At this stage, it was just the beginning for the purchasing agents. It was hardly even qualifying as an “industry.” Most of them were students studying abroad or working individuals. During festive seasons or when returning home, they would help relatives and friends by bringing back items like cosmetics, watches, and belts that were either unavailable or too expensive back home. These items were either unavailable domestically or too expensive. Asking people to help from others for purchasing with a small “tip” offered as gratitude. Generally, the service fee was around 10% of the original product price, which was considered reasonable.
Guo Jingyu had worked numerous part-time jobs during his university years, so he was familiar with the ins and outs of purchasing. Speaking of which, he owed it to someone for showing him the ropes.
That person was named Wu Xiajun, the girlfriend of Lao Cao. She was from Wenzhou and had a knack for business. Just as e-commerce began to flourish a few years later, she made a small fortune. In the story of her and Lao Cao, she had always been the one pursuing him. It was unclear what exactly attracted her to Lao Cao, but she relentlessly pursued him throughout their university years. On the other hand, Lao Cao only dreamt of being a solitary artist, barely scraping by with just enough money for paints. He rejected her advances several times until, after her graduation, she chose to stay in the capital city, still visiting him every day. It was then that Lao Cao finally relented and agreed to be with her.
Guo Jingyu practically witnessed their entire journey together. He would often joke with Wu Xiajun, saying, “Jie, you’re so beautiful and wealthy, you could have anyone you want. Why bother with this hard nut to crack?”
Wu Xiajun replied, “What does a little kid like you know about matters of the heart? Can I really control my feelings?”
At that time, Guo Jingyu just started studying at the Academy of Fine Arts, while Li Tongzhou stayed behind at school to continue his studies. They were in a long-distance relationship, and Guo Jingyu was also short of money. So, he worked for Wu Xiajun to earn some pocket money, hoping to save up enough to visit Li Tongzhou a few times.
But later, when Li Tongzhou encountered some trouble, the money Guo Jingyu had saved became useless.
It took him several years to realize the true meaning behind Wu Xiajun’s words from back then – that matters of the heart were something beyond his control.
In 2005, when Wu Xiajun was still pursuing Lao Cao at the Academy of Fine Arts, she genuinely treated him well. She knew he was financially tight and didn’t want to do anything besides painting. She practically ran the entire studio for him. Without her, Lao Cao, a poor art student who only knew how to handle paint and charcoal, wouldn’t have had a clue about business matters.
Wu Xiajun didn’t spend much time in the studio, but she made sure to visit Lao Cao every weekend, also taking the opportunity to help him with his accounts.
When Wu Xiajun arrived, Guo Jingyu followed her downstairs to Lao Cao’s small office area, rolling up his sleeves and saying, “Jie, let me help you.”
Wu Xiajun only saw him twice and knew Guo Jingyu as the new substitute teacher hired by Lao Cao’s studio. Despite being just a student, Lao Cao held him in high regard, often praising him whenever they met. So, Wu Xiajun had a favorable impression of Guo Jingyu. In addition, with his sweet-talking manner, addressing her as “Jie” every time, Wu Xiajun found herself in good spirits whenever she saw him. She nodded and said, “Sure, you can help me double-check.”
As Guo Jingyu helped, Wu Xiajun efficiently worked on the reports and cross-checked quickly. In no time, they finished the task at hand.
Taking advantage when she was free, Guo Jingyu started a conversation with her. “Jie, are you interested in working together on a small business?”
Wu Xiajun smiled. “You’re getting into business too? Alright, tell me about it, I’m listening.”
Guo Jingyu explained the concept of purchasing agents to her. With Gu Yu abroad, they could organize the domestic operations together. All the necessary conditions were in place. They just need to start.
He knew that he had learned everything from Wu Xiajun, who had taught him the basics of purchasing. While the concept of global shopping platforms like Taobao’s Global Buying emerged two years later, Guo Jingyu proposed a fusion of the two approaches. “Typically, in purchasing, you collect payment upfront, then buy the items according to the shopping list provided. But that’s a bit slow. I suggest opening an online store, regularly announcing batches of popular products for pre-order, collecting deposits, and then purchasing them in bulk. We can earn a service fee and the price difference. Jie, there’s huge profit potential in cosmetics, especially those from H countries. Sometimes, the markup can be over 30%.”
Wu Xiajun’s eyes lit up. “Yes, in this way, we can also know the approximate demand and avoid overstocking.”
Guo Jingyu continued, “More than that for the deposit, I suggest collecting full payment and clearly stating a 7-day return policy for unopened items.”
Wu Xiajun paused for a moment, puzzled. “A 7-day return policy? Doesn’t that mean we’re working for nothing? I’ve heard others usually collect deposits of 10 or 20 yuan.”
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She realized she had underestimated Guo Jingyu. From the beginning, he didn’t just want to have a single profit from becoming a purchasing agent. He saw the potential in the turnover margin, using the funds from purchasing for thin-margin, high-volume sales. In addition by collecting deposits upfront, although there was a risk of returns, those funds would serve as sufficient working capital during the 7-day period between payment and shipment.
Guo Jingyu added, “Jie, we can register a company store. You can look up the specific process. Having an official storefront will also increase mutual trust.” Nowadays, it is relatively easy to register a company store. In a dozen or so years, a popular online store could easily fetch a price close to a million, not inferior to physical stores. The first one to try something new always reaps the most benefits.
After observing him for a while, Wu Xiajun suddenly asked, “Where are you from?”
Guo Jingyu replied, “I’m from Qizhou.”
Wu Xiajun remarked, “I couldn’t tell. You seem more like someone from Wenzhou than I do.”
Guo Jingyu chuckled. In business, he truly owed his start to Wu Xiajun. In a way, he could even be considered half a Wenzhou native.
Wu Xiajun teased him, “With everything you’ve planned out so thoroughly, aren’t you afraid I’ll steal the storefront from you halfway through?”
Guo Jingyu sat there, looking at her seriously. “Jie, I was just about to talk to you about this. Let’s be clear from the start. I’d like us to sign a contract before we start doing business, as close as siblings are, business is business.”
Wu Xiajun nodded. “Of course. Tell me, let’s discuss the specific terms.”
Guo Jingyu explained, “For this storefront, in the initial stage, we split profits 70-30, with me taking 70%. The duration would be approximately three years.”
Wu Xiajun pondered for a moment, then nodded. “Agreed.”
Guo Jingyu continued, “After three years, the storefront will belong to you.”
Wu Xiajun was stunned by this statement, staring at him in disbelief, unable to understand. She thought she had misheard for a while. “What did you say?”
Guo Jingyu smiled. “I mean, after three years, this store will be entirely yours. Jie, you gotta work a bit harder. Let me tag along with you and earn some more money in the first few years.”
But after hearing his proposal, Wu Xiajun refused. “This won’t work, Jingyu. You might not realize how much profit is involved here. Think it over carefully, and let’s discuss it again. Otherwise, we might not even be able to remain friends in the future.” Coming from a family of merchants, her ancestors had dealt in sugar and tea making huge profits. Money had a way of stirring up trouble, and she didn’t want any resentment to arise between them in the future, especially since she quite liked the teen before her.
However, Guo Jingyu didn’t care. His past earnings far exceeded what was involved here. After all, artworks auctioned off could easily fetch millions and commissions are also big. He wanted to share this money-making method with Wu Xiajun as a form of gratitude. Firstly, because she had taught him the ropes back then, and this path was originally hers to take. Secondly, he genuinely liked Lao Cao and Wu Xiajun as a couple.
Back in college, Wu Xiajun had her eye on Lao Cao. She chose to stay in the capital city with him, and without her support behind the scenes, Lao Cao wouldn’t have been able to maintain his artistically innocent demeanor, immersing himself in his creations. Later on, when Lao Cao first approached Guo Jingyu to sell a painting, it was for this girl. He said he wanted to buy her a diamond ring to propose.
The artist Lao Cao blushed as he said these words.
Guo Jingyu helped him sell a painting at a very good price in the gallery, exchanging it for a sparkling diamond ring.
On the day of Lao Cao’s proposal, Guo Jingyu was also there. He watched as Lao Cao slipped the diamond ring onto Wu Xiajun’s finger and hugged her, it felt like a missing piece in his heart was somewhat filled.
He too had a ring, one that he had yet to give away.
Seeing him silent for a while, Wu Xiajun softly called out to him, “Jingyu?”
Guo Jingyu came back to his senses and smiled as he said, “Jie, how about this? Let’s start with a small collaboration, just to test the waters. It’ll give you some peace of mind.”
The “peace of mind” Guo Jingyu mentioned was a batch of eyebrow pencils.
Cosmetics in H country are abundant and cheap. Brands release new products very frequently. Guo Jingyu had his cousin Gu Yu check a few times and managed to inquire about some excess makeup products. From the list of cosmetics reported by Gu Yu, he selected this batch of eyebrow pencils.
There were approximately forty thousand units of eyebrow pencils, priced at eighty cents each.
When Wu Xiajun heard the price, she was stunned. She herself used cosmetics, and even domestically produced eyebrow pencils cost over ten yuan now, while foreign ones were even more expensive.
After confirming that the cosmetics were genuine and from a well-known makeup brand, Wu Xiajun didn’t hesitate. She immediately took out the money and joined forces with Guo Jingyu to purchase the batch.
Guo Jingyu initially thought about withdrawing some money from the stock market, but after thinking about it, he decided to call Li Tongzhou instead. He asked for fifteen thousand yuan.
Without a second thought, Li Tongzhou transferred the money to his bank account. Along with the money came a question, “Is this enough?”
Guo Jingyu replied with a smile, “It’s enough. I’ll pay you back in a while.”
The response came quickly, “No need, I still have more. Just let me know if you need it.”
Guo Jingyu used this money, splitting the payment with Wu Xiajun. As they waited for the shipment of eyebrow pencils to arrive, they worked together to set up the online store. Wu Xiajun insisted on registering the store jointly, but Guo Jingyu looked innocent as he said, “Jie, I’m only seventeen.”
Wu Xiajun was confused and asked, “What’s wrong with being seventeen?”
Guo Jingyu explained, “I’m underage.”
Wu Xiajun: “…”
As Wu Xiajun spent more time with him these days, she realized that he knew more than she did, and was smart as a fox. She had forgotten that he was still just a kid.
In the end, the store was registered under Wu Xiajun’s name. Guo Jingyu happily took a back seat, voluntarily staying behind to help decorate the online store, while Wu Xiajun handled the paperwork. After all, registering a company store was somewhat troublesome.
Guo Jingyu had excellent aesthetics and software skills. He decorated the store with magnificent style and a diverse range of products. Compared to other online stores from the same period, which were still very simple, theirs seemed like a large department store.
When Wu Xiajun returned and saw it, she praised, “Well done, Jingyu! Your sense of aesthetics is really impressive!”
Guo Jingyu proudly replied, “Of course. In the future, I’ll be joining Qingmei. Qingmei is famous for its design. See, my design skills are pretty good, aren’t they?”
Wu Xiajun chuckled, “You haven’t even taken the exams yet, and you’re already boasting like this.”
Guo Jingyu was particularly confident. “It’s just a matter of time!”
They discussed the price of the eyebrow pencils together. Wu Xiajun was unsure, so Guo Jingyu suggested, “How about pricing them at 19.9 yuan each, with free shipping even for single purchases? What do you think?”
This price was almost half of the usual, aligning closely with what Wu Xiajun had in mind. She inquired, “Even for single purchases, free shipping?”
Guo Jingyu affirmed confidently, “Absolutely. Free shipping is very important.”
As they were discussing, they heard a knock on the door and looked up to see Lao Cao standing there.
Lao Cao held two boxes of food and raised them slightly, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I realized it’s mealtime, so I came to ask if you guys have eaten. By the way, Xiajun, what have you been busy with? I haven’t seen you at the studio these past few days. The students have been asking about you, saying they miss you…”
Guo Jingyu’s expression was strange as he glanced at Wu Xiajun, who tightly pursed her lips, attempting to hide the smile that had almost formed on her face but couldn’t hide the sparkle in her eyes.
Lao Cao placed the food boxes on the table and sat behind them, watching as they eat.
While Guo Jingyu and Wu Xiajun discussed matters, Lao Cao tried to listen in, hoping to join the conversation. When he realized he couldn’t contribute, he sat quietly, feeling dejected, like a lost duck, tilting his head back, waiting for the girl in front to glance back at him.
Wu Xiajun had been eating quickly, but as soon as she noticed Lao Cao, her pace slowed down. She blushed after a couple of bites and turned to him. “Have you eaten?”
Lao Cao shook his head, then nodded quickly. “Yes, I have. I ate here too. The taste is quite mild. Doesn’t suit your taste?”
Wu Xiajun nodded. “It’s pretty good, but there’s soup.”
Lao Cao immediately stood up and exclaimed, “You stay put, I’ll go buy water. Mineral water, right?”
Wu Xiajun nodded, and as soon as Lao Cao left, she turned back to Guo Jingyu excitedly and whispered, “Did you see that just now? Does Lao Cao have feelings for me too? He kept looking at me. Oh, I couldn’t even eat properly. That’s so unladylike!”
Guo Jingyu continued eating calmly, but he felt like he was being fed a spoonful of dog food. Returning the favor politely, he said, “It’s okay. When you’re in a relationship, you should relax a bit. Don’t be so uptight. It’s not authentic. For example, my partner and I, we’ve always been ourselves around each other, even when we’re together. It feels very natural.”
Wu Xiajun happily replied, “Once I have someone hooked, I’ll be my true self too.”
K: Sorry for the delay everyone here’s this week and additional 2 bonus chapters (⊃ ˃̣̣̥ ᴖ ˂̣̣̥ ⊂)
