The Young Lady is a Bit Unruly [Fragrant Harbor] - Chapter 66: Spilling the Beans

Chapter 66: Spilling the Beans

Returning to the bedroom to fetch the bronze tablet, or more accurately, the bronze box.

After comparing the bronze box to the coin slot, its diameter was a perfect match.

Should they try inserting it?

Ye Baoling worried, What if we can’t retrieve it after putting it in?

Ye Huaizhang said, Let’s insert it first. We’ll figure out how to retrieve it if needed.

Holding the bronze box solemnly, they attempted to insert it, but it got stuck with about half a millimeter left.

No matter how hard they pushed, it wouldn’t go further.

The bronze box could rotate and slide inside. Ye Baoling remarked, It feels like the gear of a safe’s combination lock.

They retrieved the bronze box, flipped it over with the bottom facing up and the opening down, and tried inserting it again.

This time, it wouldn’t even go in.

This confirmed that the bronze box was the key to opening the door and that their initial orientation was correct.

Flipping the box back to its original position, they encountered the same issue.

Ye Huaizhang shone a flashlight and leaned in to observe. After inserting the bronze box into the slot, there was a gap of a few millimeters above it.

We previously speculated that this bronze box was meant to hold the Ugly King Jade Pendant. I recall the jade pendant being slightly thicker than the box. If all three Ugly King Jade Pendants were placed inside, a few millimeters of the jade should still be visible above the box. Ye Huaizhang pointed to the gap above the slot. It should align perfectly here.

Right, inserting the bronze box with the Ugly King Jade Pendants inside should make the dimensions just about right.

The Ugly King Jade Pendants were stored in a bank safety deposit box, so they had to wait until morning to retrieve them and test whether the height matched.

They returned home to rest.

Early the next morning, Ye Baoling went to the bank to retrieve the two Ugly King Jade Pendants. Their guess was correct—the bronze box was indeed designed to hold them, fitting perfectly.

Unfortunately, they were still missing the Ugly King Jade Pendant from the Oldest Branch to complete the circular set.

They tried inserting the bronze box with the two jade pendants inside, and the height matched exactly.

Collecting all three Ugly King Jade Pendants should unlock the bronze door.

This resembled the survival task assigned to her by the system, though it was unclear if there was any hidden connection.

Behind the bronze door likely lay a secret that all three branches of the family were meant to protect.

Ye Baoling joked, Could we fabricate a fake Ugly King Jade Pendant based on this curvature and insert it?

Ye Huaizhang chuckled. If counterfeiting were that easy, what would be the point of such a complex lock design? Look, the jade pendant isn’t completely smooth—it has raised and recessed patterns. Those patterns must be crucial to unlocking it.

Ye Baoling shot him a sidelong glance. Can’t you tell I was joking?

And he had to answer so seriously.

Ye Huaizhang smiled and nodded. The current situation is that we’re missing the Ugly King Jade Pendant your grandfather holds.

Ye Baoling sighed. As his granddaughter, he won’t easily hand it over to me.

The Oldest Branch wasn’t short on money, so they couldn’t buy or trade for the jade pendant from Ye Huaizhang either.

The Old Second Branch’s patriarch had passed away, and his descendants were likely as unaware of the jade pendant’s purpose as those of the Old Third Branch.

That was why Guan Lao Taijun had been able to borrow the Old Second Branch’s jade pendant so easily.

But Ye Qizu was different—he probably knew the truth.

He might even be the only living person who understood the jade pendant’s purpose.

Obtaining the jade from him would undoubtedly be difficult.

Ye Huaizhang said, No rush, we have plenty of time to think of a solution slowly.

He wasn’t in a hurry, but she was.

She only had eight months left—she had to secure the Ugly King Jade Pendant.

Ye Baoling put away the bronze box and the two pieces of the Ugly King Jade Pendant, then made a request: To get through this door, I’m contributing two pieces of the Ugly King Jade Pendant, and you provide one. You figure out how. That’s not too much to ask, is it?

Let him brainstorm a solution too—more paths might lead them to Rome sooner.

Ye Huaizhang chuckled, Both of those Ugly King Jade Pendants in your hands originally belonged to me.

Ye Baoling smiled gently, They’re mine now.

She patted him on the shoulder, Keep it up, I believe in you. If all else fails, marrying into our family might be an option.

Ye Huaizhang: …

After taking just two steps, she turned back, If you come up with a plan, remember to clue me in first. Don’t act on your own.

They couldn’t both compete for the same Ugly King Jade Pendant and alert her grandfather.

Walking behind her, he held a flashlight to light her path and suddenly asked, Have you been trying all along to get the Ugly King Jade Pendant from your grandfather?

This man still doubted her at heart.

Ye Baoling knew that any denial at this point wouldn’t dispel his suspicions. Deliberately, she stumbled and let out a soft Ouch!…

He quickly reached out to steady her, then kicked a brick in the middle of the path aside.

Ye Baoling changed the subject, assigning him a task: When you have time, come and clear away these bricks.

Ye Huaizhang agreed, I’ll tidy them up when I’m free.

Once the topic shifted, he tactfully didn’t press further.

Lisa and her husband arrived in Port City with their team, and Ye Baoling personally went to the airport to greet them.

The legendary penny-pincher Daniel, upon initial contact, wasn’t as difficult as expected.

The first day was for adjusting to the time difference, the second for touring Ye Qingtang’s factory and company, the third for business negotiations, the fourth and fifth for meeting Granny Tong and sightseeing in Hong Kong, and the sixth for preliminary decisions on cooperation.

Ye Baoling’s team colleagues accompanied them almost the entire time.

On the second day, after Yang Baozhu brought them back from the factory, they arrived at the base of Jade Dragon Mansion.

Yang Baozhu introduced, This entire building belongs to our Ye Qingtang. In Port City, there are fewer than ten companies like ours where a single group occupies a whole building.

Everyone gasped in admiration.

It was Daniel’s first time in Port City, and the level of prosperity somewhat exceeded his expectations.

The group toured the product department on the 6th floor and the sales and branding department on the 7th floor, then went up to the 29th floor, where Lin Zhong and Qu Zhengming personally received them.

At one point, Lisa pulled Ye Baoling aside and whispered, Darling, I heard from them that Ye Qingtang is your family’s business? The boss is your grandfather?

Ye Baoling quietly explained, We’re a publicly listed company. The Ye Qingtang brand has over a hundred years of history and is very reputable. You can rest assured partnering with us. And as you can see, I’m highly professional myself.

Actually, the main point of Lisa’s question was, Are you the boss’s granddaughter?

Ye Baoling was well aware of Lisa’s underlying meaning, but she sidestepped it, simply emphasizing that Ye Qingtang was a renowned brand and that she herself was very professional.

This was also an indirect way of telling Lisa that she hadn’t deliberately concealed her identity, but as a professional marketing manager, she felt it unnecessary to mention her background.

This made Lisa appreciate her even more and feel more at ease. After all, it was a project personally negotiated by Miss Ye Qingtang, so it was definitely reliable.

Of course, the reason Lisa knew about Ye Baoling’s identity was because Ye Baoling had arranged for someone to disclose it to Lisa and her husband.

If she could leverage her status, why not use it?

That afternoon, they held their first round of discussions in the 7th-floor conference room.

Daniel, who had previously gotten along quite well with them, became a completely different person once they sat down at the negotiation table.

He aggressively put forward three demands:

First, if cooperation was confirmed, L&D must have exclusive distribution rights for the entire North American market.

Second, the wholesale price must not be higher than that of local distributors.

Third, shipping costs would be borne by Ye Qingtang, i.e., the brand owner. Of course, the best approach would be for Ye Qingtang to establish a factory in the United States.

Ye Baoling quickly noted down Daniel’s demands and responded with a smile, Regarding exclusive distribution, your colleagues have already mentioned this to us before. I’ve discussed this matter with our company’s senior management. We warmly welcome L&D as the exclusive distributor for the entire North American market. However, as the exclusive distributor, you would need to bear more of the product promotion costs. The specific allocation ratio can be negotiated in detail later.

Points two and three can be addressed together. It’s acceptable for the wholesale price not to exceed that of local distributors, but we must settle on an FOB basis. That means all costs after the goods leave the local port would be your responsibility. If we were to cover shipping, customs clearance, insurance, taxes, and other fees, the wholesale price would inevitably be at least 50% higher than that of local distributors. This is the same condition our other teams are negotiating with other distributors.

Daniel’s business partner immediately seized on the key point in Ye Baoling’s words and asked with a smile, Which other distributors are you in talks with?

Ye Baoling shook her head with a smile. It’s not under my responsibility; other teams are handling those discussions. Of course, I hope our collaboration will be successful.

Their negotiation meeting lasted over two hours. When someone from Daniel’s team went to use the restroom, A Zhen hurried out to show them the way.

It wasn’t that A Zhen lacked enthusiasm; the reason she didn’t directly escort them to the restroom was that they had set up a small trap along the way.

On the copier at the corner of the hallway from the conference room to the restroom, they had placed a copy of Ye Qingtang’s communication and negotiation documents with the second-largest beverage distributor in the U.S.

This document was partially true and partially fabricated, designed to make Daniel’s team believe they had obtained accurate intelligence.

The copy included discussions about regional distribution rights and negotiations on purchase prices. The export purchase price Ye Qingtang had negotiated with the other party was 146% of the local wholesale price.

After returning to the hotel, Daniel asked his deputy, If the final purchase price is confirmed at 146% of the local wholesale price, how much can we earn?

Depends on how we set our pricing. But it would definitely be more profitable than selling Coke, his deputy joked. Of course, we might also earn nothing. What if it doesn’t sell?

Daniel thought for a moment: Over the next two days, list all our advantages that are stronger than ApexBev Distro. If you can negotiate the price down to within 130%, we’ll consider cooperation.

OK.

As expected, another round of intense back-and-forth negotiations ensued, ultimately failing to secure a deal.

Because Ye Baoling’s side held firm on pricing—she insisted on 146% and refused to lower it by even a fraction.

Business negotiations were one thing, but privately, life went on as usual—eating, drinking, and entertainment continued.

Yang Baozhu, A Zhen, and their branding department colleagues took Daniel’s team to the seaside for fun, while Ye Baoling and Gao Lizhen brought the couple to visit Granny Tong.

Granny Tong lived on the second floor of an old tenement building. Before even entering, the strong scent of incense and candles filled the air.

Upon opening the door, warm candlelight revealed a small altar room crammed with peculiar Eastern decorations and statues.

Ye Baoling had made two prior visits to coordinate the discussion topics with Granny Tong.

Granny Tong was a natural in her profession, skilled at using ambiguous language to bewitch her clients.

Combined with Ye Baoling’s on-site translation—tailoring the information to what she wanted the couple to hear—the session unfolded perfectly.

Granny Tong looked at Lisa and spoke with apparent sincerity: You have a very kind heart. Your parents couldn’t help you much, even held you back. Everything you have, you earned through your own hard work.

These words struck a deep chord with Lisa.

Yes. God. I’ve always been alone, until I met Daniel. My parents… my parents…

Lisa spread her hands helplessly, her eyes reddening at the mention of her parents.

Ye Baoling and Daniel quickly comforted her.

Granny Tong patted her hand: It’s alright. I’ll give you a protective charm. Wear it carefully, and you two will surely grow old together in happiness.

Lisa smiled like a child: Thank you, Granny Tong.

Next, it was Daniel’s turn. Lisa eagerly pulled him forward.

Granny Tong, what about him? How is he?

Granny Tong smiled at Daniel: This gentleman values wealth highly. It’s impossible for others to easily take even a copper coin from your hand.

Everyone laughed, making Daniel somewhat embarrassed.

But Granny Tong’s tone shifted: However, you have a kind heart. You like small animals, don’t you?

Daniel smiled: Yes, how did you know I like small animals?

Everyone’s aura is different. I can see a little dog’s spirit following you. It says it was your childhood companion—it got lost and always wanted to return to you. When it was killed by wild dogs, its spirit finally came back. It has been accompanying you for decades now.

Granny Tong spoke with such genuine emotion that even Ye Baoling almost believed her.

Daniel had indeed owned a puppy as a child. After it went missing, it never returned.

This was insider information Ye Huaizhang had gathered.

Ye Baoling quickly explained the concept of spirits in Eastern culture.

Daniel looked around repeatedly but saw no sign of a puppy. Still, he grew visibly tense. Can you tell me what its name was?

Granny Tong was well-prepared: I don’t understand English. The dog is white with spots.

Hearing Granny Tong describe the features of his lost puppy, Daniel was astonished: That’s right, that’s him. Is he really by my side?

He has been lingering around you, protecting you, but this isn’t good. If you’re willing, I can perform a ritual to help him reincarnate and become a lovely puppy again.

Ye Baoling further explained the concept of reincarnation.

Unexpectedly, Daniel was deeply moved after hearing this. I sincerely hope Milo can be reborn and become an adorable puppy again.

Granny Tong inevitably performed a sword dance ritual before the altar, burned paper offerings, and went through a series of fluid movements that were quite impressive.

After all, she was the Witch Doctor who had managed to impress Guan Lao Taijun – she certainly had some skills.

After completing the ritual, she gave each of them two talismans.

Lisa tactfully handed over a large red envelope. Granny Tong didn’t accept it directly, instead having her place it on the table.

Granny Tong looked at Daniel, The area between your eyebrows is dark – your financial luck has been poor recently. Although I previously had Miss Ye deliver a note to you, you didn’t heed the warning and still suffered significant losses.

After Ye Baoling finished translating, Lisa smiled wryly: When I visited Port City last time, I should have come to see you first. Perhaps I would have believed you then.

This is fate. People are like this – they must take the wrong path before they’ll believe. Granny Tong pointed at Ye Baoling, They were the same – they took the wrong path before choosing to believe in me.

Ye Baoling smiled and nodded, giving Granny Tong a thumbs-up.

The implication was that the Ye family’s business wouldn’t have developed so well without Granny Tong’s guidance.

As their conversation drew to a close, Ye Baoling asked Granny Tong if she had any advice to offer them.

Granny Tong smiled, Advice only works when given with genuine belief. When they truly believe, they can come ask me again.

Lisa couldn’t help but make a funny face at Daniel, feeling somewhat guilty. They wanted to believe, yet didn’t dare to believe too much.

It was quite contradictory.

After leaving Granny Tong’s place, Ye Baoling drove them back to their hotel.

Daniel grew restless, Did they specifically research my past…

Lisa teased him: Are you the President of the United States? Why would they specifically research you!

But I only told you about the puppy Milo. Did you tell them about it? Daniel even suspected his own wife.

Lisa resisted the urge to roll her eyes: I’m not that bored to discuss your puppy from decades ago with others.

Daniel scratched his head: How could she be so accurate? Is this the mysterious power of the East?

It was unbelievable.

My puppy has been with me for decades, my God… Daniel spoke and actually began to cry.

He hadn’t dared to show his emotions earlier at Granny Tong’s place.

Lisa comforted him: He loved you very much, dear.

By evening, Daniel had no appetite. He decided to bring his translator and visit Granny Tong again.

Granny Tong wasn’t surprised to see them enter.

Just as Ye Baoling had predicted, they were bound to return.

This time, the usually stingy Daniel prepared another large red envelope.

He sincerely hoped his puppy could reincarnate in America, near his home.

Granny Tong, ever accommodating to requests, performed another ritual for him.

After everything was done, Granny Tong told him, You are very kind-hearted. Your career has reached a bottleneck and it’s difficult to make further breakthroughs. If you trust me, seize the opportunity before you—your career will see significant improvement.

The opportunity before me?

Yes. Following the script designed by Ye Baoling, Granny Tong added, Remember, your wife is your lucky star.

She couldn’t directly mention Leaf Pure Tea, as the other party was highly guarded.

Daniel quickly grasped the implied meaning behind Granny Tong’s words.

Indeed, if not for his wife’s acquaintance with Miss Ye, he would have suffered even greater losses during this global stock market crash.

And the opportunity before him must be the collaboration with Leaf Pure Tea.

Returning to the hotel, he reconvened with his team and agreed to raise the price to 140% of the local wholesale price.

Ye Baoling’s side responded that their best offer was 145% of the local wholesale price—a mere 1% reduction.

Later, Ye Baoling brought together senior executives like Lin Zhong, Cai Yongming, and Qu Zhengming to negotiate with Daniel’s team.

They finally settled on a price of 140%, excluding import taxes and storage fees.

As for promotional efforts in the U.S., L&D would cover 70%, including securing endorsement fees from Xian Bi, while Leaf Pure Tea would handle the remaining 30%.

Two days later, both parties signed a preliminary cooperation agreement. L&D planned to purchase $80 million worth of Jasmine Iced Tea over the next year, equivalent to 580 million Hong Kong dollars.

In previous years, the bulk of Leaf Pure Tea’s revenue came from Southeast Asia, followed by Taiwan. Due to the small population in Port City, annual sales barely reached 100 million at best.

The European and American markets were still in their early stages, yet this order alone was over six times the local performance—truly astonishing.

Of course, Ye Baoling knew it was uncertain how much of this $80 million purchase order would translate into actual performance. Daniel’s willingness to sign such a large contract was largely to repay the favor she had done during the stock market crash.

Whether they could truly achieve $80 million in sales over the next year would depend on solid product quality and effective advertising.

Nevertheless, Ye Baoling leveraged this order for extensive media promotion, and Leaf Pure Tea’s stock price surged in response.

Ye Qizu, revitalized and elated, gathered the entire family, especially inviting Ye Qizong and his sons, for a meal at the Hall of Flourishing Harmony.

During the gathering, Ye Qizu praised his granddaughter Ye Baoling to the skies, claiming she was unparalleled—a modern-day Zhuge Liang.

Apart from Ye Kaimin and Ye Baoling themselves, almost no one wanted to hear such praise.

Although Ye Kais and Liang Meiyun were now on Ye Baoling’s side, her overwhelming success made them uncomfortable. As long as it didn’t affect their interests, they could tolerate it.

Zheng Junni and Ye Baoxin outright refused to believe that Ye Baoling had achieved this through her own abilities. In their minds, it was almost certainly Ye Huaizhang who had secured the business for her.

In short, they believed she had traded her body for resources.

Three words summed up their opinion: shameless.

Meanwhile, Ye Kaisen still harbored resentment toward Ye Baoling for her previous Havoc in Heaven at the company, which had cost him his position as vice president and humiliated him.

In his view, this order was nothing but an empty promise—how much would actually materialize remained completely unknown.

But with Ye Qizu in high spirits, he refrained from contradicting him and spoiling the moment, merely joining the others in offering congratulations.

Ye Baoling was well aware that her relatives each had their own hidden agendas, with few genuinely wishing for her to succeed.

But she didn’t care.

Securing tangible results was what truly mattered.

After the gathering concluded, she approached her grandfather to fulfill his initial promise.

Old man Ye Qizu, who couldn’t stop praising his granddaughter to the skies in front of outsiders, suddenly seemed eager to trample her into the ground when it came time to honor his commitment.

First of all, this isn’t your individual achievement—it’s the result of our entire team’s collective effort. You mustn’t become arrogant or complacent.

Ye Baoling truly didn’t want to waste words: Of course this isn’t solely my credit. But this is the market I developed, my performance. Without me, there would be no deal. Grandfather, if you don’t acknowledge this, I can call L&D right now and have them cancel the order.

This frightened Ye Qizu into quickly saying: I never said this wasn’t your achievement. I just want to remind you that I might have praised you too enthusiastically earlier. Your grandfather hopes you won’t become proud or self-satisfied moving forward.

This old fool!

Suppressing her anger, Ye Baoling replied: Then will you honor the terms you originally promised me? According to our agreement, if the newly developed market reaches three times the volume of our local market, I shouldn’t just become Group Vice President—I should also join the Board of Directors.

Ye Qizu clearly didn’t want his granddaughter rising too high too fast. Has the $80 million USD been received? No! That’s just an order. We must go by the actual received amount.

She knew her grandfather wouldn’t agree so smoothly!

Ye Baoling: L&D will soon wire an $8 million USD deposit. Barring unexpected circumstances, we will definitely achieve our established target. If you refuse to acknowledge the $80 million order, Grandfather, we can simply clarify in the press release that there is no such $80 million order.

Ye Qizu compromised: The Vice General Manager position at the Leaf Pure Tea branch isn’t low. Get accustomed to it first. When sales reach the target, I’ll promote you to Group Vice President. You must eat rice one mouthful at a time, and walk the road one step at a time. It took Ye Kaisen decades of struggle to reach Group Vice President, and he was barely settled before you kicked him down. For you to become Group Vice President immediately would be very unfavorable for you. Tall trees catch strong winds—understand?

She really wanted to fling her major shareholder status in her grandfather’s face, but for the Ugly King Jade Pendant, she’d temporarily endure it.

Ye Baoling lightly tapped her fingers on the chair back. Fine.

Coming downstairs, she happened to meet Zheng Junni.

Zheng Junni beamed: Baoling, congratulations! You’ve really made your father proud this time. He’s so happy he insisted I ask you—when can our family find time to go out for tea together?

If her father wanted to invite her for tea, he would never send Zheng Junni to ask.

Ye Baoling smiled and nodded: Sure, Aunt Jun. Let’s pick a weekend.

Seeing Ye Baoling seemed in good spirits, Zheng Junni quickly asked: About that investigation Liang Meiyun forced you to conduct—have you found any results? Who was it that actually leaked the information? I’ve been wrongly accused by her family this whole time—it’s truly unfair.

Ye Baoling: How could we possibly find any results? I’ve been quite busy lately and almost forgot to tell Grandfather—we truly can’t investigate this matter.

Hearing this, the smile on Zheng Junni’s face grew even brighter.

Finally putting her mind at ease, she went to discuss with Ye Baoxin before bed.

She’s really stopped investigating? Ye Baoxin still felt somewhat worried.

I asked Xing Shu. He said she only pretended on the first day, asked Ye Baoshun a few questions, and never investigated again after that. Besides, how could this even be investigated? There’s simply no starting point. Zheng Junni had initially frightened herself, afraid Ye Baoling might discover something.

Zheng Junni considered revealing the leverage she held over Ye Baoling.

Ye Baoxin worriedly said, But if you expose this directly, Dad will definitely be angry with you. Grandpa might not appreciate it either—he’ll think you’re stirring up trouble.

Zheng Junni lowered her voice: Your mother isn’t foolish; I won’t be the one to reveal it.

She already had someone in mind.

Who?

Ye Kaisen and Feng Yufang—that couple currently despises Ye Baoling to the bone. Why not have the private investigator sell the information directly to them? They’ll surely make a huge fuss over it.

That idea didn’t seem bad.

Author’s Note:

Ye Huaizhang: Do not disappoint my expectations.

Dong Jian: I don’t think any of them are reliable, Your Majesty. We might as well handle it ourselves.