He pulled out his phone and glanced at some notes.
"Assuming an average order of fifty-five yuan with our current margin, and average driver cost of about eight to nine yuan per order... by the end of month one, we're looking at a net profit of around fifteen thousand."
He scratched his head, "Hmm, maybe we'll keep the 1,000 salary for a while," he said, causing the others to chuckle.
"Well anyway, it's still profitable. Barely, but still profitable"
"After two or three months of stable operation, we'll have enough capital to open a second warehouse." Lin Feng looked around the room. "And then a third. Eventually, for full coverage of Hangzhou's urban area, we'd need around fifteen to twenty warehouses. But that's far in the future."
He leaned back.
"For now, we focus on making this first one work."
The room fell silent as they absorbed the plan.
Then, one by one, they nodded.
"I'm convinced," Li Jun said.
"Same here," Chen Ming added.
Zhang Wei simply gave a firm nod.
Lin Feng smiled.
"Then let's get to work." He looked at Li Jun. "You handle the details - both for the loan contracts and the expansion paperwork. Location scouting, permits, all of it."
"Oh, and negotiate a better margin with our supplier too while you're at it. We're almost at wholesale levels now." He added.
Li Jun nodded. "Got it."
"Chen Ming and I will work on marketing and finalizing employee recruitment."
Chen Ming saluted lazily. "On it, boss."
Lin Feng turned to Zhang Wei.
"As for you... well, do what you do best. Anything we might need for the app - the new payment system, route optimization, distance restrictions, all of it."
Zhang Wei was already reaching for his laptop.
"Leave it to me."
…
Yu Shen opened the door and gestured for Lin Feng to enter.
Lin Feng stepped inside and looked around. The space was modest but well-organized - a desk, a few chairs, some basic furniture.
"Pretty nice place," he said.
Yu Shen moved to sit on the opposite side of the desk. Lin Feng took a seat across from him.
"This should do," Lin Feng said, leaning back. "I've also been in talks with my lawyer. Our documents are clean. Now we just have to wait for inspection."
He looked at Yu Shen.
"How are things on your end?"
Yu Shen sighed.
"I handled the matter about our compliance." He paused. "Still... I'm a little worried about our growth."
Lin Feng nodded slowly.
It seemed they had stalled too much. Their AUM had just hit 3 million yuan yesterday. Compared to their earlier milestones, the pace had slowed considerably.
"How much money do we have?" he asked.
"Currently, we have about 25,000 yuan in company funds," Yu Shen said. "I've already subtracted our monthly expenses."
Lin Feng nodded.
"Spend all of that on ads," he said. "Just small ads here and there should redirect some traffic. I'll look for a proper solution later."
Yu Shen nodded. "I'll do that."
Then he looked down.
Lin Feng noticed the change in his expression.
What's up with this kid?
"Is something the matter?" he asked, offering a reassuring smile. "Don't be afraid to say if something is bothering you."
Yu Shen hesitated.
"It's just... about the whole LLM thing," he started.
"Ah, that…"
"Yes. Ever since you told me about it, I've been looking into it."
Lin Feng's expression brightened. He looked at Yu Shen with genuine interest.
"What do you think? Do you think we can build one of our own?"
Yu Shen raised his hands, waving them quickly.
"Well, not yet to that level." He adjusted his glasses. "I've been researching. I think we could... but not at the moment. We lack money."
He paused, gathering his thoughts.
"Maybe after Tianji takes off - like, really takes off - and we get big money... we might have just enough to open our own lab under Tianji."
Lin Feng smiled.
"It's a good plan." He stood up. "Let's do that."
So my plan didn't fail after all.
He had talked about LLMs specifically to plant that seed in Yu Shen's mind early. When he hadn't heard anything about it for a while, he had started to wonder if it hadn't taken root.
It turned out the idea had just been bubbling in his head this whole time - and it had finally come out.
Lin Feng glanced at his system.
[Personal Balance: ¥1,292,541.00]
He had finally broken through to millionaire territory.
He stared at the number for a long moment.
While he really wanted to spend it on Tianji - to expand it more, to earn more money - he decided against it.
He sighed internally.
I need to save up for the auction.
The chairman had sent him the leak of the items that would be available. He had already found one that would suit the Zhao family chairman perfectly.
But to get it, he would need to win it at auction.
This isn't going to be easy.
…
Su Yue's apartment.
Lin Feng sat across from Mengqi in the living room.
"It's already been a week since she last went live," Mengqi said. "Although she's still posting some short-form content... won't the fans lose interest if she doesn't go live again soon?"
Lin Feng smiled.
"No need to worry. Haven't you heard that absence makes the heart grow fonder?"
She just looked at him with a blank expression.
He cleared his throat.
"Ahem. Anyway, Su Yue is an idol now. We can't just give her away all the time. We need to show the fans that she isn't something you can just get." He spread his hands. "It needs to feel like something special."
He shifted topics.
"Anyway, how's the recruitment going?"
Mengqi crossed her arms.
"I have some candidates in mind. But to be honest, I don't think we need all that much." She tilted her head. "I handle all the training and talent management. I suppose we could use an accountant and a social media manager. And an assistant for Su Yue too."
She paused.
"And if we want the presence of a genuine agency, we'll need to rent an office space. There are cheap options, but…"
"I understand," Lin Feng interrupted. "I'll think about it."
He stood up.
"Where is Su Yue?"
Mengqi rose as well and started walking.
"She's training with Yanzi."
"With Yanzi?" Lin Feng asked, following her.
"Yeah." She glanced back at him. "You asked her to train her in self-defense, remember?"
"Ah, yeah. That."
The two walked down the hallway and entered the training room.