Seeing his demeanor earlier, Meng Zhao felt a pang of guilt. Now, hearing him say it was all an act, she clenched her fists in anger. "I've already been very lenient with you. Otherwise, I would have already punched you in the face!"

Seeing this, Xiao Youzhi was not afraid at all; instead, he chuckled softly. Then, he suppressed his laughter and asked, "I heard you're going to the Western Regions with a caravan next year?"

Meng Zhao raised an eyebrow: "Yeah, I'm quite curious about that place. I'd like to go and take a look. What's up?"

Zhou Yu and Gu Changwu's caravan has returned, bringing back a dazzling array of exotic goods from the Western Regions, which has brought her trading company many orders. Although the goods have not been fully sold yet, she has roughly estimated that, after deducting costs and commissions, Meng Zhao can earn about three thousand taels.

Because it was their first time exploring the route, the caravan's itinerary was rather conservative, and they did not venture deep into the Western Regions. The round trip took only eight months. If they were to bring more goods and travel further next time, the profits would probably double.

Xiao Youzhi pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up and said, "How about this, I'll make the arrangements and then we'll go together." He spoke casually, as if he were just discussing where to dine the next day.

Meng Zhao's eyes widened. A trip to the Western Regions would take at least half a year. If Shen Qing and that jealous person knew that Xiao Youzhi was also on the way, they would probably be furious.

She immediately shook her head: "Impossible." Moreover, putting Shen Qinghe aside, as far as she herself was concerned, since she had already decided to keep her distance from Xiao Youzhi, she should not have agreed to this kind of long journey where they would be together day and night.

Xiao Youzhi raised an eyebrow upon hearing this: "Why? Because of Shen Qinghe?" A mocking smile curled at the corner of his lips. "Is that all the magnanimity he has? So intolerant of others, why did you choose him?"

Meng Zhao was speechless at his sarcastic tone and rolled her eyes. Xiao Youzhi was not annoyed. Instead, he calmly took out a stack of neatly bound papers from his sleeve and handed them to her. "Don't be in a hurry to refuse. Why don't you take a look at this first?"

Meng Zhao took it suspiciously, but after flipping through a few pages, her eyes widened and she looked up at him in disbelief. Xiao Youzhi smiled and his eyes gleamed with pride: "How about it? Aren't you tempted?"

"How did you come up with the idea to do this?" After the initial shock, Meng Zhao asked in a deep voice.

Xiao Youzhi leaned back lazily in his chair, tapping the table lightly with his fingertips: "I have to thank you for reminding me, otherwise I wouldn't have come up with this idea either."

What she was holding was a business plan called "Huitong Tianxia," which planned to build a chain of shops that provided services related to money, such as deposits, loans, and currency exchange. The goal was to maximize the flow of funds, reduce transaction risks between merchants, and make profits from it.

Meng Zhao found a chair and sat down, her fingertips tracing the pages, studying each word carefully. Xiao Youzhi stood to the side with his hands behind his back, explaining to her from time to time, "That day you complained to me that five thousand taels of silver was too heavy and that counting and moving it was too troublesome. It would be better if we could use bank deposit slips to make the transaction directly."

"You also mentioned your caravan in the Western Regions. You were worried that they were carrying a lot of money and that the journey was too dangerous, so you asked them to exchange it for goods as much as possible. But this increased the risk a lot and put the leader's judgment to the test. If the goods they chose could not be sold, then the trip would be a waste. If they could exchange the money in the Western Regions, they could just deposit it."

Meng Zhao looked up from between the pages, a hint of surprise in her eyes: "I was just making a few casual complaints."

“But I remember every word you said, and I have thought it all through carefully.” He suddenly leaned down and met Meng Zhao’s eyes. “You don’t need to feel wronged. For ‘Connecting the World’ to succeed, in addition to the support of a huge amount of money, the reputation of the owner is of paramount importance. Although your businesses are thriving, they are still a bit lacking compared to the Xiao family, which has been in business for generations. Even if you have a thousand brilliant ideas, it will be difficult to achieve this on your own.”

Meng Zhao was certainly not aggrieved, because she had always wished she had a bank, but never thought about opening her own. Opening such a bank requires not only huge start-up capital and strong financial strength, but also a rigorous and effective risk control system, extensive and efficient branches, and strong and reliable security.

These are all things she currently lacks. However, the Xiao family's branches are not only spread throughout the country, but also have a powerful transportation network. She had always admired the Xiao family's control over restaurants in various places because the Xiao family has a group of excellent and loyal core management teams. Therefore, if Xiao Youzhi really wants to implement this project, it is not impossible.

Meng Zhao's voice trembled slightly, "Then what do you mean by showing me these?"

"Of course, I'm inviting you to join us. In recent years, trade between the capital and the Western Regions has become increasingly frequent. More and more merchants, like the Qiao family, are forming caravans to travel west. Their demand for depositing and withdrawing money and making payments in different places is increasing day by day. I need to personally explore the important places along the way, such as Tongguan, Lanzhou, Wuwei, Ganzhou, and Jiuquan."

Meng Zhao rubbed his throbbing temples and re-examined the proposal in his hand. This document was meticulous and could not have been produced in a short time; he must have been preparing for it for a long time.

However, from her modern perspective, this plan still has many limitations. The author is clearly trapped by the mindset of this era. The envisioned "connecting the world" is nothing more than a large-scale money exchange that allows deposits and withdrawals in different locations. Its main source of income is still lending. Moreover, it is somewhat vague on the anti-counterfeiting and verification technology of deposit slips, and obviously has not yet found a reliable solution.

If she could refine it with modern financial concepts, such as developing wealth management services, establishing a sound credit system, and engaging in equity investment to broaden the revenue channels as much as possible, she could make this proposal even more perfect. However, in doing so, she would be completely bound to Xiao Youzhi.

But what lay before her was a bank with boundless cash flow and limitless possibilities!

She couldn't help but flip through the proposal again. Xiao Youzhi stood quietly to the side the whole time, even her breathing became a little lighter. Only when she finally put the document down did she ask softly, "You are a smart person. Whether you want to join or not is up to you."

This time, however, Meng Zhao didn't keep him waiting long. She stood up abruptly, her eyes burning: "I agree to this."

Xiao Youzhi appeared confident on the surface, but in reality, his palms were sweating profusely. This was his last bargaining chip, and he was truly afraid that Meng Zhao would reject him because of her feelings for Shen Qinghe.

Thank goodness, thank goodness,

She still retained the image he admired most—always clear-headed and always able to weigh the pros and cons. This realization warmed his heart and strengthened his resolve never to let go.