Chapter 25: Everyone Present is a Big Shot

The rain halfway up the mountain soaked Cheng Simin, who was hesitating to move forward. A hundred kilometers away, Shi Ying was driving, having completely escaped the large cloud cover and entered clear skies.

He arrived at the exhibition center precisely at 2:30 PM on this Sunday. With the expo entering its final countdown, the venue was packed with visitors.

Outside the venue, it was bustling with small vendors trying to make money: fruit sellers, sour plum drink vendors, popcorn stands, and even someone selling gerbils.

City management personnel had just chased away a vendor throwing spiral toys into the sky, only for a tricycle selling grilled lamb skewers to block the crosswalk.

The entrance and exit of the parking lot were crowded with people, creating a jam within 200 meters.

At the crosswalk, several aggressive drivers had already beaten the pedestrians and successfully entered the parking lot. Shi Ying, not as reckless, was anxiously waiting for an old woman hobbling across the crosswalk. A traffic officer with a wide-brimmed hat approached him and directed him to an alternative route.

Thirty meters to the right of the venue center was a construction site with a makeshift parking area covered in gravel for construction workers. Seeing that Shi Ying’s car wasn’t anything fancy, the officer suggested he park there.

Shi Ying rolled down his window, repeatedly thanking the officer, turned the steering wheel, and smoothly parked his car at the construction site.

After getting out of the car and grabbing the printed promotional materials, Shi Ying followed the directional signs toward the venue.

Due to the high interest in Sino-Arab cooperation, safety concerns led the expo to adopt a reservation system, controlling entry in batches.

Shi Ying, seeking business opportunities, had been following the expo's updates and made two preparations. He had booked a viewing slot for the afternoon in the early morning hours.

However, many casual visitors weren't as lucky. The convention center, often used for car sales, had become a hot commodity. Many middle-aged people with families were turned away from the entrance due to fully booked slots, grumbling their dissatisfaction.

Dodging several scalpers selling overpriced reservations, Shi Ying showed his reservation code to the staff and quickly entered the venue.

The exhibition area spanned 40,000 square meters, and the vast venue seemed endless. As Shi Ying walked and looked around, he was overwhelmed. After roughly touring the international and domestic exhibition zones, an hour had already passed.

Checking his watch, his pace quickened. He didn’t have time to linger at the artificial intelligence and modern finance booths that interested him and headed straight for the Xicheng exhibition area in Hall H.

Bypassing the dairy, goji berries, and Tan sheep—signature industries of Xicheng—he finally found the Banshan wine exhibition area in a more secluded spot.

Only one private winery from Banshan City was exhibiting this time. Two other enterprises had successfully transformed into wine culture towns and Xicheng boutique homestays last year under the guidance of the industrial park and chamber of commerce.

As exemplary comprehensive commercial entities, their booths combined forces, making them more eye-catching than single wine displays.

Besides wine, the town and homestay offered immersive experiences, ancient-style streets, cultural and creative products, dining, and leisure. Recently, taking advantage of the crisp autumn weather, they were promoting a unique ancient costume night tour of Xicheng.

With performances like Shan Hua'er, Huangyang Whip Dance, and the picturesque Tangping Dance, visitors could watch the performances, stay at the homestay, enjoy hand-grabbed meals, and sip Ba Bao tea—all intangible cultural heritages of Xicheng.

When Shi Ying arrived, Sun Qiyang was enthusiastically chatting with several foreign exhibitors wearing headscarves about the concept of traveling through millennia. He held up his phone displaying promotional videos, continuously gesturing for the translator to convey his words to the investors.

However, the investor shook his head in confusion and whispered something in Arabic to the translator, pointing at the carpet in the video.

The translator, a young foreigner with limited Chinese proficiency, was mainly responsible for written Arabic-to-English and English-to-Arabic translations during this trip. Specializing in contract documents, his spoken Chinese was unclear. He attempted simple English communication with Sun Qiyang’s group.

Sun Qiyang, who studied veterinary science in college and later pursued part-time horticulture studies related to agriculture, had received crash-course diploma education with minimal English instruction. His most extensive exposure to foreign languages was in high school, which was at least twenty years ago. Now, he remembered only two phrases: "Oh yeah" and "Come on, let’s go."

Smacking his dark red lips, he awkwardly asked Qian Manager, standing behind him, “What did he say? This, this 'carpet' sounds familiar, but I can’t recall what it means.”

Qian Manager was equally baffled and whispered to Zhou, the homestay manager nearby. Zhou was quick-witted and immediately decided to download a translation app for Chairman Sun.

But downloads take time, and conversations can’t wait. Sensing Sun Qiyang’s embarrassment, Shi Ying stepped forward to help: “Chairman Sun, this gentleman says he noticed textiles are also sold in the town’s creative shops.”

Looking at Sun Qiyang’s phone screen, Shi Ying pointed to the decorative carpets in the homestay room images, exchanged a few sentences in English with the translator, and then told Sun Qiyang, “They have excellent Persian carpet suppliers in Saudi Arabia and are exploring potential collaboration opportunities.”

“What a joke! I meant for them to invest in projects in Banshan. These bearded men want me to buy their carpets instead?”

Sun Qiyang stopped nodding and bowing to the headscarf-wearing businessmen and turned to instruct Shi Ying, “Tell him our carpets are made from Tan sheep wool, hand-knotted in Xicheng! They’re no worse than his carpets. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, these were tribute items, and now they’re museum pieces in the Forbidden City.”

Shi Ying relayed the message tactfully to the translator, adding, “We also have highly pure agarwood essential oil and exquisitely designed robes.”

“No, we don’t need those,” Sun Qiyang said. “Ask if they have any integrated commercial projects in Saudi Arabia. We’re about to start Phase II of the town project—a desert hot spring. Are they interested? Though the investment is substantial, the long-term profits will be very lucrative!”

Shi Ying conveyed Sun Qiyang’s thoughts more diplomatically to the translator. Within five minutes, the headscarf-wearing businessmen left the Banshan exhibition area to visit the next potential domestic dealer.

Once they were gone, Sun Qiyang didn’t hide his disdain, plopping back onto the leather stool and scoffing to Qian Manager and Ms. Zhou, “Persian carpets and ancient perfumes, my foot! You should’ve seen the opening day. Those goods were a mixed bag. I personally saw crates with shipping labels from our own country.”

“Why would I sell domestically produced goods when I could get them overseas at a markup? I’m close with the big shots in the Yucheng Chamber of Commerce! I just had dinner with them earlier this year. Oh, their ox tripe hot pot was great, and the radish silk pancakes were light and refreshing.”

In full dramatic flair, Sun Qiyang looked as if he were being interviewed by a camera. Ma, the vice president of the winery, also joined the audience, occasionally nodding approvingly at the other two attentive listeners.

After pontificating for a while, Sun Qiyang noticed the handsome young man who had helped translate earlier still standing near the booth. He waved his thick hand and called out, “Hey, young man, I haven’t thanked you yet.”

“Are you a staff member here? Did we meet during the opening? Why aren’t you wearing your badge today?”

Chairman Sun was an extrovert, honed by years of networking to quickly break the ice with strangers.

In reality, Shi Ying had no badge; it was his first meeting with Sun Qiyang. Until yesterday, he didn’t even know what Sun looked like. He could accurately address Sun because he had done his homework: he had researched Sun Qiyang and the main members of the chamber of commerce in the winery office that morning.

Qian Manager was a local, the nephew of the Cultural Town’s Qian General Manager, often accompanying Chairman Sun. Ms. Zhou’s background was unclear; she claimed to be a second-generation inheritor of wealth from Yuecheng, investing heavily in Banshan’s boutique homestays two years ago. However, Shi Ying couldn’t confirm whether she was truly an investor or a proxy for capital.

In short, everyone here was untouchable. Shi Ying was the grandson; they were all big shots.

To seek help, one must adopt the right attitude. Shi Ying’s smile was standardized, his demeanor humble. “Chairman Sun, hello. Let me formally introduce myself. I’m not a staff member of the expo.”

“Then who are you?”

Shi Ying took out his business card and slowly exhaled, “I’m an employee of Chixia Winery, Shi Ying. You may not know me, but I know you. I’ve watched your speeches from the last promotion event multiple times. Your insights on the development and positioning of Banshan wine were truly brilliant. I’ve learned a lot.”

The last time Shi Ying had spoken such nauseatingly flattering words was two years ago in the UK, begging professors to accept him for a Ph.D.

But when it came to playing interpersonal games, British professors were no match for Chinese uncles. Despite swallowing his pride and lowering himself, Chairman Sun remained unconvinced.

Upon hearing the name “Chixia,” Sun Qiyang shifted his gaze from Shi Ying’s eyes to his clothes, watch, and shoes.

A quick scan revealed a few luxury brands on Shi Ying. Without a word, Sun Qiyang subtly returned his attention to his teacup.

Still holding his hand in the air after finishing his introduction, Sun Qiyang ignored Shi Ying’s business card, pretending not to see it, and chuckled, lifting his teacup, “Chixia? Which Chixia?”

“There are so many vineyards growing Cabernet Sauvignon at the foot of Helan Mountain. There are at least two hundred small wineries. Vice President Ma, do you know which Chixia he’s referring to?”

Sun Qiyang turned to Ma, wrinkling his nose as if biting into something unpleasant, “Ah, Chixia. Suddenly mentioning it, why does it sound unfamiliar to me…”

The managers of the homestay and town exchanged glances, knowing Sun Qiyang was deliberately twisting concepts to embarrass the Chixia Winery representative. But neither spoke, swiftly stepping out of earshot as someone passed by the booth.

Shi Ying hit a soft rejection but didn’t lose heart. He unfolded his promotional materials and placed them comfortably within Sun’s line of sight, explaining, “Chairman, with your busy schedule, it’s understandable you might forget. Chixia Winery is located in Yunshan New Village along National Highway 110 in Banshan. Even now, Mr. Zhao’s office still has a photo of you from your inspection two years ago.”

The address was real, but the hanging photo was fake—it had long been thrown into the trash by Old Zhao.

Hearing the mention of Mr. Zhao, Sun Qiyang smiled but made no comment on Shi Ying’s statement. He took the materials, flipped through a few pages casually, and said, “You should’ve said so earlier. Old Zhao’s winery—I know it well.”

The cold smile faded, replaced by mocking amusement. Sun Qiyang tossed Shi Ying’s materials and business card onto the table. “I hadn’t heard that Chixia recently changed ownership. Didn’t they say at the beginning of the year that they couldn’t continue and rented out their bottling line? Did they really find an investor from another province? Which investment company sent you?”