I Am The Third Party (GL) - Chapter 8

I showed Qi Xi the site selection plan I had prepared.

Qi Xi unfolded the map beside him, circled the place I chose on the map with a red pen, and then outlined the nearby streets with a blue pen. Then he drew a three-dimensional cross-section on the white page of the notebook.

It roughly showed a three-story ship-shaped object. The top was very narrow and painted red, the middle was slightly larger and painted blue, and the bottom was the largest and not colored.

“If you choose this street, the rent will be 800 yuan higher per month than the one in the east of the city.”

“Are you so sure?”

She curled her lips and wrote out a table in the notebook. They were all XX Street, XX Group, XX yuan in operating expenses, and XX yuan was allocated on average.

“This is Xingfu Street, Wulin District, City A. The Wulin Industrial and Commercial Branch is in charge. Director Yin Shi and Deputy Director Lu Xiaoming are in charge. This area is in the Xingfu Yunqi Commercial Center. It was acquired by the Xingda Group two years ago and is currently being developed into an entertainment-themed event plaza. From No. 14 Xingfu to No. 356 here, it’s all under the name of Ox Pub. Simply put, they charge supervision fees, uh, what you call protection money. 8,500 yuan a year, the price is quite reasonable.”

“8,500 yuan?” “

It’s an eight-digit number, don’t count it.”

“Eight thousand five hundred, Xingda Finance is responsible for part of it, not deducting it from the capitalists’ profits, but from the employees’ wages. The next part is the tax policy under its industry. If Xingda is regarded as a business empire, then those of you who rent shops are its subjects and it is only natural that you should pay tribute to it. If your actual basic monthly rent is nine thousand a month, add eight hundred, nine thousand eight hundred, rounding it up to ten thousand, and then add some other things, twelve thousand or thirteen thousand, and that’s how you get the rent for a shop in the central business district.”

I silently calculated my little treasury… Well, I’m almost losing money just to open a business in this place.

“Speaking of Ox Pub, the owner is Ma Jun, and the entire Xingfu District is under his control. A little further up is the Starship Club, and behind it is the Puxin Teahouse. These two are under the jurisdiction of the district. The three of them control Xingfu together, and the leader is Ma Jun. Ma Jun is the third in command of the Chuhe Group, and the person behind him is a fat man named Huang.”

Qi Xi poked the small red square on the map with his pen and said, “You are right here.” He poked the blue rectangle again, “Ma Jun is here.” Then came the uncolored trapezoid at the bottom, “Fatty Huang is here.”

She made such a trivial matter so complicated. Wasn’t she just asking me not to open a store there? “Then where are you?”

She pulled over a notebook and lay on the table, drew a big circle outside the three areas, and filled it with a smiley face, “I’m here.”

“Come on, I believe you?”

“Don’t disbelieve me. Look, I don’t do business, and I have nothing to do with the business district. Of course I’m outside.”

I think what she said makes sense. If you analyze it, that’s the current situation. What about before? Wasn’t she the only one who was nitpicking?

“I believe it. What about before? What about before you were usurped?”

Even the word “usurpation” was used. What position did this woman hold before and what did she do? Could it be that she was really treated like an emperor?

Qi Xi moved his chair and sat on it, holding the backrest with both hands and swinging, “My king, where do you say

it is?” I drew an inverted triangle under the huge monster made of three geometric shapes, and drew a big crown at the tip. I tilted my head and looked at her with my eyes, “Your Majesty, do you think this is suitable?”

I was joking, but Qi Xi’s face darkened and he whispered, “Don’t call me that, it’s ironic.”

My heart trembled. Oops, I said the wrong thing.

“I’m sorry, I…”

“Now many people still call me Your Majesty when they meet me, but do you know what position this Your Majesty corresponds to?”

I shook my head, afraid of saying something wrong again.

Qi Xi used a pen to cross out the crown I’d drawn. “Abandoned throne.”

I bit my lower lip, my throat dry and my stomach acid churning, stirring the noodles I’d just swallowed.

“They probably think a throne is still a throne, and an abandoned one is still a king, worthy of being called Your Majesty.” She rested her elbows on her mouth, nose, and chin, her eyes filled with contempt and mockery I couldn’t understand.

It was as if she truly had nothing to do with those three areas, just as she’d drawn on the paper: Look, I’m not even in there anymore, so of course it doesn’t matter!

My brain started to fire up again, my thoughts racing, and I immediately imagined a clichéd story of the struggle for the throne.

The Qi family, Qi Xi’s family, was the boss of an underground kingdom, overseeing all affairs in City A.

But later, those followers I thought were loyal became traitors, and they joined forces with external enemies to deal with the Qi family.

The Qi family had been kept in the dark, deceived by both internal and external enemies. On the surface, they were as powerful as before, the local leaders, but in reality, they were like a dam hollowed out by termites, ready to collapse at the slightest flood, irreparable.

Later, naturally, the Qi family collapsed, and Qi Xi was deposed.

“Why did your family let you take care of this mess? Isn’t fighting and killing a man’s job? Can you bear to watch a girl like you suffer?” I asked.

Qi Xi paused, her previously indifferent expression falling.

She thought for a moment, perhaps recalling something, and said, “In my family, we don’t discriminate between men and women. We only consider strength. Who gets to take charge doesn’t depend on connections or status. As long as you’re strong enough, you can take over.”

“That’s perfect. Now that you’re down, don’t worry about those troubles. It’s hard, tiring, and dangerous. Just let others do it.”

“Yeah, I thought so too.” She narrowed her eyes, and immediately, only two thin lines remained on her face.

“Hey,” I reached out and tugged at the hair ornament on her head. “Your eyes are so small. When you squint, they’re just slits.”

“Small eyes focus light better,” she curled her lips.

“Really?” I asked.

“Small br3asts save fabric.”

“…” Was she serious or joking?

Did she think my br3asts were too small? Humph, only hers were big.

My eyes furtively darted down her body: her chin, her neck, her collarbone, and finally… her br3asts.

Hmm, a deep cleavage. Um, are you sure the foam isn’t thickened?

Those big, round bulges in the front of the T-shirt. They won’t sway around when you exercise, and won’t that be inconvenient?

I heard that big br3asts are heavy, leaning forward, and over time, they can deform the spine, which is bad for your health.

“Hey,” she kicked my shin. “What are you looking at?” “

Look at you, idiot, who cares?”

I patted her back hard. “Get up and pick me a good spot.”

“Buy me lunch,”

she bargained.

“Okay, okay, I’ll take care of your meals from now on, just pick me a good spot.”

That was a good idea.

Qi Xi knew all the ins and outs of these streets, and she found a storefront that was both affordable and safe, saving me from having to worry about protection fees and all that clutter.

I watched Qi Xi diligently studying the map and meticulously marking the site selection form I’d drawn up. Sometimes she’d point at the data she’d written, tapping the table, sometimes flipping through her phone, searching for something, like a high school senior preparing for the college entrance exam.

Watching her like this, I felt reassured.

That’s fine, I told myself.

Talk, play around, and if I can help, even better. Cook for her, give her the occasional hug, be a little naughty. As long as it’s not excessive, it’s fine.

The dormitory hallway was filled with the bustling noise of students. I used to hear it every day, but never as loud as today, the sound waves felt like thorns piercing my temples.

—————-

I knew she wasn’t telling me the whole truth.

Although I understood she had no obligation to confess anything, I was still a little angry at her for hiding it.

You see, she knew that given our backgrounds, we had nothing in common.

I told her I wanted to end things, but she still wouldn’t leave. What was going on? What

irritated me most was, if she didn’t trust me, why did she keep clinging to me?

While I emphasized the need to end things, deep down I didn’t want her to leave.

I wanted to stay by her side, to watch over her, to be with her.

—————

After taking a shower in the evening, I turned on my phone and saw several missed calls and text messages.

I was startled and quickly checked them one by one.

Two of them were from my dad, probably asking me about my plan to open a new store.

Another one was from my best friend Xiaoli, who must be fine.

The rest were from Xiao Xuewu.

I called my dad back first and focused on the location and rent. “It’s about 6,000 or 7,000 yuan a month. I talked to someone this afternoon and it hasn’t been decided yet.”

“You need to understand the surrounding situation and read the store agreement carefully. Don’t get ripped off.”

I curled my lips and said, “Dad, why don’t you help me negotiate it.”

My dad’s face changed instantly. “Handle your own business. What’s the point of running a business if you can’t even negotiate such a small matter.”

“Then come and see after I’ve negotiated it?”

“Yeah, I can consider it.”

“Tsk.”

“Xiao Yu, there’s one more thing.” My dad’s tone suddenly became very soft. I knew it was definitely not a good thing.

Sure enough, my dad then said, “Yesterday, Min Rui, the guy next door to us, your Uncle Sun’s brother, came back. Dad remembers you used to like him a lot. Find some time to come over and see him one of these days, okay?”

“Dad—”

“How about this weekend? I’ll talk to him right away.”

I was startled. No, I already agreed to go to Xianhu Park with Xiao Xuewu this weekend!

I hurriedly yelled, “Dad, I already have plans with someone else!”

“Make plans? It’s a two-day weekend. Saturday or Sunday?”

“Both days!”

I boasted without thinking and lied without blushing. I just wanted to get through it first.

“With whom?”

“…Anyway, my friend!”

“Xiao Li or Lan Lan?”

“Neither, it’s—”

“Oh, Dad doesn’t know who your friends are. What can’t be turned down? Saturday, I’ll talk to him right away.”

“Dad!”

I was going to act like I was going to lose this. No

, I had to at least wrest back half of the control, or even a quarter.

“Dad! Wait a minute, where is the place I made the appointment?”

Dad thought for a moment and said, “Where do you want to go?”

“Xianhu Park, it’s a newly built park, very beautiful!”

“Don’t make all kinds of excuses not to go like you did last time, leaving others waiting, and in the end your mom and I have to go and apologize to them, what a joke!”

“Oh my dear dad, I’ll go, I will definitely go, how can I not go when I made an appointment with Brother Minrui? We grew up together, it would be so embarrassing to stand him up!” “

You still have some brains, then it’s settled, don’t regret it.”

I took a deep breath, “I promise to complete the task!”

“Hang up.”

“Take care of yourself, say hello to mom for me, bye!”

My dad is really –

why is it that other girls’ fathers try every means to embarrass their son-in-law and are reluctant to marry their daughters off, while my dad is always thinking about arranging blind dates for his daughters!

As the saying goes, rabbits don’t eat grass near their burrows, don’t I know Sun Minrui? A top student, a white-collar worker in a company, with a thriving career and a bright future, and so many people he likes, why would he even need a blind date?

It’s easy to tell that he agreed to a date for the sake of our neighborhood, so it’s a miracle he’d be attracted to me!

Going to his house for a blind date, where we’d be seeing each other all day long, if he doesn’t find it awkward, then I’d be embarrassed. Just

because my dad doesn’t care doesn’t mean I don’t care either. I’m a bit shy and wouldn’t do something like that.

It’s just right that I can invite Xiao Xuewu along on Saturday. We’ll be at Xianhu Park, so there will be a lot of people. We can go for a walk and have a meal together, and that’ll be the end of it. When I get home, I’ll tell my dad that he doesn’t like a shabby-looking ordinary person like me, and that’s it.

I immediately called Xiao Xuewu, changed the date to Saturday, and told her about my new store.

“Choosing a location? Planning to open a new store in the city?” she asked.

“Yes. I’m going to hand over this HKUST business to you. Have you found a part-time worker yet?”

“Yes, he’s a very honest young man.” She paused, “If you’re ready to let go of this place, why not hire a full-time helper?”

“Okay, just ask that guy if he’s willing to work full-time.”

I heard her sigh and say, “Okay.”

After hanging up the phone, I collapsed on the bed, thinking, if I die one day, I must have died from exhaustion from making phone calls.

After a while, the phone started ringing again…

I really was exhausted.

“Hello–” I answered the

call. “Xianxian, why didn’t you call me back? I called you so many times this afternoon and sent you text messages, but you didn’t even reply!”

Oh no, I forgot to call Xiaoli back!

“I was wrong, I was wrong Princess Lily. I apologize to you. I wonder what instructions the princess has for me?”

Xiaoli laughed when I begged for mercy, “Hey, no, I can’t bear your apology.”

“Tell me, what do you want from your sister?”

“My husband’s colleague gave him two tickets to a fashion show. We were planning to go together next month, but your brother Hu couldn’t go on a business trip, so I had to come to you.”

“Fvck, fashion show, when did you become so exaggerated?”

“Stop talking nonsense to me. In one word, are you going or not?”

“Go, next month, right? I’ll go and be your protector.”

“What’s the use of being a protector? Xianxian, look, we grew up together, but you’re the only one who’s still single. You said you-“

“Ah, I’m so sleepy. Good night!”

Who wants to listen to you say that?

I quickly hung up the phone. It was getting noisier outside. The students who had been crazy all day had come back to rest.

I lay on the bed, flipping through the photos of the street scenes around the new store site on my phone, and began to think seriously about what Qi Xi said to me – “Little fairy, there is a house in the community next to this street. Let’s move in together?”