Chapter 86: Carry Me

Gu Bing excitedly said, “I’ll call him right away and get him to handle this.”

Zhou Andong nodded: “Tell him what we discussed—he’ll know what to do. Remember, only our Jiangzhou Yugong Wine can be the exclusive sponsor, and the prize money must come solely from us.”

Gu Bing picked up the phone to call Guan Shengjie. Zhou Andong stood up to pour himself a cup of tea. He had just sat back down on the sofa when the office door opened.

Jian Qiu and An Jing walked in, exhausted and dusty, dragging suitcases.

“I’m dead,” Jian Qiu slumped onto the sofa beside Zhou Andong and patted his thigh. “Hurry up, rub my shoulders.”

“Huh?” Zhou Andong let out a confused grunt.

“What ‘huh’?” Jian Qiu said weakly. “For the sake of our shop, An Jing and I didn’t even have a proper New Year—we ran all over the place.”

“...”

Zhou Andong reluctantly stood up, walked around behind the sofa, and began massaging Jian Qiu’s shoulders. He’d only rubbed twice when she said, “Wait—I’ll take off my down jacket.”

“You’re such a hassle,” Zhou Andong muttered.

“What did you say?” Jian Qiu didn’t catch it and asked casually as she slipped off her jacket.

“Nothing!” Zhou Andong shook his head vigorously, denying it immediately—then his eyes widened.

Underneath, Jian Qiu wore a white V-neck shirt. Beneath her long, elegant neck, her skin was snow-white; her small breasts were half-revealed, leaving Zhou Andong’s mouth dry, his throat involuntarily bobbing as he swallowed.

A faint, barely noticeable smile curled at Jian Qiu’s lips: “What’s wrong? Keep rubbing.”

Zhou Andong took a quiet breath, silently chanting to himself: Don’t look improperly, don’t look improperly. But his eyes betrayed him—he couldn’t stop them from drifting downward.

What surprised him even more was that Jian Qiu, though slender, had real curves—soft, plump to the touch, with an excellent feel.

“Yes, yes, yes!” Jian Qiu leaned back comfortably. “That pressure is perfect.”

Zhou Andong had learned a few days of tuina from his grandfather, meant for bruises and injuries—but once you understand the principle, you understand them all. His pressure and technique made Jian Qiu feel wonderful.

Just as Jian Qiu was about to drift off to sleep, she heard An Jing beside her say: “Dongzi, rub my shoulders too.”

Jian Qiu snapped her eyes open, kicked off her shoes, and shoved An Jing aside in one swift motion.

“Get lost!”

An Jing’s eyes crinkled into crescents, but she complained: “What’s your problem, Jian Qiu? He can rub your shoulders but not mine?”

Jian Qiu gave An Jing a warning glance: “No means no.”

An Jing shot Zhou Andong a flirtatious look: “Come on, rub my shoulders—I’ll make it worth your while.”

Zhou Andong shuddered, sensing a trap, and wisely said: “I’m tired. I’m not rubbing anyone’s shoulders anymore.”

At that moment, Gu Bing hung up the phone and looked at Jian Qiu and An Jing: “How was your trip to Xiangjiang?”

An Jing leaned back on the sofa, lazily waving her hand: “What trip? We went to Xiangjiang to buy equipment.”

Gu Bing asked: “What kind of equipment?”

An Jing said: “Burger machines, steamers, ovens, soda dispensers—none of these are available in Beijing or Shanghai. We had to go to Xiangjiang to buy them.”

Jian Qiu told Zhou Andong: “An Jing and I both believe strongly in Dekesite’s future, so before the New Year, we registered the Dekesite trademark and are also setting up a company for future development and management.”

Zhou Andong nodded: “Do as you see fit.”

“There’s another piece of good news!” An Jing said. “In April, McDonald’s opens its first outlet in Beijing. We found their supplier—we’ll call them, and they’ll handle delivery. But we need to change our renovation plan: the supplier is in Henan, over six hundred kilometers away, so we need to build a cold storage room.”

Zhou Andong said: “Our store is over seven hundred square meters—building a hundred- or eighty-square-meter mini cold storage won’t be a problem.”

Jian Qiu asked Gu Bing: “Were you just calling Guan Shengjie?”

Gu Bing nodded and explained the situation. Jian Qiu said: “That’s a good idea.”

An Jing said eagerly: “Can I join?”

“Of course you can—no restrictions on profession or age, anyone can participate,” Zhou Andong smiled. “If you win first prize, your investment in Dekesite will be paid back.”

An Jing clapped her hands: “Great! I’ll join. Twenty thousand words isn’t hard.”

In Gao Qingkui’s office, Zhang Deyou’s cast had been removed, but he still hung his arm with a rope. As the saying goes, bone and tendon injuries take a hundred days to heal—especially for someone his age; without half a year or more, full recovery was impossible.

“How much wine was shipped before and after the New Year?” Gao Qingkui sipped tea from his mug, looking in good spirits.

Zhang Deyou said: “Over forty tons shipped, and over thirty tons still in storage. Rumor says they won’t clear the rest until the Lantern Festival.”

Gao Qingkui looked at Zhang Deyou: “Everything arranged?”

Zhang Deyou smiled—a sly, sinister grin. “Don’t worry. No mistakes will happen.”

Gao Qingkui tapped his fingers on the desk, thought for a moment, then said: “I’m retiring at the end of this month. So the day before I leave—the 28th—I’ll hold a full-staff meeting and give him the bonus. Once the chaos starts, I’ll step in and fire him. Even if Zuo Peiming is angry, he’ll just have to glare helplessly.”

Zhang Deyou spat bitterly: “Just as the policy clears and we’re about to reap our rewards, that little brat Zhou Andong ruins it. Even if we fire him and crush Gu Bing, we’ll still have to wait another one or two years.”

“Good things take time!” Gao Qingkui was surprisingly calm. “What’s ours, no one can take.”

Zhang Deyou said coldly: “Exactly—what’s ours, no one can take. Not Gu Bing, not Zhou Andong.”

To block someone’s path to wealth is like killing their parents. These two old bastards hated Zhou Andong with a vengeance—and Gu Bing second.

That night, Zhou Andong, Jian Qiu, Gu Bing, and An Jing had dinner. After eating, An Jing suddenly pulled Gu Bing away, saying she needed his help with something—no one knew what, leaving Zhou Andong and Jian Qiu standing outside the restaurant.

“Where are you going back to?” Jian Qiu asked Zhou Andong.

Zhou Andong said: “I’m going back to the staff compound.”

Jian Qiu nodded: “Let’s go.”

Zhou Andong blinked: “Aren’t you taking a taxi?”

Jian Qiu said: “I ate too much. I’ll walk a bit, clear my head.”

Zhou Andong said: “Where do you live? I’ll walk you there.”

Jian Qiu’s lips curved into a pleasant smile: “Okay.”

They chatted aimlessly, when suddenly Jian Qiu cried out, “Ouch!” and lurched sideways as if about to fall.

Zhou Andong reacted instantly, catching her: “What happened?”

Jian Qiu winced in pain: “I twisted my ankle.”

Zhou Andong crouched down: “Which foot?”

“This one!” Jian Qiu slowly lifted her left foot.

Zhou Andong reached out and gripped her ankle. Jian Qiu sucked in a sharp breath: “It hurts!”

Zhou Andong felt it: “No serious damage, but for safety, we should take a taxi.”

Jian Qiu said: “We’re almost there. A taxi isn’t worth it. Just help me walk.”

Zhou Andong nodded. Jian Qiu leaned her full weight against him. After only two steps, she cried out: “No, no, it hurts too much—carry me. It’s not far anyway.”