Chapter 12: Is cooperation necessarily a hassle?
In the early hours of the morning, Yi Sheng sent a message to his assistant, Xiao Yang.
A life of simplicity: Let's sign a contract with Santen; the cooperation announcement can be made now.
Little Lamb, Rush: Okay.
Almost immediately, Xiao Yang replied to the message.
Logically speaking, especially since it's so late after get off work, one would expect to reply to work messages during the day. But Xiao Yang is different from everyone else. No matter when Yi Sheng sends her a message, she seems to be online 24/7 and always replies instantly.
This is also why Xiao Yang was able to stay by Yi Sheng's side at such a young age. When Yi Sheng first returned to Liurun, he was filled with a group of second-generation rich kids with connections, and Xiao Yang was one of them. He was just there to intern and gain experience. None of the others stayed after their internships ended, but Xiao Yang got the opportunity to become a full-time employee. After graduation, he officially joined Liurun and has been by Yi Sheng's side ever since.
Just like now, Xiao Yang is sitting at her desk in her bedroom, reviewing the contract details again with her laptop and preparing for the follow-up cooperation and promotion. By the time everything was finished, an hour had passed. It was 1:30 a.m. She washed up and went to sleep with remarkable efficiency, and opened her eyes at 7 a.m. the next morning.
Yi Sheng was not required to attend the signing ceremony; instead, Yuan Zhao, the head of the home appliance department, met with the owner of Santen at his branch.
Santen was very proactive. They confirmed the signing time with Xiao Yang as soon as he contacted them, and the signing ceremony was completed that morning.
Yuan Zhao was beaming with joy. Although Xiao Yang controlled the overall pace of the event on the spot, making him seem like a mere figurehead who could only play a representative role, this collaboration was indeed a major project and a great achievement for him after his promotion.
With a mix of excitement and humility, Yuan Zhao signed his name on the contract with a pen and shook hands with the other party. Staff from both sides took photos to record the moment.
At 2:15 p.m. that day, the two companies jointly released the news of their collaboration, which spread like wildfire across various platforms, generating tremendous buzz.
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When Bai Ye woke up that morning, she sneezed three times in a row, and her washing and changing clothes took longer than usual.
"You must have caught a cold!" her mother said. "Eat at home today, there's hot porridge. Don't eat out in the wind, or you'll make your cold worse."
Bai Yeke's head was heavy, and he obediently took his seat without saying a word.
For the first time ever, my stepfather actually got up early today. This typical nouveau riche boss is usually very pretentious, only getting up around 10 a.m. to pretend to read the news, of course, social news or gossip about beautiful female anchors, then having lunch at home, and finally arriving late in the afternoon to sign a few documents at the company. The evening is his main event, where he eats and drinks with all sorts of people, ostensibly to do business and build his social network.
My stepfather had a very nouveau riche characteristic—he scoffed at higher education and disdained hard work.
So what if they're college students? So what if they're graduate students? They've never worked for him, who only has a junior high school education. Which of those poor students is as rich as him? They should just work for him obediently. He tells everyone that studying is useless, but he's hypocritical and arrogant, boasting that his Wei Qiushi is a proper college student.
As for those who work diligently, they're all idiots, all fools. It's much faster for him to roam the drinking scene; business and money come much faster that way. That's the business philosophy of a smart man like him. But at the same time, he's also hypocritical. He demands that his employees be diligent, quoting his famous saying, "The early bird catches the worm," and that they obey his orders like soldiers obeying military commands.
I've been going out too much to drink lately, which has upset my stomach. So my stepfather didn't eat breakfast with them; instead, he asked my aunt to order him a bowl of wontons separately.
The hot wontons were delicious, and although the stepfather's mouth was covered in soup oil, his complexion looked much better. This improved energy made him want to find something to assert his authority and satisfy his mood.
“I told her to go on blind dates properly, but she refused, and now she’s suffering like this outside.” The stepfather said with a mix of sarcasm and dissatisfaction. “If she were married, she would at least have a car to shelter her from the wind and rain.”
He always complained that Baiye was in the way and very immature.
Why should a daughter study so much? Once she's an adult, she should get engaged and married as soon as possible. Fine, the law now requires women to be 20 years old before they can get married, so let's just support her education and raise her value. She should be able to get married after graduating from university. She's good-looking, and her stepfather has a good background. How can she not snag a rich husband? She can also give him more money to support her family in the future.
Ke Baiye refused to be a man's appendage. She didn't buy into the idea that men should be responsible for external affairs and women for internal affairs.
She doesn't want to get married just to move out, and she doesn't want a man to buy her a car.
"Um..." Mom took a spoonful of porridge and drank it. Looking at her stepfather's expression, she cautiously said, "How about we buy Xiao Ke a car? Many families buy cars for their daughters these days. Let's buy a small electric car. It won't be expensive. We won't buy a big car."
Wei Qiushi owns more than one car worth millions, all of which were purchased with money from his stepfather.
My mother suggested buying a small electric car worth tens of thousands of yuan for Bai Yeke, which would only cost her stepfather the equivalent of two or three meals at a bar.
The difference is dozens of times, the treatment is vastly different, but it is still difficult to achieve—simply because the mother is a full-time housewife.
Without economic rights, there are no rights at all.
Bai Ye knew it was impossible as soon as her mother opened her mouth, so she reassured her, "Mom, it's okay, no need."
"Ha! No way! Don't even think about it!" The stepfather raised an eyebrow, his small eyes wide with anger. "You want her to ride that little electric car and embarrass me? How can anyone from the Wei family drive such a toy?!"
Tens of thousands of dollars is nothing to him, but he would never agree to spend it on his daughter, especially Bai Yeke, who is not even his biological daughter, and he would feel extremely ashamed.
"Besides, as parents, we only have the obligation to raise our children until they turn eighteen. I've already paid for her university education!" The stepfather felt he had already lost out, that he was a foolishly good person, and that this ungrateful mother and daughter were still trying to take advantage of him. "She's already working and she still wants me to buy her a car? Is she the lifeblood of my family? She's not even my child!"
How hurtful those words were! They blatantly divided this blended family into two separate groups.
The mother was stunned when she heard this, and large tears welled up in her eyes.
Bai Yeke's heart was calm; she was used to it.
Many times, she couldn't bear to see her mother's sacrifices for the family, and she was willing to share any hardships with her. However, whenever her stepfather said hurtful things, she rarely interrupted or argued back.
Firstly, arguing was pointless; her stepfather was unreasonable and it would be a waste of her energy. Secondly, she wanted her mother to listen and think, hoping it would help her clear her head.
Even in the traditional model of men being the breadwinners and women staying at home, the man should still give the woman respect, but a stepfather doesn't.
My mother gave up her job to take care of the family wholeheartedly. She should have contributed half of the family's wealth, but because she had no income, her contributions were worthless and went unnoticed.
With only the stepfather as the absolute patriarch and the sole source of income, he became the so-called master of the family, with no one having the final say.
"Mom, don't cry." Bai Ye couldn't bear to see her mother so sad, even though she knew that it would be difficult for her mother to change after she was sad.
"Alright, alright!" the stepfather said, annoyed. "I'll get her a car, but she has to sign an agreement and pay me back after she gets married!"
With tears in her eyes, the mother looked at her stepfather, her mind blank. She seemed to feel a little bit of consideration from this man, but also felt that he was too cold-hearted.
Bai Yeke pretended to be sensible, got up and left, ending the breakfast farce. "No need, Mom was just saying that. I didn't want to buy it."
Even if it means signing an agreement, she would rather sign with the bank.
If she signs with her stepfather, he'll go around saying his daughter is a spendthrift, and he'll definitely say things like he paid for the car.
The signing of the contract between Santen and Liurun was rushed, and there wasn't even time for internal information to be disseminated. It wasn't until the afternoon when the news broke online, causing a stir in the industry, that Baiyeke's colleagues at the store learned about this momentous event.
The towering advertisements haven't even been put into production yet, let alone placed. On the other hand, thanks to Xiao Yang's efficient efforts, Liurun has already quickly put up advertisements on several major subway lines.
Even before the advertising campaign was fully rolled out, news and popular comments on the internet quickly propelled the Santen brand to the top of the trending topics.
Over the course of two days, with the gradual rollout of various advertisements, the traffic surge was undeniably powerful. At the store where Baiyeke is located, the customer traffic has increased by a third compared to usual, a truly immediate and remarkable effect.
For everyone in the store, the future orders and wages are still unknown, but one thing is clear to everyone – they shouldn't need to work overtime for performance targets anymore.
When Yi Sheng sent the message, Bai Ye thought there was something that needed to be revised. She didn't expect that this Miss Yi, who couldn't even find time to look at the materials, would chat with her again.
With the official announcement of the collaboration, Bai Ye could finally lower most of her guard around Yi Sheng. Regardless of whether Yi Sheng's previous actions towards her were tests, the current outcome was clearly very gratifying.
A life of simplicity: I think Designer Bai won't have to work unnecessary overtime anymore.
Coconut Cola: Thanks to Miss Yi.
A life of tranquility: Then I'm entrusting my house to you. If there are any modifications needed later, please don't find it troublesome, Designer Bai.
Coconut Coke: Absolutely!
A life of simplicity: must be too troublesome?
As Bai Yeke looked at this sentence, the corners of her lips curled up, and her almond-shaped eyes held a faint yet bright smile.
Now, seeing Yi Sheng's words, she no longer felt the same tension as before. Whether Yi Sheng was trying to manipulate her mindset or spy on her before is uncertain, but it's clear that this time Yi Sheng is definitely joking with her.
Miss Yi is truly admirable.
Even after the contract was signed, he was still willing to joke around with someone as insignificant as her, showing no airs whatsoever.
Coconut Cola: No way.
Even if Yi Sheng makes many small revisions later, keeping her busy is fine; she won't find it annoying.
Suddenly, Bai Yeke saw a scene from a few nights ago flash before her eyes. That person was so gentle, guiding her, taking care of her, and there was that sentence...
“You can tell me if there’s anything wrong, you don’t have to keep it to yourself.”
She suddenly hoped that she wouldn't lose contact with Yi Sheng, and that they wouldn't have any further contact after the renovation was finished.
Perhaps it's a bit presumptuous of me... but I really want to become friends with Yi Sheng.
A note from the author:
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