CHAPTER 557: CHAPTER 555: NEGOTIATION

As all ten exquisite dresses hung in Dan’s workshop, Dan only felt a wave of dizziness, his eyes somewhat overwhelmed, each garment perfect and unexpected.

Each piece was a collectible, whether in its entirety or in every detail, leaving Dan in profound admiration, like a devout adherent suddenly beholding an ultimate sacred scripture.

Whose hands had crafted these clothes?

Surely they must belong to a genius, combining tradition with a sense of the absurd, so that through these clothes, one could almost see that creator’s brilliant madness.

After staring for a long while, Dan murmured to Wan Chu’er, "Who made these clothes? I must meet him (or her)!"

Indeed, a fanatical believer, even more fervent than Mai Qiqi—Wan Chu’er thought to herself. Seeing Dan so enamored, it was time for her to make some demands. She tried to recall Xiao Bai’s negotiation tactics, able to strip an opponent down to their underwear, pondering which could be used to her advantage.

Hearing Dan’s words, Wan Chu’er smiled apologetically, "That senior doesn’t really like meeting outsiders. These dresses were just some trifles he made when he was bored, to entertain me."

This statement conveyed three implications: first, the dressmaker was not someone just anyone could meet; second, the person had a good relationship with Wan Chu’er, so much so that these stunningly sublime dresses were made during their idle moments; third, if these were just casual creations, how stupendously skilled must the person be, not to mention how stunning their serious work would be!

Upon deducing all this, Dan’s eyes shone even brighter, no longer concerned with his usual posturing and fiercely asked Wan Chu’er:

"Let me meet him just once, and your friend can intern here at any time."

Wan Chu’er chuckled, "After returning that day, I called that senior and mentioned a colleague wanted to discuss his craft with him, but he declined. How about you choose any of these dresses and I’ll gift it to you as compensation?"

"No way," Dan immediately refused. One dress couldn’t possibly equal the value of a conversation with the master.

Wan Chu’er shrugged, "That elder is quite resolute, it would be very, very complicated to change his mind."

Complicated? That meant it wasn’t impossible then?

Dan looked at Wan Chu’er from the corner of his eye, "Speak up, state your conditions!"

Hehe, a bashful smile played on Wan Chu’er’s face, and Mai Qiqi, watching from the side, internally praised her albeit outwardly showing nothing, not wanting to hold Chuchu back—Chuchu was amazing!

"After thinking it over, it’s not quite worth the effort to exchange for just one friend to intern here."

Dan looked at her indifferently. Having conditions was good; he had been too eager before, and Wan Chu’er had caught on to his eagerness. Knowing now there was room for negotiation, he regained his former arrogance, sauntering back to the dresses to examine them meticulously.

"Tell me, what would make it worthwhile for you?" he asked Wan Chu’er nonchalantly.

Wan Chu’er smiled, "Add one more person."

Dan paused for a moment, "Do you have that many friends in the fashion design field? I thought you would have some real conditions. Fine, whether it’s one sheep or two, doesn’t make much difference. But let me clarify, how much they learn here depends entirely on their own abilities."

When the time came, he’d just assign them as assistants to a couple of regular designers; it wouldn’t be any trouble for him. Dan internally scoffed, thinking it was something significant.

Wan Chu’er continued with a charming smile, "This isn’t about learning garment design, it’s about learning operational management from your studio."

"No way!" Dan rejected the idea without a second thought.

Operational management, that’s the core business secret of a studio being able to establish itself and develop further! And it could involve his customers; he didn’t want someone coming in and poaching his customers away, which wasn’t impossible.

Wan Chu’er said, "Don’t be in such a hurry to refuse! Tell me what you’re worried about. We just want to learn a bit about how a studio operates and manages, it won’t cause you any harm. If there’s anything you feel we shouldn’t know, you can simply hide it from us."

Dan’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, "Are you thinking of opening a fashion studio?"

"Ah." Wan Chu’er nodded.

Dan threw his head back, covering a laugh with delicate grace, "You think it’s so easy to open a fashion studio? Not to mention the considerable capital required, networking is the most important, and do you have a designer? Don’t tell me you plan to use that greenhorn intern you sent here as your lead designer? A fashion studio, you think just anyone can afford to open one? A mere tailor’s shop wants to pretend it’s a studio, what a joke."

Wan Chu’er looked at him earnestly and said, "Not funny at all, we’re not short of money, we have connections and we can continue to expand them. As for a designer, say if I throw a hundred million your way, would you come and be the art director for our studio?"

Uh...

Dan’s laugh suddenly stopped in his throat, unable to continue. He scanned Wan Chu’er up and down, even gave Mai Qiqi a look and chuckled twice.

"If you really want to open a studio, I could recommend a fashion designer to you, with an annual salary of a million."

Wan Chu’er smiled, "If he passes our evaluation, a million is not impossible."

After a while, Dan clicked his tongue and shook his head, "I have the least respect for you nouveaux riches who splash money around."

Mai Qiqi couldn’t help but laugh out loud, feeling that this Dan was really a character.

Dan seemed to have forgotten the previous conversation, standing solemnly in front of the evening gowns, one by one, slowly, from top to bottom, from afar to close up, scrutinizing and learning with great attention.

In fact, just looking at these clothes he could learn a lot, and it made him even more curious about the person who created such lavish garments.

Wan Chu’er and Mai Qiqi didn’t disturb him with any noise; Wan Chu’er casually picked up a magazine from Dan’s desk to browse through and found his own personal interview inside.

Ha, quite the narcissist.

Mai Qiqi stepped out of the workroom into the main hall outside, observing everything—quantity of staff, division of labor, collaboration, the functional division of the studio, and so on.

Two hours later, Dan seemed to have made up his mind, turned around, and said, "Fine, I agree to let your person come here to learn for a month. Within three days, I want to meet that senior you mentioned."

Wan Chu’er smiled, "No problem!" She called Mai Qiqi in, "Mai Qiqi, my best friend and also a partner of Time Studio. She will be responsible for the operation and management of our Time Studio in the future. I hope Teacher Dan can offer your valuable guidance."

Mai Qiqi nodded politely at Dan, extending her hand, "Teacher Dan, please offer your guidance. If possible, I would like to start learning here in three days."