Chapter 270: Osaka Bound

It was early Sunday morning.

Xu Chen got a call from a courier service, asking him to pick up an important package at the school’s post office using his ID.

Once he had the large envelope in hand and opened it, he discovered it was from Wu Yue in Tiancheng.

Inside were his passport with the visa already processed, along with flight and hotel bookings, and a few printed A4 sheets.

Xu Chen flipped through those pages; they were guides for traveling in Osaka, covering transportation, sights, dining, and more.

He couldn’t help but admire Wu Yue’s thoughtfulness and attention to detail.

“Yue Jie” is perfect as an administrative manager—she must handle a lot of daily hassles for Father Xu Zhiquan.

With the trip to Osaka just days away, Xu Chen thought he should head to the bank to exchange some yen.

He had a Visa card he could use there, but it was still wise to carry some cash.

In his past life, he’d visited Riziguo a few times—Tokyo, Kyoto, Okinawa, Hokkaido…

Osaka was the one place he hadn’t been.

Unfortunately, this trip was going to be rushed, so he might not have time to explore with Xie Bingran.

Still…

Once he returned from Osaka, Bing would be in Shanghai too.

It would be easier to see her then, maybe even swing by for a hug.

But “Champion” was a busy celebrity now, a big star, not the same old desk mate anymore.

Most of the time, he’d have to work around Bing Ge’s schedule and location.

Xu Chen didn’t mind at all; in fact, he felt proud and happy about it.

…

…

Xu Chen grabbed some breakfast at the cafeteria, then headed to the Tonghai Creative Design Building.

He washed some fruit, cracked open a soda, and settled in front of his computer to work on the project.

Sun Aimi was handling the design part for the “Solid Teeth Toothpaste” entry today.

Xu Chen had gone over the details with her last night, so he wasn’t too picky about the design.

After all, this wasn’t for public release—it was just for a university ad competition, not as polished as a professional agency’s final deliverable.

Sun Aimi suggested three options for the three poster designs.

The first was to use stock photos that fit the theme, like images of elderly people, adults, and kids that matched the copy and concept.

This could work well, but the challenge was finding the right photos in public stock libraries.

If they found suitable ones, they’d need to buy the commercial rights, but that usually only cost a few thousand yuan and wasn’t a big issue.

The second option was to create computer-generated illustrations; as an illustrator, Sun Aimi could handle that easily.

But Xu Chen worried it might clash with the theme’s emphasis on a heavy, realistic story feel.

The third was to focus on the text, like a bold poster design with background elements and font variations to tie into the theme.

This seemed straightforward, but it was actually the hardest to pull off well.

Done right, it would stand out; done wrong, it would look cheap.

Sun Aimi’s plan was to try all three and decide which worked best.

With the deadline approaching, she wouldn’t drag it out and would finalize with Xu Chen by the end of the day.

For now, he left that to Sun Aimi and moved on.

Xu Chen opened his document and started drafting the plan for “Kunlunshan Mineral Water”.

There was a standard approach, but he still felt some pressure.

Maybe it was because it involved Xie Bingran as a spokesperson—caring too much made him second-guess.

Nie Fei had set a budget of 1.5 million yuan, which was huge for the domestic ad industry in 2006.

This project only covered the product name, slogan, and spokesperson recommendation.

It was simpler than the previous “Fuyan Jie” pitch.

For the product name, Xu Chen was pushing for “Kunlunshan”.

Strategically, it made sense, but the trademark was likely already taken, and buying it would cost extra—convincing Jiaduobao to cover that would be tough.

He’d need to persuade the brand owners to allocate the funds…

The slogan could tie in with the name, so that part was straightforward.

As for recommending Xie Bingran, Xu Chen had to build a solid case to win over the clients.

He was confident about convincing Nie Fei.

After a few interactions, he had a good sense of “Fei Jie”‘s style.

She was sharp in marketing and branding, so selling the name and slogan shouldn’t be hard.

And as former Nike Greater China brand director, she’d quickly grasp Xie Bingran’s value.

The real challenge was helping Nie Fei convince the higher-ups at Jiaduobao…

Xu Chen had asked Chen Xinyi in the marketing department; Nie Fei reported to three bosses who weren’t from marketing backgrounds, so persuasion would take effort.

The previous Wang Laoshun slogan succeeded based on user research data that won over the executives.

Nie Fei knew it was solid early on, but she ran nationwide research to back it up for the bosses.

For this proposal, Xu Chen was preparing arguments for Nie Fei to use with upper management.

Luckily, after Wang Laoshun’s success, Nie Fei’s influence within Jiaduobao had grown.

…

…

By noon, Xu Chen had a clear outline for the plan; he’d sorted through the key logic points.

He messaged Chen Xinyi to confirm his Yangcheng trip and book time with Nie Fei:

“Does Fei Jie have time next Wednesday? I want to come to Yangcheng to present the mineral water plan.”

“She’s free Wednesday morning!”

“Great, I’ll finish the plan in the next couple of days.”

“Should I book your travel for you?”

“Yes, thanks, Xinyi!”

“No problem… I’ll mention it to Fei Jie tomorrow and have the company admin handle your arrangements.”

“Thanks a lot. See you in Yangcheng next week!”

“Yep, see you then!”

…

…

Around 3 p.m., Sun Aimi sent over some draft sketches for the different options.

Xu Chen frowned—they weren’t quite hitting the mark.

The illustration option was out; it didn’t capture the story’s depth and realism.

The bold text version looked a bit sloppy.

And for the photo option, she hadn’t found the right images yet…

This was trickier than expected.

As Xu Chen pondered how to tweak it, Sun Aimi called.

“Xu Chen, I just thought of another idea…”

“Realistic photos are still the best fit, but good ones with a narrative feel are hard to find.”

Usually, you’d hire models and set up shoots for this.

But we’re short on time…”

“So, a compromise: for each poster, focus on one key element or scene with strong visual impact.”

Without full characters or settings, I can shoot props myself.”

“For the elderly one, use a worn pair of reading glasses on an old table with the copy.”

“For the kid, a beat-up stationery case and a broken pencil to show a struggling student.”

“For the unemployed youth, a well-polished pair of shoes in a rundown room corner…”

Xu Chen listened quietly, a smile spreading across his face.

No wonder he valued “Aimi Teacher”—her expertise was spot-on.

Once Sun Aimi finished, she waited nervously for his response:

“What do you think, Xu Chen? Can we make this work?”

Xu Chen chuckled and said:

“Absolutely!”

“I can already picture it—this visual approach is spot on.”

“It’s easier to execute and will pack a real punch with its simplicity.”

Sun Aimi: “Awesome, I’ll get on it right away.”

“I can grab the props downstairs…”

“I’ll set up a quick shoot at home with basic lighting; background images are easy to find.”

Xu Chen: “Do you need any budget for shooting?”

Sun Aimi: “Nah, I’m good!”

Xu Chen added, “Aimi Teacher, you’re amazing!”

On the phone, Sun Aimi sounded a bit embarrassed:

“It’s mostly because your concept is so strong—I’d hate to see it fall short.”

Xu Chen: “I’m heading to Yangcheng on business next Tuesday; let’s grab a meal then!”

He paused briefly, deciding not to mention inviting her to the Jiaduobao pitch just yet.

Sun Aimi: “Sounds great!”

Xu Chen: “I might have a quick favor tomorrow—something simple, like sprucing up a couple of slides in a PPT.”

Sun Aimi: “No problem, I love working on your projects.”

…

…

By the time Xu Chen got back to the dormitory, it was past 11 p.m.

Lights were out, but his three roommates were still up, each with a desk lamp, glued to their computers.

Xu Chen said:

“Burning the midnight oil, huh? Playing games?”

Chen Wenyi replied:

“We’re all finishing up entries for the ad competition—the deadline’s almost here, so we’re submitting ours.”

Xu Chen nodded with a smile, feeling impressed.

His roommates were really putting in the effort.

“Study King” Jiao Tianbo turned around: “Weren’t you entering too, Xu Chen?”

Xu Chen: “Yeah, my entry should be ready tomorrow for submission.”

Jiao Tianbo nodded: “Once we’re all done, we can share and learn from each other.”

Xu Chen grinned: “Sure, let’s do that!”