Chapter 49

Chapter 49 The First Dividend Payment Arrives

After receiving the call, Ye Hao looked at the location sent from Xu Yuan’s phone and couldn’t help but frown.

Xu Yuan hadn’t contacted him proactively for more than half a month, so what did it mean that he suddenly wanted to send him something?
Although feeling a bit strange, Ye Hao still prepared to go there in person.

Xu Yuan didn’t seem like someone who would give up easily. Since he had expressed the idea of settling in Longhua before, he would definitely take some action.

Ye Hao also wanted to know what move Xu Yuan would make this time.

Two hours later, Ye Hao’s car arrived late. The main reason was that the wild river Xu Yuan had found was really too remote.

Xu Yuan was sitting by the bus stop resting, smoking while waiting for Ye Hao to arrive.

“Mr. Xu, is this the gift you wanted to give me?” Ye Hao looked at the fishing gear beside Xu Yuan and the one-and-a-half-meter-long big grass carp, feeling a bit puzzled.

“Isn’t it? I spent half a month guarding the reed marsh just for this big grass carp!” Xu Yuan lifted the big fish and boasted.

“It’s too late, no buses are running, so I took the liberty of calling you, Mr. Ye. This big fish is your fare.”

Ye Hao touched his nose and said lightly, “Mr. Xu, you should buy a car.”

Xu Yuan sensed there was more to Ye Hao’s words, but he didn’t care and shamelessly said:

“Some are free to use, why buy? Does President Ye forbid freeloading?”

  ……

After sending Xu Yuan back to school, Ye Hao took the big grass carp weighing over 30 jin home.

Ye Sisi happened to be coming home for dinner tonight, so Ye Hao asked the housekeeper to cook a few extra dishes and also prepared that big grass carp.

The wild big grass carp meat was incredibly flavorful, giving off a mouthwatering aroma as soon as it was served.

“Dad! Why are you using such a big basin to hold the dish? What kind of fish is this? So big?” Ye Sisi’s eyes lit up with curiosity as it was the first time she saw a fish that could fill such a large plate.

“Xu Yuan gave it, saying he guarded for half a month to catch this big grass carp.”

“This fish is wild, eat more to nourish your brain,” Ye Hao said with a smile as he looked at his daughter. This girl was probably seeing such a big grass carp for the first time.

“Is Xu Yuan really that good?” Although Ye Sisi didn’t know what it felt like for an angler to endure half a month of empty catches just to catch one big fish, she still thought catching such a big fish was impressive.

“He is indeed quite skilled,” Ye Hao said, stroking his chin and sighing meaningfully.

“Tastes great!” Ye Sisi took a bite of the fish and immediately couldn’t stop. Perhaps because it was the first time she had seen such a big grass carp, with a psychological boost, she actually found the grass carp incredibly delicious.

“If it’s tasty, then eat more. Luckily, you came home for dinner today, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to finish it all by myself… hmm?” Ye Hao affectionately patted Ye Sisi’s head, but the next second he froze, frowned, and couldn’t help but curse, “Damn it, that stinky kid…”

“Dad, why are you cursing?” Ye Sisi pouted, looking up at Ye Hao with dissatisfaction.

“Daddy was wrong, I shouldn’t have cursed. It’s just that I just remembered a despicable guy.” Ye Hao quickly admitted his mistake, though he still felt annoyed inside.

He had originally thought that Xu Yuan wanted to tell him through this big grass carp he had guarded for half a month that the other party would not give up easily.

But now Ye Hao understood, this kid was acting like a riddle master?! He was hinting to Ye Hao that those big fish waiting to come ashore in the business world couldn’t be eaten by him alone.

With Longhua being so large, Xu Yuan daring to hint at Ye Hao like this was truly bold!
  ……

“Ah Qiu!”

After a nice hot shower, Xu Yuan suddenly sneezed.

The weather was getting colder and colder. These days, staying in the reed marshes, the damp environment made the temperature even lower.

Xu Yuan felt that he might have caught a slight chill.

“Old Ye, you won’t be mad at me, right?” Xu Yuan couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile, talking to himself.

He didn’t really like riddlers; this kind of subtle hint was, to some extent, a form of provocation.

Businesspeople hate provocation the most.

But sometimes this kind of provocation is necessary. Xu Yuan didn’t want to be like a hedgehog, poking anyone he met, but he also couldn’t be completely unarmed.

After taking a shower, Xu Yuan, for the first time ever, saw Li Rui and Zhang Long actually reading books.

Since when did these two guys develop a love for studying?

Sensing Xu Yuan’s strange gaze, Zhang Long looked up and glanced at him, saying, “Yuan’er, the first round of exams starts tomorrow. You’ve skipped so many classes, haven’t you studied at all?”

Hearing this, Xu Yuan was a bit stunned. He had been letting himself go lately and had forgotten that the exam was coming.

“One pen, one night, one miracle!” Xu Yuan took a deep breath, as if he had returned to his previous life, frantically studying the night before the exam and barely passing.

In university exams, it’s not only the students who fear failing, but the teachers also worry about students failing. The questions on the test, as long as you review a little, can easily earn you 60 points.

In his previous life, Xu Yuan never failed a single subject. He usually crammed the night before the exam or a few nights before, going through past years’ test papers. Then he would smoothly pass the exams.

So it was actually quite difficult to fail a course in college. Even if your written exam score was low, the teacher would boost your usual performance scores to push you over the passing line.

  ……

In the following period, Xu Yuan was busy with exams, cramming and reviewing every day, almost reviewing one subject after finishing another.

It must be said, this feeling of last-minute cramming was actually quite thrilling.

There was still no news from Ye Hao’s side, but Xu Yuan was not in a hurry. He didn’t want to use the system loan just yet; he wanted to slow down his pace, so this was definitely going to be a tug-of-war.

  ……

“Finally over, I’m about to go crazy!”

After finishing the last exam, Zhang Long howled at the sky. Having indulged for half a semester, except for Qian Jialun who had always studied seriously, the other three hadn’t slept well for more than ten days straight, all to prepare for the exams.
“Tonight, no matter what, we have to go out and spend some money!” Zhang Long could no longer suppress his perpetually hungry stomach.

No one had any objections to this. After the exam, everyone would be going home, and the next time they met would be next semester. They should go out for a gathering.

“When do you all plan to leave school? My home is far away, so I bought my plane ticket a long time ago. I’ll probably leave the day after tomorrow.”

Li Rui asked the others about their departure times, probably hoping to find someone to travel with.

“My home is nearby, right in the capital, so I can leave anytime,” Qian Jialun said casually, pushing up his glasses.

“Am I the only one leaving late?”

Zhang Long chose a flight ten days later, mainly because by then he would have missed the peak period of college students going home, so the tickets were cheaper.

“I’ll probably have to wait for more than half a month. I’ll decide on the ticket then,” Xu Yuan said, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

Medical university exams are numerous, and on top of that, Li Xinran has chosen many courses, so it will probably take another half month to finish all the exams.

Last time when they came, they took the train, and even though it was a soft sleeper, it was still quite grueling. So this time, Xu Yuan plans to fly home.

“Let’s not talk about these things anymore; let’s figure out a place to eat. But remember, this time, no matter what, we absolutely won’t go to a nightclub!”

Talking about parting always brings some sadness, even if they say they can still see each other next semester. But Zhang Long chose to change the subject.

Everyone strongly agreed with Zhang Long’s proposal; the last experience at the nightclub was indeed quite memorable.

  ……

“Hey, President Ye, since you have some free time, what do you need from me?”

The four roommates in Xu Yuan’s dorm were happily eating hotpot when Ye Hao suddenly called.

It had been half a month since the last fish delivery, and Ye Hao finally took the initiative to contact Xu Yuan.

“In a while, there will be the Tianqi Entertainment annual meeting, and as a shareholder, President Xu must attend.

The fish you gave last time, President Xu, I really liked it and ate it all clean.” Ye Hao seemed to deliberately pause, emphasizing “ate it all clean,” then continued:

“Although we are friends, we also value reciprocity.

Since President Xu is attending the Tianqi Entertainment annual meeting, you need to have a respectable ride.”

Consider that car a return gift to President Xu.

“President Ye, you’re so generous! A gentleman doesn’t take what others love; how can I accept this?” Xu Yuan said with a smile.

“Hehe, President Xu, you’re too polite. I’ll give you the driver’s number later. If you need the car, just contact him directly. That way, I won’t have to pick you up every time.”

Ye Hao’s tone seemed amused, but in his heart he was cursing: This shameless guy, why don’t you just say you don’t want it? I’m the one who’s reluctant to part with it.

After hanging up the phone, Xu Yuan sneered and muttered disdainfully, “If you’re going to give me a car, just give me a car. No need to say it’s a gift. Why don’t you just transfer the ownership then?”

That luxury car worth 15 million, Ye Hao probably couldn’t bear to just give it to him outright. Xu Yuan wasn’t that greedy either; it seemed his little scheme had finally worked.

Of course, Xu Yuan wasn’t naive enough to think he could win over Ye Hao with just a small favor. Ye Hao specifically assigned him a car simply to keep him temporarily stable.

“President Ye? Is that the one from Longhua? I knew it! Yuan’er, man, why are you hiding this from us?!”

The three who were originally feverishly enjoying hotpot all looked at Xu Yuan with strange eyes; this guy was hiding too much!
  ……

  ……

After the exams in their college ended, the exams in the other colleges were also nearing their conclusion.

There were hardly any people left in the college, even the once crowded cafeteria was the same.

Xu Yuan, who had just finished his morning exercise, was eating breakfast while boredly scrolling through today’s headlines when he suddenly received a notification of a bank deposit.

“The first dividend from the investment has finally arrived!”

The dividend from Bingcheng Beverages, after tax, totaled 7.32 million, with some small change to follow. This amount is not insignificant, especially considering Bingcheng Beverages is still in its startup phase.

In just a few months, Bingcheng Beverages went through the previous turmoil involving Bingcheng Beverage Hero, and its popularity has remained consistently high.

Later, with the airing of the variety show featuring the investment in Tianqi, riding that wave of popularity, Bingcheng Beverages has now become a major company in the industry, enjoying unprecedented fame.

The number of stores nationwide has directly risen to nearly 6,000, with the scale increasing several times over. Zhang Chao truly felt that Xu Yuan was his lucky star; if it weren’t for Xu Yuan’s emergency remedial measures at the time, which turned a crisis into a marketing opportunity, Bingcheng Beverages would likely have suffered a severe blow.

Xu Yuan looked at the amount credited to his account and couldn’t help but feel a bit proud. Unfortunately, this number only lasted a few seconds before instantly dropping by half.

The system directly deducted 50% of the loan.

“So fast? I haven’t even had time to warm it up,” Xu Yuan said with a smile, shaking his head. The system’s speed in deducting money was quite impressive.

As expected, Zhang Chao called later to confirm whether the dividend had been credited.

“Mr. Xu, the first dividend should have been credited by now, right?”

“Yes, quite a sum. Under Mr. Zhang’s management, Bingcheng Beverages will probably be a completely different company soon,” Xu Yuan praised Zhang Chao a few more words.

“Hehe, Mr. Xu, you flatter me. The company has prepared some New Year’s gifts for you. I took the liberty of calling not only to confirm the dividend but also to ask for your address so we can send you some New Year’s gifts.”

It’s not something valuable, so Mr. Xu, please don’t refuse it.”

“Mr. Zhang, you’re too polite.”