Chapter 16 The Sixteenth Day of Not Running Away The sixteenth day of not running away...

Chapter 16 The Sixteenth Day of Not Running Away The sixteenth day of not running away...

Wen Chan and the others were waiting for a call from Boss Ye and his team.

To everyone's surprise, around five or six o'clock, Boss Ye sent a driver to pick them up.

After the fat man and the others got into the car, they didn't know where to put their hands and feet. They usually only sat in the lower part of the car occasionally, and had never ridden in a Mercedes-Benz like this before.

The driver also told them that Boss Ye and his wife had specially invited them to eat Japanese food that night.

"Japanese food?" the fat man exclaimed in surprise. "Japanese food must be expensive."

Lin Qingfeng secretly pinched the fat man.

The driver chuckled and said, "Japanese food is certainly not cheap. That Japanese restaurant is very famous; it was opened by people from Hong Kong. I heard a meal there costs several thousand dollars."

Everyone was speechless.

When they arrived, Mr. Ye and his wife came out to greet them. This Japanese restaurant had a very typical Japanese style, with a shoe-changing area at the entrance and a small bridge and stream on the right.

As everyone changed their shoes, their eyes kept glancing at them.

The waiters were all dressed in Japanese kimonos and wooden clogs, and the lanterns were also Japanese style. The air inside was cool and had a pine scent.

"How about it? This place is pretty good, isn't it?" Boss Ye boasted as he led everyone into a private room and sat them down cross-legged. "This restaurant has been the most popular one in the last two years. You can't even get in without a reservation."

The proprietress said, "Old Ye, why are you saying all this? Everyone must be hungry. Look at the menu, this meal is on us, so please don't be shy."

She handed over two menus, one to Wen Chan and the other to Chen Bozheng and the others.

A waiter came over to take an order.

Although Chen Bozheng was mentally prepared, he was still shocked when he saw the prices. A regular sushi cost more than 100 yuan, and the standard price was two pieces per serving. None of the sushi was priced below 100 yuan, and even the cold dishes and stewed bamboo shoots cost 100 yuan per serving.

This is practically robbing people.

Mr. and Mrs. Ye ordered several servings of tuna belly. Seeing that Chen Bozheng and his group hadn't ordered yet, they said, "If you don't want anything, we'll just order whatever you like, okay?"

Chen Bozheng immediately replied, "When in Rome, do as the host says. Of course, I'll do as you say."

Wen Chan said, "I don't eat sushi, give me a bowl of chicken soup noodles."

The waiter took the order and went downstairs.

The proprietress picked up the teapot and poured tea for Wen Chan, her attitude much more attentive than before. "Miss Wen, thank you so much for yesterday. You don't know, but when we went back and inquired, we found out there really is such a law. If we had signed the contract, we would have been taken advantage of."

Wen Chan didn't take credit, saying, "Boss lady, we weren't much of a help. Even if we hadn't gone yesterday, you still hadn't signed a contract."

"That's different," Boss Ye said gloatingly. "We were furious when we didn't know, but now that we know, we feel much better. I won't lie to you, that Brother Wen and his gang are no good. We're all from out of town, here in Shenzhen to make our fortunes. They're ruthless and shameless; they'll do anything for business. They even set fire to another boss's factory before. They've really messed up this time, but we're happier than if we'd actually made that money."

Lin Qingfeng exclaimed in surprise, "Are these people really so unscrupulous in their actions?"

"Heh, they have powerful backers, but this time, even if they do, it's useless." Boss Ye chuckled as he thought of this. He picked up his teacup and said, "Miss Wen, I, Old Ye, will toast you with tea instead of wine."

Wen Chan gave him face, and besides, it was barley tea, which wouldn't upset his stomach.

Since Boss Ye and his wife were eager to make friends, they lowered their stance, and Lin Qingfeng and the others were able to speak with them.

After a while, the waiter brought the dishes, said "Enjoy your meal," and then prepared to leave.

Wen Chan stopped the waiter and pointed to the sushi platter that had been brought to the table, asking, "What is this?"

A hint of surprise flashed across the waiter's face as he lowered his head. "Sir, these are your tuna sushi and Arctic krill."

Wen Chan picked up a piece of fish with her chopsticks. "I know this is tuna, but this is tuna lean meat. We ordered tuna belly. Did you serve the wrong thing?"

The waiter's eyelids twitched, but he still argued, "Sir, this is a pregnant woman, we didn't make a mistake."

Wen Chan put down her chopsticks, her expression calm: "Call your manager over."

The waiter's face darkened, both embarrassed and annoyed. "Sir, please don't cause trouble in our restaurant. This is probably your first time eating sushi. Tuna belly is supposed to look like this."

Boss Ye and the others had no idea what had happened.

The proprietress pulled Wen Chan aside, "Miss Wen, what's wrong?"

Wen Chan said, "It's nothing. They're just trying to fool us by pretending to be naked and having a big belly. These two parts are priced differently. By pretending to be naked and having a big belly, they're clearly trying to make a fool of us."

Only then did everyone realize what was happening.

One by one, they looked at the waiter with unfriendly expressions.

The waiter looked visibly flustered. They had cheated many people using this method before. Nowadays, not many people know much about Japanese cuisine, and most of the people who come to this restaurant are nouveau riche who have no idea about the differences between different parts of tuna.

Tonight, I intended to scam someone, but I ended up running into an expert.

"What happened?" A man in a kimono walked over, speaking in Japanese, and he also looked Japanese.

The waiter immediately went over and, taking advantage of Wen Chan and his companions' lack of Japanese, fabricated a lie, saying that Wen Chan and his companions were causing trouble, complaining that the food was too little and too expensive, and trying to extort money from them.

Chen Bo frowned.

The fat man whispered, "What was that waiter saying to that Japanese guy in his own language? Could he be saying bad things about us?"

The proprietress turned pale and said to Wen Chan, "Miss Wen, why don't we just let it go and swallow this bitter pill? It would be so embarrassing if we were kicked out of here."

The proprietress also considered one point: many of the business partners they work with are Japanese, and Japanese people love to patronize this store when they come here. If they were blacklisted by this store, it would be a big problem if they wanted to serve customers here in the future.

Wen Chan grabbed the proprietress's arm, stood up, and walked towards the Japanese man.

When Yamamoto Ichiro saw Wen Chan approaching, he paused for a moment and awkwardly said hello in Chinese.

Wen Chan glanced at the waiter, who glared at her and then said to Yamamoto Ichiro in Japanese, "Manager Yamamoto, this is the woman who wants to dine and dash here."

Wen Chan smiled and said, "Passing off inferior goods as superiors, deceiving your superiors, Mr. Yamamoto, there are rats in your shop."

Her fluent Japanese stunned both Yamamoto Ichiro and the waiter.

The waiter looked at Wen Chan in surprise, clearly not expecting her to speak Japanese.

Yamamoto Ichiro frowned as he looked at Wen Chan and asked, "What's going on?"

Wen Chan turned around and pointed to the sushi platter. "We ordered tuna belly, but your staff served us sashimi instead, and kept saying, 'This is tuna belly.' Manager Yamamoto, I would like to ask if this is your restaurant's standard of hospitality, or is this how you treat customers who don't understand Japanese cuisine?"

Upon hearing this, Yamamoto Ichiro's expression changed immediately. He turned to the waiter with a dark face and began to question him.

The waiter was already feeling guilty, and being caught off guard by Wen Chan, he didn't have time to come up with a plausible lie. Yamamoto Ichiro wasn't stupid; he had just been unaware of the situation before, but now that he understood, he knew perfectly well that the waiter wanted to use him as a pawn. He was so angry that he cursed "Baka" several times.

The fat man leaned over and said to Chen Bozheng, "Brother Zheng, I understood what that Japanese guy was saying. He was calling that waiter a bastard."

Chen Bozheng and the others couldn't help but laugh.

The proprietress leaned over and said to Mr. Ye, "Old Ye, look, this Miss Wen can even speak Japanese and knows about tuna belly and naked fish, she must have quite a background!"

Wen Chan returned from negotiating with Yamamoto Ichiro. Yamamoto Ichiro repeatedly bowed and apologized, but Wen Chan waved his hand and then returned.

The proprietress asked impatiently, "What did the Japanese guy say?"

Wen Chan said, "He said he was very sorry that this happened, and as an apology, he would send us a bottle of sake later."

“Sake isn’t cheap either, so we won’t lose money.” The proprietress immediately remembered the price of sake and smiled.

She gave Wen Chan a thumbs up, "Miss Wen, you're amazing! I wonder what your family does? I didn't expect you to even speak Japanese."

Without much thought, Wen Chan replied directly, "I live alone at home."

The proprietress and Mr. Ye exchanged a glance. The couple both thought that Wen Chan was fooling them, but it didn't matter. They could build connections, and there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.

Yamamoto Ichiro personally delivered the sushi and sake, and even a fruit platter, showing great respect.

Wen Chan knew that the Japanese wanted to shut them up and prevent them from talking nonsense outside, so she gave him a direct answer.

Yamamoto Ichiro breathed a sigh of relief and even gave them his business card, saying that they could call him to make an appointment if they needed anything in the future.

"Honey, what are you looking at? Dad's been waiting for you inside for ages and he couldn't find you, so he told me to come out and look for you." Chu Yingying came out to look for him and found Xiao Dongbei near the private room.

Little Northeast was staring intently at something, his eyes fixed on it.

Chu Yingying followed his gaze and saw that he was looking at the private room across the street, where five or six men and two women were sitting. She frowned and asked, "What, did you see someone you know?"

Xiao Dongbei didn't know how to answer. He scratched his head and said, "Those are some friends of mine from my time in Beijing."

"Are those the ones who borrowed money from you before?" Chu Yingying's face fell, and she felt disdain. But when she saw Yamamoto Ichiro bowing to those people and handing them his business card, Chu Yingying's expression changed.

Chu Yingying often accompanied her father to social events, and she frequented this Japanese restaurant quite often, which is how she got to know Yamamoto Ichiro.

Ichiro Yamamoto is the manager of this shop. He is always in charge of entertaining important guests and ignores people like this.

He doesn't usually give his business card to just anyone.

Her father often complained that the Japanese had high standards and were arrogant.

But now Yamamoto Ichiro is actually bowing to Xiao Dongbei's poor friends and handing them his business cards.

Chu Yingying nudged Xiao Dongbei, "You said earlier that some of your friends ran into trouble and were broke. Were they just trying to fool you?"

Little Northeast mumbled, "I don't know."

He watched Chen Bozheng and his friends drinking and eating sushi with great enthusiasm, and his heart was filled with mixed feelings.

"Xiao Wen, Xiao Chen, we had a really good time tonight," said Boss Ye, still slightly drunk, as he was about to leave, he called two taxis to take them home. "Or, let's go back to my place and keep drinking!"

"Oh dear, you're already this drunk, and you're still drinking." The proprietress helped her husband into the car and said to Wen Chan and the others, "Old Ye is so drunk, we'll head back first. Xiao Wen, Xiao Chen, you two have to come to the factory tomorrow so we can discuss your orders properly."

Wen Chan nodded and watched the car drive away.

The two taxis hadn't arrived yet, and it was a bit windy. Wen Chan unconsciously pulled her coat tighter around herself. Just as she was about to turn her head to talk to Chen Bozheng, she saw someone emerge from the shadows.

Chen Bo followed her gaze and frowned and then relaxed when he saw the person's face clearly. "Xiao Wen, what are you doing here?"

"Brother Zheng, that's what I wanted to ask you." Little Northeast was drunk and unsteady on his feet. "Didn't you say you were broke? Why did you come to this place? This place isn't cheap."

Chen Bozheng said, "We only dared to come because we were invited. Otherwise, who would dare to spend money here?"

Chen Bozheng was telling the truth, but Xiao Dongbei didn't believe him.

He said, “Brother Zheng, don’t try to fool me. I saw that the Japanese here were very polite to you. Did you get involved with some important connections? If you were that capable, why did you borrow money from me before? Are you trying to test me because you don’t consider me a brother?”

Xiao Dongbei's face was flushed, and his breath reeked of alcohol when he spoke.

His words sounded like he was drunk and acting crazy.

Lin Qingfeng, however, couldn't contain his anger. "Little Northeast, what are you saying? Is Brother Zheng that kind of person?"

"Brother Zheng is certainly not that kind of person to you, but he might not be the same to me," Xiao Dongbei said with dissatisfaction, letting out a drunken hiccup. "Brother Zheng, don't blame me, I'm really having a hard time. People see me looking glamorous and think I've found a rich wife and am living a good life, but they don't know my difficulties. My father-in-law looks down on me completely and won't introduce me to any important connections. I don't get much money from the family either. The time I entertained you, I used my own savings to make up for it. If I really had money, wouldn't I have lent it to you?"

Have you said enough?

Xiao Dongbei's heartfelt words even moved the fat man somewhat.

Chen Bozheng, however, remained calm, his eyes showing no emotion.

Xiao Dongbei met Chen Bozheng's gaze and paused for a moment.

Two taxis pulled up, and Chen Bo gestured for Wen Chan and the others to get in before turning to Xiao Dongbei and saying, “We used to be brothers, and you know perfectly well how I treated you. You say you’re in a difficult position and have no money, and I believe you, but I don’t believe you really don’t even have a few tens of thousands of yuan. As brothers, we only have this life, and if we get along, we stay together; if we don’t, we part ways. Let me tell you the truth, I really don’t know any capable people. If you’re hoping to build a relationship with me, you’re relying on the wrong person.”

After saying this, Chen Bozheng got into the car without even looking at Xiao Dongbei's ashen face.

Along the way, the fat guy and the others kept complaining.

Lin Qingfeng crossed his arms and sneered, "Sister Yanzi said before that Xiao Dongbei was a snob and cunning person, and I didn't believe it. But I've really seen it for myself today. He had one face when he was chasing us away, and he has a different face now."

"What's he doing here?" the fat man asked, puzzled. "And he reeks of alcohol."

Lin Qingfeng said, "Is that even a question? He must be here with his father-in-law for a social engagement. Shenzhen is really a small place."

Chen Bozheng said calmly, "Don't mention him again. Just pretend you don't have this brother."

The group exchanged glances and fell silent.

Mr. Ye and his wife were determined to win over Wen Chan. They had already discussed it and decided that they would do this deal with Wen Chan even if it meant losing money.

But what they didn't expect was that Wen Chan and his team's design was beyond their expectations.

"You drew this yourself?" Boss Ye looked at the design draft, stroked his chin, and was shocked.

Wen Chan pointed at Chen Bozheng, "I'll come up with the ideas, and he'll draw the diagrams."

The proprietress praised, "I never knew Xiao Chen had this skill. He's really capable and will definitely make a fortune in the future."

After exchanging a few polite words, Chen Bozheng asked, "Mr. Ye, what do you think of these design drafts?"

"Okay, that's great, of course." Boss Ye wasn't blind; he could see that the designs on these drafts were unique and beautiful. However, he hesitated and said to them, "No one has made these designs before. If you really plan to make these designs, what if the public doesn't buy them?"

"It's precisely because no one has done it before that we're the first to try something new, giving us a greater chance to make big money," Wen Chan said. "Boss lady, putting everything else aside, if this dress were selling for a hundred yuan, would you buy it?"

She pointed to a green dress and asked.

The shop owner looked at the style and liked it. "Of course I want to buy it, but I'm a little chubby, will it look good on me?"

Wen Chan said, "You have fair skin. If the green fabric is of good quality, you'll look elegant and noble in it. Of course, it will look good."

"Really?" The proprietress was very tempted and looked at Mr. Ye, urging him to agree with her eyes.

Boss Ye was about to agree, but he wanted to clarify things first. "Alright, I'll arrange for someone to start making patterns for you. If you don't have enough for the final payment, I won't ask you for it. You can transfer the payment after you've sold all the goods."

Mr. Ye has really gone all out this time.

Wen Chan and Chen Bozheng exchanged a glance.

Chen Bozheng said, "Mr. Ye, thank you for your kindness. However, we are planning to partner with you on some other business ventures. I wonder if you would be interested?"

Boss Ye and his wife looked at them with suspicion.

After returning home last night, Wen Chan discussed it with Chen Bo.

There's still a lot of potential profit to be made from this Treasury bond deal, and it would be a real shame to give it up now.

Their problem is a lack of manpower and capital, but Mr. and Mrs. Ye have none of these problems.

Putting everything else aside, there are more than twenty male workers in Boss Ye's garment factory.

Most of these male workers were from the same hometown as Boss Ye and his wife.

That's how it is these days; people from the same hometown bring each other along. Bosses are willing to hire employees from wherever they're from.

"Making money, is it that easy?" Boss Ye was dumbfounded after hearing Chen Bozheng's explanation. "Are you two making fun of us?"

Wen Chan knew they wouldn't believe her, so she took out the newspaper from before, pointed to the article, and handed it to Mr. and Mrs. Ye. "Look at the newspaper, gentlemen. We might lie to you, but the newspaper can't lie to people, can it?"

Mr. and Mrs. Ye quickly took the newspaper and read it carefully.

The above report is indeed very clear.

The couple were stunned.

The proprietress, being observant, inquired, "You initially intended to earn money by selling goods this way. How much can you make per trip?"

Chen Bozheng didn't intend to hide it from them and told them directly. Anyway, once it's out in the open, it's not surprising. If they wanted to, they could go out and ask around and find out.

The proprietress counted on her fingers: 10,000 treasury bonds could earn more than 2,000 yuan; 100,000 would earn more than 20,000 yuan; and 1 million would earn more than 200,000 yuan.

The couple hesitated and exchanged a glance.

Wen Chan and Chen Bozheng cooperated by making an excuse to go to the restroom, leaving the office back to the couple for discussion.

As soon as they left, the proprietress hurriedly said, "Old Ye, if what they said is true, then our business will be even more profitable than the previous contract!"

In their last business deal, the order was worth one million. After deducting wages and other expenses, they could only earn a maximum of one hundred thousand, and they were still working themselves to the bone.

But now, all it takes is to find a few people to carry money between two places and transfer it from one hand to the other. Although the journey is dangerous, the money is too easy to earn and comes too quickly!

Mr. Ye's heart was pounding at that moment.

He lit a cigarette, but didn't think to take a puff for a long time. The cigarette butt even fell onto his hand before he came to his senses: "Do you think this business is viable?"

The proprietress rolled her eyes at him and patted the newspaper: "The newspaper says that the treasury bonds are due for redemption. How could it be false?"

Mr. Ye took the newspaper, staring intently at the article with a deep gaze.

A 50% profit margin is incredibly tempting.

Seeing that Wen Chan was sweating, Chen Bozheng took out his handkerchief and gave it to her.

After taking the handkerchief, Wen Chan looked at it hesitantly, as if she wanted to say something. She really hadn't seen a man wearing one in many years.

I only remember male classmates bringing handkerchiefs when I was in elementary school.

"Do you think they would want to cooperate with us?" Chen Bo asked, trying to make conversation.

Wen Chan said, "Why not?"

Chen Bozheng said in a low voice, "We've told them all our ways to make money. What if they abandon us and go it alone?"

Wen Chan said, "That's because they're foolish. The most important thing in business is the investors. If they do this, it's just a one-off deal with us."

When Chen Bo heard Wen Chan's words, he laughed and said, "You're making it sound like we're very valuable."

Wen Chan raised an eyebrow. "You lack confidence in yourself?"

Chen Bozheng had no idea that Wen Chan had so much confidence in him, and his heart felt as if it had been burned.

"Xiao Chen, Xiao Wen," the landlady came out and called them back to the office.

Wen Chan and Chen Bo were returning to the office.

Boss Ye had clearly hesitated for a moment, but now he had made up his mind. "Xiao Wen, Xiao Chen, your idea is very good, but there's one thing. I think it's too risky to keep going back and forth to buy treasury bonds. It would be safer to just buy them directly and wait for them to mature next month to redeem them."

Chen Bozheng didn't speak, but nodded slightly.

Boss Ye continued, "I know what you mean, you want to make money. Your principal is not enough, and you won't earn much if you just hoard it until it matures. How about this, I'll give you 20% of the profits, and my people will handle all the errands for buying treasury bonds. What do you think?"

Boss Ye had thought it through very clearly. Chen Bozheng and his group needed to travel back and forth because they didn't have enough capital, but Boss Ye had enough capital.

He could simply buy treasury bonds with a million dollars and wait for them to be redeemed.

A 20% profit is 100,000.

“I agree, but we don’t want to just sit around waiting to get our share of the money. When your people go outside, we’ll lend a hand too,” Chen Bozheng said.

When Mr. Ye heard Chen Bozheng say this, he thought about it and agreed. When traveling, the more people the better.

Wen Chan didn't quite understand why Chen Bozheng wanted to go with her, but she didn't ask until they left the garment factory.

Chen Bozheng said, "Guangdong has many local specialties. I plan to buy some valuable ones while I'm at it. I might be able to use them when I get back to Beijing."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I reckon that with such a large sum of money, Boss Ye himself will definitely go along. If we just sit and wait to get our share, he'll definitely be unhappy when he gets the money. It's better to just go along; even if we don't get credit, we'll still put in the effort."

Wen Chan couldn't help but laugh; this was the real truth.

Chen Bo touched his nose. "Are you laughing at me for being petty?"

Wen Chan shook her head. "No, you're quite smart. Since you guys can endure hardship, then I'll just sit back and wait to get my share of the money."