Chapter 96: Chapter 96: Director Zhou’s Growing Antagonism
The atmosphere in the conference room was tense. Each director had their heads lowered as they busied themselves with their files. They didn’t dare make a mistake.
Huo Feng would be able to catch it—no matter how subtle it was. And then, he had Yue Ning by his side. Yue Ning was like a trump card Huo Feng kept by his side. She was smart, quick-witted, and she could notice subtle flaws even before they did.
With these thoughts, the directors went over their files again while hoping there were no mistakes.
Suddenly, the door to the conference was pushed open, and Huo Feng walked in with long strides followed behind by Yue Ning who had a laptop in his hands.
Director Zhou’s face darkened seeing her in the conference room. He silently snorted as he joined the remaining directors to stand.
Huo Feng’s steps were calm and steady as he walked to the head of the conference table. He took a seat with Yue Ning naturally sitting beside him.
Director Zhou’s face ticked seeing this, but he masked his dissatisfied expression instantly. Unfortunately for him, Yue Ning had already noticed his strange expression.
She raised her eyebrows calmly at him, and he scoffed before shifting his gaze from her.
’Quite rude,’ the system commented, and Yue Ning could hear its dissatisfied tone. Yue Ning only smiled softly, not paying attention to him.
Huo Feng didn’t notice the short interlude between both of them as he waved his hand, signalling for them to have their seats.
Clearing his throat, Huo Feng started. "This is the mid-month evaluation meeting. I believe we all know what we are doing here. Who is going first?" He leaned back on his chair, swirling a bit as his eyes swept over every of the directors present.
"I will go first." An old director stood to his feet. He was the director of the marketing team.
He reported his unit’s achievements for the past month. He also pointed out where his unit was lacking.
Huo Feng nodded while Yue Ning calmly took notes.
This went on for each director—some did well... while some did awful. But there was an increase in the Huo’s stock which was the best improvement.
Yue Ning took notes all through. When it got to Director Zhou’s turn, he rose to his feet having a smug smile on his face.
He started, his gaze straying to Yue Ning who had her hundred percent attention on him. Her lips curved slowly when she sensed his gaze on her.
She had the feeling that he was about to utter something stupid. As expected, he didn’t disappoint with his next statement.
"With all due respect, CEO, but this is a meeting for employees... not for family members and wannabe employees." He didn’t bother to mask his disdain for Yue Ning.
The other directors gasped loudly at his words. They all acknowledged Yue Ning’s abilities, so they didn’t think there was a problem with her being there.
Even if Director Zhou didn’t like her, at least he would have given her some face seeing that she was Huo Feng’s wife.
But sadly, Director Zhou didn’t think about all of this before insulting Yue Ning.
Huo Feng frowned, and was about to speak when Yue Ning stopped him. She shook her head as if to say that she could handle the matter herself.
With a perfect and poised smile, Yue Ning stated. "Why do you have such a strong bias against me? I’m curious, Director Zhou—do you dislike me because I’m Huo Feng’s wife... or because I can see through the mistakes you try to hide?" She demanded softly with folded arms.
The directors exchanged glances. They didn’t expect Yue Ning to be so blunt in her words. But that didn’t mean they weren’t willing to watch the show.
They all kept quiet as their gaze remained on Director Zhou’s face which was alternating between black and white.
"Family members aren’t meant to be here." He said, but this time his voice was barely above a whisper.
Yue Ning scoffed, unfolding her arms before she rose to her feet. "I think I have proved to be more than a family member." She paused, her eyes narrowing sharper.
"I mean... I have shown how smart I am, I can point out flaws you won’t be able to find even if you wished to. I have every reason to say your reasons are unfounded." She paused, her gaze fixating on him intensely.
"No matter how you deny it, it is an undeniable fact that I contribute to this company—perhaps even more than you."
’Go Host, roast him appropriately. I have long hated his guts.’ The system cheered her internally.
Yue Ning laughed mentally. The system sure knew how to joke.
Director Zhou was silent. It was a slap on his face seeing that a young girl had insulted and criticized him.
He noticed Huo Feng’s gaze was fixated on him, and his back was instantly drenched in cold sweat, but he didn’t seem like he was about to back down.
Yue Ning didn’t seem to notice his changing expression, or rather she chose to ignore it.
"If you still doubt me, then I can show the directors seated here how to improve their numbers in just a few minutes." She snapped her fingers confidently.
Huo Feng leaned forward, his attention fixated on Yue Ning. He had a look of interest on his face.
Gasps erupted from the directors. They all looked at Yue Ning skeptically. They didn’t doubt her capabilities —but it seemed like a stretch to say she could find solutions to their problems in just a few minutes.
Director Zhou noticed the look of doubts on the directors’ faces, and he burst into laughter. "Careful not to embarrass yourself later." He said sarcastically as though he had found a lifeline to hold on to.
Yue Ning’s smile slowly turned into a smirk. If she were an ordinary person, then she wouldn’t have confidently uttered such words.
But she was someone armed with System 101. She couldn’t fail. Instead, others would watch her with dumbfounded gazes.
With these thoughts in mind, she turned to Huo Feng, the only one she cared about.
He nodded, showing that he had complete fate and trust in her. "You can go ahead."
Yue Ning’s eyes brightened. As long as Huo Feng trusted her, she didn’t have any qualms.
"Then..." She slowly turned to them with a graceful and elegant smile. "I will be starting with the finance department. I’ll point out some errors, and where you can improve."
Yue Ning stated confidently, her gaze steady and her voice calm.
’Drumrolls, please. The Host is about to slap some faces.’ The system commented mechanically.