How come I was born a deity?

Chapter 22: Newcomer Assessment

Ding--

As the elevator reached the top floor of the building, the elevator doors slowly opened, and a magnificent Chinese palace instantly came into view.

There were even two stone lions outside the elevator doors, which gave people a rather strong sense of oppression.

There are screens on both sides. The screen on the left is painted with a landscape painting in the style of ink wash, while the screen on the right is painted with various auspicious beasts. Behind the screens are a large number of tables and chairs, which looks like a place usually used for banquets.

A very long red carpet stretched from the elevator entrance to the end of the palace.

At the far end of the palace is a large wall-mounted shrine.

The shrine enshrines an image of Guan Yu, and a small incense burner emits white smoke from burning incense sticks.

Beneath the shrine was a set of solid wood furniture. An elderly woman dressed in a red Tang suit sat on one of the wooden chairs, while the other chair was empty. Although many bodyguards and members of the Qin family firm stood around, none of them dared to sit with the elderly woman.

The little girl led the group to the old woman and eagerly offered her head to the old woman's hand. "Grandma! I've brought everyone!"

"Good girl," the old woman said in a hoarse voice, gently patting the little girl's head. "Go ahead and do your work. Grandma will take care of the rest."

"Um!"

The little girl nodded, ran off with cheerful steps, sat down at a dining table behind the screen, took out her schoolbag from under the table, and began to do her homework.

Boss Qin led Chen Qi and the other two forward to the old woman. The old woman scratched her head and said, "Grandma..."

"Kneel down!" The old woman's gaze was like a knife, showing no respect whatsoever to Boss Qin.

Boss Qin's words caught in his throat. Pointing behind him, he said, "There are outsiders here..."

"I told you to kneel down, didn't you understand? Or have you grown up, become independent, and only your father can control you now?"

Upon hearing this, Boss Qin sighed deeply and knelt down in front of the old woman with a thud.

"Apologize to Young Master Chen."

Boss Qin: "..."

"Why are you looking at me like that? Am I Young Master Chen?"

"I shouldn't have taken that picture to show off to you..." Boss Qin muttered, then turned to Chen Qi with his knee and said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Chen, I startled you just now."

Chen Qi: "To be honest, I was fine just now, but I'm actually a little scared of you now."

The old woman's expression softened somewhat, and she said to Chen Qi, "I'm sorry, this kid has just been in too much power lately and has become a bit arrogant. If his father were here, he would never have done these things."

Shen Nianxu originally wanted to complain about why the other two weren't allowed to complain, but she felt that the old woman seemed difficult to deal with, so she didn't say anything.

"It's nothing," Chen Qi replied, "but... do I know you?"

The old woman smiled slightly. Although her skin had deteriorated with age, one could still tell from her features that she had once been a beauty. "Of course, I even held you when your father brought you to see me back then."

Chen Qi: "..."

Why does this sound so familiar?

It seems that Master Xuanqing said the exact same thing.

How many people hugged me back then?

Shen Nianxu shook her head helplessly, thinking to herself, "This is what a spoiled brat is like..."

"I had only heard that your father wanted you to enter the world of cultivators, but I never expected you would actually join. Are you ultimately going to carry on your father's legacy?"

Chen Qi raised his hand and corrected, "Uh, no, I just couldn't find a job after graduation, and then my dad introduced me to this job."

The old woman: "..."

Boss Qin: "..."

Isn't that too hasty?

"Ahem..." The old woman cleared her throat. "That's good. To be honest, I was a little worried that you might be as unreliable as your father, but now it seems that you are much more serious and mature than him."

As she spoke, she glanced at the ring on Chen Qi's hand and asked, "So... after you join the bookstore, you'll try to participate in the year-end leadership election, right?"

These words surprised Chen Qi and Shen Nianxu, since the previous Xuanqing Zhenren had not thought so.

Seeing their expressions, the old woman snorted and replied, "Since he's Chen Fuzhou's son, how could he not participate? Although you're probably still at the level of drawing star charts, as his son, you must have your own way of solving this."

Upon hearing the old woman's words, Shen Nianxu immediately understood what she meant. She decisively stepped forward, cupped her hands in a respectful greeting, and said, "Grandma, about the year-end election for the person in charge..."

"Why should I vote for you?" The old woman said the exact same thing as Master Xuanqing, "I only asked Chen Qi if he would participate in the election, but I never mentioned voting."

After saying this, the old woman stretched out her hand, and a bodyguard stepped forward and handed her a lit pipe.

She took a drag on her cigarette, then pointed the gun at Boss Qin. "The position of head of Qingcheng is also profitable for our Qin's firm. Why should we give such a good opportunity to someone else?"

Shen Nianxu's expression froze. "This..."

The kneeling boss, Qin, shrugged and said, "You see, anyone would think like this: the words 'Chen Fuzhou's son' are sometimes useful, but sometimes they are not. The greater the interests involved, the less useful the name becomes."

"This is one of the lessons I've learned from years of navigating the black market."

The old woman's gaze fell on Chen Qi again. "But... if you can demonstrate greater value than the position of head of the company, I might consider changing our strategic goals. After all, the Qin family business is essentially a business."

How can this be proven?

Aside from the name Chen Fuzhou, Chen Qi's greatest value lies in his terrifying learning ability, but Shen Nianxu would certainly not reveal these things without his consent.

After all, "jealousy" is one of the original sins in the human heart, and it is very likely to drive some people to do things that cannot be undone.

Chen Qi appeared calm and asked, "What do you need me to do?"

"Phew—" The old woman exhaled a puff of white smoke that rose straight up. "I heard someone mention before that you went to Shangqing Palace and looked for Master Xuanqing, right?"

"The reason you went to see Master Xuanqing was probably to garner votes. I think... she probably said something similar to what I did."

Upon hearing the word "someone," Boss Qin's eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, flickered slightly as he glanced at the old woman sitting in the chair.

Shen Nianxu swallowed hard and nodded slightly. "I won't hide it from you. Master Xuanqing said that Chen Qi must demonstrate sufficient strength or achievements before the year-end election for the person in charge, otherwise he will not be voted for."

"I knew it," the old woman sneered, "but to produce enough strength and results in just over a month, even Chen Fuzhou himself might not have been able to do it."

"However, my demands are not high. I will only set one goal for you. As long as you achieve it, I will vote for you in the year-end election."

Shen Nianxu suddenly had a very bad premonition.

Chen Qi lacked this awareness; regardless of the difficulty, he would always ask first, "What's the goal?"

The old woman shook her pipe and uttered only four words.

"Newcomer Assessment"

Shen Nianxu's expression changed drastically.