Two weeks later, Xiao Zhan reported for work at Yunshen Credit.
He had known all along that Wang Yibo must've had some malicious intent when arranging this. His desk was right outside the restroom. Everyone going in or out had to pass by him, and no matter how much he tried not to look, the restroom door would open and he'd catch a glimpse of the inside wall. With such a terrible spot, it was obvious this was done on purpose.
But that wasn't even the worst of it! He was assigned to the Sales Department, and officially, his title was "sales representative." But his schedule showed: sales in the morning, and in the afternoon, he had to join Xiao Xue and the others to chase down debts? And depending on the situation, he might even have to attend evening social events? He'd always hated sales. Back when he graduated with his classmates, those who went into sales were making several times more than him in just a year—but he still couldn't stand the work and refused to do it.
Now, he had no choice—he was buried in debt. So fine, sales it is. But why debt collection too?
He couldn't fight. What was his role supposed to be? To film the scene on his phone?
Even worse, because this job at Yunshen was specifically for repaying his debt, every pay check was docked for repayment! After deducting the principal and interest, the take-home pay was way less than what he used to earn at the bank. Which meant he was basically working for free. For someone already financially strapped, this was adding insult to injury—like pouring gas on a fire.
No matter how he looked at it, it all came down to the same conclusion: he owed money, and what else could he do but accept reality? At most, he could only complain that fate had been unkind—that his parents should've been more careful and not blindly cosign for someone. But beyond that, there was nothing to be done.
Xiao Zhan gathered himself. No matter how dramatic his inner turmoil, on the outside, he always kept up appearances.
A handsome new guy at the office naturally drew a crowd of coworkers within minutes. Xiao Xue, who had a good impression of him, introduced him to everyone with glowing praise.
Xiao Zhan greeted each person warmly. Every coworker who came by got a handshake, a proper introduction, and his signature charming smile 😊.
"Hello, I'm Xiao Zhan. It's my first day—please take care of me."
By the end of the morning, Xiao Zhan had already shaken hands a dozen times.
Finally, when he got a moment of peace, he turned to the materials on his desk.
Xiao Xue had given him some internal documents to review, saying that his first few days were just for getting familiar with the company. Because Yunshen Credit was a high-interest loan company with a shady side, every document came in two versions: public and internal. The public version was the sanitized version they posted on the website. The internal version was for employees only—no copying, no taking it home, and even the wording was vague to prevent screenshots or photos from being used as evidence.
There was nothing blatantly illegal or bloody in it, but anyone reading it could tell—this was mob material.
Xiao Zhan made himself a cup of coffee and had barely flipped through a few pages when Wang Yibo walked over. Xiao Zhan had noticed earlier that they shared the same floor—Wang Yibo's office was nearby.
Wang Yibo held a steaming mug.
"How's your morning been?"
Xiao Zhan knew this was a public setting. He stood up, gave a slight bow, and kept his expression neutral.
"Hello, President Wang. It's been good. The coworkers are all very kind."
Wang Yibo nodded. Then he took out his phone and opened WeChat.
"Let's add each other. We're going out to collect later, so it'll be easier to stay in touch."
They were already attracting looks from nearby staff. Xiao Zhan wasn't keen on getting involved in unnecessary gossip with Wang Yibo.
"President Wang, you forgot? I already have your WeChat."
Wang Yibo replied calmly, even with a slight smile. There was a smugness that Xiao Zhan could just feel.
"No, you don't. I deleted you a long time ago."
"..."
So that's what this was about. Xiao Zhan forced himself to smile and took out his phone.
"Okay, I'll scan your QR code."
Wang Yibo held up his phone for him to scan, deliberately choosing the moment when no one else was near the restroom. Whether intentional or not, his tone was half-joking, half-serious.
"Just because you're working now doesn't mean you get to mess around. Yunshen's got no shortage of good-looking men and women, but don't go around flirting—whether with girls or guys. No adding random coworkers on WeChat."
Then he paused, right as Xiao Zhan finished scanning.
"Ahem... and if you do add someone, don't go blocking them later."
Xiao Zhan glanced at him. "I'm here to work off my debt, not to flirt. Also, I didn't block you. You deleted me."
He opened their chat window, sent a simple "hello," then held his phone up to show Wang Yibo.
As he lifted his hand, his watch was exposed.
It was the Omega Constellation non-diamond classic model that Jiang Cheng had given him last year—the same model, same colour as the one Wang Yibo had on his wrist. Beautiful things always catch the eye, and this watch was no exception.
Wang Yibo noticed and lingered his gaze there for a second, but said nothing.
He glanced at the time, then at Xiao Zhan, and finally typed back "hello" in the chat.
Then he said, "Eat more at lunch—company covers meal expenses. Be ready to come with us for debt collection this afternoon."
Xiao Zhan was a little surprised. "You're going too? You're the boss."
Wang Yibo replied matter-of-factly.
"Exactly. Because I am the boss, I need to know every shady thing inside and out."
***
Xiao Zhan was never lacking in capability—once he set his mind to something, he was often highly efficient.
He spent the whole morning reviewing the materials Xiao Xue gave him, both the public and internal versions. After gaining a full understanding of the products Yunshen Credit offered, Xiao Zhan found it incredibly strange. Yunshen, despite being undeniably a loan shark operation, actually had most of its products legally registered as loan services. The only difference was the interest rates, which were significantly higher than those offered by mainstream banks.
Still, this wasn't unheard of. Many small finance companies provided loan services with interest rates higher than banks—it wasn't necessarily illegal.
Xiao Zhan politely raised this question with Xiao Xue. He now understood why the internal materials were written so cryptically—some things simply couldn't be spelled out plainly.
Xiao Xue responded with a similarly cryptic tone.
"That's normal. These days, times are tough. Every field is hard to survive in. Sometimes, you've got to wrap things in a few layers of candy paper, add a little artificial sugar flavour on top, you know what I mean?"
In other words, even the mob has to dress up its loan sharking business—just cloaking dirty work in sweet words. Xiao Zhan gave a polite, fake smile and said he understood.
At noon, Xiao Xue took him to the cafeteria. Yunshen had its own canteen, staffed with professional chefs brought in from outside, and the menu changed daily. Meals were covered by the company, and if someone wanted to order takeout or eat out, as long as the amount wasn't excessive, the company would reimburse it at the end of the month.
Xiao Xue ate with him and reminded him to eat more, since they'd be heading out for debt collection in the afternoon. Xiao Zhan thought about his conversation with Wang Yibo that morning and couldn't help but ask:
"It already feels a bit odd for someone from Sales like me to go on a debt collection run—why is President Wang going too?"
Xiao Xue shrugged.
"I'm not really sure. President Wang's different from the old president—he likes to personally stay involved in every part of the business. Wants to understand it all."
Xiao Zhan nodded and didn't press further.
That afternoon, they visited a few locations for debt collection: two households and two small businesses. Looking back on it, Xiao Zhan couldn't help but shudder—the whole experience was terrifying.
Initially, the men with them, including Xiao Xue and a few older guys, looked perfectly normal—dressed in suits, not at all like gangsters. But the moment negotiations failed, the situation turned into something out of a Hong Kong triad movie. Bottles were smashed without warning, knives were drawn and swung like it was nothing. It was clear now: Xiao Xue and these older guys weren't just employees—they were professionally trained thugs. Xiao Zhan had completely underestimated them.
He barely managed to watch the first two encounters. By the third, the debtor was a woman in her forties, dressed flamboyantly and with a sharp, hostile attitude.
But when the beating started and she screamed for them to stop, her voice became even sharper, almost piercing.
Xiao Zhan squinted and glanced back. There was already a pool of blood on the floor. His face turned pale, and his lunch started churning in his stomach.
He couldn't help but think—he was one of Yunshen Credit's debtors too. He owed just as much, maybe even more. If he hadn't agreed to Wang Yibo's offer, would he be the one on the floor right now, bleeding, with broken limbs?
Turns out that internal handbook hadn't been exaggerating. All those threats, that intimidation, that "soft" and "hard" violence—it was all real.
And Wang Yibo, President of Yunshen Credit, did nothing. He stood there the entire time, simply observing, watching his team work.
He didn't intervene, nor did he stop it. His eyes were fixed on the scene in front of him—except for the moment when Xiao Zhan, unable to hold it in, covered his mouth. That's when Wang Yibo looked at him and said:
"If you're not feeling well, you can step away."
Xiao Zhan looked directly into Wang Yibo's eyes, not even bothering with the formality of calling him "President Wang" anymore.
"Wang Yibo, this isn't what you wanted back in school. Weren't you doing well in that investment bank overseas? What were you thinking, coming back to run this disgusting mess your father left behind?"
Wang Yibo didn't answer right away.
He stared at Xiao Zhan in silence, then gave a faint smile—one that could be taken as sincere, or completely sarcastic.
"You think this is disgusting? Xiao Zhan, people don't come to us unless they're desperate. Unless they've really hit rock bottom. And the ones who are trash—if they don't come to us, they'll go to someone else. In the end, Yunshen is just providing a channel."
Xiao Zhan could barely believe what he was hearing.
"Dirty money is still dirty money. You see that blood on the ground? That's on your hands now. You'll never wash it off!"
Wang Yibo's smile lingered. After a pause, he said quietly:
"I used to say that exact same thing."
He didn't argue further with Xiao Zhan and shifted his gaze back to the team at work.