The 'Involution King' Second Female Lead Quits [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 17

Chapter 17: A Swift Apology

◎A Swift Apology◎

Jinlun Hotel has a great reputation in Quanyuan County. Whether it’s for hosting a dinner or a banquet, as long as it’s at Jinlun, it’s considered to be a very prestigious event.

This led to Li Jianwei driving around for two laps before finding a parking spot. She and Shu Heng arrived at the same time and were led to private room 6 by a waiter.

As the private room door opened, the lively chatter inside quieted down. Most of the people sitting at the tables looked over, trying to figure out which classmate had arrived.

“Shu Heng, you’re here. Come sit over here. I’ve specifically saved these spots for you,” the class president enthusiastically called out, deliberately saving the two seats closest to the head of the table.

Shu Heng greeted her classmates with a smile, holding Li Jianwei’s hand as she took her seat. “Class president, has Teacher Gong arrived yet?”

“Jiang Kun went to pick him up. There’s probably a bit of traffic on the way, so they’re a little delayed,” the class president said with a smile. “Is this the good friend you mentioned? Aren’t you going to introduce her to us?”

“She’s my good friend and also my boss at work,” Shu Heng didn’t reveal too much, just jokingly said, “You can just call her CEO Li with me.”

“CEO Li, do you mind adding a new contact?” A classmate played along, showing his phone’s QR code. “If we can’t find a job, can we come to you?”

“If the conditions are right, you’re more than welcome,” Li Jianwei said, a polite, faint smile on her face.

The classmate who couldn’t add her as a contact smiled and put his phone away, treating it as a joke between friends. “I’ll remember that. When I can’t find a job, I’ll ask you to help me get in touch, Shu Heng.”

“Sure, it’s a deal then,” Shu Heng said with a smile.

For most of her classmates, Shu Heng was willing to get along with them as ordinary friends.

Occasionally getting together to talk about their past lives, reminiscing about staying up all night studying before the college entrance exam, and talking about their current situation and future plans was also a part of life.

Unfortunately, not all the people who came to this gathering were like that. There was also Hu Xuan, who came in right after Jiang Kun.

After entering the private room, Hu Xuan’s eyes darted around. When he saw that Shu Heng had brought Li Jianwei with her, his pupils constricted, and he subconsciously gave the two of them a fawning smile.

Shu Heng didn’t want to cause any unpleasantness in front of the teacher, so she ignored Hu Xuan, smiled, pulled out a chair for the teacher, and poured her some hot tea.

“If I’m calculating the time correctly, you should be working now, Shu Heng, right?” Teacher Gong was very concerned about his former outstanding student. As soon as he sat down, he asked about Shu Heng’s current situation.

“Yes, I’m currently interning and preparing to continue my studies,” Shu Heng replied.

“Are you going for a master’s degree?” Teacher Gong was a little stunned, then the smile on his face deepened. “Your major is indeed suitable for further studies. It’s a good idea to keep studying.”

“Shu Heng is doing a master’s program while working? Won’t that affect your work?” Jiang Kun interjected. After seeing Shu Heng look over, he seemingly nonchalantly placed his BMW car key on the table.

“It’s quite difficult for master’s graduates to find jobs now. If your current salary is good, there’s no real need to pursue a higher degree.”

“The salary of a master’s graduate who works for me is only five hundred to a thousand dollars more than a bachelor’s graduate.”

A classmate next to him chimed in: “What about us? How much will we get paid if we work for CEO Jiang?”

“Of course, it’ll be a thousand dollars more than a master’s graduate. I’m very loyal to my old classmates,” Jiang Kun said with a smile. “Shu Heng, what’s your current salary? Why don’t you come to my company? I’ll give you a high salary.”

Shu Heng gave a polite smile. “I’m an intern right now, so I make five hundred dollars a day. If you calculate it as a full month, it’s fifteen thousand dollars a month.”

“Five hundred a day?” Jiang Kun couldn’t help but raise his voice. “What are you doing for your internship? The interns at my company only make one hundred and twenty dollars a day. A master craftsman with a lot of experience might not even get that price!”

“We’re all classmates. There’s no need to say things just for the sake of it,” Jiang Kun said, waving his hand, his face practically screaming ‘I don’t believe you.’

The salary he paid a bachelor’s graduate was only five thousand dollars. This price was already considered very good in Quanyuan County. If he didn’t require a degree, he could still find people to work for him for three thousand dollars.

“CEO Li, you’re Shu Heng’s boss. Is she really paid that much?” A classmate sitting next to them asked, also not believing it.

“Is that a high salary?” Li Jianwei asked back, the confusion in her eyes very obvious. “Shu Heng is in the company’s most important R&D department. The annual salary for an official employee is over a million. Paying her five hundred a day is already the lowest price possible.”

“Really? Is the salary that high?”

“Can you introduce me to a job at your company? I only need four hundred dollars a day.”

The classmates chattered away. For these young people who had graduated from university half a year ago and had already been beaten down by society, a monthly salary of over ten thousand dollars was an excellent job.

“That’s enough. When I told you to study hard in school, none of you listened. Now you know the importance of studying, don’t you?” Teacher Gong interrupted the discussion.

“Shu Heng earns money with her brain. If you all had graduated from Huada’s flagship program like Shu Heng did, would you still be worried about not finding a high-paying job?”

“Homeroom teacher, what you’re saying is a little biased. I didn’t go to a good university, and I still made money,” Jiang Kun was dissatisfied that the attention was being drawn to others and couldn’t help but show off.

“I’m in engineering now. I don’t have a hundred employees, but I have fifty to sixty people. It’s easy to make a few million dollars a year.”

“This shows that studying isn’t the only path to success. Personal ability is the most important factor in whether you can make money. And now, university graduates aren’t worth much anymore. I can find many fresh graduates to work for me for five thousand dollars a month. There’s a huge supply.”

“It’s true that studying isn’t the only path to success, but for most people, the better the university they go to, the higher their starting point in the future will be,” Teacher Gong didn’t refute Jiang Kun’s words. He just stated his opinion in a serious manner.

“It’s also great that you started your own company. It just isn’t suitable for most people. Only a handful of people can succeed in the end.”

“It seems I belong to the handful of successful people,” Jiang Kun laughed out loud. “Thank you for the compliment, Teacher. I’ll continue to work hard.”

Teacher Gong shook his head helplessly. She didn’t advocate for not studying and starting a business, but she also couldn’t deny that it was indeed one of the ways to succeed.

“CEO Li, I’m in engineering. What does your company do that every single one of your employees makes a million dollars a year?” Jiang Kun, who felt he had gained the upper hand, actively started a conversation with Li Jianwei.

“It’s a technology company. Not everyone makes a million, it’s just the average,” Li Jianwei corrected his wording.

“That must be very difficult. I’ve read the news. In big cities, if you want to get a high salary, many people have to work overtime until midnight and don’t have any time to rest,” Jiang Kun tried to find flaws while also not forgetting to praise himself.

“It’s better to be a small business owner. You just give the tasks to your subordinates, have dinner with the leaders, and socialize a little. Five to six million dollars a year is enough.”

“You’re right. I’m not as free as you,” Li Jianwei said with a smile. She wasn’t so concerned about her image that she had to compete with a person like this.

On the other hand, even if she won against a small business owner in engineering, it wasn’t a glorious thing for Li Jianwei. If a marketing account reported it, it might even affect the company’s stock price.

For the sake of the other person paying the bill, Li Jianwei didn’t mind letting the other person brag to their heart’s content.

As Li Jianwei had expected, her indifference was taken by Jiang Kun as a lack of confidence, making him even more smug. He had the waiter bring out the main dishes and Maotai, and he greeted his classmates to eat, looking like a generous older brother.

Most of the classmates fell for this, and they all joked and flattered Jiang Kun, making him even more carried away.

While everyone was surrounding Jiang Kun, Hu Xuan, holding a wine glass, secretly walked over to Li Jianwei.

“CEO Li, you’re a big person, so don’t stoop to my level. I’ll drink this glass of wine, and please don’t hold a grudge against me for what happened before. I’ll cover all the repair costs,” Hu Xuan squeezed out a smile, lowering his voice to apologize.

Li Jianwei raised her eyebrows. It seemed that Secretary Lu had already sent someone to give Hu Xuan a warning, letting him know his place.

“Are you only apologizing to me?” Li Jianwei asked in a flat tone.

Hu Xuan was stunned for a moment. He shifted his gaze to Shu Heng, who seemed to be calm on the surface, but was actually on high alert.

“Shu Heng, I’m sorry for offending you the other day,” Hu Xuan bent down to admit his mistake, his smile a little stiff.

Shu Heng’s mood was a little complicated. She had thought Hu Xuan would come to cause trouble, but she didn’t expect him to come and apologize so quickly.

When he saw that Shu Heng didn’t say anything, Hu Xuan couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. He simply picked up the wine dispenser, which still had a third of a glass left, and downed it in one go.

“I’m sorry. It was my fault. This drink is my apology to you,” Hu Xuan said. The rising alcohol quickly made his face flush.

Before Shu Heng could say anything, Jiang Kun interjected. “Hu Xuan, what are you doing here? Are you secretly trying to get their contact information?”

“No, no, I’m here to apologize,” Hu Xuan quickly denied. He still wanted to hang out in his hometown. He didn’t dare to mess around.

“Apologize? Did you bully Shu Heng again?” Jiang Kun asked back, his face no less flushed than Hu Xuan’s. “You’re really something. Don’t you have any respect for me?”

Hu Xuan couldn’t help but roll his eyes at Jiang Kun. What respect? You’re not the one who has the most respect here. Stop trying to take credit.

“CEO Li, and Shu Heng, can you forgive me?” Hu Xuan ignored Jiang Kun and just looked at the two of them eagerly for a response.

“Don’t come to bother me again in the future, and let the past be the past,” Shu Heng said calmly. Shu Heng wasn’t the kind of person who would take advantage of her power to bully others. She just wanted to not see the people she disliked in the future.

“Don’t worry, I definitely won’t bother you. I’ll stay far away from you when I see you,” Hu Xuan agreed right away, then nervously waited for Li Jianwei’s answer.

The corners of Li Jianwei’s lips curved into a subtle smile. “As for the accident the other day, just handle it according to the traffic police’s determination of fault. Pay whatever needs to be paid.”

As for the things that happened in the past, she had plenty of time to get revenge for Shu Heng.

“Okay, okay. Thank you so much, CEO Li, for being so generous.” Hu Xuan didn’t hear anything wrong with her words and felt relieved.

It’s good that she’s willing to let it go. If I had known they had such a strong backer, I wouldn’t have blocked Shu Heng’s door that day. My bike didn’t have insurance, so I should have just taken the hit and paid for it!

Not only did I not get any benefits in the end, but the used car business I was running with my partner was also investigated. I had to pay a bunch of fines and was almost put in jail.

I can’t afford to mess with them. I just can’t!