Chapter 48: 48

In the large conference room of “Integrity Construction”, Huang Dexing was sitting in the first place, Anran and Xiao Xiao were sitting on his left side and right side respectively, while the rest of the company sat at the table along Anran and Xiao Xiao.

Huang Dexing raised his teacup on the table and started sipping his tea, then he said, “Today, we have called this special meeting to discuss two things.”

Anran was holding a pen and using it to draw back and forth on the paper. She didn’t know Huang Dexing’s purpose for calling the meeting today, but she had a feeling that it concerned the accident at the construction site. She didn’t know how the investigation had turned out, but judging from the smug expression on Hou Zhengwen’s face, who was sitting opposite her, she guessed it had nothing to do with him.

“The company has finished investigating the cause of the accidental collapse at the ‘Green Lake Garden’ construction site,” Huang Dexing said, and as he said this, he glanced at Anran, then at Hou Zhengwen, and finally looked to Xiao Xiao on his left.

“My construction was based on designer Gu’s drawing designs. Even if there really was a problem, it certainly wasn’t my fault,” Hou Zhengwen said in a provocative tone as he glared at Anran coldly.

Anran glanced at him without speaking and started circling with a pen. If it was indeed her responsibility, then she had nothing to say.

Huang Dexing looked at Hou Zhengwen and said directly, “Anran’s drawing designs weren’t the problem. The company invited experts to conduct a detailed analysis of the drawing designs. The measurements were reasonably calculated and shouldn’t have caused any accidents.”

Hou Zhengwen’s eyes widened. “I was merely following the drawing designs. If nothing was wrong with the drawing designs, then nothing is wrong with my construction, either.”

“Old Hou, can’t you just let people finish their words before you get all worked up? When did I say that the problem lies with your construction?” Huang Dexing looked at him and said jokingly.

Hou Zhengwen touched his nose and murmured, “As long as it’s not my responsibility.”

Huang Dexing looked at Xiao Xiao again and then said, “This cause of this accident wasn’t due to erroneous design or construction, but rather because the quality of the batch of cement did not meet the standards. The expansion card used this time was 32.5, yet the measured value of the compressive strength of composite portland cement was only 4.8, 4.3 MPa, which is 6.8 and 7.6 times the standard value of 32.5 MPa. Such composite portland cement has lost its usefulness and effectiveness. This was the main cause of the collapse that caused the accident.”

Anran looked up when she heard the unexpected result. The matter of cement strength meeting the standard determined whether or not the house could be safely built, whether or not it had the risk of collapsing, and whether it was low-quality construction that cut corners. Basically, this would affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of residents in the future.

The other people started talking about it as well. In terms of architecture, such a circumstance was architecture’s biggest fears. If the proportions of the design were miscalculated, or the construction process wasn’t being conducted correctly, they could all be changed before irrevocable damage was done. Yet if people were cutting corners and cutting costs, not only would it lower the quality of the constructed architectural building, but it also concerned the lives of the future residents. Fortunately this time, the root of the problem was discovered relatively early on before further damage could be done, Or else, the balcony wouldn’t have been the only thing collapsing, and the number of casualties would have been larger.

Huang Dexing waved his hand to motion for everyone to be quiet, and said, “All right then, the company will negotiate with the supplier on how to solve the issue concerning cement quality. We will now put this accident behind us, and don’t let this accident cause any conflict between fellow colleagues.”

“It’s good that things have been cleared up now. I have no further objections,” Hou Zhengwen muttered.

“If there is a problem with the raw materials, no matter how good the design is or how well the construction is done, everything will be useless. I personally think that—considering the circumstances of this accident—our company needs to bring the supplier to court for legal sanctions. After all, we are dealing with buildings, and this time it was houses built for people to live in, so we really can’t afford to take that much risk,” Anran said objectively.

Huang Dexing nodded, glanced at Xiao Xiao, and simply said, “This company will deal with it. We will not let it blow over.”

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Anran nodded, but as she turned her head, she met Xiao Xiao’s gaze and saw that she also was smiling at her, vindictiveness flashing through her eyes. Anran frowned, then looked up at her again, only to see that Xiao Xiao had already turned away and was smiling as she discussed something with Huang Dexing.

Huang Dexing nodded and said, “In addition, the bid for the city government building is about to begin in a few days. Our company’s design has not yet been determined, but I plan on holding a public context at the company next Wednesday. Several designers will submit their designs, and everyone will vote on the designs publicly. Whoever has the most votes will have their design used by the company. Of course, this time, interns can also participate if they are interested. This serves as a great learning opportunity.”

Thinking about the drawing designs gave Anran a headache. She didn’t even know what she had been busy doing these past few days. She had only completed a rough, large sketch for the city government building and still hadn’t finished working on the details. She initially planned on catching up on work for these few nights, but Su Yicheng has been persistently pestering her, night and day. She honestly had no idea how he had so much energy.

As she thought of this, Anran couldn’t help feeling embarrassed and bashful, and her face reddened.

“Anran?” Huang Dexing frowned slightly and called out to her in a low voice.

Only then did Anran snap back to reality. She stared at him blankly, then looked to everyone else. She had completely zoned out and had no idea what they were all discussing.

“What are you thinking about? Your face is blushing. The Director called you several times, and you did not answer,” Xiao Xiao asked her coldly, with her mouth pursed.

Anran reflexively touched her hot cheeks, then nodded to Huang Dexing apologetically. “Sorry, I just got a little distracted.”

Huang Dexing looked at her and simply said, “I have dinner booked with the Director of the Urban Construction Bureau at night. Don’t leave after work. You and Xiao Xiao will help me entertain him.”

Anran nodded quickly, “All right then.” Entertaining clients and business partners was actually quite common in the industry. Although she didn’t like it very much, she couldn’t possibly refuse.

Huang Dexing nodded, then collected the documents on the table and stood up to say, “Well, that is it for today’s meeting. Let’s all head back to work now.”

Anran sighed softly. She leaned back against the chair and didn’t get up for a while. Her eyelids felt heavy while her body was sore and aching. She felt that she needed to have a talk with Su Yicheng concerning their future daily activities, or else she risked having him suck the life out of her.

“Congratulations, you truly are in luck.”

Just as Anran was contemplating how to start that conversation with Su Yicheng, an icy voice sounded over her head. Her tone was cold and hostile. Anran looked up to see Xiao Xiao looking down at her with a smile plastered on her face, yet there wasn’t the slightest sign of mirth in her eyes.

“What do you mean?” Anran frowned in confusion and didn’t quite understand her meaning. Congratulations? Where did that come from?

Xiao Xiao had an uncanny smile on her face as she held Anran’s gaze. Then, she turned around and left the conference room without another word.

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