The greatest distance in the world is that she wore a full face of makeup, yet failed to amaze the world.
Jiang Hailang and Lin Xiaoran's wedding was to be held in the garden of the Platinum Hotel. Before the ceremony began, the men greeted the guests, while the women chatted and reminisced in the lounge.
Song Yunxi sat on a chair next to the vanity, propping her elbows on the table, and tilted her head to look at Lin Xiaoran. "I knew all along that Fu Meilin and Xu Jiasheng were having an affair."
"How did you know?" Lin Xiaoran turned to ask Song Yunxi in surprise, but the makeup artist gently lifted her chin and turned her head back.
"Look. Who do you think sends Fu Meilin the roses she receives every day?"
"It's Xu Jiasheng? Then he really has been pursuing Fu Meilin for a long time."
"Um."
The makeup artist stood to the side and said softly, "Close your eyes for a moment."
Lin Xiaoran obediently closed her eyes, and while the makeup artist touched up her eyeshadow, she said, "However, President Fu has become much more easygoing lately, probably thanks to Xu Jiasheng."
"This is called one thing subduing another. Moreover, it is obviously much easier for Xu Jiasheng to subdue the spoiled young lady than for you to seal off Jiang Hailang's fishpond."
After Song Yunxi finished speaking, the two of them burst into laughter.
Fu Meilin pushed open the door to the lounge and entered, shoving the bouquet into Lin Xiaoran's hands. She then turned to Song Yunxi, who was sitting next to her, and asked, "Song Yunxi, when did you get back?"
The day before yesterday.
Did you go back to South Korea?
"What's fun in South Korea? My dream is to travel the world."
Just when Fu Meilin thought Song Yunxi had really gone to travel the world and was about to ask her which countries she had visited in the past two months, she heard Song Yunxi continue, "Unfortunately, I didn't have enough money, so I had to come back to earn more."
Fu Meilin rolled her eyes at Song Yunxi: "Who are you doing Versailles with here? You came back and immediately became Miss Chi's afternoon tea master, and you think you're being wronged?"
I really hate her smug attitude.
"Look at you, why are you still angry? Aren't we best friends?"
"Who's your best friend?" Fu Meilin sat on the sofa behind, ignoring Song Yunxi. Looking at Lin Xiaoran in the mirror, she asked, "How long are you planning to take your honeymoon?"
It wasn't that she, as the deputy general manager of the human resources department, was being negligent; it was simply that Lin Xiaoran's leave application form had a blank space for the leave period, supposedly approved by President Mu, and that she would fill it in after returning from her leave.
Lin Xiaoran said, "That's really uncertain. If things don't go well, it'll be ten days; if things go well, it'll be permanent."
"What's going smoothly or not?" Fu Meilin asked, then realized she'd phrased it wrong and changed her question: "What's going on?"
"Oh, I'm currently interviewing for the position of General Manager of Afternoon Tea with Ms. Chi. If she agrees, I won't go back to Platinum Hotel. If she doesn't agree, I'll go back to the operations department to continue working in ten days."
Fu Meilin turned and glared at Song Yunxi. "It's you again? You actually came here to steal someone from me."
Song Yunxi shook her head with a smile, "I wouldn't dare."
Fu Meilin then turned to Lin Xiaoran, "Send me your resignation letter tomorrow. Don't think that just because she doesn't want you, I can take you. Nobody's going to be your backup plan."
Lin Xiaoran laughed too, "Unnie, look, President Fu wants me to resign. Looks like you'll have to take me even if you don't want to."
In fact, in the days leading up to her wedding, besides being busy with the change of legal representative for Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea, Lin Xiaoran was also looking for someone in the operations department to take over her work and preparing for the handover. She was just waiting for everything at Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea to be settled before she resigned.
After all, if she resigns first, then she won't have the right to push for progress.
“Then I’ll have to reluctantly accept you, but I can’t give you a very high position, just a vice president.” After saying that, Song Yunxi turned to look at Fu Meilin, “I’m not saying your position is low, don’t misunderstand.”
Fu Meilin grabbed a piece of chocolate from the candy bowl on the coffee table and threw it at Song Yunxi. "You're so annoying. Hurry up and make enough money to travel the world."
As the makeup artist fixed Lin Xiaoran's hair, she smiled and remarked, "You girls have such a great relationship."
Mu Chen knocked on the door of the lounge. "Yunxi, my father is here. Do you want to go see him?"
"The chairman is here too? Then I must go and meet him." After agreeing, Song Yunxi patted Lin Xiaoran on the shoulder: "Vice President Lin, prepare well and don't be nervous."
Before leaving, she casually smiled at Fu Meilin and said, "Don't keep a straight face. I brought back some good stuff. If you behave well, I'll give you some later."
"Tch, what good things can you give me?" Fu Meilin snorted disdainfully, then smiled as Song Yunxi walked out the door.
*
Besides Jiang Hailang and Lin Xiaoran's relatives and friends, the wedding banquet was attended by colleagues, clients, and some partner manufacturers from Platinum Hotel.
Mu Guozhang sat at the main table originally assigned to Mu Chen, along with President Jiang and several other shareholders. Mu Chen, on the other hand, sat at a nearby table with Song Yunxi and several other senior executives.
After the ceremony, Lin Xiaoran changed into a modified cheongsam with bright red embroidered buttons and puff sleeves. She was now arm in arm with Jiang Hailang, going around the banquet hall toasting each table.
Mu Guozhang turned around and waved to Song Yunxi: "Yunxi."
"Yes." Song Yunxi answered reflexively, then turned to look at Mu Chen.
Mu Chen gently squeezed her hand. "Go."
Song Yunxi then stood up, straightened her skirt, and quickly walked to Mu Guozhang's side. With a smile, she bowed slightly and respectfully greeted him, "Chairman."
"Although you are no longer affiliated with Platinum Hotels, everyone here is your uncle and elder, and they have given you a lot of advice before. Today, I would like to take this opportunity to toast your uncles and elders."
When I went to see Mu Guozhang earlier, he just asked about her situation in a kind and gentle way, like an elder would, and he didn't mention that there was this toasting segment where he was supposed to steal Lin Xiaoran's job.
Moreover, the toasts were not to the CEOs or shareholders, but to the uncles and elders.
Song Yunxi smiled and agreed, "Yes."
Someone as intelligent as her naturally understood Mu Guozhang's intentions immediately.
Song Yunxi took the wine bottle from the waiter and personally poured wine for everyone at the table. Even if the glasses were still full, she dripped a few drops to show her sincerity in pouring the wine, leaving no room for others to criticize her for favoritism.
“Yunxi, that child…” Mu Guozhang said, pointing to Song Yunxi who was pouring wine with her head down. “The first time I met her was when she was reporting to me in the conference room about the Miss Chi afternoon tea project. When I heard her clearly and logically explaining the progress of each task, I knew she was a dedicated person and would definitely be able to do a good job on the project. Sure enough, she has grown very quickly in the past few months at the hotel, and now she can handle things on her own.”
After Mu Guozhang finished speaking, Song Yunxi chimed in at the opportune moment: "It is thanks to the excellent teaching of all my uncles and elders."
"Haha, from now on, this business world will belong to you young people. We old folks have fought our whole lives, and now it's time for us to enjoy our retirement."
"The chairman isn't old at all. I'd like to have more opportunities to learn from the chairman and my uncles."
After pouring drinks for everyone present, Song Yunxi took a new glass from the waiter and poured herself a drink.
“When I worked at the hotel before, I learned a lot from the older colleagues. I left in a hurry last time and didn’t have a chance to thank them. Today, I would like to thank the chairman for giving me this opportunity. I would like to raise a glass to all the older colleagues to thank them for their care and guidance.”
As Song Yunxi spoke, she raised her wine glass with both hands toward the table.
The people present instantly understood the situation.
Platinum Hotel is only a small part of the Mu Group. Even though Jiang Hailang is the biggest contributor to Platinum Hotel's profits, having Mu Chen, a classmate and general manager, attend the wedding is already a great honor. There's no need for the chairman to attend in person.
Therefore, the reason why Mu Guozhang was not given a seat at the wedding was not because Jiang Hailang was impolite, but because he was simply not worthy of the honor.
But before the wedding began, Mu Guozhang showed up uninvited, explaining to everyone with a smile that he was in Lancheng on a business trip and wanted to visit some old friends.
It turns out that visiting old friends was just a pretense; his real purpose was to support his future daughter-in-law.
It seems the rumors circulating in the community that the Mu family favors daughters over sons are true.
Back when Mu Chen first took over the Platinum Hotel, things were incredibly difficult. Anyone else probably wouldn't have lasted three months. And Mu Guozhang? He didn't even utter a single word, let alone plead with President Jiang and the others to show leniency. He left Mu Chen to fend for himself.
And now? We won't even talk about the Mu family's eldest daughter, a celebrity who wields considerable influence in the entertainment industry. Just consider this prospective daughter-in-law, Song Yunxi, who hasn't even officially joined the family yet. She only encountered some obstacles when taking over Miss Chi's afternoon tea, and Mu Guozhang personally came to her aid.
But since Mu Guozhang wanted to back them up, everyone had no choice but to let him. After all, when the Mu Group wanted to take over the Platinum Hotel, it was Mu Guozhang who, thanks to his slight connection with President Jiang and others, gave them the opportunity to continue to hold a place in the Platinum Hotel.
Although reluctant, President Jiang still raised his glass. "It's not so much about taking care of her or giving her a boost; it will depend on Miss Song's own abilities in the future."
Having lived for so many decades, one must know how to be pragmatic. Making things difficult for Mu Chen and Song Yunxi could be seen as guiding the younger generation, but refusing to give Mu Guozhang face would be asking for trouble.
Song Yunxi quickly bowed and handed the cup over with both hands, gently clinking glasses with President Jiang. "Thank you, President Jiang."
Seeing that President Jiang was taking the lead, the others also raised their glasses.
Song Yunxi finished her drink and then heard Mu Guozhang in front of everyone instructing her: "Your uncles and elders have given you the opportunity to take charge of Miss Chi's afternoon tea. You should work hard to achieve results and not let your uncles and elders down."
Song Yunxi nodded respectfully: "Yes, Chairman."
*
After the wedding banquet, Song Yunxi accompanied Mu Guozhang and Mu Chen to the general manager's office for tea and a short rest.
She filled the electric kettle on the tea table with water, turned on the heating button, and then picked up a small dark blue iron box from the side.
"Uncle, please try the tea I brought back from Taiwan. I picked and processed it myself."
Mu Guozhang glanced at the small label on the box. "Yunxi Chaolu, that's a nice name."
While rinsing the cup with hot water, Song Yunxi said, "It was named by Teacher Shen Yao."
Mu Guozhang asked, "I heard your plan is to open Miss Chi's afternoon tea at other five-star hotels?"
"Yes, but it's not just this one plan. In fact, I've also made plans for the second and third phases."
"Oh? Tell me about it."
Song Yunxi put down the kettle and stood up from the sofa. "Then please wait a moment, Chairman. I'll go get my computer and then come back to report to you."
Mu Guozhang smiled and waved for her to sit down, "No need to be so formal, it's just a casual chat."
"Okay." Song Yunxi sat back down on the sofa, only to find that the kettle that had been beside her had been taken away by Mu Chen.
Mu Chen pursed his lips and continued warming the cup. He thought Song Yunxi was truly a person who clearly separated public and private matters: when she was making tea and chatting with her boyfriend's father, Mu Guozhang was like an uncle. But as soon as she mentioned discussing a plan, Mu Guozhang immediately transformed into the chairman of the board in front of her.
Song Yunxi ignored Mu Chen's light laughter and didn't go to retrieve the kettle. Instead, she faced Mu Guozhang and discussed her long-term plans: "At this stage, I plan to focus on what I'm good at, which is to bring Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea to other five-star hotels of the same standard as Platinum Hotel. This process will take about a year, and by the end of next year, my plan is to have partnerships with four hotels."
Once the brand partnerships within the hotel are stable, we'll launch the second phase of our plan: finding suitable commercial areas to open independent Miss Chi Afternoon Tea stores, separate from the hotel. Then, based on these independent stores, we'll expand into delivery services.
"Takeout?" Mu Guozhang took the teacup handed to him by Mu Chen and tasted the Yunxi Morning Dew Tea that Song Yunxi had personally made. The tea was light and had the fragrance of osmanthus.
He finished his tea, placed the cup back on the tray, and waited for Mu Chen to pour him another. He then continued to ask Song Yunxi, "Wouldn't ordering takeout be inconsistent with Miss Chi's current afternoon tea concept?"
The implication is that food delivery services have lowered the prestige of this high-end brand.
Song Yunxi said, "No. Actually, many people nowadays have a need to host banquets at home. When they want to invite a few friends over for afternoon tea at home one afternoon, if we can provide a dedicated person and car to deliver afternoon tea of the same quality as in a restaurant, and offer on-site service, allowing customers to enjoy the same comfort as sitting in an afternoon tea restaurant without having to go out or lift a finger, then not only will the level not be lowered, but it will actually be higher. Even if we charge a service fee, customers should be willing to accept it."
She had already planned it out: every brand has its own target customer group, just like five-star hotels and budget hotels each have their own target customers. Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea is positioned for high-end customers.
Therefore, she won't force her way into the fiercely competitive new tea beverage market. Instead, she'll focus on improving the quality of her food and service. She doesn't need to cater to everyone; the approval of a small group is enough.
Moreover, she doesn't just deliver to anyone who orders takeout. She has people develop a dedicated mini-program and app for Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea. Customers who need takeout service must place their orders three to seven days in advance through the mini-program or app. Quantities are limited each week, first come, first served, while supplies last.
Although it was supposed to be casual conversation, Song Yunxi actually spent the entire afternoon reporting her work to Mu Guozhang. Fortunately, both her tea and her plans were approved by Mu Guozhang.
Before leaving, Mu Guozhang smiled and told her, "Yunxi, just go for it."
*
That evening, after Mu Chen finished showering, he saw Song Yunxi sitting on the bay window of the balcony with her knees bent.
He went over and hugged her from behind. "You have no idea how jealous I was of Jiang Hailang's smug look today."
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
Mu Chen gently kissed her ear, then rested his chin on her shoulder. "Why are you apologizing? If you want to pursue your career, then go for it. You'll be the Mu family's daughter-in-law sooner or later anyway."
Therefore, with Song Yunxi's authorization, he chose the furthest wedding date from the few wedding dates his mother sent him.
Song Yoon-hee's exact words were: "You choose the wedding date. Don't tell me, so you can give me a surprise later."
Jiang Hailang clapped and praised her statement at the time: "Song Yunxi is amazing. She made it sound so tactful and romantic that she didn't want to spend time preparing for the wedding."
Mu Chen smiled without saying a word. It was Song Yunxi's lively and adorable nature to enjoy playing harmless little tricks.
He set the wedding date for the end of April. Presumably, by then, Rui Huaisen's tea plantation should have finished harvesting the spring tea, and the first partner store of Miss Chi Afternoon Tea should have already opened.
Song Yunxi asked, "Do you think I can do it well?"
Although she always appeared confident in front of others, this was, after all, her first time being the head of a brand, and she seemed to have nothing but passion and courage.
“When I first took over Platinum Hotels, I had nothing. But I knew that I held the fate of Platinum Hotels and all its employees in my hands, and I could not afford to fail. Thinking like this always motivated me to do everything I could.”
And you have something even more than I did back then. Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea is something you created single-handedly; it embodies your dreams. So, Yoon-hee, go for it.
Mu Chen paused for two seconds, then added, "Even if you unfortunately fail, you still have the Mu family behind you."
Only by daring to face possible failure can one have the courage to achieve victory.
“No, I won’t fail.” Song Yunxi turned around and hugged Mu Chen’s neck. “I don’t have those lofty ideas you’re talking about. I’m just thinking: I will never be the one who tries to marry into a wealthy family. I will strive to be on equal footing with them.”
"Okay." Mu Chen smiled and kissed Song Yunxi's lips.
A cosmetics influencer once said: "The greatest distance in the world is not between life and death, but between me wearing a gradient lip look and you thinking my lipstick doesn't show up well."
But Song Yunxi felt that the greatest distance in the world was that she had used every color in her makeup, yet she still failed to amaze the world.
But she doesn't want that kind of distance.
So, keep going, Song Yoon-hee! Tomorrow is a new beginning!
(End of text)
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