Tomorrow as Bright as Day – Chapter 105
Chapter 105
When Ming Xi returned from Gu Shuangyang’s place, it was already ten o’clock at night.
Before leaving, Gu Shuangyang gave her two pieces of advice. The first: “New technologies, new materials, and new products are more important than overwhelming advertising.”
The second: “Those who enter shallow waters catch fish and shrimp; those who venture into deep waters catch and dragons.”
A late-night conversation that yields great benefit was always thought-provoking.
Ming Xi completely understood why Liang Jiancheng had such courage in Seoul that year. A businessman’s entire commercial actions may initially be driven by profit, but ultimately it is closely related to the businessman’s thoughts and beliefs.
Late at night, everything was silent. The hands of the clock on the wall moved soundlessly. Ming Xi lay alone on the reclining chair sofa Liang Jiancheng had given her. The chair swayed more gently than her own breathing.
She hadn’t fallen asleep, because she couldn’t.
This year, textile trade business was very good. Because in January of this year, the , closely related to international textiles, had been terminated. That meant the quotas restricting developing countries’ textile exports to developed countries had been completely abolished. Mingzhou’s competitiveness in textiles was acceptable—not because its own strength was extraordinarily strong, but because the domestic market had become increasingly prosperous.
The last article posted on the forum by “Jiangliu Dadao” had been published last November. It contained this sentence: “A more orderly and more prosperous commercial landscape is about to arrive.”
When the economy rises, no matter what people do, their hearts tend to rise with it.
Yet when a river rushes toward the sea, it is inevitable that mud and sand flow along with it.
This great step she was about to take forward—if the Ming Xi of ten years later were to evaluate it—would still conclude that the excitement far exceeded the unease.
…
The following month, Ming Xi was extremely busy. At the same time, her visa to the United States was approved, and Dezi’s visa was also successfully obtained.
For this trip to the US to participate in the New York China Textile and Apparel Trade Fair, Mingzhou obtained a small exhibition booth. Mingzhou’s textile business was basically a collaboration with Dezi’s factory.
This New York exhibition was crucial for Mingzhou’s success in opening up the American market, making it extremely important. In the current textile and apparel export business, everyone wanted to export to the US. For example, their competitor Haiou had mediocre performance in other businesses, relying almost entirely on the U.S. market to support its annual revenue.
After three years of effort, Mingzhou had finally qualified to participate in the New York exhibition. Given the importance of this matter, Boss Dezi insisted on personally accompanying her to the clothing exhibition, hoping to experience the freedom of America.
Ming Xi and Dezi’s Kangjun Clothing Company have more than just a supplier relationship. After the Korean cooperation deal years ago, Ming Xi personally invested in Dezi’s factory, making Mingzhou one of Kangjun Clothing’s shareholders.
Besides Dezi, Ming Xi would also be bringing Xinyu, along with staff arranged in New York. This trip to the US would be much easier than her trip to Seoul years ago.
Boss Ming was busy this month, and Boss Liang was equally busy. So busy that on the day Ming Xi flew to the United States, she and Liang Jiancheng only met briefly in the airport parking lot. Liang Jiancheng had just landed, yet he asked the driver who came to pick him up to wait at the airport for another hour, until Miss Ming’s car arrived.
A travel-worn Liang Jiancheng hurriedly got into Miss Ming’s car.
During this period, Miss Ming had been so busy she hardly had time even to answer his calls. Liang Jiancheng had expected to see a face full of exhaustion. Instead, Miss Ming still looked radiant and energetic—so captivating that it stirred his heart.
What to do? If only Miss Ming’s flight to the US could be delayed for a few hours for him.
Inside the car, Liang Jiancheng held Miss Ming in his arms. After one deep kiss ended, it turned into several lighter, fleeting kisses.
The two of them had been busy like travelers wandering in the wilderness, with no villages ahead and none behind. After going so long without seeing each other, Liang Jiancheng began to understand why Yang Minwen, who once had his own career direction, had almost set aside his career after marrying his mother Gu Shuangyang. If Yang Minwen had not given it up, even as husband and wife, they might only see each other a few times a month.
At present, Liang Jiancheng naturally wouldn’t give up his career. If he were to willingly give up his career now and become a domestic good husband like Yang Minwen, not only would he feel sorry for himself, but Miss Ming would probably not even give him a second glance.
Career and family background were different matters. He might not need family wealth, but he could never abandon his career. All wealth could be considered external possessions, but a career was part of his inner ambition and desire—it was an indispensable part of who he was. If he were to cut off the “arms and legs” of his career and wait at home for the dazzling Miss Ming to return, then even if their souls loved each other deeply, they would no longer be able to remain closely embraced.
Because Liang Jiancheng understood so clearly the importance of career to himself, he supported Ming Xi’s expansion of her business without hesitation.
People are greedy by nature—and capable people even more so. For example, today he transferred flights twice just to meet Miss Ming once at the airport. Originally he thought he could free up a whole day to come back earlier, but no matter how he calculated it, it was still beyond his own control and could only squeeze out one hour to see her.
In one hour, what could be done inside the car? They could kiss, they could talk—but certainly not the thing Liang Jiancheng most wanted to do.
In June, Haigang’s weather gradually becoming hot. Sitting in the car, Liang Jiancheng’s handsome face showed a mixture of reluctance and irritation. Then he reached out and unbuttoned one button of his shirt.
Then, the second.
“Liang Jiancheng, what are you doing?” Ming Xi asked in surprise after hesitating for a second.
Liang Jiancheng glanced helplessly at the guarded yet absurd-looking Miss Ming, finding it amusing, and continued unbuttoning another button. For a moment, his prominent Adam’s apple moved visibly, rising and falling. Even his breathing carried strong longing and affection. Then, in impeccable English, Mr. Liang asked Miss Ming, “Do you think I’m a horny bastard?”
Ming Xi: …
“Yes, I am!”
Liang Jiancheng’s handsome face shifted slightly, admitting it without shame. But his lust was directed only at Miss Ming.
“…”
Whenever Liang Jiancheng spoke English, his words became very blatant, and his gaze towards her became even more brazen. After unbuttoning three buttons, he deliberately and slowly—right in front of her—pulled two tissues from her car and wiped the fine beads of sweat forming along his neck.
Ming Xi couldn’t help but rub her forehead, a slight smile playing on her lips. Even though Boss Liang bluntly stated that he was now a horny bastard, he still maintained his gentlemanly demeanor.
Likewise, Miss Ming was somewhat reluctant to part with Boss Liang. But neither she nor Liang Jiancheng could become the sort of person who stayed at home waiting. Ever since she and Liang Jiancheng decided to be together, whether now or in the future, it would be difficult for them to live a quiet life of gentle, steady days.
Ming Xi was very clear about this, and Liang Jiancheng understood it even better than she did.
After a final, deep hug, Miss Ming got out of the car with her luggage.
Liang Jiancheng also got out and helped Miss Ming carry her suitcase to the international terminal. Not far away, Dezi and Xinyu were already waiting at the entrance.
Liang Jiancheng handed the suitcase to Ming Xi. At the moment their hands touched, their palms brushed lightly against each other, and the deep reluctance between lovers surged repeatedly in their hearts. Then Miss Ming, who had already walked ahead, turned back briskly and waved happily at him.
Amid the constant flow of people, Liang Jiancheng stood tall in place, his hands tucked into his pockets, his gaze gentle and focused, quietly watching Miss Ming walk through the security checkpoint…
Later on, this kind of farewell would happen many times. Each time it was filled with reluctance, yet each time it would also bring new joy.
Expectation, excitement, unease, growth—every takeoff and every landing would bring new achievements and results.
When airport farewells became the normal rhythm of love, the times when Boss Liang and Miss Ming could stay together became like rare banquets, making them all the more precious.
However, looking at the years that followed, 2005, after the millennium, was undoubtedly a year of extraordinary takeoff for Ming Xi.
Since 2001, the proportion of China’s total exports in relation to its GDP had been rising steadily. By 2006, it reached a peak of as high as 35 percent. At that point, the three driving forces of China’s economy—consumption, investment, and exports—had formally taken shape.
In January 2005, with the termination of the Multi Fiber Agreement, the years from that year to 2007 were the three most prosperous years for textile exports. During those precious three years, not only did Mingzhou firmly seize the opportunity for development, but Dezi’s garment factory also expanded from a small workshop of only fifty workers into a factory employing five hundred people.
Mingzhou’s outdoor apprearal factory also successfully started production in the autumn of 2006.
Time waits for no one, and opportunities can vanish in an instant, so one must have accurate judgement and act quickly. Whenever a business proves profitable, it attracts crowds even without much publicity. Against this background, universities across the country began establishing majors in International Trade.
In 2006, because the trade surplus between China and the United States had grown excessively large, by 2007 the government increased regulation across various sectors of foreign trade. Export tax rebates were reduced for more than two thousand products likely to cause trade friction. These regulatory measures somewhat eased the trade surplus between China and the United States.
However, such a massive trade surplus between the two countries would inevitably lead to serious political tensions.
Among the sharp and perceptive foreign trade professionals in China’s port cities, this reality felt like a giant blade hanging over their heads. They did not know when the blade would fall, nor at what crucial moment it might strike. Even so, before the blade fell, countless oars moved together against the current, everyone striving forward with all their strength.
It was precisely during these uncertain three years that many import–export merchants rapidly accumulated wealth through keen insight, decisive courage, a spirit of risk-taking, and the rare opportunities provided by the era—until their fortunes multiplied many times over.
Among them was Miss Ming, whom Liang Jiancheng loved deeply.
During those three years, Miss Ming’s factory held two ribbon-cutting ceremonies, and Mingzhou Foreign Trade Company grew from a small firm of ten people into a company with more than a hundred employees. By 2007, Mingzhou’s annual tax rebate had surpassed that of Xinghai Foreign Trade Company.
In 2007, Liang Jiancheng essentially withdrew from Haigang’s foreign trade circle and could no longer shine alongside Miss Ming in the same industry. By then, the beautiful and capable Miss Ming had already become almost a legendary figure within the field.
Beautiful and captivating, worth hundreds of millions, capable of both flexible strategy and firm resolve in her work—such a Miss Ming was not only a uniquely charming presence in Liang Jiancheng’s heart, but also a dazzling and irreplaceable figure throughout the entire industry.
No one can be glamorous forever, but in 2007, Miss Ming was glamorous for almost the entire year.
When the end of 2007 passed, the world formally stepped into 2008.
2008…
Whether viewed from Miss Ming’s memories or Boss Liang’s recollections, 2008 was an extraordinarily unusual year—for their country, for the world, and for themselves.
And also for the relationship between the two of them.
Translator’s not:
I’m going to take a break for a while and will upload again next week. See ya!