Lin Qiang sat alone on the subway back to Longyuan, his arms involuntarily trembling.
Xinda Group, primarily engaged in real estate, was led by Zhang Xinda, a constant fixture on China's rich list with assets around 600 million yuan. At this moment, including the recently approved loan, Xinda Group had borrowed a total of 750 million yuan from United Bank.
It was Xinda Group's recent 200 million yuan additional loan that had caused the confrontation between Lin Qiang and Qian Cai.
Finally, someone was looking into this matter.
If Lin Qiang had been the one to approve this loan, he'd probably be having a massive headache right now.
"As long as the Audit Office uncovers the truth, I'll be vindicated," Lin Qiang thought, clenching his fists, his heart pounding. Once the facts were laid bare, it would be clear who was the competent employee and who was the muddle-headed manager. Not just the DongjiaoĀ branch, but even the regional office and perhaps the head office would surely notice his crucial decision-making in this matter.
As he was secretly relishing this thought, a sharp voice came from beside him.
"Hey, what are you doing? Why do you look so weird?"
Lin Qiang turned to see Xiao Xiao carrying an oversized red suitcase.
"Oh, what a coincidence!"
"Haha, I went shopping today and sorted out my fall wardrobe to bring to the dorm," Xiao Xiao said proudly, patting her large suitcase. "I've got my whole autumn stock in here."
"We wear uniforms at work every day. What's the point of all these clothes?"
Xiao Xiao scoffed, "Tch, image is everything for girls, okay? We've got to look good even if we only have a minute of personal time!"
"Girls? Didn't you just refer to yourself as 'old man'?"
"Mind your own business!"
"...Alright," Lin Qiang chuckled, scratching his head. "You're certainly a handful of a teller."
"Haha!" Xiao Xiao casually put her arm around Lin Qiang. "Brother Qiang, I'm sticking with you from now on. Please guide me!"
"I wouldn't dare..."
"By the way, you're on leave this week, right?" Xiao Xiao asked.
"Yeah, Zheng Shuai is covering for me. Don't cause any trouble."
Xiao Xiao immediately joked, "Damn, the original wife is so good, immediately taking over!"
"Original wife?"
"Yeah," Xiao Xiao counted on her fingers. "Look, Zheng Shuai is your original wife, Lin Xiaozhao is your secret mistress, and I'm working hard to be the third wheel."
"Pfft..." Lin Qiang spat out in surprise. "What kind of theory is that?"
"Haha, I'm talking about work relationships, not personal ones," Xiao Xiao laughed at Lin Qiang's embarrassed expression, then raised an eyebrow and smiled. "That night, everyone deliberately gave you a chance to get close to Xiaozhao. How did it go?"
Lin Qiang frowned and said calmly, "Real Madrid won."
"..." Xiao Xiao was at a loss for words. She pressed on, "Hey, you don't have a girlfriend right?"
"Mm-hmm."
"And she doesn't have a boyfriend either?"
"Seems so."
"Then why don't you two get together? You'd make a great couple!"
"That's true," Lin Qiang nodded, looking serious. "We would be quite compatible, but..."
"But what?"
"Workplace rules," Lin Qiang explained, gesturing with his hand. "If two people start dating, one of them has to leave, at least transfer to another branch. Xiaozhao is still too inexperienced; she'd be taken advantage of."
"Wow, you've thought that far ahead?!" Xiao Xiao was dumbfounded. "Are you looking for a girlfriend or adopting a daughter? Why don't you calculate the dowry while you're at it!"
"You're right... Considering I'm in debt right now, no girl would want to be with me," Lin Qiang nodded again. "So, it's better not to make comfortable colleague relationships too awkward."
"Men are so stupid, too rational," Xiao Xiao shook her head helplessly. She clasped her hands together, full of longing, and sighed, "Love is about throwing yourself in completely, not thinking about anything else, not caring about anything else. It's an all-consuming feeling."
"How is that possible? Don't girls these days look at whether a man has a house and car?"
"Bah, I'm not that shallow," Xiao Xiao grumbled, pounding her thigh. "But what you said... is true. A good boyfriend is so hard to find."
"Mm," Lin Qiang returned to his serious expression, considering Xiao Xiao's situation. "If I wait a few years, my salary will increase, making me more desirable; if you wait a few years, your age will increase. It'll be hard to find someone then!"
"Do you want to die?!"
"I'm just kidding," Lin Qiang quickly dodged Xiao Xiao's fist. "Marrying just anyone is worse than not marrying at all."
"Exactly!"
"Yes, that's what all leftover women say."
"..."
Amidst their banter, the long subway ride quickly passed. Back at the dormitory, Lin Xiaozhao looked conflicted when she saw Lin Qiang bringing in Xiao Xiao's luggage.
"Were you two together today?" she asked.
"Yeah!" Xiao Xiao deliberately grabbed Lin Qiang's arm. "Brother Qiang bought me so many clothes!"
"...Oh... That's sudden..." Lin Xiaozhao forced a smile, trying to maintain her composure. "No wonder..."
Just as Lin Qiang was about to explain, Zheng Shuai pushed open the door, holding his phone.
"Breaking news!! Two pieces of good news and one bad news!"
Xiao Xiao immediately let go of Lin Qiang and asked eagerly, "Tell us the good news first!"
"Ahem..." Zheng Shuai cleared his throat. "First piece of good news, Hao Wei has resigned and completely left the banking industry!"
"Tch, wasn't that already certain? What's the second one?" Xiao Xiao pressed.
"Alright, the second piece of good news..." Zheng Shuai looked at Lin Qiang, about to speak, but was interrupted by him.
"Xinda Real Estate," Lin Qiang smiled.
"..." Zheng Shuai was taken aback. "How do you always know before me? That's impossible! Qian Cai was just called in for questioning! Do you have an inside source at the regional office?"
"Haha, I'm not telling you."
Lin Xiaozhao asked, confused, "What's this about Xinda Real Estate?"
"Oh, it's that loan that Lin refused to approve no matter what. They've finally found issues with it," Zheng Shuai said excitedly, clenching his fist. "This means the manager who opposed Lin is finished, and Lin might be reinstated to his original position!!"
"..."
Zheng Shuai was met with an awkward silence.
He then realized that these two women probably didn't want Lin Qiang to leave.
"Congratulations... Manager," Lin Xiaozhao forced out a congratulation. "Now that the matter is cleared up, you can return to the Financial Street branch..."
Lin Qiang waved his hand, "It's still too early. Even if they find something, it might not affect me."
Xiao Xiao interrupted the topic, continuing to ask, "What's the bad news?"
"Well... Zhang Jiaming is refusing to leave. He went crying to the branch manager, and in the end, he was demoted to a guide. If we're willing to take him in here..."
"Fatty Zhang, huh..." Xiao Xiao muttered. "Without Hao Wei around, I guess we could accept him."
"Let's take him in," Lin Qiang smiled. "We promised to leave him a way out when we reported Hao Wei. He should be able to handle the guide position."
"Yeah, I thought so too," Zheng Shuai nodded, then turned to Xiao Xiao and Lin Xiaozhao. "Ladies, actually, this loan issue... it was just to get even. The reinstatement thing was just my personal speculation."
Lin Xiaozhao quickly replied, "No, no, if he can return to Financial Street branch, that's better than being here in any case."
"..." Xiao Xiao sensed the awkward atmosphere and quickly pushed Lin Qiang. "You guys should go back. It's late, don't hang around in the girls' dorm."
...
Back in their dorm, Lin Qiang and Zheng Shuai chatted while watching a soap opera.
"You left out one piece of good news, didn't you?" Lin Qiang asked with a smile.
"Hehe," Zheng Shuai said happily. "Thanks to you, Boss Lin, my promotion is coming soon too! You put in a good word with Manager Zhu, right?"
"It's just a natural progression," Lin Qiang waved his hand again. "You've been sticking your neck out for me so much. Filling the vacant position is easy."
"You know, things change so fast," Zheng Shuai leaned back on the sofa, sighing. "One second I was wondering how to get along with Manager Zhu, and the next... everyone's in harmony."
"Stop reminiscing. You need to keep a close eye on things next week. I doubt my week off will be very relaxing."
"Oh? ...Oh..." After initial surprise, Zheng Shuai quickly understood. "Since the Audit Office is looking into that matter, they'll probably want to talk to you too."
Ring ring ring.
Just as Zheng Shuai was speaking, Lin Qiang's phone rang. After answering and mumbling for a while, he hung up and spread his hands, saying, "Sure enough, I have to go to the regional office at 9 AM tomorrow."
"The Audit Office is really serious this time. It's going to be tough for you," Zheng Shuai frowned. "On one hand, you need to clear your name and distance yourself from the matter; on the other hand, you can't let the bank suffer too much... It's a delicate situation."
...
The next morning at 9:30 AM, at United Bank's Jijing Office on Nanmen Bridge.
The Audit Office investigators were talking with relevant personnel in the third conference room, while Lin Qiang waited on a seat outside the room.
"Nie Xiaofeng?" Lin Qiang saw a familiar face and went over to pat him on the shoulder. "It's troublesome this time, isn't it?"
Nie Xiaofeng, wearing a light gray suit with a red tie, had a buzz cut and was relatively thin but looked energetic. He turned to see Lin Qiang, and his furrowed brow finally relaxed a bit.
"Team leader... you're here too..." Nie Xiaofeng's voice was rather weak, and he seemed somewhat frail. He had joined the bank a year after Lin Qiang and was originally under his supervision. They were from the same school, and Nie worked diligently. The two had always gotten along well. After Lin Qiang was transferred, Nie was promoted exceptionally to replace him.
"Hey, what's with the 'team leader' stuff? That was ages ago," Lin Qiang said, putting his arm around Nie Xiaofeng. "After we sort this out, let's have lunch together. It's been a while since we chatted."
"Sigh... I'm not in the mood," Nie Xiaofeng's brow furrowed again. His wrinkled face looked nothing like a young man his age. "Team leader, you know, after you left, I handled this loan..."
"What are you afraid of? A loan of this size must have Qian Cai's signature to be approved. He bears most of the responsibility," Lin Qiang reassured him. "I know you were forced by him. You had no choice. I'll explain everything when I go in."
"It's not that simple," Nie Xiaofeng's body began to tremble. "This time... it was processed as an emergency loan. The day it was signed, Manager Qian happened to be on a business trip... so.....I signed on his behalf..."
Lin Qiang was stunned for a few seconds after hearing this, then suddenly shouted:
"Are you out of your fucking mind?!"