My Angel, My Guardian (GL) - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Li Mingxi arrived at the office floor where Guangqiang was located. Standing before the glass doors, she sighed helplessly and swiped her employee card. The doors slowly slid open. In its prime, Guangqiang had owned this entire building; now, it had been reduced to this small suite of offices. As she walked in, she saw employees busily working, though what exactly they were “busy” with was anyone’s guess.

She walked to the door marked “General Manager,” pushed it open, and found Shen Jingwen already waiting for her.

“You must be Shen Jingwen?”

Mingxi set her briefcase on a chair and addressed the woman sitting across from her.

“Correct. Head office sent me to report to you for my assignment.”

Shen Jingwen handed over her transfer order. Mingxi took it but didn’t bother looking at it.

“I’ve heard much about your reputation. You managed the J-Country branch of Nitian exceptionally well over the years. To be honest, I feel it’s a bit beneath you to serve at a company like this, but I believe that if we work together, this company can still be saved.”

“It’s not beneath me. Work is work, no matter where it is.”

Shen Jingwen didn’t care about the location. To her, it was just a job and a life; what difference did the scenery make?

“I appreciate your perspective. How does the position of Vice General Manager sound?”

Mingxi handed over a pre-prepared ID badge. Shen Jingwen took it and clipped it to her chest.

“Where is my office?”

“I’ll have a secretary show you in a moment. Also, there’s a meeting in the conference room in thirty minutes. Please be ready.”

Mingxi picked up the intercom and dialed the secretarial pool.

“This is the CEO’s office. Come in here.”

Mingxi wondered if she should replace the secretary. Truthfully, she didn’t trust the employees here—not just their loyalty, but their competence. If they were capable, Guangqiang wouldn’t be in this state.

Shortly after, a girl in a business suit walked in.

“CEO.”

The girl stopped five paces away and spoke respectfully. Mingxi looked her up and down.

“Were you the previous manager’s secretary?”

“Yes.”

“Your name?”

“Wang Yi.”

“Secretary Wang, please show the Vice General Manager to her office. Then, notify all staff: meeting in the conference room in ten minutes.”

“Understood. Vice President, please follow me,” Wang Yi said politely.

Ten minutes later, all employees were seated in the conference room waiting for the new General Manager. Mingxi walked in and stood at the head of the table without sitting down.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Li Mingxi, and as of today, I am the General Manager of Guangqiang. First, I have a personnel announcement to make. I want to apologize to you all, because as of this moment, none of you are employees of Guangqiang anymore. I am giving you ten minutes to pack your things, twenty minutes to process your resignation, and in one hour, I don’t want to see a single one of you here.”

The employees traded stunned looks. No one expected to be fired en masse on the new manager’s first day.

“General Manager, please give us a reason!” one employee stood up and questioned her angrily.

“Guangqiang is now a subsidiary of Nitian. Nitian never keeps useless people. Is that reason enough?”

Mingxi wasn’t afraid of offending anyone. These people either needed to be fired or needed a serious wake-up call.

“Who are you calling useless?”

The comment sparked public outrage. Shen Jingwen started to stand up to smooth things over, but Mingxi signaled her to stay down.

“Aren’t you? With Guangqiang in this state, I can only say the previous manager was useless, and you are all useless as well. Want to prove me wrong? Fine. Don’t say I didn’t give you a chance. You have one month. One month to prove you aren’t garbage, but talent. Those who admit to being useless can go process their resignation now. Those who want to prove they are talent, sit back down and listen to the rest of what I have to say.”

This was Mingxi’s true goal. She wanted every employee to understand that Guangqiang was no longer the old Guangqiang. Do the job or get out.

The employees looked at each other, and ultimately, everyone chose to stay and listen.

“From today, Guangqiang is officially renamed Baijia. All supermarkets under the brand will also be renamed Baijia. All stores will close for one month for restructuring and renovation. Finance Department, I want the latest financial reports in one hour. Marketing Department, I want a list of all remaining storefronts and a list of all wholesale partners in one hour. Dismissed.”

Mingxi left the conference room first. She didn’t care how foul the employees’ curses were behind her back. As long as Baijia could recover, what did a few insults matter?

An hour later, the reports arrived. Mingxi frowned at the ledgers—all expenses, no income. With so much debt, it was no wonder Nitian bought this former giant for just a few hundred thousand. She then looked at the wholesaler data. The kickbacks were massive; it explained why the stock was all expired.

“Send the Marketing Manager in,” Mingxi paged.

A man in his thirties walked in shortly after.

“General Manager, you wanted to see me?” The man stood before her, visibly nervous.

“You’re done. I imagine the kickbacks you’ve taken from these retailers over the years are enough to last you the rest of your life. You can leave Baijia now.”

“This… you have no evidence! You can’t slander me like this!” The man prepared to fight.

“You want evidence? Fine. But think carefully: if you leave now, you might still find another job. If I wait until I find the evidence, you’ll be facing prison time. Your choice.”

Mingxi didn’t want to be unnecessarily cruel, so she let him choose his own future. The man’s eyes flickered; he ripped off his ID badge and threw it on her desk.

“I quit!”

He stormed out. Mingxi tossed the badge into the trash and dialed a major beverage company.

“Hello, Marketing Department? This is Li Mingxi, General Manager of Baijia Supermarkets, under Nitian Group.”

She introduced herself clearly.

“Hello. How can we help you?”

“We want to source products directly from the manufacturer for all our stores. If possible, I’d like to schedule a time to discuss terms.”

Mingxi decided to bypass the traditional route. By cutting out the middleman and going directly to the factories, she could guarantee the quality of the supply and keep prices lower than the competition—a win-win strategy.

“Could you send someone to my office tomorrow at 1:00 PM for a detailed discussion?”

“That works perfectly.”

Mingxi proceeded to make several more calls to other manufacturers. After setting the schedule, she printed it out. Baijia was currently short-staffed, so she called Ying Jia’en.

“Sister Ai, I need people.”

“How many?”

“Ten from each department. They don’t all need to be top-tier elites, but they each need to be able to hold their own.”

“Fine. I’ll have them report to ‘Guangqiang’ tomorrow,” Jia’en agreed readily.

“Sister Ai, from this moment on, Guangqiang is officially renamed Baijia. I’m processing the paperwork now. I’ll send a detailed written report to head office in a few days.”

Even though Jia’en gave her a free hand, Mingxi still followed the proper corporate protocols.

“Alright. How was your first day?” Jia’en asked leisurely, closing her laptop and leaning back.

“In a word: rotten. From the moment I stepped in, I felt the laziness. But as of today, they won’t dare anymore. Anyway, I’ve got to get back to it. I’m busy.”