Chapter 117 Who is Mad for Whom?

If price isn't a factor, the results of looking at properties are often quick.

They not only bought it, but they bought the show flat; the renovations were already complete. After all, it's a high-end villa area, and the decor couldn't be ruined by the renovations, so the show flat's decor is flawless. It's just that the price is a bit high, so it hasn't sold yet.

But whether it's a model home or you do the renovations yourself, you definitely can't move in immediately, since health is the most important thing. So after having someone do some cleaning and disinfection, Ling Ruoke let the toxic gases slowly purify themselves, since she had somewhere else to live anyway.

By the time the house was settled, Colonel Huo was about to return to his unit. No wonder he was in such a hurry to sell it.

Ling Ruoke made dinner, and he left in a hurry after eating. She quickly reminded him to call next time he came back, as they were going to take wedding photos.

Colonel Huo grunted twice, stole a whiff of the incense, and then darted out the window.

Ling Ruoke looked at the table full of dishes, feeling a little listless. He came and went in such a hurry. Her surprise hadn't even faded before he was gone again. But this was the life she had chosen; there was nothing to complain about. Besides, life with less monotony and more anticipation and surprises was quite nice.

Isn't that right?

On Tuesday, I'm attending the summary and sharing meeting for the New Year's candy category promotion of xxx chewing gum company. Having the director present would have been enough, but since Pei Shi was involved before, Ling Ruoke wants to take this opportunity to show her face and demonstrate the company's importance to her.

Besides Pehoe, two other companies are also competing in this New Year's promotion, creating a three-way competition.

The other two large companies have long-term partnerships with xxx chewing gum company, so they have extensive experience in execution. However, as the saying goes, doing something for too long can lead to fatigue and problems. Furthermore, the larger their companies are, the more people share the profits, making it difficult for them to have a competitive advantage in pricing.

These two points are precisely what gave Peho the opportunity to seize one-third of the world.

Peho is a small, newly established company, so its experience is naturally limited. However, its strength lies in its meticulous attention to detail in every project, a trait often found in newcomers. Because its client relationships aren't yet strong, it relies on solid quality to succeed. This also means Peho's operating costs are significantly lower, giving it an advantage in pricing.

Actually, it's not entirely accurate to say that Pei Huo lacks experience. Both Ling Ruoke and Tan Peishi have experience in the advertising industry; Ling Ruoke even worked at one of the nation's top advertising agencies and received high praise. Director Xia Mo is also a very experienced and insightful individual, making this a highly professional team.

Therefore, Pehoe executed the New Year's promotion campaign exceptionally well. Although some minor issues arose along the way, they did not detract from its success.

Ling Ruoke carefully examined the emails in Peishi's inbox and found that there were several letters of praise from clients during the process, which was the best proof.

This summary report is a culmination of the hard work of the entire Peho team, featuring a wealth of illustrations and creative ideas.

The other two companies were represented by project managers and project assistants, while Peho had his entire staff, from senior management to assistants, in attendance. However, the debriefing meetings for each company were separate; the other two advertising companies did not participate in Peho's portion.

Ling Ruoke believes that every meeting, especially every debriefing meeting, is a learning process. Therefore, she hopes that every employee can attend if possible. Beforehand, Xia Mo specifically confirmed the venue's capacity for today's meeting. Those unable to attend in person will participate via teleconference.

The client's representatives included a marketing manager and two assistants, as well as a regional manager and a regional assistant.

The client's marketing manager was a man, around forty years old, but he looked quite young. He wore glasses and had a very refined appearance.

Ling Ruoke got to know them one by one. When she shook hands with Gary, the marketing manager, she seemed to hold the handshake for a little longer than usual, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

Ling Ruoke can be quite capricious at times, like right now, when Gary left a rather bad impression on her. But he's a client, so she has to be accommodating.

The entire meeting proceeded very smoothly due to its remarkable achievements. The improvements and preventative measures regarding the issues raised in the report, as well as the recommendations for future similar projects, were highly appreciated.

After the meeting, Ling Ruoke naturally suggested that everyone have dinner together, which would also help them get to know each other better.

Gary arrived at the appointment with two assistants.

During the meal, Ling Ruoke and Xia Mo were responsible for talking to Gary, and the conversation went smoothly.

“If you don’t mind, may I ask how old you are, Moon?” Gary changed the subject, shifting the focus from work to Ling Ruoke.

Although Ling Ruoke didn't like it, she still smiled and replied, "I didn't mind back then. I'm 25 now."

She instinctively wanted to add, "You're not young anymore," a phrase that's always used when friends talk about age. But then, remembering Gary's age, she quickly stopped herself.

Gary smiled. "You're truly a force to be reckoned with. When I was your age, I was still a nobody."

Wearing such a high hat naturally makes one uncomfortable.

"Rong Xiaoxiao, stop glaring at us. Gary is just joking. When he was our age, he was definitely already a dark horse, right?"

"That's right, that's right!"

The subordinates understood and quickly chimed in, each using their own methods to make Gary feel comfortable.

Ling Ruoke took the opportunity to go to the restroom, splashed some cold water on her face, and stared blankly at herself in the mirror. She could never enjoy these kinds of social and flattering occasions. However, she considered it a challenge for herself.

As the wolf once said, no one should be able to do whatever they want all their life; you always have to compromise yourself at times. That's the way of life.

When Ling Ruoke came out of the restroom, she happened to bump into Gary. It wasn't just a bump, but a collision.

Today was a formal occasion, and she was wearing high heels. The collision caused her to stumble, but luckily she reacted quickly and spun around a few times, regaining her footing a short distance away.

Gary's hand was still suspended in mid-air, clearly waiting to catch her. He paused for a moment, then smiled again. "Such nimble movements. Is Moon a particularly good dancer? If so, we should arrange to meet up and have a friendly competition sometime."

"No, it's nothing. I just did some aerobics in college back then, and I was just lucky just now. Let's go back." Ling Ruoke didn't want to have any dance exchanges with him.

Gary chuckled. "Moon is too modest."

The meal was finally finished in a lively and cheerful manner.

Before leaving, Gary suggested that they meet up another day to play ball together.

They had no choice but to agree. After all, the customer is king.

On the way back in a taxi, Xia Mo and the others reminded Ling Ruoke, "Sister Ruoke, you should stay away from Gary in the future."

"I know." Ling Ruoke felt a warmth in her heart; these people genuinely cared about her. "Workplace unspoken rules are everywhere; I'll be more careful."

She only attended today to introduce herself. In the future, unless absolutely necessary, she won't show up. Anyway, Xia Mo and the two managers can handle everything; she doesn't need to do everything herself.

Sitting in the taxi, Ling Ruoke thought about her plan to buy a car again. When the colonel called home that evening, she asked for his opinion on which brand and model to choose.

Ling Ruo can drive, but her old driver's license is no longer valid, and she has to take a new test.

The colonel quickly sent over the car model. Ling Ruoke thought she would pick one out over the weekend, which would be more convenient for attending meetings or other occasions.

The colonel knew she had a meeting today, so he asked her specifically.

Ling Ruoke wanted to talk about Gary, but she didn't say anything. She'd just be careful not to get close to him. Qingfeng was very sensitive about these things; if he knew someone was eyeing his wife, he'd probably rush over and beat them to a pulp.

Someone once said that you can flirt with any other woman's wife, but not a military wife! Their husbands would kill you, and you'd have no evidence and nowhere to sue.

"What were you trying to say just now?" The colonel was no ordinary person; he could tell when she swallowed her words.

Ling Ruoke stuck out her tongue. Reconnaissance soldiers are terrifying. "No, it's just that I haven't worn high heels in so long, I almost tripped today. I didn't dare tell you because I didn't want you to worry."

"Are you alright? You don't need to wear those damn high heels anymore, they're bad for your feet, understand?" The colonel was indeed concerned, and his tone became serious. It seemed that if those high heels were in front of her, he would destroy them and throw them away.

"I'm not injured. I won't wear it again." Ling Ruoke already knew that you should never try to reason with the colonel, especially when there might be hidden dangers for her. The wise thing to do is to obediently comply with his wishes.

They stopped pursuing the matter. "My wife is so good."

On Friday, Gary indeed hinted to his assistant that he wanted to play ball.

In the workplace, especially for companies that act as service providers, inviting clients to leisure and entertainment activities from time to time is a part of public relations. Now that the client has hinted at it, they certainly can't pretend they didn't understand.

After receiving this news, Ling Ruoke asked Xia Mo to find a reason for her not to participate, and Xia Mo took the others with her.

Whether by coincidence or design, Gary did not come that evening after learning that Ling Ruoke was not participating.

Ling Ruoke received this feedback from Xia Mo, and she realized she should focus on finding other clients. The new year's proposals were about to begin, and if Gary had most of the decision-making power, she had likely already offended him.

Since she rejected Gary's advances, we need to prepare in advance.

"Sister Ruo, the new year's proposal is about to be put forward, and I'm worried about Gary's side..." Xia Mo had been in the workplace for a long time, so she naturally understood the situation clearly.

Ling Ruoke gestured for him to sit down and said with a smile, "Xia Mo, let alone myself, even if my employees were willing, I wouldn't accept any possibility of unspoken rules. No woman or man should be ruined like this for a job, and no company or individual has the right to force them. If he really gives his new year's proposal to another company because of this, then we don't need to care too much. Believe me, since I dared to start this company, I am confident that I can make it grow and thrive."

If you're going to make money through prostitution, you should have opened a brothel instead of an advertising company.

"Sister Ruo, I'm relieved to hear you say that. I just wanted to tell you on behalf of everyone that we will always support you!" Xia Mo had a colleague who was betrayed by the boss and became a victim of unspoken rules at his previous company, so he was very resistant to it. Ling Ruo Ke's words undoubtedly struck a chord with him.

This incident further increased the employees' trust in Ling Ruoke. After all, no one wants to be sold out by the company one day.

Coincidentally, a well-known daily necessities company was also holding its annual proposal competition around the same time. Ling Ruoke had previously worked with this company and had a good relationship with them. So she hurriedly called the person in charge from before and found that it was the same group of people. Just like that, Pei Huo had another opportunity.

When Ling Ruoke announced this news, everyone was quite excited. Anyone who has worked in this industry knows that a certain daily necessities company is a major brand, and xxx chewing gum company cannot compare to it.

Ling Ruoke's former company, X, still collaborates with the daily necessities company, but the latter hopes to have different suppliers responsible for different regions to create better competition.

Ling Ruoke's company is located in the West District, giving it a natural advantage in the competition there. Meanwhile, Company X has always been responsible for the South District, so it won't cause any conflicts with previous employees. This is something to celebrate.

As a result, Pei Huo's employees immediately sprang into action. Two project managers were assigned to handle proposals from a daily necessities company and a chewing gum company, respectively, with Xia Mo in overall charge. The assistants also received their assigned sections and busied themselves researching and writing, working with great enthusiasm.

However, this busy work was worthwhile. To boost everyone's enthusiasm, Ling Ruoke specifically designed a reward plan for each project. 30% of the profits from each project would be allocated as a project bonus, which would then be distributed proportionally among the manager and assistants.

This was quite tempting for the employees. Therefore, they didn't complain even when working overtime to work on the proposal. Ling Ruoke would reimburse their meal and taxi expenses for working overtime and occasionally treat them to sweet drinks. In short, the entire company was united in their efforts.

Ling Ruoke was busy with company matters and naturally neglected the little one. For many days, Tan Peishi and her family had been picking the little one up and dropping him off, and he also ate and slept at their house at night. Tan Peishi naturally didn't have any objections, but the little one did.

That day, Ling Ruoke, who was going over a proposal with Xia Mo and two project managers, received a call from her kindergarten teacher.

She gestured to them, listening to the complaints on the other end of the phone.

"...Those were roses that the dean had just planted! Huo Fu'an actually said he wanted to know if little people would grow under the roses! So he and a few friends pulled up every single flower in the little flowerbed! blah blah..."

The teacher's voice was very pleasant, a young and clear voice. However, it sounded a little distorted on the phone because she was very angry.

Ling Ruoke hung up the phone and instructed that all work arrangements after 5 p.m. be changed, as she wanted to leave work early today.

As Ling Ruoke drove, she thought that she probably hadn't spent nearly enough time with her son—for example, when she got home last night and was watching cartoons with Fu'an, he fell asleep before they were even halfway through.

I need to tell her, at least tonight, that not every plant can sprout a ginseng doll from its roots like in cartoons. Kids always want to try things out in real life after seeing them on TV, which can be a real problem sometimes.