Chapter 132: Stealing Their Business—Just Do It!
Qian Lin and her team were busy until past 10 p.m., only managing to send off the last batch of vegetable-buying tenants then.
They had been so swamped that the planned vegetable feast never happened.
Seeing them exhausted, sitting in the hallway drinking water and resting, Su Tao felt a pang of guilt.
“You’ve all worked hard. Tomorrow afternoon, take half a day off—go have some fun at Panliu Mountain. And I’ll have Master Qin prepare us a feast.”
Everyone immediately perked up, smiling and thanking their boss.
Once they dispersed, the busiest person became Qian Rongrong. She couldn’t tolerate leaving accounts unsettled overnight. She fired up her computer and furiously typed away, making sure every transaction from the plantation was accounted for. Only when she had everything sorted did she breathe a sigh of relief.
“All done! Sister Tao, take a look—today’s total vegetable sales reached over 60,000 federal credits!”
Su Tao, who had been yawning, leaned over absentmindedly—but the moment she saw the number, she snapped awake.
She had priced the vegetables based on the rates at Dongyang Plantation. Each type had a different price, but on average, they sold for around 800 federal credits per pound.
It wasn’t cheap. Labor and resource costs were high, and if she lowered the prices too much, she wouldn’t even be able to pay Qian Lin, Wu Zhen, and the others.
Even so, she had underestimated the purchasing power of Taoyang’s tenants. All 80 pounds of vegetables had been completely sold out in a single day.
At this rate, based on current production and sales, the plantation alone could generate 200,000 to 300,000 federal credits per month.
And that was just internal consumption. If they started selling externally, the revenue could be astronomical.
Wu Zhen was truly a rare talent—single-handedly creating Taoyang’s first pillar industry.
Once the business grows, the plantation will not only be able to supply sufficient vegetables both internally and externally but will also hire more people, providing more job opportunities.
In a way, this would give more people a chance to survive.
Everyone present felt a surge of excitement as if they could already see a bright future ahead.
Just then, Ma Dapao, who had finished work, dropped by to see Su Tao. He assumed the office building would be empty at this hour, but to his surprise, all the management staff were still there. Feeling a bit awkward, he scratched his head and said:
“You guys are still working? That’s tough, really tough. I’m here to see Boss Su.”
Qian Lin and Zhuang Wan stared at him as if they’d seen a ghost. “How did you get here?”
Wasn’t it only possible to travel between locations if Boss Su personally escorted them?
And they had been watching Su Tao the whole time—she hadn’t left their sight!
Ma Dapao stammered, “Uh… there’s a door…”
Su Tao quickly added Qian Lin, Zhuang Wan, and Qian Rongrong to the teleportation list, then continued, “There’s a teleportation gate behind Taoyang. From now on, you can travel between the two places through that door without needing me to escort you.”
Zhuang Wan, who had always treated Panliu Mountain as a vacation getaway, was overjoyed.
“Suddenly, I have vacation freedom! From now on, I’ll visit Panliu Mountain every day after work and chat more with Manager Ma.”
Ma Dapao chuckled awkwardly, “Oh, no, no, I should be the one learning from you.”
Qian Lin was also pleased—this would make transportation between Taoyang and the transport team much more convenient.
Qian Rongrong was full of anticipation. This would make checking the financial records of Panliu Mountain much easier.
After a lively discussion, everyone went their separate ways. Once they had all left, Su Tao turned to Ma Dapao and asked, “It’s pretty late. What did you want to talk to me about?”
Ma Dapao had been holding it in for a while. Now, he could finally say it.
“Boss, you really called it. The Old Station actually sent someone to talk to me—none other than their second-in-command, Qu Jingyun. That woman has a sharp tongue! The moment she arrived, she asked me outright if we were selling fuel and water resources.”
“I told her yes, and her face immediately turned cold. She bluntly gave me two choices: either we stop selling fuel and water, or we can continue, but half of our profits must go to them. Otherwise, they’ll make sure we regret it…”
“Boss, this is blatant extortion and threats! Who could tolerate that? I refused on the spot. That Qu woman didn’t say another word—she just turned and left.”
Su Tao was furious.
“I originally thought that if the Old Station approached us with a better attitude, I wouldn’t mind cooperating with them. I’d even be willing to wholesale fuel and water to them at a slightly lower price so they could also have a share of the market. If we built trust over time, we could even develop together. Expanding the market would be a win-win for both sides.”
“But now, it’s clear that Tan Yong’s so-called negotiations were just a facade to cause trouble for us. In reality, they’re declaring war on us. What a bunch of short-sighted fools!”
Ma Dapao fumed, “Boss, since they don’t respect us, let’s stop playing nice. We’ll steal their business—let’s just go all out!”
Su Tao gritted her teeth. “Put out an ad—any customer from the Old Station gets a 10% discount on room rates. Plus, every person will receive a free 500ml bottle of drinking water daily.”
Ma Dapao’s anger instantly vanished. He swallowed hard and said, “Boss… this is ruthless. It’s a direct hit on the Old Station. Tan Yong is going to be absolutely livid.”
Panliu Mountain’s accommodations were already leagues ahead of the Old Station’s, yet the prices were nearly the same.
Now, with the 10% discount, Panliu Mountain would be cheaper than the Old Station.
On top of that, with free 500ml drinking water per person… the customers would go crazy, and Tan Yong would lose his mind.
Su Tao sneered, “If it drives him mad, all the better. He’s been doing business for years, but I think he’s gotten too arrogant. That’s it—if he wants to retaliate, let him come at us. I’ll take him on. In the meantime, you stay put at Panliu Mountain. As long as you’re here, no one can touch you.”
Ma Dapao felt reassured.
He was still a bit wary of the Old Station’s retaliation. After all, they had been established for years and had their own group of ability users and armed forces.
But Su Tao’s words were like a shot of adrenaline, instantly putting him at ease.
Su Tao waved him off. “Now go. Not only will Panliu Mountain continue operating as usual, but we’ll make an even bigger splash. We need to spread the word about our high-quality services and great benefits. If we keep too low a profile, people will think they can walk all over us.”
“You got it!”
