13
The next day at noon, while eating in the school cafeteria, Xu Zhaixing received a text from Xu Yan. He said Mr. Xu had indeed called to consult about real estate, and he had followed her instructions and sent the compiled report to him.
Over the next few days, her father didn’t mention the matter again, but he returned home for dinner on time every afternoon. He no longer looked worried; instead, he seemed revitalized, even a bit triumphant.
Xu Zhaixing saw through it but said nothing. She had been very busy herself lately, visiting the newsstand every day. While her classmates were there for idol magazines or youth novels, she was eagerly awaiting one specific financial magazine.
Finally, she found it on Friday after school.
Xu Zhaixing was so happy she could almost fly. She ran all the way home, pausing at the door to adjust her expression, suppressing her genuine joy and replacing it with an actor’s perfect astonishment.
Pushing the door open, she rushed straight to her father watching TV on the sofa. “Oh my goodness, Dad! Guess what I saw today when I went with my classmate to buy a magazine!”
Her father, not even turning his head, replied, “Some handsome guy on the cover?”
Xu Zhaixing: “Do I look that shallow?!” She handed over the financial magazine, her expression perfectly crafted. “Look at this! Zhenlin, this company—isn’t it the project Second Uncle urged you to invest in? It says here they went bankrupt! The partners absconded with the funds! It’s even on the cover!”
Her father’s expression stiffened. He immediately took the magazine and started flipping through it. Xu Zhaixing watched beside him, sighing dramatically. “Such a good company, how could it just go bankrupt like that? Second Uncle was so confident before, saying investing in it would make big money.”
The more her father read, the darker his expression became. Making it onto a financial magazine meant the scandal was huge. Connecting it now with Xu Zhiwen’s previous behavior, her father slapped the coffee table and stood up angrily. “He had ulterior motives all along!”
Xu Zhaixing pretended to feel a belated fear. “Exactly! So, my guess was right before! Thank goodness we didn’t give him the money, otherwise we’d be the ones bankrupt!”
Her father’s expression shifted through several emotions before finally settling into a long, heavy sigh.
During dinner, her mother learned about the situation as well. As usual, she first scolded her father thoroughly, then praised Xu Zhaixing for being clever and quick-witted. Finally, she told her father, “You should really thank Xu Yan properly! If it weren’t for Xu Yan being reliable, your money would have been swindled long ago!”
Her father nodded solemnly. Then, as if struck by a thought, he added with emotion, “Xu Yan is a good kid indeed. When I called him the other day to ask about the real estate industry, wow, that boy, without a word, prepared a data report on the industry’s trends over the past five years for me! Solved my urgent need!”
Her mother was surprised. “Really? Wait, why are you looking into the real estate industry all of a sudden?”
Her father glanced at Xu Zhaixing and smiled. “Our daughter gave me the inspiration. No need to stubbornly stick to one path.”
Seizing the opportunity, Xu Zhaixing asked, “Dad, have you found an investment project?”
Her father no longer saw her as just a child and genuinely acknowledged her growth and intelligence. After a thoughtful pause, he said, “I’m already in discussions. I’ve also talked to some friends in the building materials business recently. They are optimistic about its prospects too. The main issue is I lack understanding and don’t dare to jump in recklessly.”
Xu Zhaixing said nonchalantly, “I heard from my classmate that they are building an amusement park in the northern part of the city.”
Her father was taken aback. “The north? That’s quite remote. Who would go to an amusement park there?”
Xu Zhaixing replied, “It’s remote now, but who knows about the future. Once the amusement park is built, more people will go, stimulating consumption. With consumption, businesses will set up shop, gradually forming a commercial district.”
In just a few years, the northern part of City S would become a key urban development zone. Both land value and housing prices would skyrocket overnight. Countless people would become extremely wealthy because of this in those couple of years.
Having studied this booming industry recently and carefully reviewed the materials Xu Yan sent, her father grasped her meaning immediately.
However, real estate investment required substantial capital. Investing such a large sum would essentially mean staking the entire Morningstar Media. He was still hesitant.
Xu Zhaixing continued, “The area is quite barren now, so land should be cheap, right? It should also be easier to acquire land from the government since there are fewer bidders. Places already designated within development zones carry no risk, but they’re expensive. You might not even be able to compete with established real estate companies.”
That was a fair point.
Her father lost interest in eating. He set down his chopsticks and returned to his study to ponder.
Her mother disapprovingly scolded Xu Zhaixing, “You don’t focus on your studies properly, and instead, you spend all day thinking about adult matters. Talking so authoritatively, one would think you were Shen Wansan in your past life!”
Xu Zhaixing: “Whether I was Shen Wansan in my past life is debatable, but if you had given birth to me a few years earlier, our family would probably be the wealthiest in City S by now.”
Her mother: “???”
Although her father hadn’t received much formal education, was honest by nature, and his mind wasn’t as cunning or sharp as other businessmen, his strength lay in decisiveness. Once he made up his mind about something, he never hesitated—just went for it!
This was the reason he had managed to build Morningstar Media in the first place. After this period of investigation and research, and careful consideration, he decided immediately: go for the north!
Thus, Morningstar’s vigorous transition into real estate investment began.
Initially, companies within the same industry who heard about this ridiculed Mr. Xu, saying he was driven to desperation by consecutive years of losses and the impact of new media, forcing him to abandon his main business for the completely unrelated real estate industry.
Going into real estate was one thing, but choosing that godforsaken, desolate area in the north? Who are you building houses for there? Ghosts?
Mr. Xu heard snippets of these comments but just smiled and didn’t take them to heart. Occasionally, at business gatherings, his former competitors, led by Song Media, would mock him to his face.
Once Morningstar Media withdrew from the Winter Games bidding, Song Media’s only threat disappeared, and they smoothly secured the project.
The industry began saying that Song Media had finally defeated Morningstar, the long-dominant leader, becoming the new top dog. Morningstar was like a dejected loser; even the small fry who once depended on them for survival now dared to step on them.
During such times, Mr. Xu remained the same cheerful, unassuming man, like punching a pillow making their attempts to belittle him unsatisfying.
Whether he was truly too naive to understand or simply paid no mind remained unclear.
But one thing was certain: once he decided on something, he would do it even if the sky fell.
Mr. Xu never mentioned any of this at home.
But Xu Zhaixing could still feel it.
Because Song Yanan kept spreading rumors at school that her family was bankrupt.
Probably, Song Yanan had overheard her father talking at home. Initially, the rumor was that Xu Zhaixing’s father’s company couldn’t compete with her family’s company, so they gave up on the bidding and switched to another project.
But by the time it reached Xu Zhaixing’s ears, it had evolved into her family going bankrupt.
After Cheng You indignantly relayed these rumors to Xu Zhaixing, she couldn’t help but be swayed by them herself. Worriedly, she looked Xu Zhaixing up and down and cautiously asked, “Zhaixing, how come you haven’t been wearing your favorite brand of sneakers lately?”
Could it be that she couldn’t afford them anymore?
Xu Zhaixing tapped Cheng You’s chair with the tip of her shoe. “Look at these beauties, sis. Don’t underestimate them now. In the future, they’ll be the prized possession in major stores!”
Cheng You assumed she was just too embarrassed to admit the truth and sighed, about to offer some comfort, when Xu Zhaixing handed over the drawing she had been sketching. “Pretty?”
Cheng You looked down. It was a pencil sketch of a dress. She knew nothing about drawing, let alone fashion design, and could only judge from a visual standpoint. “It’s beautiful! Did you draw this?”
Xu Zhaixing smiled, pleased. “Yes. I’m going to submit it for a competition.”
“What competition?”
“The Paris Fashion Design Competition.”
Cheng You was confused. “What kind of competition is that? How come I’ve never heard of it? And you know fashion design?”
Xu Zhaixing gave her a sidelong glance. “You think I collected a whole room of Barbie dolls for nothing? Alright, alright, move over. I haven’t finished yet. The preliminary submission deadline is this weekend. I need to hurry.”
The Paris Fashion Design Competition was held every three years. Its prestige was extremely high, with judges being renowned, award-winning designers from around the world and professors from major art institutions, giving it significant influence in the fashion industry.
Each competition’s champion winner would secure a direct collaboration with the organizers in Paris, jointly launching the winning designer’s own fashion brand. It was essentially a one-step leap into the ranks of high-end fashion luminaries, bringing instant fame and reputation.
Back in the day, after graduating from university, Xu Zhaixing had participated with her graduation project and successfully passed the preliminary round. However, the semi-finals required designers to produce the actual garment from their sketches and have models wear it. Judging was conducted through runway shows, allowing for direct observation and scoring by the judges.
The piece Xu Zhaixing designed fell under the high-end luxury category.
At that time, she was penniless. Forget about producing the dress; she couldn’t even afford to hire a model. In the end, she had to withdraw from the competition with regret.
After graduation, although she worked at a bridal shop, doing makeup for brides and some wedding dress design, she never abandoned her dream. Over the following years, she continuously refined her design, striving for perfection, and worked hard to save money for another attempt.
This year happened to be the timing for this cycle of the competition. With ample time and financial resources now, she was determined to give it another try.
After listening to her explanation, Cheng You nodded, half-understanding, and even made a fist. “Then when the time comes, send me the link! I’ll mobilize my whole family to vote for you!”
After school, the two walked out of the classroom building arm in arm, chatting and laughing, and ran into Song Yanan and her group again.
The school wasn’t that big; it was impossible not to cross paths. They couldn’t be confrontational every single time. Xu Zhaixing tugged at Cheng You and headed in another direction.
Even so, they could still hear the group’s veiled, sarcastic remarks behind them.
Cheng You found the words grating and wanted to turn around and confront them. But looking at Xu Zhaixing’s still-indifferent expression, she was utterly amazed. “Zhaixing, why aren’t you angry? They’re really going too far!”
Xu Zhaixing adopted a profound tone. “Endure her, yield to her, avoid her, let her be, bear with her, pay her no mind. In a few years, just wait and see.”
Cheng You: “…”
Is your family really bankrupt?! Tell me the truth!!!
**
Zhaixing: Don’t talk nonsense! I’ll be the wealthiest person in City S in the future! I’m even going to sponsor a subway line for my idol!