"Thank you, Mr. Zhao," Liu Yifeng said gratefully.
Then he and Su Wanru left the villa.
"Mr. Liu, with Mr. Zhao's word, your son has a fifty percent chance of getting into kindergarten. As for the assessment he mentioned, Tongtong is so smart, it will surely be no problem." Su Wanru was very confident in Tongtong's abilities. It wasn't just her; Liu Yifeng also had unwavering faith in Tongtong's capabilities.
"When Tongtong can get into the Space Kindergarten, I'll treat Ms. Su to a meal!"
"No reward without merit. If Tongtong gets in, it will be due to his own abilities, and it has nothing to do with me. It's getting late, I should be going back. I still need to check on the various stores later."
Liu Yifeng nodded, "Alright, Ms. Su, please drive safely!"
After watching Su Wanru drive away, Liu Yifeng also got into his car. On the way, he received a call from an unknown local number.
"Hello, who is this?" Liu Yifeng answered, placing the phone on the passenger seat. Soon, a voice came from the other end, "Hello, is this Mr. Liu Yifeng?"
"Yes, it is. What is it?" Liu Yifeng asked.
"Hello, Mr. Liu. I am Zheng Wucheng, the general manager of Jingtian Hotel."
Jingtian Hotel? Liu Yifeng couldn't recall ever interacting with anyone from this hotel. Why would they call him?
"Manager Zheng, what can I do for you?" he asked expressionlessly.
Zheng Wucheng immediately replied, "Mr. Liu, our hotel wishes to do business with you. Are you available?"
"What kind of business?"
"We've heard that the vegetables you grow have an excellent taste and are extremely nutritious. Therefore, our hotel would like to purchase vegetables from you. Price is not an issue."
After hearing Zheng Wucheng's words, Liu Yifeng seemed troubled, "Manager Zheng, I'm really sorry, but my vegetables are already supplied to Longteng Hotel, and their prices are not low either."
"I know their prices, but what if I told you our hotel is willing to purchase your vegetables at double the price?" Zheng Wucheng said with confidence. He didn't believe Liu Yifeng could refuse after hearing such an offer. After all, they weren't just increasing the price by a small amount, but by a full hundred percent. Cucumbers and tomatoes at twenty-four yuan per jin would be hard to find anywhere in the country.
Hearing the offer of such a high price, it would be a lie to say he wasn't tempted. However, Liu Yifeng knew that integrity was paramount in business. Although he hadn't explicitly told Manager Wan that he would sell all his vegetables to him, Longteng Hotel and Jingtian Hotel were both top-tier five-star restaurants in the area, and fierce competitors. If he sold his vegetables to Jingtian, it would inevitably affect Longteng Hotel's business. He really couldn't do such a thing.
But as the saying goes, "If a man does not live for himself, heaven and earth will destroy him." Here was an opportunity to make a fortune, and if he didn't seize it, he might never get another. Moreover, he hadn't signed any contract with Longteng Hotel stipulating that he would only sell his vegetables to them. Therefore, even if he sold his vegetables to Jingtian Hotel, Manager Wan would have no grounds to complain.
"Mr. Liu, such excellent terms are before you. Is there any reason to hesitate? As for the price, I can assure you that you won't find a second establishment that can offer a higher price," Zheng Wucheng urged, seeing Liu Yifeng's silence.
Liu Yifeng knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch. They were willing to pay such a high price, so there must be some conditions attached. He asked, "Do you have any requirements?"
"No other requirements, just one: from now on, you can only sell your vegetables to me. If you breach this contract, you will pay three times the penalty." Their intention wasn't the penalty itself, but to bind Liu Yifeng. If his vegetables were supplied to only them, then their customers would follow.
"I'm sorry, but I have already agreed to sell these vegetables to Longteng Hotel. If I break my word for money, I am not that kind of person. Business is about integrity. Money can be earned again, but once integrity is lost, the most precious wealth is gone."
Zheng Wucheng never expected that despite offering such a high price, Liu Yifeng wouldn't be tempted at all and would refuse so decisively.
"Mr. Liu, this price is truly not low. Refusing is truly unwise! In this life, isn't it all about getting promoted and becoming rich? Opportunities are fought for. Now that an opportunity has come knocking at your door, you should consider it carefully!"
"No need to consider. I will not sell these vegetables to you exclusively." If it weren't for that binding condition, he might have agreed. But now, even for more money, he couldn't agree. With that, he directly hung up the phone.
Zheng Wucheng was about to say more but saw that the call had been disconnected, leaving him stunned. What was going on? He could resist the temptation with double the price? Could it be that he was already so wealthy that he could disregard vegetables costing twenty-four yuan per jin?
"What did he say?" Zhou Libo asked.
Zheng Wucheng put down his phone. "Boss, he said he had already agreed to sell to Longteng Hotel and couldn't go back on his word."
"Is this man an idiot? We're offering him double the price, and he's talking to me about integrity? When doing business, isn't it about moving upwards?" Zhou Libo expressed his bewilderment. He found it hard to accept this outcome. He really wanted to see what this young man who sold vegetables looked like and what kind of person he was to resist such a great temptation.
"This person doesn't seem like someone who would resort to any means for money, otherwise, he wouldn't have refused such a tempting offer. Chairman Zhou, what should we do now?"
"We cannot give up on this matter. Have someone investigate Liu Yifeng first and assess his background," Zhou Libo stated, showing no intention of backing down. For the hotel's business to return to its peak, or even surpass it, Liu Yifeng's vegetables were an indispensable factor.
"Alright, I'll arrange for someone to investigate immediately!" Manager Zheng nodded.
"Remember, no forceful methods," Zhou Libo reminded him.
Meanwhile, Liu Yifeng didn't dwell on the phone call. He thought it wasn't surprising that they could find him. Manager Wan had told him that their hotel's business was improving, and even customers from their competitor, Jingtian Hotel, were drawn in by their signature dishes. Jingtian Hotel's business had declined abruptly, naturally drawing the owner's attention, and it was easy for them to trace it back to him. After all, the owner of a five-star hotel would have their methods. However, this was a society governed by law. Even if he refused to sell, they couldn't do anything to him. They couldn't possibly use brute force to compel him to sell at a high price, could they?
At five o'clock in the afternoon, Liu Yifeng returned home. His father was in the yard picking peanuts. It turned out that the widow, Li Dongmei, had brought back a load of peanuts in the afternoon. Liu Chunsheng, having nothing else to do, and with Tongtong locked in his study concocting some secret recipe and not allowing anyone to disturb him, decided to sit in the yard and pick peanuts. Dabai was happily hopping around in the peanut bushes. Seeing Liu Yifeng return, Dabai quickly ran over and circled around Liu Yifeng, brimming with excitement. Liu Yifeng squatted down and patted Dabai's furry head, "Did Dabai cause any trouble?"
"What are you talking to it about? It would be a ghost if it could answer you," Liu Chunsheng said.
Liu Yifeng then looked at his father, "Dad, why are you picking peanuts? I was planning to find some kids to pick them, and pay them by the bucket." When he was young, he had also helped others pick peanuts for money. However, back then, picking a bucket of peanuts only earned one or two cents, and a day of hard work wouldn't even earn a yuan. Now, labor costs were higher, five mao for a bucket, five yuan for a basket. Fast kids could earn over ten yuan a day. They would be 'rich second-generation' students when school started, able to eat snacks freely. If something could be solved with tens or hundreds of yuan, why should his father toil?
Liu Chunsheng replied, "Since I'm idle, it's better to do something and exercise my muscles."
"Oh, by the way, Dad, who brought these peanuts back?" Liu Yifeng asked.
"Who else? The Liu Dongmei you hired to manage our peanut harvest, of course, she brought them back."
"How can a woman have so much strength? It takes twenty minutes to walk from our house to the peanut field. Didn't I say I would bring them back with the cart?" Liu Yifeng found it hard to imagine how Liu Dongmei, with her frail body, managed to carry them back.
Just as Liu Chunsheng was about to speak, Liu Dongmei returned with another load of peanuts. Liu Yifeng watched her sway as she walked and quickly went to take it from her, "Didn't I tell you to just tie up the peanuts and leave them? Why did you carry them back yourself?"
"It's alright. I always carried back the peanuts from my own home, one shoulder pole at a time. I have the strength for this," Li Dongmei said, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
Liu Yifeng looked at Li Dongmei's sweat-soaked clothes, revealing a distinct outline, and immediately said, "Sister Li, please don't carry them anymore. It will be more convenient and faster for me to use the cart to bring them back later. Look, you're so hot your clothes are wet. Go back quickly, wash up, and change into something clean. I'll bring the remaining peanuts back from the field later, and you can go to the peanut field tomorrow."
Li Dongmei looked down at her clothes and felt a little embarrassed, "Then... alright, I'll go directly to the peanut field tomorrow." With that, she bid farewell to Liu Chunsheng, "Uncle Liu, I'll be going now."
"Yes, go ahead!" Liu Chunsheng nodded in response. Liu Yifeng placed the peanuts under the eaves of the house, so they wouldn't get wet if it rained.
"Yifeng, there's something Dad wants to tell you." Liu Chunsheng had a serious expression on his face.