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Chapter 598 A Little Bit Handsome (Please Subscribe)

The midterm project was quite urgent and challenging.

Zhang Yunqi insisted on using Xiaogudao Lane on Huangxing South Road as the research direction for the "Commercial Transformation of Historical Districts in Lijin City" project, clearly driven by his own motives. He was determined to win this project. However, Zhou Dingchuan pointed out that Lijin City has many historical streets and a decision should be made only after thorough research.

This guy, who was so poor he barely had enough money for food each month, always contradicted him, but he couldn't say he disliked him.

The most valuable quality in a person is to be earnest.

Of all his roommates, this guy was the most reliable, hardworking, intelligent, and helpful. He often held himself to the standards of the UN Secretary-General, treated his classmates with the warmth of a spring breeze, and treated his teachers with great respect. Wearing the red sash, he was practically one of the top ten most touching figures of Hunan University.

Under the strong suggestion of this guy whose character and morals were impeccable, the other two members of the research group, Zhao Yihan and Liu Ying, went along with him, and Zhang Yunqi also agreed, because he would only learn about what he wanted to know.

On Saturday morning, the four of them went to Xiaogudao Alley.

This area has the highest foot traffic, the greatest commercial value, and the most handsome men and beautiful women in Lijin. Every university student in Lijin has been here. The four-person group, except for Zhou Dingchuan, knew each other intimately.

As they strolled around, the group chattered about their ideas for the renovation of the ancient street, but few were feasible. When they arrived at the demolition area, Zhou Dingchuan saw the compensation plan on the demolition office's bulletin board. His brows furrowed, and as he copied the compensation plan, he cursed, "No capitalist is any good!"

Zhang Yunqi felt very hurt.

In the afternoon, I went to the Bamboo Fragrance Ancient Alley in Wangyue Ridge.

Zhou Dingchuan walked and took notes, while Liu Ying, familiar with the area, explained the history of the alley. Zhao Yihan was in high spirits, taking Zhang Yunqi's Ricoh GR1 film camera and snapping pictures of birdcages hanging under the eaves and tabby cats dozing on the doorsteps.

Zhang Yunqi walked at the back. He still felt a strong connection to the old buildings on both sides of the road, with their blue bricks and gray tiles, carved wooden windows, and some of the shop signs from the Republic of China era still preserved on the lintels.

The alley was narrow, with overhead wires crisscrossing. Clotheslines stretched from one window to the other, and shirts and sheets hung there swayed gently in the breeze. Peeling plaster from the old walls revealed the blue bricks, and tiny moss grew in the cracks between the bricks, like fingerprints of time.

In his past life, he was very familiar with Zhuxiang Ancient Alley, but by then it had been renamed Zhuxiang Commercial Street. These ancient buildings had naturally turned to dust, replaced by chain coffee shops under antique-style eaves, trendy restaurants with shiny signs, and a boy lying on the ground taking pictures of his girlfriend's 1.8-meter-long legs.

Zhou Dingchuan flipped through the information he had researched beforehand and said, "More than 80% of the buildings in this alley are over 70 years old. The Municipal Planning Bureau conducted an assessment last year, and most of them were classified as dilapidated buildings. Demolition and renovation are only a matter of time."

Liu Ying continued, "It's the same in my neighborhood, Xiaogudao Lane. They've been talking about demolishing it for years, and everyone was really looking forward to it, thinking they'd get a lot of money. They even said they'd compensate for houses and shops, but now that it's actually being demolished, the compensation is practically nothing... Many elderly people are squatting by the ruins crying."

Zhao Yihan, holding his camera, took a sip of milk tea: "There is an inherent conflict between commercial development, historical preservation, and social costs. The difficulty of our project lies here; we need to find a balance."

As they talked, the group walked to the old "Chen's Bamboo Weaving" shop in the middle of the alley.

The shop was small, with all sorts of bamboo handicrafts hanging at the entrance, from baskets to lampshades, exquisite and delicate. An old craftsman with gray hair sat on a low stool, his fingers flying, the bamboo strips seeming to come alive in his hands.

Zhou Dingchuan stepped forward and explained his purpose. The old master nodded happily and said in his thick old Tianjin dialect, "Take a look, you can look around!"

Zhang Yunqi squatted down, picked up a palm-sized bamboo windmill, and wove it with lifelike detail: "Master, your craftsmanship is superb. How many years have you been doing this?"

The old craftsman grinned and said, "I can't remember. Anyway, this craft has been passed down for four generations since my great-grandfather's time, and it's not going to be passed down anymore. My son is always thinking about going to Guangdong to work!"

Zhang Yunqi smiled and was about to ask about the price when a familiar voice suddenly came from behind him: "Mr. Zhang?"

Zhang Yunqi stood up and turned around.

Lu Yuanzhou stood at the intersection of light and shadow at the alley entrance, wearing a light gray casual suit without a tie, and the top two buttons of his shirt undone. His face held just the right amount of surprise, which quickly transformed into a polite smile, much like a young, domineering CEO in a later short drama: "President Zhang? What a coincidence, you're here to inspect this project too?"

Zhang Yunqi didn't think there was anything coincidental about it.

Now, Ma Shi gives Lu Yuanzhou a daily briefing on his every move, so there's nothing he doesn't know except when he's taking a dump. Of course, besides taking a dump, Lu Yuanzhou is probably also aware of his whereabouts.

Xiongsen Group has applied to the city to undertake this urban construction project. The project is not very large, but given Lu Yuanzhou's current influence in Lijin, where he has made Liu Mingde crawl on the ground, the project will most likely be his.

Therefore, it was perfectly normal for Lu Yuanzhou to appear here. Zhang Yunqi even thought that it might be because Lu Yuanzhou suspected that he also wanted to compete for this project, and came to intercept him to test his intentions.

Zhang Yunqi put the bamboo cage back in its place, dusted off his hands, and said, "President Lu is joking. My classmates and I are here to conduct research."

Lu Yuanzhou glanced at the letter of introduction in Zhou Dingchuan's hand, which bore the letterhead of "Xiangnan University," and smiled: "Sorry, I forgot that Mr. Zhang is still a student."

Zhou Dingchuan closed his notebook, his gaze alert.

Liu Ying looked at the handsome young man with a somewhat blank expression. She sensed that he had a rather strong aura and his tone was strange. Lu Yuanzhou looked up at the Chen Ji Bamboo Weaving signboard and smiled, "Xiong Sen has already done a comprehensive survey of this alley. Building structure, property ownership, resident composition... the data report is over two meters thick. If Mr. Zhang needs it, I can have someone send a copy to Xiangtan University. After all, the more reference materials students have for their assignments, the better, right?"

Zhang Yunqi laughed and said, "Looks like I should thank President Lu?"

Lu Yuanzhou pressed his advantage, saying, "You're welcome."

He then stepped closer, lowering his voice but loud enough for those around him to hear: "But I have a question, Mr. Zhang. Are you trying to use student assignments to give me free consulting services, or do you really consider yourself a student?"

This statement is somewhat provocative, but it contains a great deal of information!

Zhao Yihan frowned her beautiful eyebrows, suddenly took half a step forward, positioned between Zhang Yunqi and Lu Yuanzhou, like a heroic and righteous female knight-errant: "What do you mean by that?"

Lu Yuanzhou glanced at Zhao Yihan. The girl's pretty face was tense, her big eyes were wide open, and she exuded a lively, untamed, and youthful aura unique to her age.

His gaze lingered for a moment, then he looked past the girl and said to Zhang Yunqi, "Mr. Zhang, you have a new beauty by your side? And such a stunning beauty at that. I really envy you."

"What did you say? What did you say?" Zhao Yihan, like a little firecracker, raised her camera and glared angrily at Lu Yuanzhou: "Try saying it again!"

The light in the alley was dim and intermittent.

The sounds of bicycle bells and hawkers' shrill cries drifted from afar, but this small area seemed frozen in time.

Finally, Lu Yuanzhou looked away, but his smile remained polite: "I thought I was just stating the facts. Of course, if this has made Mr. Zhang and this female student feel uncomfortable, I apologize and will not disturb your research any longer."

After saying that, Lu Yuanzhou turned and left.

Just then, Zhang Yunqi's voice came from behind him: "President Lu, there's something I forgot to tell you. Liu Mingde is planning to transfer his 50% stake in Jinzhao Industrial to me. From now on, we'll be partners in the Qingwu Commercial Pedestrian Street project. I wish us a pleasant cooperation in advance."

Lu Yuanzhou's tall figure stiffened, and he stopped in his tracks!

After a long while, he smiled, turned around with his bag in his pocket and walked into the depths of the alley, his figure quickly blending into the dappled light and shadow.

Zhao Yihan let out a long sigh, patted his soft yet firm chest, and muttered to himself, "What kind of person is he, so sarcastic... He's just a little handsome and a little rich, humph! I don't care."

Zhang Yunqi turned his head and asked, "Are you talking about me?"

Zhao Yihan opened her rosy lips: "Uh..."

Zhang Yunqi said, "Actually, I think I was quite sarcastic towards him too."

Zhao Yihan immediately corrected: "But you're not as handsome as him!"

Zhang Yunqi was so choked by those words that he almost died with tears in his eyes.

Zhou Dingchuan hesitated for a moment, then asked with his usual seriousness, "Boss Zhang, do you have some kind of grudge against him?"

Zhang Yunqi nodded and said yes. Then he bent down and picked up another bamboo windmill, asking the old craftsman, "How much is this?"

The old craftsman held up one finger: "One yuan."

Zhang Yunqi took out his wallet, paid, and held the small bamboo cage in his palm. The bamboo strips were polished smooth, gleaming with a warm luster in the afternoon sun. A breeze blew by, and the windmill turned gently with a "whoosh," the sound of the bamboo strips scraping against each other being delicate and clear.

"Let's go," he said.

The group continued walking. Zhao Yihan walked around to Zhang Yunqi's side and whispered, "You just said you wanted to be his business partner? This guy looks like a cunning and wicked villain. Brother, aren't you afraid of being scammed? You'd better not cooperate with him. I was lying earlier. Actually, in my eyes you're only a tiny bit more handsome than him, just a tiny bit!"

Zhang Yunqi smiled and handed her the bamboo windmill: "Here you go."

Zhao Yihan took it and examined it carefully: "The craftsmanship is really good, it's so beautiful... Oh! By the way, why didn't you buy more?"

"Why?" Zhang Yunqi was taken aback.

"Hey, let me count for you." Zhao Yihan raised his head and started counting seriously on his fingers: "Sister Ji Ling is going to give one, Sister Chu Jian is going to give one, Sister Yu Fei is going to give one..."

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