Su Yi recalled that after the last offline strategy meeting, he had said he would visit them but hadn't had the chance, so he smiled and agreed.
He said that after he finished what he was busy with, he would definitely go early in the afternoon.
Afterward, he took Chu Wan to a restaurant for a meal.
Then, after eating, he bought some expensive tea and skincare products at a nearby mall as gifts for his visit to the Qiu family.
"Sir, what I just recommended to you are products suitable for older sisters. Actually, our brand also has many skincare products suitable for a beautiful younger sister like the one next to you."
At a certain high-end counter, Su Yi was holding the complete set of skincare products recommended by the salesperson, just about to pay, when the salesperson didn't let him off, continuing to recommend,
"This is our newly launched product, a youthful collection, highly cost-effective, and very effective..."
The salesperson spoke very quickly, with clear pronunciation and articulation, and combined with their expressions and demeanor, they were extremely engaging.
Su Yi watched the salesperson's highly infectious sales pitch, and at the same time, seeing their familiar face, his mind turned, and he smiled,
"If I buy another set, can I add you on WeChat?"
"M-my WeChat?"
The salesperson was slightly stunned.
They couldn't help but scrutinize Su Yi, then apologized profusely,
"Sir, if you mean that... I'm afraid I cannot."
"What does that mean?"
This time, it was Su Yi's turn to be puzzled.
However, he was only briefly stunned for a moment before instantly understanding.
He smiled and said,
"I think you misunderstood. I just think you're very good at selling cosmetics, and I was thinking of getting your contact information, in case we have a chance to cooperate in the future."
"That's no problem,"
The salesperson replied, and seeing their misunderstanding, quickly apologized again.
Seeing the salesperson agree, Su Yi unhesitatingly bought the second set of skincare products they recommended and added them on WeChat.
"Your name is Li Jiaqi, right?"
Su Yi asked while noting down the salesperson's WeChat contact.
"Yes, sir."
Li Jiaqi packed the two sets of skincare products for Su Yi, replied subconsciously, and then realized, eagerly asking,
"How does sir know my name?"
"I guessed,"
Su Yi smiled, without explaining further.
Amidst the salesperson's surprised expression, Su Yi took the packed product bag from their hand and, holding Chu Wan's hand, left the mall.
After that, he drove Chu Wan home.
He then forwarded Li Jiaqi's WeChat contact to General Manager Huang Youquan of 'Xiangzheng Wenhua' company, which he had invested in, asking him to find a way to sign Li Jiaqi no matter what.
He also told Huang Youquan that if the company was short on funds, he could provide interest-free loans to the company without charge.
The era of live-streaming sales and the explosion of influencer IPs had not yet arrived.
Therefore, he expected 'Xiangzheng Wenhua' company to endure a long period of struggle in the darkness before dawn.
And he was prepared to continue investing funds to help the company survive the darkness and welcome the dawn.
Because when the darkness passed, and dawn arrived.
The abundant fruits yielded under the sunlight would be entirely worth the initial investment.
Huang Youquan was extremely excited to see Su Yi's message.
After all, Su Yi's words were equivalent to completely resolving all funding issues during the company's expansion phase before it could become profitable, freeing him from worries.
"Alright, General Manager Su,"
Huang Youquan quickly responded.
"When negotiating with them, the terms of treatment can be made appropriately generous, and the career development plan should also be as attractive as possible,"
Su Yi reminded.
"This is a talent worth nurturing, and I believe that as long as our company signs this person, they will bring unexpected revenue and profits to the company in the future."
Huang Youquan replied,
"General Manager Su, rest assured, we will definitely do everything we can to sign the talent you favor and invest our team in their key operations."
Previously, ever since Su Yi invested in the company.
He had not made any demands regarding the company's development, personnel, or systems.
This time, it was Su Yi's first time making a request to the company and to him, and whether Huang Youquan was happy or not, he couldn't possibly refuse.
What's more, Su Yi was already the company's biggest backer.
The entire company's operational foundation was supported by the funds Su Yi provided; there was simply no way he could refuse Su Yi's requests.
"Good!"
Su Yi said after giving his instructions, then closed the chat window.
Immediately after, he glanced at the time, seeing that it was already 3 PM.
He then bid farewell to Chu Wan, drove out alone, and, following the address Qiu Guoyu sent him, arrived at a private luxury villa complex in the city center.
Upon arrival, he parked the car.
Led by the Qiu residence's butler who came out to greet him, Su Yi entered the Qiu family's gate.
As soon as he stepped into the Qiu home, he was struck by the interior decoration.
The entire house in front of him was decorated in a classical Chinese style.
The furniture inside was mostly made of expensive solid wood, with antique porcelain, curios, calligraphy, and paintings visible everywhere, all tastefully arranged.
Although this decorating style might not appear overly luxurious on the surface, a closer look would reveal that even a casual piece of calligraphy or painting used as decoration on the wall was immensely valuable, possibly even comparable to the entire renovation cost of an average person's home.
"You are... Xiao Su, right?"
Just as Su Yi was looking at the interior decor, a woman in her forties smiled and greeted him,
"Old Qiu is in the courtyard outside, playing chess with Old Fang. Please sit for a while, I'll have Xiao Tian make you a cup of tea."
As she spoke.
Before she could turn to give further instructions, the young maid named 'Xiao Tian' in the house was already preparing tea.
Su Yi glanced at the woman in front of him.
Although the woman appeared to be in her forties, she still maintained a good figure, and her face faintly showed the peerless grace of her youth.
Moreover, her soft, melodious Wu dialect, characteristic of Shanghai locals, instinctively gave people a very gentle, refined, and comfortable feeling.
"No need to trouble yourself, Shimu."
Su Yi smiled and handed the gifts in his hand to her,
"I didn't know what you and Teacher Qiu liked, so I just picked a few things based on my own thoughts."
"Oh dear... look how polite you are..."
The woman said courteously,
"It's just a casual meal at home, there's no need for all these things."
"I didn't specially prepare anything, it's just a small token of my regard,"
Su Yi said.
Seeing Su Yi say this, the woman couldn't refuse.
She had the butler put away the items and then invited Su Yi to sit down.
Su Yi thought it would be boring to sit in the living room, so he went out to the courtyard.
He found the garden outside to be a completely different world.
The entire courtyard was probably seventy to eighty square meters, complete with rockeries, ponds, covered bridges, lakeside pavilions, and various valuable flowers and plants, truly having everything.
It was exquisitely arranged; being in it, one felt as if implicitly dwelling in a peaceful and tranquil natural environment, completely unaware that this was the bustling, glamorous, and extremely expensive heart of Shanghai.
And besides the garden environment that particularly surprised Su Yi.
At the lakeside pavilion, two beauties, one older and one younger, were playfully teasing the fish in the water, which clearly caught his attention.
The younger girl appeared to be about the same age as Chu Wan, with an oval face, bright large eyes, a ponytail, wearing a dress with a small jacket over it, exuding a full sense of youthfulness.
Su Yi noticed that her appearance bore some resemblance to the woman who had just greeted him.
He guessed she must be Qiu Guoyu's daughter.
As for the other, slightly older beauty, she looked to be about his age.
She had shoulder-length short hair, wore a Chanel-style outfit, had a great figure, and exquisite features.
She was sitting diagonally on the railing of the lakeside pavilion, holding a fish-feeding tray.
Her bright eyes briefly swept over Su Yi, then turned back to the fish pond, where she grabbed some bait from the tray with her hand and scattered it into the pond, causing a multitude of fish to scramble for food.
"Xiao Su, you're here."
In the middle of the pavilion, a few steps away from the two beauties, one older and one younger.
Qiu Guoyu, who was playing chess with Fang Xingyuan, saw Su Yi arrive and quickly called out,
"Come over and help me see, how should I make this move to turn the tide?"
Su Yi walked into the pavilion along the covered bridge over the pond and glanced at the chessboard.
He said with a smile,
"Teacher Qiu, you've got me stumped. I know nothing about Go."
"Haha... Old Qiu, you miscalculated, didn't you?"
Fang Xingyuan glanced at Su Yi, laughed loudly, and said,
"You thought you had a savior, but you didn't expect... Xiao Su doesn't understand Go."
"Alas, indeed,"
Qiu Guoyu sighed lightly, conceding the game.
"Forget it, when it comes to Go, I'm not as good as you. How about we compete in something else?"
"Compete in what?"
Fang Xingyuan asked with a smile.
Qiu Guoyu said,
"How about appraising calligraphy and painting? I recently acquired an authentic work by Zhang Daqian; could you help me appraise it?"
"No, no..."
Fang Xingyuan quickly waved his hand.
"Appraising calligraphy and painting? Wouldn't that be brandishing a large sword before Guan Gong? It's no fun. How about... discussing tea? And in that regard, Xiao Su is an expert, so the helper you found is just right."
"General Manager Fang, you flatter me. I only know a little bit,"
Su Yi said with a smile.
"Second Uncle, Uncle Qiu, discussing tea is so uninteresting. Go, calligraphy and painting, tea ceremony... while they are traditional Chinese culture, they are also old antiques. It's always the same old things, nothing new,"
The short-haired beauty who was originally feeding fish gently put down the feeding tray, clapped her hands, and said with a smile,
"In ancient times, Cao Cao and Liu Bei of the Three Kingdoms discussed heroes over wine. Today, how about we discuss economics over tea? Following macroeconomic paths, finding future investment opportunities, diagnosing domestic economic development challenges, and devising solutions to benefit the world—wouldn't that be wonderful?"
(End of Chapter)