Chapter 382: Socializing
Chapter 382: Socializing
On Sunday, Nie Zan picked up Lu Jiaxin as promised to play golf. This time, they were not alone but were joined by three of Nie Zan's friends.
One of these friends was married, while the other two had girlfriends. Knowing that Nie Zan was bringing Lu Jiaxin along, they also brought their wives and girlfriends.
Nie Zan introduced the three men to Lu Jiaxin: Hu Zhifeng, the eldest son of the Nanfeng Group, which had interests in real estate, shipping, and finance; Fu Yan, whose family owned a bank and, like Nie Zan's family, was involved in multiple industries; and Tao Yong, who came from the super-wealthy Huang family in Nanyang and ran an investment company in Hong Kong.
Lu Jiaxin greeted them one by one.
Hu Zhifeng, Fu Yan, and Tao Yong also introduced their wives or girlfriends to the group. All three men were well aware of Nie Zan's intentions with Lu Jiaxin, and knowing that he was serious about marrying her, they were very friendly and welcoming.
The other halves of these three men were all heiresses in their own right: Hu Zhifeng's wife, Zong Simeng, came from a family in the construction industry; Fu Yan's fiancee, Yu Metong, was from a family that dealt in luxury goods and beauty products; and Tao Yong's girlfriend, Shi Xinyu, also from Nanyang, had a family background in rubber manufacturing and property development.
Zong Simeng knew that Lu Jiaxin was from the mainland, but seeing as she now held two companies in her hands, no one would dare look down on her.
Tao Yong was an avid golfer, and after everyone had been introduced, he suggested with a smile, "Azan, it's been a while since we last played. Let's have a game."
Nie Zan was more than happy to oblige, and the other two men also agreed.
Hu Zhifeng joined in with a laugh, "How much should we wager today?"
These so-called wagers were just friendly bets, and they didn't intend to gamble large sums. Of course, their idea of a small bet would still be a substantial amount to the average person.
Yu Metong had no interest in these masculine games, so she enthusiastically pulled Lu Jiaxin to the side and asked, "Miss Lu, your 'Green Forest' store is doing incredibly well. How did you come up with such a brilliant idea?"
Shi Xinyu, who had been unaware of this, exclaimed in surprise, "Miss Lu, you're the one behind the wildly popular 'Green Forest' in Hong Kong?"
Lu Jiaxin nodded, "Yes, 'Green Forest' is my company."
After acknowledging this, she turned to Yu Metong's question, "I traveled to Europe last year and noticed that many of the fashionable clothes there were sold separately. Often, you'd buy a piece of clothing from a store, only to find that they didn't have matching pants or shoes to go with it. After visiting many such stores, I had an idea to bring all these brands together under one roof, and I knew it would be a hit."
Shi Xinyu was amazed, "You acted on your idea so quickly?"
Lu Jiaxin smiled, "I've had this idea for a while, since last year, actually. But I didn't have the funds back then. Fortunately, I made some money in the foreign exchange market, so I was able to make it happen."
Shi Xinyu said enviously, "Miss Lu, Mr. Nie is so good to you. Foreign exchange trading is so profitable, but Tao Yong won't let me do it, saying it's too risky."
As she spoke, her tone turned slightly complaining.
Lu Jiaxin agreed with Tao Yong's assessment, "Trading forex is indeed very risky. If you don't understand the market and blindly follow trends, you could easily lose everything. But you can give him the money and let him trade for you. I started by trading a small amount myself, and then Nie Zan helped me with a bit more."
The first two trades had been her own attempts, and it was only the third time that Nie Zan had helped her. That third trade had seen the biggest drop, losing thirty percent, but they had still made a substantial profit.
Shi Xinyu had indeed given Tao Yong money to trade forex, but her profits were meager, only a little over thirty percent.
Yu Metong, thinking of Lu Jiaxin's bold promotional strategies for 'Green Forest', asked, "Jiaxin, I'm thinking of starting a jewelry company. Are you interested in partnering with me?"
Lu Jiaxin was taken aback, not expecting this Miss Yu to propose a partnership so soon after meeting. As she didn't know much about the other woman's background, she was hesitant to agree immediately and instead joked, "Your family is already in the jewelry business. If you start another jewelry company, won't people suspect you of competing with your own family?"
Yu Metong explained that she had studied jewelry design in university and wanted to create her own brand. However, she lacked the confidence to go it alone and was looking for a partner.
Lu Jiaxin, noticing that Yu Metong was avoiding her question, smiled and praised her idea but politely declined the offer of a partnership.
Zong Simeng, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, seized the opportunity to change the subject when she noticed Lu Jiaxin sidestepping Yu Metong's proposal. "Miss Lu, Mr. Nie has mentioned to my husband several times how delicious your braised beef is. I hope you don't mind me asking, but could you share the recipe with me?"
Lu Jiaxin wasn't foolish; she understood that Zong Simeng was helping her out of an awkward situation. Otherwise, why would someone from such a wealthy family as the Hu family need a recipe? They could easily buy any secret recipe they wanted. "Of course," she replied. "I'll write down the process for you later, and you can follow it to make it yourself."
Zong Simeng thanked her.
Shi Xinyu, surprised, asked, "Miss Lu, you know how to make braised beef?"
Lu Jiaxin smiled and nodded, "Even though I'm an only child, my mother always believed that a girl should know how to cook and sew, or else it would reflect poorly on her when it came time to marry. So, from a young age, she taught me how to make noodles, and I started learning how to cook when I was seven. That's why I can make everything from dumplings and steamed buns to stir-fried dishes."
Shi Xinyu couldn't comprehend this, "My mother always said that a girl's hands are her second face and should be well-cared for, so she never let me do any housework when I was growing up."
This wasn't wrong, but it was a privilege that came with wealth. Only heiresses like Shi Xinyu could afford to avoid household chores; ordinary girls had to do them all.
Lu Jiaxin smiled, "My mother always said that having more skills is never a bad thing. And it's thanks to her teachings that I was able to support myself by selling snacks when I fell on hard times later on."
Shi Xinyu's mouth fell open in an 'O' shape, "You've had hard times? What happened?"
Lu Jiaxin vaguely mentioned an accident and losing her memory, "For over a month, I relied on selling snacks like steamed buns and dumplings to survive. It wasn't until the bruises faded and my memory returned that I was able to go home."
Zong Simeng, who was aware of Lu Jiaxin's background, nodded, "Your mother is right. It's important to have basic life skills; you never know when they'll come in handy."
Without those skills, Lu Jiaxin would undoubtedly have suffered even more.
Lu Jiaxin laughed, "Cooking can be a great hobby, but if you don't have a talent for it, don't force it. I think the most important thing for a girl is to have a skill she can fall back on, so that even if she finds herself in a difficult situation, she can still find work and support herself. These are just my humble thoughts; please don't laugh if they're not well-expressed."
Yu Metong agreed, "A woman should have her own career, so that no one dares to look down on her."
And the woman before them, Lu Jiaxin, was the perfect example of this.
(End of Chapter)
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