Shang Zhitao brought in another manufacturer and established a new department.

Through her continuous efforts and learning, she finally began to understand the true workings of online advertising. Her team was extremely professional, winning awards in various professional skill competitions, and Shang Zhitao distributed all the prize money to her employees.

She began rapidly producing industry benchmark cases. Her training at Lingmei proved useful as she led her employees in brainstorming sessions, creating a comprehensive and profound data model that thoroughly monitored advertising effectiveness. When she sent it to Luan Nian to review, he said: “The data can be broken down into another layer.” So they continued to break it down until they finally reached the bottom.

She began embedding tracking points outside the manufacturer’s system for full-chain monitoring.

By the end of April, the manufacturer organized other agents to come and learn. The channel manager said, “Don’t share if you don’t want to, don’t teach if you don’t want to.”

Shang Zhitao smiled: “There’s nothing I can’t share.”

She required her employees to carefully prepare presentations and participate fully in receiving the visitors.

Zhang Lei also came. Shang Zhitao hadn’t disappointed him as her guarantor; she had indeed quickly risen to the first tier in completion rates.

“How is it? Tired?” Zhang Lei asked her.

“Tired. Exhausted to death.”

“Many people are unwilling to share this kind of experience. Why are you so foolishly telling them everything?”

“It’s fine. Learning together, progressing together, creating a healthy competitive environment—there’s nothing wrong with that. Apart from client data that we can’t share, all methodologies can be shared,” Shang Zhitao said.

“I knew you were impressive. Have you considered coming to lead my commercial team? I heard your boyfriend is in Beijing, and you’re in a long-distance relationship.”

Shang Zhitao’s face reddened slightly: “He comes over every week.”

“So your boyfriend is Luke from Lingmei?” Zhang Lei previously knew little about Shang Zhitao’s love life until he heard about it from Sun Yu’s company a few days ago.

“Yes.”

Zhang Lei looked at her for a while: “Quietly achieving something big.”

Luan Nian had a big reputation in the industry; Zhang Lei’s company would arrange for a vice president to liaise with him. He had heard many things about Luan Nian—that he was talented, strict with his staff, and also sharp and difficult to get along with.

“Can you keep it a secret for me? I don’t want everyone to know.”

Business connections were intertwined; people you didn’t meet here, you would meet elsewhere. Shang Zhitao didn’t want to use Luan Nian’s reputation. She hoped people would remember her and her company because they were excellent enough, not because she was Luan Nian’s girlfriend.

“Of course. Invite me to the wedding.”

“If we get married, of course I’ll invite you! Who else would I invite? We have over a decade of friendship.”

Marriage? Did Luan Nian want to get married? Shang Zhitao wasn’t sure. She felt that Luan Nian wanted to marry her, but recently he had been a bit mysterious. Just the other day, he suddenly asked her: “Can you take more than a month off in June?”

“Why such a long vacation?”

“Probably because I want to go play. It seems like we haven’t gone out to play for a long time.”

“Should I plan it?”

“Drop everything and come with me,” Luan Nian said.

Luan Nian was always like this—saying something casual that suddenly ignited her, making her want to be impulsive for once.

“Like when we went to Tibet, I don’t need to prepare anything, just follow you?”

“Right. Just entrust yourself to me.”

“Okay.”

Luan Nian lit fires in her heart, hitting the mark every time. He knew what she truly liked, knew that beneath her calm exterior was a burning soul yearning to run wild, needing just a small spark to ignite.

Shang Zhitao’s business was flourishing, and she began to focus on team building. She called Tracy to ask for advice on some issues. Tracy gave her thoughtful answers and finally asked: “Are you going to handle this yourself?”

“No. I’d like you to recommend someone to me. Business is getting better, and we need to take care of employee growth, care, rewards, and discipline. Plus, there’s a lot of recruitment and training work ahead. But we don’t have enough money to hire an HR team right now, so I want to recruit one or two versatile talents first.”

“Not difficult. I’ll recommend someone to you. You can entrust everything to her.”

The person Tracy recommended to Shang Zhitao was her former colleague Sunny, the same age as Tracy, single, who had returned to Ice City to take care of her elderly parents.

Shang Zhitao quickly arranged to meet Sunny and found that she was very similar to Tracy—possessing a worldly composure, neither showy nor sharp, making conversation with her very comfortable. She called her “Sister Sunny” and pulled out a contract at the end of their chat.

“The salary is the figure I just mentioned, which should be considered top-tier in Ice City, with year-end bonuses. Of course, how much to ultimately pay employees and how much you should get will be determined by you. Shall we sign the contract?”

Sunny was also straightforward: “Leave it to me.” She signed immediately.

Shang Zhitao was very happy to have resolved a major issue. Her team now had an operations director, a sales director, and a human resources general manager, so she wouldn’t have to work as hard as before.

As the company’s tax payments increased, the district government noticed this rapidly rising company in May of that year and arranged to meet with Shang Zhitao. On the day of the meeting, Shang Zhitao wore a black suit, with her hair neatly tied back, looking capable and elegant. Before leaving, she asked Luan Nian: “What should be the core of my discussion at this meeting?”

“Express your ambition—that you want to grow the business. Also tell them about your company’s income matching donations, and finally ask what efforts you need to make if you want to join the Political Consultative Conference.”

“Political Consultative Conference?” Shang Zhitao didn’t understand why he suggested asking this.

“Yes, two agency owner acquaintances of mine are local Political Consultative Conference representatives. Start by joining the Federation of Industry and Commerce or a democratic party. It’s beneficial for the company’s future development. Good luck.”

Shang Zhitao realized her vision had been too narrow. She had thought she was just reporting to the leadership, but that wasn’t the case. She suddenly understood the significance of this meeting.

“Go for it, warrior goddess,” Luan Nian messaged her.

“Thank you, Nian-nian.”

“Get lost.”

Nian-nian was Luan Nian’s childhood name. One day, Dr. Liang deliberately called Luan Nian this for some reason, and Shang Zhitao overheard it. She kept calling him Nian-nian for several days. Luan Nian found it sickeningly sentimental and forbade her from using it. But she insisted.

Shang Zhitao had experience dealing with the government. She went with Sunny because the government wanted to hear about business development plans and staffing plans. In the car, Sunny told her: “Government leaders are concerned about employment issues, especially solving graduate employment problems, so I’ll speak in detail about this part. They’re also concerned about taxes; I’ve brought the tax reports and made tax estimates.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Sister Sunny.”

“Just as we were leaving, Fu Dong said: ‘Go for it, Ice City flower sisters.'” Sunny laughed. “I’m almost fifty. Can I still be a flower sister with you?”

“Of course you can.”

Sunny was indeed someone who had fought alongside Tracy—she had a strong presence, rich experience, and had considered many issues that Shang Zhitao had never thought about. Shang Zhitao only spoke about strategic direction; Sunny handled everything else. The government officials were very satisfied with them. The company’s leader was particularly well-qualified, had ideals and passions, and understood business logic clearly, so they paid special attention to them. After the meeting, they assigned Shang Zhitao a task: starting from the second half of the year, she could apply to sit in on every Political Consultative Conference meeting to understand livelihood development plans, and they welcomed her to participate in urban construction.

This was a very good step.

Shang Zhitao was interested in urban construction and found it meaningful. After the meeting, she called Lin Chuner to tell her about it. Lin Chuner said: “Keep going, Taotao. Your choice is right. Although our strength is small, our efforts are necessary.”

“Yes, sister. Please guide me more.”

“We help each other!”

Shang Zhitao began to promote the company’s new business. By mid-May, the new agency license was approved. Sunny began recruiting. The company’s compensation and benefits system was very complete, standing up to comparison throughout Ice City.

Everything gradually began to get on track.

Shang Zhitao started preparing for her vacation.

She couldn’t explain why, but she was full of anticipation for this long journey. She thought she had passed the age of looking forward to travel, yet she still couldn’t sleep at night.

One evening, she called Luan Nian and heard it was very noisy on his end, with strong wind. She was taken aback and asked: “What are you doing?”

“I’m attending an event.”

“I want to talk to you.”

“Not today. Go to sleep first. I’ll fly over to pick you up the day after tomorrow. Some equipment will be delivered to you; have Fu Dong help you put it in the trunk.”

“Alright. Can I know where we’re going now?”

“No.”

“But I need to prepare my luggage.”

“You are the luggage.”

After saying this, Luan Nian hung up.

Shang Zhitao held the phone and snorted: “Stinky man!”

Old Shang and Big Dai were very supportive of Shang Zhitao’s long journey. They felt she had been working too hard and needed this relaxation, and they were especially reassured because her travel companion was Luan Nian.

Luan Nian had directed the rumors about Shang Zhitao in a new direction.

The new rumor said that Shang Zhitao had met Luan Nian in Beijing, but they were separated by his family because of their different social statuses, so she angrily returned to Ice City. Later, Luan Nian, unable to forget their love, came after her.

Shang Zhitao thought this version of the rumor was slightly better than the previous one.

But Dr. Liang was not pleased. When she heard Big Dai tell her about this, she was furious. So one day, Dr. Liang and Luan’s father drove a luxury car, dressed elegantly, to the old pub, bringing a bankbook.

The rumor changed again. It was said that the Shang family’s daughter was a business genius who was in love with Luan Nian, and his family had come in person to propose marriage.

That sounded better. Dr. Liang left happily.

Sometimes, Shang Zhitao thought that she was truly lucky enough to meet so many good people.

As long as you live seriously, life will gradually become interesting. Shang Zhitao realized this.

Luan Nian arrived late the night before their long journey. No matter how much Shang Zhitao asked, he refused to tell her the plan. Shang Zhitao snorted and turned away, pretending to be angry. He embraced her from behind and gently bit her back: “Shang Zhitao, have you been taking training classes recently?”

“Hmm?” Shang Zhitao’s breathing became slightly irregular: “What?”

“Has any teacher taught you new tricks recently… hmm?” Luan Nian asked her. Every day, Shang Zhitao kept him in suspense. He had seen everything, yet was completely captivated by her. When others used such tactics on him, he sneered, but with Shang Zhitao, he felt she could increase the frequency.

“My mentor has been a bit busy lately…”

“That’s alright, I’ve learned some.”

A satin ribbon covered Shang Zhitao’s eyes, giving her goosebumps. The unknown made her a little afraid.

Luan Nian gently coaxed her: “Don’t be afraid, today is premium service.”

She cupped his face with her hands, seeking reassurance. But Luan Nian removed her hands and moved away slightly. When he returned, a cool tongue explored, giving Shang Zhitao an experience she had never had before. She pulled at Luan Nian, wanting him to stop.

Of course, Luan Nian wouldn’t stop. How many times had she provoked him while he was away? He remembered all of it. A middle-aged man holding grudges could be truly shocking when he played his hand.

Shang Zhitao felt herself expanding into a cloud under the alternating heat and cold of his tongue, floating aimlessly.

Luan Nian’s premium service was life-threatening. Her nails dug into his back as she begged him for release.

Luan Nian was also urgent.

In the battle between two armies, the brave prevail. He used all his skills to leave her completely defenseless.

At the end, he asked her: “Do you want any other services?”

Shang Zhitao finally caught her breath, removed the ribbon, saw the mess, and instantly blushed.

“Rogue!” Shang Zhitao exclaimed coquettishly.

Luan Nian smiled: “Are you satisfied with the first arrangement of the trip, Ms. Shang Zhitao?”

He had laid the groundwork so well that Shang Zhitao was completely immersed, only hoping the journey would begin soon.