Chapter 118: A Challenge from a Rival (2)

Fang Yu pondered for a moment, then naturally looked at the two of them.

“Lu Zhen, you go find Zhang Yan and tell her to join the neighboring Xianlin Milk Tea shop immediately. I’ll pay her an additional salary from my side each month as a subsidy. She needs to quickly figure out their supply channels. Even if they don’t have any, get me some raw materials somehow!”

“Got it, no problem! I’ll call her right now!” Lu Zhen nodded cheerfully.

Zhao Bin, however, looked displeased.

“I told you, it’s useless. Only someone with a poor mind would think of this kind of plan. What if they find out and kick her out? Would that be fun?”

Fang Yu waved off Zhao Bin’s words.

“Enough. We’ll work on both fronts. Zhao Bin, you go buy some chicken cutlet ingredients from nearby factories. Try them one by one and see which one works best.”

Zhao Bin wanted to argue but saw the sharp look in Fang Yu’s eyes and reluctantly shut up, nodding.

“Understood. I’ll go soon, but I haven’t got my driver’s license yet.”

“Hmm, I’ll have Cheng Chen go with you. Let me call him now.”

Fang Yu was confident that although Xianlin Milk Tea came from Shawan across the strait, there was no way their raw material suppliers were so far away. The transportation costs would be prohibitive. Moreover, chicken cutlets are frozen goods, and at that time, very few companies in the country could afford private transport planes.

Soon, Cheng Chen arrived at the internet cafe in a hurry. After hearing the plan, he nodded repeatedly.

“All right, I’m going. Anyone who dares to mess with our milk tea business is courting death!”

Cheng Chen was right. Fang Yu had promised them each a 10% stake in “Qinglu,” their small territory. With the three key players dispatched, Fang Yu had to guard the internet cafe himself, brows furrowed as he reviewed the income and expenses of recent days.

Xia Churan didn’t dare provoke the young man beside her at this moment, so she quietly sat next to him, keeping an eye on the business.

About twenty minutes later, the sound of small heels clicked sharply, accompanied by a whiff of expensive perfume—no doubt Shen Molan had arrived.

“Fang Yu, order me a milk tea. There are too many people at your store’s entrance,” Shen Molan stamped her small heel in displeasure.

He didn’t respond, but Xia Churan quickly stood up.

“Molan’s here? Wait a moment, I’ll call you. Fang Yu’s busy right now.”

“Huh? What’s going on? Why are you and the senior so serious?” Shen Molan noticed something was off.

“Ugh, it’s that Xianlin Milk Tea next door…” The girl pulled Shen Molan aside, whispering angrily.

Although Shen Molan’s family was involved in business, she wasn’t directly engaged and couldn’t help much. So she and Xia Churan just exchanged some private words.

By evening, Lu Zhen returned first, looking somewhat dejected.

“Boss Fang, Zhang Yan has already gone to the milk tea shop next door. They’re firm about it; they say their raw materials are shipped from Shawan Island.”

“That’s impossible. The transport costs would be enormous, and chicken cutlets can’t be stored like that,” Fang Yu rolled his eyes, clearly disbelieving.

Lu Zhen, however, spoke methodically.

“Zhang Yan said their store manager is an old employee and knows the raw materials are shipped from Shawan by sea freight, then transferred to trucks at the port.”

Fang Yu’s heart sank. He had overlooked this. Xianlin Milk Tea’s strong foothold inland wasn’t without reason—their logistics and supply chain were definitely more refined than his own.

As he was discussing this with Lu Zhen, Cheng Chen’s Santana 2000 pulled up at the internet cafe. He and Zhao Bin unloaded several bags of frozen chicken cutlets from the trunk.

“We’ve got almost everything we could buy. Let’s get the shop to make some so we can taste them!”

Coincidentally, Yan Hua had arrived to cover the shift. He hurriedly gathered Cheng Chen and the others to the other side of “Qinglu.” They squeezed into the storage room and began testing the chicken cutlets one by one.

“No good, the texture is all loose and crumbly.”

“Yeah, even if the chicken is bad, the breading is terrible.”

“The variety is wrong too. They have molten chicken cutlets; we can’t make that here.”

After some discussion, they realized that Xianlin Milk Tea really had skills. Their raw materials were simply unbeatable.

“This won’t do. We’ll be carved up in the market sooner or later. Besides, our brand effect isn’t fully developed yet,” Fang Yu stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Just like last time in Haizhou, we’ll travel around the country. We’ll find similar suppliers somewhere,” Zhao Bin said confidently.

“How long are we going to keep testing? By the time we finish, the shop will be bankrupt,” Fang Yu rolled his eyes.

“I’m sure we’ll find something. Don’t worry, I’ve calculated it—at most half a year. Besides, we can drive to other places and enjoy the scenery,” Zhao Bin persisted.

This reminded Fang Yu. He called everyone back to the internet cafe.

“Since Xianlin Milk Tea can get those raw materials, we can too. I plan to go to Shawan. What do you all think?”

Cheng Chen was surprised.

“Fang Yu, did I hear you right? Go to Shawan? That’s even farther than Haizhou, and you have to cross the sea.”

“Hmm, not only that, but we need to get a travel permit for Shawan. It’ll probably take about a week to ten days.”

Zhao Bin was excited.

“Shawan sounds great—warm along the coast, and we can soak in hot springs.”

Xia Churan and Li Jing exchanged glances. They didn’t fully understand Fang Yu’s business strategy, but Shawan was undeniably an alluring place for young girls.

“Aww, Fang Yu, we want to go too! I love watching Shawan’s idol dramas—they say it’s super romantic there.”

“Yeah, yeah, hubby, I want to go too,” Li Jing chimed in, wrapping her arm around Cheng Chen.

Fang Yu clicked his tongue and nodded.

“Fine, bringing the girls along will help cover our real purpose. Besides, it’s just two more pairs of chopsticks.”

Shen Molan stepped forward.

“Fang Yu, are you really going to Shawan? I’m bored at school anyway. Take me with you.”

A wealthy young lady wouldn’t need him to cover expenses, so Fang Yu was happy to return the favor.

“No problem. Do you have your travel permit, Miss Shen?”

Shen Molan tossed her wavy hair arrogantly.

“Ha! I’ve been everywhere. Shawan is nothing—I went there back in middle school.”

Cheng Chen looked worried.

“If we all go to Shawan, what happens to the internet cafe?”

Yan Hua quickly stepped up.

“No problem, I won’t go. I’ll stay at the internet cafe and take care of business.” He was sensible, knowing he wasn’t yet a core member of Fang Yu’s team and probably wouldn’t get such an opportunity.

“Exactly, at worst we hire a couple of temps. It’s only for a few days,” Zhao Bin agreed.

Fang Yu made a decision on the spot. The next day, everyone hurried to apply for travel permits to Shawan. Once the documents arrived, they would set off immediately. For now, they could only rely on Zhang Yan to continue gathering information at the rival shop.