That day, Ji Ling was so drunk that he passed out in the back alley of the bar, only to be woken up by a sanitation worker the next morning. Though his body ached all over and his stomach was in knots, he was surprisingly in a good mood.
To put it dramatically, he felt a sense of joy, almost like the oppressed people overthrowing the landowning class. He really had no time to bother with the love games of some rich kid.
And even though Yan Yixuan had said it was a choice between the two, Ji Ling was more inclined to think that it wasn’t about him leaving, but about Yan Yixuan getting out of his life entirely.
The people at the company were all sharp, experienced individuals from the same circle, so they immediately noticed the shift in Yan Yixuan’s attitude and began treating Ji Ling with indifference. But Ji Ling didn’t care at all. The real issue was with the company’s boss, who was becoming increasingly hard to deal with.
The penalty for breaching the contract Ji Ling signed was steep, and the boss’s temper was getting worse by the day, like a cornered animal. He was constantly on edge, unable to relax for even a moment.
Ji Ling had a nagging feeling that something was off, maybe the company was in trouble, or the boss had upset someone powerful. If there was a crisis, it might not be such a bad thing; it would give him the perfect chance to leave in the chaos.
He couldn’t help but feel a little regretful. If he had known, he would have used Yan Yixuan’s help to sort things out here first—after all, it’s easier to deal with a king of hell than an annoying little ghost.
Slowly, the boss started showing up at the company less and less. Everyone began to sense that something was wrong and started speculating about why.
A while later, the boss completely disappeared.
When the boss of a private company suddenly vanishes, it’s obvious to anyone with half a brain—he probably ran off because he couldn’t pay back his debts.
Usually, what happens next is debt collectors come knocking, sell off whatever they can, close the company, and everyone scatters.
Ji Ling thought to himself, ‘This is perfect! It’s like the heavens are helping me out. I can pack up and leave now.’
But maybe the boss was just really unlucky, or perhaps fate had other plans, because not long after, he was caught.
Several models and streamers, whose prices were well known, jumped ship one after another. Promotions on the website stalled, and the remaining employees were left with nothing to do, growing more and more worried about whether they’d get paid this month.
Fewer and fewer people stayed at the company. Ji Ling didn’t like going back too early. Since there were computers in the office, he stayed late, constantly checking the news and running small online businesses using payday loans. He always stayed up late before finally heading to bed.
Even though he could now live comfortably and even pay the penalty, Ji Ling still hadn’t left. With the boss gone, at least until the company went bankrupt, there was still a place for him to stay.
That evening, as the sky grew dark, a group of people stormed into the company, dragging the boss along.
They looked fierce and intimidating, swaggering in like they owned the place, fitting the typical image of debt collectors. However, the leader of the group was surprisingly young, wearing glasses and a suit. He seemed quite polished, but with a smile on his face that made him look like a ‘smiling tiger’ from a movie—a charming but deadly villain.
Meanwhile, the boss was disheveled and in a pitiful state, being pushed and pulled into the company.
It was the same old scene, no surprises—debt collectors had come to take what they were owed.
The few remaining people in the company saw the situation and were too scared to even step out. Only Ji Ling, with his boldness, frowned and walked into the lobby.
The leader of the group saw Ji Ling and asked, “Hey, little brother, is your accountant around?”
The man spoke slowly, his tone almost polite, and if it weren’t for the group of big, intimidating guys behind him, you’d think he was harmless.
Ji Ling replied, “The accountant doesn’t come to the company much anymore—people keep chasing her for unpaid wages.”
The man nodded and turned to the boss, who was being held hostage. He asked, “So, what else do you have here that could settle the debt?”
The boss was sweating, shaking with fear, and nervously answered, “We’ve got a car… some computers…”
The man cut him off, “This is annoying. Brother Qian, why don’t we just throw him in the sea and wreck the place while we’re at it?”
The man, who was called ‘Brother Qian,’ glanced at the speaker over his glasses and said, “We agreed on a civilized debt collection. What if they think we’re the mafia? Besides, all the company’s assets are already going to us to pay off the debt. If you smash everything, you’ll just be hurting yourselves.”
Brother Qian glanced around the company and said, “It still looks somewhat decent.”
The boss immediately pleaded, “Brother Qian, just give me some more time! The company is still making money. Once I get the funds, I’ll pay you back right away!”
Brother Qian gave him a sidelong glance, “You can’t even pay the wages, and you’re talking about making money?”
The boss panicked, “It’s only temporary! This company can definitely make a profit!” He suddenly paused, gritted his teeth, and added, “I’ll sell the company! There’s still profit in this company, it’ll sell for sure. Once it’s sold, I’ll have the money!”
The company’s operations weren’t fully halted yet, but if it continued this way—unpaid wages, shrinking assets—it would soon reach a point where it couldn’t be sold, only to be shut down.
So the best option now was to find someone to take over the company and pay off the debts.
Brother Qian sighed and said, “I think you’re better off going for a swim. Which fool would take on a losing deal like this? Who in their right mind would agree to pay off the debt, knowing perfectly well whether the company is making money or not? You’d better think of another way.” As soon as he finished speaking, his henchmen roughly started dragging the boss, making it clear they weren’t to be messed with.
The boss was on the verge of tears, begging, “Brother Qian! Just give me a few more days!”
“I’ll be the fool,” Ji Ling suddenly spoke up.
Everyone turned to look at him. It was only then that they remembered there was another person standing there. The young man was thin and weak-looking, and though he had a pretty face, his presence was almost nonexistent.
Brother Qian took a good look at Ji Ling, intrigued, and asked, “What do you mean?”
The boss immediately lit up, as if he had found his savior, practically ready to throw himself at Ji Ling’s feet, begging, “I’ll sell it to you, I’ll sell it to you! You’ll be the boss from now on!”
Ji Ling looked at the boss and said, “Selling the company takes too long and is too much of a hassle. I’ll help you pay off the debts. You can treat it like I’m taking a stake, and then transfer the company to me. From now on, I’ll be in charge of everything here.”
The boss immediately agreed, “No problem, no problem! We’ll do it tomorrow!”
Brother Qian smiled, watching this unexpected turn of events, and said, “Interesting, little brother. Do you know what you’re getting into? Be careful, there might be other debts.”
The boss panicked, “I didn’t even get a chance to take the company’s car!” He grabbed Ji Ling’s sleeve and added, “You know, we’ve got popular models here, it’s easy money with some extra referral fees.”
Ji Ling thought to himself, ‘Even though everyone’s already gone, he’s still thinking about pimping them out.’
Ji Ling didn’t bother arguing with the boss and directly addressed Brother Qian, saying, “Shouldn’t be a big issue.” He had been observing this company for a long time, “I’ll need some time to gather the funds.”
Brother Qian replied, “How do I know you two aren’t working together to delay and run off?”
Ji Ling answered, “No need. If you’re not willing, just throw him in the sea. I won’t lose anything.”
Brother Qian nodded, “True. As long as the money is right, I’m good. I’ll give you seven days. After that, we’ll start the paperwork.” He turned to the boss with a smile, “This guy stays with us until the money is paid, then we’ll release him.”
Ji Ling made a gesture, signaling that the deal was settled.
Once everything was agreed upon, Brother Qian and his men took the boss and left the company. The few remaining people in the company watched in shock and confusion as they saw the debt collectors leave, then turned their eyes to Ji Ling.
Ji Ling didn’t pay them any mind. He just sat down in a chair, deep in thought about his own matters.
For him, this was an opportunity.
With his current situation, if he started from scratch, in a year he could have a stable business, solving his basic needs. In five years, he could secure better investments and expand into bigger fields. In ten years, he could open branches and expand nationwide, becoming a true entrepreneur. In thirty years, he could control one of the top corporate groups in the country, regularly appearing on wealth rankings, and become one of the richest people in the world.
In thirty years, he could be where Zong Bolin was just a month ago.
But that’s a long way off.
His father was a true entrepreneur, who spent over twenty years building the Zong family business in those days. Then, under his father’s guidance, the company grew even further to the point where it was today.
But now, due to an accident, he had lost the baton his father passed to him, and he needed an opportunity to get back on track.
And here it was—an opportunity that would save him the long, tedious process of setting up a company. The personnel, location, and records were already in place. For him, this could save a lot of time.
Time was incredibly precious to him now.
He wasn’t even sure how long his younger brother could keep the family business going.
So Ji Ling decided to take a gamble, step forward, and seize this opportunity.
For him, putting an elephant in a fridge only takes three steps.
The fridge door is already open. Now, all he has to do is find an elephant to put inside, and the job will be done.1The phrase humorously simplifies an impossible task—like putting an elephant in a fridge—into just a few easy steps. It suggests that the main character views the difficult situation as something simple or trivial.
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
Damn!
So brave
Indeed, lol.