Chapter 23: Only Recognizing President Chen Xiao

Dr. Feng Robotics Co., Ltd.

At exactly 10:00 AM, Yuan Kai, dressed in a sharp suit, was already waiting with eager anticipation. Yang Ming had messaged him on his way over, confirming he would arrive at 10.

Li Guoqiang’s party consisted of only three people, including an assistant. Li had been taciturn throughout the journey. Since discovering that Chen Xiao was a salesperson at Dr. Feng, he hadn't mentioned it to anyone else. He couldn't fathom why such a young billionaire would hide away in a small company working as a salesman. Was this some strange hobby of the wealthy? He even worried that revealing Chen’s identity might ruin things for him, and he had no intention of offending him. At the same time, he realized this was a perfect opportunity to get closer to Chen; he would simply hand over any orders that Dr. Feng Robotics could fulfill. After all, he had to give the orders to someone anyway.

As they walked into Dr. Feng Robotics, a banner hung in the lobby: "Welcome to President Li and the team from Jiangzhou Zhongjian Equipment Co., Ltd. for their inspection visit!"

Young women selected from various departments stood on both sides, welcoming them in unison with warm applause. It was a bit over the top, considering they were the ones asking for favors; Li Guoqiang felt his face flush.

Feng Feifei stepped forward personally, smiling as she shook his hand. "Welcome, President Li, to inspect our operations!"

Seeing the stunningly beautiful general manager, Li Guoqiang seemed to understand why President Chen was hunkered down in this small company. He put on his most amiable smile and replied, "You are too kind, President Feng. I hope for your continued support!"

He glanced around but didn't see Chen Xiao. He assumed Chen was angry and unwilling to show his face. The group followed Feng Feifei into the main conference room, where they sat on opposite sides to begin the meeting.

During the introductions, Feng Feifei introduced the heads of the relevant departments. Finally, gesturing toward Yuan Kai, she said, "Manager Yuan—I won't introduce him in detail; since he handles your business, I’m sure you’re already well-acquainted?"

"Hmm?" Li Guoqiang whispered suspiciously to Yang Ming, "Isn't it President Chen who handles the account?"

Yang Ming replied, "Chen Xiao is just a salesperson here; Yuan Kai is his manager."

*You idiot, can’t you understand plain speech?* Li thought. *I’m here for Chen Xiao, who the hell cares about his manager? You told me everything was arranged—is this the arrangement you made?*

He couldn't scold him in this setting, so he simply said to Feng Feifei, "Is your company’s Mr. Chen Xiao not here?"

The room fell silent. Everyone was taken aback, wondering why they were looking for Chen Xiao.

Yuan Kai quickly interjected, "President Li, Chen Xiao is just a salesperson in my department. With President Feng here today, and myself as well, we can finalize all cooperation matters right now!"

Feng Feifei found nothing wrong with Yuan Kai’s statement, but she was curious as to how the guests knew Chen Xiao.

"President Feng, I came today with orders. I’ve already studied your company’s products. We can provide an order worth 6 to 8 million, but I need to see President Chen Xiao. The business was previously negotiated by him."

What was going on? The staff at Dr. Feng Robotics cast sidelong glances at Yuan Kai. *Chen Xiao’s business, and Yuan Kai is trying to swoop in? That’s a bit shameless, isn't it?* *Is Chen Xiao really that impressive that they’d specifically name him and bring orders to his doorstep?*

Feng Feifei, sharp as she was, immediately sensed something was wrong—Yuan Kai must have been hiding something. She didn't realize that Yuan Kai was just as bewildered; he only knew Yang Ming said he was bringing an order, but he never mentioned Chen Xiao. He had thought he’d hit the jackpot, but now...

He had no choice but to bite the bullet. "President Li, President Yang, Chen Xiao hasn't come into the office this morning. Since you are both here, why don't we discuss the business first, and I’ll have Chen Xiao come to pay you a visit later?"

Li Guoqiang turned to Feng Feifei. "President Feng, we can wait, but if President Chen Xiao doesn't come, we won't be discussing this order."

No one expected this, and no one knew why Chen Xiao was so important. Feng Feifei had someone call Chen Xiao and tell him to return. Yuan Kai sat on pins and needles; he had thought it was a stroke of luck, but it turned out to be a dark cloud hanging over his head.

When Chen Xiao received the call, he was at Starbucks drinking coffee. He wasn't the least bit surprised to hear that Li Guoqiang was specifically asking for him. If they had signed the order while he wasn't there, it would have been a wasted opportunity.

He wasn't far from the office and arrived in a leisurely ten-minute drive. As he walked into the meeting room, Li Guoqiang stood up immediately, and Yang Ming followed suit instantly. The staff at Dr. Feng Robotics were startled, wondering if some top executive had arrived. When they saw it was just Chen Xiao, they couldn't fathom how he had managed to make Li Guoqiang and his team show such respect.

"Everything settled?" Chen Xiao pulled up a chair and sat down.

Li Guoqiang said, "We’ve been waiting for you. Shall we start now?"

Feng Feifei remained silent, observing the facial expressions of the two men. She noticed that Li Guoqiang’s attitude toward Chen Xiao was almost sycophantic.

"Go ahead and talk, then. I’m going to grab something to eat afterward; I’m starving!"

Li Guoqiang immediately had Yang Ming bring out the procurement plan and handed the printed copies to Chen Xiao and Feng Feifei. As for Yuan Kai, no one seemed to notice him, which made for an awkward scene.

"Our procurement this time involves 7.8 million. Regarding the specific quotes, would you two take a look and see if there are any adjustments needed?"

This was the first time Feng Feifei had negotiated business this way; she was unaccustomed to such smoothness. She looked it over carefully; the quotes were reasonable, and the profit margins were good. Most importantly, Zhongjian hadn't squeezed too much profit out of them this time.

"President Li, this is 7.8 million for equipment procurement. I see you also have a drone inspection project in your business scope—we can handle service-based work as well!"

"Oh? President Chen, that’s even better! Add that 1.2 million order to the 7.8 million procurement, for a total of 9 million. We can finalize it today! What do you two think?"

Chen Xiao turned to Feng Feifei. "President Feng, what do you think?"

"No problem. Let’s go with your and President Li’s recommendation!"

"Fine, then. Let the others stay to handle the contract details. Let’s go eat, I’m starving!" Chen Xiao stood up and stretched.

The group looked at each other in confusion—was he really being this arrogant? Neither of the two presidents had even spoken yet. Feng Feifei looked at Li Guoqiang, who immediately chimed in, "Well then, we’ll take you up on that. Yang Ming will stay behind."

Naturally, the capable Yuan Kai was left behind as well. Chen Xiao and Feng Feifei accompanied Li Guoqiang to the restaurant.

Sitting in the business car, Chen Xiao turned to Li Guoqiang. "President Li, the matters we discussed yesterday are basically settled. I hope we have a pleasant cooperation moving forward."

He was referring both to the timely payment of rent and, implicitly, to the future cooperation with Dr. Feng Robotics.

"President Chen, let me be clear: as long as you have a need, I will cooperate fully. All future business involving Dr. Feng Robotics will be handled through this office!"

Feng Feifei chimed in at the right moment to express her gratitude. Li Guoqiang was naturally very polite toward her as well—after all, she was Chen Xiao’s nominal boss, and quite possibly, the woman of his dreams.