Sheffield immediately picked up Gillian's hint when she said that the CEO would be attending the dinner. It didn't matter whether she had meant Carlos or Evelyn because he was intrigued nonetheless.
Gillian, however, was only interested in using him to further her own agenda.
"Sounds great! Do you know if Evelyn will be there too?" he asked bluntly, instead of turning her down.
"I suppose so. By the way, Sheffield, have you two broken up already?"
"No. Well, it's a little complicated. We had a fight some time ago and she's been mad at me ever since. We are just giving each other some space."
Gillian was a little taken aback, blushing with embarrassment when she recalled complaining to Sheffield about Evelyn just two days ago. She had no idea that they were still together.
"So...will you come?"
"Of course, I will. I don't want to miss the look on her face when she sees me there." Sheffield blatantly revealed his own motive without any inhibition.
Gillian was at a complete loss for words. As it turned out, Sheffield was the one using her to further his personal goals, not the other way around.
Nevertheless, since beggars couldn't also be choosers, Gillian was just happy to have Sheffield by her side. All she wanted to do was make Evelyn burn with envy.
At the restaurant of the hanging garden, on the top floor of Silverstone Building
As the entire restaurant was reserved for ZL Group's private event, the place was swarming with Carlos' employees.
Sheffield's arrival attracted a lot of attention. Under the stifled admiration and gasps of the female employees, he walked straight to Gillian, which made her feel proud and elated.
When someone asked Gillian whether she was dating Sheffield, she didn't deny it straightaway. "Yeah, but in the past. We are just friends now."
All the while, Sheffield sat next to her, fiddling with his cell phone with a smile on his face. He hardly uttered a word nor was he interested in what Gillian was saying.
After all, he wasn't here for Gillian; he was here for Evelyn.
"Wow! Mr. Tang, you're a real gentleman. You're still friends with your ex-girlfriend after the breakup!"
"Mr. Tang, you look much more handsome in person than you do on screen!"
Sheffield was showered with all kinds of praises.
Once it was confirmed that they were not dating, many women made up excuses to rub elbows with Sheffield or flatter him during the meal.
Sheffield, of course, knew how to play them like a fiddle. After all, he was well-versed in the art of dealing with women.
The female employees gossiped among themselves. "No wonder there are so many women trying to get his attention. He is so handsome! And that smile! That gorgeous smile! If it were up to me, I'd let him have his way with me anytime of the day."
"He could be a playboy for all I care. If anyone is qualified to be one, it's him. Leave aside the fact that he is now the CEO of Theo Group, his research and development project has already brought him enough money to squander for the rest of his life."
"Alas! I'm so envious of his future wife..."
Almost after an hour into dinner time, Evelyn, the focus of everyone's attention, the grand finale of the night, finally made an appearance.
The managers of both the finance department and the programming department ran downstairs and received her in person. When she came into everyone's sight, the whole restaurant broke into an uproar. Especially the male employees of the programming department as most of them were single. The applause and whistles that echoed could be heard by someone from at least a mile away.
Evelyn was followed by Nadia. The two managers led them to the employees of the programming department first as they were the ones closest to the door.
The programming department consisted of mostly male employees, bar a few female employees who worked as assistants or secretaries. There were about thirty programmers in their team. The youngest one was in his early twenties, and the oldest one was in his forties.
Nonetheless, when Evelyn stood before them, they were all thrilled.
As instructed by Carlos, the manager of the programming department poured only a little liquor in a glass for Evelyn and passed it to her.
Standing at the head of the dining table, Evelyn encouraged the employees and raised her glass to propose a toast to everyone.
Evelyn seldom drank liquor. Luckily, she was able to drink it all in one go because the manager only poured her a little bit. Then she handed the empty glass to Nadia and said, "A few days ago, I heard about a programmer in this department who blacked out in the office because he was always working late. Do any of you know who I am talking about?"
The whole company knew about it. In fact, even Carlos had managed to find time to visit the employee in the hospital.
A few of the employees started urging a man in his thirties to stand up. "It was Baron Deng, our team leader."
Evelyn walked over to Baron Deng and said, "How are you doing now? Are you still working until the late hours?"
Evelyn's aura was so strong that Baron Deng, who was wearing a red plaid shirt, didn't even dare to look straight at her. Lowering his head shyly, he replied, "Thank you for your concern, Miss Huo. I am doing a lot better now. The manager doesn't allow me to work overtime anymore, so I haven't been staying up late."
"Well, I'm glad to hear that. Nadia, what's the grand prize for the most outstanding employee?"
"Miss Huo, the reward is a VIP card from Shining International Plaza, worth 500, 000 dollars," Nadia answered.
The grand prize had to be extravagant since most of the candidates for the outstanding employee award were the old staff members of the company. In any case, picking out one winner from a pool of such excellent employees was not an easy task.
After a short pause, Evelyn said, "The work of the programming department requires painstaking efforts. This will be my first time to take part in the company's selection process. So, to encourage everyone here, tonight I will be changing the prize for the most outstanding employee."
Indeed, the programmers had to handle various nerve-racking work on a daily basis. Sometimes they would have to work for ten hours in a day to come up with the best solution in order to meet their client's needs.
Moreover, their line of work required them to learn and update their knowledge every day. Day after day, many programmers would find it hard to keep going on like that after the age of thirty.
"Lamborghini!" a young man sitting amongst the crowd shouted all of a sudden. Everyone burst into laughter at his whimsical idea.
Under people's eager gaze, Evelyn smiled as well and told everyone in a calm voice, "Then the grand prize will be a Lamborghini car!"
After her decisive announcement, the entire place erupted in an uproar once again.
"Wow! My goodness! Is that true? A Lamborghini!"
"Unbelievable! Miss Huo is so generous!"
"Did I hear that correctly? That's a car worth millions of dollars!"
Those of who were not qualified to participate in the selection seethed with jealousy. One of them cut in, "Don't be so happy. So what if you get a Lamborghini? Can you afford the maintenance fee for such a luxurious car?"
Evelyn smiled at the young disbelieving employee and responded, "Don't worry, I'll also throw in a three-year-maintenance fee as an additional gift. Bear in mind that the grand prize is only awarded to the most outstanding employee. If the winner can't afford to pay for the maintenance of the car after three years, then I don't think that person deserved to win the prize in the first place."
Evelyn's words made a lot of sense to everyone. Although the programmer who would get the grand prize couldn't afford the maintenance fees now, three years of time was enough for any outstanding employee to make a fortune.
Evelyn managed to win the hearts of all the staff members of the programming department with her grace and display of generosity.
The employees marveled at her ability to empower those who worked for the company, encouraging them to give their absolute best and nothing less.
Unlike the other leaders, Evelyn didn't believe in subjecting her employees to long hours of lecture. Perhaps she didn't think herself worthy enough to do so. After all, she didn't have to start from the bottom. She got the job as the regional CEO only because she was the daughter of Carlos Huo.