The taxi was stopped by the diligent security at the entrance to the residential complex. Jiang Nan got out, paid, and the security guard, recognizing her, smiled apologetically and obsequiously. Jiang Nan simply nodded, not taking it to heart.
In the living room of the three-story villa, Han Jiayi was watching the news. When she saw Jiang Nan return, she didn’t get up but smiled kindly, “Why are you walking back? You didn’t get into an accident, did you?”
There was enough tacit understanding between mother and daughter. Jiang Nan rolled her eyes and hooked her arm around her mother’s, “Mom, you underestimate me. Next time, don’t take me out shopping. Today, someone asked me if you were my sister. It was so embarrassing!”
Han Jiayi laughed, her eyes crinkling with joy, knowing her daughter was just trying to make her happy. But she was still pleased.
“Your dad called from abroad, asking what you want for your birthday?”
“Dad probably didn’t say that. You don’t have to cover for him.” Jiang Nan pouted, playing the part of the pampered daughter in front of her mother.
“Nonsense! That’s your father. He’s concerned about you. That’s not fake, is it?” Han Jiayi raised her hand as if to hit her, but when her hand fell on her daughter’s shoulder, it was light as a feather.
“I know Dad. He’s probably more concerned about when I’ll start working at the company, right?” Jiang Nan pouted, holding her mother’s arm tightly and rubbing her face against her mother’s cheek.
After a moment of affection, Jiang Nan finally said, “Mom, tell Dad to give me Sophie as a birthday gift.”
“What? You have a problem with Han Jie? For the sake of your uncle, just bear with it.” Han Jiayi was sensitive, overthinking things a bit.
“I don’t have a problem with Cousin. I just want to do something. Sure, I could learn a lot at the group headquarters, but I feel it’s not grounded enough. I’d rather start with something small while Mom and Dad are still young. After thinking about it, this is the only project that seems practical.”
Because of her uncle, Jiang Nan was very strategic. Naturally, Han Jiayi cared more about her daughter. She frowned slightly, “You should at least talk to your father.”
Jiang Nan clung to her mother’s arm, shaking it, “Mom, everyone at the group headquarters knows me. Even if I achieve something, they won’t think it’s because of my ability. I just want to prove myself. Three years, at most three years, and then I’ll go to the group headquarters, starting as a regular employee.”
“Alright, but you have to talk to your uncle yourself. I’ll talk to your dad.” Han Jiayi couldn’t resist her daughter’s affectionate pleas and thought her idea was good, so she agreed. Jiang Nan, excited, kissed her mother’s face and ran upstairs. With her goal achieved, she didn’t linger.
Han Jiayi smiled as she watched her daughter go upstairs, then took out her phone to dial a number. When the call connected, she smiled, “Old Jiang, our daughter has grown up and wants to prove herself.” Far away in Europe, Jiang Ziliu stood by the hotel window, looking out at the lights and smiling fondly, “Is that so? Maybe she’s chasing a sense of accomplishment. Let her do what she wants.”
After her bath, dressed in her pajamas, Jiang Nan sat in her room, talking to her laptop, “You really didn’t add me?”
Frustrated, Jiang Nan pulled out her phone and dialed the number. When the call connected, her voice was calm, “Please add me on QQ and WeChat.”
“I zoned out earlier and didn’t hear.” Zeng Yu hadn’t expected to hear Jiang Nan’s voice so soon. Hearing a noise outside, he quickly added, “Someone’s calling me. I’ll contact you later.”
Standing at the door was Ye Xiyan. She lived with her boyfriend, Wang Zheng, in the apartment opposite Zeng Yu. This was a village in the city, with many multi-story rural houses (small-property rights houses). The advantage was cheap rent, but the downside was the mix of people.
“Wang Zheng drank too much. Help me get him upstairs.” Ye Xiyan looked anxious. Zeng Yu nodded.
Following her downstairs, he saw Wang Zheng lying on the ground, reeking of alcohol and fast asleep. Zeng Yu sighed and hoisted him onto his back.
Wang Zheng was about 1.85 meters tall, weighing over 150 pounds. Zeng Yu, fit and strong, carried him without much difficulty.
Ye Xiyan opened the door, and Zeng Yu placed Wang Zheng on the bed. After Ye Xiyan thanked him, Zeng Yu left.
Returning to his room, Zeng Yu locked the door. The room was a small single unit of about a dozen square meters with a bathroom. After the bed was set up, there wasn’t much space left. A desk was placed by the bed, and sitting on it, looking at his computer, Zeng Yu couldn’t calm his mind.
Xiao Xiao’s departure had been a significant blow to Zeng Yu. He had always considered himself good enough, but now he realized he wasn’t anything special. Looking at the proposal on his computer, Zeng Yu felt an urge to delete it. But he remembered the months of hard work he had put into it and couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Patting his pockets, Zeng Yu remembered he had quit smoking. Not long after meeting Xiao Xiao and learning she didn’t like smoking, Zeng Yu had given it up.
Often, giving doesn’t necessarily bring rewards.
Zeng Yu got up to go buy a pack of cigarettes, but when he reached the bottom of the stairs, he stopped: “I never expected anything in return for what I did for her. Who says giving always requires something in return?” Zeng Yu smiled bitterly and shook his head, turning back to his room.
His QQ notifications were flashing. Seeing that the ID “Jiangnan’s Rain” was requesting to add him as a friend with the note “Jiang Nan,” Zeng Yu added her. He replied with, “What’s up?”
Jiang Nan felt like smashing her screen—this jerk! She could almost see his cold expression through the screen.
“I have a file for you to look at.” Jiang Nan suppressed her annoyance and sent a file. Zeng Yu accepted it and opened it. It was a detailed document about the Sophie brand, starting with its history. Zeng Yu didn’t know where Jiang Nan had gotten such detailed information, but he spent two hours carefully reading it.
Jiang Nan had sent the file and then went to take a bath. Afterward, she looked at her radiant face in the mirror and smiled with satisfaction.
After reading the file, Zeng Yu sent Jiang Nan a message, “Finished reading it. I have some ideas; the original plan can be improved. The main issue now is the deposit required for the distribution rights.”
Without hesitation, Jiang Nan replied, “I’ll take care of the money. You just need to come up with a comprehensive and feasible plan.”
Zeng Yu was silent for a long time before asking, “Why?”
“No reason. I just want to do something, and you’re the best partner available. Obviously, you wouldn’t want to work for me, so we might as well partner up.” Jiang Nan didn’t think Zeng Yu was being overly sensitive. If the roles were reversed, she would have asked the same.
“Let’s meet tomorrow to discuss the details. Thank you!”
Zeng Yu’s guard lowered slightly. When Jiang Nan saw the words “Thank you,” she couldn’t help but ask, “Why thank me?”
Zeng Yu didn’t respond, and his avatar dimmed.
Zeng Yu didn’t tell Jiang Nan that he had almost given up on his entrepreneurial plans. If it weren’t for her appearance, the blow from the breakup would have shaken his confidence. The challenges ahead were numerous, and Zeng Yu knew when he left Hongda that he had been too naive. No matter how well-written his proposal was, without startup capital, the plan to distribute Sophie would almost certainly be stillborn.
“Why so many whys?” Zeng Yu muttered, plugging in his USB drive and opening the proposal.
When Zeng Yu woke up, it was already 9:30 a.m. He reached for his phone by the bedside, glanced at the time, and saw six missed calls, all from Jiang Nan.
“I didn’t hear the ringtone?” Zeng Yu was puzzled. Checking his settings, he realized his phone was on silent.
He quickly called back, apologizing as soon as the call connected, “Sorry, I was asleep. My phone was on silent.”
“Hmm, I figured. I’ll send you the address. Come over when you’re ready.” Jiang Nan wasn’t angry. Objectively speaking, they had no real relationship yet, and her call had indeed disturbed his sleep.
Jiang Nan hung up and texted the address. Zeng Yu didn’t particularly like the slightly commanding tone, but considering his plans and his desire to see his hard work not go to waste, he had no right to be picky.
Following the directions, he arrived at an old residential area. Luckily, though the city was large, the location wasn’t too far. After taking the subway, it was a five-minute walk.
Zeng Yu knocked on the door, and Jiang Nan opened it, greeting him with her usual polite smile, “You’re here, faster than I expected. You’re not a local, are you?”
Zeng Yu was taken aback, “Local? No, I’m not.”
Jiang Nan didn’t dwell on the question and turned to get him some slippers.
“This two-bedroom apartment is well-located. If mortgaged, it could fetch three million yuan from the bank. What do you think?” Jiang Nan looked at Zeng Yu calmly, her eyes filled with a sense of control.
Zeng Yu was a sensitive, prideful person, and Jiang Nan handled him cautiously to avoid triggering his nerves, especially now that he had just broken up with his girlfriend.
“Why don’t you look at my revised marketing plan first, then we can talk about the partnership?” Zeng Yu confidently took out his USB drive, and Jiang Nan nodded, “That’s a good idea.”
The revised proposal emphasized the concept of traceability. It wasn’t a new idea—French wineries had been doing it for years. The idea was simple: every step of the wine production process, from watering and fertilizing to harvesting, was meticulously recorded. In other words, the entire journey from grape to bottle was fully transparent.
The benefits were clear. It instantly elevated the product to a higher level of sophistication.
In contrast, the previous marketing approach was a mess. What was originally a high-end product had been devalued by selling it in supermarkets, dragging the brand down to an abysmal level.
The proposal also targeted a specific demographic: the urban middle-class, positioning them as the primary consumer group.
Jiang Nan read the plan carefully, then looked up at Zeng Yu, noticing the bloodshot eyes. She thought, he must have stayed up late. Talented people are not rare, but talented and hardworking ones at this age are.
“Your plan is excellent. Let’s discuss our partnership.” Jiang Nan approved the proposal and the man behind it. Profits were secondary to her; what mattered was realizing her potential through this project. If she could make this brand successful, she would find joy in the accomplishment.
Since it was a partnership, transparency was essential. Zeng Yu said, “To be honest, my original plan was a bit rough. I oversimplified things, thinking I could impress Hongda with my proposal and secure a regional distribution right. But after some reflection, I realized I hadn’t covered all my bases. I haven’t even registered a company.”
Jiang Nan smiled silently, nodding for him to continue. Zeng Yu rubbed his face with his hands, “Aside from this proposal, I have nothing. How we proceed is up to you.”
Jiang Nan smiled again, “If you were content to work under others, you wouldn’t have come up with this proposal. You’d be working at some company right now. From that perspective, we’re alike. The difference is, I don’t want to be constrained while making a living, and you have a strong entrepreneurial spirit, wanting to achieve something significant. How about this: you think about how we can collaborate. I don’t intend to sway your ideas. It’s still early to discuss our partnership details. Let’s visit Hongda this afternoon, and if we can convince Mr. Han, we’ll talk further.”
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