From Wage Slave to Tycoon

Hiss... ’I never should have tried to out-drink Wang Sicong and Chen He last night. Those bastards. I can’t believe I fell for their crap!’

Su Chen rubbed his still-spinning head and muttered, at a loss for words.

Wang Sicong and Chen He were veterans of all sorts of social events and bars, both with a top-tier tolerance for alcohol. And Su Chen? He only drank with friends occasionally. Compared to those two, he was completely out of his league.

’Drink till you drop... Hah! I had to be carried back!’

"Mr. Su, have some lemon honey water. It will make you feel a bit better." Just then, Aunt Tang came out of the kitchen with a glass of water.

"Lemon honey water?" Su Chen rubbed his temples with his left hand as he took the glass with his right.

The faint taste of lemon and honey did a lot to clear his groggy head.

He tilted his head back and drained the large glass in one go.

"Aunt Tang, what’s for lunch?" Su Chen asked, handing the empty glass back to her.

"Braised pork belly, steamed sea fish, meatball soup, and stir-fried water spinach!"

"Aunt Tang, your cooking is too good! I feel like I’ve gained a lot of weight recently!" Su Chen patted his stomach. ’I think my abs are about to disappear.’

"Mr. Su, you could go work out at the community gym. Having more people around can be motivating!"

Hearing Aunt Tang say that, Su Chen finally remembered what Chen Mengyan had mentioned to him before... Their residential complex had a private clubhouse exclusively for the homeowners.

It was not only equipped with professional fitness instructors for guidance but also had many personal trainers available.

’I should go check it out when I have time.’ Working out wasn’t a one-or-two-day affair; it required persistence.

A half-hearted routine was worse than just jogging at home.

After lunch, Su Chen was thinking of taking a nice long nap to recover. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Who would have thought that Aik from Korn Ferry International would call him.

Su Chen was a little skeptical at first. ’Even for a professional headhunting firm, there’s no way you’d find a suitable candidate in just one day, right?’

After Aik’s explanation, Su Chen understood what was going on.

The person Aik introduced was a genuine Huaxia native named Pei Rang, who had just turned forty this year.

He was an investment elite with ten years of experience at JPMorgan Chase on Wall Street, managed a fund worth nearly a hundred million US dollars, and was a fairly well-known figure there.

He had just recently returned to the country to visit family, which was when Aik found him.

"Aik, set up a meeting with him for this afternoon!"

Hearing that Su Chen wanted to meet, Aik’s voice became much lighter. "No problem, Mr. Su. Same café as last time. How does that sound?"

For Aik, poaching talent was routine. As long as the money was right, he could deliver not just a Wall Street investment elite, but entire top-tier investment teams. That was the confidence that came with being one of the world’s top five headhunting firms.

"Alright. I can be there in half an hour at most!"

After hanging up, Su Chen changed his clothes and headed out.

***

It was the outdoor area of the café at No. 8 on the Bund, just like last time.

Su Chen had just sat down and hadn’t even ordered coffee yet when he saw Aik approaching with a middle-aged man who looked full of vigor.

"Mr. Su, this is the Wall Street investment elite I told you about!"

"Hello, Mr. Su. I’m Pei Rang," Pei Rang introduced himself with a hint of deference.

On the way over, Aik had briefly explained Su Chen’s background. Pei Rang had only agreed to Aik’s invitation after learning that Su Chen was a shareholder in three major international luxury groups.

If it weren’t for that powerful background, he wouldn’t have come to meet Su Chen. After all, he was doing perfectly fine on Wall Street. Who would be willing to jump ship without the prospect of a great future?

"Hello," Su Chen said with a smile, shaking his hand.

After the three of them were seated, they each ordered a coffee.

Su Chen ordered the same specialty coffee as last time. After taking a small sip, he spoke, "I don’t like beating around the bush. Let’s get straight to the point."

"I’m sure Aik told you I want to build an investment firm. The fact that you’re here shows you’re interested. So, let’s hear it. What are your terms?"

Su Chen had no desire to play games with this veteran. With that kind of free time, he’d rather be at home taking a nap.

Su Chen’s directness caught Pei Rang off guard.

’This is completely unconventional!’

Glancing at Su Chen, who was leisurely sipping his coffee, Pei Rang began to think seriously.

’Should I really give up a stable job on Wall Street to gamble on an uncertain future?’

The scene fell silent for a moment.

After a good while, long enough for Su Chen to drink half his coffee, Pei Rang finally spoke. "Mr. Su, on Wall Street, my annual salary plus bonuses comes to about eight hundred thousand US dollars."

After saying this, Pei Rang watched Su Chen nervously. He wanted to take the gamble. If it paid off, it would be a completely different life for him.

’Eight hundred thousand US dollars... that’s less than six million yuan a year,’ Su Chen calculated mentally.

Su Chen leaned back in his chair, clasped his hands, and looked calmly at Pei Rang. "I’ll give you an annual salary of eight million, plus five percent of the profits."

Hearing this, a flash of delight sparked in Pei Rang’s eyes. After all, there was a huge difference between being the head of an investment firm and just being an employee on Wall Street.

"Boss!" Pei Rang shot to his feet and gave Su Chen a respectful bow.

This whole display truly left Su Chen stunned.

He waved his hand, signaling for him not to get so worked up.

"When can you officially start?" Su Chen knew that Pei Rang was still employed at JPMorgan Chase and would definitely need to go back to America to resign.

"Boss, it might take about half a month. I need to hand over the fund I’m managing," Pei Rang said, a little nervous after finishing his sentence.

"No problem, I’m not in a hurry. You must have quite a few friends at JPMorgan Chase, right? If it’s possible, you could bring them over here to develop their careers!"

Hearing this, Aik, who was sitting to the side, felt his mouth twitch. ’So I’m just a tool to him, huh.’

Meanwhile, Pei Rang gave the dejected-looking Aik a subtle glance and nodded firmly. "Don’t worry, Boss. I won’t let you down."

To Pei Rang, this was also a test from Su Chen. If he couldn’t even poach a few people, what use was he?

Su Chen then chatted with Pei Rang about the company’s future plans and development goals. Fired up about the future, Pei Rang immediately booked a late-night flight to America on the spot.

His excuse was that he wanted to hand over his work sooner so he could start building the company for his boss earlier.

After Pei Rang left, Aik looked at Su Chen with a resentful expression and said, "Mr. Su, poaching talent is what we do best! Why did you have to do it yourself?"

"Who said I did it myself? I just asked Pei Rang to bring some people back with him, that’s all. By the way... you can help me scout a CFO. Also, what’s the fee for this time?"

The moment Aik heard Su Chen also wanted to recruit a CFO, the resentful look on his face vanished instantly. He said obsequiously, "Don’t you worry, Mr. Su. I’ll absolutely find the right person for you. As for the fee... we can settle it all together next time. How does that sound?"

"Deal."