Chapter 52: Could You Promise Me One Thing? Part 2

“And as for me, my sales routes are market-proven, stable, and have an audience. Plus, my requirements for warehousing are very low, which is perfect for an enterprise like theirs just entering the Northwest for development.”

“Think about it. Logistics will only get more and more convenient, so warehousing won’t be such a rigid necessity. If we can have fixed distributors and production sites in the provincial capital and An City—two cities that roughly sit in the center of the Northwest—we can use my plan to establish a series of arrangements: pre-sale periods, delivery periods, installation periods, and after-sales periods. We’ll build a network of merging transfer points. When the time comes, even in the depths of the border regions, if someone wants their products, they just need to place an order at a storefront. Within a week at most, the product will arrive at their home along with after-sales service.”

“They won’t need to build so many separate factories. They’ll only need one factory, one warehouse, one regional-level flagship store, and countless small shops that only serve as showrooms and after-sales repair points. The cost would be much lower than countless factories, warehouses, and shops carrying heavy sales burdens.”

“Although our Northwest has the advantage of vast land and a sparse population with low land prices, the consumption power is also low. More factories and warehouses mean higher costs, making it hard to recoup the investment. But my plan perfectly lowers the costs, right!”

As Su Ye’s increasingly passionate tone fell into a calm trailing note, the other three present fell into silence. Their gazes converged on the inverted tree diagram Su Ye had been sketching as she spoke.

It was a schematic summary of everything she had just explained. At the top was the Group; below it, the country was divided into six regions, and below that were even finer divisions.

One could say that Su Ye hadn’t just considered herself; she had considered the future development model for her partners. Of course, she wouldn’t easily hand over all this information to them. This information was the handle for the “Seizing the Initiative” strategy Lin Wanjia had mentioned. She would hold it tightly to push herself into a position of absolute initiative again and again.

But that wasn’t a concern for the moment. For now, she needed the approval of someone more experienced before she could take this to the negotiation table.

Zhang Mingfang looked at it for a while, then buried her head in her arms. “Wait, my brain is a bit dizzy. You guys talk; I need to think.”

She knew the most basic talent for doing business was to look far and think much, to understand and know how to observe. She had seen this skill in Lin Wanjia; that woman’s grasp of future policies and economic trends was terrifying, which was why her own family feared her. But now, the student this person had intentionally or unintentionally mentored had turned out to be even more terrifying at such a young age.

Then again, when Lin Wanjia was twenty, she was still losing sleep over what to cook for her grandmother the next day. She hadn’t had the conditions back then to completely let loose and do something like this.

Zhang Mingfang silently cast another vote for her girlfriend in her heart.

Lin Wanjia rested her head on her hand for a moment, then picked up the paper and shook it. “You thought of all this yourself?”

Her gaze fell on Yue Chengqi.

Little Yue silently shook her head.

In this matter, she had truly followed their agreement and hadn’t helped Su Ye at all—not even a little bit. At most, she had helped her standardize the format of the proposal and polish the writing; she hadn’t said a single extra word.

She was also shocked. Su Ye’s little brain was actually so far ahead. Was this the basic quality of a juvenile entrepreneur? So powerful! Even without her, Su Ye could have completely built a great career on her own.

After all, what Su Ye had thought of was the very bargaining chip Everguest would later use to negotiate with partners—a regional flagship store overseeing small supermarkets on every street corner of small cities, forming a tight network. Through convenient logistics, one could buy the most advanced things in the small supermarkets and find simple, unpretentious items in the large ones.

This was all the product of Su Ye’s own wisdom. So, what was the meaning of her existence here?

Yue Chengqi fell into a rare state of deep self-doubt.

Having received a negative answer, Lin Wanjia looked at it even more seriously. After scanning it back and forth, she asked, “But you’re only a distributor for the Northwest. What’s the point of writing all this extra stuff?”

“I’m just practicing my own concepts. If the Group is smart enough, it’ll be useful. If they aren’t… well, whatever. One day I’ll face the same choices. By then, as long as I’m smart enough, it’ll be fine.”

Lin Wanjia smiled and nodded. She folded the paper neatly, stroke by stroke, and handed it back to Su Ye. “Before you told me this, did you start the preparations?”

Su Ye tucked away this piece of validation. “I’ve started. I’ve already begun talking to the people at Red Sun. If I can land both this time, Sister, I will have achieved the first step of what you called ‘Seizing the Initiative.’”

“Don’t be in a hurry with the big corporations. Controlling them isn’t as good as utilizing them as a springboard to gain more resources. You can handle the rest yourself.”

This was an even greater mark of recognition and trust. Su Ye happily packed up her things and downed three cups of water. Refusing Yue Chengqi’s help, she hopped away like a spring once more, boing-boing-ing out of the room.

Zhang Mingfang: “Is it really okay for her to hop around like that?”

Yue Chengqi, who was tidying up the teacups, paused and shook her head helplessly. “I can’t control her. And…”

That wound had been cared for very well. There was no hyperplasia, so although a scar remained, it wasn’t as terrifying as Su Ye’s previous scars. It was basically healed now. Unless Su Ye decided to go for a fifty-meter sprint, that scar would remain as the record of her first successful change of history.

She was truly a bit happy—very happy.

History wasn’t unchangeable. Her previous actions had simply happened to click into the right time nodes; it was nothing special and didn’t have to point toward a fixed destiny. So… some questions could remain buried.

Yue Chengqi thought this through and said softly, “And her leg is mostly recovered. A little hopping won’t hurt.”

*

When Yue Chengqi returned to the courtyard, Su Ye was sitting on the swing, staring into space.

She put her things away and walked over slowly, sitting down beside Su Ye. “What are you thinking about? You’re so distracted.”

“I just… it doesn’t feel real.” Su Ye leaned back shamelessly against her, her good leg pushing off the ground to swing them back and forth, as if trying to prove her lack of reality.

Su Ye said, “When I ran away from the orphanage, I didn’t even know how to get into An City. Only five years have passed, and I can actually talk business with a big company from Guangdong.”

“Ah Huan, I feel so lucky.”

Yue Chengqi lowered her eyes and smoothed Su Ye’s hair, gently but firmly negating her words.

The girl rolled over and looked at her. “Why are you disagreeing with me? Do you think I haven’t done enough? I… I can work harder!”

Yue Chengqi was helpless. She pressed down on the combustible, explosive girl and held her gently. “ I just feel that you’ve worked hard enough on this journey. Everything you have was brought about by your wisdom and effort. Although luck is a part of strength, luck is also brought about by wisdom and effort.”

“I don’t want to hear you sigh about good fate. I want to hear you marvel that your efforts have finally paid off, and that your months of studying weren’t in vain.”

Su Ye looked at her as if she were a monster.

Yue Chengqi had long grown accustomed to this gaze. She made a gesture. “Fine, fine, just consider it a roundabout way of putting it.”

“I understand. But I still have to marvel at my good fate,” Su Ye said. “Only with good fate could I meet Sister Wanjia.” Only with good fate could I meet you.

Yue Chengqi chuckled. “That’s true. A stroke of luck like Sister Wanjia is indeed something only good fate can find.”

Su Ye huffed, calling her “pretentious” under her breath, and shamelessly threw herself into Yue Chengqi’s arms. She hugged the waist that had grown increasingly firm over the past few months and gave it a couple of playful squeezes. “I feel like you’ve become leaner and more toned. You feel really good to the touch.”

She didn’t just say it; she touched. And she didn’t just touch; she held that lean waist and slid her hands up and down. Her vertical thumbs even occasionally brushed against the curve of Yue Chengqi’s hips. But the surreptitious girl didn’t realize at all what she was doing; she simply wanted to admire the increasingly solid muscles on Yue Huan’s body.

Moving so many goods every day, it would be strange if she wasn’t solid. Su Ye hadn’t done much work lately, so her own flesh had grown soft. She’d have to get her tone back later.

For someone who already harbored ulterior motives, however, this was pure torture.

Yue Chengqi gritted her teeth in warning. “Su Ye!!”

“Eh, yeah, I’m here.” The girl answered nonchalantly, her hand immediately sliding from the waist down to the leg—

There wasn’t a hint of desire for a romantic atmosphere in her heart. All there was was admiration and praise for Yue Huan’s healthy, solid muscles.

I definitely have to train back to this.

“Do lesbians mind being touched like this?”

“…Yes.” Yue Chengqi radiated a ghostly, chilly aura as if accepting her fate.

Su Ye was so startled she fell off the swing. Her misbehaving hand remained frozen in mid-air, trembling slightly.

She sat in the dirt. “Why didn’t you say so sooner!”

“I called your name! I warned you!”

Su Ye curled her lip. “Liar. I didn’t hear it.”

“…”

Yue Chengqi let out a long sigh, comforting herself: That’s just how it is. These ‘half-straight’ women are just like this. Don’t pay it any mind, don’t overthink it, it has nothing to do with you. It’s fine.

It’s fine!

She isn’t making you uncomfortable on purpose!

Despite her thoughts, the girl could only endure the sensation in her body—like the scratching of a kitten—as she walked over and pulled Su Ye up. Then, she picked her up by the waist. “Go to sleep!”

“You’re really so strong. Even before you had all these muscles, you were strong enough to carry me.”

Yue Chengqi shot her a glance. “Then get down and walk.”

“No, no, no.” The girl hugged her neck like a sycophant, grinning widely.

Once Yue Chengqi placed her on the bed, however, the girl suddenly found a burst of strength from somewhere. She grabbed Yue Chengqi’s collar and lunged forward, almost…

Almost bumping her mouth against hers.

“What are you doing?!” Yue Chengqi was even more horrified, quickly backing away half a step.

This was becoming a bit too reckless! And there wasn’t even any thunder today. Did this girl—did this girl have any idea how much of a shock her actions caused? How cruel, how cruel…

I want to kiss her so much.

Don’t push me anymore. I really will kiss you.

Su Ye, however, seemed completely unaware of what she was doing—or perhaps she was deliberately unaware. She clutched the other’s clothes, putting on the pitiful expression of a kitten, and said carefully—

“Ah Huan, once this deal is finalized… could you promise me one thing?”