imming with the approach of dusk, she remembered encouraging him unexpectedly, an event unlikely to occur after walking alone with a boy after school.The slight melancholy at parting ways at the cross...Chapter 44 The World Is Too Small
The weather turned chilly, and the autumn wind was clearly getting cold. Boys started to wear undershirts while some girls began wearing thigh-high socks, making the campus scenery bright.
Su Cen had not received any news about Donglin Group or Tang Corporation recently, and constantly calling Li Lan wasn't a solution either. Moreover, Su Cen was already doing his best in what he could manage; the next step would depend on how the situation at Donglin Group developed.
The financial magazines did not follow up with any more reports about Donglin Group or Chao Yuefang after their initial coverage, as if nothing had ever happened.
Su Cen gradually sensed that Tang Wu's mood was improving; this might be related to her father's company experiencing a turn for the better recently.
Su Cen knew that it wasn't easy to sink a commercial giant ship rapidly. Many corporate groups were dragged down by their entangled debts and lawsuits, becoming like a dead elephant gradually being stripped apart piece by piece. People who had been coasting through life within these companies wouldn’t believe they were truly bankrupt until the very last day.
Only people in high positions or those with an overall grasp of the situation could clearly understand each critical juncture for a company's survival. For a business to decline from small details and various branches, it also required addressing these minutiae when reviving the enterprise. Tang Corporation’s debt issue, which seemed impossible at first, found a glimmer of hope due to Su Cen’s past experience in commercial negotiations.
Those familiar with the process of business negotiation would know the importance of setting up an environment conducive to trust-building. To make a client choose and believe in oneself, one should start from small details upon first contact. For example, if it's a commercial project negotiation, both parties are best off choosing a coffee shop or round-table meeting room rather than a large, empty space; sitting on opposite sides easily creates an adversarial psychological impression.
In contrast, in a smaller environment—where everyone might have to squeeze together, even adopting American-style round tables—both parties would naturally feel closer, which inevitably provides advantages for project communication and negotiations.
Stealing the contract by setting up a scheme was不得已而為之的非常行為，不過果然起到了效果。蘇燦可以勾勒出前世唐父的處境，在和潮嶽方談判時並冇有緊張崩潰，但在之後被起訴凍結查封後，唐父想要抽身也是冇有辦法了。這場官司至少要拖一兩年時間，而唐父最大的問題就是耗不起；他需要盤活東林集團，用產生的利潤來維持唐氏企業的資金鍊。
在這種情況下，唐父隻能宣佈破產。雖然還有一個撐起半邊天的穆璿在，不至於讓唐嫵的命運發生根本性的改變，但至少對唐嫵產生了一定影響。
再過幾天聯絡一下李嵐，聽聽唐父最近的情況如何；這幾天先緩一緩，蘇燦不希望給人留下過於頻繁介入的印象。彆人會怎麼說呢？你蘇燦還冇和唐家女兒有什麼實質**集呢，剛讀大一就這麼急躁嗎
很多人不會當麵說，但不管東林集團和唐氏企業有多少人聽說了，在背後嚼舌根子的人也不少。
張小橋有不少朋友，而且作為南大生命科學院院長的兒子，在其父親廣為人知的背景之下，張小橋在上海圈子中也不是冇有名頭。
因此他的朋友圈子裡不會缺少人。無論哪個圈子都有不少人是他的朋友；所以直到大學畢業，李嵐都不明白為什麼張小橋對他們甚至比一些“老牌”朋友還要好。
Zhang Xiaoqiao has an outing with friends, and these days he's been receiving several calls reminding him of the gathering time. Zhang Xiaoqiao’s phone hasn’t stopped ringing as his friends keep calling over to catch up. Due to their dispersal after entering university, this upcoming get-together seems to have brought everyone closer.
"Zhang Xiaoqiao’s roommate, right Our Zhang Xiaoqiao doesn't talk much; please take care of him." The speaker is Xu Haiqing, who's passing cigarettes around to the roommates. Li Han and Xiao Xiu took them over while Su Can thanked him politely but declined.
Sitting at the edge, Su Can turned his head and looked down at the bustling dormitory building below. A Honda Accord was parked there; it was Xu Haiqing’s car.
Xu Haiqing distributed Zhonghua cigarettes to everyone. After passing them out, he seemed to want to place the remaining cigarettes on the table but thought better of it and put them back in his pocket due to being considerate of Zhang Xiaoqiao's financial situation.
Zhang Xiaoqiao stood up and nodded, "Alright then, if I end up joining, everyone from my dormitory will come too. Dai Wei invited some unfamiliar faces, so I don’t feel like it."
Li Han and Xiao Xiu exchanged glances before saying in unison, "We won't be going; Zhang Xiaoqiao, this is your friend’s gathering, we’ll stay out of it."
"What's the point of a get-together I reckon it will either take place at a KTV or some bar with a bunch of strangers until the early hours of the morning. If I go alone, it won’t be fun. We should return to campus early, that’s more in line with Room 602's spirit."
Seeing Zhang Xiaoqiao’s insistence on dragging his dorm mates along, Xu Haiqing quickly agreed, "Alright then, let's all go together."
Zhang Xiaoqiao smiled at the hesitant group and said, "There will be beautiful girls there whom I'll introduce to you."
Although Zhang Xiaoqiao probably wouldn’t introduce Su Can, Li Han, and Xiao Xiu to anyone in particular, this statement provided everyone an easy way out.
The life of a university student can be rather mundane; without clear objectives or plans, it might even feel less fulfilling than high school. However, for many freshmen, participating in various activities and gatherings, planning monthly expenses with friends, shopping freely, occasional nights of heavy drinking, or all-night gaming, marks the beginning of their transition from adolescence to adulthood.
Zhang Xiaoqiao’s gathering is scheduled for Saturday at eight o'clock. This timing fits everyone's schedule, allowing them to rest and recuperate on Sunday if they stay out late.
The venue is not far from Nan University; a taxi ride costs around forty or fifty bucks. The main building of the complex beside the square is the Melody KTV where quite a few luxury cars are parked outside. In Shanghai, one can always spot BMWs, Mercedes-Benzes, and Audis everywhere, even on construction sites, so university students here have become immune to such displays. True extravagance occurs in higher social circles and has nothing to do with ordinary students.
Upon entering the luxurious room, there are already over twenty people inside, each with different expressions. Some boys are gathered in small groups whispering among themselves; others sit alone on a sofa watching their friends sing. The girls are well-dressed, some sitting and carrying expensive-looking handbags draped across their thighs while others form a circle chatting excitedly about recent events.
As they entered, many waved to Zhang Xiaoqiao and greeted him. Most of them also sized up Su Can and the rest who were following behind Zhang Xiaoqiao.
Sitting down on a couch, Xu Haiqing walked right over. "Hey, you guys are here. Let's drink some beer then. A few of the tough guys came in and asked for vodka; I'll come back to sit with you later..." As he spoke, he looked around again, "My friends from Fudan University are here too. Most of your friends are from Nanjing University, so get to know each other."
The students from Nanjing University Li Han and Xiao Xu naturally became excited; before they could look for their classmates, a girl in a light blue one-piece dress came over—none other than Cheng Congcong.
Cheng Congcong sat down beside Su Can without any hesitation. Smiling, she said, "Tang Wu gave you the day off today You've really mixed into this crowd." She had applied lip gloss and seemed to have flaunted enough in her previous chat; she naturally couldn't lower herself when seeing a familiar person like Su Can.
She then looked at Li Han's dorm mate beside Su Can, smiling. "Haha, all of you from 602 Dorm are here."
Three other girls came with Cheng Congcong; their appearances were quite ordinary. The other one was a little above average looking and studied in the History Department, but she seemed overly reserved and uninterested in Xiao Xu and Li Han, which made them uncomfortable.
The group of people involved several universities from Shanghai, including Yangpu District, Xuhui District, and Baoshan District. However, unlike ordinary students who would choose the most cost-effective route when going out at night to save money on taxi fares, they seemed unconcerned about returning late.
...
Xu Haiqing quickly got into a lively conversation with Li Han. He said, "There are quite a few impressive people here. Look at that curly-haired guy over there—his family runs the total agency for Avril in Shanghai. It's rumored that when he was a sophomore, he helped his family manage their business and made profits without any losses. His parents were so pleased they rewarded him with a 5 Series BMW. Isn't that impressive He seems to be planning on dropping out of school soon to take over the family business. Over there is another guy whose grandfather is the chairman of the board for Tangben Traditional Chinese Medicine Chain. He himself attends Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Medical School and has excellent grades..."
Xu Haiqing didn't know if he wanted to establish a good relationship with this group or was just naturally talkative as he introduced several individuals' personal situations, most of whom came from families in influential positions.
In Xu Haiqing's eyes, these people were resources. He enthusiastically introduced Li Han, Xiao Xu, and Su Can to them, hoping it would lead to resource sharing and perhaps earn their admiration or show his loyalty.
However, regardless of the reason, Xu Haiqing underestimated Zhang Xiaqiao’s new friend's true nature.
Li Han and Xiao Xu didn't care about whose family background was better or how impressive an individual might be. They would pay attention to such things if mentioned once or twice but grew impatient after hearing too much of it. They gave perfunctory responses to Xu Haiqing, thinking that so what if these people were impressive They had little in common with them.
As for the girls Xu Haiqing introduced, even those who weren't particularly good-looking didn’t care about them either. Even if they found someone attractive, there was no guarantee they would accept it—would appearance be enough Su Can admired Li Han and Xiao Xu; neither of them waited to marry rich or eat soft meals in college as a poor student. They were clear on their own positions.
Later on, Xu Haiqing said that some exchange students were coming over soon, and Du Dawei, who was one year older than Zhang Xiaqiao, had many acquaintances. He studied at Tongji University but wasn't the president of the student council or any powerful position; however, he still held significant influence as an "unofficial king." His mother was the director of the city's foreign affairs office, his father worked in the local tax bureau, and his grandmother was a prominent figure in the former Education Commission. He could be considered part of Shanghai's middle-level bureaucratic family with an obviously affluent background.
The information was inadvertently revealed in the conversations of those around them. After Cheng Congcong and Su Can exchanged greetings, it was clear that she didn't intend to continue talking with Tang Wu's boyfriend, her roommate. Instead, she turned aside and got up as her lips slightly curled upward. Su Can caught this action and wondered what expression Cheng Congcong had just shown Was she still smiling in front of him but showing no regard for his words when she left What did that represent Did it mean that she actually held him, Su Can, in low regard from the bottom of her heart
Su Can didn't intend to delve deeper into this matter. However, among those around them, there were some who wanted to build connections and socialize.
Some people's backgrounds caught his attention.
Su Can thought that perhaps this was why they said university life was a microcosm of society—many students had already started weaving their own networks for future benefits.
The person mentioned earlier, who came from the Aifel agency family, surprised Su Can. This was because one of Li Guangdong's fashion magazine advertisers was this Aifel Group; it was a significant contract that Bolo Media was trying to secure recently.
Zhang Xiaqiao was still quite popular; some people came over and introduced them to others present. There were some who had heard of Su Can, who greeted him warmly and shared a few amusing stories about his entry into the university. But there were also those who seemed indifferent, thinking that he was just a freshman and not worth much fuss; all this was rather mundane.
At this moment, the main characters arrived—Du Dawei and several foreigners walked in, as well as some Asians who looked like Japanese or Korean exchange students. Du Dawei was thin and small, about 5'7" tall, while the foreign exchange students nearby were quite tall. There was also a man and woman.
The man was cheerful; the girl was sweet and charming, immediately becoming the focus of attention.
But Su Can and his group were all stunned.
As Du Dawei entered, he apologized to several people. In fact, many at the scene were brought here by someone like Su Can or Li Han, and this gathering was clearly superficial, just for fun and not deep conversation. This indeed fit Du Dawei's personality.
Du Dawei then introduced his close friends: "This is Wei Dingding, a good friend. You're meeting him for the first time. Actually, he's my childhood companion; I left in sixth grade so we see each other less often now. Recently I heard that he’s at Fudan University and is known as the 'killer of Fudan sisters.' Hey, sorry, Dingding, I shouldn't have mentioned your nickname."
Lin Luoran smiled charmingly, "What does it matter to me Du Dawei, do you think I’m itching for a fight"
Du Dawei immediately turned pale and exaggerated his expression, saying with a bow, "No, Miss Lin, I won’t say anything more... Please take your seat."
"Your face changes pretty quickly," said Lin Luoran, smiling. She walked straight into the room between Du Dawei and his friends with her tall and proud figure.
Some girls nearby curled their lips in displeasure, wondering if this girl needed to act like she was so important.
The boys openly admired her from head to toe, even though it had a somewhat lecherous undertone.nior high school section, alongside Zhang Xi, a flamboyant young man from a wealthy family, and Mao Xiaoshi, an exceptionally tall boy who appeared to be a basketball-playing prince.Following this inc...