43: Chapter 43 The Dust Settles

At two forty-five in the afternoon, Qiao Yichen pushed open the door and returned to the Planning Department.

He showed no expression on his face at this time.

He first walked to his workstation and pulled out a pre-prepared blue folder from the file rack—it contained the final handover materials for the xianbai project that required the director's signature for confirmation.

Then, holding the folder, he walked straight to the director's office door and knocked twice.

"Come in."

Ms. Liu's voice came through the door, clear and cool.

Qiao Yichen pushed the door open and entered.

Liu Yanran was facing the computer screen, her fingertips tapping rapidly on the keyboard, her brow slightly furrowed; she was clearly busy.

Seeing him enter, her gaze shifted from the screen to the folder in his hand.

"This is the handover confirmation form for the xianbai project," Qiao Yichen placed the folder on her desk. "There are a few places that require your signature for confirmation."

"Just leave it here." Liu Yanran's gaze returned to the screen, but her hands didn't stop. "I'll look at it in a moment."

Qiao Yichen didn't leave.

He moved another step closer to her desk, bracing his hands on the edge of the desk and leaning slightly forward.

Liu Yanran's fingers, which had been typing, immediately stopped.

The office suddenly became quiet; they could hear each other's breathing.

She finally turned her head and looked up at him.

Sunlight leaked through the gaps in the blinds, casting a fine, dense shadow on her eyelashes.

"Mr. Qiao, is there anything else?" she asked.

Qiao Yichen looked at her and the corner of his mouth lifted very slightly.

"Ms. Liu, the Private Negotiation Fair," he began, his voice not loud but carrying an irrepressible clarity. "It's settled."

Liu Yanran paused, stunned.

"Next Wednesday evening, at the Auction House," Qiao Yichen continued. "I found the referrer. You can go directly then."

Liu Yanran looked at the unconcealed brightness on his face, like a young person who had just found a treasure. The slightly furrowed brow on her forehead unconsciously smoothed out.

She didn't ask who found the referrer, nor how he found them.

She just looked at him, then curved the corner of her mouth very slightly.

"Not bad for you," she said.

"Not bad," Qiao Yichen smiled too, his shoulders relaxing. "Mainly good luck."

He paused, leaned slightly forward again, and lowered his voice, adopting a tone of negotiation: "When this matter is over, regardless of the outcome, I'll find you. If it finishes early, shall we find a place to sit down for a while?"

Liu Yanran raised her eyelids and glanced at him.

Her look was faint, revealing no emotion.

After two seconds, she retracted her gaze, looked back at the screen, and unconsciously tapped the keyboard once.

"...As you wish."

...

April 22, 2025, Tuesday, Cloudy turning clear, 16 ~ 23°C.

In the blink of an eye, it was two o'clock the next afternoon in the Planning Department's small conference room.

On the screen was a PPT slide titled: "Review of the 'Su Ji' Third Anniversary Brand Refresh Campaign."

Qiao Yichen stood next to the whiteboard, holding a laser pointer, the red dot resting on the four words 'Core Strategy.'

"Today we'll look at this case first," he began, his voice clear and steady. "A local bakery brand, its third anniversary, with a medium budget. The goals were just two: repeat purchases from old customers and acquiring new customers."

He pressed the page-turning button, and the screen switched to the market background and competitor analysis from that time.

"At that time, similar brands on the market were all pushing 'ingredient upgrades' and 'craftsmanship inheritance.' If 'Su Ji' had followed suit, it would have been fighting in a red ocean." Qiao Yichen swept his laser pointer across, pointing to the next slide. "So the project team responsible at the time changed the approach, not focusing on the product, but emphasizing emotion and scenarios."

The screen displayed a series of still images and short video screenshots with the theme: 'The Third Home in the City'—focusing on the solace for office workers after overtime, weekend tea parties for girlfriends, and mothers buying snacks for their children.

"They put the bulk of the budget into subway lightboxes, office building elevator advertisements, and in-depth content collaborations with local lifestyle public accounts," Qiao Yichen explained. "Online traffic was driven to the store, and offline, it was supported by member activities and limited-edition products. The media mix was simple, but the execution was precise."

He looked at Shen Bowen: "Bowen, where do you think the riskiest part of this strategy was?"

Shen Bowen pondered for a moment: "Emotional marketing takes time to show results, and it's hard to quantify directly. If sales don't pick up in the short term, the pressure from Party A will be immense."

"Exactly," Qiao Yichen nodded. "So the other core of this case was the early establishment of a data monitoring system." He switched to the next page, which showed a complex dashboard screenshot. "From the emotional analysis of UGC content across various channels to the changes in dwell time after optimizing the store layout, everything was monitored and fed back in real-time. This allowed Party A to see the impact of every single penny."

Finally, he displayed the results page: Repeat purchase rate for members increased by 35%, new customer growth exceeded expectations by 50%, and the overall ROI reached 7.8.

"That's all for this case study." Qiao Yichen turned off the projector. "There are two key points: First, when others are competing on product, switch the dimension of competition. Second, the more you focus on emotion and branding, the more solid data is needed to support and prove the value."

He closed his laptop. "Go back and digest this. Today's and tomorrow's tasks remain the same. The two of you first find two small-to-medium cases from the company's past, and write up an analysis note using the approach we just discussed."

"Understood."

The three of them packed up their things and stood up. Li Yong walked while discussing something in a low voice with Shen Blog.

Meng Zhi, holding her notebook, turned back as she reached the door and said quietly, "Thank you, Team Leader Qiao, I learned a lot."

Qiao Yichen nodded at her.

After everyone left, he relaxed his shoulders and sat back in his chair. His phone screen lit up, showing the time: 14:35.

He unlocked the screen, but instead of immediately dealing with emails, he tapped open the WeChat chat box with Su Qing.

The last message was from yesterday afternoon when he asked about the progress; Su Qing had replied, "Submitted, pending review."

He thought for a moment and typed a message: "Lawyer Su, any news on the studio name review?"

Sent.

He placed his phone on the desk and opened his computer, preparing to start processing the afternoon emails. Just as he clicked open the first one, his phone vibrated once.

He picked it up to look.

Su Qing: "Just about to contact you. It's been approved."

Immediately following that was an image sent over.

Qiao Yichen tapped to open it. It was a screenshot of the "Notice of Pre-Approval for Enterprise Name," with a standard official document format in the background, the red seal clear and striking.

Enterprise Name: Yiran Consulting studio

Type: Sole Proprietorship

Operator: Qiao Yichen

Approval Date: April 22, 2025

He stared at the four characters "Yiran Consulting" for two seconds, then typed a reply.

Qiao Yichen: "That's great. Thank you for your trouble. What do I need to do next?"

Su Qing: "I will submit all the registration materials today. Using the expedited channel, if everything goes smoothly, the business license should be out the day after tomorrow. Account opening and tax registration can be prepared concurrently; I will send you the materials checklist later."

Qiao Yichen: "Okay. Send the list to me, and I'll prepare in advance."

Su Qing: "Mm. I'll notify you as soon as the license is out."

Qiao Yichen: "Thanks."

Su Qing: "You're welcome. It's what I should do."

Qiao Yichen put down his phone and leaned back in his chair.

Outside the window, the afternoon sun was shining through the clouds, casting a bright patch of light on the desktop.