Chapter 65

Yuan Hengrui equally envied everyone Wei Lai liked, from Zhang Yanxin to Zhou Sujin, from that watch to the Jiang Anyun store in Wei Lai’s supermarket.

The coffee was ready, and Wei Lai called him over.

He had come all this way to her office just to have a cup of coffee she had brewed.

The lawyer took out the contract for the storefront sale and asked her to review it.

Wei Lai sat down and carefully checked the basic information.

The contract had been scrutinized word for word by Yuan Hengrui, more meticulously than when he read project proposals. Of course, he wouldn’t tell Wei Lai.

“Is Zhou Sujin coming over this week?”

“No, he has a financial summit in the next two days. I’m going there.”

The day after tomorrow was May 20th, but the opening of the summit wouldn’t be considered a holiday.

He had visited her last week, already celebrating 5.20 with her in advance.

She brought the contract for him to personally sign, adding a sense of ceremony to the gift-giving process, and entrusted the transfer process entirely to the lawyer.

After half an hour, Yuan Hengrui had to bid farewell once everything was discussed.

Half an hour passed faster for him than half a minute, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Before leaving, he glanced at her office again, not knowing when he would come back next time.

Exiting the office building, he went to the neighboring Wei Lai supermarket and bought a few packs of cigarettes.

Wei Lai put away the contract. Her assistant came to ask if she was going to the cafeteria or if she wanted her to pack the food to go.

“I’ll go to the cafeteria in a while. You go first; you don’t need to wait for me.”

She sent an email to Zhao Lianshen regarding whether Wei Lai’s new stores would retain the free bookstore. She insisted on her own ideas.

[In such a fiercely competitive industry, without our own feelings and corporate culture, the road will only get narrower. As our management’s wealth increases, we may slowly forget our original intentions, and Wei Lai Baidu won’t last long. If Mr. Zhao only wants to make quick money, just pretend I didn’t say anything.

Due to the limited area of the newly opened stores, it’s not realistic to set up a free study room in each store again. I understand that. However, it’s entirely possible to design a thirty-square-meter free coffee corner with a bookstore, especially for stores in shopping malls. Having a place to sit and rest changes the shopping experience completely.

We don’t need many books, just ten or eight on each table. All stores in the region can regularly exchange books with each other, so the books can circulate. The cost increase is actually not much.

When I took over Wei Lai Supermarket, I wanted to make the free bookstore a business card of the supermarket. Here at Wei Lai Baidu, I still hope to continue this tradition.]

After sending the email, she left the inbox to have lunch. While waiting for the elevator, she ran into Chen Qi.

“Why are you here so late today?”

Chen Qi smiled. “Got a call, delayed me.”

It was a call from Mu Di. She said they should go their separate ways from now on and there’s no need to contact her again.

Now looking back on the days when he was a spy, he felt he was too crazy. If he were to return to that time, he’d probably still take the risk.

His nature hadn’t changed; he was just held by Wei Lai’s seven-inch.

Regarding personnel matters, he might have been influenced by Zhou Sujin, leading to constant restraint between him and Yu Younian. Neither of them accepted each other.

Even though Yu Younian had fewer shares than him, his authority was greater. In a broader sense, he still had to listen to Yu Younian.

“In terms of advertising, do you have any ideas?”

With logistics distribution and the establishment of digital shopping platforms in place, and nearly half of the national stores established, the newly formed purchasing team was gaining recognition in the industry. The feedback on the product quality of Wei Lai was still good, but to break into the top thirty, it wasn’t enough. They needed to attract more consumers’ attention and favor.

Traditional advertising couldn’t achieve the flow they wanted.

The elevator arrived, and the two continued their conversation inside.

Wei Lai provided an idea: “From the quality of the products, our ‘to-home service,’ and the free bookstore, promote the positive image of Wei Lai Baidu. Then, dig up some gossip stories about Wei Lai that people might be interested in, and the attention will come naturally.”

“…,” Chen Qi laughed, “That sounds like the idea of a public relations company.”

Wei Lai said, “Next, we’ll have to cooperate with professional public relations companies. They control media resources and know how to operate.”

Chen Qi thought of the outdoor screen advertising that Zhao Lianshen had set up opposite the Kunchen Building. It was burning money every minute, but he wouldn’t comment on the actual advertising effect.

Anyway, it was Zhao Lianshen’s own money, not Wei Lai’s.

At the entrance of the supermarket, I met He Wancheng, who had just arrived in Jiangcheng.

The day after tomorrow is May 20th, so it’s obvious why he came over.

“He Dong, long time no see,” Wei Lai greeted with a smile.

In fact, it hadn’t been that long; they had met just two weeks ago.

He Wancheng nodded and said, “I came to talk to Manager Cheng about something.”

It was obvious he was being evasive, even he felt embarrassed about it.

“Well, you must be busy,” Wei Lai gestured towards the cafeteria. “I’ll go grab lunch first.” She walked off with Chen Qi.

On May 20th, their supermarket also had an event. Some desserts in the bakery section were discounted by 52%, and they were also introducing a limited edition cake for 5.20.

Lu Yu had specifically messaged her, asking about the taste of the desserts at 52% off, as he planned to buy more.

He joked to himself that all the pleasures in life were in Wei Lai Supermarket and the discounts and promotions at Wei Lai.

After lunch, when she returned to the office, Zhao Lianshen replied to her email.

[If you want to keep the free books, that’s fine, as for how you operate Wei Lai, I won’t interfere, just offering my personal suggestions.]

He was just a pure businessman, not an entrepreneur, he never had any sentiment, only profit in his eyes.

On May 20th, three stores in the North China region opened on the same day.

Wei Lai flew over early tonight. So far, Wei Lai had ninety-six stores nationwide, and she has visited every store in every city.

On the 19th, it was Saturday, and Ning Rujiang didn’t go to the company and rest. She received a call from Wei Lai who was coming to see her in the afternoon.

The weather had been warm the past few days, and summer had arrived overnight. The tea table was moved back to the courtyard.

Today, the sky was as blue as it could be, with big clouds floating in the sky. The afternoon sun filtered through the lush ginkgo leaves, casting sparse shadows on the light walnut table.

Ning Rujiang didn’t take a nap at noon and made cherry blossom pastries and matcha pastries with the chef.

Close to four o’clock, the pastries were ready, and she also prepared a platter of cherries and green grapes. Hearing the sound of a car outside the door, she asked the maid to make some tea from Jiangcheng.

Holding an umbrella, she went out of the courtyard to pick up the guest.

Wei Lai parked the car and came down with a large bunch of ice-blue flowers.

“Auntie,” she greeted with a smile.

The last time they met was at her grandfather’s orchard in Australia, and three and a half months had passed in the blink of an eye.

Ning Rujiang said kindly, “Finally, you’re here. Let’s have a good chat today.”

She glanced at the car. It was the Bentley her nephew used to drive frequently. Wei Lai had just come down from the driver’s seat. “Why didn’t Sujin arrange a driver for you?”

Wei Lai handed the flowers to her aunt and took the umbrella. “He didn’t know I was coming.” She linked arms with her aunt and walked into the courtyard.

It seemed that the conflicts between the couple had been completely resolved. Ning Rujiang’s mood was as clear and gentle as the sky at the moment.

She invited Wei Lai to sit at the tea table. “Auntie made these pastries herself, still warm. Have a taste while it’s hot.”

Wei Lai didn’t stand at on ceremony. There were wet towels prepared on the table. She wiped her hands and picked up a piece of cherry blossom pastry.

Memories surged like tides. The first time she came to her aunt’s house to have tea, she only ate half a piece because it wasn’t to her taste, and Zhou Sujin ate the remaining half for her.

“Auntie, did you really make these cherry blossom pastries yourself?”

“Absolutely, how are they?”

“Tastier than store-bought ones.”

Ning Rujiang smiled and joked, “When I retire, I’ll open a pastry shop.”

Wei Lai said, “Then I’ll open a tea house next to yours.”

Ning Rujiang laughed heartily.

She couldn’t even finish half a piece of pastry before, but today Wei Lai ate two.

Ning Rujiang pushed the fruit platter towards her. “These are freshly picked today. Try some.”

Wei Lai ate fruits while admiring the scenery in the courtyard, feeling completely different from when she came in autumn.

“Auntie, when I take wedding photos with Zhou Sujin in the future, I want to take a set here.”

Ning Rujiang exclaimed happily, “One set won’t be enough, at least four sets. Each season has its own beauty.” There were too many scenes to capture in the courtyard.

Wei Lai didn’t specify when to take the photos, but no matter when it happened, at least she brought it up herself. Ning Rujiang went to the hall to find scissors and trimmed the ice-blue flowers together with Wei Lai.

Laughing and chatting, she had never felt so relaxed with the younger generation before.

After having dinner at her aunt’s house, Wei Lai left.

This time she didn’t book a hotel, and the Bentley drove straight to Zhou Sujin’s villa.

The Bentley was now allocated to the Beijing branch of Wei Lai, but it was almost her exclusive car.

The office address of the Wei Lai branch is in the Baiduo Industrial Building, rent-free.

Today, she realized that Zhao Lianshen had directly placed the advertisement across from the Kunchen Building. It could be seen from Zhou Sujin’s office as if he wanted to plaster the advertisement on Zhou Sujin’s face.

Tonight, Zhou Sujin won’t be coming back to stay. There was a banquet at the peak forum tonight, and the meeting would continue tomorrow. The organizers had arranged accommodations for everyone tonight.

Before coming, she had informed the butler in advance, and everything in the villa was prepared for her.

Leaning back in the bathtub, she admired the backyard in early summer for the first time.

“[Zhou Sujin].”

While soaking in the bath, she suddenly missed him and sent his name to him.

Zhou Sujin was still at the banquet. At the moment, people weren’t in their seats; they were gathered in small groups. He was looking at his phone with his head down. Min Ting, who was beside him, asked, “Did you block the group chat?”

“No.”

“Many people mentioned you, and you didn’t respond. I thought you blocked them.”

“I’m replying to Wei Lai’s message.”

Min Ting opened a screenshot from the group and handed it to him.

It was an advertising slogan: Wei Lai connects thousands of families.

Lu Yu, sitting at the table next to him, supported his forehead, hesitating whether to tell Zhou Sujin that it was either praising Zhao Lianshen’s talent or mocking him for being too outdated to come up with such an advertising slogan just to include his name.

Zhou Sujin glanced at the slogan and directly ignored it. He said to Min Ting, “I’m going out to make a phone call.”

Outside the banquet hall, he dialed Wei Lai’s number.

She no longer called him “Mr. Zhou” now, calling him by his name regardless of the situation.

Wei Lai got out of the bathtub, wrapping his bathrobe around him.

The phone vibrated, and she turned on the speaker and placed it on the dressing table, doing her skincare in front of the mirror.

“Done with your work?” His deep voice echoed slightly in the spacious bathroom.

It felt particularly strange to be talking to him in his house over the phone. Wei Lai replied, “Yes, I’m at home, just finished bathing.”

“So early today?”

“No overtime, so I came back early.” She suppressed her excitement.

Zhou Sujin always felt something was off. “Are you at Jiang’an Yunchen’s house?”

Wei Lai’s breath tightened involuntarily. “No, why do you ask?”

Zhou Sujin said, “You sound quieter than usual over the phone.”

It was an empty silence, unlike in the apartment.

He could actually detect subtle differences. Wei Lai’s heart thumped anxiously, worried that he would guess. If he knew she was at her home in Beijing, he would rush back no matter how late it was.

He still had a meeting early tomorrow, and it would be too tiring to rush back and forth.

She quickly diverted his attention. “Zhou Sujin.”

“I’m listening, what’s up?”

“I miss you.”

Since the conflict before the Spring Festival, she hadn’t said these three words. Occasionally, she would say intimate words to him, but her tone was unnatural. There was always a barrier between them that couldn’t be seen or touched.

Her tone just now has finally returned to how it used to be.

Knowing he couldn’t leave tomorrow, Zhou Sujin whispered, “I’ll come to see you after the forum ends.”

“Okay.” Wei Lai found an excuse to hang up the phone. “You’re busy, I have a message in the workgroup.”

She woke up several times during the night, each time because she dreamt of him and then woke up.

Upon opening her eyes, she realized she was in his villa and fell back asleep peacefully.

It used to be difficult to dream of him, but today, one dream after another, all about him.

The next morning at seven o’clock, before the alarm went off, she was awakened by her mother’s phone call.

Her mother rarely called her when she was off, and especially not this early.

She sat up abruptly. “Hey, Mom, what’s wrong?”

Hearing her daughter’s groggy voice, Cheng Minzhi reproached herself repeatedly, “I forgot you’re not going to work today.”

“It’s okay, I’m about to get up anyway. I have to go to the store in the afternoon.” Listening to her mother’s tone, it wasn’t urgent, so she eased her anxious heart.

“Mom, what’s the matter?”

When her daughter got together with Zhou Sujin, she told her immediately, and she also wanted to share her joy with her daughter.

Cheng Minzhi said, “He Wancheng confessed to me early in the morning.”

As expected, Wei Lai was happy for her mother. “How did he confess?”

Cheng Minzhi blushed and laughed, “I won’t tell you that.”

Even from a distance, Wei Lai could feel her mother’s inner joy. She said to her mother, “Mom, if you like him, just be with him. If you miss the chance, you won’t meet someone like him again.”

“Then Mom will be with him.” Cheng Minzhi’s voice trembled with tears.

All the past events seemed to make sense this morning.

Wei Lai spent the entire morning immersed in joy, both her own and her mother’s.

After having an early lunch, she hurried to the venue of the peak forum. She asked Lu Yu, and he informed her that they had a two-and-a-half-hour break at noon.

After waiting outside the venue for half an hour, Lu Yu sent her a message: [We’ve already had lunch and returned to the lounge. You can call Zhou Sujin now.]

Lu Yu didn’t know what Wei Lai was up to, and he didn’t ask.

Just as Zhou Sujin sat down on the sofa, his phone vibrated. Lu Yu watched as he picked up the phone.

Wei Lai steadied her breath and first consulted him on risk control issues.

After asking, they chatted for a few more minutes.

Zhou Sujin asked, “Have you had lunch?”

“Yes, I have. I’m going to visit the stores in the afternoon.” Wei Lai’s voice sounded no different from usual. “Do you know where I am right now?”

“Outside the venue?”

Wei Lai was both surprised and frustrated. “…How did you guess it so quickly?”

Zhou Sujin didn’t know how to reply; he just guessed.

“In which parking area are you? I’ll come pick you up.”

Wei Lai took out a document folder from her bag. “I have a sample gift for you. I’ll be back soon and won’t go to your venue.”

Zhou Sujin had already stepped out of the VIP lounge. “It’s okay. You know everyone in the lounge. Let me take you in. In the future, when Wei Lai expands, you’ll have many opportunities to attend various forums.”

“Will it disturb you?”

“No, it won’t. We’re not talking about cooperation.”

“Then you don’t have to come out. I’ll come to you. Which VIP room?”

Zhou Sujin didn’t say anything and waited for her outside the venue.

In the afternoon, Wei Lai still had to visit the stores. She was wearing a white suit with a brown shirt tucked into high-waisted pants, accentuating her slender waist.

This set was bought by Zhou Sujin, including the brown shirt, which belonged to her favorite color scheme.

Throughout the year, her wardrobe always had shades of brown and camel. Because the colors were similar and there were differences between each brand, he often couldn’t tell, but as long as it was within this color scheme and the style looked suitable, he would buy it for her.

She held a document folder in her hand, which Zhou Sujin thought she would use for store visits in the afternoon, and didn’t think much of it.

In such a formal occasion, it wasn’t appropriate for them to embrace intimately upon meeting.

Wei Lai walked up to him, straightened his tie, adjusted his guest pass, and tugged at his suit jacket.

Her action of tugging at his jacket reminded Zhou Sujin of when they signed the contract together.

He looked down at her, letting her tug and adjust everything she could in front of him.

“When did you arrive?”

He was asking about her arrival time in Beijing. Wei Lai was evasive. “Just arrived.” She let go of his jacket and walked alongside him into the venue.

Upon arriving at the VIP lounge, they exchanged pleasantries with everyone.

The boss of Lemon Group was also there because Lemon Food was one of Wei Lai’s partners, so they discussed work for a few minutes.

“Are several stores opening today?”

Wei Lai nodded. “Yes, three. I’m going to visit the stores in the afternoon. I just happened to pass by here to see our CEO, Mr. Zhou.”

The boss of Lemon Group remarked, “It’s necessary to come and see. Certain people were almost angered by that advertising slogan.”

Wei Lai remained silent.

Zhou Sujin looked at him without saying a word.

As if nothing had happened, he turned his head and discussed Wei Lai’s membership card with Lu Yu.

Wei Lai sat down next to Zhou Sujin and took out the contract from the document folder. “This is the gift for you.”

Zhou Sujin was slightly stunned as he opened the facade purchase and sale contract.

The sofa was crowded with people, and everyone turned to look when they heard the word “gift.”

Lu Yu was the most curious. “What gift?” He stood up and came over to see.

Others in the lounge weren’t very familiar with this storefront, but he was. He often went there to buy things. “Wei Lai, isn’t this the storefront of your Jiang’an Yunchen store?”

“Yeah.” Wei Lai smiled. “That supermarket was originally opened for Mr. Zhou. It wasn’t appropriate to give the supermarket alone, so I gave the storefront to him. As long as the storefront exists, the supermarket will always be there.”