Chapter 13: Office Politics – Deadlines, Management Tricks, and Unspoken Rules

Not working overtime and having friends around always made the days happier.

Before she knew it, the weekend was approaching.

On Friday, just before the end of the workday, Shen Yan sent the interview draft to Zhou Xing right on time.

Zhou Xing read through it and encouraged her.

“It’s written well.

There are just a few points I’ll refine them a bit to enhance the theme.”

Hearing Zhou Xing say that he would “refine the theme,” Shen Yan suddenly felt that this job was still worth doing.

Her boss really wasn’t bad.

She nodded and started packing up to leave for the day.

At that moment, neither of them noticed that their conversation had been overheard by Fan Mingxu, who was standing behind them.

Fan Mingxu interrupted.

“What draft?

Print me a copy too.”

Shen Yan: ?

She didn’t react immediately.

“Of course, Mr. Fan,” Zhou Xing, who often dealt with Fan Mingxu, responded quickly.

He took Shen Yan’s computer.

“Which printer should I use?”

Shen Yan pointed to the one on the desk next to Jian Hong’s.

Zhou Xing: “The version on your desktop is the final one, right?”

Shen Yan: “Yes.”

Zhou Xing selected double-sided printing and printed out a copy of Lu Yu’s interview draft for Fan Mingxu.

As he handed it over, he explained that it was for next week.

Fan Mingxu took the draft with a self-important air, flipping through it as if he were carefully reviewing it.

“When is the latest this draft needs to be sent to the magazine?” he asked.

Zhou Xing replied, “By the end of the workday today.”

Shen Yan was momentarily stunned by Zhou Xing’s answer.

She hadn’t expected him to leave no buffer time for himself.

Was he planning to stay late to refine it?

She felt a bit guilty.

In reality, she had finished the draft around 2 PM, but because of her deadline-pushing habit, she had delayed submitting it.

She hadn’t realized that this small delay would force Zhou Xing into overtime.

But while she was busy reflecting on herself, Fan Mingxu didn’t care about her thoughts at all.

He pondered for a moment.

“Today is Friday.

The magazine staff won’t be working over the weekend.

What difference does it make whether you send it now or on Monday morning?

Take it back and revise it.”

Zhou Xing maintained a polite smile.

“Mr. Fan, do you have any specific instructions?”

Fan Mingxu: “The theme of the interview isn’t strong enough.

It needs to be elevated.”

Zhou Xing pressed on.

“Mr. Fan, in your opinion, what should the theme be?”

Caught off guard by the question, Fan Mingxu looked slightly embarrassed.

He had only made the comment after overhearing Zhou Xing mention refining the draft.

He had no idea what the theme should actually be.

So he made something up.

“The theme should have a broader scope.

Think about things like ‘technology strengthening the nation’ or ‘corporate social responsibility.’

Add in some grand statements.”

Zhou Xing suddenly wore an enlightened expression.

“I see.

Thanks to Mr. Fan’s guidance!”

Hearing this, Fan Mingxu was quite pleased with himself.

He thought to himself two graduates from A University had just been fooled by a high school graduate like him.

It proved that his generation of high schoolers had more substance.

If he had studied in today’s era, he’d at least be a master’s student.

“Xiao Shen, you continue revising it.

Send it to your assistant manager before Saturday.”

Fan Mingxu completely bypassed Zhou Xing and sent the draft directly back to Shen Yan.

Shen Yan: ???

She did her best to keep her facial expression neutral, making sure her confusion and frustration weren’t too obvious.

Fan Mingxu then pulled Zhou Xing aside and lowered his voice.

“Xiao Zhou, when you assign tasks, you can’t be too straightforward.”

Zhou Xing put on an expression of deep concentration, as if he were eager to learn.

Fan Mingxu continued.

“Take today’s task as an example.

The magazine said they wanted it by Friday before the end of the workday.

So you should have negotiated to submit it by Monday morning instead.

Then, when assigning it to your subordinates, you should have asked them to give it to you by Saturday.

That way, they would ‘voluntarily’ work over the weekend.

Even if Xiao Shen handed in the interview draft on Friday, you should have sent it back for further revisions.”

Zhou Xing put on an expression of deep understanding, which made Fan Mingxu very pleased with himself.

He adjusted his belt and concluded.

“Xiao Zhou, you’re still young.

Your professional skills may be better than us older folks, but when it comes to managing people, you have a lot to learn.”

Zhou Xing nodded.

“Yes, yes.

Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Fan.”

After Fan Mingxu left, Shen Yan hesitantly asked Zhou Xing.

“Should I continue revising?”

Zhou Xing waved a hand.

“No need.

I’ll stay a little late and take care of it.”

Shen Yan let out a sigh of relief.

“That’s good.

I thought I’d have to work overtime on my first weekend.”

Zhou Xing chuckled.

“Relax.

I’m not him.”

Shen Yan hesitated.

“But won’t it be hard to explain to Mr. Fan?”

Zhou Xing shrugged.

“It’s fine.

He probably won’t even remember.

And if he does, I’ll just resend today’s version.

He won’t notice the difference.”

Shen Yan thought was this really something he should be telling her?

Wasn’t he afraid she’d use the same trick on him one day?

Zhou Xing seemed to read her mind and laughed.

“I’m an honest person.

If I ever really need you to revise something, I’ll tell you directly.

But honestly, your writing skills are far superior to mine.

I just happen to know a bit more about the company, so I can give you some pointers.”

Shen Yan was taken aback.

She hadn’t expected such high praise from Zhou Xing.

She didn’t know how to respond and simply said, “Thank you.

Thank you.”

“Go home on time.

It’s fine.”

With Zhou Xing’s final reassurance, Shen Yan once again felt that he was quite reliable.

He seemed completely different from the person who casually greeted her on Monday morning.

“But why did he come up here in the first place?

Was it really just to teach me ‘management skills’?” Zhou Xing mused as he noticed that Fan Mingxu had left the office and hadn’t returned.

Shen Yan had no idea how to answer that.

Luckily, Zhou Xing didn’t expect a response and simply walked back to his desk.

The office phone on Shen Yan’s desk was shared with Zhou Xing.

Whenever he was around, she usually didn’t pick it up, since most calls were meant for him.

This arrangement was great for her social anxiety she hoped Zhou Xing would always be at his desk.

But sometimes, there were exceptions.

“Xiao Shen, a call for you,” Zhou Xing called out across Jian Hong’s desk.

In the few seconds before answering, Shen Yan quickly recalled whether she had interacted with any other department colleagues over the past week.

Her conclusion probably not.

On the company’s internal communication software, her contacts still only included her office teammates and Shu Yan.

Who would be calling her?

“Hello?”

On her first day, she had learned the office etiquette for answering calls.

The person on the other end chuckled upon hearing her serious tone.

Shen Yan: ?

“It’s me, Yu Xinnian.”

Yu Xinnian’s voice carried a hint of amusement.

Shen Yan: “Uh…

Is something wrong?”

Yu Xinnian: “Just reminding you not to forget about Sunday.”

Shen Yan was confused.

Couldn’t this have been said over WeChat?

“Okay.

Thanks.”

She didn’t know what else to say.

After all, he was just being considerate.