Ou Minghan waited in the reception room with growing impatience, his expression turning increasingly grim.
He was utterly exhausted, not just physically, but mentally as well.
So much had happened yesterday; his much-anticipated birthday banquet had been a disaster, and now Xingmeng Club even had to suspend operations for rectification.
Last night, he'd been scrambling to resolve the issues with Xingmeng Club and to appease the invited guests, lest they distance themselves from him over this incident.
He had been busy until late into the night before finally getting some rest. However, he had woken up shortly after, startled to find it was only three in the morning. He immediately called Feng Jie, who was still working overtime, urging them to devise a plan to overshadow Taoxun with minimal spending before the start of business hours. After making the call, he had finally managed to sleep soundly.
This morning, he had rushed to Qianbai Company. The executives had indeed come up with a relatively feasible plan, but it was far too expensive. Ou Minghan had altered the costly parts and instructed them to proceed with the revised plan.
Following that, he had immediately headed to the Qi Group, intending to seek investment from Qi Xuan.
In truth, Qi Xuan was not his optimal choice. Qi Xuan was far too astute; if he accepted Qi Xuan's money, it would be very difficult to oust him later.
However, the guests from last night were still somewhat disgruntled. If he approached them for investment now, it would surely provoke their dissatisfaction. Coupled with Ye Zhi's relentless pressure, he had no choice but to choose Qi Xuan. After all, Qi Xuan was incredibly wealthy, more than enough for him to spend lavishly.
Feng Jie had also been brought along by Ou Minghan. He was extremely drowsy at the moment.
Seeing that he didn't know how long they would have to wait, he quietly advised, "President, perhaps we should head back first? Waiting like this isn't a solution. Since President Qi is busy, we can simply make an appointment..."
"What do you know?" Ou Minghan impatiently interrupted him. "He's not busy; it's because when Qianbai was established, Qi Xuan wanted to invest, but I refused. That's why he's been upset! If I wait a little longer and show him my sincerity, he'll agree to see me!"
Feng Jie was stunned. Was he still not awake, or was Ou Minghan not awake?
President Qi Xuan was doing business with him, not embarking on a romantic relationship. Why was Ou Minghan using tactics for pursuing a woman to conduct business? Had he gone crazy from chasing women?!
Refusing Qi Xuan's investment was ancient history. Moreover, they weren't the only ones who had rejected Qi Xuan's investment. How could Qi Xuan hold a grudge over such a trivial matter like Ou Minghan?
Feng Jie couldn't help but advise again, "Perhaps President Qi is simply not interested in this industry, which is why he's not seeing us..."
"Qianbai had just been established, and he came to invest, meaning he saw the prospects of this industry. How could he not be interested?" Ou Minghan said with a cold laugh, confidently. "He didn't have the opportunity before. Now that we are fiercely competing with Taoxun, it's the perfect time for him to enter. How could he be willing to miss it? He's just raising his own value now, trying to gain more advantages in subsequent negotiations!"
Feng Jie hesitated to speak, wanting to refute, but he felt that what Ou Minghan said had some logic. The industry did have good prospects, and there was no reason for Qi Xuan to miss out.
Suddenly, Feng Jie seemed to recall something and said in surprise, "President, is there a possibility, I'm just saying it's possible, that President Qi might be more optimistic about Taoxun..."
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Ou Minghan interrupted him angrily. "Taoxun is just a small company that has just been established. What is there to be optimistic about?! Moreover, its founder is a woman! Look at what Ye Zhi has done! She's been pouring money everywhere since the company was founded. How much money is enough for her to squander like this?!"
Feng Jie truly struggled to suppress the urge to retort.
What's wrong with a woman? What's wrong with spending money? Isn't it yielding good results for Taoxun? She had pushed Ou Minghan to this point in just one day. Those who didn't know would probably think Qianbai was going bankrupt! What exactly did Ou Minghan look down on Ye Zhi for...
Of course, he would keep all these thoughts to himself, even if he died. After all, he was well aware of who was paying his salary.
Suddenly, Feng Jie's phone rang. He hurried outside the reception room to answer it.
Soon, Feng Jie walked back in flustered, "President, something bad has happened..."
Ou Minghan's temples throbbed. He said irritably, "Don't say those three words. Get straight to the point!"
Feng Jie faltered, then continued, "Quite a few brand merchants have called to say they won't participate in our preferential pricing activities. If we don't agree, they will close their online stores and only open shops on Taoxun..."
Ou Minghan roared, "Which brand merchants dare to threaten me like this?! Fine, let them close then..."
"No, that won't do!" Feng Jie quickly interrupted him. "These brand merchants are..."
After hearing the names of the brand merchants, Ou Minghan's expression immediately turned serious.
These brand merchants were ones he had specifically invited to the Qianbai website earlier, with the aim of enhancing Qianbai's image and changing the public perception that Qianbai's website only sold cheap or fake goods.
If these brand merchants left, it would undoubtedly damage Qianbai's image. While it would be manageable at any other time, at this critical juncture, it might trigger a negative butterfly effect.
After pondering for a while, he finally said with a grim expression, "Feng Jie, let's return to the company!"
Although securing investment was important, he had to address the issues with these brand merchants first.
Ou Minghan left just like that. Upon returning to Qianbai Company, he immediately contacted those brand merchants. He pleaded and reasoned with them, using up all his eloquence, but the brand merchants remained resolute. In the end, Ou Minghan could only concede, agreeing to their terms of not participating in the activities.
After they reached an agreement, the news immediately reached Ye Zhi's ears.
Ye Zhi was not surprised by this outcome. She immediately notified Chen Wei, asking him to provide this information to the video creators as well.
Creating videos takes time, and gaining popularity also requires opportunity. What Ye Zhi needed to do now was wait.
After work, Ye Zhi first went to the flower and bird market before returning to her villa on the mountainside.
She arrived at Qi Xuan's home. Qi Xuan had not yet returned, but the housekeeper ushered her in directly.
The housekeeper glanced at the meticulously wrapped gift box and said with a chuckle, "Miss Ye, you've brought gifts again?"
"Yes," Ye Zhi nodded. "Qi Xuan will definitely like this gift."
The housekeeper chuckled twice, then quickly looked away. He figured it was just another decorative item or small piece of furniture, which held no interest for him. How could Qi Xuan possibly like it?
"Uncle Steward, could you do me a favor?" Ye Zhi suddenly asked.