539: Chapter 539 SF Express Logistics, Business Empire

Chapter 539: Shunfeng Logistics, Business Empire

Originally a university lecturer, Lin Chuqiao naturally exuded a scholarly aura.

But at this moment, the gold-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, paired with a professional suit skirt and straight, slender calves wrapped in skin-colored stockings, added a touch of a shrewd businesswoman's capability to her.

These two completely contrasting temperaments merged perfectly in her, creating a unique charm known as a "Yujie".

Seeming to hear the sound of the engine, Lin Chuqiao raised her head, and her beautiful eyes hidden behind the lenses instantly lit up.

She hurried forward, the originally serious expression on her face melting away like snow and ice into a brilliant smile as she raised her arm and waved vigorously.

"Screech——"

Fang Cheng parked the car steadily by the roadside, killed the engine, and pushed the door open to get out.

Before he could speak, Lin Chuqiao had already walked up to him with light steps and greeted him cheerfully:

"Brother Cheng, you got here so fast?"

"Yeah, I rushed right over after eating lunch, and traffic was fine."

Fang Cheng nodded slightly and responded with a smile.

Afterward, his gaze swept over the high heels stained with a bit of mud and dust at Lin Chuqiao's feet, as well as a few inconspicuous dust marks on the hem of her skirt.

Looking at this usually exquisite and meticulous Young Miss, who was now looking so travel-worn for his sake, Fang Cheng's eyes flickered slightly, and his tone involuntarily became a bit more solemn:

"You've worked hard these past few days, Chuqiao."

"It's not hard work; I think it's much more interesting than lecturing at the university."

Lin Chuqiao pursed her lips into a smile, meeting Fang Cheng's gaze openly and generously.

Then she raised her fair fingers and gently tucked a strand of wind-blown hair from her temples behind her ear.

A simple expression of care made a trace of sweetness well up in her heart.

The exhaustion from running errands for permits, negotiating acquisitions, and monitoring renovations these past few days seemed to vanish like smoke in this moment.

Lin Chuqiao reached out to push the glasses on the bridge of her nose, concealing the trace of excitement deep in her eyes.

Then she turned sideways, made an inviting gesture, and said in a warm and brisk voice:

"It's windy and dusty here, Brother Cheng. Let's go inside and talk."

Fang Cheng nodded slightly, casually locked the car door, and stepped forward to follow.

As soon as the two approached the factory gates, a wave of noise crashed toward them head-on.

"Buzz—— Buzz——"

The screeching sound of metal cutting pierced the tranquility of the afternoon.

Accompanied by the dull roar of pneumatic drills, it stirred the entire factory area into a noisy commotion.

Crossing the rusty iron gate, a pungent smell mixed with cement dust and the burnt odor of welding rods rushed straight at them.

Wherever the eye could see, a dozen workers wearing yellow safety helmets shuttled busily across the scaffolding.

Electric welding sparks splashed everywhere, and dust drifted wantonly in the sunlight.

The originally silent and desolate abandoned factory building had now transformed into a bustling construction site, filled with the vibrant vitality of reconstruction.

"This way, mind the steel bars under your feet."

Lin Chuqiao turned sideways, guiding Fang Cheng to avoid a pile of messy construction waste on the ground.

Although the blazing sun was overhead, her feet stepped in dust, and walking on such a road in high heels was quite exhausting, she was in very high spirits.

"Brother Cheng, this is the current phase-one renovation plan."

Lin Chuqiao pulled out a stack of neatly folded A2 blueprints from her briefcase, and while walking, pointed at the red brick factory building not far away where scaffolding was being erected.

"That's the original main factory area. I originally planned to renovate the inside and outside completely to make it look grand."

In order to drown out the noisy construction sounds around them, she had to raise her voice a bit.

"But later, after discussing it with the designer, we decided to only reinforce the load-bearing structure and repair the leaky roof."

Lin Chuqiao pointed at the mottled, peeling walls that revealed blue-red bricks and stones, a gleam of careful calculation flashing in her eyes:

"The exterior will maintain this rough industrial style, which can not only save us a huge amount of decoration expenses, but most importantly, keep it inconspicuous."

"In this industrial park full of dilapidated factories, the more rundown it looks, the less anyone will spare it a second glance. This is the best camouflage."

"Anyway, our core office area and training grounds are down in the underground air-raid shelter, and these ground-level buildings only serve as cover. There's no need to spend too much money in this aspect."

Hearing this, Fang Cheng nodded approvingly.

For the current Illuminati, keeping a low profile and developing in secret was the kingly way.

The money saved could be poured into more critical internal facilities and equipment. This was the way to spend money where it mattered most.

Walking one after the other, stepping on the gravel road, the two entered the western area of the factory.

This was a steel-structure building with an extremely high ceiling.

Formerly the manufacturing workshop of a textile mill, its equipment had long been dismantled, leaving only dust all over the floor and messy waste.

Sunlight streamed down through the gaps in the roof skylights, forming beams of light in the dim space, with countless tiny dust particles tumbling and dancing within them.

Lin Chuqiao stood in the center of the spacious workshop, spreading out the blueprints, her slender fingers tracing the complex engineering lines on them one by one.

"Brother Cheng, according to your wishes, this base of ours will be externally registered under the name 'Shunfeng Warehousing and Logistics Co., Ltd.'."

"But this is definitely not just an empty shell; it must be built to the standards of a formal logistics park, so the amount of engineering work is still quite large."

Lin Chuqiao pointed the tip of her pen at the functional zones on the blueprint and introduced them clearly and methodically:

"After preliminary planning, two ambient-temperature warehouses, one cold-chain warehouse, and a cargo transfer zone will be built here."

As she spoke, she turned to point in the direction of the warehouse doors, gesturing a height:

"Also, the walls here need to be cut open to build three standardized lifting loading docks to facilitate forklifts directly entering and exiting containers."

While listening, Fang Cheng looked around the huge space spanning over two thousand square meters.

In his mind, a busy scene of the place piled with supplies and forklifts shuttling back and forth gradually emerged.

"After the hardware is sorted out, it's the software."

Lin Chuqiao closed the blueprint and continued:

"Once the infrastructure is completed, I will have Xiaosa scout the used car market for a few heavy container trucks in decent condition, and prioritize recruiting a team of retired soldiers as drivers."

"On the surface, this fleet will operate independently, but in reality, it will serve as the downstream supporting facility for our trading company at the Jinshui Fish Market."

At this point, Lin Chuqiao pushed her glasses, her tone revealing a trace of pride in her clever design:

"On the commercial level, the trading company is responsible for the circulation of import and export documents, while the logistics company is responsible for the physical movement of goods."

"Usually, we can let the fleet run empty trips between the city and the port, or pick up some scattered orders."

"In this way, the cash flow and cargo flow can form a closed loop. Even if someone investigates specifically, they won't be able to find any flaws."

"When critical moments arrive, this fleet can also be used to transport special supplies, transfer personnel, or execute tasks assigned by the organization."

Fang Cheng stopped walking, his gaze sweeping over a few workers measuring the ground in the distance.

After pondering for a moment, he shook his head and put forward a different perspective:

"Chuqiao, your idea is very good, but it's not enough."

"Not enough?"

Lin Chuqiao was slightly startled, looking at him with some confusion.

Fang Cheng turned around, meeting her gaze, his tone turning solemn:

"Modern tax audit data is very powerful. If our logistics company only runs empty trucks or picks up scattered orders all day, with only fuel expenses and a lack of substantial cargo throughput, it's very easy to be judged as abnormal operations."

"Since we are acting, we have to play the whole act. The site is so big, and leaving it empty is a waste."

He raised his hand to point at the empty factory buildings around them:

"We can use the trading company's channels to take on some real business and truly build this place as a warehousing and logistics center."

"In the future, not only must we take more orders, but we must also do the service well. Let a large number of trucks enter and exit here every day, with normal cargo sorting, warehousing, and out-of-warehousing, so that every single account can withstand the most rigorous audits."

Speaking of this, Fang Cheng's gaze cast toward the road outside the factory area extending into the city, his voice steady and powerful:

"As for the fleet, we must even less just think about how to cover things up."

"Instead, we must continuously expand the scale of vehicles—not just heavy trucks, but also Iveco vans, minibuses, and even courier motorcycles."

"On weekdays, let these drivers drive cars shuttling through every corner of the city to deliver goods. They will be the best mobile intelligence stations."

"When the fleet's personnel continue to expand and the transport routes cover the entire city, it can form a huge intelligence and information network. No slight disturbance can escape their keen ears and eyes."

"Once something happens, no matter which corner of the city it is in, whether they want to transport personnel, support weapons, clean up the scene, or evacuate in an emergency, they can be summoned at any time, achieving the highest operational efficiency."

Fang Cheng said in a deep voice, sketching a blueprint for the future.

What appeared in his mind was the society from his past life with prompt responses and highly developed logistics.

Saying this, his gaze turned back to look at the pensive Lin Chuqiao, his eyes becoming deep and far-reaching:

"Moreover, Chuqiao, if we want to build a truly powerful organization, relying solely on that fifty million in startup capital to sit around eating away at it won't work."

"Organization building is not playing house. We need a steady stream of cash flow to maintain operations. Buying equipment, comforting personnel, expanding influence—which one of these doesn't require money?"

"This logistics company, as well as that trading company, must both be run as legitimate businesses. We must build our own complete sphere of influence, possess our own commercial blood-generating function, and achieve 'supporting war through commerce'!"

These words were like a key, opening a new door before Lin Chuqiao's eyes.

She had indeed fallen into a conceptual misconception earlier, only thinking about how to use the company as a shield and incidentally unearthing a bit of auxiliary function.

Yet she had ignored the most important point: commerce's blood-transfusion function to the organization itself.

Hearing this, a flash of sudden realization and admiration flickered in Lin Chuqiao's beautiful eyes.

She quickly took out the notebook she carried with her, recorded these key points, and nodded vigorously:

"I understand, Brother Cheng. It was me who didn't think far enough ahead."

"Then I'll adjust the plan later, go to a headhunting company to poach a few professional operations managers, and contact more business."

She closed her notebook, excitement shining in her eyes:

"Right, I heard that the Pan Family plans to invest in an e-commerce platform. With the rise of online shopping now, supporting warehousing and logistics might become a major hot spot in the future."

"As long as we operate properly, our company might not be unable to develop into a logistics giant and become the organization's 'cash cow'."

Walking and chatting, the two bypassed the mountain of building materials and came to a relatively secluded backyard.

The noise here was much smaller, with only the occasional humming sound of drills coming from afar.

Lin Chuqiao rubbed her somewhat sore neck and gently exhaled a breath of stale air.

"However, Brother Cheng, since both companies are to be run as legitimate businesses, my workload here is going to double."

She raised her hand to wipe away the fine beads of sweat oozing from her temples, a rare trace of small complaint carrying in her tone:

"Right now, just monitoring the engineering of the two bases, negotiating equipment procurement, registering the company, running errands for taxes, doing recruitment... the capital flows on the accounts make my eyes spin."

"Right now I wish I could split myself into three people—acting as both project manager and financial director. If this goes on, this 'Grand Steward' of mine is going to collapse from exhaustion first."

As she spoke, her gaze turned rolling, and her captivating peach-blossom eyes carried a bit of reproach and a bit of grievance, staring straight at Fang Cheng.

Looking at the fatigue revealed at this moment by this usually beautiful and elegant Yujie, Fang Cheng couldn't help but soften his heart.

He was indeed somewhat used to being a hands-off manager, placing heavy burdens entirely on a woman's fragile shoulders.

"The capable work harder, right? This shows that the organization cannot do without you."

Fang Cheng comforted her with a smile, then gave her a reassurance pill:

"Rest assured, this high-pressure state won't last many days. The professor's side is progressing very smoothly; I heard he is already on the way with the first batch of recruited personnel."

"Among them are some trustworthy gifted individuals, who can serve as your administrative specialists and financial assistants. As soon as they are in place, you only need to grasp the big picture and sign documents, leaving all the specific trivial matters to the people below."

Hearing this, Lin Chuqiao's expression relaxed, and a smile hung on the corners of her mouth once again.

Actually, there was still something in her heart she hadn't said: as long as Fang Cheng remembered her kindness, no matter how much more tired she got, it was worth it.

While talking, the two bypassed the main factory building and walked slowly down along a concrete ramp.

In the concrete wall at the end of the passage, a heavy explosion-proof iron door abruptly appeared before their eyes.

This was the main event that Fang Cheng had specifically come to inspect today.

Lin Chuqiao stepped forward, took out a specially made magnetic card key from her bag, and swiped it on the concealed sensor inside the door frame.

"Beep——"

"Click—— Rumble."

Accompanied by a dull hydraulic driving sound, the explosion-proof door, thirty centimeters thick, slowly slid open to both sides.

A cool airflow carrying a faint musty smell rushed face-to-face, instantly dispelling the external heat.

This was the truly core area of the Illuminati base, the main entrance of the air-raid shelter.

"To ensure the safety and secrecy of the base, I specially had someone rearrange the circuits here and installed this independent military-grade access control System."

Looking at Fang Cheng's slightly surprised expression, Lin Chuqiao smiled charmingly and explained, pointing at the device by the door:

"This System has an independent backup power source. Even if the power supply to the entire industrial park is cut off, this place can still remain locked down. Unless blown up hard with explosives, no one can even think of getting in."

Fang Cheng nodded appreciatively.

Lin Chuqiao then took the lead and walked in, casually pressing the industrial switch on the wall.

"Buzz—— Buzz——"

As the sound of the current connecting rang out, dozens of high-power iodine-tungsten lamps lit up row by row from the entrance towards the depths like a fire dragon.

The intense white light instantly tore through the darkness, illuminating the sleeping underground behemoth brightly.

This was a huge arched space with a dome nearly ten meters high, poured entirely out of reinforced concrete.

The ground was flat and hard, and thick ventilation pipes and rusted red slogans left over from the war-preparation period back then still remained on the walls on both sides.

That stern and heavy feeling unique to the Cold War era struck straight to the heart the moment the lights lit up.