Chapter 42

Chapter 42

On the other side, after hearing this, Yu Wenlai's smile deepened. Because he knew that since she could joke like this, it meant she had accepted his invitation.

So next, Yu Wenlai also spoke to her in a more relaxed and pleasant tone: "The invitation was sincere; I've been waiting for Miss Jiang's reply these past few days. I wonder if Miss Jiang... would deign to collaborate with me, despite my humble establishment?"

Jiang Yiyan had never been treated with such earnest respect before. Although she knew that the respect she received now wasn't solely because of her talents or usefulness, but rather due to the original identity she possessed. Even so, she was still content.

"Mr. Yu, please don't say that. It is an honor to be recognized by you," she said modestly, neither servile nor arrogant.

Yu Wenlai: "So, Miss Jiang accepts my invitation?"

"Mm." After giving a direct affirmative response, Jiang Yiyan paused briefly before bringing up her own request: "But I have one condition..."

"Please go ahead, Miss Jiang." Yu Wenlai maintained a consistently amiable attitude.

Jiang Yiyan moved her phone away slightly, took a deep breath, then brought the phone back to her lips: "Since we're collaborating, I'd like to share the profits and losses with Mr. Yu. Of course, I know that Mr. Yu's shop doesn't lack business. If I were to come and take a share without contributing, it would be akin to getting something for nothing, which is clearly inappropriate."

"So, we can draft a contract. Apart from Mr. Yu's regular business, we can split the rest. What does Mr. Yu think about this?"

Jiang Yiyan's request was really not excessive. In fact, upon closer examination, she was the one at a disadvantage. She was too principled to act like a typical profit-driven businessman, always putting benefits first. She couldn't bring herself to neglect the importance of goodwill.

Since Yu Wenlai genuinely invited her, he naturally showed sincerity during discussions about benefits.

He laughed and said, "I sincerely invited Miss Jiang to collaborate, not to do charity work. So... if we're going to split the profits, let's exclude two-thirds of my average monthly turnover over the past few months. We'll split the remaining one-third equally."

Jiang Yiyan fell silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "Mr. Yu, you'll be at a disadvantage that way."

"No problem," Yu Wenlai said seriously. "I also want to expand my small shop. Let's start with our collaboration. Miss Jiang, looking forward to working together."

"Looking forward to working together," Jiang Yiyan agreed without further demur.

After receiving such generous compensation, Jiang Yiyan was naturally full of enthusiasm. Her collaboration with Mr. Yu was mutually beneficial, marking the beginning of her career. Naturally, she wanted to take this step well and steadily.

Jiang Yiyan left her email address with Yu Wenlai and soon received the electronic contract he had prepared. After reviewing it herself, she printed it out and asked Wen Mochuan to review it for her.

After dinner, Wen Mochuan sat on the sofa, scanning the text almost at a glance. Having seen many similar contracts, he knew to focus only on a few key points. As long as those areas were fine, there shouldn't be any major issues.

After finishing his review, Wen Mochuan handed the contract back to Jiang Yiyan and said, "I've looked over the contract briefly, and it should be fine. Before signing, I'll have the company lawyer give it another look."

Jiang Yiyan reached out to take it and smiled happily. "Great, no problems then."

The eyes behind the gold-rimmed glasses were as clear as ice and as deep as a dark pool, intriguing. These eyes silently rested on Jiang Yiyan, unmoving.

Even when Jiang Yiyan looked back at him, he didn't avert his gaze as he used to, avoiding her eyes.

Jiang Yiyan glanced at him and noticed that he was looking at her. After averting her gaze for a while, she tried to look back naturally, only to find that he was still looking at her. After several repetitions, Jiang Yiyan decided not to avoid his gaze anymore and stared straight back.

Jiang Yiyan stared fiercely at him, meeting his gaze head-on. This made Wen Mochuan somewhat uncomfortable. He shifted his position, changed his sitting posture, and then said to her, "The terms offered in this contract are quite favorable."

Pausing for a moment, he added with a smile, "How did you negotiate them?"

Jiang Yiyan candidly explained, "Actually, I didn't negotiate them. Mr. Yu offered these terms himself. His shop isn't short of customers. Since I proposed a profit-sharing arrangement, it felt like I was taking advantage of him. So, I suggested excluding his regular turnover and splitting the rest. Later, he probably thought it would be unfair to me, so he changed it to what it is now. Since he came with sincerity, I didn't refuse. After all, I'm here to work hard. If I get a better deal, I'll be even more motivated."

"From this perspective... Mr. Yu seems quite skilled in business dealings." At least he didn't try to exploit her for petty gains.

Collaboration is like this: although benefits are important, sincerity is even more crucial.

If both parties harbor resentment from the very beginning, unwillingly signing a contract, their collaboration likely won't last long.

A start like hers and Mr. Yu's was ideal.

"Hmm?" Wen Mochuan, being a man, could accurately read other men. From their first meeting, he felt that something was off about the way Mr. Yu looked at his wife.

Perhaps it hadn't reached the level of romantic interest, but there was certainly admiration.

Wen Mochuan wouldn't stop his wife from pursuing her dreams, but there were some things he needed to remind her about.

"When collaborating with someone of the opposite sex, it's best to be slightly cautious. His shop seems quite small, probably unable to accommodate a second person. You're a designer and can usually work from home. Meeting once a week or a few times a month should be sufficient," he hinted subtly.

"I'll need a study then," Jiang Yiyan said. She didn't plan to work at his shop anyway, so she seized this opportunity to make a request of Wen Mochuan.

Wen Mochuan said, "Isn't the room farthest east on the second floor still empty? We can tidy it up and use it as your study."

Jiang Yiyan knew about that room. It was nice, located in the east, warm in winter and cool in summer, with good lighting. Sitting in such a room to design, she would probably have a lot of inspiration. For a moment, Jiang Yiyan felt that the future held much to look forward to.

With everything arranged, what else could Jiang Yiyan say? Of course, she thanked him with a smile!

"Thanks, Mochuan." This incident seemed to bring them closer.

At least from Jiang Yiyan's perspective, she felt that this event had made her and Wen Mochuan more familiar with each other. Since they were closer, calling him Wen Mochuan felt distant, so she called him by his given name instead.

Besides, she just heard him call her by her given name without using her surname.

In response to her thanks, Wen Mochuan gave a slight smile.

Suddenly thinking of something, Wen Mochuan said, "Should I assign a driver for you? Since you'll be going out often, having a personal driver would be more convenient."

Jiang Yiyan shook her hands in fright. "There's no need for a driver. My career has just started, and it's not yet time for a personal driver." After some thought, she asked Wen Mochuan, "Did using Little Chen today delay your work?"

"Not really," Wen Mochuan simply felt that if she had her own car, it would be more convenient for her to travel.

However, it ultimately depended on what she wanted. If she didn't want it, he wouldn't force it.

Jiang Yiyan wasn't against having a driver; she was just worried about the cost. Besides, unless her business grew as large as Wen Mochuan's, where she was constantly busy and needed a driver, it would be more convenient for her to drive herself when she needed a car.

She already had a driver's license, and when she went through the original body's belongings, she found that the original body also had a license. Therefore, she could drive herself.

"What if I provided a car for you?"

"Can you lend me a car to drive?"

The husband and wife said this almost in unison. After they spoke, both were slightly taken aback. Naturally, they hadn't expected that they would think of the same thing.

Although the original Jiang Yiyan had a driver's license, she didn't like driving. When going out, she would either be picked up by friends, take a taxi herself, or make use of Wen Mochuan.

There was indeed an unused car in the garage at home, which had been part of the wife's dowry. However, over the past five years, the wife had hardly driven it, leaving it parked there all along.

Seeing his wife not mentioning that sports car but asking him to lend her one instead, Wen Mochuan assumed she disliked that car and didn't want to bring it up, so he didn't mention it either.

"I'll come pick you up tomorrow afternoon, and we can go to the dealership together then." He wanted to buy her a new one.

If he had an extra one, lending her a car would be fine. But if he didn't have an extra one, spending money to buy one made Jiang Yiyan feel somewhat embarrassed, thinking it was an unnecessary expense. She hadn't even earned any money yet, but she was already incurring a debt.

However... owning a car of her own would make everything more convenient in the future. After careful consideration, she decided to accept his offer. She'd buy the car first, and as for later... once she made some money, she could pay him back.

"Sure." Jiang Yiyan readily agreed. "I'll wait for you at home tomorrow."