My hometown is far away in Moscow.

Chapter 271 Desert Flower

While Yabalov and his craftsmen were busy sawing wood and painting, the others were not idle either.

Hu Yi took advantage of his proximity to the source and got the goods first. He took Natasha to Meng Xuanna's warehouse and picked out ten packs of pants. He also picked out a few packs of other brands and colors from Uncle Yu and other familiar bosses.

Wholesale and retail stalls can offer a wider variety of goods, but according to common market experience and rules, fashion trousers are generally only suitable for sale when paired with short skirts. Taking advantage of the lingering summer heat, Natasha personally went and bought several more bags of short skirts.

The stall was quite close to the Yellow Building. When Da Liu heard that Hu Yi was selling goods at his stall, he came over with great enthusiasm, wanting to help decorate the boxes. Unfortunately, he had a leg injury and his Russian wasn't very good, making him quite a hindrance in front of Yabalov and the others.

Da Liu stared blankly, unable to get involved. After watching for a while, he wisely withdrew from the renovation team and went to some unknown place to find four brand-new plastic mannequins, which he placed outside the box to help Hu Yi attract customers.

Fu Jiahui had already contributed $10,000 to the stall. After the box was decorated, he went to buy several exquisite and elegant lightweight tables and chairs for the two of them.

Uncle Yu, being very concerned about security, personally bought a sturdy safe for them. Meanwhile, Xiao Linzi excitedly ran to the Astai Electronics Mall and carefully selected an expensive audio system to put in the box, hoping to use music to enhance the sense of class and attract the attention of passing customers.

Hu Yi chuckled. He didn't want to do something as cliché as playing popular hits in the street, especially since the box had limited space and couldn't hold much. But he couldn't bear to refuse Xiao Linzi's kindness, so he gladly accepted and carried the speaker home.

With the opening imminent, many acquaintances in the market also offered gifts. Clothes racks, rain awnings, sun umbrellas, folding beds—anything they thought would be useful, they all sent over in droves.

Regardless of the value of the items or whether they were useful, they were ultimately a token of everyone's goodwill. Hu Yi accepted them all with a smile and entrusted them to Natasha for careful arrangement. Soon, the small box was transformed into the most beautiful stall within a radius of several hundred meters, like a cluster of wildflowers blooming tenaciously in a vast desert of shipping containers.

With everything ready, Hu Yi locked the trunk door under everyone's watchful eyes, took a few steps back, and gently put his arm around Natasha: "Darling, starting tomorrow, it will be your responsibility to take care of this little house. It's... um... an honorable... yet arduous task. Are you confident?"

"I'm very confident, I won't feel tired." Natasha's face was filled with a happy smile. "Anton, your friends have been a great help, we should thank them properly."

"Haha, of course!" Hu Yi turned around and waved to everyone, "We're opening tomorrow, so I'll treat everyone to a good meal tonight!"

"Open tomorrow? That won't do!" Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu said in unison.

"Huh? Why not?"

"I've consulted the almanac for you. Tomorrow is not auspicious for opening a business. The day after tomorrow is the best day," Uncle Yu said in a serious tone.

"That's right, you have to choose an auspicious day for a business opening. And after all the trouble you've gone through, shouldn't you have an opening ceremony to celebrate? Just for good luck." Fu Jiahui winked at him.

"Opening ceremony?" Hu Yi chuckled. "What for? Are you going to cut the ribbon for me?"

"Hey! How can you let me come?" Fu Jiahui looked unusually serious. "If you're willing, I'll personally invite the leading figures from the Wenzhou Chamber of Commerce to attend the ceremony and cut the ribbon for you."

"Forget it! Other business owners open their businesses quietly, only big companies like Aste have grand opening ceremonies." Hu Yi waved his hands repeatedly, "My tiny place is too small to embarrass myself."

"It doesn't have to be too grand, but there should at least be a symbolic ceremony," Uncle Yu encouraged with a smile. "You have so many friends in Moscow; it's essential to have them come and support your new store opening!"

"That's right! We at least need to have a ceremony so that it will be a great success in the future." Fu Jiahui's attitude was very firm: "Besides, you're one of Meng Xuanna's people, and now you're my customer. The store opening has to be a grand affair. If it's too shabby, it'll make me lose face, won't it?"

Hu Yi had never believed in such auspicious days before, but now that he was investing money in business, he couldn't help but feel a little skeptical, thinking it was better to believe it than not.

Moreover, Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu were both very close to him, and seeing their certainty, Hu Yi readily agreed, "Okay, I'll do as you say. Let's arrange the ceremony for the day after tomorrow. We can keep it simple here, and I'll treat everyone to dinner tonight. We'll have a proper celebration then."

The plan was finalized; the next step was to notify relatives and friends to attend and show their support. Hu Yi gave Natasha a few instructions, then turned and scanned the crowd: "Hey? Where's Li Baoqing? Baoqing!"

"I didn't notice, it seems like he hasn't been here since just now." Fu Jiahui also looked around. "Did he go to the restroom?"

"He's already gone." Uncle Yu looked in Astai's direction: "I saw him answer a phone call, say only a few words, turn around and leave. He seemed to be in a hurry."

"Oh, his boss probably needs to talk to him. Never mind." Hu Yi didn't pay much attention. He made a phone call to his friends to invite them over while following behind them back. The group slowly returned to New Sun and saw Xiao Linzi and several bosses gathered together, discussing something. They looked somewhat flustered.

"What's up, Xiao Linzi?" Fu Jiahui patted him with a smile. "What are you guys whispering about, plotting something?"

"Brother Jia Hui? Uncle, Brother Hu." Xiao Linzi greeted them one by one, then adjusted his bottle-bottom glasses and said mysteriously in a low voice, "A Meng is here."

"Huh?!" Hu Yi and the others quickly looked around. "Where?"

"I heard he went to Aste.

"They didn't come here? That's good." Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu both breathed a sigh of relief, then asked in unison, "What were they doing in Aste?"

"I just got back from Aste, Amon sealed off the warehouses there." A shopkeeper next to me, fanning himself with a palm leaf fan, chimed in, "I've never heard of Amon causing trouble in Aste before, this time it's really big."

"The warehouse is sealed off?!" Uncle Yu exclaimed first. "Impossible! The Aste warehouse has at least tens of thousands of boxes. How could we not know about such a big commotion?!"

"Of course not all of them. They only sealed off a relatively small area. It looks like... there are probably a few hundred boxes."

Hu Yi stood there silently the whole time, only clicking his tongue in worry at the end: "It shouldn't be Li Baoqing's warehouse, right?"

"It can't be that coincidental, can it?" Fu Jiahui said hesitantly with a smile, "It's only a few hundred boxes, how could it just happen to be him?"

Hu Yi shook his head, took out his phone and dialed, but no one answered.

Just as he was about to strike again, he saw Li Baoqing slowly walking towards them from the direction of Astai. Hu Yi saw his dejected appearance from afar and knew that his jinx had once again come true.

"Baoqing!" Hu Yi quickly went to greet him: "I heard... your goods are alright, right?"

"It's been blocked by Amon." Li Baoqing frowned and pursed his lips, appearing relatively calm: "Damn it, get me a cigarette."

Hu Yi quickly took out a cigarette and handed it to him: "Why?"

"Who the hell knows!" Li Baoqing lit a cigarette and took a deep drag. "They said they were here to seize counterfeit goods, bullshit! Pure rubbish!"

"Nonsense! Our goods are all under our own brand, how can there be any counterfeit goods?" Fu Jiahui and the others also gathered around, all talking at once, indignant.

Li Baoqing finished his cigarette without saying a word, then threw the cigarette butt hard on the ground: "Old Hu, you're opening tomorrow. Sigh, I really shouldn't have upset you at a time like this."

"Why are you talking about this! Hurry up and figure out what to do with your goods!" Hu Yi sighed, hands on his hips. "By the way, I'm not opening until the morning after tomorrow. You'd better sort things out by tomorrow, or I won't be at peace with myself."

Hu Yi said this only to reassure Li Baoqing indirectly. He knew very well that this was not something they could solve simply by wanting to.

"Who doesn't want things to be fast?" Li Baoqing nodded sullenly. "My boss's warehouse has also been sealed off, and there are still many people there. Everyone's at a loss."

"Unlocking isn't going to happen anytime soon, based on experience..." Hu Yi hesitated for a moment, "Shouldn't we... try to get the goods out?"

"That's right, that's why I'm here." Li Baoqing turned to Fu Jiahui: "Jiahui, when the warehouse in the Black Hair District was sealed off, who did you contact to handle it?"

"Back then... I think we found a Jewish guy with black hair, named... Yuri? Yes, Yuri. We even took him to a casino for one night afterwards." Fu Jiahui took out his phone, found a number in his contacts, and hesitated slightly: "But this guy is one of the big bosses of Aste, and now it's Aste's warehouse that's been sealed off... I wonder if contacting him will still be of any use?"

"Let's give it a try, even if it's a long shot." Li Baoqing wrote down Yuri's phone number, then forced an awkward smile at Hu Yi: "You wait here, I'll get things sorted out as quickly as possible, and I'll be there for your opening ceremony the day after tomorrow morning!"

(End of this chapter)