The sun rose in the east, and the summer breeze was cool.
Chen Yansen stood at the mouth of the alley, six cardboard boxes and a pile of supplies at his feet. In his hand, he held a tofu skin roll with a fried dough stick, which he was devouring with great gusto.
The tofu skin was layered with fresh chopped chilies and soybean paste, with a large, crispy, and fragrant fried dough stick tucked in the middle. One bite was incredibly satisfying.
Nearby, Wang Zihao fussed over a stray lock of hair on his forehead for what felt like an eternity before finally turning to Prince Ziyuan. "Which way do you think looks better?"
"To the right, Bro."
Her eyes heavy with sleep, Prince Ziyuan kept her head down and answered without much thought.
"I think left is better."
Wang Zihao held up his phone, admiring his reflection on the screen. 'What a stud,' he thought with silent praise before reaching his conclusion.
"Tch!"
Prince Ziyuan clicked her tongue dismissively. She'd known he would say that. She was well aware that indecisive people don't actually want an answer—they just want someone to eliminate one of the choices for them.
"There's five minutes till seven. Coach Huang isn't going to stand us up, is he?"
Wang Zihao glanced at the time and grew anxious.
"What's the rush? There are still five minutes, aren't there?"
Chen Yansen didn't even look up, completely focused on his breakfast.
In his past life, he'd had dealings with Huang Boxiang. The man did have a foul temper, but he was also honest and straightforward.
By his estimates, reselling MP3s and MP4s could bring in ten to twenty thousand yuan a day in revenue. If he just hired a random driver, there was no telling if the person might get greedy.
Chen Yansen wasn't afraid of criminals, but he hated trouble.
A smart person knows how to mitigate potential risks. That was the wise thing to do.
At least Huang Boxiang was a known quantity. Compared to a potential security risk, being a few minutes late was hardly a major flaw.
Besides...
A roaring engine announced the arrival of a silver Bluebird, which cut through the morning mist and pulled to a stop in front of the trio.
The time was 6:59!
"Boss... Chen, are we heading out now?"
Huang Boxiang leaned out of the car, his gaze sweeping over them. He was slightly taken aback to see how young they were, but he took the initiative to speak.
On the phone yesterday, Chen Yansen had asked to hire him for ten days straight. That naturally made him a major client!
As such, his tone was noticeably more polite.
Huang Boxiang, in his early forties, had a medium build and was starting to get a paunch. He wore a deep blue work jacket with the two words "Da Xiang" printed on the chest. Even while doing a private job, he didn't forget to advertise.
"Master, let's load up first! Could you give us a hand?"
Chen Yansen nodded and asked tentatively.
"Sure thing. Let me check the trunk and see if it'll all fit."
Huang Boxiang didn't hesitate and readily agreed.
The trunk popped open with a THUMP. He got out of the car, quickly estimated the volume of the boxes, and turned back. "Should be no problem," he said.
The words had barely left his mouth when, without waiting for a command from Chen Yansen, he immediately picked up a box and carefully loaded it into the trunk.
"Boss Chen, what kind of goods are these? If they're fragile, I can wrap them in an extra layer of foam for you."
Huang Boxiang asked, seemingly-casually, as he continued loading the boxes.
"No need. They're not fragile."
Chen Yansen glanced up at him. 'So, Huang Boxiang looks simple and honest, but he's shrewder than he seems.'
He understood the man's concern: 'He's just worried about hauling illegal goods and getting dragged into trouble.'
"That's good."
Huang Boxiang gave a dry laugh and continued loading, but his eyes were now carefully scanning the labels on the boxes. He finally breathed a sigh of relief when the words "Mei Mo MP3 x 100" came into view.
There were only a few boxes in total, so they were all neatly stacked in no time.
"Master Huang, we're going to Zhongqiao today."
Chen Yansen got into the front passenger seat, buckled his seatbelt, and gave the instruction.
"Alright, Boss Chen."
Huang Boxiang replied politely, not underestimating Chen Yansen because of his age.
Seeing this from the back seat, Wang Zihao couldn't help but think, 'Who said Coach Huang has a foul temper? He seems pretty mild-mannered to me.'
He noticed that Huang Boxiang consistently addressed Chen Yansen as 'Boss Chen' and instantly understood. 'Clearly, Chen Yansen didn't tell him we're his students from the driving school.'
The car started and sped along the ring road.
Looking out the window, he could see several breakfast stalls busy in the distance. Plumes of steam and smoke rose into the air, and the bustling sounds of people mingled with the dim light of dawn.
Chen Yansen's eyes gradually lost focus as he stared into the distance, lost in thought. Eventually, he simply closed them. His breathing evened out, and soon he was dozing off.
He'd woken up before dawn to make it to the early market, so now that the drowsiness was hitting him hard, he fell asleep almost instantly.
"Chen—"
Wang Zihao, who had been wanting to discuss their sales strategy, grew impatient and instinctively started to call out to Chen Yansen.
"Mmmph—"
Prince Ziyuan, sitting beside him, was quick to react, immediately clamping a hand over his mouth.
"Bro, be quiet. Let Chen Yansen sleep a little longer."
Prince Ziyuan shot her brother a glare and threatened in a hushed voice.
"You're really siding with an outsider against your own family! Prince Ziyuan, get it straight, I'm your actual brother."
Wang Zihao pried her hand away, his voice low and his expression aggrieved.
"Shh!"
Prince Ziyuan held up a thumb, a playful smile on her face. Her bright, alluring peach-blossom eyes were exceptionally clear, their pupils reflecting the young man in the suit, his eyes lightly closed, immersed in dreamland.
「The rest of the drive was silent.」
Twenty minutes later, the clamor outside grew louder, and Chen Yansen reluctantly opened his eyes and sat up.
"The main market area of Zhongqiao Town is just up ahead. Where should I park?"
Huang Boxiang asked as soon as he saw Chen Yansen was awake.
"Are there any banks, large supermarkets, or government buildings near the entrance or exit of the market?"
Chen Yansen asked after a moment of thought.
'To make this resale business a success, the first step is finding a suitable spot for a stall.'
'Stalls at a typical town market are usually either officially designated and rented out, or they're set up spontaneously by locals on a first-come, first-served basis.'
'But neither of those options would work for him.'
'The first option involves too much red tape, especially since he'd only be at each market for two days at most. As for the second, while it's supposedly first-come, first-served, the areas with the most foot traffic are already claimed by veteran vendors. If you dare try to snatch a spot, they'd dare to pull a knife on you.'
Huang Boxiang had been running an unlicensed cab for years, primarily covering the dozen or so towns around Chunshen. He was practically a living map of the area. For him, this was a question he could answer in his sleep.
"There's a small clinic at the exit. No supermarket or bank. But there is an Inspection Institute at the entrance."
Huang Boxiang squinted, reeling off the details with perfect familiarity.
"Can we set up a stall there?"
Chen Yansen's interest was piqued.
"In front of the Inspection Institute?"
Huang Boxiang was dumbfounded. 'Who in their right mind would dare to set up a stall right in front of the Inspection Institute?'
"Master Huang, let me introduce myself. I'm the sales manager for Yangcheng Meimo Electronics Factory. This is my colleague, Wang Zihao. We're on a business trip to promote our factory's MP3 and MP4 players, so our top priority is finding a good spot to do our presentation."
Chen Yansen said, pointing to Wang Zihao behind him, his story completely convincing.
"Oh, you two start work pretty early."
Huang Boxiang said with a chuckle, the pieces finally clicking into place for him.
'In his eyes, even though Chen Yansen and Wang Zihao were wearing suits and looked like white-collar professionals, their faces were just far too young.'
'Even guessing generously, he figured they couldn't be more than twenty-three or twenty-four.'
"My family's not very well-off, so starting work early helps lighten my parents' burden."
Chen Yansen lied without batting an eye, his delivery perfectly natural.
Sitting in the back, Wang Zihao almost burst out laughing. 'A goddamn sales manager from Mei Mo Electronics Factory?'
'That son of a bitch Chen Yansen... damn, can he bullshit!'
"Huh? Is the young lady in the back your colleague too?"
Huang Boxiang was taken aback for a moment before the question registered, his expression turning suspicious.
"She isn't."
Chen Yansen denied it flatly but offered no further explanation.
"Normally, no one dares to set up a stall in front of the Inspection Institute, so I honestly don't know if it's allowed."
"But... I did pass by once and thought I saw someone selling flatbreads there. Of course, my eyes could have been playing tricks on me."
Huang Boxiang was an honest man and said whatever came to mind, steering the conversation back to the original topic.
"If no one says we can't, it means we can!"
Chen Yansen concluded decisively, then motioned for Huang Boxiang to keep driving.
"Huh?"
Huang Boxiang's mouth hung slightly open, his expression frozen. He found that he and Chen Yansen were on completely different wavelengths.