Chapter Nineteen: New Tidings

The couple passing by moved away, and Zhao Fan withdrew his gaze from them, suddenly breaking into a smile.

A place where you could buy everything you needed—wasn’t that a supermarket?

While the first supermarket in China had already opened, Yang City still didn’t have one; most shops were still simple general stores, selling little more than daily necessities like rice, oil, and salt.

There were many ventures one could attempt, but for now, the supermarket was the most suitable for Zhao Fan.

However, before that, there was something else he needed to do—register a company.

Afterward, Zhao Fan spent his days running around to handle company registration procedures, and his evenings reviewing lessons at home. At first, it was a struggle, but with his foundation and knack for finding methods, he quickly became familiar with all the subjects.

Amid such busyness, a month swept by in the blink of an eye. At He Yongshan’s request, Zhao Fan returned to school for exams—exams prepared solely for him.

The subjects followed one after another without pause, and the morning vanished in a flurry of test papers.

Setting down his pen, Zhao Fan massaged his aching neck, sore from hours of bending over, and asked, “Old He, how did I do?”

He Yongshan replied, “The scores aren’t out yet, you’ll have to wait a bit.”

As he spoke, he pulled Zhao Fan’s freshly completed papers over.

He Yongshan taught mathematics and had deliberately scheduled the math exam last so he could grade it himself.

“Hmm, not bad, but these scores still won’t do.”

Zhao Fan’s mouth twitched. “Old He, you have to take into account how long I’ve been away from school.”

“If I didn’t take that into account, I never would have agreed to let you study at home.”

Just then, teachers from other subjects brought over their graded papers.

As He Yongshan added up the scores, his brow furrowed. “Zhao Fan, your results…”

“No good?”

“Of course not. Look for yourself—your total is just over three hundred. For a good university, that’s barely enough.”

“That just means there’s plenty of room for improvement, don’t you think, Old He?”

Resting his hands on the desk, Zhao Fan waggled his eyebrows. He had no intention of staying in school—there was too much he needed to do, and being trapped there would be a waste of time.

He Yongshan shot him a glance and set the papers down. “Alright, I know exactly what’s on your mind. But Zhao Fan, you’d better be sure about this—there won’t be any teachers to help you at home. Are you certain you can keep your grades steady?”

“If I dare to stay home, I dare to guarantee my grades.”

He Yongshan snorted and rapped Zhao Fan on the head with the rolled-up papers. “There’ll be an exam every month. I’ll have the subject teachers prepare the papers. The moment your grades fall, you’ll come back to class. Agreed?”

Zhao Fan gave an okay sign. “No problem at all.”

“Fine, then off you go.”

“Gladly!”

Leaving the school, Zhao Fan’s smile gradually faded—having such a responsible teacher was exhausting.

He shook his head and threw himself into building the supermarket.

During the previous month, Zhao Fan had registered his company, naming it Feiteng—Soaring Prosperity. He also hired someone to design the logo, incorporating not only the characters for “Soaring Prosperity,” but also the character from his own name—Fan.

The company was leased on the east side of Yang City, a renowned commercial area where many businesses gathered. Zhao Fan rented the ground floor for fifty thousand yuan a year, signing a three-year lease.

With the company’s address settled, he turned his attention to finding a factory site and a location for the supermarket.

The factory was easier to arrange. With the help of an agent, Zhao Fan quickly secured a spot close to his company.

Yang City had no large supermarkets, nor were there sizable factories for such ventures.

Zhao Fan searched high and low but found nothing suitable.

Just as he was growing frustrated, an unfamiliar call came in.

“Hello, is this Mr. Zhao Fan?”

“Yes, may I ask who’s calling?”

“Mr. Zhao, this is Xu An, manager of Yilan Residences. We’ve met before—do you remember me?”

Manager Xu An of Yilan Residences?

Zhao Fan quickly recalled the man—he’d appeared with bank manager Mu Tianrong when Zhao Fan bought his villa and confronted Wang Ying and her new boyfriend.

“So it’s Manager Xu. Of course I remember. What can I do for you?”

“Oh, it’s nothing urgent. I’d just like to invite you to dinner and introduce you to a few people. Would you have time?”

Zhao Fan raised an eyebrow. Dinner and introductions? He suspected there was more to it.

But outwardly he replied, “Yes, when?”

“Eight o’clock tonight. I’ll send a car to pick you up.”

“No need—just give me the address,” Zhao Fan declined the offer for a ride.

“Are you sure?” Xu An confirmed.

“I’m sure.”

After triple-checking, Xu An provided the restaurant’s name.

At seven in the evening, Zhao Fan arrived early. As he reached the entrance, he saw Xu An getting out of a car.

“Mr. Zhao?”

“Manager Xu.”

After exchanging greetings, the two entered the restaurant.

Xu An remarked, “I didn’t expect you to arrive so early, Mr. Zhao.”

“I had nothing else to do, so I came ahead. But what about you, Manager Xu? There’s still an hour—why so early?”

“When you’re hosting, you have to arrive in advance. There are preparations to be made.”

Once inside the private room, Xu An apologized and went off to make arrangements for the dinner.

Left alone, Zhao Fan waited only a short while before the next guest arrived: the bank manager, Mu Tianrong.

“Oh, Mr. Zhao, you’re here early.”

“Manager Mu.”

With Mu Tianrong for company, Zhao Fan didn’t feel awkward.

They chatted briefly, and Mu Tianrong brought up the recent activity in Zhao Fan’s account. “You’ve been quite busy lately, Mr. Zhao.”

Zhao Fan smiled. “I have—just registered a company, planning to start a small business.”

“I see. May I ask what business you’re planning?”

Zhao Fan shook his head with a wry look. “Let’s not talk about it. I’ve been running around for over a month, full of ideas, but still haven’t found a suitable place. It’s giving me a headache.”

Deliberately sidestepping Mu Tianrong’s inquiry, Zhao Fan played up his frustration convincingly.

Maintaining his smile, Mu Tianrong asked, “What kind of place are you looking for?”

“Nothing special—just something big. From the way you ask, do you have somewhere in mind?”

“There is one place, yes, but I’m not sure if it’s what you want.”

“Please, tell me more.”

“In the western part of the city, near the center, a new market has just been built. It’s two stories, covers about three hundred square meters, and is currently empty. They’re planning to hand out flyers to attract businesses. Since it was just completed, hardly anyone knows about it yet. Are you interested?”

Zhao Fan grinned. “I’ve never heard of a two-story market before—this is a first for Yang City.”

Mu Tianrong laughed as well. “Exactly, and because it’s the first, you can see its potential at a glance.”

“Manager Mu, you make a good point.”

Their eyes met, smiles deepening.

Some things didn’t need to be said aloud; both understood perfectly.

After the dinner, Zhao Fan and Mu Tianrong agreed to visit the location together in a few days. Yet the very next day, Zhao Fan took a cab straight to the market Mu Tianrong had mentioned.

As the place came into view, Zhao Fan made up his mind.