Chapter 53: An Uninvited Arrival

Lu Zaixue personally saw Cheng Shi back again.

When Cheng Shi got out of the car, he saw Qian Xiaoying standing across the street but ignored her and went straight inside.

Look all you want, as long as you don’t bother him, it’s fine.

Zhang Ziqiang only returned at noon, holding two books, very excited. “Found them.”

Cheng Shi nodded. “Good, enjoy reading.”

Zhang Ziqiang then went to help Cai Aiping with cooking.

Cai Aiping smiled, “Since Qiangzi came, life has been much easier.”

Cheng Shi silently marveled: What kind of life did this guy live before, to develop such extraordinary skills in reading people and surviving?

Since Zhang Ziqiang helped with chores, it was only natural to invite him to eat with them.

The most irritating was Yu Dadong, who casually brought a chunk of meat at mealtime and effortlessly stayed for dinner.

Cheng Juan was already used to such behavior and showed no reaction.

Cheng Yongjin and his wife enjoyed the lively atmosphere.

So only Cheng Shi wore a face of disdain, secretly rolling his eyes at the two.

They pretended not to see.

Cheng Shi had a habit of taking an afternoon nap.

Zhang Ziqiang said he wasn’t tired and planned to study by reading during noon.

But before Cheng Shi could fall asleep, he heard Zhang Ziqiang downstairs snoring like thunder.

Cheng Shi covered his eyes: Truly unbelievable.

Monday morning, Zhang Ziqiang started calling potential clients one by one.

He got through to the first call: “Hello, my name is Zhang Ziqiang. I am the sales manager of Shiyun Mechanical and Electronics Co., Ltd.”

Before he finished, the other party hung up.

Zhang Ziqiang stared at the phone, half angry, half embarrassed: “Why is this happening?!”

Cheng Shi remained silent.

The same happened for three calls in a row; Zhang Ziqiang lost the courage to continue calling.

He stared blankly at the phone.

Originally, he thought sales would be easy.

He remembered that when he first came home, the supply and marketing department at the automobile factory was a prized position.

Countless people bribed Zhang Guohua to get someone into that department.

Later, when he started working at the automobile factory, he also joined the sales department.

Back then, making a few calls a day was routine, and people even came with cigarettes and liquor, begging to buy more cars.

Though demand had eased in recent years, being hung up on directly was unheard of.

His mood plummeted from ambitious and confident to rock bottom.

He began doubting his abilities, questioning his life, even imagining his own obituary: a complete failure, lifelong sales record zero...

Wait, didn’t “The Broad Record of Laughs” mention someone like this?

“Initially failed the civil service exam three years running; then trained in martial arts, but at the training ground’s archery test, he hit the drum officer and was expelled; finally studied medicine and succeeded, creating a good prescription and passing away.”

Am I not just like that unlucky fellow now?

Caramel, who had been crouching beside Cheng Shi watching him work, hopped onto Zhang Ziqiang’s lap and rubbed his head against him.

Only then did Cheng Shi notice Zhang Ziqiang had suddenly become listless; he removed his mask and said, “It’s okay, it’s like this at the start. Also, not everyone has the patience to listen to such a long self-introduction.”

Zhang Ziqiang said, “Huh?”

Cheng Shi replied, “Your introduction has to interest the other party.”

Zhang Ziqiang asked, “Like what?”

Cheng Shi said, “Think about what the client cares about, and how you can say it to catch their interest. That’s called catering to their preferences.”

Zhang Ziqiang repeated, “Like what?”

Cheng Shi snapped, “Are you a broken record? Use your brain and think.”

You want me to think everything out for you; you still haven’t shaken off the habit of relying on others and liking to be arranged.

Zhang Ziqiang felt embarrassed and scratched his head.

Someone outside called, “Is Comrade Cheng Shi here?”

Zhang Ziqiang hurried out to see—surprisingly, it was Zhang Guohua.

Zhang Guohua’s eyes widened. “You?! You ungrateful son, you have a good home but don’t come back, you skip work, so what are you doing here?”

Zhang Ziqiang replied, “I am the sales manager here now, why can’t I be here? I’m an adult and have the right to decide where I go.”

Zhang Guohua snapped, “What nonsense is this? The family’s a mess, no one does the housework, and you’re leisurely enjoying yourself in this little workshop.”

Years of being ignored and mentally abused welled up inside Zhang Ziqiang.

He looked at Zhang Guohua with eyes full of disappointment and resentment: “To repay the kindness of giving me life, I’ve diligently handled all the housework alone since my teenage years. But you never appreciate my efforts and take me for a free housekeeper, verbally abusing me every day and nitpicking.”

Zhang Guohua furiously raised his hand to slap Zhang Ziqiang.

But his arm was grabbed; turning around, he saw Cheng Shi.

Cheng Shi smiled faintly and said, “Director Zhang, you’d better not lay a hand.”

Cheng Shi was a full head taller, and his commanding presence made Zhang Guohua’s legs weaken.

Zhang Guohua stammered, “W-what are you doing? This is my family matter. What right do you, an outsider, have to interfere?”

Cheng Shi’s eyes grew cold: “It’s working hours now, and Comrade Zhang Ziqiang is my employee. Your cursing disrupts my business and threatens my employee’s safety, so of course I have the right to intervene.”

He hadn’t wanted to get involved, but Zhang Guohua went too far—cursing then trying to hit.

Zhang Ziqiang couldn’t fight back and could only rely on him to stop it.

Besides, Zhang Guohua insulting his son and his company at the same time was intolerable.

Earlier, Yu Dadong and the others had just passed by and were about to roll up their sleeves to intervene when Cheng Shi raised his hand to stop them.

If it came to blows, he worried that with so many on their side, the level of force might leave Zhang Guohua half-paralyzed.

Then the one suffering would be Zhang Ziqiang, and Yu Dadong’s group would get into trouble too.

So Cheng Shi stepping up now was not just for everyone’s good.

Zhang Guohua, feeling guilty, sulked, “Fine, I won’t hit.”

His earlier shouting had drawn a crowd, making him feel even more humiliated.

Cheng Shi released his grip and asked, “Director Zhang, what brings you to see me?”

Zhang Guohua said, “Did you fail to repair our CNC machine? Why can’t the parts made by our technicians reach the level you promised?”

Cheng Shi replied coldly, “That agreement clearly stated I’m only responsible for repairing the integrated circuit board; other issues are not my responsibility. Whether it works after repair is not my concern. Director Zhang, you know better than I do that this CNC machine has been in use for at least fifteen years without any factory tuning. A decline in precision is normal. You’re blaming me now because you want to shift responsibility, aren’t you?”

When he initially insisted it couldn’t be fixed, he meant three things: first, the responsibility was too great, and he didn’t want it; second, some integrated circuit components were unavailable, so repair was impossible; third, achieving the precision the automobile factory demanded was unattainable.