After leaving Bencao Ruolan, Wen Liang drove back to the city and bought some ingredients for dinner at the vegetable market near Miao Qingyan's residence. Then, following his memory from last time, he went upstairs and knocked on the door.
After waiting for a while, Miao Qingyan, who was wearing home clothes, opened the door and was a little surprised to see Wen Liang. A pleasant smile appeared on her face and she asked, "Why are you here?"
Wen Liang lifted the shopping bags in his hands and said, "I don't have anything to eat for dinner, so I came to your place to have a meal. Are you not welcome?"
"How can that be possible?" Miao Qingyan took the shopping bag. The two long, white legs under her hot pants were particularly eye-catching. She led Wen Liang into the room and said, "No need to change your shoes. Come in!"
The place where Miao Qingyan lives is not big, but it is very clean. The simple white is mixed with some bright yellow, and decorated with some accessories that little girls like, making it look like a small home.
Miao Qingyan put the things in the kitchen first, and came out with a can of Coca-Cola in her hand. She smiled and said, "I know you have a picky taste, but I don't have any tea here... How about a quick drink?"
After saying that, he threw it over. Wen Liang reached out to catch it and said, "Your quality of life is pretty high. You can even afford Coke. Poor people like us can't afford that. At most, we can drink boiled water. When we have the luxury, we can add a spoonful of sugar."
"Bah, shameless!" Miao Qingyan was amused by him and laughed. However, she was not stupid. She knew that a busy man like Wen Liang could not take time to see her just to have dinner. She moved a chair and sat opposite him, lowering her head and asked, "Are you here to talk about my resignation?"
Wen Liang opened the can and drank half of it in one go. The summer heat gradually dissipated as the cold liquid rushed into his lungs. He stood up, pulled Miao Qingyan to the kitchen, and said, "Don't talk about business on an empty stomach. Let's go and cook first. The last time I ate the meal you cooked, it still lingered in my mouth. Show me your cooking again today, and I'm ready to swallow even my tongue."
When Miao Qingyan was young, her parents moved around due to their work transfers. The time she was taken care of by her parents was far less than the time she took care of herself, so in addition to learning the local dialects for cursing, she also developed good cooking skills. She was very greedy after listening to Wen Liang's words, so she smiled and followed him to the kitchen.
An hour and a half later, the small coffee table was filled with plates of mouth-watering delicacies. Although they were all homely meals, Miao Qingyan's strength lay in her ability to make ordinary scrambled eggs with tomatoes taste spicy, different from the light taste of Jiangdong. It seemed that every ingredient, every drop of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, was mixed with the unique characteristics of four or five places, and then she blended them together with her dexterous hands, creating a wonderful feeling for the taste buds.
"Well, this is good, this is delicious too, meow meow, have you ever considered becoming a chef, a very promising career..."
"Slow down, leave some for me!"
"Don't grab it, don't grab it. Girls should pay attention to their image... Hey, can you give me the chopped pepper fish head?"
The two of them finished the meal while playing around. It could be said that this was the happiest day for Miao Qingyan since she arrived at Guanshan. When she went to the kitchen to clean up the dishes, Wen Liang came over, leaned against the door, and suddenly said, "The company fired Shen Xinzhu today..."
"ah?"
Miao Qingyan was stunned, and her right hand holding the plate slipped, and the plate slipped out of her grasp and fell freely to the ground.
"Be careful!" Wen Liang quickly rushed forward, caught the plate in mid-air, and then placed it steadily on the cutting board, asking with concern, "Are you okay?"
"No..." Miao Qingyan shook her head, still with her back to Wen Liang, picked up the rag and washed the dishes silently, and said after a while: "Actually... you don't have to do this..."
Wen Liang smiled and said, "Don't think too much. This is not just for you to vent your anger. It also involves other things and other people. So no matter what the reason is, I can't keep Shen Xinzhu."
Miao Qingyan fell silent again. Although she was smart, she had just graduated from school and did not understand the unpredictable human heart, let alone the complicated and mutually tied relationship between Wen Liang and Lei Fang. In her heart, she only thought that Wen Liang was furious this time and drove away Shen Xinzhu, a very useful talent for the company, and even ignored Lei Fang's reaction just to vent his anger. How could she not be touched? If she was not resolute, lively and cheerful by nature, she would have shed tears immediately.
"Wenliang, am I a little too useless?"
Miao Qingyan supported her hands on the edge of the sink, staring blankly at the water flowing out of the faucet, her eyes unfocused, and whispered, "You let me be in charge of the R&D department, and you trusted me so much, and you didn't have any concerns because I had no work experience, but I didn't do the job well after all. Not only did I fail to handle the relationship with my colleagues well, but even more shamefully, I even deserted... You must be mad at me, right?"
"You are not a deserter, you just think too much. You would rather suffer yourself than cause trouble for me! But to say that I am angry with you, I am a little bit angry." Wen Liang said softly: "Meow meow, you think too much, but you are wrong. Although Shen Xinzhu is from Lei Fang, Bencao Ruolan is our hard work. Without your words, I might not have thought of doing this. Without your introduction to Professor Dou, I might not be able to do it even if I wanted to. So, if something irreconcilable really happened, it should be Shen Xinzhu who should leave, not you!"
"But compared to Shen Xinzhu, I am not as knowledgeable as her, my work experience is not as good as her, and my contribution and familiarity with new products are not as good as hers. If it is really good for the company, I should be the one to leave, not her..."
Wen Liang sighed, pointed at her and said, "You, although the R&D department focuses on technology, it is also a department under the company. As the director, you need to do a comprehensive job. What you need to worry about is how to make the best use of people, how to make everyone work together, and how to cooperate with the company's overall strategy and layout. The only thing you don't have to worry about is how I am not as good as a certain subordinate!"
"I... I don't understand..."
"Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Han Dynasty, once said, 'In terms of planning and winning battles thousands of miles away, I am not as good as Zifang; in terms of stabilizing the country, comforting the people, providing food and supplies, and ensuring the food supply, I am not as good as Xiao He; in terms of leading millions of troops, winning every battle and taking every city, I am not as good as Han Xin. These three people were all outstanding people of the time, and I was able to use them, so I conquered the world. But Xiang Yu had Fan Zeng but could not use him, so I captured him.'" Wen Liang said patiently, "This is just a metaphor. The R&D department certainly cannot be compared with the whole world, but a small sparrow has all the internal organs, and things are not difficult to deal with." Same logic, you are such a smart person, how could you not figure it out? Shen Xinzhu is talented, so she is in charge of the research and development of new products. This is the best use of people, but talented people may not be able to be leaders. She has no respect for you, secretly forming cliques and winning people's hearts. She seems to be powerful, but in fact, she has also aroused some people's disgust. Otherwise, I would not have found several people who angrily reported her after a tour of the R&D department. If I really let her manage the R&D department, within half a year, colleagues will be suspicious of each other and it will be a mess. "
Miao Qingyan smiled bitterly and said, "I know you said all this to comfort me. If Shen Xinzhu is not fit to be a leader, then I am even less fit. Otherwise, I wouldn't have let things develop to this point and make things difficult for you..."
She was about to say something, but Wen Liang interrupted her with a smile and said, "You just lack experience. The office is actually a small society. How to balance and grasp is a big skill, but no one is born knowing these things. As long as you do it for a long time, you will naturally become more and more proficient. Well, it's all in the past, let's not talk about it. Miaomiao, I came here today, first to eat, and second to ask you for a favor. You see, Shen Xinzhu has been dismissed, and the R&D department is now leaderless. It's the most critical time for new product development. How about you help me and go back to the company to take charge of some work first, and wait for the human resources department to find a suitable candidate, and then you can go back to school, okay?"
Miao Qingyan wanted to refuse, but when she looked at Wen Liang and thought about how he had offended Lei Fang for her, she couldn't say no, so she nodded and said, "Then, I'll go back and stay for a few more days... But I must find someone quickly..."
It will be easy as long as you agree. Wen Liang smiled and said, "You know the efficiency of the HR department. It will take no more than a month to find a replacement. You just need to help me stand guard for the last shift."
As he was talking, Wen Liang also came to the rescue himself. The two of them washed the dishes together. Miao Qingyan felt calmer and asked, "By the way, how did you know that Shen Xinzhu and I don't get along?"
"Ha, didn't someone tell me pitifully at the airport that compared with my colleagues in the R&D department, I was not educated enough and had less experience, so I couldn't do my job well... In short, you have a master's degree, and the only people who are more educated than you are doctors with rich work experience. When I heard Fan Bo introduce her, I thought it was Shen Xinzhu? In addition, she is the deputy director and has also worked in management at Shenzhou Pharmaceutical. Only such a person can make the very capable Miaomiao feel overwhelmed at work..."
Wen Liang guessed at the airport that there was something behind Miao Qingyan's resignation. When he arrived at Bencao Ruolan and heard Fan Bo introduce Shen Xinzhu, he immediately set his target on her. Then he met and chatted with the employees under the pretext of inspection. With his sharp eyesight, he quickly identified several people who were dissatisfied with Shen Xinzhu. After talking to them one by one, it was clear what had happened in the R&D department.
It would be extremely difficult to handle this matter in such a short time without wisdom and means. Fortunately, Wen Liang has acquired enough ability to handle various emergencies after the experiences of these two lives.
Wen Liang thought for a moment after leaving Miao Qingyan's house, then took out his phone and called Ning Xi. He told her what happened today, but Ning Xi didn't take it seriously and said jokingly, "Is this a case of risking one's life for a woman? By the way, I haven't met this Miss Miao yet. I'd like to meet her when I'm free."
"After all, she is my friend. She came all the way to Guanshan to help me. I can't let her suffer any injustice." Wen Liang said in a deep voice: "It is a little puzzling that Lei Fang could hold back his anger today..." (To be continued)