98: Chapter 98 Planning

May 8, 2025, Thursday, moderate rain, 18 ~ 23℃.

After washing up in the morning, Qiao Yichen leaned by the window, staring at the rain outside for quite a while.

The rain was quite heavy, dense silk threads of rain hammered against the glass, converging into streaks of water that flowed downward.

Liu Yanran came out of the bathroom and walked to the vanity to sit down. She glanced at the window—Qiao Yichen was standing there motionless, staring blankly outside.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked while patting lotion onto her face.

Qiao Yichen snapped back to reality and answered without hesitation: “I was thinking about that cabinet in the spare bedroom, wondering when it can be sold.”

Liu Yanran’s hands didn’t stop moving, her tone light: “Don’t rush, take your time, there will be an opportunity.”

Qiao Yichen nodded, suddenly remembering something, and turned to look at her: “Right, I worked too late yesterday and didn’t pick up the clothes. Should we go over tonight?”

Liu Yanran was drawing her eyebrows in front of the mirror, her hand never pausing: “Sure, let’s go after work tonight.”

She paused, her pen stopping for a moment, then she turned to look toward the window: “Do you have a lot of things over there? If not too many, why don’t you just bring everything over at once to save running back and forth.”

Qiao Yichen chuckled: “Not much stuff, just some clothes and daily necessities.” He glanced out the window, “But with the weather today, we’ll decide tonight. This rain doesn’t look like it will stop anytime soon.”

Liu Yanran nodded and continued drawing her eyebrows.

...

Arriving at the company, Qiao Yichen first returned to the Planning Department.

Li Yong had already arrived, tapping away at his keyboard. Seeing Qiao Yichen approach, he looked up: “Boss, morning.”

“How is Taste Bud Memory doing?” Qiao Yichen asked.

Li Yong clicked open several pages to show him: “Data is normal, feedback yesterday was also decent, sales for the new packaging models have stabilized. The channels are still pushing it, I’m keeping an eye on it these few days. I’ll report to you immediately if there are any issues.”

Qiao Yichen leaned over to flip through them, confirmed there were no problems, and nodded: “Good, thanks for your hard work. Find me anytime if you need anything.”

After speaking, he picked up his laptop and walked toward Meeting Room A3.

Pushing the door open, most people had already arrived.

Liu Li still occupied the seat by the window, her fingers flying across the keyboard. Chen Mochi stood in front of the whiteboard, holding a marker, staring blankly at the words written yesterday. Zhou Yuan was nestled in his chair, a computer open in front of him, flipping through some reference images. General Manager Zhao Qiming sat in the middle of the long table, turning a pen in his hand, seemingly lost in thought.

Qiao Yichen found a corner to sit down and started his computer.

At nine-thirty, Liu Yanran pushed the door open punctually.

She walked to the main seat and sat down, scanned the room, and without any pleasantries, started directly:

“The three directions from yesterday have been finalized this morning. Each team should review internally first, and we will have a centralized discussion at ten-thirty.”

The room buzzed into action below.

A little over an hour later, the direction was set.

Liu Yanran walked to the whiteboard, picked up a pen, and wrote: Visuals: Hand-drawn Illustration Style, Emotion: Fresh and Pure.

“This is it,” she said.

Someone below nodded. Chen Mochi smiled: “Alright, let’s proceed according to this.”

Liu Yanran glanced at the time—eleven fifty.

“That’s all for the morning session. In the afternoon, we break into groups for work. The Strategy Team will finalize the positioning copy, and the Design Team will start working on the visual direction.” She paused, “Meeting adjourned.”

People began packing their things—the sound of chairs scraping, the sound of laptops closing.

After the meeting adjourned, Qiao Yichen followed Liu Yanran into her office.

The door closed behind them.

Liu Yanran sat down in her office chair, looked up to see him follow in, and casually asked: “What are we eating for lunch?”

Qiao Yichen sat down opposite her but didn't rush to answer.

He glanced out the window—the rain was still falling, even heavier than in the morning. Dense silk threads of rain hammered against the glass, and the trees outside were obscured by the downpour.

He recalled the thought that had occupied his mind while standing by the window staring blankly that morning.

He had added eight points to Old Master Zhou’s offer yesterday, but a full day had passed with no news at all.

He knew such matters couldn't be rushed, but he couldn't help pondering—besides Old Master Zhou, was there any other avenue?

Teacher Song Qixiu.

That collector who had brought him into the Private Negotiation Fair. He had wide connections and knew many people; if he truly wanted to find a buyer, Teacher Song Qixiu's channel would be the fastest.

But he had hesitated about this matter all morning—asking someone for help meant owing a favor.

He took out his phone, stood up, and walked to the window, his back to Liu Yanran. He took a deep breath and made the call anyway.

The phone rang for over ten seconds before being answered, and a slightly deep voice came through: “Hello, who is this?”

“Hello, Teacher Song, I am Qiao Yichen.”

Teacher Song Qixiu paused for a moment. Qiao Yichen?

The name sounded a bit familiar... He ran through his memory—the Private Negotiation Fair at Auction House last month.

President Wu Guodong had asked him to bring a young man in, saying he was a junior interested in antique furniture.

At the time, he had taken a few extra glances at the young man; he wasn't very old but knew the etiquette well. It seemed... his name was Qiao Yichen?

“Oh—Little Qiao.” Teacher Song Qixiu’s tone softened, carrying a hint of a smile, “I remember now. What is it? Do you need something from me?”

Qiao Yichen didn't beat around the bush: “Teacher Song, I’m truly sorry to bother you. I wonder if you still remember the huanghuali inlaid with hundred treasures flower and bird pattern square corner cabinet I bought at the last Private Negotiation Fair?”

“Of course, I still have some impression of that piece.” Teacher Song Qixiu paused, “What, is there a problem with the cabinet?”

“No, no,” Qiao Yichen quickly explained, “It’s like this—I got lucky and found a real treasure. Later, a friend came over, looked at it, and felt it didn't look like a fake, so I sent it to the Provincial Appraisal Center for an appraisal. Guess what? The results just came out: it’s a genuine piece from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, not a reproduction.”

Silence followed on the other end for a few seconds, then Teacher Song Qixiu’s voice clearly rose, laced with surprise: “Oh? A genuine piece? Then you really struck a huge bargain this time!”

Qiao Yichen smiled: “It’s all thanks to you, Teacher Song. If you hadn’t brought me in, I wouldn’t have had the chance to encounter it.”

“You can’t say that,” Teacher Song Qixiu laughed heartily, “The piece was fated to be yours, and you had the luck. Alright, this is great news.”

Qiao Yichen seized the opportunity to continue: “Teacher Song, the main reason I called is to ask for your advice—since this piece is genuine, I want to find a suitable person for it. You are knowledgeable and have many friends; I wanted to ask if you know of any channels?”

Teacher Song Qixiu laughed again, his laughter carrying a teasing tone: “No one visits the Three Treasures Hall without a reason; so that’s the idea you little fellow had.”

Qiao Yichen chuckled along, feeling a bit embarrassed: “Please don’t laugh at me, I really don’t want to be stuck with it, and I want to find someone who understands it to take it over.”

“Alright, I’ll make a note of this,” Teacher Song Qixiu said readily, “Add me on WeChat with this number and send over the appraisal certificate. I do have a few friends who are interested in antique furniture; I’ll ask around for you later. I’ll contact you if I hear anything.”

Qiao Yichen quickly thanked him: “Thank you so much, Teacher Song, I’m truly troubling you. I must treat you to tea later to properly thank you.”

“Okay, I’ll wait for that tea,” Teacher Song Qixiu said with a smile, “Let’s talk later.”

He hung up the phone.

Qiao Yichen put down his phone and looked up, meeting Liu Yanran’s gaze.

She was leaning back in her chair, turning a pen in her hand, her eyes holding a hint of curiosity: “Who was that? You sounded very polite to him.”

Qiao Yichen walked back and sat opposite her: “That Teacher Song who brought me into the Private Negotiation Fair before, he’s a collector and quite famous in the circle. He has wide connections and knows people who truly deal in collecting. If I want to sell it quickly, I still need to ask him for help.”

Liu Yanran nodded thoughtfully: “Then he is indeed the best choice. But for him to agree to help, it means he has a good impression of you.”

Qiao Yichen was about to say something when his phone rang again—this time it was the delivery driver.

“It’s here, I’ll go get it.” He stood up and walked out.

A few minutes later, he returned carrying two bags and spread the contents out on the coffee table. Two lunch boxes, two pairs of chopsticks, two bottles of water, and two small boxes of fruit were included.

Liu Yanran got up from her office chair and walked over to sit by the sofa. Qiao Yichen handed her one set and took the other for himself, sitting down next to her.

She opened the lunch box and took a look: “It’s quite generous.”

“I just ordered casually, make do with it.”

The rain outside was still falling, drumming against the glass.”

The two of them sat close together, eating quietly.