From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

Liu Dong paused, turned around, and snorted coldly:

"I'm offering you everything – equipment, vehicles, rent, and agency rights – all bundled together. 150,000 is a fair price; I'm not overcharging you!"

He waved his hand impatiently, his tone growing increasingly agitated: "Alright, alright, if you can't handle it, there's no need for us to talk anymore. To be honest, there are plenty of people who want to take over my site; I don't need you."

He's just bluffing me; I know him too well.

If it were really as sought-after as he said, it wouldn't have been listed for over a month and still no one would have taken it.

I wasn't in a hurry. I leisurely took a sip of tea, my expression calm and my tone unhurried:

"Brother Dong, we've known each other for a long time, so I won't talk to you about favors today."

"Let's be frank. All those equipment you mentioned, delivery trucks, and rent—let me break it down for you."

I paused, looked up at him and said, "The complete set of equipment you mentioned was provided free of charge by the express delivery station. You don't need to spend any money to buy it."

"Those two delivery trucks are basically just two used electric three-wheeled vehicles. And that shop in the east of the city, it's in a remote location, the monthly rent is at most two thousand, and six months' rent would only be a little over ten thousand."

"You've packaged all this miscellaneous stuff together and are asking for 150,000 yuan. Do you really think that price is reasonable?"

As soon as I finished speaking, Liu Dong's face turned pale, and he was speechless for a long time.

I wasn't in a hurry, and continued slowly, "Of course, if you're really confident you can transfer out, then go ahead, I won't bother you."

Liu Dong stood frozen in place, his face turning pale and then flushed.

After a few seconds of stalemate, he gave a wry smile: "Well done, Lin Ye. You've really changed a lot in just a few days. You even did your homework to figure me out?"

I didn't say anything, I just looked at him with a smile.

Liu Dong completely lost his previous arrogance, sat back down in his chair, and conceded:

"Fine, I give up. So tell me, what's your bottom line? If it's right, I'll transfer the contract immediately."

I simply held up one finger: "One hundred thousand."

"One hundred thousand?!"

Liu Dong's eyes widened instantly, and he exclaimed in shock, "Lin Ye, are you kidding me?! I'm losing money hand over fist at this price, please stop joking with me!"

I was too lazy to waste any more words, so I pointed to the door of the private room and said calmly:

"We both know the true state of the site. If we keep dragging this out, you'll only lose more. If we can't reach an agreement, then forget it. This tea is on me today."

After saying that, I stood up and made a move to leave.

Now, Liu Dong was the one who panicked completely.

His facial muscles twitched violently a few times. He stared at me intently for several seconds in silence, then finally gritted his teeth and gave in.

"Fine! 100,000 it is! It's better than losing money and having it rotten in my hands every day. I accept my fate!"

"Then let's sign the contract and transfer the funds on the spot." I didn't hesitate at all; it was a clean and efficient decision.

Liu Dong was surprised by my quick agreement and immediately beamed with joy, pulling out the transfer contract he had prepared beforehand.

I read through each clause carefully. Although I didn't understand the technical terms, I made sure to check the key points, such as rent, agency rights, and equipment ownership.

The signing, transfer, and handover procedures were completed in one go.

Ten thousand yuan was transferred out in an instant, leaving me with only five hundred yuan left in my phone balance.

Looking at the empty balance, I didn't panic; instead, I felt a sense of security and groundedness.

I, Lin Ye, now have my own business.

It took a whole day to complete all the subsequent procedures for ownership transfer, registration, and handover.

Liu Dong led me to the express delivery station in the east of the city.

The storefront, about 30 square meters, was cluttered with miscellaneous items and in a mess.

The two secondhand electric tricycles were covered in rust, the sorting shelves were crooked, and the overall environment was dilapidated and shabby, making people feel depressed.

After briefly explaining the remaining trivial matters, Liu Dong, fearing I might change my mind, didn't want to linger a moment longer and hurriedly waved his hand:

"I've explained the situation to you. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

Before I could respond, he turned and quickly slipped away, fleeing at breakneck speed.

I pulled over a dusty chair and sat down, looking around the dilapidated little shop. My mind raced, trying to come up with a plan to revitalize the business.

Before leaving, Liu Dong told me that there was another employee on duty at the store, but he was out delivering packages and not at the store.

With such fierce competition in the area and no extra funds on hand, how can I revitalize this store?

Acquiring a site is just the first step.

The real challenge is how to succeed amidst fierce competition among three rival companies, with Fang Heng potentially launching a crackdown at any moment.

What's even more troublesome is that I'm currently penniless and have no working capital to support the store's operation.

My cousin's family is already struggling financially, with elderly parents and young children to support, so I felt too embarrassed to ask for money and cause them trouble.

After finishing my meal, I didn't go back to the hotel immediately.

To quickly figure out the ins and outs of the express delivery industry, I found a nearby internet cafe.

I know absolutely nothing about express delivery operations or store management; I'm completely figuring things out as I go.

The only thing I can do right now is to cram in my professional knowledge.

I searched online for all sorts of tips on operating express delivery stations, guides for novice entrepreneurs to avoid pitfalls, strategies for competing with other companies in the same city, and case studies on expanding the customer base to individual customers...

Read it carefully, word by word, and memorize all the useful knowledge points.

I soaked in the internet cafe for a full three hours, until 10:30 p.m., before finally getting up and leaving.

Back at the rented hotel, I opened the door to find my cousin lying on the bed scrolling through short videos.

Seeing me enter, he immediately put down his phone, looked up, and asked, "Has the matter at the courier station been resolved?"

I closed the door behind me and nodded wearily: "I've taken over, but there's a huge mess, and the situation is not optimistic."

My cousin sat up, picked up a cigarette from the bedside table, took one out and tossed it to me, then lit one for himself.

"That's inevitable. If it were truly a stable way to make money, why would that old fox Liu Dong be willing to sell it at a low price?"

I lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, shrugged, and smiled:

"It's alright, we'll try anything. I have no other choice but to take a gamble."

"How much did you spend to buy the shop?" my cousin asked seriously.

"One hundred thousand, all of it has been poured in."

My cousin's eyes widened instantly, his face filled with shock: "Holy crap! One hundred thousand? That's no small sum! If you lose it all, your whole year's work will have been for nothing!"

I remained completely unfazed and never even considered the possibility of loss.

This is the biggest difference between me and my cousin.

He started a family and built a career, shouldering heavy family responsibilities. He sought stability and security in his work and dared not take risks.

I'm already at rock bottom; I can't lose much more.

My cousin remained silent for a long time before finally speaking up again: "So, do you still have any liquid funds on hand?"

I shook my head and said with a wry smile, "That's all, just over five hundred left."

My cousin was speechless for a moment, then smiled helplessly: "You're really daring to gamble, you're too bold, going all in with your life savings."

I scratched the back of my head, gave an awkward smile, and offered no explanation.

My cousin was silent for a while, then suddenly said decisively, "I have some spare cash, not much, I'll transfer you 20,000 yuan to help you with emergencies."

My heart skipped a beat, and I quickly waved my hand to refuse: "No, no, no, you're already struggling financially, I can't take your money. I'll think of another way."

My cousin waved his hand dismissively and said:

"This is a loan! You can pay me back once your courier station is up and running and you're making money."

As he spoke, my cousin picked up his phone and tapped the screen a few times.

Then my phone rang; it was my cousin transferring 20,000 yuan.