bioinnovel Chapter 239 Jinshan Annual Meeting Scene
Chapter 239 Jinshan Annual Meeting Scene
5:40 PM, banquet hall on the second floor of Zhongguancun New Century Hotel.
The hall wasn't large, with fifteen round tables that could barely accommodate more than 150 people.
The main stage backdrop was red with yellow lettering: "Kingsoft Software 1997 Annual Summary and New Year's Party". The lettering was printed and pasted onto a KT board, with slightly wrinkled edges.
Two speakers were placed on either side of the stage, playing "The Story of Spring" at a low volume.
The staff entered the venue one after another. Most of them wore down jackets or thick coats, only taking them off once they entered the warm banquet hall, revealing sweaters or shirts underneath. The younger staff gathered together chatting and laughing, while the older staff sat at the tables drinking tea and eating sunflower seeds. The air was filled with the smells of smoke, tea, and cooking fumes wafting from the hotel kitchen.
Qiu Bojun stood at the door to greet guests. He was wearing a gray suit and a dark blue tie, and his hair was neatly combed, but the dark circles under his eyes were still visible. He shook hands with each person who came in, said "Thank you for your hard work," and then arranged for someone to guide them to their seats.
"Mr. Zhang, please sit here. Your technical department is at table number one."
"Sister Li, the marketing department is at table number five. Xiao Liu and the others have all arrived."
"Teacher Wang, please sit at the head table, this way."
His voice was a little hoarse, but he always had a smile on his face.
Lingyun arrived at 5:55.
He was wearing a black turtleneck sweater under a dark gray overcoat, without a scarf. He entered through a side door of the hotel, followed by Director Wang from Spark Capital's Beijing office and an assistant. He didn't attract much attention; most of the employees didn't recognize him.
Qiu Bojun saw it at a glance and quickly went to meet it.
"Mr. Ling, you must be tired from your journey." He extended his hand.
"It's not hard work at all." Ling Yun shook his hand, then nodded to Director Wang. "Is everything arranged?"
"Everything is ready. Your seat is at the head table, next to me." Qiu Bojun led the way. "The program is here. It starts at six o'clock. I'll give an opening speech first, followed by presentations from each department, with a raffle in between. The food will be served at seven-thirty. You're free to do as you please during the meal. It's expected to end at nine o'clock."
Ling Yun took the program sheet and glanced at it. The paper was printed on ordinary A4 paper, and it listed the program: opening remarks (by Qiu Bojun), the technical department's chorus of "True Hero," the marketing department's skit "Selling Software," the testing department's three-and-a-half-line poem, the annual outstanding employee award ceremony, and a lucky draw (grand prize: a computer)...
"Are all the employees here?" he asked.
"Almost everyone's here, 143 people in total, except for three who asked for leave," Qiu Bojun said. "Everyone's really looking forward to it."
"Where's the gift?"
"We've arrived. One hundred and fifty keyboard and mouse sets are all piled up in that corner over there, packed in boxes." Qiu Bojun pointed to the back side of the banquet hall, where a dozen or so cardboard boxes with the Xinghuo logo were stacked.
Ling Yun nodded: "Let's distribute the bonuses and gifts before the annual meeting starts."
Qiu Bojun was taken aback: "Now? The procedure is that the prize draw will take place after the meal..."
"No raffle. Everyone will receive something," Ling Yun said. "The prize money will be based on the previously agreed-upon standards, and the gift is just a small token of my appreciation. We'll start the annual meeting after everyone has received their prizes, so everyone will feel at ease and have a better time."
Qiu Bojun glanced at his watch; it was exactly six o'clock. He took a deep breath, turned, and walked towards the microphone next to the stage.
"Ahem, everyone, please be quiet." He tested the microphone, but the speakers emitted a piercing feedback sound. After adjusting it, he said, "Dear colleagues, please return to your seats. Before the annual meeting begins, there is something I need to announce."
The banquet hall gradually quieted down. The employees returned to their seats, their eyes fixed on the stage.
Qiu Bojun walked to the center of the stage, his hand gripping the microphone a little tightly.
"Before the annual meeting officially begins, we would like to thank someone first." He looked at the main table and said, "Please welcome Mr. Ling Yun, the shareholder of Kingsoft, the founder of Star Technology, to the stage to say a few words."
Sparse applause broke out, and most of the employees, who had only heard the name "Ling Yun" but never seen him, looked around curiously.
Ling Yun stood up, without taking his speech notes or going on stage. He walked to the edge of the stage, took the microphone from Qiu Bojun, then turned to face everyone and stood there without going up.
"Good evening, everyone at Kingsoft." His voice came through the speakers, steady and clear. "My name is Ling Yun. Many of you may be meeting me for the first time, but that's okay, you'll see me often in the future."
The audience was quiet, with over a hundred pairs of eyes watching him.
"I'm here at the annual meeting today mainly to do three things," Ling Yun said, holding up three fingers. "First, give out money. Second, give out gifts. Third, chat with everyone."
He lowered his hand and nodded to Director Wang.
Director Wang and his assistant immediately went to the pile of boxes and began unpacking them. Inside the boxes were neatly stacked black gift boxes. The lids of the gift boxes were printed with a silver Spark logo.
"Mr. Qiu, could you please bring over the bonus envelopes that the finance department has prepared?" Ling Yun said.
Qiu Bojun gestured to the finance manager. A young girl walked onto the stage carrying a large cardboard box. Inside the box was a thick stack of kraft paper envelopes, each with the employee's name and department handwritten on it.
"Let's start distributing them now," Ling Yun said. "Colleagues whose names are called, please come up to the stage. First, collect your bonus envelope, and then receive a gift. The gift is a Xinghuo Optoelectronics mouse and keyboard set, made in our own company. Consider it a New Year's trial for everyone. If you like it, keep it; if you don't, give us your feedback, and we'll improve."
A slight commotion began to stir in the audience. People whispered among themselves, their eyes lighting up.
"My name is [name], please help me pass this envelope. Director Wang is distributing gifts." Ling Yun picked up the top envelope. "First one, R&D Department, Zhang Ming."
A young man wearing glasses paused for a moment, then a colleague nudged him, and he hurriedly stood up and ran onto the stage. Qiu Bojun handed him an envelope labeled "Zhang Ming," and Director Wang handed him a gift box.
Zhang Ming accepted the gifts with both hands, then bowed somewhat awkwardly, saying, "Thank you, President Ling, thank you, President Qiu."
"Let's open it and take a look," Ling Yun said.
Zhang Ming carefully tore open the envelope and pulled out a stack of RMB. The crisp 100-yuan bills were tied with a strip of paper. He counted them: ten bills, a thousand yuan.
A low gasp rippled through the audience. In 1998, the average monthly salary for a programmer in Beijing was only two or three thousand yuan.
"Next," Ling Yun picked up the second envelope, "Testing Department, Wang Fang."
A short-haired girl went on stage and received an envelope and a gift box as well. She immediately opened the envelope, which also contained ten one-hundred-yuan bills. She covered her mouth, her eyes slightly red.
"Thank you... thank you, boss."
Ling Yun read out names one by one, Qiu Bojun handed out envelopes, and Director Wang distributed gifts. Employees went up on stage one by one, their expressions shifting from surprise to delight to excitement. Some opened the gift boxes on the spot, revealing black mice and keyboards, smaller and more exquisite than those commonly found on the market, with a breathing light on the mouse's tail.
"This mouse is beautiful!"
"The keyboard feels great."
"Great, everyone got one!"
One hundred and forty-three names were read out, taking more than half an hour. Ling Yun stood the entire time, exchanging glances and nodding with each employee as he handed out an envelope. Qiu Bojun initially helped hand them out, but his hands started to tremble, so the finance manager took over.
As the last name was read, the atmosphere in the banquet hall completely changed. The tables were filled with opened gift boxes, people were touching their new mice and keyboards, comparing the thickness of their prize money, their faces beaming with undisguised smiles and excitement.