I then urged Ye Zhi, "Special circumstances call for special treatment... You can't just keep bottled up your feelings, can you? What if the road remains blocked?"
"You were staring at someone's umbrella the whole time. What did you see?"
I pretended not to see anything: "I didn't see anything, that guy was very protective... Could it be that you saw something?"
As soon as I finished speaking, two more women got out of another car, and the scene from before was repeated... I didn't look away, so I could carefully study what kind of actions would prevent any accidental exposure, so that I could provide Ye Zhi with absolute protection later... To be honest, who would want their girlfriend to be seen by others, so of course I wanted to give Ye Zhi the best umbrella and the best protection.
Ye Zhi, however, was unmoved. She said to me with obvious anger, "Have you seen enough?"
I casually flicked the windshield wipers, clearing away the rainwater that was obstructing my view... and then exclaimed, "What a mess! Look what they've put these girls in!"
Ye Zhi blocked my view with her hand.
"What are you doing? Since they're willing to go all out, aren't they afraid of being seen?"
"I don't care about others, but you're not allowed to look."
"They're all using umbrellas."
"That won't work either."
"I won't look, I won't look, okay... Take your hand away, I want to drink some more water."
"I've never seen such a bastard as you!"
I pushed Ye Zhi's hand away, then looked up at the sunroof of the car, pretending I wasn't looking...
...
Another hour passed, and there was still no sign of movement ahead. If there was any joking around with Ye Zhi just now, I was genuinely worried about her now... I had heard that holding it in for too long can damage your organs.
I nudged Ye Zhi, who was resting with her eyes closed, and said, "Look, the navigation is all red lines. There's probably a landslide ahead... We could be stuck here all night!"
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"How about we just 'pee'?"
Ye Zhi finally uttered a complaint: "If you had been on a plane, this wouldn't have happened."
"So you can complain about people too!"
Do you expect me to never argue with you for the rest of my life?
I looked at Ye Zhi, and for some reason, her words touched my heartstrings. I then whispered to her, "A lifetime, it sounds really wonderful... but also quite sad..." After a slight pause, I smiled and said to Ye Zhi, "If you also find arguing fun, then I'll argue with you for a lifetime... okay?"
...
Just as Ye Zhi was about to respond, my phone rang. It was Chen Jin calling; he must have already returned to Dali from Beijing.
I answered the call and asked him with a smile, "Have you arrived in Dali yet?"
Chen Jin's voice was somewhat low: "We'll arrive around noon."
My heart sank.
Chen Jin continued, "Michael, I've been thinking about this matter since last night..."
"Okay, go on."
"You're planning to give up on Cao Jinbo's shop, right?"
What do you mean by asking that?
Chen Jin replied, “We definitely can’t count on the shops owned by that big landlord in Beijing. If we can’t get the shops from Cao Jinbo’s side either… then I’ll have doubts about this project… Think about it yourself, even if we get all the remaining shops, it will only be about 80% of the total… I’ve looked at the layout of the entire commercial street. The nine shops owned by the landlord in Beijing are connected together, and Cao Jinbo’s 16 shops are also connected, eight on each side of the street. If we can’t get their shops, firstly, it’s impossible to create a commercial atmosphere, since so many connected shops can’t be turned into storefronts; secondly, if we can’t get these big landlords’ shops, how can the small landlords have the confidence to entrust us with the shops they’ve spent their life’s work to buy?”
After a moment of silence, I replied, "I've thought of all of that... but we should solve problems when they arise. Backing down is not the mindset of a mature entrepreneur."
“It’s not that I’m backing down, the problem now is that you really can’t take over the shops from Cao Jinbo… I won’t be leaving Dali for the time being. I want to find a job first to cover my daily expenses. I know you’re not having an easy time either, so I can’t just eat and drink here for free without doing any work.”
"Chen Jin, aren't you forcing me?... I've already told you, this time, I'm going to the big client in Nanjing myself. I'm making a solemn promise to you, I will definitely win this client over... If I fail, then you can make other plans, okay?"
“I didn’t mean to ‘force’ you… This is just how it is. This project is different from other things we can do. If any part is not handled properly, the whole project will be stuck and cannot be implemented.”
"Yes...that's why I sought out someone like you who works in public relations to collaborate with."
“Some things really can’t be solved by public relations... You know better than anyone where the crux of the problem lies... Forget it, I know this isn’t something that can be forced. I’ll do things my way first. If you can handle Cao Jinbo, I’ll come back... I’m willing to make a promise to you: if you can get things done with Cao Jinbo, I’ll negotiate with you for over 90% of the remaining homeowners... Is that okay with you?”
I closed my eyes, leaned back in my chair, and didn't know what to say. Chen Jin hung up the phone while I was silent.
I think this trip to Beijing caused him to lose his composure... It's not his fault; he just suffered such a setback in Shanghai, and after arriving in Dali, my insistence on my principles caused the project to stall... For him, the only option left was to either move forward or retreat. He knew that only Ye Zhi could influence Cao Jinbo, and if Ye Zhi couldn't change things, no one could take the shops from Cao Jinbo. So he became disheartened because, knowing me well, he knew I wouldn't try to make Ye Zhi change.
I finally opened my eyes and looked at Ye Zhi, and at the same time she asked me, "What's wrong with Chen Jin?...Is he going to look for another job?"
I was a little taken aback. I was so focused on my emotions when I spoke to Chen Jin that I didn't realize Ye Zhi had overheard everything! Want to chat about "My Tenant Miss" with more like-minded people? Follow "or" on WeChat to discuss your favorite books with other readers.
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