Chapter 101: Name Your Price!

When Yu Zhile got home, he had meant to open the door and give his daughter a surprise, only to find that aside from his mother and his wife in the living room, there was not even a trace of the little darling he had been longing for ever since he left.

Looking at his wife, who was knitting towels with his mother, Yu Zhile asked, “Where’s the baby? Is she asleep?”

Qin Haiyu sighed. “Husband, you have no idea. After you left, the baby realized that so long had passed and you still hadn’t appeared again, and she burst into tears at once. She cried and cried until she must have been exhausted, and then she fell asleep!”

“Oh…”

Yu Zhile did not know whether he should be glad or heartbroken.

He set the packed food on the table in the living room, reminded his wife and mother to eat, and then went into the room to check on his daughter.

The little one was sleeping soundly. Several strands of her long, curved eyelashes were still damp and stuck together.

Yu Zhile placed his index finger into the baby’s tiny palm. Though she was asleep, she instinctively closed her little hand around it.

Warm, soft, and wonderfully comforting.

The warmth of that tiny hand gave Yu Zhile an indescribably steady and soothing feeling.

He gently rocked the little bed where the baby was sleeping. In another while, once the little one could speak and understand words, he would probably have to sing her lullabies and tell her stories at bedtime.

On that matter, Yu Zhile had long been prepared.

He would not be able to copy down every fairy tale from his childhood exactly as he remembered it, but he knew the general course of the stories. As long as he put his mind to it, he could still retell them in his own way.

Though most of the words and sentences would be different, the stories themselves would still be much the same.

Right now, the first children’s book he had published was selling like wildfire, and the nursery rhymes and fables in it had even been selected for next year’s primary school textbooks.

If he went on to publish a children’s book focused entirely on fairy tales, the sales would surely be excellent as well.

In the field of children’s literature, he had already made quite a name for himself. Of course, he knew perfectly well that he was no literary master at all, but rather a master-level porter of other people’s work.

His fingers brushed the baby’s short hair, still too fair to show a dark color, and Yu Zhile gazed at the sleeping little darling. After rocking her for half an hour, he finally tiptoed out of the room and gently closed the door.

Outside, his wife and mother were laughing and chatting as they ate the roast goose rice and pork rib soup he had brought back.

Listening carefully, Yu Zhile realized that his mother was, in fact, complaining about his father behind his back.

Curious, he asked, “Mom, what has Dad’s chess and card parlor turned into now? Is it making any money?”

His mother grumbled, “Making money my foot! Other people’s chess and card parlors are like internet cafes, charging by the hour. Your father’s place, on the other hand, is all high-minded and noble. People can go in and play chess without paying a cent. Since the weather’s still a bit cold, every day there are tons of people going in just to enjoy the heat. When summer comes, it’ll be a crowd going in to enjoy the air-conditioning!”

Yu Zhile said, “If he isn’t charging anything, then with so many people going in, shouldn’t snacks and drinks make a fair bit?”

His mother replied, “That part does make a little, but it’s still definitely not enough to cover rent and utilities!”

Yu Zhile said casually, “It’s fine. It’s better to share joy than to keep it to yourself. Dad didn’t open the parlor to make money anyway. If it makes him and others happy, that’s enough. I’ll contact the Bull Group later and see whether they can secure an advertising spot for the parlor. If we can get that, then the ad revenue should keep it from running in the red.”

His mother asked in surprise, “Would people really be willing to pay for advertising in a place like that?”

“They probably would,” Yu Zhile said.

He thought the odds were quite good. After all, the Bull Group had now completely defeated the Heavenly Delight Group and taken the yogurt market by storm.

And among all that, he was the biggest contributor. If he made the request, they would likely be willing to give him face.

Besides, last year’s chess tournament sponsored by Bull Yogurt had been so popular locally. If they were to sponsor this chess and card parlor as well, they would surely be willing to do it. For a big corporation, this was pocket change.

Yu Zhile sent a message to Manager Chen: “Manager Chen, your sour milk drink and yogurt seem to be selling especially well lately!”

Soon after, Manager Chen replied: “It’s all thanks to your advertising concept and the song. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have captured the yogurt market so quickly.”

Yu Zhile asked, “Last year your sponsored chess tournament got a great deal of attention and support. Are you planning something bigger this year?”

“Yes, we are indeed considering that,” Manager Chen replied honestly. “This year we plan to hold a tournament in every province, and then gather the provincial champions for the finals!”

Yu Zhile said, “That’s a great idea. With short videos and livestreams drawing so many viewers these days, if you livestreamed it, the advertising effect would definitely be far more cost-effective than spending so many billions on ads every year. And if you make the finals a bit more grand, more people will watch the livestream, and you can also make a good amount from in-person ticket sales!”

Manager Chen replied, “Yes, that’s what we’re thinking too. Livestreamed e-sports competitions are so popular right now. If a traditional cultural event like Chinese chess or Go is held in this format, then even if the audience numbers aren’t especially high, they definitely won’t be low. After all, there are actually quite a lot of people who like Chinese chess and Go.”

At this point, Yu Zhile got to work: “My dad has opened a chess and card parlor. If you plan to hold regional competitions here in the future, the registration point could cooperate with my dad’s parlor. That would make things much more convenient for you.”

Manager Chen said, “That would be perfect!”

Yu Zhile said, “You think it’s good too? My dad’s parlor is extremely popular right now. Would you like to sponsor it?”

“…”

On the other end, Manager Chen rolled her eyes. No wonder Yu Zhile had suddenly contacted her—so there it was, the fox’s tail finally showing.

But this kind of advertising sponsorship would not cost much, so she gave him a reassuring answer: “That should not be a problem. I’ll mention it to President Yang. Still, this kind of local advertising would not be very expensive, and your hometown is only a county seat. If we calculate it using the price of bus-stop ads in a third-tier city, it would only be a few thousand yuan a month.”

“Understood.”

A few thousand yuan would be enough to offset the monthly rent. In any case, all that mattered was that his father’s parlor did not lose money. Even if Yu Zhile himself did not care and did not mind that little sum, his father’s strong pride would still care.

Very soon, Manager Chen sent another message: “President Yang has spoken. He says you can name your price.”

Yu Zhile said awkwardly, “No, don’t. If I set the price myself, I’d feel terribly embarrassed. Just go with the market rate. Later, have someone come by and discuss it with my dad, and don’t let him know it was I who asked you to sponsor it.”

Manager Chen replied, “All right. We’ll make sure you’re satisfied!”

This attitude was far too good toward me!

It seemed President Yang held me in extremely high regard.

As expected, once a person becomes too outstanding, no matter what they do or where they are, they shine like a firefly in the dark night, dazzling and impossible to ignore.