Chapter 156

Beach Group. "Hello, President Liu, I'm Mr. Beach's assistant." Madeleine deliberately made an unexpected encounter to meet with Liu Yecheng. "President Liu, we may have frequent interactions in the future. Please feel free to tell me if there's anything you need." As Beckett's assistant, Madeleine's willingness to accommodate him naturally represents Beckett's stance as well. Liu Yecheng exalted, walking into the elevator. "Your name is Madeleine, right? Good, work hard beside Mr. Beach." "Yes, President Liu." Madeleine hurriedly nodded and voluntarily pressed the elevator button for Liu Yecheng. "The company is currently selecting potential Vice Presidents, any thoughts from Mr. Beach?" Liu Yecheng deeply asked a question, clearly unsure. "President Liu, you didn't know?" Madeleine feigned surprise, looking at Liu Yecheng. "President Liu... Mr. Beach admires you a lot." Feeling proud, Liu Yecheng examined Madeleine from head to toe. "Assistant Su is a smart woman." "Thank you so much, President Liu." Madeleine quickly bowed and diligently pressed the elevator button, watching as he departed. "Madeleine, Mr. Beach wants you to attend today's team-building event after work." Soon after Madeleine walked out of the elevator, Carl approached her. "He's specifically praising President Liu of the Investment Department..." "Shh!" Madeleine quietly reminded him, pulling Carl to one side. Liu Yecheng looked back. Hearing his name mentioned by Carl, he followed sneakily, hiding on the side and eavesdropping on their conversation. "I heard Mr. Beach discussing with the project team that he recognizes Liu Yecheng's capability. He even mentioned that the company's investment department can't survive without him. Given Liu Yecheng's popularity, we must try to retain him. If he is headhunted, the investment department may collapse." Carl muttered to Madeleine quietly. "I guess, he will be the future Vice President. However, our company's preferential treatment towards the Vice Presidents doesn't seem substantial. Look at the Vice President of the project department -- to be honest, there's less benefit than that in the investment department. If I were President Liu, I would place forward my conditions. I should at least merge the management of the investment and project departments. There's no way I would give up the juicy part that's in my grip." Madeleine and Carl whispered to each other. Liu Yecheng listened for a while before leaving with his deep gaze. What Madeleine said was right. Although he was the project director of the investment department now, it was indeed much larger than that of a vice president of a company. From the long term and the title's worth, a vice president, who can hold company shares, is naturally more valuable. But, the benefits are not as good as those in the investment department. If he can merge the investment department and the project team, it would be great if all are under his jurisdiction. Just... the purpose is too obvious, Liu Yecheng is not very confident, not sure if his influence in the company is strong enough to deter Beckett. As long as Beckett is wary enough of him, he has the capital and bargaining chip to negotiate with Beckett. If Beckett does not meet his conditions, he can threaten to resign. In the corner. Madeleine peeked out secretly, seeing that Liu Yecheng had left, she turned her head and smirked at Carl, making an OK gesture. "You're quite the actor, aren't you?" Carl said with a smile. Madeleine shyly waved her hand. "No... I'm not." "Liu Yecheng has started secretly forming factions. If he forms an alliance within the company, it will be detrimental to us." Carl voiced out his worry. Madeleine shook her head. "No, that's more to our advantage. We just wait for him to make a mistake. Such a ragtag band will crumble with the right incentive. Once the troops below scatter, it'd be easy to take him down as he's the out-in-the-open target." Carl widened his eyes, impressed by Madeleine's smart tactics. "That's impressive... seriously impressive..." After taking a few steps, Carl looked back at Madeleine. "With your abilities, you're not incapable of dealing with those who bully you, right?" Madeleine paused awkwardly and lowered her head without uttering a word. Carl pushed further. "Are there afraid of them?" "Mhm." Madeleine gave a definite nod. Power, always triumphs over ability. Carl sighed. "Stick close to General Zhan. He might come off as cold, but once he recognizes your importance, he'll surely be your pillar." Madeleine remained silent, refusing to voice her thoughts. ...... Staff dining hall. Beckett went to meet with the board members. In his absence, Carl took Madeleine to grab a bite. "You should eat more." Carl handed Madeleine a particularly delicate apple. Madeleine looked at her piled plate and gasped. "Brother Carl, I can't eat all this." "Eat! You must. Your stamina matters a lot working under General Zhan," Carl whispered, glancing around before complaining about Beckett, "You know, our General Zhan loves to overwork his employees. If you didn't eat breakfast, having a bit more now won't make you gain weight." "......" Madeleine gasped in shock, looking up at the gloomy-faced Beckett approaching them, giving Carl a quick wink. "General Zhan separates his private from professional life, he's ruthless here at work," Carl still criticizes, "You better be careful in the days to come. Now he would be more gentle with you but once he gets used to you, he won't care if you're a man or a woman, and he'll most likely give you a severe tongue-lashing." Madeleine coughed non-stop. "Have some water, have some water." Carl got up to pour some water for Madeleine, only to turn around and see Beckett standing behind him with a gloomy expression. "Mr...Mr. Beach." Carl was so scared that he almost sat on the dining table. "Why are you here? Don't you avoid dining in the restaurant?" Beckett lifted his chin slightly, signaling Carl to wipe his chair. Madeleine, being very observant, stood up wanting to wipe the chair for Beckett. "Let him do it." Beckett held Madeleine's wrist. Carl glanced at Beckett, slamming into the corner of the table in shock that made him gasp in pain. "Mr. Beach, she's also an assistant. Why can't she wipe it?" "Off-duty hours." Beckett pointed to his watch. Carl was resistant. "Then I'm also off-duty." "You can always be off-duty." Beckett found Carl to be too wordy. Carl quickly used an alcohol wipe to clean the stool. "Please sit." Beckett hummed and sat down, looking at Madeleine, his voice instantly softened. "You enjoy your meal." "..." Carl walked two steps with the water glass in hand, turned around in shock to look at Beckett, and bumped into a post with a bang. This is strange, really strange. There is something off about Mr. Beach. "Mr. Beach, Carl and I have everything arranged." Madeleine secretly gave Beckett an OK sign. Beckett chuckled lightly, "Enjoy your meal." "Mr. Beach, your apple..." Madeleine handed Beckett the apple gifted by Carl. Beckett accepted it without showing any distaste. "This apple seems quite sweet." "Mmm-hmm, it's from Brother Carl," Madeleine nodded. The expression on Beckett's face darkened momentarily. "At a glance, you can tell it's nothing good. It's just eye candy, all flash and no substance. Can't even handle small tasks properly!" Having said that, he slapped the apple down in front of Carl. It was a clear case of veiled criticism. Because Beckett had tasked Carl to obtain crucial information from Ruby's assistant while in Sanya. But Carl had proven incompetent, making it necessary for Beckett to personally track down the assistant's mother in Hecity, and in the end he had to coax the information out himself. Carl shrank back uneasily, looking at Beckett. It's one thing to berate him, but why vent out on the apple...