I know you're insensitive, but isn't this way too insensitive

The rehearsal area at the main studio was packed with people.

Especially with the Spring Festival just around the corner.

There was no time left for preparations or adjustments—everyone was on edge.

The result? The backstage was practically a powder keg.

Now, almost no one spoke calmly; everything was communicated through shouting…

Was this their way of relieving stress?

Maybe.

But to Cao Cheng, it all seemed a bit chaotic.

Not much different from an amateur troupe.

Still,

the girls were quite a sight.

Especially during the dance and singing rehearsals—groups of young women hurried back and forth, arms full of costumes and props…

Cao Cheng’s eyes could hardly keep up.

A thought even crossed his mind: once Miracle Group’s new campus was completed, maybe he should set up an in-house performance troupe?

There was something undeniably captivating about song and dance.

A teahouse…

Hmm!

A place to relax with tea, music, and performances.

Now that would be the life.

……

February 13th.

New Year’s Eve!

For the first time in three years, Cao Cheng wasn’t home for the celebrations.

Back in Zhonghai, Ren's mother was cooking while Old Cao helped out. The sisters were busy putting up spring couplets and hanging lanterns, their laughter filling the air.

This was how it always had been.

But this year, the house felt like something was missing.

"That brat of a brother can’t even bother to call?" The Fourth grumbled under her breath as she worked.

The Third, the most doting of them all, quickly came to Cao Cheng’s defense. "He’s probably busy. He’ll call when he’s free."

"What could he possibly be busy with?"

The Fourth shot her a sidelong glance and huffed. "He’s been running around with Lingling having the time of his life."

She muttered, "He was just invited to watch the Spring Festival Gala as an audience member. Did he really need to fly out a whole month early? Is the live show that amazing? So uncultured, honestly!"

The Third chuckled. "Well, you had nothing to do either. Why didn’t you go with him?"

"Me? Who—who says I had nothing to do? My company’s swamped with year-end bonuses. I had to oversee everything!"

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. "Meanwhile, that absentee boss is off living the easy life, dumping all the messy work on me."

From across the room, the Second Sister barked, "What are you muttering about? Bring me the tape, now!"

"…" The Fourth immediately caved, scrambling over with the tape in hand.

By the afternoon,

Cao Cheng finally called—a video call.

Smartphones weren’t as advanced back then, and Cao Cheng was still using a Motorola flip phone.

Sure, the crappy Apple had already released the 3GS!

But Cao Cheng hadn’t bought one, and it wasn’t even popular domestically yet.

He’d wait for the iPhone 4.

Maybe pick up some stock while he was at it.

"Mom, Happy New Year~~~" Cao Cheng greeted cheerfully the moment the call connected.

Dressed in modern Chinese-style attire, he looked slightly more mature—and undeniably sharper.

"You’ve lost weight!" Ren's mother fretted the second she saw him.

Old Cao rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, "If anything, he’s gained weight."

But he didn’t dare say it out loud.

"Eat well out there, get plenty of rest…"

"Got it, Mom. I’ll be back after the holidays—save some food for me."

"Save what? I’ll cook fresh when you’re back."

"!"

The sisters soon crowded around the screen too.

Everyone seemed in good spirits, though a faint trace of longing lingered in their eyes.

After spending so many years together,

a month apart had shifted the entire atmosphere at home.

"Do you really love the Gala that much?" The Fourth complained outright this time.

Cao Cheng sighed. "I’m not here for the Gala. Look behind me…"

He shifted the camera to reveal stacks upon stacks of boxes in the background.

The Fourth squinted. "What’s that?"

The Third answered first. "Cosmetics."

Cao Cheng snapped his fingers. "Bingo! These are all gift sets for tonight’s event. Every woman in the audience—and even the female staff backstage—gets one."

"Silver-tier gift boxes, worth 3,800 RMB each!"

"A thousand sets in total."

"You think I’m here to watch the show? Wrong! I’ve been working my ass off, barely getting any sleep!" Cao Cheng put on a pained expression.

"…"

"…"

Yeah, right.

The Fourth scoffed. "We don’t even have these at home, and you’re giving them to strangers?"

She knew it was for promotion, but that didn’t stop her from teasing him.

Cao Cheng shot back, "Who says we don’t? I’ve prepared diamond-tier sets for home—38,000 RMB per box."

"That expensive?!" The Fourth gasped.

Their family was far from strapped for cash.

They’d used every high-end cosmetic and luxury brand under the sun.

Take Di… ugh!

Take Dior’s limited-edition cream, priced at nearly 60,000 RMB for a single jar.

That was considered outrageous.

But let’s be real—brand prestige meant some fools would still pay for it.

Not to compare, but

domestic products just couldn’t command those prices yet.

A diamond-tier set at 38,000 RMB? The exclusivity was there, but who’d actually buy it?

If no one did, wouldn’t that just make them look like idiots?

……

It wasn’t just The Fourth being skeptical.

Even The Third and Eldest Sister frowned slightly, sensing something off.

They knew Cao Cheng wasn’t stupid.

If he dared to price it that high, there had to be more to it than just quality.

Otherwise,

it’d be impossible to sell.

He couldn’t just give them all away, could he?

Gifting silver-tier sets was understandable, but diamond-tier? What kind of recipient would warrant that?

Besides, at that level, people might not even dare to accept them.

Even if Miracle Cosmetics was already popular, this pricing was beyond what most could afford.

Eldest Sister couldn’t help asking, "What tiers do you have for these gift sets?"

"Bronze to Diamond."

Cao Cheng rattled off casually. "Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond—priced at 380, 3,800, 38,000, and 380,000 RMB respectively."

"There are also themed sets: the Anti-Aging Trio (toner, eye cream, moisturizer) targeting forehead lines, crow’s feet, and nasolabial folds…"

"Or the Brightening Quartet (lotion, toner, serum, cream) for radiant skin…"

He went on and on, but the gist was simple: youthfulness in a box.

Products that visibly took years off your skin.

……

"Your cheapest set is 380 RMB? Are you sure they’ll sell?" The Fourth remained deeply skeptical.

And she wasn’t alone.

Back then, 380 RMB could get you a high-end lipstick or moisturizer from an international brand.

Domestic cosmetics? Thirty-eight RMB per set was the norm.

Had she seen 3.8 RMB lipsticks?

3.9 RMB face creams?

Those little white sachets selling for fifty cents apiece?

Then,

the Second Sister finally spoke up.

She took a sip of her drink. "Actually, I think the pricing’s fine."

"…"

The other three sisters turned to stare at her.

Had she been drinking too much?

They knew she was bad with numbers, but this was next-level.

Forget other cities—just look at Zhonghai. The average monthly salary? Barely over 3,000 RMB.

Minimum wage? A whopping 960 RMB.

The Second Sister chimed in again, "If you can't afford the expensive ones, then buy the cheaper ones. The bronze set is only a little over 300, right? I could buy it with my own salary, no problem—and one gift set lasts at least two or three months!"

"Even heavy users can make it last a month!"

"As long as the product is good enough, people will definitely buy it."

"..."

The three sisters were speechless.

But they had to admit, it made sense.

However,

Eldest Sister, being the business-savvy powerhouse she was, thought deeper than her younger siblings.

She felt that Fifth Brother had overplayed his hand this time.

Or perhaps he was just too hasty.

She could understand some of his reasoning.

Launching such a high-end, premium-priced product was a way to elevate the brand's prestige—but it was too rushed.

If they had started with lower prices first, opened up the market, increased market share, and built a solid reputation for the brand,

then gradually scaled up to premium products—even limited-edition luxury items—it would have been more stable and easier for people to accept, even covet.

But,

Fifth Brother was impatient.

He launched everything from budget to high-end all at once… Sure, the product lineup looked abundant and dazzling,

but it gave off a cluttered, unfocused vibe.

Still,

Eldest Sister knew now wasn’t the time to bring this up. She’d have a proper talk with Fifth Brother when he returned.

She also wanted to ask if he had some other scheme in mind.

She had a feeling Fifth Brother wasn’t usually this reckless.

From The Voice, you could tell—he’d spent a whole year promoting just one show.

A whole year dedicated to one program. That alone showed how patient he could be.

So,

it didn’t seem like him to get carried away like this!

Maybe there really was some deeper strategy at play?

...

With that in mind, Eldest Sister changed the subject. "Alright, alright, let’s save this for later. It’s New Year’s Eve—no business talk today."

"Right, no business talk," The Third Sister agreed.

No need to make it seem like the four sisters were ganging up on Cao Cheng. Not a good look for the holidays!

The conversation shifted to casual family matters.

Ever since Eldest Sister recovered from her illness, she’d changed quite a bit.

Though some old habits still crept in occasionally—like being fake—

it was much better now.

Meanwhile, during the video call, the massive stacks of gift boxes behind Cao Cheng were being carried away one by one by employees from the cosmetics company, headed straight for the main stage’s backstage area.

A thousand gift sets in total.

Worth 3.8 million.

But in reality, the profit margin was a whopping 90%.

In other words, the production cost for these thousand sets was only a few hundred thousand.

Well…

Fine, let’s be honest—just tens of thousands!

Ahem—

...

Cao Cheng knew full well that most of these gift sets would probably be "looked down on" after being handed out.

Because they were from a "no-name brand."

And the audience members, including the backstage staff, weren’t exactly strapped for cash.

Most of them used high-end brands anyway.

So,

the majority of these gift sets would likely be regifted—or, in some extreme cases, tossed out immediately, not even worth taking home.

But Cao Cheng was determined to give them out anyway…

Not for promotion.

Relying on freebies for marketing? How lame would that make Cao Cheng look?

This was all about emotional value!

Once these products blew up, Cao Cheng absolutely planned to limit production—even if they could mass-produce, they wouldn’t. They’d play the scarcity game with hunger marketing.

How else would they milk that emotional value?

By then, even scoring a silver-tier set would be considered high-class.

So, wouldn’t the people who threw these gifts away or passed them on regret it later?

Most likely.

And these weren’t ordinary folks—they had more luck, more emotional value to squeeze.

No matter how you calculated it, it was a win.

Even if they didn’t regift them and used the products themselves… the results wouldn’t be bad. They’d become loyal customers, help spread the word a little, and keep paying up!

Talk about having your cake and eating it too!

So tell me—

Was handing out these gift sets the right move or not?