Chapter 103: Great Pressure

Chapter 103: Great Pressure

After leaving the Wei household, Li Yi finally let out a sigh of relief.

No matter what, his mission had been accomplished.

However, the thought of not seeing Wei Sanpao for a long time left Li Yi with a hint of sadness.

In this era, without high-end smart devices like mobile phones, communication was inconvenient. Only the wealthy could afford mobile phones, but even then, they were not particularly useful for him at this stage.

In a few years, when Xiaolingtong (Little Smart, an early wireless communication device) became widely available, the communication landscape would improve.

Returning to the clothing store, Li Yi was surprised to find the place bustling with activity. Not only were there many customers, but his close brothers were also present. As soon as they saw him, they quickly gathered around.

"Brother Yi, you're back? Why didn't you let us know in advance?"

"Yeah, Brother Yi, how did your trip to Haidong City go?"

"Brother Yi, where's Third Brother? We haven't seen him. Where did he go?"

Hearing their questions, Li Yi picked up a bottle of soda from the table, then led them outside to sit on the store's steps. Taking a sip, he said with a hint of helplessness,

"Your Third Brother has gone to chase his dream."

"Ah?!"

Seeing their shocked expressions, Li Yi smiled. "I don't think you'll be seeing him for a long time."

He then explained to them how Wei Sanpao had chosen to stay in Haidong City to pursue his ambitions.

Upon hearing this, Xiaowu, Weizi, Da Chu, and the others exchanged looks, falling into silence.

None of them had expected Wei Sanpao to take such a path.

In their eyes, he had always been a righteous and generous person, yet he had chosen to fight for his future in a distant place. If they hadn't heard it directly from Li Yi, they would have found it hard to believe.

After a long silence, Da Chu was the first to speak. "Brother Yi, what exactly is this 'dream' you're talking about?"

"Yeah, Brother Yi, why do so many people work so hard for their dreams?"

Hearing this, Li Yi smiled, patted Da Chu on the shoulder, and said,

"Da Chu, remember this: Even if you live in the gutter, you still have the right to look up at the stars."

The moment he said that, Li Yi saw a flicker of light in Da Chu's eyes.

"Brother Yi, did you come up with that yourself?"

"Yeah, Brother Yi, that sounds really poetic!"

Li Yi shook his head with a smile. "The original line is: We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. It was said by a foreign writer."

"The meaning is simple: even when we live in dark times, we must still hold onto our dreams and pursue them unwaveringly."

Hearing this, Da Chu suddenly understood.

A New Business Venture

Li Yi then shifted the conversation, "Alright, we'll be receiving a batch of home appliances in a few days. I've decided to rent out the entire first floor of the mall and turn it into our own appliance store. You guys should finish up any pending work over the next few days because we'll be starting preparations tomorrow!"

"An appliance store?"

Da Chu was intrigued. "Brother Yi, are you serious about this?"

"Of course," Li Yi nodded. "The plan is already in motion. I'll be heading out this afternoon to secure the lease."

"Alright! We'll follow your lead, Brother Yi!"

Preparation for the Appliance Store

Over the next few days, Li Yi was fully occupied with setting up the appliance store.

The first step was finding the right location.

A home appliance store couldn't be placed in a remote area. It needed to be situated in a high-traffic mall—not just for customer convenience, but also to showcase credibility.

In this era, people didn't trust just any merchant when purchasing expensive home appliances. With no proper consumer protection laws, after-sales service was often unreliable. As a result, customers preferred to buy from large shopping centers that projected a sense of security.

After careful consideration, Li Yi decided to rent a space in Lianhua Plaza, one of the busiest shopping malls in the city.

Not only did it have excellent foot traffic, but his prior business dealings with the mall's property manager allowed him to negotiate a favorable rental deal.

Li Yi secured a spacious 800-square-meter area on the first floor. Although the annual rent was 100,000 yuan, he knew it was a worthwhile investment.

After all, a decade later, even an 80-square-meter store in this location would cost 100,000 yuan per year. At this stage, getting 800 square meters for the same price was an absolute bargain.

Once the lease was signed, things moved quickly.

Construction & Renovation: Li Yi hired Lao Liu's team to renovate the space.

Business Licensing: Li Yi personally handled the paperwork.

Staff Recruitment: He formed both a sales team and an after-sales team.

For the sales team, Li Yi transferred the talented Liu Tingting from his clothing store and recruited over a dozen additional saleswomen, ensuring they were well-trained in product knowledge and customer service.

Selling appliances didn't require deep expertise—just a solid understanding of the product's features, advantages, and basic sales techniques. Li Yi was confident that his team would perform well.

However, the after-sales team was more challenging.

1. Delivery Team: Li Yi contacted his uncle, Li Fengnian, to recruit 20 hardworking laborers from a recently laid-off meat processing factory.

2. Installation & Repairs: Li Yi hired an experienced appliance repair master at a high salary and assigned him a team of young apprentices.

Within a single week, the Jianlin Home Appliances Exhibition and Sales Center - Jiangcheng Branch was officially established.

Now, all that remained was the arrival of the goods and the grand opening!

Financial Pressure

Despite everything progressing smoothly, both Li Yi and Xu Qingnan felt immense pressure.

Over the past few weeks, Li Yi had been burning through money at an alarming rate.

From leasing the store to hiring staff, he had already invested over 200,000 yuan—all while the store was still completely empty.

Additionally, the operational costs were staggering.

The appliance store alone now had over 45 employees.

The average monthly salary was 150 yuan per person, totaling at least 7,000 yuan per month (not including commissions).

Factoring in rent, utilities, and other expenses, the store needed at least 20,000 yuan per month just to stay afloat.

Even though the clothing store was profitable, such enormous expenses were beginning to strain their finances.

And that wasn't even the biggest challenge—purchasing inventory required even more capital.

Although the Yin family had agreed to supply the first batch of appliances on credit, they still required payment within a limited period.

Moreover, the Yin family had imposed a three-month trial period. If sales did not meet expectations, they reserved the right to withdraw their support.

Even as a reborn entrepreneur who understood future trends, Li Yi couldn't help but feel the weight of this pressure.

Would this gamble pay off?

Only time would tell.

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