. "Did you really come up with those designs yourself?"

I nodded. "They just keep pouring out. I couldn't stop them if I tried."

"Good." Lu Wei smiled. "Whenever I need a design from now on, I'll come to you."

I rolled my eyes. "Sure. No matter how much I charge?"

Cai Qing chimed in beside her. "Hehe, could you really bear to make your cousin pay?"

"Business is business." I chuckled. These people had long known that I had a hand in decisions both large and small. What did she mean, my cousin's money? It belonged to both of us anyway.

I glanced sideways at Yu Chunrong and Xu Jun. They were a little older and couldn't ask questions as freely as Liu Mingyao and the others, but their brows furrowed from time to time, as though they too had something to say.

I smiled. "In front of outsiders, we should all be strong, brave, and unassailable. But there's no need for that among our own people, is there? Say whatever you want to say."

Hearing that, Yu Chunrong let out a breath first and asked, "I only have one question. How did you think of making tea drinks?"

I smiled and wagged a finger. "By reading overseas materials. Here's a little advice for you too: read more news and information magazines from Hong Kong and Taiwan. American, Japanese, and Korean ones are fine too. I won't bother telling you how to get them. You all have more channels than I do. Tea drinks were just something I thought of while reading the history of Taiwan's Uni-President."

At the mention of Uni-President, I scratched my head. "We need to step up our efforts. Ting Hsin International and Uni-President may both enter the market by the end of this year. Competition will be fierce then. We can't lose to the Taiwanese."

Yu Chunrong nodded. I'd successfully changed the subject, and he went off thinking about marketing strategies.

Xu Jun was a very steady, mature man. I'd invited him because I hoped he too would become part of this team. Ever since Zhang Xiaotong and I had seen him shed tears over paying the workers' wages, I'd thought particularly highly of him. It wasn't that people like him wouldn't exist in the future, but that they would have fewer and fewer chances to shoulder important responsibilities. An age of heartless people who took what they could and ran was fast approaching. I had to hurry and gather decent, loyal people around me. Xu Jun was just such a rare talent.

I asked Xu Jun, "Director Xu, is there anything you'd like to ask?"

Xu Jun hadn't expected me to address him specifically. After a moment's hesitation, he slowly began, "I only want to know whether you really intend to stay in the seasonings business for the long term."

He hadn't asked why I knew the chicken seasoning formula or how I knew market trends. Instead, he'd asked me this comparatively practical question. To be honest, I was pleased. He was more pragmatic than everyone else.

I smiled. "Would you believe the word of a child like me?"

"I would now."

"All right. We probably won't give it up for the next ten years, and we'll keep expanding." I spoke to him with firm conviction. "If that's our plan, what are your plans, Uncle Xu?" I naturally shifted how I addressed him, giving him a little sense of closeness.

Xu Jun smiled wryly. "What other plans could I have? Seeing what you've achieved lately, I feel I have so much to learn from you. Are you planning to acquire the factory?"

I smiled. "You're being too modest, Uncle Xu. Look at the people here. I consider you one of us. You have the final say about the factory. If you can't bear to leave your old colleagues and friends, we'll acquire it. If you want a fresh start, we'll invest. It's entirely up to you."

At my words, everyone turned to Xu Jun. Without even thinking, he said, "If it were up to me, of course I'd want you to acquire the MSG Factory."

I nodded casually. "Then we'll buy it. If you trust us, Uncle Xu, keep going with us. I don't know how far we'll get myself, but I hope more people will be there to witness the process."

Xu Jun was gradually getting used to hearing such useless talk coming from an elementary school student like me. He nodded as well. "Of course. I'd also like to know just how much potential the seasonings market has."

I clapped my hands. "The market is limitless. It's only our abilities that are limited."

Everyone nodded. The market was indeed limitless; only our abilities were limited.

I turned to Cai Qing. This was the first time I'd seen her since she'd joined Sun Electronics. She really was beautiful, with almond-shaped eyes and every part of her appearance carefully attended to. She had a classic oval face, a little like an oval-faced actress who would later become famous through a Qing palace drama. Her flowing hair was neatly styled and lively, making her look neither too old nor too young. After looking at her, I gave Liu Mingyao a knowing wink and asked Cai Qing, "What about you? Anything you'd like to say?"

Cai Qing shook her head. "No."

"Anyone else?"

They all shook their heads.

I said, "All right, then. Your assigned essays are due next week. Meeting adjourned. Let's eat."

The seven of us set off for the hotel in three cars. On the way, I told Zhang Xiaotong, "In another two years, these people will become our most loyal core team."

Zhang Xiaotong's eyes widened. "Another two years?"

I leaned back on the rear seat to rest. "Two years, assuming we can prove more things to them during that time."

"So today's whole performance was completely useless?"

"It helped a little. But do you think people will devote themselves wholeheartedly to you over just that little bit?"

Zhang Xiaotong shook her head. "Of course not."

"There you go. Let's prove it to them, then. We can create more miracles." I closed my eyes. "At this stage, you should count yourself lucky to have their full support. Where else would you find so many people pulling together?"

The car slowly passed along the streets I'd known since childhood, past pedestrians coming and going.

Note 1: Sliver was released in 1993, and videotapes made their way into China shortly before the end of the year.