Chapter 115

On official holidays, while everyone else could take time off to rest, it was exactly when they had to work and earn money.

After the seven-day long holiday passed, the sales performance of major shopping malls peaked and began to decline as people's desire to spend had been temporarily satisfied.

Zhong Corporation did not impose strict requirements on holidays. These seven days were shifted to the end of the month, and on a regular working day that was not part of any official holiday, employees were invited to go on a company-organized group outing. Those who couldn’t attend due to the nature of their work would receive other subsidies.

For this kind of company-wide team-building activity that most people would attend, Zhong Ning definitely had to go, because it also included upper management. Her mother would also make an appearance, and she was more than happy to present herself as approachable in front of outsiders.

Zhong Ning arrived at the company early. The chartered buses had already been arranged; several vehicles were parked in the small plaza outside. Every employee was allowed to bring a family member or friend to join the outing.

There was no requirement to wear uniforms—everyone could dress freely.

Zhong Lin had worked her way up from the bottom and was willing to understand the needs of current employees in the workplace. She herself had no patience for empty formalities.

Since it was a benefit, and they were taking a day out specifically for it, people should be allowed to truly enjoy themselves—not be subjected to pointless speeches under the blazing sun. That wouldn’t come across as kindness but rather strictness, leaving everyone full of complaints.

In that case, it would be better not to have the outing at all.

So when the gathering time came, taking advantage of the early hour and the cool temperature, the Zhong Head picked up the microphone and quickly said a few words.

She gave a brief commendation and then got straight to the point, saying that the destination for the trip was Luming Mountain, with return departure set for 7 PM. Everyone was to return on the same bus they came in. The specific vehicle assignments had already been announced in the group chat. At 11 AM, they were to have a group meal at the Star-Plucking Pavilion at the mountaintop—she reminded everyone not to get so carried away playing that they lost track of time.

When she got to this part, she smiled and made a joke: “I personally chose the menu—only picked the expensive dishes, not necessarily the best ones. If you don’t come eat, isn’t that a waste of my money?”

The employees all gave polite little laughs in response.

Zhong Lin continued, “Alright, too much talking gets annoying. I’ll just stress one last thing—remember to wear your wristbands. Tickets have already been bought in advance. The cable car rides, grass drifting, and boating are all free. I’ve paid for everything, so don’t go spending your own money again.”

“Earning money isn’t easy—don’t waste it.”

With that, she handed the microphone to the person next to her.

Everyone then dispersed to board their respective buses.

Since it was called an outing, it truly was a benefit—a real chance to relax. The cost was nothing significant to Zhong Lin, but to the employees, it was an excellent way to win hearts. The newcomers, who didn’t know better and had never seen such a simple, efficient, and down-to-earth speech from a boss, were quickly taken aside by veteran employees for some informal orientation.

“Our Zhong Corporation is just this good!”

They even handed out fans, wet wipes, tissues, and sun hats on the bus. The sun hat had the Zhong Corporation logo printed on it, but the placement was rather clever—it was embroidered with a small, round character for “fortune” beneath the brim.

This meant you could easily wear it out elsewhere without it being too conspicuous.

Zhong Ning got on the bus with the group. Surprisingly, Zhong Zinuan wasn’t there; she had student council duties to attend to and would arrive later. Zhong Ning, on the other hand, had no such obligations.

Although Zhong Lin always branded herself as approachable, she didn’t use the company bus—instead, she got into her private car. As she put it, there was no need for unnecessary appearances. Saying a few words was enough—overdoing it would come off as fake.

Naturally, there was space in the car for Zhong Ning as well. Her recent performance had been commendable, and Assistant Hua had been reporting her progress in detail.

She hadn’t jumped in to meddle in company affairs without understanding, nor had she made superficial gestures—she had seriously observed, humbly learned, and made a strong impression.

Zhong Ning sat in the car, and the driver quickly started the vehicle, leading the convoy away from the company. A series of cars followed behind—some employees had also opted to drive themselves instead of taking the bus.

Inside the car, Zhong Lin opened the mini fridge and took a few sips of water. “Do you know why the company organizes team-building activities?”

Zhong Ning had never worked a corporate job. Her family all ran their own businesses, and though she had friends who were office workers, whenever the topic of company and boss came up, it was always a barrage of complaints—nothing good to say.

Especially about team-building. After small teams did theirs, the big departments would follow, then the whole company—all scheduled on weekends.

Scheming and infighting during the week were already bad enough, but they wouldn’t even leave her weekends alone. Add in all that drinking culture—it was so unbearable she’d wanted to just bash everyone’s heads in.

Zhong Ning recalled these memories with a slightly complicated look in her eyes. After all, now she was the one organizing the team-building. She had become the kind of person people cursed.

“For company cohesion? Harmony among employees?”

Zhong Lin gave a little chuckle.

When she smiled, the fine lines at the corners of her eyes became prominent. Perhaps because she often smiled, those lines curved gently, giving her a naturally kind and approachable appearance.

“That's the official reason. But in reality, it's more nuanced. Since you intend to take over the company, you need to learn to view things from the top, to see the whole picture. What are employees? They are individual people.”

“I often compare a company to an ancient dynasty. In that case, I sit in the emperor’s seat. The upper management are the officials, and those at the bottom are the common folk.”

She said calmly, “The common people demand little and are easily satisfied. As long as they get what they’re due, they’ll work happily and feel content. Management is more intelligent and capable, so they want more and have more ideas. As this emperor, I’m free most of the time, but for the sake of the company’s continuity, there are times when I have to make decisions, and I must ensure that my decisions are always correct.”

“Of course, this is just a metaphor. I can’t really behead someone just because I think they’re wrong. And these employees also have the freedom to leave me and go work for someone else.”

“That’s where this talk of cohesion comes in. There’s no company that doesn’t emphasize cohesion, but what is it, really? It’s all about competing for labor.”

Zhong Ning quickly realized that her mother was passing on valuable insights. She immediately adopted an attentive, serious posture and listened carefully, ignoring even the few times her phone vibrated.

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