Forcing Me to Be Reborn?!
Chapter 472 - 385: A Major Move that Shocks the Industry

Chapter 472: Chapter 385: A Major Move that Shocks the Industry

"Late-night snacks are really appetizing," Ye Zi said.

...

In the hotel suite, Ye Zi insisted on brushing her teeth in the bathroom before having their late-night snack, even though it was just a snack.

Some people have very sensitive gag reflexes, and would feel nauseous if they brush the base of their tongue with a toothbrush.

Ye Zi had a very weak gag reflex, and with her M attribute bursting forth, there was no need for gentle treatment—she had a high tolerance.

However, though Ye Zi said the snack was appetizing, she didn’t eat much.

She was worried that Cheng Zhu might not have enough to eat since he seemed to have a good appetite, especially after two rounds of vigorous activity which left him ravenous.

Throughout the evening, he hadn’t paid much attention to how much Ye Zi had eaten.

Thinking about it, he realized he didn’t really know much about Ye Zi’s eating habits, as they hadn’t shared many meals together.

Sometimes, Ye Zi wouldn’t even have dinner, not just forgo late-night snacks.

"Boss, your face seems a bit dry," the photographer said, resting her chin in her hand as she gazed at Cheng Zhu.

She loved staring at him, lost in thought.

"Is that so?" Cheng Zhu touched his own cheek and said, "It’s winter, after all. That’s normal."

"How about this? I have a hydrating face mask with me. I’ll apply it for you later, then give you a massage, starting with a head treatment, then a shoulder rub, followed by a leg massage," Ye Zi suggested.

"Hm? You’ve learned head treatments?" Cheng Zhu was slightly surprised.

Ye Zi had given him a massage last time during their "[Whispers with the Wind]" session, which she had learned from videos.

Compared with professional masseurs, of course, there was a difference and her massage wasn’t as strong as what some older masseuses could deliver.

But overall, it was quite comfortable.

Unexpectedly, this time there was a new service added—a head treatment.

"I learned a bit by myself when I was at home with nothing to do," Ye Zi smiled and said. "I even bought a course on Taobao, it’s very technical."

"Is that so? Then I’ll have to really enjoy it later."

After finishing the late-night snack, Cheng Zhu washed his face and then lay down on the bed, his head at the edge of the mattress.

Ye Zi tossed the throw pillows from the sofa onto the carpet and knelt on them.

In this position, her peachy buttocks were perfectly poised on her heels, and from the side, there was an indescribable curvature to her figure.

"Boss, I’ll start with the face mask," she said softly.

"Mmm." Cheng Zhu slowly closed his eyes.

In no time at all, he felt a cool sensation on his face.

Ye Zi gently applied the face mask, making sure it fit his skin perfectly.

Then, from her bag on the floor, she retrieved a horn comb.

She had purchased a horn comb specifically for massage, although she didn’t use it immediately.

These combs weren’t cheap; a good quality one could cost several hundred yuan.

First, she massaged Cheng Zhu’s scalp with her hands, also kneading pressure points like the temples.

After massaging for a while, the horn comb came into play.

As time passed, Cheng Zhu, with the face mask on, breathed steadily and drifted into a light sleep under the effects of the head treatment.

He had been quite tired recently.

Whether at work or in his personal life, Cheng Zhu was always on the go.

Ye Zi looked down at him, his face serene in sleep.

Honestly, after playing poker and cleaning up, taking a bath, and providing massage services, if this wasn’t desperately trying to please, then nothing was.

The insecure Ye Zi was serving Cheng Zhu with all her ability.

She didn’t see any issue with this.

In fact, seeing Cheng Zhu fall into a deep sleep because of her massage filled her with enormous satisfaction.

She knew some things others wouldn’t do for him.

So, she would do them.

"Perhaps this is my only value in the boss’s life."

...

...

Cheng Zhu was also surprised; he had slept for more than an hour.

What surprised him even more was that during this time, Ye Zi had continued to gently massage him, careful not to wake him.

The face mask, which had been applied for fifteen minutes, was carefully removed by her.

After resting for a bit, he still felt a little sleep-deprived.

He had originally planned to leave, as he normally wouldn’t stay the night.

In these situations, once is enough to be considered a precedent.

And over time, many women tend to become clingier.

But then he thought for a while and said to Ye Zi, "I’ll stay here tonight, too lazy to drive back. What about you?"

"I can stay!" Ye Zi immediately expressed her surprise, her tone unguarded with joy and satisfaction.

After speaking, she thought it might not be appropriate and added sensibly, "Whatever is convenient for you, boss, don’t worry about me. Whether it’s today or in the future, I’m fine with anything."

She was telling him that she wouldn’t cling to him and make him stay because they had spent a few nights together.

Ye Zi knew she had to be clear about her role and maintain her position.

But after they settled down in bed, she curled up tightly in Cheng Zhu’s arms, clinging close to him.

"Still, I must cherish the time we have," she said, snuggling closer in his embrace.

That night, Ye Zi had a bit of insomnia at first, as she wanted to savor the warmth of this embrace.

Cheng Zhu wrapped his arms around her, and after he fell asleep, she covered his large hand with her palm, smiling softly.

Rounded up, it’s almost like holding hands!

They’ve had the deepest intimate interactions, but they’ve hardly had these kinds of intimate contacts.

Ye Zi only fell asleep around 2:30 a.m., and once she did fall asleep, she slept very soundly.

...

...

The next day, Cheng Zhu, who had not slept in for a while, was still sleeping in, while Brother Xiong, who had been having insomnia lately, had already got up early.

Age brought shorter sleep, and recent stress had Zhou Jianxiong getting only four to five hours of sleep a night.

Things were chaotic; the commercial battlefield was in utter disarray lately!

"The black sugar milk tea market has turned into a free-for-all battle."

"These new black sugar tea brands all came out with prices 1-3 yuan lower than mine!"

This was what Zhou Jianxiong found most infuriating and disgusting.

Recently, having his Mo Tea draw all fire was one thing, but these bastards are resorting to a price war, aren’t they?

In this period, many tea shops loved to pull such stunts.

Cheng Zhu had witnessed all this before.

In his eyes, "You’re just asking for Mixue Ice Cream & Tea to step in."

He remembered Mixue’s rapid expansion came a few years later.

Last year, in 2014, they had just started to venture into the national market.

If a price war were to ensue, no one could compete with Mixue, after all.

This was a brand that, by 2022, had over 20,000 outlets worldwide, not just in China, aiming its price war at the global market.

They ranked as the fifth-largest fast-food chain in the world, only behind McDonald’s, Subway, Starbucks, and KFC.

However, Mixue went a different route than Cheng Zhu.

Their focus was on storage and logistics.

Cheng Zhu was clear: "If you only know how to wage a price war, then in a few years, you’re going to learn a painful lesson!"

He wasn’t just running a tea shop; he was playing with capital.

Plus, his pricing was much higher than Mixue’s, aiming at a different customer base; they couldn’t even fight if they wanted to.

"The market is upgrading its consumption now."

"In a few years, the market will start downgrading its consumption."

When the day of consumption downgrade comes, Cheng Zhu will undoubtedly be fully prepared.

Of course, he had the advantage of being reborn, which Brother Xiong did not.

Right now, he was watching helplessly as a swarm of competitors entered the black sugar market, each pulling all sorts of stunts, nearly coming to blows.

These past few days, as he looked at Mo Tea’s data, his high hopes for the black sugar frothy milk had not lived up to expectations.

Clearly, Mo Tea had previously enjoyed the entire national market of black sugar alone, which was no longer possible.

"The share is sliding every day!"

"And the number of brands joining the fray is increasing!"

Suddenly, Zhou Jianxiong found Cheng Zhu’s position the least impacted.

Even though he was the true pioneer of the black sugar series, his current stance seemed more like... a spectator?

He seemed to sit high and watch these low-priced tea brands fight amongst themselves, always watching with cold eyes.

To Zhou Jianxiong’s despair: "Even if we go into a price war, he won’t be much affected in the future."

"Because he really does sell too expensive! There’s always been a huge gap in our prices!"

Your budget brands lowering prices has nothing to do with my luxury brand.

"He will always maintain his market share for black sugar."

At first, everyone thought this young man was crazy to sell such expensive milk tea.

But now, the benefits are becoming apparent!

And Zhou Jianxiong had been silently observing Youu Tea lately.

However, Youu Tea had been hyping up their financing recently, and their next moves had yet to be announced.

This left many tea brands thinking they still had time.

Zhou Jianxiong even started to get a gut feeling: "Youu Tea won’t make any big moves before the New Year, right?"

But by the afternoon, he profoundly realized this was all an illusion!

Once Cheng Zhu got the financing, he hired a team and began to make moves.

At two in the afternoon, Youu Tea’s official Weibo and public account started announcing a major event.

Specifically, they released an image.

The image clearly stated: Youu Tea Hang City Lakeside store opening soon, Youu Tea Hang City Vientiane store opening soon...

Not only were Hang City’s four stores listed in this image, but also Shanghai’s four, Beijing’s four, Shen City’s three, and Guangcheng City’s three!

Eighteen stores in total were opening all at once!

If this were a chessboard, Cheng Zhu was placing pieces in all the major cities with one move!

Keep in mind, these are major cities, and every single store listed required immense investment—far beyond what normal tea shop brands put in.

Announcing eighteen stores all at once was indeed crazy!

Even crazier was the line at the end of the image.

"Youu Tea aims to open at least one store in every first-tier and new first-tier city across the country by the first quarter of 2015, stay tuned!"

As the message went out, it caused a sensation in the industry.

The first quarter? Such goals for the first quarter?

You’re not giving us any time, any breathing room!

Damn nuisance! Announcing this before the New Year, are you trying to stop us, your competitors, from having a peaceful holiday?

You think you’re so great because you have a hundred million yuan?

Cheng Zhu: Indeed, it is great.

To be precise, the outside world thought he had one hundred million, but in fact, it was 160 million!

With the extra 60 million, he could do a lot more.

And with every new Youu Tea store, huge daily sales records would be set, and the payback time was incredibly quick.

A vast shadow began to loom over the heart of everyone in the industry.

"Trouble brews; he’s starting to burn money!"

...

(ps: The second update, asking for the basic monthly votes to climb the charts at the beginning of the month!!!)