"Ask for leave?" Jiang Han was surprised. "Is she on sick leave?"

Cheng Ji teased him. "Mr. Jiang, you seem to pay special attention to Miss Xu."

Jiang Han said disdainfully, "Don't forget that she used to be my assistant."

Qian Kun asked, "Is Xu Yan sick?"

"She has some private matters to deal with, so she asked for leave." Cheng Ji said frankly.

They made another pot of tea. At 11 o'clock at noon, the three of them went to the restaurant for lunch, each with their own thoughts.

Back at the company, Jiang Han couldn't help thinking of Xu Yan after finishing his work. What did she ask for leave to deal with? Could it be that something had happened to her family?

After thinking for a long time, he couldn't figure it out. At this time, his cell phone rang. It was his father, Jiang Qinghua.

"What is it?" He asked indifferently.

"Come back for dinner tomorrow night," Jiang Qinghua ordered.

"Just for dinner?" He asked.

Jiang Qinghua said, "What? Don't you want to go home and have dinner with me and your mother?"

"Is it just a family dinner?" he asked.

"What? Do you want someone else to come? If that's the case, I'll arrange it," Jiang Qinghua said cunningly.

Jiang Han quickly stopped him. "That's not necessary. I've been tirelessly preparing for the E-commerce Festival these days. I simply desire a serene meal with my family."

This year, at the age of 33, he remained single without a steady partner or any involvement in scandals. Jiang Qinghua had previously believed that it was essential for Jiang Han to make some achievements in his career and that his delay in marriage by a few years would not be a significant concern.

Under his leadership, Xinlan Group had made significant strides forward. And the time had come for him to enter into matrimony. Recently, Qu Yaqiong, Jiang Han's mother, had been frequently seeking potential suitors within her social circle. If she found someone she deemed suitable, she would ask Jiang Han for a meal at home, which had left him feeling somewhat awkward.

"Your mother misses you very much. Come back in your leisure time and spare her from unnecessary worries." Jiang Qinghua earnestly requested.

Jiang Han closed his eyes. "Okay, I will."

After ending the call with his father, Jiang Han picked up the landline and dialed a number. When it was connected, he said, "Please help me transfer the line to Xu Yan of the president's office."

The receptionist of Meisi Group replied, "Sorry, Miss Xu is not in the office."

"Where did she go?" Jiang Han asked nervously.

The receptionist thought for a moment and said, "She hasn't been in the company for a few days. I don't know where she went. She seems to be on a business trip."

"Business trip?" Jiang Han frowned and repeated, "Where is she going?"

The receptionist said, "I really don't know. If you have something urgent to discuss with her, you can call her."

Jiang Han didn't have the phone number of Xu Yan, so he quickly asked, "What's her phone number?"

The receptionist said cautiously, "I don't know her phone number. May I ask who you are? Kindly provide me with your phone number, and I will convey it to her subsequently."

Jiang Han didn't dare to reveal who he was. He said in a deep voice, "That's not necessary, there's no urgency in finding her. It's fine for me to find Cheng Xu, your vice president."

"Would you like me to transfer your call to Mr. Cheng?" The receptionist asked.

"No, thank you." Jiang Han hung up the phone.

Why did Cheng Ji tell him that Xu Yan took a leave to deal with private things? Why did he, as the CEO, neglect the company's affairs and prioritize Qian Kun instead? He even posted relevant photos on Moment.

This didn't seem to be his style.

Since Xu Yan was not in the company, what would she do?

Jiang Han took out a piece of blank paper and sketched an emblem on it, depicting Xinlan Group and Meisi Group. Once, they were unequally matched, with no rivalries between them. After the E-commerce Festival, Meisi Group seemed to have changed its passive position and taken the initiative to attack.

Xu Yan's visit to Qian Kun was a clear indication. Qian Kun was a distributor, however, he was not the sole distributor in the industry.

Cheng Ji's superstandard rebates had drawn the attention of Qian Kun, leading to a delay in the signing of the contract with Xinlan Group. He himself was most interested in this contract and had no time to care about anything else.

Jiang Han seemed to have thought it through and called Kang Cheng from the internal line. "Ask the Sales Department to call the distributors in other regions to gather information on their recent activities. Verify if Xu Yan has visited any of them."

Kang Cheng asked in confusion, "Xu Yan went to visit distributors in other cities? Does this job require her to be present in person?"

Jiang Han said with a serious expression, "Qian Kun is currently confused by Cheng Ji and reluctant to sign the contract. Meisi Group is thriving, so they do not have any sales pressure in the foreseeable future. There is no necessity for Meisi Group to plead with Qian Kun. Xu Yan might be aware of the challenges in gaining his support, hence she may approach the situation indirectly."

Kang Cheng hesitated, "Could it be possible that Meisi Group has set their sights on someone else?"

Jiang Han waved at him. "Carry out my instructions now."

Jiang Han experienced an overwhelming pressure, causing a throbbing pain in his forehead. He reached up to massage it with his finger.

Xu Yan exhibited great foresight. While others were focused on immediate gains, she had already devised a backup plan. Had she grown so fast in the past few years?

When Jiang Han got off work, he had not received any feedback from Kang Cheng. He stayed in the office for a long time, and finally called Cheng Xu to ask him out for a drink.

Unexpectedly, Cheng Xu was not in the mood. He said absent-mindedly, "No, I'm not in the mood. Besides, it's not the weekend. I have to go to work tomorrow."

Jiang Han asked deliberately, "Why aren't you in the mood? Do you need me to help you solve any tricky problems?"

Cheng Xu sneered. "Only a multi-million yuan order would help me solve my current problem."

"Did Cheng Ji give you a heavy task?" He remained calm and composed.

Cheng Xu sighed. "He told me to rest for a while."

"Rest for a while? And you're still thinking about orders? Are you so dedicated to your job?"

"If I don't work hard enough, I guess I'll be fired in the near future."

"That won't happen. Meisi Group is under Cheng Ji's control. And you are brothers." Jiang Han comforted him.

"You don't have to worry about that, so you won't understand. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up."

Jiang Han could tell from Cheng Xu's depressed mood that Xu Yan must have posed a threat to him.

The next day, when Jiang Han went to work, he received feedback from the Sales Department that they had contacted several distributors. He contacted several distributors, some of whom postponed their purchases, some said they were taking inventory, and others said they would report their plans next week.

By this time, he had already understood that Xu Yan had gone to visit out-of-town distributors, leaving Cheng Ji to feed him deceptive information with the intention of keeping him in Canghai City. It was Friday today, and it was too late to send employees to visit distributors in other cities.

Qian Kun called and told him, "Mr. Jiang, I would like to propose an amendment to a certain clause in our contract."

Jiang Han had almost run out of patience with this matter. He said in a harsh tone, "Mr. Qian, what other clauses would you like to amend? Despite being deceived by Cheng Ji, you're still tallying up the profits for them."

Qian Kun was stunned. "What do you mean?"

Jiang Han suppressed his anger and said, "I've already reminded you that Cheng Ji won't give you 3% rebate. He has been meeting up with you for tea lately. Care to speculate on what Xu Yan's intentions are?"

At this time, Qian Kun had already felt that something was wrong. He asked in a panic, "What did Xu Yan do?"

"Xu Yan went to visit distributors in other places. They didn't attach the same level of importance to your distribution network as they claimed. It is evident that when Meisi Group achieves greater success and you seek to maximize your gains, they are not willing to depend solely on your partnership." Jiang Han expressed his anger and frustration.

"Damn it! Is this guy playing tricks on us?" Qian Kun said loudly.

"You can only blame yourself for being too greedy."

"Xu Yan is capable. She's better than the young men from the Cheng family." Although Qian Kun was annoyed, he still admired Xu Yan for her strategy.

Hearing this, Jiang Han actually felt proud. "Guess who taught her? It's me."

Qian Kun frowned and said, "Well, alright, I won't make any alterations to the contract. I'll sign it for you immediately." As he spoke, a sense of resentment crept over him and he silently vowed, "No, I must reprimand Cheng Ji."

When the contract was signed, Jiang Han was relieved. He reminded Qian Kun, "Why are you berating him? It was your own greed that led to being deceived by him and causing a delay in our collaboration for a few days."

"You can't completely blame me, can you? Who could have anticipated that the sincere and trustworthy Cheng Ji would turn out this way? Considering his offer, wouldn't you feel tempted too, if you were in my shoes?" Qian Kun argued.

"I will not be tempted. I'm a pragmatic person. I know that Meisi Group doesn't have a good foundation and can't offer such conditions. Experience tells me that there's something wrong with them."

Qian Kun laughed at him. "You just figured it out now, didn't you? We're on a similar level."

After hanging up the phone, Jiang Han called in the head of the Sales Department and sorted out Xinlan Group's distributors by geographical location from near to far. Finally, he came to a conclusion that Xu Yan must have visited all the distributors near Canghai City.

The head of the Sales Department sighed and said, "Ah! We just finished the busy work during the E-commerce Festival, and Meisi Group is already going to visit the distributors in other regions."

Jiang Han said, "As the saying goes, speed is of utmost importance when marching."

Xu Yan's trip this time went extremely well. The distributor she visited was pleased to make the payment promptly and ship the goods without hesitation. Where she had not yet visited, she also made an appointment in advance. In the past three days, she had won an order of 20 million dollars for Meisi Group.

Being away from home, she not only missed her two cats, but also worried about the contract with Qian Kun.

She called Cheng Ji and said, "You don't have to visit Qian Kun now."

Cheng Ji still felt a little reluctant: "So soon? I believe we can keep confusing him until next Monday."

Xu Yan said, "Jiang Han will catch on if you frequent Qian Kun's office for three consecutive days. If my hunch is correct, he's already aware of my visit to distributors in a other cities."

"But Qian Kun hasn't given me any feedback yet," Cheng Ji said.

"Jiang Han knows our intention, and Qian Kun will know soon. Maybe he's scolding us in the office now." Xu Yan smiled.

"What about the contract with him?" Cheng Ji asked.

Xu Yan said, "Now if we want him to sign the contract, we should consider revising the clause to incorporate certain concessions. Following our initial strategy, we can provide him with a 2% rebate without necessitating any stockpiling on his part."

Cheng Ji touched his forehead and said, "I'm wary of contacting him right now. I fear that his excessive reprimanding to me may lead to a surge in his blood pressure. It will be troublesome."

"I'll do it. He's quite polite to me."

Qian Kun answered Xu Yan's call, his profanity words hovering on the tip of his tongue, but he restrained himself and uttered with bitterness, "Xu Yan, Miss Xu, this is not how professionals conduct business."

Xu Yan chuckled and said, "Mr. Qian, Meisi Group is very sincere. In order to safeguard our mutual interests, Mr. Cheng visited your office for three consecutive days. Would you consider this level of sincerity sufficient?"

Qian Kun sneered and retorted, "You nearly sabotaged my plans. It's evident that you have no intention of granting me the 3% rebate. You just want to delay my collaboration with Xinlan Group. To demonstrate your sincerity, kindly shed light on your purpose for visiting other cities."