Yu Xin and Yu Mo happened to be on the same campus, so they walked home together.
On the way, Yu Mo kept stealing glances at the profile of the person beside him, wanting to ask her what he should do but hesitating every time.
"Just ask if you have something to say," Yu Xin suddenly stopped walking. "You've been thinking about your family's company for a while now, haven't you?"
Yu Mo nodded. "I just... don't know where to start..."
"It's simple." Yu Xin held up two fingers. "First, send an audit team to check the accounts. Second, those who comply prosper, those who resist perish."
Yu Mo: "......"
"That's it? Just... these two steps? Nothing else?"
"Nope."
"You can't out-scheme those old foxes. If you drag your feet, they'll tear you apart and swallow you whole once they realize what's happening. Ever heard of 'cutting the Gordian knot'?"
"I have."
"Sometimes a swift, decisive move works best."
"That sounds... way too ruthless," Yu Mo gulped. "If my dad finds out I'm doing this..."
"So send your dad away first," Yu Xin said airily.
Yu Mo: "???"
"Send away"... as in which "send away"?
For a moment, he wasn't sure—was it the kind of "send away" he was thinking of?
Considering the Wanlong Society's way of doing things—daring to take lives right in front of the police—was there anything they wouldn't dare?
But if he did that, wouldn't he be branded a patricide? And the cops would never let him off either, right?
This...
Yu Xin rolled her eyes. "What are you imagining? We're a legitimate company. We never do anything illegal."
Yu Mo forced a laugh. "Right, right. I wasn't overthinking it."
He frequented the Wanlong Society, but to this day, he couldn't understand why these people always insisted on calling themselves a "legitimate company."
As someone who had personally witnessed their previous "operations," did he not know whether the Wanlong Society was legitimate or not?
No, he had to send his father away—though in the literal sense this time.
Even if he still resented his father, actually "sending him away" was something he could never bring himself to do.
..................
Liu Yutong sat at her desk, flipping through the reports in front of her.
Currently, Wanlong Supermarket had eleven branches.
Based on recent daily revenue data, each store averaged around 520,000 yuan in daily sales. Without any promotional campaigns, this performance was already quite impressive.
Moreover, with the Lunar New Year approaching—especially by January—it was perfectly normal for sales to double.
Even at the current rate, breaking the 100-million-yuan monthly sales mark wouldn’t be difficult for Wanlong Supermarket.
Assuming a 20% gross margin, monthly gross profit would exceed 30 million yuan. With an estimated average net profit margin of 8%, monthly net profit would hover around 13 million.
Projecting this over a year, the supermarket business alone could contribute over 100 million yuan in pure profit—and that wasn’t even accounting for peak holiday seasons.
Beyond supermarkets, the Yuyuefang restaurant chain, though currently operating only two locations, had already surpassed 5 million yuan in monthly revenue. Site selections for additional branches were complete, and all eleven stores were expected to open by late January or early February next year.
Using a conservative estimate of 1.5 million yuan monthly revenue per location, annual revenue could still break the 200-million-yuan mark.
The restaurant industry enjoyed much higher gross margins—around 55%—though net profit margins were lower, estimated at 15%. Annual net profit could likely reach 30 million yuan.
Apart from these two future cash cows, other ventures were still operating at a loss.
Take the logistics company they’d recently acquired, for example.
Unless they could monopolize Bright Pearl City’s delivery market overnight, profitability in the short term was unlikely.
Of course, achieving that would depend on the widespread adoption of smartphones in the future. For now, the logistics division existed solely to support their other businesses.
Additionally, the country’s first group-buying website was already under construction, with Xiao Bin—whom she’d disciplined once before—as the lead.
Given how well the tech college crew had handled their cheat software side hustle, building a website shouldn’t be a problem.
Besides, as one of the witnesses to that night, Xiao Bin’s mind was now firmly occupied with "NO, die! NO, die!" and he was working tirelessly, promising a test launch by the New Year at the latest.
After reviewing the reports, Liu Yutong glanced around the office and suddenly realized the space no longer suited their needs.
"It’s too cramped here. Time for a new home."
With next year’s corporate restructuring plans underway, their current setup couldn’t support the coordinated operations of multiple business divisions.
True to her decisive nature, Liu Yutong immediately grabbed her down jacket. "Yun Cheng, come with me to Shunchang International Plaza."
The 49-story office tower was just over a kilometer from their current location, and vacancy rates were still relatively high. They could lease a few floors for now—given the market rates, renting an entire floor wouldn’t cost more than 200,000 yuan annually. After all, this wasn’t the city center or a major metropolis, so rents were cheap.
The distance was short enough that Liu Yutong opted to walk rather than take a car.
Still, the wind outside was brisk, so she bundled up thoroughly before stepping out.
She wore a long white down coat over a pink sweater, black leggings paired with snow boots, a cashmere scarf, and a pink knit cap that left only her delicate ears exposed.
The outfit made her look every bit the girl next door—a far cry from the formidable leader of the Wanlong Society who commanded respect across the university district.
Halfway there, snowflakes began drifting from the sky.
This year’s snow had arrived unusually early, starting in November instead of the usual December-to-January window around the New Year when temperatures were coldest.
If her memory served, this winter’s snowfall would last much longer than usual, even causing snowstorms in some parts of the country.
Liu Yutong adored snow. As she walked, she couldn’t resist spreading her arms and spinning in the flurries like an exuberant young girl.
Yun Cheng watched her, itching to pull out the compact camera he always carried and capture the rare moment.
Of course, he didn’t even need to ask—Liu Yutong promptly instructed him to take a few snowscape photos of her.
In the future, such heavy snowfall would only be seen in the far north; their hometown would rarely witness it again.
As they turned the corner toward the plaza entrance, the howling wind carried a sudden burst of song into their ears:
"The snow falls so deep~
Falling so sincerely~
Reflecting the scars I bear lying in the snow~
............."
At first, Liu Yutong thought a store was simply playing last year’s hit song "Serious Snow." But as she approached, she noticed a makeshift stage set up in the lobby, where a singer in a black sweater sat on a barstool, strumming a guitar and performing live. A sparse crowd of seven or eight fans stood around him.
To her surprise, it was a familiar artist holding an autograph session.
