Chapter Five: The Collective Resignation

When Qin Yue spoke, her face was full of guilt. “But my child is only three years old, and my mother-in-law has been bedridden for years, so… I hope the chairman can understand.”

At that, Shu Yiming immediately understood what she meant.

The factory in the west of the city had caught fire and couldn’t deliver goods to Yonghui Trading on time, leaving the company's future deeply uncertain. He had sensed a heavy atmosphere when he’d entered the building earlier—clearly, no one believed the company could weather this crisis.

“Sister Qin, you’ve worked with my parents for so long, you’re a veteran. I approve your resignation, but not right now. I’ll give you a few days off. If things don’t improve in a few days, I’ll sign off on it.”

Qin Yue nodded, but had barely stepped out before she rushed back in a panic. “Chairman Shu, something’s wrong. Some employees are making trouble outside. It seems they want to get this month’s wages in advance!”

Shu Yiming slapped the table and stood up. “I understand.”

Downstairs, several employees were clustered around the finance desk, shouting.

A middle-aged man in a gray suit barked, “What are you all doing here? Get back to work immediately.”

“Supervisor Zhong, who are we working for? The company’s about to go bankrupt. If we keep working, will we even get paid? Settle our wages first, or there’s nothing more to say.”

“Exactly. The company’s in such a state—what’s the point of working any longer?”

The supervisor’s mouth twitched at their words.

His name was Zhong Hui, the operations manager—one of the few still supporting Shu Yiming.

He cleared his throat. “The fire at the west-side factory was due to Deputy General Manager Zhang’s negligence. You should be looking for him, not harassing the finance staff.”

At first, things weren’t so bad, but as these few spread the news, the atmosphere in the company grew increasingly grim.

And since Shu Yiming’s arrival, he hadn’t addressed the matter, only fueling these troublemakers’ arrogance.

“Supervisor Zhong, even Chairman Shu hasn’t explained anything, you know what that means? It means he knows the company’s doomed. I say you should join us in demanding our wages.”

Zhong Hui was starting to have doubts himself. With the company in crisis, Shu Yiming should have said something. Instead, he’d gone straight to his office and had yet to explain anything.

Now, even he was feeling uncertain.

Just as confusion filled his mind, Shu Yiming arrived.

“It’s working hours. Are you all abandoning your posts because you want your pay docked?” Shu Yiming demanded sternly.

“Heh, Chairman Shu, word is the company’s going under. Will we even get our wages?” one employee asked.

“That’s right, Chairman. You don’t have to fire us—just pay us, and we’ll resign ourselves.”

“Exactly. With the company about to go under, if we don’t see our wages, who has the heart to work?”

Shu Yiming’s expression grew darker. These agitators were truly hateful—their rabble-rousing was already making others’ eyes flicker with doubt.

“Chairman Shu, I quit too. Just settle my wages.”

Another chimed in, sparking an outburst; voices rose all around, everyone demanding their pay and threatening to resign.

Shu Yiming’s face grew grimmer still.

The company didn’t have much cash on hand. Even if he emptied the coffers, it wouldn’t cover everyone’s wages, and if he did, there’d be no working capital left at all.

The first troublemaker, seeing how things were going, flashed a smug smile and glanced at Zhang Hai. “Mr. Zhang, what do you think? The company’s going bankrupt—we just want our wages. Is that so wrong?”

This employee, Yang Xin, was one of Zhang Hai’s subordinates.

Shu Yiming didn’t need to guess his intentions; he was clearly trying to curry favor with Zhang Hai while the company was down.

Zhang Hai feigned contemplation. “I understand how everyone feels, and I know what you’re worried about. But our Chairman is a capable man. I’m sure he’ll find a way to pay everyone. Isn’t that right, Chairman Shu?”

Shu Yiming shot Zhang Hai a cold look.

This hypocrite—gloating even now. If he hadn’t betrayed the company, they wouldn’t be in this predicament at all.

“Everyone, Mr. Zhang is right. Please, return to your posts. I promise to give you all a fair answer,” Shu Yiming said evenly, steadying his own mood.

“An answer? What sort of answer do you mean, Chairman?” Yang Xin pressed, emboldened by the crowd.

Shu Yiming’s eyes narrowed. “Yang Xin, are you trying to tell me how to do my job?”

“Not at all, Chairman. But you must give us a deadline—you can’t drag this out indefinitely.” Yang Xin glanced at his colleagues. “We all have families to support.”

Shu Yiming knew Yang Xin was acting on Zhang Hai’s orders.

He replied calmly, “As long as Yonghui gives us a little more time, the company won’t go bankrupt.”

“Chairman Shu, as far as I know, Yonghui has no intention of letting us off easily. We can’t afford the compensation right now,” Zhang Hai interjected.

Shu Yiming shot him a dismissive glance. “That’s not your concern, Mr. Zhang. They’ll agree. This afternoon, you’ll all hear the news.”

“Yiming, did you get board approval for this decision?” At this point, the other deputy general managers arrived.

The one who spoke was Li Yi, among the earliest to follow Shu Yiming’s father.

Back when his father was alive, perhaps these men were loyal, but now, all they thought about was how to oust him from his position as chairman.

A glint of cold resolve flickered in Shu Yiming’s eyes before he spoke. “I’m planning to hold a press conference.”

“I disagree. Holding a press conference now is just exposing our wounds to the world,” Li Yi snorted.

“If we don’t hold a press conference, this problem won’t come to light immediately, and we might still have room to maneuver,” another deputy, Vice President Li, said.

“Maneuver?” Shu Yiming gazed at him quietly. “How long do you think we can keep this up? Sooner or later, we’ll go bankrupt anyway. But if we hold a press conference, we have a chance to turn the tables. If you’re afraid of embarrassment, I’ll go alone.”

“Yiming, do you know what you’re saying? We care about this company even more than you. We don’t want it to go under either. But at this point, what other options do we have?” another deputy lamented.

Shu Yiming replied, “I’m confident that with this press conference, I can turn things around.”

“No way.” Li Yi and the others tried to stop him.

At that moment, Wang Yun, the oldest among them, spoke up. “Yiming, we’ll give you this chance. But remember, this press conference must be a complete success, or Ming Tai is finished.”