I had just stepped out of the bathroom after a shower when a figure blocked my way.

"Mr. Sun, you're finally out!"

It was clear she was in a hurry. She immediately grabbed my arm and started to pull me outside.

"What happened?" Sun Dasheng asked, pulling his arm free.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Sun, I was just too anxious." Jiang Ziyan apologized first, then said in a frantic tone, "There's a commotion downstairs. You need to get down there quickly."

In truth, Sun Dasheng already knew what was happening. A system notification had just appeared:

[Xiang Yiren's Dissatisfaction—Let whoever wants this front desk job have it. I'm done serving! Experience Points +1000]

[Convert now? Yes or No]

Choosing 'No' isn't an option. If the experience points go to a side character, they can't be converted, and they're of no use to them for now. Can I postpone the decision? Maybe wait for the bond value to increase before converting?

Just as the thought crossed his mind, a countdown timer appeared below the conversion box:

[Remaining time: 60s]

Note: If time runs out, a random choice will be made.

Can't risk it being random. He hurriedly clicked 'Convert'.

[Experience converting... You have gained +600 experience points.]

All of this happened in an instant.

He then strode past Jiang Ziyan and hurried downstairs.

By now, the first-floor lobby was crowded with people, most of them gawkers enjoying the spectacle.

Sun Dasheng pushed through the crowd and stepped inside.

He saw Xiang Yiren standing with her arms crossed, arguing with someone.

"Apologize? Why should I apologize?"

Opposite her stood two men. One was Wang Aimin, the manager from the second floor, and the man beside him looked somewhat familiar.

Oh, I almost didn't recognize him without makeup. It's Li Yifan, the gigolo who was with that rich woman earlier.

Wang Aimin stood there, his face livid.

Seeing this, Li Yifan stepped forward. "On the grounds that you angered Miss Zhang, the company's biggest client, and made her storm out! The company loses hundreds of thousands a year because of this. Can you afford that loss?"

He said this with some apprehension, thinking she might actually be able to afford it. But with that wealthy Miss Zhang calling Manager Wang to demand an explanation, he had no choice but to pin all the blame on Xiang Yiren. Better her than me.

"Tch! How is it my fault that she left in a huff? Isn't it because your gigolo skills are subpar? If you had served her more attentively, catered to her every whim, and made her happy, she definitely wouldn't have left. She might have even topped up her card!"

Xiang Yiren's words made the crowd chuckle. Although they all pandered to wealthy clients, not everyone could stomach going that far. After all, servicing rich old women is a bitter pill to swallow. Even among gigolos, there was a pecking order.

"You... you..."

He wanted to say that they were both gigolos—he pandered to a rich woman, and she pandered to an old man—so who was she to act so high and mighty? But the moment the "old man," Sun Dasheng, appeared on the scene, he immediately lost his nerve. He knew that crossing a wealthy man would not end well.

Seeing his underling get verbally KO'd in just a few exchanges made Wang Aimin's expression turn uglier. He had no choice but to step into the fray himself.

"Yiren, you're quick-witted and articulate. Xiao Li can't win an argument against you. However, the company has its rules. Since you made a mistake, you must accept the punishment. Wouldn't you agree?"

As he spoke, he wore the smile of a hypocrite.

"Manager Wang, I don't believe I did anything wrong," Xiang Yiren retorted, refusing to back down.

"If you did nothing wrong, then how did we lose Miss Zhang as a client?" Wang Aimin quietly raised his voice. "She's a client I personally recruited. She called me this afternoon to say she had been humiliated by one of our employees and wanted to cancel her membership."

"This is no small accusation, Yiren. You should understand the gravity of this situation. It's best if you just admit your mistake. Otherwise..."

"Otherwise, what?"

The speaker was a man.

Wang Aimin looked over in surprise, recognizing the member from the second floor. Back then, he'd been dressed in gym clothes and tagging along behind that troublemaker Wu Yue, so Wang Aimin hadn't paid him much mind. He didn't even stop the farce of the trainers goading members into a sparring match. Isn't that just driving customers away? But it suited his purposes. He was planning to use Zheng Dashan to take care of the troublemaker Wu Yue, so he let it happen.

But now, seeing him decked out in designer clothes, with a dazzling, million-dollar watch on his wrist...

He mentally slapped his forehead. I've been so careless!

Just as he was about to go over, apologize, and try to smooth things over, someone walked in through the entrance.

Seeing who it was, everyone called out in unison, "Chairman!"

The man, who was in his fifties, was none other than the owner of the fitness chain—Pi Dehua. With his large belly, he commanded respect without needing to show anger.

He walked straight to Sun Dasheng, stopped, and immediately broke into a smile. "Mr. Sun, we meet again."

Oh, so they're old acquaintances. This ex-landlord seems to have his hands in quite a few businesses.

"Mr. Pi, hello!" Sun Dasheng responded with a smile.

"Didn't you say you had a family emergency at the factory?"

"Ha! Thanks to the money from the house sale, I had cash in my account, and the bank approved my loan. So, I wasn't in a hurry to head back. Thought I'd come check on this half-dead gym."

Pi Dehua's words were tinged with bitterness.

Looks like this gym chain isn't doing so well, Sun Dasheng thought.

Seeing him chatting so casually with the chairman, everyone gasped. This Mr. Sun must be someone important! At least a big shot on the same level as the chairman!

Everyone shot Wang Aimin a sympathetic look. He hadn't just kicked an iron plate; he'd kicked one made of solid steel.

"Chairman, I..." Wang Aimin started, ready to surrender and admit his mistake.

Pi Dehua cut him off. "You don't need to say anything. My people have already told me everything."

Hearing this, Wang Aimin's heart sank. Someone ratted me out. He glared around the room, trying to find the damn traitor.

"Don't bother looking; the person who told me isn't here," Pi Dehua said coolly. "Little Wang, when I made you manager, I thought you were a capable man. But look at yourself now. What have you turned this gym into? You practice nepotism, and what kind of trainers have you hired? Goading clients into fighting each other? Damaging the good relationship between the company and its customers? Is this how you do things?"

Pi Dehua's words made Wang Aimin flush with humiliation, but he wasn't convinced.

"The company's annual revenue has been growing since I took over," he retorted.

Pi Dehua didn't deny it. He nodded and said, "The revenue has indeed grown, but the profits haven't. So where did all that increased revenue go?"

"That..." He couldn't very well admit in public that the money was used for greasing palms. If he did, he'd be in jail by tomorrow.

Pi Dehua seemed to know about these under-the-table dealings. He knew they could benefit the company, so he usually turned a blind eye. He was only dressing down Wang Aimin now to give Sun Dasheng face. He was even hoping to pass this hot potato of a business to him. That way, he could free up the capital to continue with his factory's industrial upgrade plan.

The factory was his family's foundation, their livelihood. The gym chain was just a hobby, a venture he'd pursued on a whim.

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