Back to 2008: I Helped My Dad Become the Richest Man

The young man had a roguish air about him, and his tone was incredibly arrogant. He looked Luo Xinde and Luo Xiyuan up and down, his eyes full of the disdain a city dweller would show to a country bumpkin.

Luo Xinde's temper flared up instantly. He hated being looked down upon more than anything in his life, especially after becoming wealthy, his pride had grown even stronger. He was about to retort when Luo Xiyuan grabbed him.

"Dad, don't be impulsive," Luo Xiyuan whispered in his ear.

Then, she looked up with an innocent smile and said to the young man, "Young man, you've misunderstood. We're just from the countryside, looking for work in the county town. We saw your business is good here, so we came to learn."

Her words were soft and sweet, with a touch of girlish timidity, which immediately extinguished half of the other person's anger.

"Learn?" The young man scoffed, but the hostility on his face had lessened considerably. "Learn what? Learn to chop meat? Let me tell you, this job isn't easy. You have to work from dawn till dusk, it's exhausting. Look at your delicate skin, you can't do this."

"Yes, yes, you're right, young man." Luo Xinde also realized what his daughter meant and quickly followed up, "We were just looking, we didn't mean anything by it."

"Alright, if you've seen enough, hurry up and leave. Don't block our business." The young man waved his hand impatiently and turned back to the meat stall.

"Dad, let's go." Luo Xiyuan pulled Luo Xinde and quickly left the farmers' market.

Luo Xinde didn't stop until he reached the street corner, angrily saying, "What kind of people are these! They're bullying us! They look down on us like dogs!"

"Dad, why are you getting angry with someone like that?" Luo Xiyuan remained calm. "The more he acts like this, the happier I am."

"Happy? You're happy?" Luo Xinde asked, puzzled.

"Of course I'm happy." Luo Xiyuan's eyes gleamed. "This shows that the competition here is still at the lowest level. They don't rely on service or quality, but on territory and force. These kinds of opponents are the easiest to defeat."

She pointed to a row of shops across from the farmers' market: "Dad, look over there."

Luo Xinde looked in the direction she pointed and saw a small shop directly opposite the market. The roller shutter door was closed, and a faded "For Rent" sign was pasted on it, with the phone number almost illegible.

That shop's location is absolutely perfect. It's right opposite the entrance to the farmers' market, so everyone entering or leaving the market can see it at a glance.

"This is it!" Luo Xiyuan's tone was unusually firm. "Our shop will open here! Directly opposite them!"

"Open it across the street?" Luo Xinde was taken aback for a moment, then became excited. "Yes! Open it right across from them! Let them see every day how we steal their business! Let them be furious!"

The father and daughter got right to work. Luo Xiyuan took out her phone and stared at the worn-out taxi sign, struggling for a long time before finally recognizing the phone number on it.

When I called, an old man answered the phone; he had a very heavy accent.

"Feed? Who should I ask?"

"Hello sir, I saw that you have a shop for rent across from the farmers' market. I was wondering if it's still available for rent?" Luo Xiyuan asked politely.

"Rent it! Of course you'll rent it! It's been vacant for almost half a year!" The old man perked up immediately at the mention of business. "You want to rent it? Let me tell you, my location is prime real estate! The feng shui is excellent!"

"How is the rent calculated?"

"Twenty thousand a year! Not a penny less!" the old man quoted a price.

It costs 20,000 yuan a year, which is more than half the price of what you pay at the department store, but it's still a bit higher than what Luo Xiyuan is willing to pay.

"Sir, your price is a bit high. Your shop has been empty for half a year. If we rent it, we'll have to spend a lot of money on renovations. Do you think we could lower the price? We really want to rent it, and we want a long-term lease." Luo Xiyuan began to use her negotiation skills.

"No way! Twenty thousand yuan is the lowest price! Let me tell you, someone wanted to rent it a couple of days ago, but I didn't agree!" The old man was very stubborn.

Luo Xiyuan knew that she couldn't force her way with this kind of elderly person; she had to change her approach.

She changed the subject and asked, "Sir, what kind of business did you do with this shop before? Why did you stop?"

"Oh, don't even mention it." The old man immediately launched into a tirade upon hearing this. "I used to rent to a clothing store, but after less than a year, they said they weren't making any money and ran off! They still owe me three months' rent!"

"And before that?"

"Before that, there was a small restaurant owner who also said that the vegetable market across the street was too noisy and dirty, affecting his business, so he closed down."

Luo Xiyuan understood. Although this location faces the vegetable market and has a large flow of people, it is also noisy and smoky, making it unsuitable for businesses like clothing or restaurants. That's why it has been vacant for so long.

"Sir, let me tell you the truth," Luo Xiyuan's tone became very sincere, "your location isn't ideal for other businesses. But we want to open a pork shop. We don't mind the noise or the dirt; we just want to be right next to the market. If we open the shop, business will definitely boom. And when we do, we can even drive up the property prices around here! It's a win-win situation for you!"

"Besides, we're different from others. We're a legitimate business and will never owe you rent. We can pay six months' rent upfront, plus a one-month deposit. What do you think?"

The old man on the other end of the phone fell silent. He was persuaded by Luo Xiyuan's words. Indeed, the shop was just sitting empty anyway, and it didn't matter who he rented it to; this young woman seemed quite reliable.

"Then...the rent..."

"Sir, how about this?" Luo Xiyuan pressed her advantage. "18,000 a year. We'll sign a three-year contract, with rent paid annually. This price is fair to both of us. If you agree, we'll come over this afternoon to sign the contract and pay on the spot."

18,000 a year, three-year contract! And you get paid on the spot!

This offer was incredibly tempting for the elderly man whose shop had been empty for six months.

"Alright...alright then!" He finally relented. "Eighteen thousand it is! Come over this afternoon, I'll be waiting for you at home!"

After hanging up the phone, Luo Xiyuan excitedly gave her father a victory sign.

"Done!"

Luo Xinde stood by, listening to his daughter's phone call with the landlord, her eloquent and elaborate speech leaving him utterly dumbfounded. He felt that he had never spoken as skillfully as his daughter in those ten minutes.

"Xiyuan, how...how is your brain structured?" he exclaimed sincerely, "You can even make the dead sound alive."

"Dad, that's called negotiation skills." Luo Xiyuan smiled smugly.

In the afternoon, the father and daughter found the landlord's house according to the address. It was a very old tenement building, and the house was very simple.

When the old man saw that Luo Xiyuan had actually taken out more than 20,000 yuan in cash (9,000 yuan for six months' rent plus 1,500 yuan for a month's deposit), he couldn't stop smiling. He immediately took out the property certificate and signed the lease agreement with them.

As Luo Xinde left the old man's house, holding the still-scented contract and a greasy set of keys, he felt as if his feet were still floating.

"Come on! Dad, let's go check out our new store!" Luo Xiyuan grabbed her father's hand and excitedly ran back to the opposite side of the farmers' market.

Unlocking the dusty roller shutter door with the key, a musty smell hits you. The shop is small, with peeling walls and trash left by the previous tenants on the floor.

But in Luo Xiyuan's eyes, this was not a dilapidated empty shop.

She vaguely envisioned that in a few months, this place would be brightly lit and clean. Shop assistants in clean uniforms would greet each customer with smiles. The refrigerated display cases would be filled with the freshest, highest-quality pork. And at the entrance, the five large neon characters "Luo's Safe Meat" would shine brightly on the busiest street in the county.

On the other side, the messy meat stalls in the farmers' market will become deserted.

She turned her head and looked at the market across the street, where the bald, burly man's meat stall was in the most conspicuous position.

"Dad," she said to Luo Xinde, "let's go back. We'll find the best renovation team tomorrow and get started!"