Gu Xingye’s expression froze. “Of course, I know the strength of the Provincial Construction Engineering company, and I trust you very much, Manager Li. But New Year’s Day is approaching, and we can’t drag this into next year. Our company has invested all its money, and we’re having cash flow issues. Not to mention the contract…”
“Don’t mention the contract to me. If you want the money, go back and wait. I’m busy during this period. Once I’m done, I’ll give you the money. Why are you chasing me so hard? If you annoy me too much, you can go wherever you want. I won’t entertain you.”
After Li Guojun finished speaking, he waved his hand as if swatting away flies, and left with the other two. Gu Xingye was left standing there for a long time.
…
“Xingye?”
Chen Lishu returned from school. As she reached the ground floor, she suddenly saw Gu Xingye standing on the open space in front of the flower bed, smoking with his head down. She called out to him.
Gu Xingye looked up and, seeing her return, quickly stubbed out his cigarette butt on the concrete platform.
“Why are you standing outside in this cold weather instead of coming upstairs?” Chen Lishu frowned as she saw Gu Xingye wearing only a light jacket and standing with his head bare.
She had always been sensitive to the cold, and had put on her down jacket not long after the first snowfall. Although the school wasn't far, she had her hat, scarf, and gloves all on. If she hadn't spoken up, Gu Xingye probably wouldn't have recognized her.
“I just got here not long ago either.” He felt a bit awkward going up alone while Zhao Qiuyue was there, so he preferred to wait downstairs for a while.
Seeing his red nose and ears from the cold, Chen Lishu said, “If you have something to say, let’s talk upstairs.”
Soon, Gu Xingye went upstairs with her.
Once inside, Zhao Qiuyue saw them enter together. Knowing Chen Lishu was sensitive to the cold, she quickly poured a cup of hot water for each of them.
Chen Lishu had already taken off her down jacket. After holding the cup and sitting down, she asked Gu Xingye, “The money hasn’t arrived?”
Gu Xingye nodded and quickly recounted everything that had happened in the past few days. He finished by saying, “Li Guojun’s attitude wasn’t like this when he was collecting payment before.”
Chen Lishu chuckled, “Back then, it wasn't much money, and it was nothing to him, just a casual gesture. Why not?”
But now it was nearly eighty thousand yuan, which was definitely not a small sum. It was normal for him to turn a blind eye and deny their agreement.
“Third sister-in-law, what should we do now?”
Gu Xingye had asked the right person. She knew at least eight, if not ten, ways for a construction site to collect payments.
The most common method was legal action. Chen Lishu felt that it wouldn't be good to have such a tense relationship from their first collaboration. Moreover, the delay hadn't been that long initially. If she really sued the Provincial Construction Engineering company, her Hongyuan Construction Company would become notorious in the industry, and likely no one would dare to cooperate with them in the future.
As for other methods, the applicable ones currently were limited. Media exposure was similar to direct lawsuits. However, a scare tactic could work, and it would definitely be effective, especially since they were a state-owned enterprise and valued their reputation.
Chen Lishu leaned towards another method: payment in kind. From her cooperation with Gu Xingye, she learned that the Provincial Construction Engineering company had purchased a lot of new equipment at the beginning of the year. She wasn't greedy. If they really had no money, a loader would suffice. Such a thing was not easy to obtain.
“I don’t have class tomorrow morning, I’ll go with you. It’s not good to keep dragging this out. It’ll be even harder to get the money after the New Year.”
Gu Xingye nodded. “Alright, Third sister-in-law. I’ll come over again tomorrow.”
Chen Lishu saw him get up and called him back. “Eating outside might not be tasty, you should eat dinner at home and then go back.”
Hearing her words, Gu Xingye sat back down.
The next day, they went to the Provincial Construction Engineering company together. The staff had become familiar with Gu Xingye in the past few days. Seeing Chen Lishu, a woman, accompanying him, they didn’t pay much attention.
“I am the manager of Hongyuan Construction Company. My surname is Chen. Is your Manager Li in?”
So, she was the manager. She was surprisingly young.
“Our Manager Li today…” The staff member was about to say that Manager Li was not in, but Chen Lishu interrupted him.
“There’s no need for excuses. You know why we’re here. Where is your Manager Li now? As his assistant, you should know exactly when he’ll be back. If you don’t know, then please convey a message to him: I will come back at this time tomorrow. If he’s too busy to spare even this little time to meet, I can place an advertisement to ask for public supervision.”
Chen Lishu’s words left Assistant Zhou stunned for a long time.
Over the years, she had dealt with at least eighty, if not a hundred, people coming to collect debts. They were all respectful to her. Of course, some came shouting and making a scene, but in the end, they were worn down and had to beg, because the money was in their hands, and they decided who to disburse it to.
Someone as calm and composed as Chen Lishu was a rarity.
Chen Lishu didn’t bother to see if she had understood or not. After delivering her message, she called Gu Xingye and they left.
When Li Guojun returned that afternoon, Assistant Zhou immediately informed him of Chen Lishu’s visit, especially the part about placing an advertisement.
Li Guojun asked with some surprise, “Did she really say that?”
Assistant Zhou replied, “Yes.”
Li Guojun nodded. “Alright, I understand. I won’t be going out tomorrow morning. If anyone else is looking for me, just say I’m not here. If it’s from Hongyuan Construction Company, tell her to come directly to my office on the third floor.”
Chen Lishu’s guess was correct. People like Li Guojun feared the impact on their reputation the most. If this were later, when people owed construction payments were a problem, you could forget about media exposure; they might not even obey court-ordered enforcement.
Time quickly passed to the next day. Chen Lishu and Gu Xingye arrived at the same time as yesterday.
Seeing them, Assistant Zhou directly invited them to the third floor without a word.
Gu Xingye glanced at Chen Lishu, increasingly impressed. If it were him, he couldn’t have come up with so many ideas. If he were pushed too far, he would likely make a scene, and then it would be even harder to get the money.
Li Guojun was waiting in his office. As he looked up and saw her enter, before Chen Lishu could speak, he sternly reprimanded her, “Such a small matter required threatening me with newspaper advertisements? Comrade Chen really has some skillful methods.”
Chen Lishu smiled. “Manager Li, you might have misunderstood. Your assistant was clueless about everything, so I said something out of anger. It was just a slip of the tongue.”
Whether Chen Lishu’s words were true or not was debatable, but Li Guojun was somewhat apprehensive.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t be sitting here today.
“It’s the end of the year, and everyone is waiting to settle accounts. The company cannot manage the funds temporarily. Your money will be paid to you after some time when we receive our payments. Perhaps you could wait a little longer?”