In the evening, after the bonfire party, Chen Pingjiang had just returned to his room and finished showering when someone ran up, shouting,
"Squad leader, something's happened, come quickly!"
Chen Pingjiang had a "what the heck" expression.
It was truly a case of "speak of the devil," and he hadn't been back long himself.
After quickly changing his clothes, he rushed downstairs to see a group of people gathered together.
Dong Tinghui was clutching his backside, his face twisted in a constipated expression.
"What's going on?"
Chen Pingjiang asked with a frown.
Dong Tinghui stammered, too embarrassed to speak, but someone nearby laughed and said,
"Dong Tinghui and Wu Zhaogang drank too much cat piss. They made a bet on who could kiss a horse's butt. Dong Tinghui had just leaned in for a kiss and turned around when the horse kicked him with a hoof."
Chen Pingjiang's face instantly went pale, and cold sweat poured down him.
Staring at Dong Tinghui, he ignored their friendship and dorm relations, launching into a furious scolding:
"Are you a fucking idiot? Do you know how powerful a horse's kick is? Kicking the right spot can kill someone. If it hits your balls, you'll become a eunuch. If it hits your guts, you're done for."
Dong Tinghui and the others hadn't realized the seriousness of the situation, thinking they were just playing a prank, not as serious as Chen Pingjiang made it out to be.
Dong Tinghui, still clutching his backside with one hand, said,
"Old Chen, stop scolding. I'm really fine, it's not as exaggerated as you say."
He suppressed the frustration of his unspoken confession and vented his drunken energy elsewhere.
"And you're still a fucking university student, yet you don't even know this? Go back and Baidu it yourself. And you lot, are you all dead? They're messing around and you just watch the show?"
Chen Pingjiang turned his head and also chewed out the other boys.
A horse's hoof can deliver a kick with 400-500kg of force when it gets a running start.
This is not a joke; it can be fatal.
These guys drank "cat piss" and forgot their own names.
Not a single person dared to retort.
Aside from Chen Pingjiang's current prestige in the class, they had indeed been egging them on earlier.
Now that they calmed down and thought about it, it was quite terrifying.
If Dong Tinghui had been seriously injured, the matter would have been huge.
After seeing that no one dared to talk back for a while, Chen Pingjiang finally stopped scolding, hands on his hips.
"Are you alright?"
Chen Pingjiang asked, pointing at Dong Tinghui.
Dong Tinghui had just realized he had walked a fine line with death.
Clutching his backside, he grinned and said,
"I'm fine, I was very close to it, so the horse's hoof didn't get much force."
The somewhat heavy atmosphere finally eased a little.
Zhao Shaoyang slapped Dong Tinghui's shoulder hard and complained,
"Were you really just acting crazy because someone stopped you from confessing to Wang Liwen? Luckily you're fine. If something had really happened, not only would Brother Chen take the blame, but we wouldn't be able to live peacefully either."
Wu Zhaogang apologized in front of Chen Pingjiang:
"My fault, I shouldn't have egged him on."
Chen Pingjiang rubbed his temples and waved his hand,
"Everyone didn't get enough to drink, did they? Come on, let's keep drinking."
Wang Liwen, who had just heard about the incident, rushed over with Cong Nini and a few other girls.
Hearing this, she frowned and said,
"Still drinking? Dong Tinghui, shouldn't you go to the hospital to get checked out?"
In front of Wang Liwen, Dong Tinghui wouldn't dare show any weakness.
He immediately shook his head carelessly,
"I'm fine, really. Just do as Old Chen says, to calm our nerves."
Wang Liwen rolled her eyes at him, then turned and left,
"Then I'm not looking after you anymore."
The waiter brought several cases of beer.
Everyone took a few bottles, drinking and chatting under the bright moonlight.
"Old Chen, compared to you, the guys in our class feel like life is meaningless. We're all university students, but you're already starting from such a high point."
"Yeah, Brother Chen, at future class reunions, will we end up like in novels, full of life's disparities? Like, you'll be a big boss, and some of us will be working on assembly lines in factories. By then, we probably won't even be able to speak when we see you."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Even after ten or twenty years, we'll still be classmates,"
Chen Pingjiang pretended to be displeased.
However, these were just words.
After ten or twenty years, even if they met again, they wouldn't be strangers, but they wouldn't be as close as they were now.
After graduation, everyone would have their own lives.
Just dealing with piles of work and office politics at their workplaces every day would be exhausting.
Where would they find time to get together?
They would be scattered across the country, making it difficult to meet again.
Perhaps only when someone got married would most people show up.
Cong Nini was drinking with a group of boys for the first time and found it quite interesting.
Hearing everyone open up, she also chimed in,
"Aren't you thinking too far ahead?"
"Oh, our class beauty is here too. Cong Nini, you're pretty, but you're too pretentious."
"Bullshit! When was I pretentious? I only put on airs for you because you don't deserve it,"
Cong Nini didn't get angry; instead, she laughed and retorted.
"Alright, that really hurts."
"If I had to choose between Qin Bei and Cong Nini, I'd definitely pick Qin Bei."
Cong Nini pouted,
"Look at you, so capable. Do you think Qin Bei would even like you?"
The group chattered on, like old friends reunited after a long separation, filled with ignorance and confusion about future life, chatting for a long time.
Cong Nini drank too much and even started acting wild from the alcohol, appearing a little cute.
She loudly insisted, "I'm not drunk, keep drinking," even though her small face was as red as a monkey's butt.
When the party dispersed, a group of people were staggering about.
Chen Pingjiang arranged for someone to send them back to their rooms one by one.
Finally, only Cong Nini remained, hanging onto Chen Pingjiang's neck like a koala.
She spoke drunkenly, her words a mix of murmurs and babbling:
"Chen Pingjiang, I... I like you so much. Why don't you... want me?"
"What do I lack compared to those other women?"
"I know you just look down on me, think I'm dirty, think I'm not good enough for you."
"..."
They say the truth comes out with alcohol.
Chen Pingjiang really hadn't expected Cong Nini to feel this way.
He helped her, step by step, on the way back to the dorm.
Passing by a linen room, the dazed, flushed-faced Cong Nini suddenly found the strength for a side push, sending Chen Pingjiang tumbling into the dim linen room.
Relying on the faint light from the corridor, Cong Nini looked up, her dark eyes shining like stars in the night.
Her hazy gaze seemed as if she couldn't get enough of looking at Chen Pingjiang in front of her.
She stood on tiptoes, grabbed Chen Pingjiang's head, and started kissing him wildly.
"If this were later, and she really accused me of coercion, it would definitely stick,"
Chen Pingjiang thought to himself.
The taste in Cong Nini's mouth was different from the taste in Yan Yan's mouth.
The latter had a faint fragrance, even a hint of sweetness, but... Cong Nini had just drunk a lot of alcohol, so at this moment, her mouth only tasted of liquor.
Unlike Yan Yan's reserved and conservative kissing, which required Chen Pingjiang's step-by-step guidance, Cong Nini was much more active.
She used all "eighteen martial arts" on Chen Pingjiang, clearly someone who had done a lot of kissing.
He didn't know how long they kissed, but Chen Pingjiang got aroused.
In the end, he used his remaining rationality to send Cong Nini back to her room.
After returning to his room, Chen Pingjiang took a cold shower to finally suppress the rising "evil fire" within him.
The next day, everyone continued with their own activities.
Yongquan Villa had many attractions, so there was no shortage of things to do.
Chen Pingjiang received a phone call, rushed back, and handed over the students of Class 4 of Industrial Management to Wang Liwen.
Rushing to an internet cafe near the school, Chen Pingjiang met Dai Sheng.
At this time, Dai Sheng had dyed his light yellow hair black and was carrying a bag.
Seeing Chen Pingjiang, he grinned.
"Why didn't you say hello before coming? I could have picked you up from the station."
Dai Sheng offered Chen Pingjiang a cigarette and lit it for him,
"It's just a short walk, no need for you to pick me up."
Chen Pingjiang nodded and asked,
"Have you settled everything at home?"
"Yes, I handed over the bar group to my younger brother, and I've talked to my parents too."
The two got into the car to pick up Zhou Guanghan at the sports institute.
Zhou Guanghan blinked in surprise when he saw Dai Sheng,
"Why are you here?"
"I couldn't make money back home, so from now on, I'll follow Brother Chen."
As Chen Pingjiang's two right-hand men in high school, Zhou Guanghan was naturally very familiar with Dai Sheng.
He smiled and put an arm around his shoulder,
"Come to our shop at noon, I'll get you something good to eat."
"You've opened a shop?"
Dai Sheng remembered Zhou Guanghan as not being good with words and generally introverted, so he was surprised to learn he had secretly opened a shop.
"To be precise, it's my great-uncle's shop. I just own a small share and help out."
"My great-uncle not only owns several BBQ restaurants, but he also started Miaochao, the most popular tea shop in the university town recently, as well as Renren.com and Renren Takeaway. Once you get familiar with it, you'll know how big the business is."
Dai Sheng was stunned.
He had originally thought Chen Pingjiang was just doing a small business, but he hadn't expected it to be this big.
BBQ restaurants, milk tea shops, and even websites?
He immediately made up his mind that no matter what, he would stick closely to Chen Pingjiang.
If Chen Pingjiang told him to go east, he would never go west.
"Brother Chen, what will I do in the future?"
"Tomorrow, I'll find you a Miaochao branch. Start from the grassroots, accumulate some experience, and later, depending on your performance, we'll arrange new positions."
"Alright, no problem."
After the three of them had a meal at Little Chen BBQ and found accommodation for Dai Sheng, Chen Pingjiang drove to Yuanfang Supermarket.
After the New Year, Yuanfang Supermarket officially began its reforms.
He Zhiyu mortgaged several branches and borrowed tens of millions from the bank, preparing for a major undertaking.
Chen Pingjiang also came to visit whenever he had free time.
"Training for front-line positions and the establishment of self-owned brands are both underway. I called you here this time to discuss the mall."
"You previously said that commercial real estate has great potential in the coming period?"
He Zhiyu poured Chen Pingjiang a cup of tea, then sat back on the sofa.
Several other shareholders of Yuanfang Supermarket were also present.
Chen Pingjiang nodded:
"To be precise, it's commercial real estate primarily focused on functionality."
"What do you mean by functionality?"
A shareholder asked, puzzled.
"Traditional malls primarily focus on terminal sales, but under the impact of e-commerce, terminal sales of clothing and small commodities find it hard to survive in malls. People can buy mid-to-low-end goods online, and for high-end luxury goods, they'll go to Deji Plaza,"
Chen Pingjiang took a sip of tea and continued,
"So-called functionality actually means eating, drinking, and entertainment. It's about changing the mall's sales attribute to a service attribute, investing in things like arcade halls, milk tea shops, self-service restaurants, regular restaurants, hotpot restaurants, cinemas, children's entertainment facilities, and so on."
He Zhiyu pondered for a while before saying,
"I think your idea is quite correct. If our Yuanfang Supermarket were to venture into commercial real estate, what would your suggestions be?"
"Yuanfang Supermarket has two paths it can take. The first is to only operate supermarkets, opening hundreds nationwide, leveraging economies of scale to lower procurement costs, and partnering with self-owned brands to capture profits."
"The other path is to build malls. Within the mall, not only would there be your own supermarket, but also your own hotpot restaurants, bakeries, pharmacies, achieving brand co-operation to increase profit margins and better build self-owned brands."
"The disadvantage of the first path is that it's easy to spread too thin. Coupled with a lack of diversified development, the capital chain can easily break once problems arise. Moreover, it would face encirclement by competitors in various provinces and cities and require significant capital to open new stores."
"The difficulty with the second path is that moving from traditional supermarkets to commercial real estate forces you into cross-industry development, which will undoubtedly be hard at first. However, if the Yuanfang Supermarket brand is established, it will drive sales of other self-owned brands."
Chen Pingjiang's explanation was very detailed.
For a moment, no one in the conference room spoke; instead, they lowered their heads in thought.
"Neither of these paths is easy,"
He Zhiyu murmured, his brows tightly furrowed.
"If it were you, how would you choose?"
Chen Pingjiang made the final decision:
"Take both paths, but slowly and steadily. Start with the second path, then proceed to the first."
"Our previously set strategy was for Yuanfang Supermarket to achieve ultimate service. This requires improving employee benefits, so we maintain extremely high gross profit margins through a self-operated and self-procured model, coupled with massive sales volume and ultra-high turnover rates. Only then will there be sufficient funds to provide employees with ultimate benefits, which then translates to ultimate service for customers. This is a closed loop."
"Once this step is achieved, we will have built a strong moat, and the brand will be initially established. At this point, developing self-owned brands is a natural progression."
"However, expanding into other regions requires continuously replicating ultimate service and ultimate employee management. Each expansion will result in a discount in service quality, eventually leading to a backlash in reputation."
"Moreover, outside of Dongjiang, Yuanfang Supermarket's brand might not be as effective. It can't compare to large brands from other regions, and how many consumers would buy into it? It would also encounter resistance from local businesses."
"Therefore, taking the second path first is definitely the right choice."
Chen Pingjiang, as a paid consultant, had excellent professional ethics.
Whatever He Zhiyu asked, he answered, always providing the optimal solution based on his experience and insights.
Everyone present was clearly swayed and nodded in satisfaction.
"I think, as President Chen said, integrating mobile phone stores, entertainment facilities, cinemas, and restaurants is a good idea. It will definitely attract a huge flow of people."
"It would be like Wanda Plaza, the only difference being that many of the brands are our own self-operated ones."
He Zhiyu, having resolved a major concern, also relaxed.
The few of them started chatting informally.
Apologies, there's only one chapter today for Valentine's Day.
Wishing all lovers in the world are siblings.
Hongchen calculated that this New Year, he wrote 30,000 fewer characters.
Starting tomorrow, updates will be sporadic.
I was sick through the New Year, so my condition isn't good.
I also need to revise the outline again.
(End of Chapter)
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