Chapter 616 Never Been A Slave Silence descended upon the meeting room again as they fell into a stalemate. âWhy arenât you talking?â Nan Zhengde scanned everyone. However, no one spoke a word.
âYouâre still young, so you still have time to waste. On the other hand, Iâm old, and I need to rest. If you arenât talking, Iâm going to leave now. You can figure out who to choose as the new CEO.â Nan Zhengde stood up. âDonât leave, Mr. Nan!â Some members of the board of directors panicked.
âWhatâs there left to discuss? Even though you disagreed with my suggestion, you refused to offer another candidate when I asked you to. How can we continue discussing this?â rebuked Nan Zhengde.
âWeâve already reached an agreement for one part. However, you need to compromise too. At the very least, you should stay in the company as a consultant, right? Considering Mr. Xingâs current capabilities, he cannot become the CEO of the company. You know that very well,â said another director.
âItâs not like I wonât intervene at all.â Nan Zhengde was still reluctant to concede.
At that moment, a director stood up. âWhat about this? We can put him on probation for three months.
If he does a good job after three months, weâll just accept fate. If he doesnât, weâll discuss this again.
What do you think?â
The director who made that suggestion was the first person whom Nan Zhengde visited with his own calligraphy.
âIn that case, heâll only be the surrogate CEO whoâll manage the work on behalf of Mr. Chen temporarily. Any important decisions will need to go through the board of directors first,â agreed another director.
This director was also one of those who received Nan Zhengdeâs calligraphy.
It was obvious that although these words were spoken by others, they were representative of Nan Zhengdeâs opinion.
âI disagree. If heâs merely the surrogate CEO, there are a lot of things that he canât do,â objected Nan Zhengde.
If it was Nan Zhengdeâs own opinion, there should be no reason for him to object.
However, he believed that if Ouyang Duo wanted to conquer Nanshi Corporation, Ouyang Duo would definitely need an internal spy.
He did not dare to be certain that the spy was not hiding in that crowd.
Still, he was sure that Ouyang Duo would find a way to know everything that transpired in the meeting.
Hence, he wanted to let Ouyang Duo know that the idea to make Nan Xing the surrogate CEO was not his idea but the board of directorsâ decision.
âMr. Nan, Nanshi Corporation is such a huge company. Itâs normal that he canât achieve a lot of things as a newly appointed CEO. You should make a compromise,â urged a director.
âFine. Iâm getting old, so Iâll let you youngsters make the decision. Shall we vote now?â asked Nan Zhengde.
Everyone agreed.
âRaise your hand if you agree to let Nan Xing become the surrogate CEO.â Nan Zhengde raised his hand.
Everyone raised their hands, which meant that the decision had been made unanimously.
Nan Zhengde stood up and sighed. âIf I knew earlier that none of you would listen to me, I wouldnât have come.â
Although he said that, a satisfied look flashed across his eyes briefly.
Immediately after the meeting, Ouyang Duo, who was at the Orchid Club, received a call.
A grim expression appeared on his face after he hung up.
âWhatâs wrong?â asked Feng Jialing.
âThe meeting with the board of directors just ended. Nan Xing became the surrogate CEO,â said Ouyang Duo.
âIsnât that great? Now that Nan Xing and Qing finished their registration, theyâre now a legal couple. In that case, Qing will be the wife of Nanshi Corporationâs CEO! Isnât that what we want?â said Feng Jialing with a smile.
âYou need to be clear on this. Heâs the surrogate CEO, not the actual CEO.â
âIsnât that the same? Doesnât a surrogate CEO have the same authority and rights as the actual CEO?â
âItâs different. Every company has its own regulations. For some companies, there might be very strict limitations as to what a surrogate CEO can do. Iâm still unsure about whatâs happening in Nanshi Corporation, but Iâm worried.â
âWhat are you worried about? Nan Chenâs in our hands now. He canât possibly escape, right?â Feng Jialing was unconcerned.
âYou donât know anything, huh? It was the first time that Nan Zhengde agreed so easily. He surrendered without putting up much of a fight. Iâm afraid that thereâs a trick somewhere. However, everythingâs going according to our plan, and I canât detect any problems. Furthermore, he opposed the suggestion to make Nan Xing the surrogate CEO. In other words, he wants to appoint Nan Xing as the CEO directly. Yet, a director said that Nan Xing is still not capable enough. He can only be put on probation for three months. If he performs well after that, heâll be officially appointed the CEO.
Surprisingly, Nan Zhengde refused. That made me even more confused. Could it be that old age has caught up with him and made him a weakling?â
Although Ouyang Duo was speaking to Feng Jialing, it seemed like he was mumbling to himself.
As he spoke, he mulled over it.
âNan Zhengdeâs getting old, anyway. More importantly, his beloved eldest grandson is in our hands. He can give up anything for Nan Chen,â said Feng Jialing.
âBut I still think that somethingâs fishy. Whatâs scarier is that I donât know whatâs wrong.â
âI think that you donât need to be too worried. Once Nan Zhengde transfers the stocks to Nan Xing, whoâll transfer them to Qing, everything will be settled! They wonât be able to turn the tables anymore!â
assured Feng Jialing.
âNo, Iâm still worried. Iâll visit the Nan residence and confirm what happened. Otherwise, Iâll feel uneasy.â Ouyang Duo stood up and grabbed his coat.
âShould I come along with you?â
âItâs fine. I want to visit Nan Zhengde alone and see what heâs doing. Iâm afraid that heâs playing some tricks!â
âHe probably wonât, right? Thereâs nothing he can do now that Nan Chenâs in our hands.â
âI donât know about that. If I did, I wouldnât be so worried. I must make a trip there to allay my uneasiness.â
Once Ouyang Duo left the Orchid Club, Nan Zhengde received a call at the Commoner Residence.
Half an hour later, Ouyang Duo reached the Commoner Residence.
Chai Hua informed him that Nan Zhengde was sleeping and must not be disturbed.
That provoked Ouyang Duo to kick a chair over. âWhy do I have to wait every time I visit? Wake him up right now!â
Chai Hua was shocked. Since when did Ouyang Duo become so arrogant? This is the Commoner Residence, the Nan familyâs house! How dare he act so unruly here?
âMr. Ouyang, this chair belongs to the Nan family. If you damage it, youâll have to compensate for it,â
reminded Chai Hua coldly.
âBelongs to the Nan family? Everything that the Nan family owns will soon be mine, okay? Iâll make you pack up and leave when that time comes!â yelled Ouyang Duo.
âReally? Are you saying that youâll be taking over this house too, Mr. Ouyang? Are you saying that you wonât let anyone live here?â demanded Chai Hua coldly.
Only then did Ouyang Duo realize that he had crossed the line.
The house was still the Nan residence. As he had not gotten everything under his control, he should keep a low profile first.
âHow long has Nan Zhengde been sleeping? When will he wake up?â
âI donât know how long heâs been sleeping. Regardless, Iâll only call for him after he wakes up,â replied Chai Hua icily.
âHow long have you been a slave for the Nan family?â Ouyang Duo was extremely displeased with him.
âIâve been working here for over twenty years, but Iâve never been a slave for even a day,â said Chai Hua in a frosty voice.
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