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Chapter 524: Chapter 524: Lin Man and Shi Yan Are in Trouble
After wandering around, the two of them had lunch outside and then returned to the hotel. Tong Yao took a nap in the afternoon and when she woke up it was already three-thirty. Gu Hongwei and Hu Haiyun were back and were in Guo Jinnian’s room chatting.
Upon entering the room, they all hurriedly made Yao sit on the bed, treating her delicately as though she was a national treasure.
Those who knew Tong Yao were aware that she had been married for two to three years and it took her great effort to conceive a child, therefore taking special care of her was necessary.
After sitting down, she immediately voiced out, "So, have you found the right people?"
Hu Haiyun sighed, "We found three or four. I met them personally too. They were all young men in their early twenties, very sincere and honest. They are the nephews of a friend. I trust the people he recommends. But to me, they were too simple-minded. I’m afraid they might mess things up due to their naivety."
Given that Hu Haiyun was leading the team, Tong Yao didn’t express any opinions but continued to probe, "What are you planning to do now?"
Hu Haiyun didn’t hide anything from Tong Yao. She directly revealed the plans of hiring, "Right now, I have agreed to take them out on two trips for exposure, paying each of them one hundred and fifty yuan per trip. If they can handle matters independently, I’ll consider a salary hike."
Tong Yao nodded her head. The amount wasn’t small. After all, it took merely ten or so days for a single trip. One hundred and fifty yuan was considered as fairly high wages. Although there was risk involved, fatal accidents were few and far between. Robbers tended to favor money over causing harm. Additionally, Hu Haiyun recruited men capable of defending themselves in times of danger.
The loss brought about by the robberies would be borne by Hu Haiyun, so it didn’t really affect them.
After some thought, Tong Yao decided, "Then let’s leave for Kyoto tomorrow."
Hu Haiyun agreed, "Okay, they’ll apply for their visas tomorrow. Once it’s done, they’ll head straight to Kyoto to meet us. I’ll pick them up at the Kyoto Railway Station."
Tong Yao generously extended an invitation, "The renovation of my house in the suburb should have been completed by then. After this trip is over, I’ll buy some furniture to put in the house. Everyone can just stay at my place. It’s convenient to stay together, and it’s safer too." It was always safer for close acquaintances to live together than to stay in hotels.
"No problem, Yao Yao, we’ll pay for the rent as normal. Whatever the market rate is, we’ll pay that." Hu Haiyun didn’t want to take advantage of anyone. While it was reasonable for Tong Yao not to charge her, it would be unfair if she didn’t charge for the additional three to four people.
The business hasn’t started yet, it wouldn’t be right to cause Tong Yao to incur losses.
Tong Yao winked, "Hu sister, you guys just live comfortably. We’re cooperating to make money. If I were to be petty over such a small amount of money, it would be too pointless. You’re welcome to stay in the house anytime, and let’s not mention the rent anymore."
The goal was to form a long-term partnership. If all the goods brought back by Hu Haiyun from abroad were given to Tong Yao, the profits could be substantial. If she was to be petty over a few tens of yuan in rental, it would be too pointless.
No need to be penny wise and pound foolish.
By forgoing some rental income to win over Hu Haiyun, it was a worthy trade.
Hu Haiyun had no connections in Kyoto. Once she started to shuttle between Kyoto and overseas for business, even if she didn’t seek out anyone, people would eventually approach her. 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝑝𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
There were so many crafty people in Kyoto.
Tong Yao’s goal was to win over Hu Haiyun first, to play the friendship card. Only when relations are stable could Hu Haiyun become a permanent partner that no one else could take away.
Tong Yao admired Hu Haiyun and sympathized with her background, but when it came to business, she still used some of her cunning. In her view, as long as it didn’t hurt Hu Haiyun’s interests or harm her, it was harmless to make some plans. In fact, it saved Hu Haiyun some trouble and lightened her burden, it was a win-win situation.
Hu Haiyun was also cunning. She could guess Tong Yao’s intentions, and as long as Tong Yao didn’t prey on her interests, she didn’t mind establishing a permanent partnership with her. She knew to cut corners in Kyoto without connections wouldn’t work out.
Tong Yao was her only connection now.
After her interactions over the past few days, she noticed that although Tong Yao, Gu Hongwei, and Guo Jinnian were young, each of them had their talents. They were tied together tightly like a rope, which made her feel envious.
However, Hu Haiyun knew she couldn’t join in, she could only be a partner with Tong Yao, not an ally. One word apart, but a world of difference in meaning.
The four of them sat in the room discussing future plans. They talked until dinner time, and Tong Yao took them out for a big meal. Since they were going to catch the train the next day, they all went to bed early.
Tong Yao slept soundly through the night and didn’t have any dreams until dawn came.
As soon as the sky started to brighten, Gu Hongwei knocked on everyone’s doors. They checked out and rushed straight to the railway station.
They were quite lucky, and managed to book four sleeper tickets on the same carriage. Knowing that Tong Yao was pregnant, Hu Haiyun was especially careful this time, not repeating the stunt she pulled the last time of intentionally taking her shoes off to upset Tong Yao. Despite this, Tong Yao still had no appetite.
When they reached Kyoto, it was just after four in the afternoon. Tong Yao bought the newspapers for the past few days as they left the station and then led the group back home.
Upon opening the door, she was taken aback. Tong Yaohui and Wen Yun were also at home, both having changed into casual clothes and about to leave which surprised Yao.
"Dad, Mom, when did you two return?"
Seeing Tong Yao return made Tong Yaohui and Wen Yun surprised. As the two of them saw Tong Yao bringing friends home, they hurriedly invited them in.
Wen Yun went to pour some tea for everyone while Tong Yaohui explained, "Your mother and I arrived this morning. We came back because of Lin Man’s situation."
After a slight pause, Tong Yaohui continued with a heavy voice, "Lin Man and Shi Yan encountered an incident."
Tong Yao felt a jolt, her eyebrows raised as she asked, "What happened?"
Yao felt a vague suspicion that this might have something to do with Zhao Wenkai, but she couldn’t confirm it yet.
Gu Hongwei also seemed to suspect something.
Guo Jinnian and Hu Haiyun didn’t know Lin Man or Shi Yan. Seeing Tong Yaohui’s troubled expression, they both kept their mouths shut. It was not appropriate to intervene in someone else’s family affairs.
"Shi Yan was stabbed and killed. Lin Man was rolled over by a train." Wen Yun brought out some tea and revealed the news instead of Tong Yaohui.
Although they didn’t have much affection for Lin Man, she was their niece after all. And losing her at such a young age made even Tong Yaohui feel a sense of melancholy.
