"Auntie, I need to talk to you about something." Tang Long waited until they finished their meeting before following Qin Xiaoyu into the office.

"Go ahead and tell me."

"I told my mom that I changed the name of the store I registered under my name to someone else's. I want to open my own pawn shop." Tang Long was already preparing for his own business, which surprised Qin Xiaoyu.

During this time, she didn't pay much attention to Tang Long's affairs, only seeing him pedaling his tricycle in and out. She never expected that the child would have a new idea.

"I support you. Let me know if you need anything." Qin Xiaoyu smiled with relief.

"No need for that, I've already arranged everything. My girlfriend's family happens to have a shop in the city that's been vacant and no one has rented it out. They'll clean it up and let me use it as a shop. I'll also set up a warehouse and slowly move the goods around, which will free up another place for Hengchang." Tang Long's plan was indeed very well-thought-out.

"Longlong, don't you need to invest any money?" Qin Xiaoyu was curious about this.

"Auntie, you underestimate my business. I've been tinkering with some things, so I'm not short of money. I probably earn just as much as you do," Tang Long said with a smile.

"Oh dear, I really underestimated you." Qin Xiaoyu was startled when she heard this. Tang Long was like his cousin, always reliable and not one to brag.

"But Longlong, there's something I need to make clear to you. Some things can't be resold. The country has very strict control over cultural relics. If you want to mess around, it's only with some folk jewelry or jade. If it involves cultural relics, you can't touch them." Qin Xiaoyu always reads the policies, so she still gave a warning.

"I understand, Auntie. Don't worry, I won't overstep any boundaries." Tang Long nodded.

"Little Fish, how did you come up with this idea? It's brilliant!" Tang Long's sister-in-law came in after he left. Although there was no gunpowder in this business battle, everyone involved knew that it was a real clash.

"This was a setup from the beginning. I didn't want to deal with her; we could just do our own business. Her mistake was poaching people from the garment factory. She's already started this, so I'm not going to back down. I'll let her ride on my head from now on!" Qin Xiaoyu sneered.

“I have a neighbor who works at Dafabet. He said many of the sales staff there were poached, thinking they'd make a lot of money. But after opening, the place was practically deserted. They only brought in a handful of people on the fourth day, and the sales weren't even as much as the day's expenses. I don't know how long they can last. Some people are already rushing back to their original jobs. They're saying they can't count on bonuses, let alone salaries. Don't all companies give out bonuses before the New Year? This is a huge loss.” My cousin-in-law is really narrow-minded; she was already laughing at what she saw.

Qin Xiaoyu's thoughts went beyond that. Last year's points cards were settled, and cards for 1986 were being processed. This way, she could retain some people. But this wasn't a unique trick. In less than half a month, Dafa Mall realized the trick and wanted to issue cards as well.

That's when the real competition begins. With competitors, profits will be drastically reduced, and we'll have to find alternative ways to make money. Captain Chen has been providing updates on recruitment lately; a massive infrastructure team is almost ready to take shape. Allocating a portion of the funds from Hengchang to start building houses at the coal plant is a top priority.

Her sister-in-law didn't understand her thoughts and simply assumed the situation was very favorable. After chatting for a while, she happily went downstairs.

Just as Qin Xiaoyu was about to leave the office, the phone rang. It was Lu Di.

"I heard you just finished a business battle and I'd like to interview the winner," Lu Di said, rarely making a joke.

"What's there to interview about? I was forced into this situation. If I don't fight back, I'm afraid I won't be able to survive in the future. I'm not targeting anyone. Director Lu, please don't make a big deal out of this. I'm scared." Qin Xiaoyu kept a low profile.

"Let's meet sometime. It's on me this time. What would you like to eat?" Lu Di was much more enthusiastic than the previous two times they met, which made Qin Xiaoyu feel a little flattered. Could it be that Director Feng and Section Chief Hong had done something again?

This time, Qin Xiaoyu learned her lesson and took him directly to Qi Si's shop. This small, run-down city only has a few famous places; if they ran into A Lei again, it would be troublesome.

"Hey bro!" Qi Si had a deep impression of Lu Di and greeted him from afar.

He has an innate aversion to rigid people, so he deliberately uses a slick, greasy tone to disgust them.

"Mr. Qi, I've heard so much about you. Your hotel is doing very well, and I'd like to learn from your experience. Let's chat sometime." Lu Di was truly stubborn, his expression remaining unchanged.

Qi Si was rebuffed and left dejectedly.

Once Qin Xiaoyu arrived here, it was like she was at home. She took a walk around and brought back all the things she liked to eat.

"Is there anything you can eat?" Qin Xiaoyu asked without hesitation.

“Anything is fine, I’m not picky about food,” Lu Di said with a smile.

"Is there something you need from me?" Qin Xiaoyu was quite clever.

"Yes, I'm about to be transferred back to the provincial capital. It's all thanks to you, your success model has given me a lot of inspiration, you could say you paved the way for my official career." Lu Di had been quite frank, and Qin Xiaoyu felt that there was no one else in the world who would hear him say such things.

"congratulations."

"If you need anything in the future, feel free to contact me if I can help," Lu Di said, and Qin Xiaoyu couldn't help but chuckle.

"I may not be able to help much either," Lu Di added, then laughed at himself.

After settling in for a few days after moving, things finally calmed down. Everyone had gotten used to the commotion and seeing their family members every time they went out. Except for Commander Zhou and Aunt Wang, who never spoke to each other, everyone got along very well.

The families were all very happy, and Zhou Yue's wedding day was fast approaching.

This was something Commander Wang had been anxious about. It was agreed that Zhou Yue would have her wedding first, followed by Wang Lei and Tang Fengqin. So he came over every few days, hoping to get Zhou Yue married off soon.

Unfortunately, the weather turned against them. Just before the wedding, a heavy snow fell, followed by a sharp drop in temperature.

Although the boiler room was burning fires at full speed, making the house warm and cozy, the wedding car would take half an hour to travel, and it was still cold on the car.

The question of whether or not to wear a wedding dress greatly troubled Deng Jianyan. After several days of unsuccessful attempts to persuade her, he sought help from Zhou Xing's mother and Commander Zhou. He cited numerous negative effects of a pregnant woman catching a cold on the fetus, which frightened the elderly couple so much that they immediately called a family meeting for outside assistance.

Zhou spent so much time making the wedding dress, and if she's not allowed to wear it, she'll definitely make a scene. That young lady is becoming more and more spoiled.

The whole family is divided into factions: the women's faction is about wearing clothes, while the men's faction is about being superfluous.

"This wedding dress is so beautiful, I have to wear it at least once." Although my cousin's wife is not young, she still has the heart of a young girl.

“I have a down jacket with white duck feathers. I can wear it over my wedding dress while sitting in the car. I won’t be cold,” Zhou Yue insisted.