Ji Jiangyuan took leave first, followed by Ning Xue.

The day after Ji Jiangyuan’s absence, Ning Xue also requested leave to go home.

Xia Xiao Lan’s concerns remained unresolved.

She wanted to ask Tang Hongen about his ex-wife’s character, as he should know.

Considering Tang Hongen had recently undergone surgery and his stomach condition couldn’t handle stress, Xia Xiao Lan temporarily restrained herself from telling him. Two consecutive temperature drops made the North even colder. Zhou Limin, being from Yang City, now refused to step outside the dormitory except for classes.

She relied on Yang Yonghong for meals, with roommates taking turns bringing her food.

Until she received her long duck-down coat, Zhou Limin insisted she couldn’t withstand the North’s merciless wind and snow.

This year, Beijing’s first snow had fallen.

Kang Wei also returned from Peng City, bringing news about “Anjia Building Materials” business and Chen Xiliang’s “business plan.”

“Business has been somewhat affected. Previously, Liu Tianquan brought some business to the store. After falling out with Uncle Liu, Tianzhen stopped purchasing from us, so sales decreased. But the impact isn’t major. Liu Tianquan was recalled to Hong Kong, and when he returns, it’ll be with the young master of Hong Kong’s Chengrong Group.”

Kang Wei wasn’t particularly concerned about Chengrong Group’s young master; he was even secretly pleased.

As Brother Pan said, the Du family’s situation was chaotic. Liu Tianquan was the brother of Du Chengrong’s second wife, while the young master was the first wife’s son. They were natural enemies. With Young Master Du in Peng City, Liu Tianquan had to keep a low profile and had no time to trouble Liu Yong.

Young Master Du dealt with major businesses and wouldn’t notice a small building materials store.

Peng City was under construction everywhere. According to Xia Xiao Lan, it was all about the right approach to attracting customers – there were no unreachable clients. With this market, people would buy renovation materials. Crystal chandeliers might be hard to sell, but who is worried about selling cheaper lights? Small profits add up – from wall paint to tiles, everything could make money.

Although Liu Tianquan was wealthy, Tianzhen didn’t monopolize Peng City’s renovation market. Without Tianzhen’s occasional support, Kang Wei and Bai Zhenzhu became more proactive in seeking clients. The business was only affected for a few days, and after securing orders, the momentum was even better than before.

Kang Wei was so excited he almost forgot he had a job in Beijing. He didn’t want to leave Peng City at all – the sense of achievement from each new order was indescribable.

“Peng City’s market is huge, with new orders daily. Renovation material sellers are scattered, none as comprehensive as ‘Anjia.’ At this rate, I think we’ll be profitable in six months!”

Kang Wei’s estimates kept getting shorter.

Even Xia Xiao Lan initially expected the building materials store would need two years of investment.

Opening in October and profitable in six months? That’s less than a year. Xia Xiao Lan hoped things would turn out as Kang Wei predicted.

Xia Xiao Lan carefully reviewed Chen Xiliang’s “business plan.” Though the format wasn’t standard, she focused on content rather than form. Chen Xiliang had finally organized his thoughts after so much time. He specialized in women’s clothing and believed it was the most profitable.

The teenage collection wasn’t currently the hottest – most teenagers with money were still in school.

How much pocket money could they have? Enough for an outfit?

1980s parents rarely thought about dressing up their children, especially with multiple children – what was the point of dressing them up nicely? Focusing on clothes and appearance was considered a distraction from studies, a mainstream belief that persisted for a long time.

Chen Xiliang’s target market overlaps with “Blue Phoenix’s” customer base.

Women aged 20-35, newly employed single women, newlyweds, and those married less than 15 years were most likely to dress up. Those around 20, unburdened by family, might not earn much but would save for two months to buy beautiful clothes to honor their youth. Married women with good finances maintained their marital vitality and still loved beauty, full of life… Slightly older women might have better finances, but they prioritized quality over style.

Women over 40 chose conservative, foolproof styles.

They would wear a good piece for several years.

Chen Xiliang wanted customers filled with a “buy, buy, buy” mentality, who desired new styles, willing to eat less and save elsewhere just to buy clothes.

Why sell men’s clothing when there wasn’t enough capital to expand?

Focus on the most profitable first.

He wouldn’t follow the rural-surrounds-urban approach – rural people had no money, and small-town folk might not spend freely. Would Blue Phoenix have done as well in Anqing as in Commercial City?

Chen Xiliang planned to radiate from major cities, choosing three: Beijing, Yang City, and Shanghai.

First, open three brand stores, then seek distribution in department stores nationwide.

Chen Xiliang’s first chosen city was Beijing – calculating that Xia Xiao Lan would stay there for years to come. Old Chen was quite cunning.

Somehow inspired, Chen Xiliang had even chosen the brand name: “Luna” – not in Chinese characters, believing customers would prefer “Luna” in English. It was unavoidable; foreign goods were popular now, and an English name had more competitive edge than a local one.

Consumers would assume it was a foreign brand.

Luna, from Latin, means “moon goddess” – perfect for a women’s clothing brand.

In his previous life, Old Chen’s clothing enterprise wasn’t called “Luna,” but rather had an earthy name like “Blue Phoenix.” Her butterfly effect had changed something in this life.

Old Chen’s business plan barely passed – it wasn’t for Xia Xiao Lan’s inspection but for Chen Xiliang to organize his thoughts.

Xia Xiao Lan felt it was time to discuss cooperation with Chen Xiliang.

Chen Xiliang initially requested a 400,000 yuan investment, with him and Xia Xiao Lan each contributing 200,000… Old Chen didn’t know Xia Xiao Lan’s money had gone into the quadrangle courtyard. He estimated her worth at 200,000, calculating what she could contribute.

Unfortunately, Xia Xiao Lan couldn’t even manage one-fifth of that!

Zhou Cheng’s money was still with Xia Xiao Lan. She telegraphed Chen Xiliang, asking him to come to Beijing for discussions.

Old Chen was overjoyed at receiving the telegram. When Xia Xiao Lan next saw Ji Jiangyuan, he had lost weight and wore a black armband on his left arm.

Xia Xiao Lan could only open her mouth to say “My condolences.”

At a time like this, how could she complain about his mother?!