The suppliers left in defeat.

On this day, Asia Department Store’s sales once again broke through one million, with final daily sales reaching 1.03 million, even surpassing the previous two days. The number of card registrations exceeded the previous day by over 200 people, meaning Asia Department Store had secured more than 12,000 regular customers.

With so many card registrations, the fact that Asia’s payment system hadn’t crashed was a testament to Xu Jing’s capability. Xia Xiaolan asked Xu Jing to stay in Shangdu for at least another half month:

“These shopping cards won’t increase indefinitely. I’m going to pause this cash-back promotion in three days and continue it again after some time.” She could reactivate this killer move at any time.

However, the second cash-back promotion wouldn’t offer such generous benefits. The first batch of shopping cardholders enjoyed the maximum benefits, but once they used up their card balance and failed to renew during the promotion period, they couldn’t continue enjoying the super discount of getting 150 yuan back for charging 200 yuan… Xia Xiaolan wanted to attract customers back to Asia, not bankrupt the store through excessive discounts.

Next time, the cash-back rates would probably be more modest, like 3 yuan back for charging 10 yuan, or 8 yuan back for 20 yuan. The discount rates could be adjusted at any time, varying based on the state-owned department stores’ reactions!

Xu Jing didn’t need to understand these details; he just needed to maintain the system and continue improving it during his stay in Shangdu.

These three days, Asia’s promotion had been incredibly successful, and Xu Jing was happy to help Xia Xiaolan.

Huang Guoqiang was a bit unhappy. On the third day, they caught several small-time opportunistic vendors, but investigation revealed they weren’t sent by the state-owned stores. Huang Guoqiang was disappointed.

Today, he hadn’t caught any “big fish.” Had the state-owned department stores already accepted their fate and given up opposing Asia?

No way!

Come on, make another desperate move!

Huang Guoqiang even wanted to provoke Lu Hongbo and his group. Were those cowards giving up so easily?

No, no, no, they should keep causing trouble, otherwise, how would he achieve great merit?

If you’re a man, don’t be cowards!

If you’re men, gather your courage and face a decisive battle with Manager Xia!

He was willing to be Manager Xia’s vanguard, charging into battle for her and Asia—determined to make the state-owned stores bleed!

Old Huang had quite an active imagination.

Similarly looking to catch troublemakers, Zhuo Weiping took a more composed approach. She and her colleagues spent the day disguised as customers but didn’t encounter any saboteurs. Zhuo Weiping wasn’t anxious at all.

If not today, then tomorrow or the day after.

If the state-owned stores were going to send people to cause trouble, they would surely do it before Asia’s cash-back promotion ended. Zhuo Weiping didn’t need to hear about it; she could see with her own eyes that Asia’s business was still booming. The competitors wouldn’t be able to endure much longer!

After arranging to meet her colleagues tomorrow, Zhuo Weiping prepared to go home.

She had originally planned to cycle home, but Xia Xiaolan had Zheng Feng arrange a car for her to use these few days, giving her a reason she couldn’t refuse: if she found the car suitable, Xia Xiaolan would donate several police vehicles to the city bureau in Asia’s name.

The city bureau certainly had quotas for purchasing official vehicles, but there were never enough cars. What department would complain about having too many vehicles?

When Zhuo’s father heard this, he understood immediately and told Zhuo Weiping:

“This friend Xia of yours is quite sophisticated. She’s building influence for you.”

Who, whether leaders or colleagues, would dislike someone who could secure several vehicles for the department?

Zhuo Weiping’s personality wasn’t particularly smooth, and she had fought her way up from the county to the provincial police station, then to the city bureau, step by step. She had been injured several times while trying to achieve merit. Her father was proud of her but also worried.

When someone wanted to build influence for Zhuo Weiping, her father’s first reaction wasn’t joy but vigilance. He worried that Xia Xiaolan had ulterior motives!

But Zhuo Weiping could vouch for Xia Xiaolan’s character, so her father let her make her own decision.

“If she’s donating cars to the city bureau and you’re just the intermediary, it’s fine for friends to help each other. But if she asks you to do anything against regulations, you can’t maintain this friendship, no matter how successful her business is or how high her achievements are. She wouldn’t be a true friend!”

Zhuo Weiping always listened to her father’s advice, but she had her thoughts too.

She hadn’t left immediately today because she wanted to tell Xia Xiaolan that Asia could donate cars to the city bureau, but it didn’t need to be in her name.

After waiting at the entrance for a while without seeing Xia Xiaolan, who was still in a meeting with department heads, she saw Xu Jing, the part-time Technical Director, leave first.

Xu Jing didn’t recognize Zhuo Weiping. Technical staff didn’t need to know about all the twists and turns, nor did they need to concern themselves with matters like competitors causing trouble.

But Zhuo Weiping recognized Xu Jing.

When she and Zhuo Na became Asia’s first customers to try the shopping card payment, Xu Jing stood beside the cashier, guiding them through the payment process.

The cashier had been quite nervous but calmed down when Xu Jing was present.

Xia Xiaolan had said this card system was created by “Director Xu.”

Zhuo Weiping glanced at him twice before looking away.

Observing people was her professional habit, but those extra glances didn’t mean she had any particular interest in Xu Jing.

Xu Jing hadn’t noticed Zhuo Weiping either.

Xu Jing was staying at a nearby hotel, just a few hundred meters from Asia.

But he hadn’t walked far when he was stopped by two people.

A man and a woman, both of whom he knew.

“…Xiang Li, Zhang Wei, why are you here?”

Xu Jing had initially wanted to walk away, but as a grown man, constantly avoiding Xiang Li’s persistence seemed too cowardly!

Under the streetlight, Xiang Li’s nose was red from the cold. Before she could speak, Zhang Wei frowned and said, “Xu Jing, we were classmates. Even if you’re not dating Xiang Li anymore, we still have that connection, right? Xiang Li didn’t even dare come alone to find you and asked me to come for moral support. No wonder she’s so anxious. We’ve been freezing out here for hours, and you won’t even properly settle Xiang Li first? A woman has been waiting for you in the cold for several hours!”

Zhang Wei had also attended Beijing Normal University, in the same year as Xu Jing. He was a mutual friend of Xu Jing and Xiang Li, known for being very helpful, and was now one of the people actively trying to reconcile Xiang Li and Xu Jing!

Xiang Li had asked him to mediate, showing she understood Xu Jing’s personality well.

Unfortunately, the Xu Jing that Xiang Li understood was the past Xu Jing.

Even tech nerds evolve, and their good nature shouldn’t be a reason to be repeatedly taken advantage of!

Faced with his former friend’s questioning, Xu Jing responded harshly:

“Zhang Wei, I know about hospitality, but I’m afraid if I invite Xiang Li to my place, things will become even more unclear! We broke up while in America, and while I don’t want to dwell on the past, that doesn’t mean I don’t know what happened. Zhang Wei, you old friends want Xiang Li and me to get back together, but did you ask for my opinion? Do you even know why we broke up?”

Zhang Wei stamped his feet from the cold, “We know. Xiang Li didn’t support your research and development work back then. That was just her limited vision, and you broke up over a disagreement. Why must a man be so petty? Now that you’re doing well, can’t you forgive Xiang Li?”