Stronger by Paying Salaries and I Have 1 Billion Employees

It was already one in the morning when the plane landed.

Chen Yansen hailed a taxi and went straight to the Sheraton Hotel near the Amazon office. After hastily checking in, he took the elevator to the top floor.

"As usual, you get the sofa, I get the bed."

As soon as he entered the room, Chen Yansen took off his coat, threw it on a chair, and said to Song Yuncheng, "Hang this up for me!"

’Cheapskate Chen! It wouldn’t kill you to get another room!’ Song Yuncheng smiled and nodded, though she was silently fuming.

"The guy we’re meeting tomorrow is a bit of a poser in the industry. His resume looks impressive, but he doesn’t have any real accomplishments. We’ll probably have to do some schmoozing, so be ready for that."

Before heading into the bedroom, Chen Yansen added a quiet reminder.

"Okay, I get it." Song Yuncheng just figured this person was like Zheng Chunbin from Paipai Network and didn’t give it much thought.

「The next morning.」

After breakfast, the two of them got ready and took a taxi to Amazon’s office in Yan City.

At this point, Amazon had yet to move its Asia-Pacific headquarters to Yanjing, which showed that the domestic e-commerce market still hadn’t caught the attention of the overseas giants.

After getting out of the taxi, they registered at the entrance, got their visitor passes, and waited for about ten minutes before a young man in his twenties came striding toward them.

"President Chen, I’m Hollis, the one who contacted you yesterday. Please follow me."

Hollis greeted them with a smile.

Chen Yansen acknowledged him, and after a brief introduction, the three of them entered the office building.

The elevator went straight to the 16th floor and opened with a DING.

Much like their visit to Penguin, they were once again shown to a conference room to wait. About half an hour later, a bespectacled, middle-aged man of about five-foot-three pushed the door open with a smile. He enthusiastically shook Chen Yansen’s hand and said, "My apologies for the wait, President Chen. Please, have a seat."

The man spoke with a Hong Kong accent, and his expression was tinged with arrogance. He bore a slight resemblance to the actor Eric Tsang, though he was much leaner.

This was Zhang Hanhua, the head of Amazon’s channel department—a name that was completely at odds with his appearance.

"President Zhang, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve reviewed your company’s contract template, and it looks fine. The next step is to finalize the commission rates for each category. If this process goes smoothly, we can add Amazon to FoxTao’s cashback shopping section by early next month."

After the pleasantries, Chen Yansen steered the conversation back to the partnership. ’Since they’re the ones getting paid,’ he thought, ’it’s better to skip the formalities and get straight to the point.’

"You young people are certainly efficient," Zhang Hanhua said with a soft chuckle, deliberately stalling. "But business should be done step-by-step. We should take our time."

"President Zhang, I may be young, but I understand the rules of the game," Chen Yansen said with a placid smile. "Once we’ve confirmed the details, we can get this partnership off the ground."

Hearing the extra emphasis Chen Yansen placed on the phrase "rules of the game," Zhang Hanhua knew he was dealing with a sharp guy who got the picture. The smile on his face grew even wider as he had Hollis bring out a pre-prepared file for Chen Yansen to review.

"Books: 5%. Digital products: 1%. Apparel: 5%. Food: 3%. Cosmetics: S-tier 2%, A-tier 5%, C- and D-tier and below 8%..."

Chen Yansen looked it over carefully. He felt the terms were more reasonable than what platforms like Meng Basha and Mai Baobao offered.

’Of course, he knew the guy wasn’t just being generous. The more commission FoxTao earned, the bigger the kickback Zhang Hanhua could take.’

"President Zhang, I’m very satisfied with the commission rates for each category. When can we sign the contract?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Chen Yansen didn’t haggle and agreed on the spot.

"No rush. We can talk about it tomorrow. I’ve booked a table at the Bai Family Mansion for tonight. President Chen, you must allow me to show you some proper hospitality," Zhang Hanhua said with a smile.

’You son of a bitch!’

’He wants to be wined, dined, and bribed!’

Chen Yansen cursed inwardly. The only reason Zhang Hanhua wasn’t in a hurry to sign was that he wanted to squeeze more out of the deal. ’Fine,’ Chen Yansen thought, ’I’ll just consider it feeding a dog.’

Outwardly, he remained impassive. He smiled and agreed, adding, "Well, if President Zhang is treating, then I simply must bring a good bottle of wine. See you at the Bai Family Mansion at six."

Chen Yansen made a point of telling him to bring the contract.

Seeing that Chen Yansen knew how to play the game, Zhang Hanhua readily agreed. He insisted they have a cup of coffee before signaling for Hollis to escort them out.

As they walked out of the Amazon office, Chen Yansen let out a long breath and muttered, "It’s been a long time since I’ve had to eat shit like that."

’But there was nothing he could do. For Zhang Hanhua to be this brazen, he must have a powerful backer. And with that Hong Kong accent, it was a safe bet a whole clique of them were sticking together.’

’Chen Yansen only had two choices: abandon the partnership, or pay the man off.’

"President Zhang invited you to dinner, so why are you so angry?" Song Yuncheng was completely baffled, having missed all the subtext in their conversation.

"Him, treat us? Are you kidding?" Chen Yansen shot her a look, snapping irritably. "He expects us to book the table, buy the expensive wine, and then wait for him to show up and enjoy it all."

"Did I hear that wrong? I’m pretty sure President Zhang said he was treating you to dinner," Song Yuncheng asked.

Chen Yansen just smiled, refraining from mocking her. After all, Song Yuncheng was only a sophomore in college. She hadn’t seen much of the sordid side of the real world, so it was only natural she wouldn’t understand.

As they walked, he began to explain the hidden meanings behind his conversation with Zhang Hanhua.

"He wants a five-percent cut on top of all that?" Song Yuncheng asked in astonishment after he finished his explanation.

"That’s just how the world works. You pay the man, the deal goes through," Chen Yansen stated flatly, his eyes narrowed.

"Can’t we report him to his superior?" Song Yuncheng pressed.

"Don’t be naive. Of the five percent he’s demanding, three of it probably goes to his boss."

Chen Yansen patted Song Yuncheng on the head, looking at her as if she were a child.

"It’s... complicated. I thought the whole point of two companies working together was mutual benefit..." Song Yuncheng mumbled, her simple worldview beginning to crumble.

"On a higher level, you’re not wrong. But wherever you have people, you’ll have this kind of dirty, underhanded dealing. You just have to get used to it. Learn to understand it. The day you can use these tricks yourself is the day you’ll be able to stand on your own."