r new school. He knew the number but never received the call.The oppressive heat of summer is coming to an end; autumn will soon arrive.In the first-year grade office, Su Cen stands before Xiao Rihua....Chapter 109 Winnie the Pooh's

"You guys are about to finish your semester, and it will soon be winter break when you return home. However, our Double Egg New Year celebration is just ending, leaving us completely exhausted." Wang Yue complained over the phone to Su Can, jokingly suggesting, "Why don't we set up an office in Shanghai That way, you can directly handle business as a big boss who doesn't need to do much work yourself. On the other hand, it would also be beneficial for the group to establish a Beijing-Shanghai chain structure."

While Su Can could video call Mark Zuckerberg on his computer and exchange Christmas greetings, he mostly communicated with Wang Yue of Dunhuang Group and Lin Guangdong of Pineapple Media through phone calls or faxes. Therefore, Wang Yue's suggestion was not surprising.

Su Can smiled and said, "If you want to set up a Beijing-Shanghai chain structure, setting up an office is fine, but don't specially establish it for me. Human resources are very precious; instead of bearing the expense just to have someone run errands for me, let's not waste money like this."

In the top floor office of Rongcheng No. 1 Commercial Building, Wang Yue was facing a floor-to-ceiling window and talking on her phone with Su Can.

The group management layer’s offices could see the main body of Dunhuang Mall through the windows, which were not far from each other.

Wang Yue's office was next to Wang Feng and others; by lifting the blinds, one could see inside through transparent glass.

The blinds were currently closed. The marketing director who had just left her office after reporting work was still in the mall where everyone saw Wang Yue as a young yet ambitious and capable woman, which was quite surprising. In Rongcheng's circles, people often talked about the young female CEO of Dunhuang Group.

Of course, there were also rumors. For example, she lived in the Chinese Garden complex on Pao Tong Road in the south part of Rongcheng city, a wealthy area. The luxury shopping district and best living environment for Europeans and Americans was initially created by the duplex villa project at Chinese Garden, setting a precedent for duplex villas in Rongcheng.

The developer of this project, Su Can, knew it well. It was under his father’s Dayun Construction Group's political axe entrusted real estate company. At that time, the average price per square meter when Chinese Garden opened was 2900 yuan. After the Dunhuang Group underwent equity restructuring, Su Can held an 80% stake as a natural person, and Wang Yue held 20%, so the early dividends of Dunhuang Mall could easily afford her to buy this two-hundred-square-meter duplex villa.

A single young woman controlling a mall group living in an apartment naturally aroused speculation. Generally speaking, behind an impressive-looking young woman, there are always some influential men. Therefore, no lotharios tried to make moves on her, but among the male middle and upper management within the company, many admired Wang Yue, yet few dared to pursue her.

Thus, guesses about Wang Yue became more vivid; someone even said she was a lover of some high-ranking official, living alone while he only visited occasionally during the year for short periods.

Wang Yue naturally didn't care. It was amusing to think that her background wasn’t from any provincial officials but rather from that college freshman in Shanghai who had created all this and would continue to do so on a larger scale.

"The house is spacious, come take a look when you're on break. I've got a little dog, a small Teddy, but recently due to my busy schedule, it’s getting skinny, which makes me feel sad," Su Can was a very special existence for Wang Yue. He was younger than her, yet he seemed wiser and more intelligent, making him like a mentor in her life. However, she had few friends, especially after becoming the CEO of Dunhuang Group; even when smiling at others, it wasn't always genuine. Su Can seemed to be one of those rare friends with whom she could exchange many things.

"Living in such a big house by yourself isn't good, why don’t you let your mom come over She can help take care of the puppy and cook some meals for you. If she feels bored, she could do something to keep herself busy," Su Cen thought about it and realized that Wang Yue wasn't having an easy time either. They had left Xiahai and were now taking care of their own business in Rongcheng. Just going through documents and reports in Shanghai was a hassle for Su Cen; he couldn’t even imagine how tough it must be for her, who is right in the middle of such fierce competition. After some more consideration, he added, "Don't let your mom manage the store anymore. Sell the one in Xiahai and have her move to Rongcheng to live in this big house. She can go back to Xiahai occasionally during summer vacations."

Hearing Su Cen's voice made Wang Yue feel a sense of warmth she couldn’t quite explain; he seemed like both her younger brother and her older brother at the same time. To be honest, if there were two people she had to thank, one would be her mother who raised her after her father’s death, and the other would be Su Cen for changing her life.

Wang Yue gently said, "Okay, I’ll have her start handling matters in Xiahai and come to Rongcheng as soon as possible."

In Wang Yue's office was a map of the business district where Dunhuang Mall is located. It marked nearby supermarkets, shops, schools, parks, commercial streets, etc., with some areas covered by square purple shadows.

This was the future vision plan for Dunhuang Mall’s 'City Creation Plan.' They planned to take over Renmin Road's business district within the next five years and build an international top-brand density "commercial warship" unmatched in Rongcheng.

This wasn’t impossible.

Indeed, among Rongcheng’s retail industry, whether it be the historically oldest Maoye Department Store, or the Ito Yokado that proclaims “details decide everything,” or even Pacific and Renhe Spring which introduced fashion to citizens of Rongcheng for the first time, let alone Wangfujing Department Store, which is at the top. Currently, Dunhuang Mall undoubtedly has the least experience and most recently entered among the ten major department stores in Rongcheng.

However, its location decided her crisis. A crisis was a coexistence of danger and opportunity.

The danger lay in using the original shell of People's Department Store, which geographically put her at odds with Wangfujing Department Store; she could be considered facing formidable enemies. Both parties never ceased their battle over merchandise combinations, customer acquisition, marketing models, etc., across various fronts.

Meanwhile, the opportunity was that Dunhuang Mall’s development benefited from political support and a healthy competitive model akin to "opening stores cheek-by-jowl" with Wangfujing. This kind of competition undoubtedly propelled the business district's progress and upgrading as well. And due to its positioning on premium fashion department stores and richly functional combinations within the mall, Dunhuang Mall had formed certain advantages.

"This year’s sales are clearly visible in our asset evaluation report; we expect it to reach around four hundred million yuan, with profits ranging from eighteen to twenty million. The net profit is estimated at seventeen million, and after deducting non-operating losses, the net profit should be over twenty million," Wang Yue reported with suppressed excitement.

"Such a substantial profit margin already!" Su Cen marveled. Among his three major businesses, Dunhuang Group turned out to be the most profitable company. In comparison, Shushan Company, which completed its inventory this year and had eight hundred million yuan in turnover, was quite impressive; while Lin Guangdong’s Borro Media fashion culture magazine probably couldn’t compete with Wang Yue's performance for this year.

Su Cen intuitively measured Dunhuang Group's profits against his Bentley. With seventeen million yuan profit this year, he would be able to earn five Bentleys parked in the underground garage of Manhattan Tower annually.

It was still quite tempting after all.

The second development model for Dunhuang Mall would be to start from Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai, gradually establishing a chain structure across China's central region. This process is akin to building a ship, laying the foundation for a future mega-structure like a ten-thousand-ton aircraft carrier.

This is both the goal and something that might be achieved within the next decade. As times progress, rapid advancements and developments will ensue. The twenty years since China's reform and opening-up have seen significant changes, and in the subsequent ten-year period—the thirtieth anniversary of reform and opening-up—a plethora of documentaries were produced by CCTV alone.

The era has changed our recording methods and those of everyone's recollections.

For instance, people a decade later might not understand why one would anxiously wait for the TV series "Robotech" or "Cave of Silken Dreams" at six o'clock with a small stool in hand. In an era where television dramas are scrutinized and criticized, no one can comprehend why stories played out on a little box could be the entire world for a teenager.

Did Lin Mingmei's voice fade into the vast cosmos Did seven bare-chested young men bully a snake demon woman Did someone shed tears upon graduation

A decade later, those who have become masters of online games wouldn't know about these things.

But after Su Cen was reborn, each person who appeared in his life and whose fate he influenced had no choice but to board his "ship."

The ship of a reincarnated individual is undoubtedly filled with tumultuous waves and shocking the world. It might encounter lightning strikes or be dragged through storms, but ultimately, it will sail into the golden航道 of the era.

Tran Wu's second dinner party was held in mid-January, after the New Year holiday, but before the final exams on January 23rd at Nan University.

This time, however, it was different. Tran Wu's new home had been renovated and ventilated, allowing them to officially move in. This celebration marked their separate living arrangements in Shanghai. During this period, her mother Mu Xuan frequently traveled between Chengdu and Shanghai for work purposes but also due to the renovation project. The progress of the renovations fluctuated, dragging out the process significantly; it took three months before the home was ready.

The last gathering hosted by Tran Wu's father was a large family reunion with many participants, while this one would likely be a smaller, more intimate dinner. But it should still include key members of the family.

"Was it your dad who strongly requested me to attend or your mother" Su Cen asked as he walked back to their dormitory area with Tran Wu after class.

Tran Wu automatically ignored Su Cen's embellishments and replied, "Neither of them; I invited you myself." She then softly added, afraid it might cause a misunderstanding, "They no longer interfere in our relationship."

Su Cen looked into Tran Wu’s obsidian-like eyes with a mix of laughter and sorrow, saying, "You mean we’ve become runaway lovers that no one cares about"

Saying that, Su Can's hand automatically covered Tang Wu's. In his mind, he was thinking about his appearance at the Tang family banquet back then; had it really left everyone speechless The aunts and uncles, relatives, sisters-in-law, neighbors' daughters, cousins—all of them.

This is great; there will no longer be people trying to sell themselves as good young men behind the scenes. Those who still want to criticize Tang Wu's future and hold onto unrealistic fantasies should now disperse. So this family banquet should be a very good omen.

It was Saturday afternoon, the gathering at Tang Wu's new home. After classes were over, they took a bus near the school gate and then rode Line 1 of the subway to "Snow Sea Retreat," where Tang Wu lived.

Above the elevated railway, scenes whizzed past rapidly, with Suzhou River in sight from afar.

The Snow Sea Retreat residential area sprawled along Wusong Creek and Suzhou River came into view. With her hair tied up in a ponytail, Tang Wu was illuminated by slanting sunlight that entered the subway carriage; as the scenes whizzed past, so did the sun turn from yellow to golden. In this light, Su Can observed Tang Wu's beautiful face with its clear features and thought about how long ago, she had been just another girl who flashed across his life momentarily.

Now he was invited to her new home in Shanghai—or perhaps even her boudoir. This subway ride took him swiftly to a mysterious place that he looked forward to and might never forget.

On the rapidly moving subway, all the unpleasantness from Christmas Eve when Lin Luoran had stormed back to Fudan University due to his bad temper, as well as the gossip in school and the rash reputation he had gained in the FECC club, seemed to be left behind.

The moment they stepped into Tang Wu's mid-rise villa, several expensive cars were parked downstairs. On the rooftop garden of the sixth floor, Mu Kaizhu was holding a cup of coffee and wearing slippers as he scanned the entrance road; upon seeing Su Can and Tang Wu enter, he waved them over, "Sister, Brother Su!"

The mailbox at the door, the greenery on higher floors, and the mulberry trees that seemed to be struggling to grow out of the wall—all these elements indeed gave a taste of Scotland's tranquil manor as advertised.

But Mu Kaizhu’s shout attracted the attention of nearby young women parking their cars and ladies tending flowers on balconies. Seeing Tang Wu wasn't unusual; this mid-rise villa area was full of beauties, with afternoon walks or morning jogs providing a feast for the eyes every day. So if Tang Wu lived here, it was understandable to others.

Once they stepped into the lift that took them directly to Tang Wu's fifth-floor apartment, Su Can felt a slight excitement in this quiet space. He recalled the Christmas gift Tang Wu had given him on that night: a Winnie-the-Pooh pajama set.

It was very cute.

Even cuter was when she told him at the time, "These are for couples."

(To be continued)rroundings suddenly fell silent, leaving only him standing out prominently and clearly. This kind of loneliness wasn't apparent on the surface but could be sensed in specific situations, much like how...