Chapter 10

Sun Wanshan bent over and nodded, saying, "It was newly imported from abroad half a year ago. It cost quite a lot!"

Zhang Xianyang raised a brow, turned back to scrutinize Sun Wanshan for a long moment, and said, "You don't look like the type to casually do drugs, gamble, or borrow from loan sharks. How did you end up in such a state?"

Sun Wanshan gave a bitter laugh and shook his head. "My wife has leukemia. She needed surgery last month, and it cost over three hundred thousand."

Zhang Xianyang glanced at the machine in front of him and sneered. "You could afford a machine like this, but you couldn't scrape together three hundred thousand for your wife's operation?"

Sun Wanshan sighed. "It was because I'd just bought this machine that there wasn't a cent left at home. Besides, my eldest daughter is studying in the United States, my second son is about to take the college entrance exams, and my parents and in-laws all depend on me. Everywhere you look, the family needs money."

"You still shouldn't have borrowed from loan sharks!" Zhang Xianyang shook his head. "Where I come from, people who borrow money are basically no good. It's a huge pit. Once you fall in, don't even think about climbing out for the rest of your life. Even if you struggle your way out in the end, you'll be lucky to survive without losing a layer of skin."

Sun Wanshan had never expected Zhang Xianyang to speak of his own family business that way. But Zhang Xianyang could say such things casually; Sun Wanshan himself did not even dare agree with him.

Zhang Xianyang paid no attention to Sun Wanshan's silence. Looking around the empty workshop, he asked, "Why isn't there a single employee in the factory?"

Sun Wanshan turned his face away awkwardly and said in a low voice, "I told the workers to go home first."

After all, most of the garment factory's workers were women, and the Zhang Family was what it was. Sun Wanshan had not known whether Zhang Xianyang would bring underworld men with him, or whether those men might do something on a whim. As the factory owner, though, he wanted to protect his employees as much as he could.

Zhang Xianyang immediately understood Sun Wanshan's concerns. He looked back at him and said flatly, "The Zhang Family is in the underworld, but we follow its rules too. Don't think being in the underworld means we're rapists. People like that are nothing like us."

Sun Wanshan keenly sensed that Zhang Xianyang was angry. Even the driver and bodyguard behind Zhang Xianyang looked unpleasant. His heart skipped a beat, and he immediately bent and nodded. "Yes, yes, it was all my fault. I'll be more careful in the future."

Zhang Xianyang naturally understood that common people would always have a certain degree of fear and prejudice toward people like them, no matter where or when. He did not mind it. He casually patted Sun Wanshan on the arm and consoled him, "Forget it. Since you were thinking of your employees, I'll let it go this once."

Sun Wanshan nodded frantically, repeatedly saying, "Of course, of course."

Zhang Xianyang was not a professional clothing designer, and there was not much to see in an empty factory anyway. So he had Sun Wanshan lead him to his office. Zhang Xianyang plopped down in the boss's chair behind the solid wood desk, looked at the properly standing Sun Wanshan, and asked, "How is the factory doing? Who are your main sales channels and customers now?"

At those words, the forced smile on Sun Wanshan's face darkened involuntarily. He shook his head and said, "The factory used to do fairly well. We had retail outlets in every somewhat well-known mall throughout the province, and some distributors would place orders directly with us, buy from the factory, and resell the goods themselves. Our clothes kept up with current trends and were well liked by consumers. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gritted my teeth and bought foreign machinery. I only wanted to improve production efficiency and make more money. But the factory has been doing poorly for the past half year. Our old customers no longer dare come, our retail outlets keep getting harassed, and business has gone from bad to worse. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been forced to borrow from loan sharks for my wife's treatment."

Zhang Xianyang understood what Sun Wanshan meant. He raised a brow and asked bluntly, "Someone's been causing trouble?"

Sun Wanshan nodded, his face full of grievance. "It's Wang Zhaoyi's brother-in-law. He was originally my elementary school classmate, and our families used to get along fairly well. He saw that our garment factory was making money and wanted to get into the same business. But he'd never done it before. After all that fuss, he not only failed to make money but lost some instead. Then he started holding a grudge against me, always finding ways to mess with me. He even poached quite a few skilled workers from our factory and brought them to work at his."

Zhang Xianyang was slightly surprised at the name Wang Zhaoyi and immediately asked, "Wang Zhaoyi from Wangjiabang in the Old District?"

Sun Wanshan nodded.

Zhang Xianyang sneered and snorted. "Enemies really are destined to meet!"

After a pause, he felt something was off. "Where did Wang Zhaoyi get a brother-in-law? I thought his wife's family only had one daughter?"

Sun Wanshan explained, "He's the brother of a mistress Wang Zhaoyi took last year. She may not come from a respectable background, but she's still not someone ordinary people like us can afford to offend."

That was true. Zhang Xianyang nodded and said casually, "But now that I've taken over the garment factory, you don't need to worry about that anymore. I have a few sketches here. Take a look first."

As he spoke, Zhang Xianyang pulled out the clothing sketches he had drawn that morning from his backpack and handed them to Sun Wanshan. He did not forget to add, "Don't be so stiff. Sit down while we talk."

Sun Wanshan accepted the sketches with both hands and cautiously sat down with only the edge of his backside touching the chair. His family had been tailors for generations. Though they could not compare with those famous design families known solely for clothing design, they still had a proper eye for it.

Sun Wanshan lowered his head and took just one look before he was immediately won over by the elegant clothing sketches, with their smooth lines and refined style. He also keenly spotted the business opportunity and profit potential in them. His eyes lit up, and he said excitedly, "With these sketches, we can launch a whole series of new clothes this autumn. We'll definitely secure the best share of this year's market."

Pointing at the sketches in Sun Wanshan's hands, Zhang Xianyang said, "The prices after the clothes hit the market are marked on the back. Also, I want Zhang Garment Factory's sales model changed from now on. We'll operate on the concept of branded flagship stores. Don't turn my clothes into cheap street-stall goods found everywhere like vegetables at a market."

Sun Wanshan casually flipped the sketches over, and the prices written there stunned him. He blurted out, "Over nineteen thousand? Who would buy them at such a high price?"

"Is ten thousand really that expensive?" Zhang Xianyang raised a brow. Ten years later, any one of these clothes would cost several tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands. He already felt terribly wronged by pricing them this low.

With that thought, Zhang Xianyang continued, "Which new release from an international luxury brand doesn't cost over ten thousand? And those handmade, custom-fitted clothes cost millions or even tens of millions apiece. Our clothes are more fashionable and better than theirs, so why can't we sell them for that price?"

Sun Wanshan said with great difficulty, "But we're only a small domestic brand. We can't even make it out of Manchuria Province, let alone become an international brand—"

"I don't care about that." Zhang Xianyang waved a hand. "I've given you the clothing designs. I'll write up the flagship store business plan for you later. Besides, the entire Zhang Family is backing you, so you don't need to fear anyone causing trouble. If you still can't achieve what I want under those conditions, then what do I need you as factory director for?"

Ignoring Sun Wanshan's immediate panic and sweat-covered face, Zhang Xianyang spread his hands and rose. "It's getting late. I need to get home for dinner. Make a few sets of the clothes I drew first. I've already written down the sizes. I'll send someone to collect them in half a month. I hope you won't disappoint me."

Zhang Xianyang passed Sun Wanshan, who was standing before the desk, reached out to pat his shoulder, and said meaningfully, "You should know that you have no capital to disappoint me now."

Author's note: Chirp~~

The first update is here~ (^o^)/~

Chapter 10

After bidding farewell to the terrified Sun Wanshan, who had sworn oaths and made military pledges, Zhang Xianyang sat in the Mercedes-Benz as it slowly left the garment factory. It had only just passed three in the afternoon, still far too early for dinner. After thinking for a moment, Zhang Xianyang instructed, "To the city library."

The driver and bodyguard were clearly somewhat surprised, but constrained by professional ethics and the family rules, neither asked anything.

More than twenty minutes later, the Mercedes-Benz slowly arrived at the city library. This library had been built during the rule of the Northern Expedition Government and could truly be called historic. During his term, the previous mayor had used the promotion of national culture as his slogan to allocate three million from the city government for renovations. Thus, despite its ancient-looking exterior, the building was lavishly decorated inside and possessed a distinctly modern atmosphere. To make visitors researching materials more comfortable, the library had even installed the most advanced central variable-frequency air-conditioning system. It was warm in winter, cool in summer, and pleasantly humid in spring and autumn—more comfortable than staying at home.

Since it was Saturday, many people had come to the library to escape the heat or go on dates. Groups of two and three gathered in the reading area and multimedia classroom area, whispering and chatting. Anyone unaware of the truth might think the people of the Old District loved studying that much. Zhang Xianyang passed through the marble-floored lobby, lined on both sides with large potted plants, and went straight to the reception desk. He asked the young librarian inside, who was entering new book listings into a computer, "Do you have any books about the Old District's development over the past three hundred years, especially its architecture?"

The librarian looked somewhat surprised at the boy before him, who obviously appeared to be a high school student, and nodded. "We do. But materials on that subject are quite old. Most have been classified as cultural heritage and cannot be borrowed from the library."

Zhang Xianyang frowned, and the bodyguard behind him immediately looked ready to make a scene. Zhang Xianyang waved to stop him, then smiled and said, "Then may I read them inside the library?"

The librarian pressed his lips together awkwardly, and hesitation entered his eyes.

Zhang Xianyang shrugged, took out his phone, and waved it casually. "Or perhaps I should call the city official responsible for this matter. I'm sure you would prefer following his instructions."

The librarian became even more hesitant. Pressured by Zhang Xianyang's bearing, he subconsciously asked, "Excuse me, but may I ask who you are...?"

"Zhang Xianyang." Looking at the librarian's visibly contracted pupils and the fear appearing on his face, Zhang Xianyang added coolly, "Third Young Master of the Zhang Family from the Old District."

The librarian immediately came out from behind the counter and bowed in apology. "I'm sorry. I didn't know Third Young Master had come."

Zhang Xianyang waved it off without concern and reassured him gently, "It's nothing. You're only doing your job. But I truly need these materials urgently."

The librarian bit his lip and said, "I can take you to the archives, but can you promise not to borrow these materials?"

After a pause, apparently afraid Zhang Xianyang would be displeased, the librarian explained, "I'm just a temporary worker who only recently started here. I really don't have the authority to lend out these materials... How about I call our supervisor?"

Zhang Xianyang saw that the librarian wanted to shift the trouble onto someone else. He had initially admired the man's unyielding attitude, but now he could not help frowning. He shook his head and said, "No need. I'm only going to read them, not borrow them."

Noticing the subtle change in Zhang Xianyang's expression, the librarian immediately tugged awkwardly at the corner of his mouth. He took out the key to the fifth-floor archive room from behind the counter and said, "This way, please."

Zhang Xianyang followed the librarian directly up to the fifth floor by elevator. The librarian stepped forward and opened the archive room door for him. A long-sealed smell of dust and dampness rushed toward them. Zhang Xianyang waved a hand before his face and asked subconsciously, "I remember that when the library was renovated, the city brought in the most advanced dust-removal and ventilation equipment. Why does this archive room still smell like this?"