Chapter Thirty-Six: Where Did This Monster Come From?

The office was silent for quite some time.

“Director Liu!”

Half a minute later, Qian Dafu, who had finally regained his composure, suddenly looked excitedly at the balding middle-aged man. But when he saw that the other was already busy calculating something, he swallowed the rest of his words.

He wasn’t alone— the other three also turned their gazes to the technical director, all quietly thrilled, as if they could already see astonishing sales figures beckoning to them.

This advertising slogan… it was simply perfect!

Simple, easily understood, yet refreshingly original—truly striking right at the heart!

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, the technical director soon stopped what he was doing and looked up. “The data checks out; it can absolutely support this. However, we still need to conduct real-world tests and calculate the specific parameters under various circumstances.”

“Get on it now!” Qian Dafu urged.

The technical director was a man of few words and swift action—he grabbed his documents, stood up, and hurried out.

“Please sit tight a moment, I’ll make a phone call,” Qian Dafu said to Xu Bunian before hastily leaving the room.

Xu Bunian, who had been observing Chen Qi all along, merely nodded gently without speaking. He sat quietly in place, his gaze complicated as he regarded the calm and collected Chen Qi.

When Chen Qi had delivered that advertising line, Xu Bunian too had been utterly shaken.

In that instant, it was as if he was seeing this young man in a new light all over again.

What shook him even more was the utter confidence Chen Qi displayed from start to finish, as if everything was under his control.

From the moment Chen Qi began his pitch across the table, Xu Bunian had been watching him in secret. He found that, despite experiencing such a high-stakes situation for the first time, Chen Qi showed not a hint of panic. Throughout, he spoke with composed ease.

After delivering the slogan, he seemed unsurprised by the others’ reactions, showing neither delight nor excitement at their amazement.

He simply sat there quietly, a polite smile on his face—neither hurrying nor probing, asking nothing, just waiting patiently for them to digest the meaning of the slogan.

That steadiness, that confidence, that composure—Xu Bunian realized he himself did not possess these qualities.

Only after quite some time did he slowly withdraw his gaze and lower his head, lost in thought.

At that moment, Qian Dafu returned, his expression complex after finishing his call.

Manager Zhao, who had still been in a daze, grew anxious again at the sight of Qian Dafu’s face, looking at him in disbelief and feeling all sorts of unease.

Was it still not going to work?

Qian Dafu walked around the conference table straight to Chen Qi, a complicated emotion flickering in his eyes, tinged with a trace of genuine admiration.

Chen Qi stood up as well, a little uncertain.

Could it be? Even this isn’t enough?

Then, Qian Dafu broke into a smile and extended his right hand to Chen Qi. “Looking forward to working together.”

“Whew…” Manager Zhao, off to the side, let out a long sigh of relief, then beamed with utter joy.

“Looking forward to working together,” Chen Qi replied, also secretly relieved as he shook the offered hand.

…

Outside the meeting room, Han Dong was anxiously pacing back and forth.

He didn’t know why, but as time ticked by, his anxiety only grew stronger.

The tightly shut meeting room door not far away seemed like some sort of demon, holding him in its grip.

In this tense wait, as the clock neared noon, the meeting room door finally opened.

He saw KUKU’s technical director come out, looking anxious and in a hurry.

Han Dong stood silent for a moment, then decisively turned to leave, his steps heavy.

He knew—it seemed they were the ones about to be eliminated. Staying any longer would only invite humiliation.

Sure enough, not long after he left KUKU, his phone rang.

Listening to the message delivered over the line, Han Dong was silent for a while before asking, “Can you tell me what their advertising slogan is?”

“I’m afraid not,” the other replied. “But in a few days, you’ll know.”

“Was it Chen Qi?” he suddenly asked.

“Yes. From the sound of it, they only just came up with it—there isn’t even a written proposal yet.”

“I see. Thank you.” After hanging up, the bitterness at the corners of Han Dong’s mouth deepened.

Just came up with it?

If he guessed right, Chen Qi had only learned about this advertisement after finishing that public service project.

Which meant he’d wrapped up in three days what they had chased after for more than half a month?

Was this what they called a total knockout?

Where on earth did such a prodigy come from?

…

In the conference room, the other executives had already left; only Qian Dafu remained, discussing the details of the contract with Xu Bunian.

They talked for over half an hour.

Once the contract details were settled, it was already past noon.

Xu Bunian had originally planned to organize a meal, but with KUKU’s new product launch imminent, Qian Dafu simply didn’t have the time, so the idea was dropped.

After leaving the KUKU office building, Xu Bunian heaved a deep sigh of relief as soon as he got into the car, then turned to look silently at Chen Qi.

Manager Zhao in the front passenger seat also turned to look at him, an enduring confusion lingering in his eyes.

In a rare moment of tacit understanding, neither of them spoke.

“What… what’s wrong?” Chen Qi asked, feigning ignorance under their scrutinizing gaze.

If he hadn’t been forced into a corner, he wouldn’t have wanted to use this ad so soon either.

But what choice did he have?

Xu Bunian’s lips moved, but in the end he said nothing, silently starting the car and driving off.

Manager Zhao didn’t even move his lips, simply withdrawing his gaze as if wounded.

Only they themselves knew that it wasn’t that they didn’t want to speak, but that they were too stunned for words.

They truly didn’t know what to say.

Before hearing that slogan, who could have imagined KUKU’s advertisement would end up back in their hands? Who would have thought the whole process would be so calm and free of suspense?

Manager Zhao even began to doubt whether he was really cut out for this line of work.

If word of this spread through the advertising industry, how many people would be shocked?

No one spoke in the car—the atmosphere was somewhat delicate.

A dozen minutes later, Xu Bunian parked outside a restaurant.

“Let’s eat first.”

Chen Qi naturally had no objection and followed them out of the car.

They went upstairs, ordered, and ate in near silence. Neither Xu Bunian nor Manager Zhao said another word.

Since they were quiet, the relaxed Chen Qi was only too happy not to initiate any conversation.

Lunch passed in this silent atmosphere.

After the meal, just as Chen Qi was about to tell Xu Bunian that he wouldn’t be returning to the office with them, his phone suddenly rang.

It was a text message from the bank.

Eighty thousand yuan had just been transferred into his account.