Chapter 130: An Encounter (First Update)

The novel is now live, with an explosive debut today: the first chapter is free! Please subscribe for the second chapter!

Xu Ming did not return to the Elegant Garden store with Zhang Wei and the others. Instead, he stayed behind to discuss some matters with Han Zhong. In the car, Li Lin, Guo Bin, Wang Jianfa, and Wen Fang naturally congratulated Zhang Wei, who was soon to be their direct superior.

Among the four, Li Lin remained the calmest, as if she had anticipated this outcome. Zhang Wei had mentioned it briefly to Wang Jianfa beforehand, so Wang was somewhat prepared mentally. The most troubled was Guo Bin, who had had conflicts with Zhang Wei before.

Guo Bin had never expected Zhang Wei to take over as store manager of Elegant Garden. Now, his future seemed bleak. After several confrontations with Zhang Wei, he had been thoroughly outmatched and, despite everything, respected Zhang Wei’s appointment to the position.

“Brother Wei, congratulations! Having you as our store manager is far better than parachuting in some outsider, haha,” Guo Bin said with a forced smile, his tone stiff.

To make amends for past mistakes and avoid being given the cold shoulder, Guo Bin could only flatter Zhang Wei, though the others could sense the sorrow beneath his laughter.

“Brother Wei? Zhang Wei, you’ve really risen to the ‘brother’ level! Then I’ll call you Brother Wei from now on,” Li Lin said with a sly glint in her eye.

Though Li Lin disliked being a store manager, she also did not like being bossed around by a newcomer. She wanted to test whether Zhang Wei had changed since taking the position.

“Sister Lin, don’t join in the teasing. I’ve always worked under your guidance— you’re almost like a mentor to me. I wouldn’t dare call you ‘brother’,” Zhang Wei smiled. “Besides, I’m still your driver for now.”

Zhang Wei held Li Lin in high regard. Among his team of three salespeople, Guo Bin and Wang Jianfa were average performers who hadn’t yet closed any deals, so Li Lin was his top lieutenant.

This posed Zhang Wei’s greatest challenge. When Xu Ming was store manager, he at least had a strong right hand in him. Now that Zhang Wei had taken Xu’s place, he couldn’t keep doing everything himself as before.

His first task as manager would be to recruit more staff—filling all ten agent positions. Of course, he wanted to discuss this with Xu Ming, whose experience would help guide the overall strategy.

Just then, Zhang Wei’s phone rang as he returned to the Zhongtong store. It was a call from “Fatty” Zhou. He answered, “Hello, Fatty.”

“Zhang Wei, are you busy?” Zhou asked.

“No, what’s up?” Zhang Wei replied, curious.

“I’m waiting for you outside Jingxuan Studio. Let’s catch up—been a long time, brother,” Zhou said.

“All right, I’m on my way,” Zhang Wei responded, hanging up.

Zhang Wei had kept in touch with Zhou, knowing his business was transitioning. A few days ago, Zhou had mentioned moving into real estate and wanted Zhang Wei as his consultant. This meeting was likely about that.

It was early afternoon, the hottest time of day, and probably no clients would come by. After notifying his sales team he was stepping out, Zhang Wei left the store.

The change from salesperson to manager gave Zhang Wei greater freedom. He no longer needed to meet daily quotas and could quickly return to the store if needed.

Jingxuan Studio was nearby; Zhang Wei reached its entrance in minutes. From afar, he saw a heavyset figure waving at him.

He quickened his pace to greet Zhou when suddenly the roar of an engine filled the air—a sports car accelerating nearby.

Startled, Zhang Wei turned and saw a white car speeding past just feet away.

The incident was so sudden he barely had time to greet Zhou, his eyes fixed on the white sports car which had now stopped at the studio’s entrance—parked at a sharp angle.

“Damn, so arrogant. Even parking has to be crooked. You really want to show off your wealth, huh?” Zhang Wei muttered, spotting the Ferrari emblem on the car.

He strode forward as a young man and woman stepped out. The man, about seventeen or eighteen, was handsome and well-dressed—Murong Xuan’s cousin, Li Mengfei.

The woman behind the wheel was around twenty, bearing a few similarities to Li Mengfei but far more exquisite. Her classical, delicate features—almond-shaped face, bright eyes, refined nose, cherry lips, and snow-white skin—resembled a flawless masterpiece.

She wore a white dress that revealed smooth, pearl-like shoulders, highlighting her slender figure. The faint outline of her bosom was visible beneath the fabric. Her long, pale arms hung naturally at her narrow waist.

Most striking were her dazzlingly fair, long legs, exposed above the knee by the dress. She wore transparent glass slippers, ankles slender and elegantly curved, toes painted bright vermilion with vivid nail polish.

Standing there, she radiated a fresh, subtle fragrance that seemed to gently envelop everyone’s senses, prompting Zhang Wei to admire her silently.

This woman was even more beautiful than Chen Sixuan—undoubtedly the most stunning and perfect woman Zhang Wei had ever seen. Her skin was translucent and supple, like polished jade, glowing brighter than snow.

She walked gracefully toward Zhang Wei, a hint of apology on her delicate face. Bowing slightly, she said, “Sir, I’m sorry. I’m a novice driver and got nervous, accidentally pressing the accelerator instead of the brake. I hope you can forgive me.”

Hearing this, Zhang Wei felt both amused and helpless—there was no one to vent his frustration on. Glancing at the crookedly parked car, he thought, “I overestimated her. She’s not trying to show off; she just can’t park straight.”

“Be careful driving next time. If something serious happens, you won’t be able to undo the damage,” he advised.

“Pfft, why the lecture? No scratch on the car—it’s not like it’s a big deal,” Li Mengfei teased, shaking his head playfully.

“Mengfei, stop talking nonsense. This is my fault. Apologizing to this gentleman is the right thing to do. You shouldn’t be saying anything,” the woman chided softly from the driver’s seat.

“Sis…” Li Mengfei was silenced, glancing at Zhang Wei and whispering, “We know each other. You don’t have to be so formal.”

“Hey, I don’t think we’re that close,” Zhang Wei said, scrutinizing him.

“Miss Li, long time no see,” Fatty Zhou arrived and greeted the woman behind the wheel.

“Oh, you must be Mr. Zhou. Nice to meet you,” the woman nodded politely with a faint smile.

“Brother, I don’t think Miss Li meant any harm. Let’s just let this go,” Zhou said, winking at Zhang Wei.

Though Zhang Wei didn’t know the full story, he trusted Zhou’s judgment and, since he wasn’t hurt, generously let it pass.

“Fatty’s right. With a beauty like Miss Li, I wouldn’t have the heart to say anything either,” Zhang Wei laughed.

“Thank you for your understanding, sir. Thank you, Mr. Zhou,” the woman said, nodding to both before leading a reluctant Li Mengfei into Jingxuan Studio.

Watching her elegant figure and graceful manner, Zhang Wei felt a pang of melancholy and couldn’t help but ask, “Fatty, who is that woman?”