373 Chapter 349 (1): Business Woman
(Lin Ruoxi Perspective) (My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
Recently I have felt very motivated and energetic. The sense of accomplishment that hard work brings makes me feel satisfied with my life.
Since I was a teenager, I have always been interested in business and I liked helping my grandmother do accounts and manage our company's staff.
I've honestly never seen myself as a woman with a heavenly talent for business, nor do I think I'm a heaven-defying genius. I have always considered that the reason for my achievements is due to effort and a bit of luck, but I never saw myself as superior to others.
This feeling that other people could achieve what I have done has motivated me to push myself as if life were a competition.
This helped me take my company to the financial top of China, but it also caused me a lot of stress and anxiety to the point that I suffered from insomnia and stomach problems for a long time.
Remembering those moments of anxiety, I can say that I received the kindness of heaven for allowing me to enjoy true fulfillment and peace.
Currently I have more work than ever, but unlike in the past, I no longer feel anxious and sick, and work no longer feels like a burden but rather like a hobby.
My silly husband says I'm a workaholic, but maybe he's right.
Honestly, I don't like vacations and I prefer to continue working since I find it satisfying to see the fruits of all my effort.
I don't care about money since I don't like excessive luxuries, in fact, I prefer simple things like homemade food and simple clothes. The only reason I work so hard is because I like to see my company grow.
Some of my new "friends", not to mention sisters, have told me that I treat my company as if it were my daughter and that I need to take it easy, but I am happy with this kind of life. Anyway, I don't plan to have children, at least not for now...
I admit that I feel a bit bitter when I see that my husband is affectionate with the daughters of my "friends", but I still do not feel ready to be a mother and I prefer to focus on my work, anyway, my husband is not like men who are obsessed with having children and the childbearing age of women, although sometimes my mother has told me that she wants a grandson as soon as possible...
Honestly, I'm more worried about the possibility of me having a brother before my mother has a grandchild.
Seriously, my dumb husband is a degenerate… And my mother… ah, it makes me feel strange that she is so nice to him…
In addition to my mother, there is also my cousin that I met a short time ago and a woman who is something like my sister…
A few months ago, the feeling of loneliness invaded me constantly and I felt that I lost my family when my grandmother died, but now I have a family that is constantly expanding. I don't know whether to laugh or cry...
Before I left China, I talked to my grandfather and managed to resolve some of my grievances.
I still haven't forgiven him for abandoning my grandmother, but at least I don't hate him anymore. Now we talk from time to time and usually he asks me if my husband treats me well.
I really find it funny that he says that he will hit my husband if he intimidates me. Frankly, I don't think there is a person in this world who can beat my husband, which makes me feel calm.
In addition to starting to mend my relationship with my grandfather, I also started to improve my relationship with my mother. Perhaps my only regret is that I was never able to mend my situation with my father, although his tragic death during the supernatural cataclysm didn't hurt much either.
On the other hand, I did not have a special feeling when I found out that the previous president was my real father, anyway, I never could and will never meet him.
In the time that I have known my husband, I have realized something valuable. The ties I have formed on my own are more valuable than blood ties.
Although many things have changed in my life, I feel satisfied.
Now that I have moved to Japan, I decided to use some of my time to improve my personal life and not just focus on my work.
The first step has been to form a good relationship with the two women who are something like my sisters.
First is Lin Hui. She is the other granddaughter my grandfather had after leaving my grandmother for another woman.
(Author's Note: Lin Hui from My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
At first I felt angry and disgusted at the thought that I had a lonely childhood and youth while she was pampered and cared for by her family, but after talking to her I realized that she is a good girl, so I put my prejudices aside and we managed to form a certain friendship.
The fact that she calls me big sis Ruoxi seems a bit cute to me.
In addition to Lin Hui, I have also tried to have a conversation with Seventeen. She is physically identical to me, but in terms of personality, she is colder and more expressionless than I am at my most listless.
(Author's Note: Seventeen from My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
It has been a bit difficult to live with her since she doesn't usually talk or show emotions, but despite the little communication, we managed to get a little close since we both enjoy playing with little Lanlan.
(Author's Note: Yang Lanlan from My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
When I heard that she had a daughter with one of my husband's enemies, I was a little worried.
My husband is not a good person and in fact he can be classified as a villain, so it would be normal for him not to want to take care of another man's daughter, especially someone who wanted to kill him.
Despite these concerns, my husband has been very kind to little Lanlan. In fact, my heart warms when I see him acting fatherly.
He can be quite cute.
When I moved to Japan, Lin Hui and Seventeen moved in with me to help me with some things.
Little Lanlan stayed with the Yang family after my husband took control of that great prestigious family.
My husband told me that Lanlan's father was the son of Guo Xuehua, the current matriarch of the Yang family, and she wanted to spend some time with her granddaughter.
(Author's Note: Guo Xuehua from My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
I was a little worried that Guo Xuehua hated my husband because he murdered her son, but the reality was different.
Guo Xuehua felt extremely guilty as her son tried to destroy the world, so she wanted to make up for her mistakes and the first step was to give little Lanlan a happy and loving childhood. She even she was deeply grateful that my husband allowed little Lanlan to keep the last name Yang.
There are many things that still seem strange to me and I know that my husband would explain it to me if I asked him, but I prefer to focus on business issues without getting into family or political problems.
Every tool has a purpose and every person has a place. I'm good at business so I prefer to stick to my role.
Now that I am in Japan, I have started new businesses, more specifically in the world of entertainment.
I have been interested in the film and music business for a long time, but my time and resources were limited, plus I felt pressured by the insistence of the president's son who kept harassing me.
The fact that he was my half brother is something I'd rather not think about….
Now that I have more resources, trusted staff, and reliable helpers, I can start expanding the branches of my company.
Getting into the entertainment business is difficult as many connections are required, plus I am starting in another country where the industry has already been monopolized so having money would not be enough to open a highly influential talent agency.
At first I thought about opening a small agency and in four to five years the agency could grow enough to compete in the entertainment market, but I talked to one of my husband's wives and we reached an agreement.
I've already resigned myself to the fact that my husband is a worse womanizer than the Heavenly Emperors of old, so it only remains for me to take advantage of that situation.
Nakano Ichika is a young girl, but her vision and wit are truly extraordinary and praiseworthy.
(Author's Note: Ichika Nakano from Go Toubun no Hanayome)
Through her own efforts, she managed to form a small talent agency that gained a proper level of fame.
That agency is small and lacks the resources to set up its own film and music studio, but I can figure that out.
We talked a bit on the phone and reached an agreement. My company Yu Lei International will be the sponsor of her talent agency, at the same time, I will buy small film, music and animation studios to form an entertainment company that can compete with large multinational companies.
Although I have already begun to see life with more calm and satisfaction, I admit that I like to compete with the great titans of the economy. Now I have the goal of competing with the western titan, Hollywood.
At first I was only interested in the film and music industry, but my little sister-in-law called me a couple of days ago with an interesting idea.
I haven't had a chance to talk to her in person yet, but my little sister-in-law is a very smart girl, just like my husband, except that my husband hates business.
My little sister-in-law sent me several reports on the anime and video game industry in Japan.
I have already heard that Japan is famous all over the world for the animation industry, but I was surprised to see that it is an industry that embraces all audiences and not just children.
On the other hand, it was surprising that my little sister-in-law had prepared such a professional presentation. She is very good at convincing people, although it seems that she only does it because she loves to watch anime.
After thinking about it a bit, I decided to follow her idea of investing in the animation sector and the games industry.
Interestingly, many cartoonists and animators are reportedly over-exploited and don't get the recognition they deserve, so it will be easy to recruit top talent through more humane, high-paying contracts. Anyway, I have enough money to make long-term investments.
Now I'm on my way to the young Nakano Ichika's talent agency headquarters to have a business meeting.
As we moved around in the car, I reread the contract I prepared to avoid conflicts or misunderstandings.
In my opinion, the most important thing in a business agreement is to establish solid trust so that business relationships can weather the great storms of life.
"Ruoxi, this is the fifth time you've reviewed the contract, take it easy" – A friendly voice spoke to me ironically.
I shook my head. – "Qianni, I need to check that everything is in order, I do not want my future business partner to think that I am underestimating her"
My best friend, Mo Qianni, smiled wryly and sighed bitterly. – "Ruoxi, you know that she is one of our sisters, so you don't need to be so obsessive with formalities"
(Author's Note: Mo Qianni from My Wife is a Beautiful CEO)
Qianni also accompanied me to Japan to be my assistant, which I appreciate, but she always says that I have to learn to take it easy.
I shook my head and continued to review the contract. – "Business and personal life are two different things, I cannot let personal feelings influence my work"
Qianni sighed and said no more. She knows me well enough to know that there is no point in arguing with me about work issues.
For this meeting, Qianni will be by my side as my assistant, while Seventeen and Xiao Bai are my bodyguards. Both of them are also my husband's wives, but they prefer to act as bodyguards, so they don't usually talk much.
(Author's Note: Xiao Bai from My Beautiful Teacher)
Seventeen looks exactly like me, so publicly she's my long lost sister. Anyway, the catastrophe that happened in China caused many records to be lost and it is not that difficult to fake an identity as long as I have the resources.
We finally made it to the talent agency and entered the building after checking in at the entrance.
The building is not large, in fact it is quite a humble place and a normal passerby would think it to be a minor office building.
Despite the simple appearance, just thinking that all this was done by the efforts of a 17-year-old girl seems admirable to me.
Even if she comes from a family with money, I have met many young masters who just waste money without being able to start their own businesses.
Inside the place, the girl at the reception took us to a room to wait for the CEO to negotiate.
Since this meeting was arranged this morning, it was inevitable that the CEO would make us wait, so I didn't feel offended and waited calmly, plus I was satisfied when the receptionist cordially served us tea without showing disdain or a nasty attempt at flattery.
The attitude of the employees says a lot about the ethics of a company and the attitude of the receptionist is satisfactory.
In my conversation with the young Nakano Ichika, she explained to me that she owns the talent agency, but in order to avoid harmful rumors and troublesome situations, she assigned a female CEO to be the face of the agency while she made decisions from behind the scenes.
That decision seemed to me the most suitable for a young girl. It is very stressful to be the public face of a company, especially when she is a teenager who is recognized as a talented actress on the rise.
Since I talked to her, I have done a lot of research on her work and reputation, so I am sure that she is a girl with a great future ahead of her, although I was speechless reading the latest news of the scandal that emerged when it became public the information that she is in a relationship with my husband.
I can't even imagine the chaos that would ensue if the world found out that my husband has a harem with the most important women in China...
Well, my silly husband will have to fix the mess he made. That is his karma.
We didn't have to wait long. After five minutes, the door opened as a woman looked at us with an apologetic expression.
"I'm sorry, the meeting took longer than expected, I hope you didn't have to wait too long" – The woman lowered her head as an apology for the delay.
Something I like about working with Japanese is punctuality and five minutes late is nothing, so I spoke cordially. – "Don't worry, we didn't have to wait long"
The woman sighed in relief and smiled as she sat down across from us.
The woman appears to be in her mid-thirties, but she remains young and energetic, though I can see faint traces of dark circles that have been covered by makeup. It seems that she has been very busy, but she doesn't look disgruntled.
Something that I learned from my husband is to be more observant since it is possible to know some personality traits through small clues in appearance.
In this case, the woman seems like a responsible, dedicated, professional and honest worker, but she also seems a bit tired.
Let's see, there's also a ring mark on her ring finger...
Ah, a beautiful divorced woman, I can already imagine the attitude my husband will have.
I stopped thinking about my husband and started talking to the woman about business.
The woman introduced herself as Saitou Miyako and apparently she was appointed CEO a week ago, so she seemed a bit worried that her first major assignment might determine the future of this talent agency.
(Author's Note: Miyako Saitou from Oshi no Ko)
Saitou Miyako is very professional, but she seemed a little worried since my company is the biggest in China, so setting up a deal with me could make this small talent agency one of the biggest in Japan.
Even though she was worried, I kept a professional attitude as I don't intend to be nice during business, although I won't be excessive either and I will be respectful to whoever treats me with respect.
Saitou Miyako started to read the contract as we continued talking. Multitasking while still having a good conversation is an indispensable talent for a CEO.
Saitou Miyako was very meticulous in reading the contract, and she didn't leave a single paragraph unreviewed, which made me nod in approval. It's nice to see such a capable employee who takes her job seriously.
I was very careful when preparing the contract, and there are various things that I already agreed with the young Nakano Ichika detailed there, so Saitou Miyako could close the deal without a hitch.
Despite this, she showed a serious look when she finished reading the contract.
"Miss Lin-sama, I don't find any problems with the contract and everything is fine according to my boss's instructions, but I still have some questions" - Saitou Miyako looked at me with professional seriousness. – "If it is not inconvenient, I would like to know why you are willing to invest so much in our small talent agency, with the conditions that you offer, I am sure the big agencies would rush to sign an agreement"
I smiled slightly. I like this woman and I would like to recruit her for my company. Young Nakano Ichika has a keen eye for recruiting people.
Objectively, it's highly suspicious that a giant company like mine would be willing to sponsor a small agency that was founded a year ago, but outside of my relationship with my husband, there are several reasons why I like this arrangement.
"The work ethic of my company has always been honesty and dealings based on trust…" – With a calm expression, I began to speak. – "I have always seen my employees as valuable people and not as simple tools, in the same way, I hope that my partners have the same mentality of respecting the integrity of their employees…"
Respecting employees was my grandmother's policy, so I have always made an effort to foster an atmosphere of respect among my employees, it is also for this reason that I have avoided making agreements with companies that have had scandals of abuse of power, harassment of employees and intimidation of others.
This has kept me from many opportunities as most big companies have their scandals, but I'd rather lose opportunities than abandon my ideals.
"Before choosing this talent agency, I researched agencies in Japan and what I found was a bit... unpleasant" – I frowned slightly as I remembered the information I was able to gather with the help of my husband. – "Sexual harassment and forcing young celebrities to give their bodies within the entertainment industry is an open secret, but the fact that many do it does not mean that I will allow it in my business, that is why I chose this agency, there is not a single case of harassment or attempts at forced prostitution and it even seems that you have been supporting talented young women with limited resources"
Saitou Miyako relaxed the seriousness in her gaze.
She seems like a woman she knows from this industry, so she didn't deny my words, rather she accepted part of my explanation.
Saitou Miyako nodded, but she still seemed to have some doubts. – "I can honestly understand Lin-sama's thoughts, but I still can't understand why you are willing to offer so many resources without asking for a percentage of the agency's shares, without wanting to be disrespectful, it seems that you have no interest in earn money"
I really want to recruit this woman.
A person who accepts everything without hesitation can cause disaster, but someone totally paranoid is unpleasant, so a person who doubts rationally makes a nice business partner.
"It is an investment in the future" - I smiled slightly, but kept my professional calm. – "I have been researching the talents that are part of this agency and I have seen great potential, also, I have a personal interest in this agency"
It is true that I researched the girls who have been recruited by this agency and although I am not an expert of the entertainment industry, the girls have good qualities to be models and celebrities.
Something that worries me is that this agency only hires girls and most of them are similar in age to my husband. I hope this isn't one of his plans to expand his harem as I want to do an honest business.
Saitou Miyako raised an eyebrow at my comment and asked the expected question. - "Personal interests?"
I nodded. – "You see, I have a cousin who is interested in starting a career as a singer and to be honest, she is a bit… well, let's just say that she is naive, so I am worried that someone might take advantage of her, so I would like them to she could work in this agency"
Saitou Miyako blinked several times and understood that I want to use this business agreement as a bridge to facilitate Lin Hui's dreams, but again, she still had doubts as that is not a sufficient reason.
"The main reason why I can trust this agency is that I know the founders and have made deals with them" – I took out my phone and showed a photo where I signed a business agreement with the head of the Ichijo family and his adoptive son. – "As you can see, I feel more comfortable doing business with reliable people"
Saitou Miyako blinked several times in surprise, but quickly sighed in relief.
The young Nakano Ichika told me that, in order to justify the rapid growth of her agency, she made it appear that the Ichijo family founded this agency to launder money, but later the agency showed rapid growth, so the Ichijo family decided to stop using the agency as a front to launder money and instead allowed the agency to grow.
Saitou Miyako knows about this since she is the CEO of the agency, but she thinks that her boss is Ichijo Seiji, the heir to the Ichijo family.
As far as the public knows, Ichijo Seiji is a hedonistic, impulsive and carefree mobster, so it's possible that he founded this agency just to kill boredom.
As for the possibility that Ichijo Seiji used this place to obtain women is very limited.
From what is known among businessmen, Ichijo Seiji is only interested in mature women, especially married women. He shows no interest in teenage girls as he considers them underdeveloped and boring.
I really don't know what to say about my husband's nonsense, but I hate to admit that his ploy of creating two identities that work simultaneously is very useful, especially since the news of Nakano Ichika's relationship with Oosuki Luis will help justify that the Ichijo family founded this agency, after all, it's only a matter of time before the media finds out that Oosuki Luis is Ichijo Seiji's right-hand man, and Nakano Ichika is the top talent of this agency.
The fact that all of this was prepared by a 17-year-old girl only makes me sigh in admiration. Nakano Ichika is a truly admirable girl.
Saitou Miyako showed more confidence knowing that I am in a good relationship with the Ichijo family, so we managed to establish the agreement without problems, although just in case she sent a copy of the contract and a summary of the agreements to her boss.
She is a reliable employee and she told me that she could only close the deal with the approval of her boss, but in a few minutes she received a message telling her that she could sign the deal.
As part of the deal, the talent agency would be renamed Yu Lei Entertainment as my company name has a strong presence in the Asian market, so this will help in future projects.
With everything ready, we had a little chat before saying goodbye, but Saitou Miyako asked me a strange question.
"If it's not rude to ask, may I ask what Lin-sama's impression of the heir of the Ichijo family is?" - Saitou Miyako showed a lot of curiosity and expectation.
This surprised me a bit as it was a totally different attitude from her previous professionalism, but I quickly understood her thoughts.
During our conversation, she mentioned that she can understand my desire to help my cousin since she has a teenage daughter who wants to get into entertainment.
She is a single mother and is already over thirty years old.
Although she is beautiful and has a good socioeconomic position, it must be difficult being a single mother.
I'm not completely familiar with Japanese culture, but at least in my country, it doesn't matter if a woman is smart and professional, being thirty years old and not married makes people make nasty comments.
What's worse, a divorced woman with two teenage children will be avoided like the plague.
Maybe in that aspect, my husband is not such an idiot since he doesn't mind taking care of other men's children, although he worries me that he is too "kind" to his stepdaughters…
Ah, my silly husband. I really don't know why I love him...
I smiled wryly. – "Isn't it strange that you ask me about your boss? Don't you know him?"
Saito Miyako sighed. – "To be honest, I have been in this position for a short time and I have not had the opportunity to meet him, most of the time I receive instructions by text message since he is very busy"
Actually, it is Nakano Ichika who gives her directions, but it is better to keep it a secret that her boss is a teenager.
I shook my head, not holding back my slight smile. – "Well, he is just as the rumors say"
Saitou Miyako looked at the ring on my finger.
I noticed her look and smiled. – "No, he did not try anything with me since he is on good terms with my husband, but I have heard that he has no problem seducing married or divorced women, although he does not push too much and does not show resentment even if he is rejected, in fact his father told me that his son usually spends a lot of money pampering his lovers and that is why he wanted to do a lot of business…"
I felt stupid for promoting my husband to a woman who is clearly lonely, but I've reached a point of resignation where I know my husband won't let his claws out of every beautiful woman who crosses his path.
After talking about Ichijo Seiji for a bit, I finally left the place and returned to my company's new headquarters.
The building hasn't been completely remodeled yet, but it's enough to continue my work.
Now that the talent agency is ready, I started preparing a contract for my little sister-in-law.
She built a small group of internet content creators, so as a thank you for her ideas, I plan to offer her a contract so that she and her friends can fully dedicate themselves to what they love professionally.
I sighed with satisfaction when I finished drafting the contract.
"You seem happy" – Qianni smiled when she saw that I stopped writing and stood up to stretch a bit.
"I feel good" - I agreed with a smile. – "It is nice to be able to do business without worrying about the deprivation of men who only seek my body and wealth"
Qianni showed a big smile. – "It is true, life has improved a lot since we were with our husband"
I nodded.
My husband has more flaws than virtues, but those few virtues make him worth being around.
The most important thing is that I can do what I like.
I can focus on business and my husband doesn't feel self-conscious about having a successful wife. That really makes me feel satisfied.
With a new sense of motivation, I finished stretching and got back to work.
I really enjoy what I do.
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Author's Note:
Remember that originally, Ichika planned to prostitute the girls while she planned to keep the prettiest girls to threaten and indoctrinate them into being Luis's slaves. That way, she could pay for Luis's medical treatment, pay off his debt, and ensure that he stayed by her side.
These were plans for the future, but Ichika changed her mind after Luis showed her that he was fine and now had money.
Because of this, the talent agency seems like an honest agency that protects girls, but Ichika hasn't given up the idea of bringing gifts to her tsundere husband.
On a side note, I've written a lot of subplots and I feel like it's easy to forget the plot thread a lot of the time, so I thought I'd make little notes every time I'm picking up on a subplot.
What do you think of this? Is it okay with you or do you see it as something unnecessary?
I would like to read your comments.
A hug~
