Stronger by Paying Salaries and I Have 1 Billion Employees

But a photographer from CCTV had told him, ”Go on! You’ll see when you get there. Some people can live off their looks their whole lives.”

The implication was that Chen Yansen’s appearance was by no means just a marketing gimmick.

Driven by curiosity and armed with a Hasselblad camera, Feng Hai accepted the advertising agency’s invitation to shoot a series of promotional ads for Chen Yansen.

”President Chen!”

”Boss, you look even more handsome than usual today! Can we get a picture? My mom is your biggest fan.”

”Boss, why don’t you just become a celebrity?”

As he passed the administrative department’s desks, the young women to the side chattered nonstop, their fiery gazes raking over Chen Yansen from head to toe.

In all honesty, Chen Yansen’s looks had always been well above average. Otherwise, in his past life, he never would have had the chance to press Ye Qiuping down on the bed.

In this life, his physique score of over 30 was gradually perfecting his body. His skin and facial features had also undergone subtle changes, making him extremely attractive to those around him.

”Don’t you want your Q4 performance bonuses?” Chen Yansen’s face darkened as he questioned them in a stern tone.

”Boss, please, carry on!”

”Boss, I was wrong!”

Hearing their pay might be docked, the women immediately put on wide, apologetic smiles.

Ye Qiuping shot them a glare before continuing to lead the way, bringing Chen Yansen to the photo studio.

”Mr. Chen, hello. I’m your photographer, Feng Hai. You can call me Old Feng or Ah Hai.”

Feng Hai stepped forward proactively, greeting him with a smile.

He had taken portraits for many entrepreneurs and celebrities, but he was still involuntarily startled upon seeing Chen Yansen in person.

’Now he finally understood what that photographer from CCTV had meant.’

”Let’s begin.”

Chen Yansen nodded in response and gave the order.

Feng Hai might have a remarkable status and a great reputation in the industry, but in Chen Yansen’s eyes, he was just a photographer.

”Uh... Right, right away! Makeup artist—on second thought, never mind!”

Feng Hai arranged things in a fluster. He had originally intended to have the makeup artist touch up Chen Yansen’s face, but the man’s skin condition and chiseled features needed no such gilding of the lily.

Although Chen Yansen had never been a spokesperson for his own products, he had shot similar promotional posters back when he was the CEO of Feiyu Technology, so he was extremely familiar with the process.

Feng Hai felt that he and Chen Yansen worked together with incredible synergy. In less than an hour, they had finished shooting the themed promotional images for the Orange C-Series and the Qingcheng D-Series, finishing two hours ahead of schedule.

”Get Huang Zheng, Liang Bo, and Zhang Yinjia over here. Have them call their department heads, too. We’ll do individual portraits first, then project group photos. Old Feng, any problem with that?”

Seeing that it was still early, Chen Yansen said this to Ye Qiuping, while also not forgetting to ask for Feng Hai’s opinion.

”President Chen, I charge by the project, not by the hour...” Feng Hai explained weakly.

Before he could finish, Chen Yansen waved his hand impatiently. ”I’ll pay you more.”

Feng Hai froze on the spot. ’Here I am, a renowned international photographer, being treated like a button-pusher at some street-side photo booth.’

But he hadn’t had his fill of shooting yet, especially not of shooting Chen Yansen.

”Alright, President Chen. No problem,” Feng Hai readily agreed.

A short while later, a large, bustling group arrived. Some were dressed formally in suits, while others were in casual or sporty attire.

Wang Zihao showed up in a pair of flip-flops. Chen Yansen gave him a teasing, half-smiling look.

”Heh heh, give me a minute, I’ll go change my shoes.” Wang Zihao scratched his head sheepishly, then turned and ran back.

Feng Hai first photographed the trio of Huang Zheng, Liang Bo, and Zhang Yinjia, then moved on to shooting large group photos organized by project.

In every photo, Chen Yansen stood in the center, giving off the impression that he stood head and shoulders above the rest.

「October 14, 2012.」

The senior executives of Orange Technology, Pinbei Mall, Today Technology, and Orange Pay took their first team photos.

”Mm, not bad. Post them on the company websites later.”

Chen Yansen said with a smile after reviewing several sets of photos, giving instructions to Huang Zheng, Liang Bo, and Zhang Yinjia.

”Yes, Boss,” the three of them replied in unison.

Feng Hai’s gaze swept back and forth between them, and he had a sudden realization: ’Chen Yansen’s business acumen is probably a hundred times stronger than I imagined.’

These three elites of the Business Community—Huang Zheng, Liang Bo, and Zhang Yinjia—looked at Chen Yansen with an expression of reverence. That kind of authenticity couldn’t be faked.

He had seen too many celebrities and knew the difference between genuine emotion and a performance.

It wasn’t until one in the afternoon that an exhausted Feng Hai finally wrapped up and bummed a work meal from the cafeteria.

Ye Qiuping saw him out of the Science and Technology Park. When she returned to her desk to work, it was as if she could hear the DING-DONG-DING-DONG of wind chimes by her ear. It made her blush, and she unconsciously squeezed her legs together, already planning what kind of soup she would make that night.

「Meanwhile.」

Chen Yansen, along with Huang Zheng, Song Yuncheng, Zhang Yifeng, and others, walked into Building Six—the office building for Pinbei Mall.

Pinbei’s Double Eleven Grand Promotion pre-sale had already begun. In addition to the established Ten Billion Subsidy channel and brand group-buy events, the main event page was also divided by category into more than a dozen sub-pages to make it easier for users to place orders.

There was even a special section to support farmers, with goods consisting mainly of agricultural and sideline products. It covered fruits and vegetables, aquatic products and seafood, poultry and meat, salted fish and cured chicken, as well as fresh flowers and wild mushrooms from Nanyun.

On the giant LED screen on the first floor, real-time information scrolled by: Pinbei’s order count, number of customers placing orders, active users, average order value, and total transaction volume.