108. Jiang Guo & Wen Xiang

Gu Chuqi gave Lingling a thumbs-up and praised her, "Alright, Lingling, you've really nailed it this time. I'm impressed." Lingling smiled generously and said, "Don't thank me too much. I've also gained nourishment from my own rough life experiences. The moment you mentioned being flamboyant, I remembered that time I just yelled at that green tea bitch downstairs, and the inspiration just hit me." "So, if you want to live a good life, you have to have a little green in you," Chuqi teased her. "Thank you!" Lingling retorted, "Just look forward to me. If I were your deskmate, glowing green every day, you wouldn't be afraid of those new stocks you invested in plummeting." "Pfft! It's insulting if you want to insult someone's character. Character isn't worth anything. You're just cursing them for financial ruin!" Chuqi and Lingling exchanged pleasantries. Chuqi didn't laugh much, but sighed as she typed. Ling Ling asked her what was wrong, and she said helplessly: "The boss of Xinlin is a notorious stingy person. He was born a local rich man and a nouveau riche. It's no problem for you to let him buy the actual product, but if you ask him to spend money on services and creativity, he will be so distressed that his kidneys will suffer if he spends a penny. It's really a big problem to quote him a price this time." Ling Ling was amused by her and laughed. After thinking about it, she gave her an idea: "Your creativity just now is not just as simple as helping them to come up with a few copywritings, but helping them to iterate products for free. At the pitch meeting, you took a different approach and said: 'I know you started from scratch, created this brand, and worked hard to develop this product. You have been working hard to ensure the stability of quality for so many years, but we should still have a "planned exit" concept. We need to realize that the withdrawal of a product does not have to wait until its function declines and then passively withdraw, but when it no longer demonstrates a certain status, it should be withdrawn. In terms of profit contribution, if the sales of the product Relying not just on price and functional advantages, but also on the status symbolism a product confers and the artificially stimulated demand, the brand's profits will be more substantial and long-lasting. After all, products have a life cycle, while brands can be passed down from generation to generation. Products that successfully build a brand image enjoy scarce, low-cost promotional opportunities; unknown brands struggle to gain traction in a user-driven environment. The moment a boss decides to advertise, he's making a financial decision, and we can bring you tangible profits. Don't think of advertising as an expense, but rather an investment. "Just saying that should open up a stingy boss's heart..."

Gu Chuqi gave Ling Ling a thumbs-up and praised her, "Alright, Ling Ling, you really did it this time. I'm impressed."

Ling Ling smiled generously and said, "Don't thank me too much. I also draw nourishment from my bumpy life experiences. As soon as you mentioned Zhang Yang, I thought about the feeling of lashing out at the green tea bitch downstairs just now, and the inspiration burst out."

"So, if you want to live a good life, you have to have some green on you." Chuqi teased her.

"Thank you!" Ling Ling replied, "Just look forward to me. If I were your deskmate, shining brightly here every day, you wouldn't be afraid of your newly invested stocks plummeting."

"Pooh, pooh, pooh! If you want to insult someone's personality, then just insult their personality. Personality is worthless. You are not cursing others to lose money!" Chuqi and Lingling started joking warmly.

Chuqi didn't laugh much, but instead sighed as she typed. Lingling asked her what was wrong, and she said helplessly, "The owner of Xinlin is a notorious penny-pincher. He was born into a wealthy family, a nouveau riche. You can get him to buy physical goods, but if you ask him to spend money on services or ideas, he'll be so distressed that his kidneys will fail. This time, getting him a quote is really a big problem."

Ling Ling was amused by her and laughed out loud. After thinking for a while, she gave her some advice: "Your idea just now is not just to help them come up with a few lines of copywriting, but to help them iterate their products for free. At the pitch meeting, you can take a different approach and say: 'I know you started from scratch, created this brand, worked hard to develop this product, and have been working hard to ensure the stability of quality for so many years, but we should still have a "planned exit" concept. We need to realize that the exit of a product does not have to wait until its function declines and then exit passively, but when it no longer demonstrates a certain status, it should be exited. In terms of profit contribution, if the sales of a product not only rely on If a brand relies not on price and functional advantages, but on the status symbolism it confers and artificially stimulates demand, the benefits it brings to the brand will be more substantial and long-lasting. After all, products have a life cycle, while brands can be passed down from generation to generation. Products that successfully build a brand image enjoy scarce, low-cost promotional opportunities; unknown brands struggle to gain traction in a user-driven environment. The moment a boss decides to advertise, he's making a financial decision, and we can bring you tangible profits. Don't think of advertising as an expense, but rather an investment. 'Just saying this should open up the minds of even a stingy boss, right?'

"Lingling, you can be regarded as a god in my eyes!" Chuqi exclaimed.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

In the more than two months since she separated from Yu Chuanbei, Ling Ling received his WeChat messages almost every day, but she rarely replied. She still wanted to think calmly about their relationship first. She hoped it would be balanced, rather than becoming increasingly unbalanced.

Now, the economic foundation between them is still different. After all, she is living in his house, and money is always the source of imbalance in intimate relationships.

She'd earned a lot of money from her hit copywriting this year, enough, she calculated, to cover a down payment on a house in a remote suburb of Beijing. She used to spend her weekends with Yu Chuanbei, as long as she wasn't working. Now, with plenty of time to herself, she used it to look at houses in the suburbs, following the subway map.

But like all potential mortgage slaves, she was trapped in the "impossible triangle": she couldn't afford the one she liked, she didn't like the one she could afford, and the one she liked and could afford was too far away from her company.

Without Yu Chuanbei by her side, she was exhausted both physically and mentally.

At this time, she had taken on a new planning position at a company called Acorn Food Technology. The company's young female boss was named Jiang Guo, and she was accompanied by a man named Wen Xiang to discuss business. Although both of them were very restrained, she could tell at a glance that they were in love. When you love someone, you'll shower them with affection and send them off with a bang.

Acorn Company had released a new line of omelet molds. Ling Ling wanted to break new ground in this overwhelmed product line. She wanted to break away from the usual emphasis on home warmth and product safety in her ads. Instead, she wanted to express an emotion and bring the product to life. So, she wrote:

"You even have to force a smile on your face when frying an egg. Do you really have that many smiles?"

She originally didn't want to bring too much of her personal experience into her work, but she felt that such emotional value would resonate with many of her clients who get up early to make breakfast before work, so she didn't want to give up this idea.

Unexpectedly, at the pitch meeting, Jiang Guo from Oaknut Company took a liking to her copy at first sight, and she suddenly felt a sense of mutual appreciation with this woman.

Looking at Wen Xiang's eyes as he stared at Jiang Guo who was talking so freely, she suddenly missed Yu Chuanbei.

In this vast world, among the countless people, the chance of two people meeting by chance, getting to know each other, matching personalities, souls, being loyal to each other, and having a stable and long-lasting relationship is truly less likely than being struck by lightning. And she felt that in her limited life, she and Yu Chuanbei were the men most likely to achieve this grand goal.

This was their first argument, and she shouldn't have given up on their relationship so hastily. The past and the future lay before her, and she wanted to slowly digest the hurt caused by this argument; she thought, she still loved him very much.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Ling Ling was looking for Fang Tuowu to sign the budget approval form for the planning proposal, he suddenly asked her a strange question: "What kind of birthday gifts do girls your age usually like?"

Ling Ling was caught off guard by the question, unsure how to react. But her mind instantly raced, rapidly trying to figure out what Mr. Fang meant. Of course, he couldn't possibly be giving her a gift. So who was he thinking of? A mistress? She didn't even know if he had a family.

Mr. Fang understood what was going on in her mind as soon as he saw her state, and said bluntly: "My daughter turns 20 this Saturday, and I want to celebrate it for her. My wife has passed away a long time ago, and my daughter always celebrated her birthday with friends. This time, I managed to convince her to spend the night before her birthday with me for dinner. But to be honest, I still haven't thought of what gift to buy her. How come those of us in the creative industry run out of ideas when it comes to our own family members?" Mr. Fang sighed helplessly.

In Ling Ling's eyes, Fang Tuowu had always been a leader without any fatherly airs, a middle-aged man without any greasy airs. She had always believed that he should have a happy and complete family to maintain his emotional stability at this age. Now it seemed that his excellence was entirely due to his innate talent and acquired efforts, and was not affected by his environment at all.

Ling Ling thought for a moment and said, "Hmm—Mr. Fang, how about this: you briefly introduce your daughter to me, and I'll make a small plan to make Saturday's dinner for you and your daughter warm and memorable."

"Haha, you treat me as a customer." Mr. Fang smiled heartily.

Ling Ling took the opportunity to continue the conversation, saying, "A key rule for success in the workplace is to run the company like your own business and serve your boss like a client."

Fang Tuowu followed her smile and then said, "My daughter's name is Yao Ye, and she takes her mother's surname. My husband and I originally wanted to have two children, one with her surname and one with mine. However, her mother died of illness a few years after Yao Ye was born. I had to work hard for my career, and the child was always raised by the elderly. She was not close to me, and I could even often sense her resentment towards me. Alas, I know that no matter how grand this birthday party is or how expensive the birthday gifts I give her, it will not mend the relationship between us as father and daughter. But I have to at least make an effort to let her know that I love her. She is already an adult, and she will slowly understand in the future."

Ling Ling digested the amount of information that Mr. Fang said: the father was widowed in his prime, the daughter lost her mother at a young age, the relationship between father and daughter was cold, and she was at a rebellious age. It was like a rich lady who had everything she needed except love.

Ling Ling regretted taking the job, having already promised to plan the birthday party. But seeing the hopeful glint in Mr. Fang's fatherly eyes, she could only bite the bullet and promise.

Author's Note

Liu Qiu

author

04-02

My other story "No Time to Fall in Love with You" is participating in the long-form rally. It contains the story of Jiang Guo and Wen Xiang. You are welcome to join us.