CH 10

According to the location sent by Ji Liyun, Mu Qingyan arrived five minutes earlier than the agreed time at the restaurant.

This is a restaurant hidden in a high-end residential area. From the outside, it looks like a standalone villa and nothing particularly special.

When Mu Qingyan received the location, he was very curious about why this restaurant had no sign and could not be found on the map. He even suspected that Ji Liyun had invited him to someone’s home for dinner.

It was not until he asked Ye Qiqi that he found out that the owner and chef of this restaurant used to be a three-star Michelin chef, and they only serve one table for lunch and one table for dinner each day. Also, they do not open every day, and reservations must be made in advance.

The owner has a quirk and only serves regular customers he approves of, so he does not want to make his restaurant public.

This made Mu Qingyan very interested in this restaurant.

When he entered the seemingly ordinary villa, he found that the inside was magnificent, decorated and furnished in a medieval European noble style.

A tall and handsome waiter walked over and bowed slightly, “Excuse me, are you Mr. Mu?”

Mu Qingyan replied, “Yes, I am.”

The waiter led him to the spiral staircase while politely saying, “Mr. Ji is waiting for you on the second floor.”

The red carpeted staircase wound up, and the handrails were carefully carved and entwined with flower vines.

The restaurant was in the middle of the second floor, and Ji Liyun was already sitting at the table, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and looking at a document.

The owner and chef, who looked no more than forty years old, was standing next to him preparing the appetizer.

Hearing footsteps, Ji Liyun looked up and saw that it was Mu Qingyan. He smiled and said, “Ah Yan, you’re here.”

The waiter pulled out the chair for Mu Qingyan and arranged the tableware.

Perhaps because Ji Liyun had instructed that only two people would dine, the table was not large, and even sitting face to face, there was no sense of distance.

After the chef placed the prepared appetizer on the table, he went downstairs to the first-floor kitchen to prepare the main course.

The waiter took out a bottle of champagne from the ice bucket, elegantly opened it, and poured a glass for Mu Qingyan and Ji Liyun.

Ji Liyun said, “I remember you like this champagne. I brought some back from France the day before yesterday when I flew there. Apart from the one we’re drinking today, I had my assistant deliver the others to your house and hand them over to Lao Li.”

Lao Li is the butler named Li.

“Thank you.” Mu Qingyan took a sip of champagne and found that the taste was indeed very good.

This also proves that the original owner was indeed a picky eater.

Mu Qingyan and Ji Liyun clinked glasses, ate their appetizers, and exchanged a few polite words.

Fortunately, Ji Liyun didn’t often bring up their childhood memories. After all, with the original owner’s forgetfulness, there were few memories left before the age of twenty.

The waiter served the main dishes one by one, and the rhythm was just right.

Whether it was because Ji Liyun understood Mu Qingyan or because the Michelin chef was skillful, every dish was very much to Mu Qingyan’s taste.

Ji Liyun watched him eat with relish and didn’t mention work, only talking about some interesting anecdotes and encounters he had heard in his free time.

It wasn’t until Mu Qingyan swallowed the last bite of dessert and rubbed his slightly bulging belly that Ji Liyun said, “Ah Yan, you’re so thin. I didn’t expect you to have a small appetite.”

Mu Qingyan took a sip of champagne and waved his hand, “I can’t get fat, but I have a big appetite.”

Ji Liyun looked at his handsome face flushed with redness and laughed, “Well, you just have a poor alcohol tolerance.”

After speaking, he took Mu Qingyan to the rooftop terrace and had the waiter pour two glasses of water.

The terrace was like a small garden, with wooden tables and chairs in the middle and a high flower stand hanging with strings of warm yellow lights, like stars.

The warm summer breeze blew gently on their bodies, making them feel extremely comfortable.

Ji Liyun looked at Mu Qingyan and felt like he had changed, yet he hadn’t changed. Mu Qingyan still had unparalleled beauty and a model-like figure, but he wasn’t as warm as he was in his youth. He had become cold and smart.

He felt that he used to like Mu Qingyan because of their childhood friendship, but now he was attracted to him because of his unique, familiar yet strange temperament.

And Mu Qingyan’s series of actions after his divorce had indeed made Ji Liyun more interested in him.

Mu Qingyan closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. When he opened his eyes again, he found Ji Liyun looking at him. He didn’t say anything and just sat on the chair, drinking a sip of ice water.

Ji Liyun took out a file from his briefcase and handed it to him, “After dinner, let’s talk business.”

“Okay.” Mu Qingyan had this intention, and he put his water glass back on the table and opened the folder.

It was a stack of information about a piece of land covering 500,000 square meters in S city’s new development zone.

Ji Liyun went straight to the point, “During the TOP5 group summit a few days ago, Uncle Mu mentioned that the five-year plan is to expand the Mu Group’s industry and enter the real estate industry. Coincidentally, I have a piece of land in the new development zone.”

“Do you want to transfer the land of this development zone to us?” Mu Qingyan asked.

“I have this plan,” Ji Liyun adjusted his glasses and said, “but before that, I want to hear the thoughts of the heir of the Mu Group. If you were given this land, how would you use it?”

Mu Qingyan knew that good things don’t just fall from the sky, and Ji Liyun was an excellent businessman who naturally didn’t want this good land to be ruined, so he wanted to see if the Mu Group had both the ability and vision.

So he didn’t answer immediately, but carefully looked through the information in his hands, occasionally frowning slightly.

In Ji Liyun’s eyes, Mu Qingyan now exuded a strong, fatally attractive charm for no reason, but it was inexplicable and impossible to shake off.

After reading the information, Mu Qingyan closed the folder: “I think we can make an international elderly apartment with a complete set of infrastructure.”

Ji Liyun thought he would say a high-end residential area, central park, or a super-large mall, but he didn’t expect it to be an elderly apartment.

He looked at Mu Qingyan with interest and asked, “Why an elderly apartment?”

Mu Qingyan opened the folder and flipped to the page with the map, explaining, “The location of this land is very good, right next to the subway and bus stations, and there is a public hospital to the north, a large commercial plaza to the south, a park under construction to the west, and a vegetable market a hundred meters away to the east. The only thing missing is a school.”

“If I were an elderly person, it would be very convenient to live here. Medical care, grocery shopping, shopping, and strolling are all very close. For developers, they can save the construction of large-scale infrastructure and just focus on building smart buildings suitable for the elderly.”

Mu Qingyan asked the waiter for a pen and drew on the flat map of the 50,000 square meters of land: “Elderly apartments can be divided into two types. One is an affordable small unit suitable for ordinary elderly people, and the other is a large unit of about 200 square meters suitable for elderly people who like spaciousness and have better economic strength. There is no need for too many buildings. Half of the remaining space can be used to design gardens for the elderly to stroll in, as well as home service centers, hotels, cultural activity centers, canteens, and banks. As for specific planning, whether to include international kindergartens, snack shops, and the like, more detailed market research is needed to adjust according to the actual situation of S City and the development zone.”

After finishing the drawing, Mu Qingyan turned the pen and said, “As the first independent real estate project of the Mu Group, fame is more important than fortune. Making elderly apartments will definitely not have as high profits as making high-end residential areas, and it will require a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources for later maintenance. However, if it is done well, it can establish the reputation of the Mu Group’s real estate company.”

Ji Liyun clapped his hands satisfactorily. “Not bad.”

He thought Mu Qingyan had vision and was very smart, and was very professional in real estate planning. He was no longer the empty-headed vase he knew before he went abroad, who only knew how to be pretty.

Ji Liyun rolled his eyes at the suggestion: “Am I such a cruel and heartless boss? Should I eat alone and let my subordinates starve outside in the cold?”

“But isn’t your character supposed to be a tyrant CEO? Isn’t that what a CEO like you would do?” the other person responded.

“I messaged him half an hour ago to send me the second version of the contract, and he just messaged me back saying it has arrived,” Ji Liyun explained.

“Oh,” Mu Qingyan replied.

Wen, who was two years younger than Ji Liyun but looked mature and composed, handed the contract to Ji Liyun and politely greeted Mu Qingyan before leaving.

Ji Liyun handed over the contract for transferring land use rights to Mu Qingyan. “Ah Yan, do you see any clauses that need to be changed?”

Mu Qingyan carefully examined the contract, which was succinct but contained all the key elements. However, the transfer price surprised him. “Is the amount written correctly?” he asked.

“Yes, it’s 150,000 yuan per square meter,” Ji Liyun confirmed.

“150,000 yuan?” Mu Qingyan felt either Ji Liyun had gone crazy or he himself had traveled through time and space like the protagonist of a novel. He reminded him, “Even ordinary residential properties in the city center cost 150,000 yuan per square meter, and this is a piece of land in a development zone with excellent future prospects. According to market prices, even if it is sold for 500,000 yuan per square meter, it would not be excessive.”

“I know,” Ji Liyun said, almost saying, “I’m happy to do it.”

Mu Qingyan felt that President Ji was like a spendthrift, and hesitated whether he should take advantage of him.

“Don’t worry, it’s not illegal to transfer it at a low price,” Ji Liyun signed the transfer agreement and handed it to Mu Qingyan. “Although you have full authorization from Uncle Mu, you can show him the agreement before signing and stamping it.”

Mu Qingyan understood that Ji Liyun wanted to help him secure new projects and maximize the interests of the Mu Group, and help him establish the image of a qualified successor in front of Chairman Mu Yuchen.

After all, the original owner was not at all like the successor of the Mu Group from top to bottom. He was carefree, neglected his duties, and liked to write novels at any time, which was not well received by the group’s board of directors, a group of old men.

Seeing that Mu Qingyan accepted the agreement, Ji Liyun also gave him some constructive suggestions and introduced him to a professional team with extensive experience in developing nursing homes.

Mu Qingyan felt he had not earned his keep and said, “I have received so much from you and taken advantage of you greatly. Is there anything I can do for you? Just tell me.”

“Actually, there is,” Ji Liyun smiled and adjusted his glasses, “It’s the matter of you rejecting me before.”