I thought Cao Jinbo was keeping me in suspense, but he looked troubled before finally speaking to me: "I know you have questions, but the Cangshan Villa project is based on the standard practice of win-win cooperation between Binjiang Group and me, so I'm afraid I don't have the answer you're looking for."
"President Cao, I was just asking who is currently in charge of the Cangshan Villa project at Binjiang Group. Have you misunderstood me?"
Cao Jinbo smiled meaningfully, then replied, "I'm not afraid of me misunderstanding you, I'm afraid you'll misunderstand me..."
“I didn’t misunderstand you. The idea of Binjiang Group and you personally cooperating to develop the paper mill site was originally mine, but it fell through later… Now all the projects are back on track. It’s not unreasonable for me to ask you for an explanation, is it?”
"Look, you just said you only wanted to find out who's in charge of this project at Binjiang Group, and now you're asking me for an explanation. Am I misunderstanding you, or are you misunderstanding me?"
I looked at Cao Jinbo and felt a little uncomfortable, because this man always had so many ways to make things difficult for me, so that none of my dealings with him had ever been pleasant.
Perhaps sensing my displeasure, Cao Jinbo continued, "Regarding the Cangshan Villa project, this time, it was Binjiang Group that took the initiative to contact me. That's all I can tell you... However, we have a confidentiality agreement, so as the party who is responsible for this project, I certainly can't tell you who is in charge right now... You can inquire for yourself. As for who you inquire with or whether you can find out the answer, that has nothing to do with me."
"Is who is in charge of this project also considered a trade secret?"
"Of course it counts. At the very least, I, Cao Jinbo, don't want anyone else to have contact with the senior management of Binjiang Group... because I am very satisfied with the current result, so I don't want it to be affected by other external factors."
"Alright... since you put it that way, then I won't ask you about it anymore."
Cao Jinbo patted my shoulder and said, "I came here today mainly to thank you. Thank you for providing such a good cooperation idea for Binjiang Group. I, Cao, have indeed benefited from it... I am a person who always repays kindness. Apart from the two shops I gave to Cao Xue, I will let you use the remaining 14 for five years without charging you a penny of rent... If you insist that it is better for Xiao Bei to run the inn here than for you to run it yourself, I will respect your decision... That's my statement. Anyway, I, Cao, have returned this favor to you. Whether you want it or not is up to you."
While Cao Jinbo was saying this, I observed Cao Xiaobei; he seemed very interested in these shops…
When I opened the temporary inn, he was the one who brought me the keys, so I owe him a favor. Today it's time to repay him. So I said to Cao Jinbo, "Let Xiao Bei use these shops... It's rare that he's thinking about starting a business. Don't make things too difficult for him or for me. Let's forget about the rent... Just the cost of upgrading and decorating will be a huge burden for him. I think he'll get a lot of experience from these shops."
"Alright... then our two younger members of the Cao family have officially made their debut in Jiulongju... please give them some guidance."
"It's a mutual achievement... there's no question of one person helping the other."
...
Cao Jinbo didn't stay long. After discussing these matters, he left with Cao Xue and Cao Xiaobei... Before leaving, Cao Xue told me that our studio could use his two shops at will.
In response to Cao Xue's statement, Chen Jin and I spent an afternoon discussing it and finally decided to open the first branch of "Women's Flower" bar in Dali in the two adjacent shops owned by Cao Xue. Then, we would invest Cao Xue's shops, convert them into shares of the bar, and distribute them to him reasonably.
We then relayed this idea to Nicole, and our studio will invest 150,000 RMB in the new bar for renovations... Nicole was very happy and immediately said she would do her best to ensure the smooth operation of the new bar.
At this point, Jiulongju's entrepreneurial project has truly solved several of its most pressing problems, and it is foreseeable that it will enter a period of rapid development...
We have achieved some progress, but the price we paid was also painful... Especially for me personally, if I had a choice, I would rather continue to be poor and destitute than have anything happen to Ye Zhi... Although there is no obvious evidence yet to prove that Cao Jinbo's 16 shops directly caused my breakup with Ye Zhi, I still feel guilty!
...
The woman whose silhouette I could only see through the window seemed to have gone on a long journey. I went to the "sheet factory" for a month straight, but I never saw her again, nor did I hear her music. Her appearance was like a fleeting glimpse, leaving a deep impression on me. But that evening with the sound of music has never been replicated.
A lot has happened in the past month. The most significant change that can be expressed in monetary terms is the change in Chen Jin. Just last week, we went to the 4S store and bought a Mercedes-Benz C-Class so that he would have more face when he went out to discuss business, thereby increasing his success rate in getting business.
This change is, of course, inseparable from the success of Jiulongju's business. In the past month, we have successfully attracted 4 coffee shops, 3 bars, and a shop selling jade and antiques, and have received a total of 620,000 in rent.
In addition, because we equipped the entire commercial street with highly designed streetlights, the number of people walking around at night has increased significantly. Many tourists are attracted by the streetlights with the theme of "wind, flowers, snow, and moon" and are then drawn in by the idyllic atmosphere. So they often find a coffee shop or bar, order some drinks, and experience this unique atmosphere that is distinct from other streets in the old town.
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