Daily life of working as a substitute bride for a wealthy family

The white shrimp, whitebait and white silk fish in the restaurant all taste good.

Humans are such strange animals.

Xiang Ran used to love spicy food, but after living here for a few years, she gradually became able to taste this mild and delicious flavor.

After dinner, Sheng Yang walked out of the private room and met many acquaintances who came to eat there.

I guess the people who come here are genuine rich people.

People buy luxury cars worth millions of dollars because they can drive them out to show off.

And buying a yacht and quietly parking it in a berth at such a club... probably means you really have a lot of spare money.

When Sheng Yang was chatting with a few acquaintances, Xiang Ran, as his "wife", originally just wanted to stay behind him and be a vase quietly.

But the wives of those "acquaintances" were extremely enthusiastic.

Women's social interactions all start with clothes, bags and jewelry.

"Wow, Mrs. Sheng, your scarf is so beautiful! Is it a custom-made one by designer J?" A girl speaking Cantonese praised.

Xiang Ran's neck was stiff - today she was wearing a silk scarf that she bought on Taobao for ten yuan.

The LV scarf that Sheng Yang bought for her last time was... rented out by her.

Because Sheng Yang mentioned that the scarf he gave her last time matched the color of her skirt today.

When she went out, she found this Taobao product with a similar pattern.

Tied it up.

I feel like they are a good match.

"Yes, what a beautiful color, it matches your skirt well!" another lady echoed.

The smile on Xiang Ran's face was almost frozen.

An older woman nearby praised, "Mrs. Sheng's gold bead necklace is so round and has such a bright color."

Wow, you have good eyesight, you can even see the necklace under the scarf?

Come, come, come!

You can praise this necklace.

Xiang Ran straightened her back a little, after all, the pearl necklace she was wearing was real.

"My husband brought it back from a business trip." She smiled.

-

As soon as he finished speaking, Sheng Yang turned around, walked over, took Xiang Ran's hand, and said to the enthusiastic ladies, "Excuse me, everyone. My wife and I still have to go to the dock."

He always appears to be a gentleman outside.

And she behaved like a lady today.

When the two stand together, they are a perfect match no matter what.

The older lady looked at the two of them, and there was almost a gleam of kindness in her eyes.

On this day, Xiang Ran understood a truth.

Sometimes who you are and whether you are worth associating with does not depend on what watch you wear or what scarf you tie that day.

It's who you stand next to.

Even if she were to wear a piece of plastic sheet today, people might think it was a new design from a certain brand.

Because the person standing next to her was Sheng Yang.

-

There was still a rosy glow outside, and it wasn't completely dark yet.

Xiang Ran was led out of the restaurant hand in hand by Sheng Yang.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's wrong? What were you discussing just now?"

"Pearl necklace." Xiang Ran pulled open the silk scarf, revealing the gold bead necklace he bought.

Sheng Yang's eyes fell on the scarf: "Hey, this... doesn't seem to be the scarf I gave you."

"Really? I was in a hurry when I left, so I must have taken the wrong one." Xiang Ran took off the scarf, calmly stuffed it into her bag, and changed the subject, "Look! This way it won't cover the necklace you gave me. People were praising it just now."

"Oh, is that the one speaking with a Cantonese accent? She's the wife of a Hong Kong textile tycoon. Their company is moving to the mainland this year—I mean the Central Plains or the West. The labor costs here are too high."

"Really? Then are the factories here going to close? Won't the workers be unemployed?" This was Xiang Ran's first reaction, as she had once faced an unemployment crisis.

"Generally, when labor-intensive factories relocate, employees can move with the factory. Those who don't want to move inland can receive some compensation and terminate their labor contracts."

"Honey, have you ever fired an employee before?"

"I don't have to do it myself because I'm not in HR. And layoffs aren't a personal decision; they're the board's decision. Even when I was a VP (Vice President of China) at a foreign company, I was just an executor."

Oh?

So that means the post on Weibo that Su Yiqing showed her last time might not be true?

"But it's hard to say what the group decision will do when it comes to an individual." Sheng Yang looked at the lake, a little absent-minded.

"Ok?"

"Yiqing, do you believe that sometimes your opponent might remember you better than the average person?"

"Oh, there is a story?" Xiang Ran consciously coaxed him to continue.

"I once had a subordinate. No... at first, we were colleagues. He was older than me, and initially we were competitors, but when I got promoted, he became my subordinate. He probably always felt a little resentful, so he worked harder, but it was useless because companies are based on the jungle principle, and those who can't move up are marginalized... He was facing some family problems, personal problems, and I heard he had some debt problems. In the end, the exit interview with HR was the straw that broke the camel's back, and he jumped off the building."

Although he was speaking lightly.

But there is no doubt that this incident once shocked him.

Because his body is tense, it is a defensive state.

He didn't want to be disturbed by such emotions.

"That man has been dead for over a year now, and his grave is almost overgrown with grass. The 'passersby' who mourned him and the colleagues who were filled with indignation at the time have probably forgotten him. I've never heard anyone talk about him again, but I still think of him occasionally."

He continued, "I approved the layoff plan. Based on the principle of maximizing profits, laying him off was the best option for employees at his level. But many people, including him, assumed I had a personal grudge against him... Actually, I appreciated his efforts for the company, so besides leaving, I offered him another option: a transfer to the Southwest branch to give him a break. But he clearly saw this as a disguised insult."

"So, in the end, did their families go to the company to make trouble?" Xiang Ran asked.

"Well, after all, if you make a fuss you can get a little more compensation." He said calmly.

"So... you acquiesced to it?" Xiang Ran asked.

"The family members protested at the door for ten minutes before security cleared the area. Actually, there wasn't much to it because everything was done legally and in compliance with regulations. As you know, foreign companies in China are probably the most abiding by labor laws. All our procedures are impeccable."

Xiang Ran: "But I think this person ultimately chose this path... probably for other reasons. Think about it, the company only takes up half of a person's time, and the other half must be very painful."

"That's right, but his family will definitely shift the blame onto outsiders. After all, the living only want to survive. But the ones who truly crush a person and can hurt them are often those closest to them. The rest... can only be considered the final straw."

Xiang Ran interjected, "Yes, but the biggest fear with these things is that they will ferment through public opinion, and black will be spread into white."

"Public opinion is a double-edged sword, it depends on how you use it. It just so happened that my family was a little concerned about the management style I'd developed over my years at a foreign company. As you know, the helmsmen of private companies tend to be more brutal and assertive. They were worried that I was too 'rule-abiding' and that my management style wasn't strong enough. So I deliberately gave his family ten minutes, giving public opinion a little chance to ferment. Otherwise, those people would have been cleared out by security even if they made a scene for a minute."

Xiang Ran was stunned when she heard this. It turned out that there was such an article here.