194: Chapter 194 Fang Hongsheng Joins

Upon hearing Chen Fan's words, Fang Hongsheng fell into deep thought.

According to what Chen Fan said, there was a lot for him to do as Vice President. He would be involved in every aspect of the company: building the corporate system, managing human resources, and overseeing everything.

It wasn't a leisure position where he would just hold a title, attend meetings, and sign papers every day; it was a role that required him to dive deep into the business and get his hands dirty.

However, to him, this kind of work was actually very challenging and appealing.

During those eight years in Shenzhen, he had seen all there was to see and done all there was to do.

He was more than familiar with the processes, systems, and standards of large corporations. Now, suddenly presented with an opportunity to build a company's management architecture from scratch—this kind of '0 to 1' endeavor was much more interesting than doing repetitive work in a big company.

Moreover, from Chen Fan's tone, it seemed he would delegate authority.

Fang Hongsheng felt an impulse to agree immediately.

But he held back.

Some things needed to be stated clearly first, and some matters had to be understood thoroughly.

"Mr. Chen, let me ask you a practical question." Fang Hongsheng changed his form of address, his tone becoming serious. "If I come, what will my compensation be?"

Chen Fan didn't rush to answer but instead asked a question back: "Senior, what was your compensation situation back in Shenzhen?"

"An annual salary of 600,000, plus stock options worth about 300,000, totaling around 900,000." Fang Hongsheng didn't dodge the question and gave a straightforward answer.

Chen Fan nodded after hearing this.

This salary was considered very high even among corporate executives in Shenzhen; it seemed Fang Hongsheng was indeed capable. He didn't think Fang Hongsheng would lie about his salary, as such things could be verified with a background check, so there was no need to lie.

Chen Fan leaned back in his chair, his fingers lightly tapping the tabletop twice. He quickly calculated the company's current financial status in his head.

The combined monthly revenue of 'defend the carrot' and 'happy elimination' exceeded thirty million. The profits were substantial, and the cash flow on the books was abundant.

Supporting an executive with a million-level annual salary was absolutely no problem.

After a moment's thought, he spoke.

"If you come to my side, Senior, the annual salary will be 800,000. If you complete one full year, you can obtain 1% in stock options."

Fang Hongsheng was stunned for a moment.

Then his eyes widened slightly.

An 800,000 annual salary plus 1% stock options—this offer far exceeded his expectations.

He had originally thought Chen Fan might offer around four or five hundred thousand at most. After all, the company had been established for less than a year, had a scale of only sixty or seventy people, and was located in a city like Chang'an, which wasn't even first-tier.

Being able to give that amount would have already shown great sincerity. He hadn't expected Chen Fan to jump straight to 800,000, along with options.

1% in options might not seem like much, but it depended on whose hands they were in.

If the company could truly take off, if it could really grow "bigger and bigger" as Chen Fan said, the value of this 1% could be several times, or even dozens of times, his annual salary.

As the saying goes, a scholar dies for the one who appreciates him.

Although Fang Hongsheng hadn't reached that point with Chen Fan yet, facing such a sincere offer, he decided not to hesitate any longer.

He sat up straight, looked into Chen Fan's eyes, and his expression became solemn.

"Mr. Chen, since you are being so sincere, I can't be pretentious anymore. I agree to join."

Chen Fan was taken aback for a second.

Although he was fairly certain Fang Hongsheng would come, he hadn't expected him to agree so quickly.

He thought the other party would say "I'll go back and think about it" or "I'll give you an answer after the New Year," but he had made the decision on the spot.

However, he reacted quickly, stood up, and extended his hand toward Fang Hongsheng.

"Senior, welcome aboard."

Fang Hongsheng also stood up, shook Chen Fan's hand, and smiled. "Mr. Chen, you are my boss now. Stop calling me 'Senior.' Just call me by my name, or Old Fang."

Chen Fan waved his hand dismissively, his tone casual. "Senior is just a title; it doesn't matter. Whatever feels natural is fine."

"Alright." Fang Hongsheng nodded, no longer dwelling on it.

The two sat back down, the atmosphere becoming even more cordial than before.

"By the way, Senior, what's the earliest you can start?" Chen Fan asked.

Fang Hongsheng thought for a moment, a trace of hesitation appearing on his face. "I'll have to start after the New Year. I still have some family matters to handle, and I'm afraid I won't make it before then. I don't know if you're in a hurry?"

"No problem." Chen Fan waved it off, his tone relaxed. "It's not long until the New Year anyway, so there's no rush. Take care of your family matters, Senior, and come after the New Year. A few days won't make a difference."

Fang Hongsheng clearly looked relieved and nodded. "Mr. Chen, then I will report to the company as soon as the New Year is over."

"Okay, just let me know once you've decided on the date," Chen Fan said. "I'll have HR prepare your onboarding paperwork."

...

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was the 28th.

A few days ago, Chen Fan's grades had come out. Unsurprisingly, he was first in every subject.

His counselor, Counselor Shen Na, even made a special phone call, her voice full of surprise during the conversation.

She hadn't expected Chen Fan to actually make it into the top 3, let alone be number one.

Besides Counselor Shen Na, his classmates were also in a state of disbelief.

After all, throughout the semester, Chen Fan had attended class less than a third of the time, yet he ended up first in every single exam.

They could only sigh in admiration; he truly was a genius who scored over 700 on the Gaokao.

Compared to everyone else's surprise, Chen Fan was very calm, even somewhat indifferent.

After all, before taking the exams, he already knew he would definitely be first.

There was no helping it; he had a cheat.

...

A little after six in the evening, Chen Fan left the company and drove to the Chang'an Yuehao Hotel. The company was holding its annual meeting here today, and as the boss, he had to be present.

Ten minutes later, the car pulled into a parking space in front of the hotel.

Chen Fan got out of the car and looked up at the hotel called "Yuehao."

It seemed to have been newly built; the exterior looked fresh, the overall decoration was grand, and the glass curtain walls glowed with warm yellow light in the night, looking quite high-end.

Qiao Linlin had chosen the hotel. With a standard of 2,500 per table and ten tables in total, plus the venue and screen fees, it came to less than forty thousand yuan.

But that was the small stuff; the real bulk was the prizes prepared for this annual meeting—a full 300,000 worth of prizes, including both physical items and cash.

Since they were holding an annual meeting, they might as well be generous.

The two games had brought in massive revenue for the company, and as the boss, Chen Fan naturally couldn't be stingy.

Although this was his first time being a boss and he didn't have much experience in company management, he always stuck to one principle: things should be as they are.

Mistakes should be punished, and creating benefits for the company should be rewarded. Rewards and punishments should be clear, with no empty talk.

Entering the hotel lobby, Chen Fan immediately saw a sign that read: [Fanyu Technology Company Annual Meeting — Banquet Hall, 3rd Floor]

He took a glance and then headed toward the elevators.