The investment halted Hengtu's progress for several months. Fortunately, nothing went wrong with the company's business, and it ultimately pulled through.
Once he understood the root cause of the failed investment, Ji Ran realized that trying to use his memories to take shortcuts was useless. Only success they earned on their own would be permitted by this world.
Fortunately, the original book never mentioned Zhao Pingchuan starting a second business. That meant they could do as they pleased with this part. As long as they had nothing to do with the protagonist gong and shou, there probably wouldn't be a problem.
Hengtu expanded further and gained a foothold in Li City, where entrepreneurs were as numerous as carp crossing a river.
They moved into a new office building and finally had a proper office. Their team grew further, reaching twenty people. They hired more technical staff and a receptionist. Chen Qi also formed a small department of her own to handle logistics, contracts, finances, and other work.
At Zhao Pingchuan's decision, the company stopped taking outsourced work and focused all its energy on SaaS. With the customer base they had built up early on, they had a steady stream of renewal income.
It was an important step. Now that it had a product of its own, Hengtu was no longer an obscure company that could be replaced at will.
That summer, amid cicada calls and blazing sunshine, Zhao Pingchuan and Ji Ran moved into a new home.
They both loved their old place, but it really was too small, and both Zhao Pingchuan and Ji Ran needed separate workspaces.
The new place was rented too. They both felt they should make full use of their funds for now, rather than spend them on a home too soon.
There was an upside to that, though: after some simple decorating, they could move right in with their bags.
The apartment had three bedrooms and a living room. It was neither too big nor too small, but more than enough for two people. Most importantly, it had a balcony Ji Ran loved, where he could lie in the sun.
Ji Ran was given complete control over furnishing their new home. As long as he liked something, Zhao Pingchuan thought it was good.
There was just one drawback.
Now that they had two bedrooms, there was no need for them to squeeze into one room, so naturally they would sleep separately.
On their first night in the new home, Ji Ran lay in bed, rolling back and forth several times. It felt strange.
He thought he was having trouble sleeping in a strange bed, but after finally falling asleep, he woke in the middle of the night and reached out, as usual, to wrap his arms around the arm of the person beside him. His hand met empty air, and he woke up at once.
It wasn't the bed. He just didn't like sleeping alone.
Ji Ran wore a miserable expression and sighed.
But he was already in his twenties. Was he really going to run over and ask his brother to hold him? That would be too embarrassing.
Ji Ran resolved to get over it. Hadn't he slept alone for more than twenty years before this?
Sleeping alone was great. The bed was so big that he could lie however he wanted.
Fortunately, apart from when they were sleeping, the two of them could still spend time together.
Ji Ran was quite pleased that the new home had a separate kitchen. In their old place, the smell of food had filled the entire living room whenever he cooked.
In his spare time, he grew some plants on the balcony and diligently watered them. With plenty of sunlight, they all flourished.
Occasionally, Zhao Pingchuan would step out of his room and see Ji Ran crouching on the balcony, watering the plants. Sunlight fell across him, the fabric of his loungewear looked soft, and his fluffy short hair was tousled like a puppy's.
It really was like a scene from a fairy tale.
Hearing him, Ji Ran turned around and greeted him with a smile, his eyes curving. "Ge."
"Mm," Zhao Pingchuan replied, warmth surging in his heart.
This alone was the human world.
Zhao Pingchuan hadn't expected anyone to approach him with an offer to invest.
The man was an investor from the neighboring city named Liu Chengxi. Somehow, he had found out that Zhao Pingchuan was behind Hengtu and had made an official appointment to meet him.
Zhao Pingchuan went.
Liu Chengxi was a man of about fifty, with an ordinary face, but the shrewdness in his eyes was unmistakable.
His manner was humble as he took the initiative to shake Zhao Pingchuan's hand. "President Zhao."
"President Liu." Zhao Pingchuan reached out and gave his hand a light shake, neither servile nor overbearing.
Once they were seated, Zhao Pingchuan got straight to the point. "How did you find out about me, President Liu?"
He wasn't asking why Liu Chengxi knew him, but how the man knew Hengtu was his company.
It was no surprise that someone knew who Zhao Pingchuan had been before, but this time, Zhao Pingchuan had deliberately kept a low profile. Chen Qi had attended many events as his representative.
Liu Chengxi smiled. "As it happens, I have a nephew working at Hengtu."
Zhao Pingchuan raised an eyebrow. No wonder. Someone on the inside had let it slip.
"That is a coincidence," he said.
Liu Chengxi touched his fingertips together in front of him. "I'm interested in investing in Hengtu. What do you think, President Zhao?"
Zhao Pingchuan asked, "How much are you planning to invest, President Liu?"
Liu Chengxi spread his five fingers. "Five million."
Hengtu was currently valued at roughly fifteen to twenty million, so five million was no small sum.
Zhao Pingchuan kept his expression neutral. "You certainly think highly of me, President Liu."
Liu Chengxi laughed. "To be honest, if it weren't for you, President Zhao, I wouldn't invest."
Zhao Pingchuan's past achievements spoke for themselves. Some people might write him off, but naturally, others recognized his worth. Besides, Hengtu's development over the past year or two was plain for all to see. It had advanced steadily and had a limitless future.
Zhao Pingchuan gave a slight smile and asked, "What conditions do you have, President Liu?"
Liu Chengxi gave the figure he had settled on long ago. "I want a twenty percent stake in Hengtu."
Five million for a twenty percent stake was actually a very reasonable price.
But Liu Chengxi also knew where Zhao Pingchuan's ambitions lay. If he asked for too much, there would be no deal to discuss.
Zhao Pingchuan lowered his brows. "Twenty percent is no small amount. I need to discuss it with the other shareholders."
Liu Chengxi made a gesture. "Of course, go ahead, President Zhao. I'll wait to hear from you."
Zhao Pingchuan called a shareholders' meeting, attended by Zhou Jianghua, Lin Lin, Li Xuan, and Li Chang as shareholders. Ji Ran attended as the only person without a stake, but nobody thought anything was amiss. In their eyes, there was no difference between Zhao Pingchuan and Ji Ran.
In the end, they decided to negotiate the stake down to eighteen percent and accept the investment.
Liu Chengxi had naturally left room to negotiate in his offer, so he agreed without much argument.
After the capital injection, everyone's shares were naturally diluted, though the valuation also rose.
With the funds in hand, Hengtu expanded its research and development and put some of the money into marketing.
The results were immediate. Their customer base grew explosively, and the company made a name for itself in the industry.
But that also meant it was only a matter of time before Gu Xingye noticed them.
Zhao Pingchuan inevitably had to do some socializing and attend receptions.
People who had known him before couldn't hide their surprise when they saw him. They hadn't expected Zhao Pingchuan to make a comeback after falling so far.
How long had it been? Two years? In just two short years, he was standing before them once again.
Only Zhao Pingchuan had that kind of ability.
Because Ji Ran had warned him, Zhao Pingchuan made a point of keeping an eye on news about Gu Xingye.
His relationship with his childhood sweetheart really had seen its share of twists and turns.
Two years had passed since Zhao Pingchuan last saw Gu Xingye, and quite a lot had happened in that time.
It was true that Gu Xingye was being groomed as Gu's heir, but he hadn't taken that position yet. Naturally, the younger members of the family's side branches were eyeing it covetously.
Plans aimed directly at Gu Xingye were unlikely to succeed, so they set their sights on Jiang Jinyue. Everyone knew that this was Jiang Jinyue's weakness.
Someone secretly set a trap, forging intimate photos of Jiang Jinyue with an executive from a business partner. They spread rumors that "Jiang Jinyue betrayed Gu Xingye and colluded with someone else for the Jiang Family's interests," and anonymously sent the photos to Gu Xingye.
Gu Xingye was already paranoid and suspicious. He kept telling himself that Jiang Jinyue loved him and couldn't possibly betray him, but the moment he saw the intimate poses in the photos, he still lost his reason. He went to Jiang Jinyue that very night and threw the photos down in front of him, his voice as cold as ice. "Jiang Jinyue, I was wrong about you. You were only with me for the Jiang Family's resources, to latch on to the Gu Family. Now you finally couldn't hold back anymore, is that it?"
The people closest to you could hurt you the most with their words.
Jiang Jinyue's eyes instantly reddened. He looked at the photos and smiled bitterly.
It was a trap someone else had set. He had never done anything to wrong Gu Xingye. But he was proud and refused to bow his head and explain. He only bit his lip hard, looked Gu Xingye in the eye, and said each word distinctly, "Yes, that's the kind of person I am. Gu Xingye, since you don't believe me, let's end things here."
Those words completely enraged Gu Xingye and broke his heart. He turned and left, leaving Jiang Jinyue alone in the empty room to break down in tears.
After that, the two were locked in a cold war that lasted half a year.
During that time, Gu Xingye may have realized something. He never contacted Jiang Jinyue, but he secretly suppressed the members of the side branches who had spread the rumors, protecting Jiang Jinyue's reputation in his own way. Yet he still refused to back down or say the words "I believe you" himself.
Jiang Jinyue, meanwhile, still loved Gu Xingye, but Gu Xingye's distrust had worn away all his hopes. He moved out of the villa they had shared and into the Jiang Family's old residence, cutting off all contact with Gu Xingye.
Zhao Pingchuan was astounded. Such a simple scheme to drive them apart had actually worked. What on earth was Gu Xingye's brain made of?
He told Ji Ran about it. Ji Ran knew this was part of the original book's plot: the protagonist gong and shou had to go through many quarrels and reconciliations like this before their relationship could finally succeed. Their behavior couldn't always be reasoned out logically.
He shook his head and said helplessly, "Sometimes I feel kind of sorry for Jiang Jinyue too. I'm afraid Gu Xingye might have mania."
Compared with Gu Xingye, the protagonist gong, Jiang Jinyue hadn't actually done anything wrong. He was merely a catalyst and an ornament there to highlight Gu Xingye's personality.
Zhao Pingchuan said, "I heard Gu Xingye took the initiative to back down afterward, and they're back together now."
Ji Ran still couldn't put his mind at ease and warned him again, "Ge, if you run into Gu Xingye, you have to be careful."
Zhao Pingchuan agreed without any hesitation. "All right, I'll remember."