2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 310 Extra: If Life Were Only As Beautiful As Our First Meeting
P.S.: Today is Chinese New Year, so let's write something different; well, something festive.

In addition, the expansion of the electric vehicle business has come to an end, and now I need to prepare for the new storyline.

Also, I haven't written any side stories yet. I'll try writing one. If you don't like it, you can skip this chapter.

And also, I wish everyone a Happy Chinese New Year! May the Year of the Dragon bring you great fortune and wealth!
October 2, 2015, during the National Day holiday.

At the Yicheng International Hotel, a banquet hall was transformed into a wedding venue, with large photos of the bride and groom displayed at the entrance.

Congratulations to the groom Tan Jincheng and the bride Li Jingxian on their happy marriage!

Next to the photo was a table covered with a red cloth, and several men were sitting in front of it; this was the place to receive gifts.

At this moment, a man wearing a light yellow polo shirt, black casual pants, a black leather bag tucked under his arm, and the latest iPhone 6S in his hand walked briskly towards this side.

"Zhang Xupeng, a gift of ten thousand yuan." The man said as he took out a wad of cash from his bag.

This person is none other than Zhang Xupeng, the groom Tan Jincheng's childhood friend, who was his classmate from kindergarten to high school, and later started a business together.

"Big bosses are really something else, coming up with a gift of ten thousand yuan right off the bat!" The person in charge of collecting the money was one of Tan Jincheng's uncles, so he naturally knew Zhang Xupeng.

"Uncle, please stop teasing me. What kind of big boss am I? It's just that Xiao Tan is different. I couldn't give this much to other friends," Zhang Xupeng laughed.

It's definitely different. The amount of money given as gifts among friends in Yicheng isn't this high, but Tan Jincheng and Zhang Xupeng aren't blood brothers, yet their relationship is closer than that of blood brothers.

For 30 years, apart from when they were young and didn't know any better, they never really had a serious argument.

After graduating from high school, the two sold boxed lunches together for several years without ever arguing about splitting the profits. Later, they opened a large restaurant together. It wasn't until Zhang Xupeng got married that Tan Jincheng withdrew from the restaurant's operation and started his own business.

Despite this, the two never had any disputes over interests, and their relationship was always the focus of conversation between the two families.

Just as Zhang Xupeng was chatting idly at the gift-receiving area, a man in a suit, whose features resembled Louis Koo, walked out of the hall.

The man, full of high spirits, laughed and cursed at Zhang Xupeng when he saw him: "Damn it, why are you only getting here now? I thought you wouldn't make it back in time."

"You're the groom today, be civilized, okay? I gave up my business on National Day, a day that's so profitable, to rush back. That's more than enough for you."

"Bullshit! I helped you with your wedding for several days and even served as your best man. All you brought to my wedding was a mouthful of food. And you still have the nerve to criticize your lousy restaurant."

"Alright, alright, your export factory is doing incredibly well now. You really look down on my restaurant. You're so awesome, aren't you?"

The uncle in charge of collecting gifts couldn't stand it anymore: "Alright, alright, watch your mouths on this joyous occasion. People who know you two will say you're in a good relationship, but others will think you're arguing. Jincheng, what are you doing out here? Aren't you inside with your in-laws?"

"Oh, my dad said that relatives from our hometown have arrived and asked me to go out and greet them."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Tan Jincheng asked his uncle with a grin, "Uncle, how much did Xiao Zhang give as a gift?"

"Look for yourself, Xiao Zhang is quite generous, he gave you 10,000 yuan as a gift."

"That's more like it. I'll go down first. Xiao Zhang, you go in and help me entertain the guests. Your wife is helping out in there too."

"Who are you calling Little Zhang? I'm half a year older than you, okay? You have no respect for elders."

"Go away, I don't have time for you. I have to go downstairs to greet the guests. I told you you're getting married early just to avoid being my best man, but I'll forgive you since you gave me 10,000 yuan." "Are you out of your mind? Unless we get married on the same day, one of us will always be left out as a best man. Who told you not to find a girlfriend these past few years? Your classmate was perfectly fine, wasn't she? Why didn't you react like an idiot back then?"

"Damn it! Are you sick in the head? I'm getting married today and you're spreading rumors about me. You can't just say things like that inside!" Tan Jincheng laughed and cursed, then ignored him and turned to go downstairs to greet the guests.

Zhang Xupeng laughed and scolded his uncle, "Uncle, look at me! My wife is helping him inside, and now I have to entertain guests, which will cost 10,000 yuan. I eat a meal at his house and he still scolds me. Is there no justice in this world?!"

"Alright, alright, hurry up and go in; say less and go in quickly. Your Mandarin is better, so go inside and entertain Jincheng's father-in-law and his family."

My uncle just wants him to get lost. The argument is giving me a headache. We're both 30 years old, but we're still like we were kids.

He has many relatives in his hometown, and according to the customs of his hometown, for a joyous occasion like his wedding, anyone who is in the area can come.

For this reason, Tan Jincheng's father, Tan Lihua, specially chartered two minibuses to pick up relatives from his hometown.

It's a night of flowers and candles in the bridal chamber, and it's time to inscribe names on the gold medal list.

Tan Jincheng missed the chance to pass the imperial examination, but today, as he gets married, he truly feels that his life is complete.

Having just celebrated his 30th birthday, he is successful in his career, owns a car and a house, and has now married a woman who is 6 years younger than him and is from Beijing. Their future children can study in Beijing and won't have to suffer in Anhui or Zhejiang provinces.

The story of how he met his wife, Li Jingxian, can be described as a serendipitous encounter. Unlike other small business owners, Boss Tan's hobby is reading online novels, and he often uses his spare time to read some online novels on Qidian to pass the time.

Occasionally, I'll join some reader groups for books I particularly like, but I don't have much time to chat. Ironically, that's how I met my wife.

Mr. Tan, whose business is thriving, certainly has high emotional intelligence, otherwise he wouldn't be able to run a business. However, for some reason, he just can't seem to get married, which gives his parents quite a headache.

However, while the Bodhisattva closed the door, it seems the window was forgotten. Boss Tan has found a wife in the book club! They've started an online romance!

I remember it was New Year's Eve four years ago, when smartphones were just becoming popular. Mr. Tan, who loved surfing the internet, spent a rare night chatting in the readers' group. 26-year-old Tan Jincheng met 20-year-old Li Jingxian.

Initially, our boss Tan thought Li Jingxian was a man. Where would a woman come from if she was reading male-oriented novels? She doesn't exist.

They spoke without any restraint. It wasn't until the second year after QQ groups launched voice chat that Li Jingxian, who was already familiar with them, spontaneously sang a song in the group. Only then did our boss, Tan, realize that there was actually a woman in the group!

Voice control? It doesn't seem so. The accent and intonation of the people from the capital city aren't exactly pleasant to listen to, but it seems to have really touched a chord in Tan Jincheng's heart.

Perhaps he had finally realized something, because Tan Jincheng immediately sent Li Jingxian a friend request. Previously, the two had only been chatting in the group and had not added each other as friends.

And so, he finally got it. Although he had already dealt with the situation, Tan Jincheng, who had never been in a serious relationship, used various methods to extract information from Li Jingxian, never considering that there might be a dinosaur or a liar behind the phone screen.

Pretty sci-fi, right? Reality is even more sci-fi than fiction. The two of them really did get to know each other little by little, and it was a real online romance.

In the latter half of 2012, the two met for the first time in Beijing. Tan Jincheng was 27 years old and Li Jingxian was 21 years old.

Fate was kind to the two young men and didn't play a trick on them.

Tan Jincheng stared intently at Li Jingxian, who was being led slowly toward him by her father, dressed in a pure white wedding gown.

Three years of online dating and long-distance relationship, occasional meetings, mutual trust, and finally a happy ending; it was tough, but not dramatic.

Bowl!
(End of this chapter)