109: Chapter 109 Taking the Initiative

May 15, 2025, Thursday, Overcast, 23-32°C.

On the way to the company in the morning, Liu Yanran leaned back in the passenger seat scrolling through her phone, her brow suddenly furrowing.

While waiting for a red light, Qiao Yichen glanced at her. "What's wrong?"

Liu Yanran stared at her phone screen, her tone a bit displeased. "The higher-ups notified us to go to Liquan Group for a field survey today."

Qiao Yichen looked at the red light countdown. "Then why the long face?"

"I'm annoyed about who goes and who stays," Liu Yanran put down her phone. "The Project Team only has a few people to begin with. The survey needs to be done, but the work on hand can't stop either."

Qiao Yichen didn't respond, but information refreshed by the system a couple of days ago suddenly flashed through his mind.

On May 13th, Director obtained the core content of Liu Yanran's team's initial draft through Li Fan, a reviewer at Liquan Group.

On May 14th, Director transferred 300,000 yuan to the account of Li Fan's wife, "Wang Li."

He had been so focused on monitoring stocks these past two days that he almost forgot about this.

The car stopped in the B2 parking lot, and the engine was turned off. Qiao Yichen unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to look at Liu Yanran.

"Yanran, it's impossible for everyone in the Project Team to drop what they're doing to go on the survey. But if you don't go, you won't be able to grasp Party A's specific situation." He paused. "The most suitable plan is to pick a few from the Project Team and bring a few from the Support Group to form a survey team."

Liu Yanran's eyebrows rose slightly as she looked at him. "Do you want to go?"

Qiao Yichen nodded, not denying it.

The two walked to the elevator. Liu Yanran pressed the up button and remained silent for a few seconds before speaking. "I'll think about it."

Seeing her expression, Qiao Yichen already knew—her tone basically meant she agreed. Before the elevator doors opened, he quickly leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Liu Yanran was stunned for a moment and looked up at him.

He didn't say anything, just looked at her. She looked away, but the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

The elevator doors opened just then. The two walked in one after another; neither spoke, but the atmosphere had clearly lightened.

Arriving at the Planning Department, Qiao Yichen didn't go back to his workstation but directly called Li Yong, Meng Zhi, and Shen Bowen into a small meeting room.

"I'm going to Liquan Group for a survey with the company's Project Team today," he said, getting straight to the point. "Li Yong, contact the previous photographer; we can go shoot materials tomorrow. For the copywriting direction, follow the ideas we set yesterday and finalize it as soon as possible. Contact me anytime if there are issues."

The three nodded, having no questions.

The meeting adjourned. Just as Qiao Yichen left the meeting room, his phone vibrated. A message from Liu Yanran: "A3, now."

He turned and walked toward A3. When he pushed the door open, almost everyone was already there. General Manager Zhao Qiming sat by the head of the table, and Chen Mochi, Liu Li, Lin Xuan, and Zhou Ye were all present.

Liu Yanran stood at the front. Seeing him enter, her gaze swept around, and she spoke directly.

"The survey team has been decided. Manager General Manager Zhao Qiming will lead the team. From the Project Team: Chen Mochi, Liu Li, and Lin Xuan. From the Support Group: Qiao Yichen and Zhou Ye. Six people will go to Sweet Spring. Everyone else stays behind to continue pushing forward with the work on hand."

No one had any objections.

General Manager Zhao Qiming stood up and gave a call. "Let's go, the car is downstairs."

They set off at 9:30. The business van drove out of the underground garage and merged into the morning rush hour traffic.

Shortly after 10:00, the car parked in front of the Liquan Group building.

The front desk had already received notice that several advertising companies were coming for a survey today. After verifying their identities, a girl in her twenties with a ponytail approached them with a sweet smile.

"Please follow me, everyone." The guide led the group inside. "We'll show you around the headquarters this morning. You can experience the Employee Cafeteria at noon. The afternoon is for free activities; feel free to ask if there's anything you want to know."

General Manager Zhao Qiming nodded and followed behind.

The first stop was the Corporate Exhibition Hall on the first floor.

Right at the entrance was a massive brand wall with all of Sweet Spring's product lines neatly arranged—tea drinks, juices, sparkling water, mineral water—a total of twenty to thirty categories. Advertisements played on a loop on a large screen.

The guide pointed to the products on the wall. "Sweet Spring was founded in 2005, making this its twentieth anniversary. We currently have eight major series. You're probably most familiar with the 'qingyun series,' which is our flagship product."

Chen Mochi leaned in to look at the product packaging and took a few photos with his phone. Liu Li asked from the side, "How many SKUs does the qingyun series currently have?"

"Twelve, including different flavors and specifications," the guide answered quickly. "We launched two new flavors last year, and the market feedback has been quite good."

The group walked and looked. There was also a wall of honor in the exhibition hall, filled with various trophies and certificates.

Leaving the exhibition hall, the guide took them up to the eighth floor via the elevator.

"This is our R&D Center and Quality Control Laboratory." The elevator doors opened, and the distinctive scent of a laboratory wafted toward them.

Through the glass windows, staff in white coats could be seen busy at work. Various instruments and equipment were neatly arranged; some people were analyzing data at computers, while others were formulating something at workstations.

The guide introduced, "We invest 5% of our revenue into R&D every year. The qingyun series alone has a dedicated team of over twenty people. From tea leaf selection to juice ratios, every step has strict standards."

Qiao Yichen's gaze fell on a giant flowchart on the lab wall—from raw material procurement to finished product dispatch, every step was clearly marked.

Next was the Marketing Department on the twelfth floor.

The elevator doors opened, and the guide led them inside. In the open-plan office area, dozens of people were working feverishly at their computers.

The whiteboards on the walls were covered with various mind maps and progress charts, and boxes of samples were piled in the corners.

Liu Li stood by and watched for a while before leaning into General Manager Zhao Qiming's ear and whispering, "Manager Zhao, their Marketing Department looks way more professional than ours. Why do they still need to find outside companies?"

General Manager Zhao Qiming smiled and whispered back:

"It's normal. Do you think big companies like P&G or Unilever don't look outside? Their internal brand departments are even bigger than this, but they still work with dozens of agencies every year."

Liu Li was stunned for a moment. "Why?"

"When you're immersed in your own products every day, you're too close to them to think outside the box." General Manager Zhao Qiming paused. "External companies can bring new perspectives. Plus, the internal team handles daily operations; for a critical project like this, they simply don't have enough manpower."

Liu Li nodded thoughtfully.

Qiao Yichen listened from the side without interjecting, his gaze scanning the content on the whiteboards—new product launch schedules, competitor analysis, channel strategies—an entire wall was densely covered.

One area of the wall was specifically for the latest data on the qingyun series, with every number circled in red pen.

He withdrew his gaze and continued following the group. However, a thought stuck in his mind—after walking around for so long, which floor was Li Fan's office on?

By the time they finished touring the Marketing Department, it was already 11:40.

The guide checked the time and said with a smile, "It's about lunchtime. Shall I take you all to experience our Employee Cafeteria?"

General Manager Zhao Qiming nodded. "Sure, it's a good chance to taste your products."

The Employee Cafeteria was on the third floor, and it was packed as soon as they entered. People were queuing at dozens of windows offering Chinese fast food, Western light meals, salads, and everything in between.

The guide led them to swipe temporary meal cards; they could choose whatever they wanted, one portion each.

Qiao Yichen took a braised pork set and found a seat.

Chen Mochi came over with his tray, Liu Li sat opposite him, and Lin Xuan and Zhou Ye were at a nearby table.

"This cafeteria is great," Chen Mochi said, taking a bite of a chicken leg. "It's way better than our company's."

Liu Li glanced at him. "How much is their annual revenue compared to ours?"

General Manager Zhao Qiming came over with his tray, sat down next to them, and said, "It's free activities in the afternoon. You can go wherever you want. We'll gather downstairs at 5:00 PM."

The group nodded.

By the time they finished eating, it was already 12:30.

Qiao Yichen checked his phone and began to calculate in his head—he had to find an opportunity to head upstairs in the afternoon.