Chapter Thirteen: The Prototype Is Ready

A crowd had already gathered nearby. People in the village rarely saw a van, and no one had ever seen a sleek Santana before.

“Hey, isn’t that Du Yu? Why is there such a beautiful girl standing next to him?”

“That’s right, and look at all those buckets! I wonder what’s inside. What kind of work is Du Yu doing now?”

Zhao Qinqin was among the crowd.

She knew exactly what was inside those buckets but felt too shy to say it out loud. Who knew this kid had come so far?

The village matron rolled her eyes, looking at the numerous water buckets. Could there really be clams and blue crabs inside? If so, Du Yu must be making quite a profit this trip!

She was visibly envious.

At that moment, Du Yu stood beside Ma Yue, waiting as she handed him the contracts.

After closing the trunk, Ma Yue stepped away from the Santana and handed Du Yu two documents.

“Brother Yu, take a look. This is the contract I arranged with the shop yesterday, and this one concerns our collaboration. Check the terms and conditions carefully. If anything doesn’t work for you, we can negotiate.”

Here was the familiar business-minded Ma Yue—very good.

Du Yu took the contracts and read through the terms carefully. He admired Ma Yue’s professionalism and meticulousness. The contracts were clear, fair, and comprehensive, protecting the legal rights of both parties.

No matter how close the friendship, business and interests must be kept separate. This was Ma Yue’s approach—keeping things clear and distinct.

Du Yu wholeheartedly agreed.

In his previous life, he had witnessed too many betrayals and partings, most of which stemmed from failing to clearly define responsibilities and profit distribution from the outset out of consideration for others.

Ma Yue was very forward-thinking and sharp in this regard.

No wonder she was recommended by Old Shi; her sense of business boundaries was unmatched.

If only they both had mind-reading abilities, they would be amazed to find that their thoughts were perfectly aligned.

Snapping back to reality, Du Yu didn’t hesitate. He asked Wang Xiaowei to fetch a pen and carefully signed both contracts.

From that moment on, their partnership was officially declared.

“Brother Yu, shall we go? You and Xiaowei can ride in my car. We’ll visit the shop together and discuss whether we should renovate it a bit.”

Ma Yue’s explanation suddenly made things clear to Du Yu. The shop used to be a fish store, so many of the equipments were still usable. That rent of a thousand yuan per month was truly worth it—he’d save a lot on equipment costs.

It was all thanks to Ma Yue; everything was thoughtfully planned and arranged to perfection.

What surprised Ma Yue was that Du Yu was a real workhorse—ten buckets of fish a day.

Du Yu gladly accepted Ma Yue’s invitation and pulled Wang Xiaowei, who was chatting with villagers nearby, by the ear, bringing him along onto the car.

At that moment, Li Chunhong, who had just finished shelling clams outside, was returning to the village.

“Son, Xiaowei, where are you headed? And who’s this young lady?”

Wiping sweat from her forehead, Li Chunhong asked Du Yu.

Du Yu quickly explained everything to her in detail.

Li Chunhong was pleasantly surprised. She clasped Ma Yue’s hand warmly, clearly moved.

“Ah, it’s Miss Ma. Thank you so much for your help!”

“No, no, Auntie, it’s my duty,” Ma Yue replied modestly.

After some friendly exchanges, Du Yu and his group waved goodbye to Li Chunhong.

Only then did Li Chunhong notice the crowd gathering at the village entrance.

The matron and Zhao Qinqin were the first to rush over.

“Mom, what kind of business is Du Yu running now? It looks pretty big! Do you think the boss can lend a hand?”

“Yeah, Auntie Hong, I’m not sure if Du Yu and Wang Xiaowei can handle everything themselves. Why don’t you ask if they need extra help?”

“I don’t really know what this kid is up to. He goes out early and comes back late every day. It’s probably just some small-time hustle. Young people need to venture out. As parents, we can’t interfere much, so let him be.”

Li Chunhong naturally understood what the two were plotting, but she was honest, not foolish, so she politely declined their offer.

What’s the deal? When someone’s down, they look down on them; when they’re about to succeed, everyone suddenly rallies around? You guys are even more fickle than a weather vane.

Others also approached Li Chunhong to greet her, and she responded politely to each.

The village chief watched the crowd from afar, his eyes darkening. He turned and went home, dialing a number.

Meanwhile, Du Yu was chatting with Ma Yue inside the car.

“Miss Ma, how long do you think it will take to sell all this stock?”

Du Yu was very concerned.

“Brother Yu, we still have a large quantity, and the quality of each fish is impeccable. City folks love this kind of seafood. I estimate it will be sold out in just over a week!”

Ma Yue was confident.

Not to mention the shop’s prime location, even if no customers came to the shop, she had other channels to sell the fish. As long as the quality was guaranteed, there was no worry about selling them!

This matched Du Yu’s expectations well. In the year 2000, people’s purchasing power wasn’t very strong. Selling everything in just over a week was already excellent.

Along the way, Ma Yue laid out her marketing plan, and Du Yu listened attentively, offering his suggestions in turn.

Time flew by, and soon they arrived at the shop.

Du Yu looked around and was very pleased with the location. It was not only near the center of the small town but also close to the entrance of the seafood market!

This meant customers entering the market would immediately see their shop.

The equipment inside was quite new. Together, they transferred the seafood into the tanks, ready to use immediately. Clearly, Ma Yue had thought of every detail.

Du Yu couldn’t help but give Ma Yue a deep, admiring look. This girl was truly impressive!

Wang Xiaowei noticed Du Yu’s gaze. Brother Yu seems to be looking at Miss Ma!

Could it be...

After unloading all the fish into the tanks, Du Yu didn’t linger but called Ma Yue again. They headed to a nearby café together.

As soon as they sat down, they skillfully ordered coffee. This time, Wang Xiaowei didn’t dare to order on his own but pointed to Du Yu, saying, “The same as him.”

The waiter nodded and wrote down: “Two strong Americanos.”

Du Yu hadn’t slept well the night before and was feeling a bit drowsy.

Poor Wang Xiaowei was completely unaware.

Ma Yue looked at Du Yu curiously. Brother Yu called me over—does he have a new idea to share?