Chapter 386: Translate
Shen Qingyan walked from her desk toward Xiao Luo, pus.h.i.+ng Shen Xingqing aside. She stared hard at him and said, “Xiao Luo, can you really understand her?”
“What benefit do I get by lying to you?” Xiao Luo responded.
Shen Qingyan thought for a moment, then smiled and said, “Nothing, I guess. I want you to ask her what a princess is doing all alone in a foreign country?”
“Not a problem, but I need to discuss the benefits first,” Xiao Luo said.
Shen Qingyan raised an eyebrow and said, “Alright, if you can facilitate this discussion, then your friend over there will not be charged, fair enough? On top of that, you both will be employed by Huayao Corporation.”
“Just to add one more condition—I get to decide my working hours as well.”
Decide his own working hours?
What? Didn’t he realize that he was going to be a salaryman? And, since when did a salaryman enjoy such perks, wouldn’t that give him more leisure time the animals in a zoo?
Guan Tong and the tall lady were stunned that a jobseeker could be so bold to make such a demand.
“Hey, what do you think the Huayao Corporation is, a night club?”
Shen Xingqing roundly rebuked Xiao Luo for what he thought was an absurd demand. But when he looked around and saw everyone else’s reaction in the room, he suddenly wasn’t so sure of himself and decided not to pursue the matter.
Shen Qingyan did not even bother to respond to his outburst, but instead, she smiled at Xiao Luo and said, “Well, if she really turns out to be the princess of Dubai, and she commits on that 8-million-dirham deal with us, then, yes, I will agree to your terms.”
Xiao Luo snickered and quipped, “Miss Shen, it seems to me, you win either way.”
“That is for certain, I am a business person. I only do things that will benefit myself.” Shen Qingyan smirked, not feeling annoyed in the least; on the contrary, she took Xiao Luo’s comment as a compliment.
Xiao Luo now saw Shen Qingyan in a different light, she was quite an interesting character.
He turned around, walked up to the foreign woman, and said, “السلامعليكميسعدناخدمتكم. ماذاتحتاج؟?”
Xiao Luo spoke in the Arabic dialect that the woman had used earlier, and she was startled at first, then responded immediately, looking relieved and grateful that she could finally speak to someone who understood her needs. She was so pleased that she even gave Xiao Luo a hug as if she had found a long lost relative.
What? Does this freak actually know how to speak that language?!
Shen Xingqing’s eyes almost popped out. He did not understand a word of what was being said, but he could tell it was the same tongue.
The foreign woman was now in deep conversation with Xiao Luo, she was animated and spoke at length about many things, which, to the other listeners, sounded like an unending spell chant. Xiao Luo kept nodding and asking questions in between.
Everyone was astounded as they watched the two communicating and making gestures between themselves. Who’d have imagined that Xiao Luo could even understand an Arabic tribal dialect of the UAE?
“That b*stard, how many more such talents does he still have that’s hidden away?”
Guan Tong was silently gazing at Xiao Luo with respect, and the admiration he had for his hero was beyond measure. He vowed to follow in Xiao Luo’s footsteps, but Xiao Luo would reveal a new talent to set the bar higher whenever they met. It was undoubtedly challenging, but he was a man overflowing with talents, and he was still the perfect role model for him to emulate.
It was some time before Xiao Luo was done conversing with the foreign woman. “Why did she say?” Shen Qingyan asked.
“Princess Salama said that she had traveled to our country to personally make a purchase for a batch of medical supplies. She arrived at Xiahai City yesterday with her guards and translator, but her translator was. .h.i.t by a car when they went shopping and was hospitalized. As she was feeling bored being in the hotel, she decided to come herself with the list of medicines.”
Xiao Luo explained the circ.u.mstances of why she had come alone and added, “She was actually planning to approach Renhe Medicines, but as she wasn’t familiar with the city, she decided to come to Huayao Corporation.”
Shen Qingyan’s face darkened the moment she heard the name “Renhe Medicines.” They were Huayao Corporation’s no.1 compet.i.tor. Even before both companies had expanded abroad, they were already fierce compet.i.tors. With both companies now vying for the international market, no effort was spared competing for international customers. Presently, Renhe Medicines monopolized the market in the UAE.
Shen Qingyan saw the opportunity immediately and said, “Tell her that I can fulfill all her order requirements.”
Xiao Luo turned around to Princess Salama and relayed Shen Qingyan’s offer.
When Princess Salama was informed of the offer, she looked elated and let out a garble of words in her own language. She immediately gave Shen Qingyan a traditional Arabic embrace, kissed on her cheeks, and repeatedly bowed to express her satisfaction.
Xiao Luo translated, “She said that if you could fulfill her order without delay, she will help Huayao establish a branch in the UAE. This will be a mutually beneficial arrangement for both parties. As Renhe Medicine’s monopolizes the market in her country, they control the market price, causing her people to pay a premium for medicines. There are also many cases of the medicines being adulterated. Among the benefits of leveling the playing field in the UAE market would be ensuring that the quality of medicines is not compromised and market prices remain fair.”
It took a bit of effort for Shen Qingyan to maintain a calm demeanor, but she gave it away when she excitedly said to her a.s.sistant, “Miss He, hurry up and get Princess Salama a seat!”
“Yes, Miss Shen.”
The tall lady pulled up the chair Shen Xingqing had just sat on earlier for the princess and graciously invited her to sit.
“Xie xie!”
Salama bowed and thanked her politely. Many foreigners who came to the country made an effort to speak in Mandarin, and she was no exception.
Shen Xingqing suddenly burst out, “Qingyan, my niece, you’re really too young and naive. Do you really believe that a foreign woman dressed in such ordinary clothes could actually be a princess from Dubai?”
When Shen Qingyan heard that, she felt slightly dampened. Although Shen Xingqing was a detestable man, what he had said did make sense. Dubai was a place where every inch of land was gilded in gold. As a princess from Dubai, why would she dress so shabbily?
“Huh, if you ask me, I’d say that this kid is just talking nonsense!”
Shen Xingqing said as he pointed at Xiao Luo, totally unconvinced. “Only G.o.d knows what he was uttering, and we are now supposed to believe it is some kind of tribal dialect? He’s definitely playing you for a fool. If you chose to believe in him, I do not know where you’ve put your brains. This is a joke!”
By slandering the princess and Xiao Luo, he also took the opportunity to humiliate Shen Qingyan and question her ac.u.men.
Shen Qingyan glared at him nastily, then cast an inquiring glance at Xiao Luo.
Xiao Luo spread his hands, and with a shrug of his shoulders, he said, “I’m just the translator!”
Whether or not Salama was truly the princess of Dubai, had nothing to do with him. He was merely conveying her words across.
“Translate your head! Are you telling me that a low-down bullsh*tter like you can understand Arabic? I am inclined to suspect that you and this woman are accomplices, and you are both in collusion to scam the Huayao Corporation,” Shen Xingqing carped.
He simply refused to accept that she was a princess from Dubai, or that Xiao Luo could understand and speak Arabic. If it turned out to be true, he would have personally handed over such a huge order to Shen Qingyan for nothing.
Xiao Luo translated his words to Princess Salama.
Salama was so infuriated that she took out a black bank card and slammed it on the table, cursing at Shen Xingqing in her own language.
A Swiss Bank Centurion Card?!
Shen Qingyan and Shen Xingqing’s pupils dilated at the sight of the card. The card symbolized status and wealth, and owners.h.i.+p of such a card was by invitation only, which meant it was the card of choice for the rich and famous and people of n.o.bility.
Xiao Luo duly translated what the princess had said to Shen Xingqing. “Princess Salama would like you to know that she thinks you are an insignificant maggot crawling on a heap of stinking feces, and she’d also like to say that you are so disgusting that it makes her want to throw up.”
“You…!”
Shen Xingqing’s face immediately darkened to the hue of a pig’s liver. He quivered with rage as he pointed at Xiao Luo, but he couldn’t find the words, for the Swiss Bank Centurion card on the table felt like the weight of a mountain bearing down on him, rendering him breathless.
…