The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 632 - 631 Startup Plan

Chapter 632: Chapter 631 Startup Plan

With Zhao Dafa as her successful mentor, Shen Hongmei undoubtedly had a hundred times more confidence in her entrepreneurial plan.

Early the next morning, she drove her sports car to scout for the right storefront.

In the current economy, large household appliances like televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines, were still considered luxury items for the average family, costing thousands or even several thousands, which meant ordinary families had to think long and hard before making a purchase.

Drawing inspiration from Shen Mingzhu’s entrepreneurial idea, Shen Hongmei also wanted to make money from the rich and planned to open a high-end, tasteful specialty store.

To open such a store, not only did the location need to be good, but the area needed to be large enough as well.

Fortunately, she was not short on money and quickly found a suitable storefront.

The shop was located in a busy shopping district, with two floors, totaling about three hundred square meters, and an office building above.

Shen Hongmei had it all planned out -- the shop would be used as a showroom and retail space, while she would rent two office rooms above for office work, large business transactions, and storage.

After some bargaining, the two-story street-front shop plus the two office rooms above, with a total area of about two hundred square meters, had an annual rent of three hundred thousand.

Shen Hongmei did not accept Zhao Dafa’s financial help and hadn’t sold her stocks yet, so she could only pay a deposit to secure the shop, planning to sign the official contract and pay the rent once she sold her stocks on Monday.

She managed to sort all this out over the weekend.

First thing Monday morning, she called her broker Xiaopan, reminding them to put all her stocks up for sale as soon as Fang Zheng resumed trading.

Afterward, she drove to the food factory to process her resignation.

When she arrived at the factory just after nine-fifteen, it was the start of the workday, but the office area was deserted.

There was a meeting every Monday morning, so the office staff had gone to the conference room for the meeting.

In the entire administrative office, only Wen Xiaoqin was present.

She had received instructions from Shen Mingzhu beforehand to stay in the office to handle Shen Hongmei’s procedure and handover.

"Hongmei, you’re here!"

The moment Wen Xiaoqin saw Shen Hongmei, she greeted her with a smile and stood up, but her address had changed from Manager Shen to Sister Hongmei.

Shen Hongmei didn’t mind.

She preferred the title of Mrs. Zhao, and once her own company was established, she would be on an equal footing with Shen Mingzhu, receiving the esteemed title of "President Shen."

"Sister Hongmei, are you preparing to go home and enjoy life?"

While efficiently processing the procedures, Wen Xiaoqin didn’t forget to make small talk.

At this time, she was unaware of the animosity between Shen Hongmei and Shen Mingzhu, still fantasizing about Shen Hongmei putting in a good word for her so she could remove the "acting" prefix and legitimately ascend to the top of the administrative office.

"Enjoy what? I’m planning to start a small business of my own."

Hearing this, Wen Xiaoqin couldn’t help but be surprised.

The factory had been speculating about Shen Hongmei’s "vacation" for the past few days, with most rumors suggesting that Shen Hongmei was pregnant and planning to go home for a restful leave.

After all, Shen Hongmei wasn’t young, and it was her first child. If it turned out to be a son, he would inherit half of the Zhao Family’s estate; why would she need to work?

However, Wen Xiaoqin responded quickly, "Ah, Sister Hongmei, congratulations! With your skills and talent, you’re bound to make a big success."

"I’ll take your lucky words."

Shen Hongmei smiled faintly, with a subtle look of superiority from someone higher up, "I’d also like to congratulate you in advance. Once I’m gone, you’ll be the one in charge of the administrative office."

"Oh no," Wen Xiaoqin said modestly, though she was quite pleased inside. "We have plenty of talents in the administrative office; I’m just more experienced than the rest."

Especially after hearing Shen Hongmei say, "If I had to choose, I would definitely choose you."

That delighted Wen Xiaoqin so much that she couldn’t keep the smile off her face. "Sister Hongmei, to be honest, I really hate to see you go. I’ve learned a lot working by your side for so many years, even my parents think I’ve improved a lot."

"That’s because you were willing to learn."

During their mutual praise, the resignation procedures and work handover were smoothly completed.

Wen Xiaoqin was eager to bid farewell to Shen Hongmei.

```

Just as the two of them stepped out of the office, the morning meeting ended, and the staff members came out of the conference room one by one, heading back to their respective workstations.

As they passed by the administrative office, many cast surprised or inquiring glances at Shen Hongmei.

During the meeting, Shen Mingzhu had already announced Shen Hongmei’s resignation.

Shen Hongmei paid no attention to the looks from those around her and said to Wen Xiaoqin, "Xiaowen, you don’t need to see me out; I’m going to greet Mingzhu."

Hearing Shen Hongmei say this, Wen Xiaoqin quickly nodded, "Okay, Sister Hongmei, please, go ahead; I’ll get back to work."

Knock knock.

"Come in."

Upon hearing the knock, Shen Mingzhu responded without lifting her head.

It wasn’t until a pair of pink high-heeled shoes entered her field of vision that Shen Mingzhu looked up.

"Sit."

She stood up, smiling as she invited Shen Hongmei, "Tea or coffee?"

Shen Hongmei, smoothing her skirt, sat down on the sofa and smiled back at her, "Actually, there’s no need to be so polite; it makes me feel quite uncomfortable."

Shen Mingzhu was noncommittal, "Have you finished the paperwork?"

"Hmm."

There was a pause before she took the initiative to discuss with Shen Mingzhu her plans to start her own business.

She had been reluctant to talk about it before, worried that Zhao Dafa wouldn’t support her. If she boasted about it and then failed to get it started, she didn’t want Shen Mingzhu to look down on her.

"I visited the shop over the weekend; it’s on Tally Road. You’re welcome to come and support the grand opening."

"Sure, just let me know in advance so I can make time for it."

Shen Hongmei looked at her, "Aren’t you going to ask what I’m planning to do?"

Shen Mingzhu smiled, "You’re not an utter novice; you must have already made a thorough plan and prepared a scheme. You don’t need my two cents."

Shen Hongmei gave a self-deprecating laugh, "We’ve become strangers after all. You used to be like a big sister to me."

"That was then," said Shen Mingzhu. "Back then, you were my employee, but now you are Mrs. Zhao, the future President Shen."

The conversation had hit a dead end, and Shen Hongmei got up to leave with good grace, "I won’t disturb your work any longer; I just stopped by to say hello..."

Before she could finish speaking, her cell phone rang from inside her handbag.

Shen Hongmei was about to step outside before answering, but she guessed it might be the broker, Xiaopan, and instinctively took out the phone and answered.

"Hello?"

"Mrs. Zhao, Fang Zheng’s shares were relisted ten minutes ago, and as per your orders, I’ve put all the shares under your name up for sale."

Shen Hongmei breathed a sigh of relief, "How many have been sold?"

As she asked this, she couldn’t help but glance at Shen Mingzhu.

Shen Mingzhu had lost more than two million in the stock market, while she had made over a million...

"No one has taken them yet."

The words of the broker, Xiaopan, felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head.

Shen Hongmei’s smile on her face froze, "What’s going on?"

"Although Fang Zheng’s shares have been relisted, the stock price has plummeted like a stone, dropping two percentage points. It’s still falling, and investors are watching."

Hearing that no one wanted Fang Zheng’s shares, Shen Hongmei suddenly panicked.

She had an appointment with the landlord tomorrow to sign the lease and pay the rent. If the stocks couldn’t be sold, where would she find three hundred thousand?

"What happened?" Shen Mingzhu asked with concern.

Shen Hongmei instinctively looked over and met Shen Mingzhu’s bright, calm eyes, and instinctively she wanted to ask for help.

```