7: Chapter 7 The First Paying Customer

Zhang Qiming, the operations director of a medium-sized internet company, sighed as he stared at the glaring resignation report on his computer screen. This was already the third core backbone to quit this month, and their reasons were all much the same: too much involution, meaningless work, and no visible growth. The salary survey report provided by HR showed that the compensation they offered was not low within the industry. Where exactly was the problem?

Just as he was at his wit's end, his old friend Hu Wei mysteriously pushed a contact over to him. "Try this person. I know a... well, a special consultant. He specializes in treating various 'organizational efficiency ailments.' His perspective is very unique; it might just have a miraculous effect."

With a 'desperate times call for desperate measures' mindset, Zhang Qiming contacted the person. The other party called himself "Consultant Lin." He didn't say much, only asking for the project schedules from the past six months, personnel turnover data, anonymous employee satisfaction surveys (the remaining parts), and several photos of the company's common areas—especially the break areas and the pantry.

Two days later, Zhang Qiming sat in a private booth at a cafe downstairs from the company, waiting somewhat anxiously. He had imagined what the other person would look like: either an elderly gentleman with an immortal air or a sharp and capable workplace elite. But when Lin Yuan pushed open the door and walked in, he was still taken aback.

He was too young. Wearing simple a shirt and trousers, he had a calm temperament, yet his gaze was exceptionally clear and sharp. He didn't look like a consultant, but rather... a researcher from some key laboratory. However, he carried a peculiar aura that made people unconsciously focus their attention on him.

“Manager Zhang, a pleasure to meet you.” Lin Yuan sat down and, without any small talk, pushed a tablet in front of him. “The root of your company's problem isn't compensation, but rather 'Faith Depletion' and 'Resentment Accumulation' exceeding the limit.”

Zhang Qiming was stunned. “Faith? Resentment?” What kind of terms were these?

“It's just a metaphor.” Lin Yuan tapped on several charts highlighted in red on the tablet. “Please look. This is the project schedule you provided. All major milestones are concentrated in the last three days of the month, forming a 'Cliff-style Delivery.' This means the previous twenty-odd days might be relatively relaxed, while the final seventy-two hours require extreme squeezing. The employees' brains and bodies will produce an effect similar to a 'Periodic Collapse of Faith'—after every sprint, their identification with the meaning of work (faith) plummets, while fatigue and dissatisfaction (resentment) accumulate. Does your company's peak resignation period always occur within one week after a major project delivery?”

A chill ran down Zhang Qiming's back. Thinking back carefully, it really seemed to be the case!

“Now look at the break area.” Lin Yuan pulled up the photos. “The variety of snacks and drinks is singular, and replenishment is not timely. The seat designs are not ergonomic, making it impossible to truly relax. These seem like small things, but in high-intensity mental work, these details are key to maintaining 'Trace Amounts of Positive Emotional Feedback.' Their absence is equivalent to a continuous, minor 'Drain on Faith HP.'”

“Furthermore,” Lin Yuan enlarged an office layout diagram, “the Finance Department and Creative Department are adjacent, and the entrance to the Finance office directly faces the Creative Department's open workspace. According to Behavioral Feng Shui... well, according to Team Energy Field analysis, Finance's 'contraction' and 'audit' energy naturally conflicts with Creative's 'divergence' and 'creation' energy. Long-term conflict leads to irritability and a lack of inspiration in the Creative Department, while the Finance Department easily feels provoked by 'unrestrained thinking,' exacerbating departmental silos. Has the number of friction reports between your Creative and Finance departments increased significantly recently?”

Zhang Qiming’s mouth hung open. He knew all this?! Some conflicts hadn't even been officially reported yet!

“So, Consultant Lin, what is your solution?” Zhang Qiming's attitude had completely shifted from indifference to serious attention.

“A combined strategy.” Lin Yuan pulled up a new page. “In the short term, perform 'Energy Field Buffering': add green plant partitions between the Finance office and the Creative area, and adjust the orientation of some workstations. Optimize the break area configuration by introducing at least three or more snack options and ensuring daily replenishment. Most importantly, adjust the project schedule rhythm to change 'cliff-style' to 'Hill-style,' distributing key tasks evenly to avoid extreme squeezing.”

“In the medium to long term, I suggest introducing an 'Internal Faith Circulation' mechanism. For example, establish a small, fast 'instant reward pool' to provide immediate and public recognition and material rewards for any minor improvement or extra effort. The amount isn't much, but the sense of ceremony and timeliness are crucial. This can convert some 'resentment' into 'Micro-faith.' Additionally, establish a 'Growth Visibility' path so employees can clearly see how each of their skills and project experiences 'monetize' within the company or industry recognition—not just in terms of money, but including reputation and influence.”

Lin Yuan's voice was steady and persuasive, each sentence hitting Zhang Qiming's pain points and blind spots. This wasn't metaphysics at all, but an extremely precise organizational behavior Optimization plan based on human nature insights and energy management! It was just wrapped in a mysterious-sounding package!

“Consultant Lin, is the cost of implementing this plan high? How long until we see results?”

“Physical changes and the initial funding for the reward pool are the main costs. But compared to the loss of core backbones and the cost of recruiting and training new people, it's negligible.” Lin Yuan gave an approximate numerical range. “The results come in stages: within a week, there will be a slight improvement in employee emotional perception; within a month, abnormal resignation signals—such as increased sick leave or perfunctory work—should decrease significantly; in one quarter, the core turnover rate should show a quantifiable drop. I can provide three months of tracking data analysis and strategy fine-tuning services.”

“And the fee?” Zhang Qiming asked the key question.

Lin Yuan quoted a figure. It wasn't a small amount, but it was completely within Zhang Qiming's departmental budget authority, even lower than he had expected. He had originally thought this "mysterious consultant" would demand an exorbitant price.

“Of course, Manager Zhang can pay in installments. You only need to pay a portion upfront to start the physical modifications and the reward pool. The remainder will be paid monthly based on the achievement of the key indicators we agreed upon,” Lin Yuan added, appearing very professional and confident.

Zhang Qiming hardly hesitated anymore. “Fine! Consultant Lin, let's do it as you say! I'll have HR and Admin cooperate with you immediately! I'll arrange for Finance to process the first installment today!”

Lin Yuan nodded, filled in the amount and service details on a standard consulting contract on his tablet, and both parties signed electronically. The entire process was efficient and professional, without any hint of mysticism.

As he left the cafe, Lin Yuan's phone received a bank deposit notification. The first consulting fee was in hand. The amount was enough to pay for his sister's next stage of special care ward fees and some expensive auxiliary medications. More importantly, he had starting capital.

He didn't go home immediately; instead, he went to "Chens Antique Restoration" in the old city district again.

The scrawny old man wasn't surprised to see him return; he just glanced at him. “Gathered the 'money'?”

“Use this.” Lin Yuan showed the old man a number on his mobile banking balance. “Exchange for Faith Points, or directly for those three 'Ancient Battlefield Talismans.' The exchange rate will be the fair market price on the black market; you decide.”

The old man raised an eyebrow and sized Lin Yuan up again. “Interesting. You found a way to rake in the profits so quickly? Fine, I won't take advantage of you. The current black market rate for secular currency to Faith Points is about one hundred thousand to one, with high volatility. Your amount isn't enough for a full point. Those three talismans are ten points each, a total value of thirty points of faith. I'll give you a discount: two hundred and eighty thousand per talisman, which is eight hundred and forty thousand for three. I'll round it down to eight hundred thousand. You take the talismans. Cash or real-time transfer.”

Lin Yuan did the math in his head; this was cheaper than he had expected. Perhaps the old man saw his urgent need, or perhaps this price itself included the favor from that "Black Market Fragment Lead." He didn't haggle further. “Deal. Transfer.”

The transaction was completed. The old man handed Lin Yuan the three old talismans wrapped in special oil paper, while lowering his voice to remind him, “Kid, these talismans have heavy baleful qi. When you use them, it's best to wrap them slightly with your own Power of Faith before activating them to avoid backfiring on your soul. Also, that 'fresh' scent of the meager aspiration power on you is a bit conspicuous; be careful not to be targeted by more troublesome things. In the black market, besides buying and selling, various 'intel' also circulates. Recently, it seems someone has been asking around if there are any new fledglings collecting aspiration power through unorthodox methods... take care of yourself.”

Lin Yuan's eyes narrowed. “Thanks for the warning.”

He tucked the talismans close to his body. The cold touch carried a hint of sharp, stinging pain, as if the iron-and-blood aura of a battlefield was hidden within. This made him feel much more at ease.

Walking out of the antique shop, he didn't go directly to that alley to find trouble with the evil spirit. The timing wasn't right yet. He needed to digest what he had gained from this "consultation" first, and not just the money.

On the subway back to his apartment, he closed his eyes and reviewed. Helping Zhang Qiming's company optimize was essentially channeling "collective negative emotions" in a specific environment and attempting to build a "micro-positive cycle." Could this process itself generate a higher quality of "Power of Faith"? After all, those employees benefited from it (healthier work environment, more timely rewards, clearer growth). Their positive emotions of "gratitude," "identification," and "hope," though not directly pointed at Lin Yuan for the time being, would they somehow flow into the torrent of the "Optimization" concept? And as the current "sole manifestation" and "rule definer" of this concept, could he benefit from it?

He tried to sense it. The God of Ruins divinity deep in his soul was still dim, but vaguely, there seemed to be extremely thin, almost imperceptible warm-golden light spots seeping in from the void. They were a tiny bit "purer" and "sturdier" than the gray aspiration power threads collected from the internet before.

[Faith Reserves: 0.511 → 0.513]

Although the growth was miniscule, the quality was clearly different! Moreover, as Zhang Qiming's company measures were implemented, if they truly had an effect, the supply of this high-quality aspiration power might continue and increase!

Lin Yuan's mind suddenly cleared. His "Faith Blue Ocean" strategy could perhaps run on two tracks: on one hand, continuing to collect the public's "Optimization" identification aspiration power widely and shallowly through online content (quantity); on the other hand, by deeply intervening in the specific "Optimization" problems of organizations or individuals to provide solutions and obtain high-quality aspiration power with strong "resolution" and "gratitude" (quality)! The latter could even directly use secular money as an intermediate medium!

His "divine office"—the God of Involution Termination and Blessing Optimization—its substance was being continuously enriched and defined through practice.

Just as his thoughts became clear, his phone rang again. It was Hu Wei.

“Old Lin! It's amazing! Manager Zhang just called me all excited, praising you to the skies! He even asked if you're interested in taking on more private consultations. He has a circle, and several bosses have similar team management headaches...”

Lin Yuan looked at the city lights flashing past the train window, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

It seemed the brand of "Consultant Lin" was about to be hung up.

And on his faith reserve list, that blood-red Divine Breath Countdown no longer seemed as suffocating as before.

28 days, 01 hour, 33 minutes.

Time was still tight, but in his hand, he already had a playable card and a path that was becoming clearer and clearer.