The Chen couple was in their living room, pa.s.sing the time at their leisure while drinking tea one afternoon at Apartment 301 when the door bell rang.It was Butler Lee.
"Come in, come in." Xue Jinxu led him in.
"What brought you here, Butler Lee?" Chen Linyun asked.
Xue Jinxu served tea in the living room.
Butler Lee"s face looked grim. "Mr. Chen, Big Miss…" He started explaining the purpose of his visit. "I came here on my own accord, out of my concern for our Second Young Master."
The Chen couple instantly felt alarmed, especially Xue Jinxu. "What happened to Guangxi?"
"After you left, the COO position was a.s.signed to a management expert they hired from outside. The new COO had been powerplaying with Guangxi, and hiding behind the rationale that he should not receive special treatment only because he"s part of the owners, and should welcome constructive criticism from his older and more experienced peers. He was being bullied."
Lines of worry formed on the Chen couple"s foreheads.
"Does he allow the new COO to bully him?" Xue Jinxu asked. The answer should be no, he should not. Of course.
"He did not – at first. However," Butler Lee looked into their eyes first. "The new COO had been utilizing below the belt tactics so subtly, that if our Second Young Master fights back, it would cause greater harm on him and on his reputation."
"Moreover, the new COO had been mismanaging the company"s operations. There were lots of losses due to additional costs and penalties because the operations were not optimized. The employees were becoming disheartened. Others already left for better opportunities offered in other s.h.i.+pping companies. Most of the employees did not see the point of continuing in Xue s.h.i.+pping anymore."
"Actually, the Second Young Master has been feeling the same too. The pressure on him was too high since you left, and the company"s…falling."
"Where is he right now?" Xue Jinxu asked. She felt terribly guilty that she had forgotten checking on her little brother since she got married on the notion that he was well-taken care of by the elders since he"s the only one left in their generation. She felt guilty that while she was having such a wonderful married life with Chen Linyun, her brother was left alone to fend for himself in the world of the vultures. What could a seventeen year old kid do against all of them, even if Butler Lee was beside him?
"Where are the elders?"
Your parents are abroad at the moment checking on the subsidiary businesses and making the annual representation to your foreign business partners. Elder Xue was doing the same. The scope was too big so they divided the task among them."
"Where"s Guangxi?" She asked again.
"He has cla.s.s at the moment. At the university. He"s heavily guarded as usual so there are almost no concerns with regards to his safety and security. However, he"s overall well-being has been slowly deteriorating. He was stressed, and somewhat oppressed."
"Oppressed?! He allows these people to bully him in his own empire?!" Xue Jinxu interjected. Chen Linyun squeezed her hands.
"Butler Lee, can you tell us about this new COO?" Chen Linyun asked.
"He was chosen as the interim COO because of his credentials. He had years of exemplary experience in managing various types of business, including s.h.i.+pping."
"Do you have his profile? Have you checked his background?" Xue Jinxu inquired.
"As a matter of fact, I do. That is also why I am here today. I would like to give you this. It"s a thorough background check on COO Liu Huojin." He pa.s.sed on a folder to Chen Linyun. "That"s all I could do for Second Young Master. I cannot act on my own, without orders from the Xue Family. But I figure, you could."
"Understood. Our family is fortunate to have you and your loyalty. Thank you, Butler Lee." Xue Jinxu said, her voice full of deep-rooted grat.i.tude.
Butler Lee nodded. "The other department heads had seen the internal power play, and some swung sides already. Just to let you know of the situation."
The Chen couple understood Bulter Lee"s warning. It meant that Liu Huojin had gained supporters inside the company.
Soon after, Butler Lee left the Chen couple"s abode. He had done what he could do for Second Young Master, Guangxi.
Chen Linyun turned to look at Xue Jinxu seated beside him. He said, "Jinxu dear, aren"t you bored here? Let"s have some fun."
Xue Jinxu blinked several times. "Do you mean…"
"Yes, let"s get involved, dear." Chen Linyun declared.
Xue Jinxu smiled at him in agreement. "Alright."
They did not waste any more time. They reviewed the files that Butler Lee gave them. "It appeared that Liu Huojin is around in his mid-thirties, and had been scrambling over some inheritance from the Liu family. Turns out he"s an illegitimate child, but the Liu family only had daughters so he"s trying to prove his worth to his father. However… he has borne his own son out of wedlock. That was his greatest stain, and had been trying to hide this small detail to society and to his father, or else his chance for the inheritance would be wiped away.
"Butler Lee almost had everything covered. We simply need to take the necessary action."
"As expected of Butler Lee…" Xue Jinxu beamed proudly. Butler Lee was like the second guardian of the Xue siblings.
"What to do now, husband?"
"Let"s do some a.s.skicking, milady."
---
Meanwhile, the topic of their discussion, Guangxi, was at a nearby lake, lying on his back with his head phones on.
Butler Lee had said that he"s supposed to be in cla.s.s now. It seemed that he did not attend his cla.s.s.
His arms and legs spread out on the gra.s.s.
He was sleeping. He was not moving for the longest time.
Oblivious of his surroundings, he did not know that there was a girl not too far, watching him from a safe distance.