After Rebirth, I Married My Rival - Chapter 08

Chapter 8: The Massive Negotiation on the Green Train

« Still out for a walk this late? »

Xu Yuan was in a great mood today, humming a tune as he walked. Coincidentally, just as he entered the neighborhood, he bumped into Lin Wan’er who was out for a stroll.

Seeing the unstoppable smile on Xu Yuan’s face, Lin Wan’er also smiled faintly and softly called out, « Brother. »

« Huh? » Xu Yuan was taken aback when he heard that. Did this girl really just call him « bro »?
But whatever, let her call me that if she wants. Xu Yuan teased back, « Alright, little sister, hurry home now. It’s getting late, and there are lots of bad people out at night. »

« I was just heading back, let’s go together. » Lin Wan’er clasped her hands behind her back, skipping along as she followed behind Xu Yuan.

It must be said, with Lin Wan’er’s innocent looks coupled with her lively personality, few boys could resist liking her.

The only pity was that Xu Yuan was no longer the naive young boy he once had been.

Bro, how far have things progressed between you and Xinran? Want me to give you some advice?
« My dad said you helped him today and asked me to thank you, » Lin Wan’er suddenly spoke up, though she wasn’t quite sure why she said it.

« Just waiting for the east wind, but it shouldn’t be long now. » Xu Yuan shrugged with his hands in his pockets, not particularly anxious about it.

« Would you like me to help you? » Lin Wan’er suddenly linked arms with Xu Yuan.

For this sudden movement, Xu Yuan instinctively tried to pull his hand back, feeling slightly surprised.

Lin Wan’er had never acted like this before—was she really treating him as an older brother now?
« Forget it. I want 100% ownership of this project—no partners. » Xu Yuan chuckled, wagging a finger before gently pressing Lin Wan’er’s head away to push her aside.

Seeing Xu Yuan’s resolute rejection, Lin Wan’er felt he had become a stranger. The boy who had always looked out for her now seemed more mature, steady, and confident.

..

..

Mom, why don’t you go ahead first? I haven’t managed to hail a cab yet.

On the road, Xu Yuan was carrying large and small bags, and you were pulling a suitcase along.

« Alright, I’ll refund your tickets. Hurry up and buy the next available ones. » Li Xiang was also anxious—how could they not find a taxi in broad daylight with so many people around?

« How’s it going, Xiao Yuan? Did you manage to get a taxi? » Bai Qiu glanced at the train that was about to depart and came over anxiously to ask.

« Xiao Yuan must be waiting for the next train with that girl named Xinran. Let’s just go ahead first. » Lixiang could only shake her head helplessly.

« That’s not a good idea. They’re still too young, » Bai Qiu said with concern.

Lin Jiadong chimed in from the side, « Xiao Yuan is quite steady in his work, so there shouldn’t be any issues. »

Listening to the adults discussing matters, Qi Wei quietly took a bottle of water from his bag and handed it to Xia Ke, saying, « Are you thirsty? Want some water? »

Xia Ke very naturally accepted the water, then nudged Qi Wei with her elbow and said, « I’ve been shipping them for three years, and now it’s all for nothing. Did you have a hand in this? »

Xia Ke still couldn’t believe that Xu Yuan would just give up on Lin Wan’er. After all, something someone has persisted in for three years isn’t so easily changed.

« What does this have to do with me? » Qi Wei looked utterly wronged, as if he’d been falsely accused.

That day at the class reunion, Xu Yuan suddenly changed his mind—what was supposed to be a confession turned into a sworn brotherhood. Who could’ve predicted that? It was like he became a completely different person.

« Aren’t you his best buddy? » Xia Ke raised her small fist and lightly punched Qi Wei, gritting her teeth as she whispered.

« Keke, I really don’t know! Stop pressuring me. » Qi Wei rubbed his arm—Xia Ke’s punch had actually packed quite a punch.

..

Li Xinran watched the visibly anxious Xu Yuan, biting her lip incessantly.

Xu Yuan turned around just in time to see this scene and guessed that the girl was probably blaming her bad luck again, even feeling guilty for dragging him into it.

I just checked—there seems to be construction work ahead, so taxis are avoiding this street. We should find one once we turn past that intersection.

« Mm. » Li Xinran nodded, but her fingers remained nervously intertwined.

« Looks like the heavens are on my side. What great luck. » Xu Yuan suddenly reached out and ruffled Li Xinran’s hair.

Li Xinran looked up in bewilderment. Wasn’t missing both the taxi and the train just a streak of bad luck?
« Because it’s just the two of us together, no third wheels. » Xu Yuan smiled at Li Xinran with twinkling eyes.

« Classmate Xu Yuan, your way of thinking is strange, but… thank you. » Tilting her head back, Li Xinran finally smiled. She naturally understood Xu Yuan was comforting her, trying to stop her from overthinking.

After crossing the intersection, they indeed spotted a taxi. Only then did Li Xinran truly feel a wave of relief wash over her.

..

When they arrived at the station, the scheduled train had already departed, leaving Xu Yuan no choice but to buy two hard-seat tickets at the last minute.

Fortunately, the journey wasn’t too long—just over six hours to reach City TA—so it was bearable.

Want an orange? I brought some fruit.

On the train, Li Xinran peeled an orange and handed it to Xu Yuan.

If it were in the past, Xu Yuan would have taken this opportunity to tease Li Xinran, but now he kept staring at the man reading a newspaper across from him.

« Young man, do we know each other? » The man, noticing Xu Yuan’s gaze, asked with a smile.

Xu Yuan rubbed his chin and tentatively replied, « Are you President Zhang of Ice City Beverages? »

Zhang Chao was slightly surprised and put down the newspaper in his hands. He hadn’t expected someone to recognize him.

The current Bingcheng Beverage is still a small business, so its owner probably wouldn’t be recognized by people yet.
Yes, I am. And you are…?

Xu Yuan widened his eyes—what an incredible coincidence! How could a company owner end up riding a green-skinned train?
He had thought the man looked familiar earlier. After all, in his past life, Bingcheng Beverage had exploded in popularity and even went public on the A-share market. From a small shop owner to the CEO of a listed company, Zhang Chao’s journey was nothing short of a business legend.

Hello, my name is Xu Yuan.

After a brief handshake, Xu Yuan spoke first: « I’m familiar with Bingcheng Beverages—it’s a company with great potential. I thought you looked familiar earlier but didn’t dare confirm it. I certainly didn’t expect you to be so frugal. »

Zhang Chao’s eyes lit up; this young man spoke with remarkable eloquence, and his words were quite pleasing to hear.

No one dislikes being complimented, not even Zhang Chao, who would later become a titan in the business world.

« Frugality is a virtue. Even when prosperous, one shouldn’t forget the hardships of the past, right? Mr. Xu seems quite familiar with Ice City Beverages? Our company is just a small operation. » Zhang Chao waved his hand dismissively. While compliments from others were flattering, he preferred to remain humble, especially since his statement reflected their current reality.

« Current scale and future potential aren’t equivalent. In my observation, similar brands in the market are all competing for the premium segment.

But with a limited target consumer base, this industry will soon reach saturation.

Ice City Beverages’ strategy of targeting the mass market may yield lower short-term profits, but holds great long-term promise. » Xu Yuan didn’t hold back his praise. Though a few words wouldn’t secure him a business tycoon’s friendship, leaving a favorable impression might prove useful in the future.

« The low-end market isn’t easy either, » Zhang Chao remarked. Though somewhat surprised that Xu Yuan shared his thoughts, the current market reality was clear: those with money didn’t care about saving a few bucks—they’d buy expensive items for the prestige. Meanwhile, those without money wouldn’t even spend five or six yuan.

« Indeed, but no one can predict the future. Ten years ago, a bottle of cola cost three yuan, which was considered a luxury in everyday spending at that time. »

But nowadays, most people don’t mind spending three yuan on a bottle of cola when going out for fun or after exercising.

Who could have imagined what things would be like ten years later? Bingcheng Beverages might very well become the next Coca-Cola. » Xu Yuan’s words were calm, exuding composure and confidence.

He clearly knew that Ice City Beverages would become unstoppable in five years!
Zhang Chao frowned upon hearing this. It wasn’t that he found Xu Yuan’s analysis problematic, but rather that Xu Yuan’s vision seemed so far-sighted—unlike something a young person would typically say.

[Discovered a commercial investment opportunity.

Project Target: Ice City Beverages.

Investment loan amount: 10 million (The host must repay the loan at 1.1 times the principal. The system will deduct 50% from the profits each quarter until the loan is fully repaid.)]

[Confirm investment?]

The system’s explanation this time is similar to the last one, except the amount has increased by a whopping 50 times!
Repaying at 1.1 times is significantly cheaper than double repayment. It seems the system’s repayment terms are determined based on the investment loan amount.

Xu Yuan didn’t confirm immediately. While Ice City Beverages was indeed a great investment project, even if he made an offer, Zhang Chao might not necessarily be willing to accept it.

Otherwise, if I took out a loan and the deal still fell through, wouldn’t it be like drawing water with a sieve—wasting effort and ending up saddled with debt?

« Mr. Xu, would you be interested in joining our company? I can offer you a regional manager position, and we can discuss the salary package. » Zhang Chao extended an olive branch with a smile, noting that Xu Yuan seemed quite familiar with their company’s business positioning—he must have studied it carefully.

Judging by their attire, they didn’t seem like elite professionals—those types wouldn’t be caught dead on a slow green train. If I could recruit them, they might just become a formidable asset.

Li Xinran, sitting nearby and eating an orange, listened to their conversation without interrupting. However, the astonishment in her eyes was impossible to hide. Xu Yuan had just graduated from high school, yet with just a few words, he had managed to get a company owner extend an olive branch to him.

How impressive is that?!

Xu Yuan smiled faintly and said calmly, « I’m sorry, Mr. Zhang, but management and marketing aren’t my areas of expertise.

Your strategic vision is ahead of its time, Mr. Zhang, but such long-term planning must be difficult to secure investment for. Perhaps I can help you with that. »

Zhang Chao listened to these words, his gaze growing even more astonished. Had he misjudged? Xu Yuan wasn’t just an ordinary young man. Though he harbored some doubts, he still spoke up:

How much can you offer?

Xu Yuan held up five fingers—he wasn’t about to reveal his full hand right away. Someone capable of turning Ice City Beverages into an industry leader was no fool. With such a shrewd opponent, it was best to keep some cards close to the chest.

Five hundred thousand?

« Five million! »

« Pfft! Sorry about that, my bad, my bad. »

The guys sitting in the seats next to the aisle couldn’t hold back any longer—they had been listening to the two of them talk the whole time.

I could still hold back, but when I heard Xu Yuan had five million to invest, I truly couldn’t contain myself.

Two big bosses would take a green-skinned train? And hard seats at that!

This incident later became a topic of their after-drink chats, but years later, when they mentioned it again, it turned into something they bragged about.

Neither of them paid much attention to this little episode.

Zhang Chao remained silent, simply watching Xu Yuan intently, as if trying to decipher something from the other’s gaze.

Five million was no small sum for any project.

Xu Yuan didn’t avert his eyes. Having weathered the storms of business for so many years in his past life, when it came to presence, Xu Yuan wouldn’t lose to Zhang Chao—at the very least, not to the current version of Zhang Chao.

« This is my business card. I’ll be getting off at the next stop. If you’re truly interested in investing, we can arrange a convenient time to discuss. » Zhang Chao took out a business card from his pocket and slid it across to Xu Yuan.

The wolf-like intensity in Xu Yuan’s eyes reminded Zhang Chao of many formidable investors he’d met. Yet even when they recognized potential, they remained skeptical about companies like Bingcheng Beverage that couldn’t generate substantial profits in the short term.