Chapter 136: I Know You Are Anxious, But Please Calm Down First

The Canton Fair was bustling with activity all day long.

It wasn't just the business owners in charge of sales who were exhausted; even the foreign guests acting as customers were worn out, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of products on display. There was a mix of the good and the mediocre, leaving everyone dazzled. Their sense of novelty was the only thing keeping the foreign guests from losing their cool and punching the vendors who spoke in broken English. Eventually, with the help of volunteers and interpreters, successful cooperation agreements were established.

As night fell, the lively city began to cool down. At the White Swan Hotel, a constant stream of luxury cars arrived and departed. Established through a partnership between the Huo family and the state to foster international exchange, the hotel was the designated residence for foreign guests. During the two annual sessions of the Canton Fair, it served as their exclusive base.

Alex James, once a purchasing manager for Walmart in the United States and now the owner of a private enterprise, had first entered the domestic market three years ago under the guidance of a friend. At the Canton Fair, he had discovered many high-quality, low-cost goods. For instance, in countries with hot summers and cold winters, where vehicles were plentiful and shipping costs were expensive, running air conditioning was costly. Someone had then invented a plastic seat cushion that could hold an ice pack. Sitting on it in summer was a true luxury and helped save on shipping costs, but unfortunately, it was expensive, retailing at 100 USD each.

At the Canton Fair in China, Alex discovered a product even better than the cooling pad: it was woven from bamboo strips, with all edges smoothed down, making it exceptionally comfortable to sit on. It provided a sense of coolness even without an ice pack. When he asked the price, he was delighted—it cost only 14 yuan, which translated to less than 2 USD. Armed with this information, he quit his job, returned home to mobilize all his capital, and went back to China to purchase ten thousand rattan cooling mats. That single instance of buying low and selling high made him a millionaire. From then on, every time the Canton Fair was held in China, he made sure to attend.

However, as the fair was held more frequently, more people realized there were profits to be made. This led first to rising procurement prices, followed by shortages of goods that required waiting in line. Most importantly, the number of novel items kept increasing.

Lying on the soft bed, Alex sighed. "God help me, let me find some best-selling items this time, or my house will be confiscated."

The higher the income, the greater the consumption. The first thing Alex did after becoming a millionaire was marry his girlfriend and move into a large house. With expenses mounting and income dwindling, he was heavily in debt and desperately needed a novel product to open up sales channels.

After a devout prayer, Alex opened his suitcase, intending to find some books to read. While setting his things down, he accidentally knocked a gift box on the table to the floor. With a *crack*, the wooden box split open.

"Huh? What is this?" Alex picked up the wooden box with curiosity. He saw the characters "Gift for Foreign Guests" written on the front, which piqued his interest even further. In previous years of purchasing in China, there had been gifts, but they were always presented personally by local leaders upon departure. This gift was noticeably more exquisite and friendly to foreign guests, as it included not only an English version but also versions in other languages.

Gently prying at the crack, the box fell open, and a Qilin dropped out, landing on the soft bed. The impact caused the unlocked Qilin to instantly break into several pieces.

"What?" Alex let out a surprised grunt. He had just seen it as a complete object and thought it was the target item—how had it suddenly turned into fragments?

"Is this Lego? It doesn't look like it!" Driven by curiosity, Alex began to play the assembly game that only his son would usually play. When he found the first matching joint and inserted the missing piece, a miracle occurred. The block slid in smoothly and completely smoothed over the gap; no matter which angle he looked at it from, or even when he examined it closely under the desk lamp, he could not find the seam.

At that moment, Alex felt his soul ascend. The pressure that had been building up for so long was released in an instant, and he collapsed onto the bed, weeping loudly.

Zhang Tianfeng had not expected that the gift he had meticulously prepared would become a trigger for a foreign guest to burst into tears. At that moment, he had just finished changing his clothes and was walking out of the venue.

"Big Brother, over here, over here!" Seeing Zhang Tianfeng, Yun Qian, who was running a stall on the side of the road, jumped up and waved her hands happily. Since she couldn't go inside the Canton Fair to buy things, she had to buy them outside.

"Why are you here today? Didn't you say you were staying at the hospital with your mother?" Currently, Yun Tianhe was working at Zhang Tianfeng's factory. They had rented a room in Tangwan Town; during the day, Yun Tianhe went to work, and Yun Qian accompanied her mother to the hospital for treatment.

"Uncle Xiang Chen said you were going to set up a stall to sell goods here. I thought Big Brother might not be very good at it, so I came over myself."

"You little girl, you dare to look down on me? Watch how I handle you!" Picking up Yun Qian, Zhang Tianfeng started tickling her, filling the street with her bell-like laughter.

After playing around for a while, the two sat down at the stall.

"Do you think the street is your home?" Xu Kuangdao walked out of the venue, looking at Zhang Tianfeng with disdain.

Beside him, Chu Sheng laughed and said, "As expected of a young man, he has no manners at all. How could you lay a hand on such a small child?"

"If you don't know how to speak, then don't, or I can't guarantee you'll see tomorrow's sun." Zhang Tianfeng's cold tone served as a command for Xiang Chen and the others, and the three men stood up simultaneously. Although they were rough around the edges, they knew right from wrong and were very fond of the clever little girl, Yun Qian. Now that an outsider was talking nonsense, had Zhang Tianfeng not been present, Xiang Chen and his men would have already taken action. Against certain scum, fists were the best way to make them change their tune.

Chu Sheng recoiled in fear, hiding behind Xu Kuangdao. This made Xu Kuangdao instantly unhappy. *I am your boss, and you’re using me as a human shield? You dog, you have a rebellious streak!*

"Get lost. You are not welcome here." Zhang Tianfeng ordered, and Xiang Chen began to shoo them away. Several burly men surrounded them; even with bodyguards, Xu Kuangdao didn't dare to clash head-on. There was no point in crashing porcelain against earthenware—it wasn't worth it.

Full of resentment, Xu Kuangdao walked away quickly, but he kept his guard up, sending a person with an unfamiliar face to keep an eye on Zhang Tianfeng’s every move. After the failures of the previous three times, he dared not ignore any move Zhang Tianfeng made. He needed to have full control of the situation!

From 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM, only three small items were sold. With no customers, Zhang Tianfeng simply started helping Yun Qian with her homework. It was then that he realized the little girl in front of him was terrifyingly smart. Yun Qian was in third grade and had received her textbooks, but because she had to take care of her mother, she hadn't been attending classes. Relying solely on self-study, she had mastered all the curriculum for her grade level; no matter how Zhang Tianfeng questioned her, she could answer. Not only did she answer, but she also tilted her head and delivered a lethal blow to Zhang Tianfeng.

"Big Brother, your level of questioning doesn't really seem like that of a high school student. Last time at the hospital, a big sister tested me like this, and she asked several questions that I couldn't answer."

These words were hurtful, no less damaging to Zhang Tianfeng than losing tens of millions in business.

"Alright, then let's work hard together. Come on, I'll take you home first." Picking up Yun Qian, Zhang Tianfeng walked to the side. Xiang Chen drove them back, and after dropping them off, he had to return. The stall here could not be left unattended; it was related to the progress of his subsequent plans.

...

From night to day, for others, it was just the blink of an eye. For Alex, it was agonizing. Throughout the night, he kept calling Chinese officials, asking them to help find the owner of this gift. Unfortunately, the other party's English was very poor; understanding even two out of ten sentences was considered good. Under these circumstances, Alex harassed the official's secretary for most of the night, and after sleeping for two hours, he crawled back out of bed.

When he walked into the Canton Fair venue, the vendors were shocked. *What day is it today? Why are the foreign guests here so early?* Instantly, everyone sprang into action, wolfing down their steamed buns in a few bites before starting to solicit customers in broken English.

After Alex had wandered around the venue for about half an hour, the interpreter, led by the official's secretary, rushed to the scene.

"Mr. Alex, I know you are in a hurry, but please don't be anxious. Just tell me what your requirements are."

Alex didn't mince words. He took the assembled Qilin toy out of his pocket: "Find me the person who made this. I want to purchase goods worth at least one hundred million US dollars."

"One hundred million?" The interpreter's gasp echoed throughout the entire venue.