The old man’s eightieth birthday is approaching, and everyone is making meticulous preparations. Even those who aren’t acquainted with the Xiao Family are eager to establish a connection with the old man, hoping for some benefit to their business. Consequently, they’re racking their brains to prepare special gifts for the old man.

The buzz over there spread quickly, even Xu Ke was informed, so he prepared in advance. However, this time the old man invited only a few people.

It’s said that the invitations are all red with golden embossed letters, underscoring the importance of this birthday celebration. Yet, Xu Ke didn’t receive an invitation. Secretary Zhou noticed Xu Ke’s expression but refrained from speaking further.

She feared Xu Ke would overthink.

Hong Xuan looked at Xu Ke and felt his invitation was suddenly awkward and incredibly hot. How could there be an invitation for him but not for the president? Did the old man forget the president?

Thinking about this, he couldn’t help but consider calling the old man. But Xu Ke already noticed Hong Xuan’s action.

"Alright, go and get busy."

Since the old man didn’t invite him, Xu Ke didn’t want to force himself into the event lest he upset the old man. After all, the old man had instructed him to stay away from Xiao Keyi, which might be why he wasn’t invited.

With a self-mocking smile, Hong Xuan, seeing Xu Ke’s demeanor, couldn’t bear it. He placed his invitation on the table: "Why don’t you come with me? If you don’t go, I won’t go either. The old man just forgot, don’t take it to heart. I’ll get back to work."

Secretary Zhou chased after Hong Xuan, putting the invitation back into his arms and gently shook her head.

"Minister Hong, I understand your goodwill, but you know our president is quite proud and won’t accept it. You should take it back. Besides, it seems our president mentioned needing to return home for a few days."

Hearing Secretary Zhou say this, Hong Xuan could only retrieve the invitation.

Secretary Zhou has adapted to working alongside Xu Ke, and Xu Ke finds her particularly effective, so Hong Xuan told her some things, hoping she could find time to counsel Xu Ke.

"A few days ago, the old man told the young miss not to associate with Xu Ke, so the president may be a bit unwilling. You should comfort him. After all, the old man was just speaking in a moment of anger, tell him not to dwell on it!"

Secretary Zhou was stunned for a moment, nervously grasping at her clothes. Technically, this wasn’t something she should know, but how could she persuade the president? It ultimately depends on the president himself.

Watching Hong Xuan walk into the distance, Secretary Zhou breathed a deep sigh.

As she was about to enter the office, she was met by Finance Department Director Zhu Ya ascending the stairs; it’s rumored the president plans to promote her soon, though the exact timing is uncertain.

Secretary Zhou smiled, stepping aside for Zhu Ya: "The president might be in a bit of a bad mood today, so be careful when you go in."

Zhu Ya was surprised, grateful for Secretary Zhou’s reminder: "Thank you, Secretary Zhou, I’ll be careful when I go in. You go ahead and get busy."

After Zhu Ya finished speaking, she carried her documents inside. At that moment, Xu Ke was processing emails on the computer and slightly raised his eyes when he saw Zhu Ya enter. Zhou Ya had been performing excellently lately, even financial department colleagues who seemed ready to cause trouble were suppressed by Zhu Ya.

It’s said when Zhu Ya first arrived, folks intended to push her out. However, within three days, each one was deeply impressed by her, and Xu Ke was also curious about Zhu Ya’s abilities.

Preoccupied with what she had to say, Zhu Ya approached cautiously, pulling a chair to sit down and placed the documents in front of Xu Ke for examination.

"President, here’s our financial report for the month. Although we suffered losses, in the final days of this month, our company’s profitability has emerged and shows an upward trend. We’re estimated to achieve surplus next month."

Zhu Ya spoke confidently, indicating the individual data pieces for Xu Ke to see: "This is just the company’s profit, without including Light and Shadow Company’s finances, which haven’t been reported to me yet. Once available, I’ll prepare a detailed report for you. Whereas with the recent company expenditures, I’ve kept them controlled, but the Project Department’s expenditure on a particular project is exceptionally high. I believe we could consider another company; what’s your opinion, President?"

Even as she spoke, Zhu Ya took out another document. Clearly, she had also researched this area, elegantly and systematically addressing the topic: "The project is collaborating with Natural Company, a private enterprise with a historically poor reputation, almost nobody collaborates with them. However, we chose to cooperate, and they suddenly upped their prices, putting us at a minor disadvantage."

Xu Ke took the report Zhu Ya created, seeing that many companies in the report surpass Natural Company in performance and include many state-owned enterprises.

Moreover, these alternatives are not only cheaper but offer numerous benefits, potentially beneficial to Xiao Group’s branch. But the project sector never consulted him.

Zhu Ya realized she was speaking out of turn, but the Project Department’s actions significantly impacted the company’s finances this time; without them, initial investments wouldn’t be so large.

Causing discomfort for the Finance Department if prolonged, the Finance Department would ultimately bear the burden.

Former financial department employees intended not to mention it, but confronting Zhu Ya was akin to hitting an iron wall, impossibility.

Yet the project staff even equated Zhu Ya with the previous Finance Director, showing no regard, assuming she wouldn’t dare report to higher-ups.

Xu Ke placed the pages of the report on the table, astonished at the situation’s escalation.

This was a project previously approved by Zhang Shuai; had Zhang Shuai not approved it, perhaps he’d have known sooner. Zhang Shuai hadn’t repaid the three million yet.

Xu Ke nodded, placing a document in front of Zhu Ya, who, upon seeing the writing, although expected, couldn’t help feeling excited about finally earning her promotion through hard work.

Picking up a pen to write her name and date, Zhu Ya immediately felt a sense of peace.