My Boss Always Flirts With Me - Chapter 45
Chapter 45: Caring
The agreement wasn’t a physical document, but since He Chi brought it up, it meant he cared. Fang Ci remembered the day they got their marriage certificate when He Chi posted about their marriage on his moments. He probably cared about the ritual aspect.
He tossed and turned for half the night and decided not to tell the team members about his marriage yet, to avoid being endlessly questioned. He would just say that he already had a boyfriend.
However, on the next day, Fang Ci didn’t get the chance. The department was in a frenzy, and no one was talking about private matters.
As soon as Cheng Wen arrived at the company, he informed him, “Xiao Fan is back in the country. His agent called and asked about the press conference process and what they need to coordinate with us.”
Fang Ci was buried in revisions. “Xiao Fan?”
Cheng Wen was speechless. “It hasn’t been that long. You’ve already forgotten about the guest? How can you be so heartless?”
Fang Ci then realized that the DEC team was back. He said, “They don’t have pre-game practice now, do they?”
Cheng Wen: “Right, they’re on vacation, so they’re asking you. They said they can come to the company. They’re afraid it won’t be clear over the phone. Anyway, it depends on our schedule.”
Fang Ci said, “This afternoon. Ask them to come over. We’ll go over the process with them individually. We also need to send out the early-stage promotions. You need to follow up with the media and PR departments for the materials.”
Cheng Wen: “Okay, I’ll send them a message.”
Taking a break, Fang Ci looked at his phone and saw that Xiao Fan had left him a message and even sent him his schedule. His cooperation was high, which Fang Ci was quite satisfied with. He liked obedient collaborators, or rather, everyone liked stable partners.
He replied to a few messages and exchanged pleasantries. To show his sincerity, he personally extended the invitation again.
Xiao Fan replied: [No problem.]
Fang Ci felt relieved and turned off his phone. He suddenly remembered what He Chi had said yesterday. Perhaps so far, in Teacher He’s evaluation standards, he was still a qualified partner.
He Chi, being in a high position, had a certain desire for control, and his demands for his partners might be even higher.
Although he accounted for more than 50% of the marriage, how many points would he get if he were to be scored?
He was a little emotional in his heart, wavering around 60 points, and he couldn’t come to a conclusion, so he gave up.
Forget it, let’s work. He deleted the distractions and let his mind be filled with work again.
He revised a few more paragraphs. Cheng Wen poked his head over and asked, “Do you think it’s possible for DEC to team up with fans to play ‘tower push’?”
Fang Ci: “I’ve talked about it. They said yes. It depends on whether we split the team members to lead a team or something else.”
Cheng Wen: “When you go to negotiate, try to get them to do a live stream for a while.”
Fang Ci frowned. “We need to add a supplementary clause for that, right?”
Cheng Wen: “Ah, just use your initiative. Isn’t it easy to confirm a supplementary clause? Live streaming is so popular now. We definitely have to fight for it.”
Fang Ci was helpless. “How about you go and talk to them…”
Cheng Wen spread his hands and refused. He smiled and said, “Manager Fang, you can do it!” And then he left him alone.
Fang Ci felt that he had more and more responsibilities. But at the end of the day, he couldn’t give up halfway. After all, he was the one who negotiated the contract. He could only blame himself for being in a hurry to sign the contract. He should have packed in more additional clauses.
At the agreed-upon time, Fang Ci went downstairs to pick up Xiao Fan. Xiao Fan was the same as usual, wearing a black mask and an oversized jacket.
“Didn’t Brother Yan come with you?” Brother Yan was Xiao Fan’s agent.
Xiao Fan said, “He has something to do and will be late. My practice room is close to here, so I came over first. Do you mind?”
Fang Ci smiled. “No problem. We can wait for him.”
The two of them entered the elevator together. Fang Ci pressed the floor button. The numbers went up. Out of politeness, he said to Xiao Fan, “We still have some time. I’ll show you around.”
This was also a way to communicate. They could talk about things casually. Xiao Fan nodded and went along with his arrangement.
Zhiyun Technology’s rest area was very large. Besides the office area, the other places were decorated with a sense of technology. Xiao Fan immediately saw the mechanical devices on both sides of the corridor.
Fang Ci said, “Our employees made them themselves.”
Xiao Fan bent down to look at a mechanical monkey. “It’s interesting.”
“The R&D department originally planned to assemble a computer, but they thought it was too common halfway through, so they changed it to an animal,” Fang Ci smiled and added, “This was a birthday gift for CEO He, and also a gift for the company’s anniversary.”
Xiao Fan put his hands in his pockets and said, “Your company’s traditions are quite creative.”
Fang Ci: “Not as wild as your e-sports studio’s style.”
Xiao Fan: “You’ve seen it?”
Fang Ci: “I’ve watched your interviews.”
He remembered something else and said, “Oh, by the way, this machine can also do this…” He half-crouched down and triggered a small mechanism. The mechanical monkey started to dance, making rhythmic sounds.
Xiao Fan laughed. “You win. You’re indeed a technology department.”
Fang Ci also laughed. He had always thought this little thing was a lot of fun. What Xiao Fan was seeing now was a simplified version. When it was first made, it was even cuter. It could even sing, and its limbs could change shapes.
“It would be even better if you added a steampunk gear to the joints,” Xiao Fan casually mentioned.
This was a new and interesting idea. Fang Ci thought about it and said, “Yeah, that would be cool.”
While they were chatting around the mechanical monkey, a group of people suddenly walked by in the hallway. They moved to the side. Fang Ci was still thinking about when to talk about the supplementary agreement. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the group getting closer and noticed that the person in front was He Chi, followed by several older people who looked like investors.
He Chi glanced at him. Because the atmosphere was serious, Fang Ci became very reserved. He didn’t dare to look at He Chi directly and stood obediently on the side to make way.
Then something unexpected happened. He Chi stopped right next to him. Fang Ci looked up and saw that He Chi’s expression hadn’t changed. He said to the people behind him, “Uncle Qiao, Uncle Li, this is Fang Ci, the head of our company’s AP product department. You can also find him for any product development matters in the future.”
Fang Ci’s mind went blank for a moment, not expecting He Chi to introduce him to the investors. The investors, on the other hand, reacted quickly. They said, “The younger generation is taking over. He’s so young but already a department manager. In the future, we don’t have to worry about a lack of new ideas for products.”
He Chi nodded. His gaze fell on Fang Ci. Fang Ci came to his senses and followed up with a greeting. He didn’t say anything overly polite. It sounded very simple, just what a person of his age and position should say.
The brief encounter was like a little interlude. He Chi seemed very busy. After a short pause, he glanced at the two of them and walked away with the investors.
Fang Ci watched his back, seeing him disappear at the end of the corridor. He then turned to Xiao Fan and said, “Let’s go to the rooftop to talk.” Xiao Fan was a very laid-back person, so he naturally had no objections. The two of them went up to the rooftop with coffee.
The afternoon went quite smoothly. The price Xiao Fan and his agent proposed was acceptable to Fang Ci, and the two parties quickly signed a new agreement.
Fang Ci saw them off and returned to his desk. He looked at the time and waited for He Chi to get off work.
He told his team members to go home and stayed to work overtime, continuing to revise the speech draft.
Around 7 p.m., He Chi messaged him, asking Shang Qu to send him home first. Fang Ci asked: [What time are you coming home?]
He Chi: [Around 9 p.m.]
As if he could read his mind from a distance, he immediately sent another message: [Something wrong?]
Fang Ci hesitated for a second and said: [I want you to help me look over the speech draft, but if you’re busy, I can ask other department managers.]
He Chi: [Okay.]
Okay, what? Fang Ci bit his pen.
He Chi: [No need to find anyone else. I’ll help you look at it when I get back.]
Fang Ci smiled and replied: [Okay, thank you, boss.] This is like getting extra tutoring, right?
The screen on the other end paused for a few seconds and then showed that he was typing: [It’s fine.]
[You’re welcome.]
Fang Ci smiled.
He Chi was indeed on time and stepped into the house at 9 p.m. At that time, Fang Ci was reading the draft to Qiuqiu. Qiuqiu had been held by him all night and looked very unwilling.
When He Chi opened the door, he heard Fang Ci asking Qiuqiu, “Do you think this sentence is okay? Meow if it’s okay, and no sound if it’s not.”
Qiuqiu meowed three times, giving him no face at all.
He Chi heard it and was a little helpless. “You want it to help you revise the draft?”
Fang Ci’s eyes lit up when he saw him.
He Chi took his draft and sat on the carpet. He said briskly, “Laptop.”
Fang Ci put Qiuqiu down and put his laptop on his lap. “Teacher He, you can start.”
He Chi’s execution was amazing. He scanned the lines, marked a few spots, and said, “These sentences are too cumbersome. For a speech, short sentences are better, for example, ‘It has powerful functions and simple and convenient operations’.”
“And this phrasing here, ordinary consumers won’t understand it. You need to re-explain the definition in your own words. When talking about touch technology, only talk about the operation method, not the origin of the technology.”
He said more than a dozen things in a row. Fang Ci was amazed at first, but the more he heard, the more he felt a little discouraged. There were too many. It was like a paper he had worked hard on, but in the hands of the teacher, it was all wrong.
The most discouraging thing was when He Chi turned to the last page and asked him, “Do you know how many pages Steve’s speech draft was?”
That famous product manager? Fang Ci didn’t remember.
He Chi looked at him and announced the answer. “44 pages.”
Fang Ci: “…” He kind of wanted to quit.
He Chi: “You only need to write 22 pages.”
Fang Ci: I’m tired.
He didn’t want to talk anymore.
He Chi noticed his expression and asked, “Is it difficult?”
Fang Ci: “Isn’t it difficult?”
He quickly realized he had asked the wrong person because He Chi said, “I think this level is average.”
Fang Ci sighed.
He Chi said, “Give me the laptop.”
Huh? Fang Ci perked up, a little surprised. He Chi had already moved the laptop over. He leaned in and saw that He Chi was directly editing the text based on the points he had just mentioned. It was fast and efficient, like grading homework.
“In the future, if you’re not sure about something, come to me as soon as possible,” He Chi said.
Fang Ci nodded and added, “I just wanted to try it myself first. And… I watched your speeches.”
He Chi raised an eyebrow and asked, “Which ones did you watch?”
Fang Ci said, “Several of them. All the ones I could find videos of.”
He Chi nodded.
Seeing that he didn’t have much of a reaction, Fang Ci didn’t continue. But after He Chi finished editing the first two pages, he suddenly brought up the topic again. He asked, “Did you get anything out of it?”
Is he asking for my review? Fang Ci chose his words carefully. “The sentences were fluent and sharp, and the key points were on point. And…”
He Chi stopped and listened patiently.
Fang Ci pursed his lips and said, “It was very impressive. Very… cool.”
He spoke his true feelings, using an adjective that was suitable for He Chi. The cool CEO. He felt that “handsome” was too simple. “Cool” was different. It was an attitude. He wondered what He Chi’s reaction would be.
He Chi seemed to be thinking about how to respond. After a while, he spoke.
Fang Ci was full of anticipation and blinked. He ended up hearing him say, “Thank you.”
Fang Ci: “…” Okay, okay. As expected from Teacher He.
He Chi put the revised laptop back in his arms. When he lowered his head, He Chi said, “Do you use that word to describe the people around you often?”
Fang Ci was confused. “Which word?”
He Chi: “Cool.”
How could I? Fang Ci immediately shook his head and clarified, “No.”
He Chi leaned on the side of the sofa. “How about a different word?”
Fang Ci couldn’t keep up with Teacher He’s train of thought again. It wasn’t the first or second time, so he might as well. He said, “Then… ‘very handsome’ or ‘very impressive’?”
He Chi: “That works.”
Fang Ci found it a little hard to understand, but as long as Teacher He was happy.
After the draft was revised, Fang Ci stretched. He Chi got up first and reached out his hand to him. Fang Ci used his strength to stand up. There was no cushion, and he almost fell into He Chi’s arms.
Fortunately, the person in front of him was steady enough and held him in time.
Fang Ci stood up straight again and smiled at him. He Chi let go of his hand.
He slept very well that night.
The next day, Fang Ci went to the press conference venue first and only came back to the company in the afternoon.
He sent this week’s progress chart to Yuan Cheng, but he didn’t receive a “read” notification near the end of the day. To prevent a missed message, he decided to go to the CEO’s office to find him. As he walked through the hallway, he felt that something had changed. It felt empty.
After looking around, he realized that some of the mechanical devices were gone. Other than the paintings on the wall and the small figurines, the ones on the ground were removed.
“What about the anniversary gifts in the hallway?” Fang Ci asked Yuan Cheng.
Yuan Cheng had just returned from outside. He said, “Oh, they were moved into the warehouse. CEO He said that the big items in the hallway were a hindrance, probably to avoid bumping into them.”
Fang Ci thought of the investors from yesterday and nodded. “That’s true. Our company does have a lot of people coming and going.”
Yuan Cheng agreed. “Right.”