Fish-Catching Internet Cafe…
At the coffee area…
A mildly aged man sipped his coffee, nonchalantly singing. Another middle-aged man, who looked over fifty years old, walked into the internet cafe and sat down in front of him.
"Boss Liu." The first man stood up slightly as a sign of respect.
"I'm sorry, Boss Li. I was busy at work; that's why I arrived late. Speaking of which, this place is really difficult to find." The slightly older Boss Liu sat down across Boss Li and pulled a cigar out of habit.
Li Shi held up his hand at once to stop him. "Boss Liu, this place prohibits smoking."
Boss Liu paused. "Prohibits smoking?"
He turned around and saw no 'No Smoking' signs, but one of the young waiters was looking at him and smiling apologetically. Smoking was indeed prohibited here.
Boss Liu did not mind. He kept his cigar.
"Boss Li, this is the place you said you wanted to invest in?" Boss Liu looked around. "This place… looks like an ordinary cafe."
He hesitated, looked slightly confused. "But there are rows of computers. What's the meaning of this?"
Li Shi sipped his coffee and smiled slightly as he replied, "Boss Liu, you don't understand. The boss of this place has foresight beyond our times. To me, whether this place is purely an internet cafe, a bar, or a cafe; it would be unique and promising.
"Unfortunately, for some reason, the boss of this place has mixed all of these businesses into one. Now, they are dragging one another behind and leaving the place cool and empty."
Li Shi described what he had observed about Fish-Catching Internet Cafe during this period once over. He also talked about what Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was like when Chen Lei was around.
"However, after that singer left, the new singer was not as popular. The crowd here gradually dissipated. Now, it's back to what it was before—lifeless and lackluster. However, my judgment of this place remains the same. At the very least, the high-end path that this internet cafe is taking might be the future of internet cafes."
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After listening to Li Shi's words, Boss Liu nodded slightly.
"So you want to invest in this place?"
Li Shi sipped his coffee again, looking confident. "That's right. As an investor, I need to have my instincts about me. Boss Liu, you work in the property market. I think that Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's high-end models would be popular if it's opened in the right location. That's why I asked you here today. I want to talk about this."
Boss Liu pondered for a moment and then quickly understood the main point Li Shi was making. "En, that's right. Whether this place generates a profit or incurs losses does not make much of a difference. However, allowing its high-end service to increase the property prices of the property in the area would make a good deal."
"Have you spoken to the boss of this place?"
Li Shi shook his head. "Not yet. I'm waiting for a suitable time. This place has only been open for two or three months. I feel like the boss is not lacking money. What's more, from the way he has been doing things, he seems to be quite stubborn. I don't think he'll listen to our opinions.
"According to my knowledge, even while this place was incurring losses, the boss kept pouring money into it. He opened three or four more branches in Jingzhou City. A hard-headed person like that is rare.
"Of course, I did not study him very closely. I've only put together everything I've heard and witnessed during this period and made an inference."
Boss Liu nodded slightly, expressing his agreement.
Many people probably tried to stop this man from pouring three or four million yuan into creating a unique place like that. However, this shop stood nonetheless. What's more, there was not just one of its kind. All of this evidence showed that the boss of this place did not lack money; what's more, he probably acted in a very arbitrary fashion.
Otherwise, he would not have done something like that.
Li Shi continued, "So if I talk to him now, I might be rebuffed. The boss would not accept my investment for sure. I want to keep waiting. I want to wait as this shop continues to do badly. I will wait until all its branches incur losses, and when the boss begins to doubt himself and starts to plan for a change…
"I will decisively offer to invest a huge sum of money as assistance. Then, I will acquire a shareholding in this place systematically. When that time comes, Boss Liu, we can talk about cooperating."
Boss Liu laughed, neither agreeing nor rejecting the proposal. "Good planning, Boss Li. However, I feel that we have to observe this business model for a longer time."
"Boss Li, don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to be a wet blanket. I'm just slightly more conservative. I'm not like you investors; I don't know how to see too far into the future. Once you—Boss Li—achieve your objective, I don't mind discussing this deal.
"For all we know, Boss Li, you might not succeed. Then, it might be someone else hoping to work together with me."
Li Shi smiled and sipped his coffee once more. "Don't worry, Boss Liu. I think the boss of this place would have no reason to reject me."
…
…
June 18th…
Tengda's few games were updated at the same time!
There was a lot of excitement among people who had been waiting for these to happen. People who usually bought downloadable content did so; people who tried to acquire epic weapons did so. These people made their purchases while shouting 'Tengda is so kind'. At the same time, they cursed various games with paywalls on the forums.
As Pei Qian scanned the forums, he kept an eye on the numbers on the platform. The rate at which they were selling some downloadable content was making him panic.
This was especially the case for Ocean Stronghold's five hundred Barrett Dooms. Pei Qian had thought that they would last him for the entire day. However, from the looks of the situation, they probably would not last for even an hour.
The players could see that the limited Barrett Dooms was being sold out at the speed of lightning. Many people who had been considering whether to buy it made the decision to snatch it on the spot.
Although the rapidly-increasing numbers on the screen were causing Pei Qian's heart to race, a more thorough calculation assured him that everything was still going according to plan.
After several settlements, Pei Qian was becoming clearer and clearer of the rules of the System. In order to incur a loss, he did not need to make the company go bankrupt. He also did not need to make the company remain stagnant.
He just had to achieve two things before settlement. That would ensure he would incur a loss that could be converted into his Personal Wealth.
First, at the time of settlement, the amount of money in his System Funds had to be lower than there was initially. Second, in the week before settlement, they could not have any unannounced products.
The System Funds would be topped up at the start of every settlement cycle. Whether they had fifty thousand yuan like they did at the beginning or five million yuan like now, the System would continue to top up the System Funds without fail. Since the System was giving the money to them for free, there was no reason for Pei Qian to reject it.
For this settlement, Pei Qian only had to make sure that there would be less than five million yuan in the System Funds. The amount of money he could convert would depend on how much loss he incurred.
After settlement, the games would continue to make money, and the System would continue to top up the System Funds. The company would not run out of funds. They would develop whatever needed to be developed and expand whatever needed to be expanded. The System would not affect the running of their business.
What's more, the System Funds had to either be spent on the employees or on research and development. It was not like Pei Qian could just throw away the money.
Now, Pei Qian was no longer that concerned about whether particular projects were making money. Take the downloadable content this time for example. He agreed to release them only to continue deceiving the public. He knew he would make profits from it for sure, but he decided to go ahead anyway.
It did not matter. As long as he incurred losses for other projects and made sure he had less than five million yuan in his System Funds at the date of settlement, he could still achieve an overall loss. He did not need to lose all of his hard-earned money.
Now, everything was going according to Pei Qian's plan. Even Fish-Catching Take-Out, which was the latest project, was complete. Although no one was using it for now, it was considered up and running. It was not considered an unannounced product.
Everything was in its place. Pei Qian was in a good mood. He was ready to see how the players would praise him.
Casually, he opened one of the forums.
"Ghost General is finally updated! Thank the heavens! What's more, they added so many generals. We can play for six more months!"
He opened another forum.
"Game Designer's new update is worth five stars. The new voice-overs and scenes are so beautiful!"
Another one…
"What the hell is there to update for a game like The Lonely Desert Road? They're only selling it for one yuan, too? I'm crying! Although I don't play the game, I'll just buy the update. While I'm at it, I'll say Tengda is amazing—!"
The last one…
"Rubbish planning, your mother is dead!"
"F*ck your mom! You added such a great epic weapon and only made five hundred of them available. I purposely took some time off work to go to an internet cafe to buy an epic weapon. Now you're telling me that you're sold out for the month???"
"All the accounts who managed to get a Barrett Doom, please appreciate it!"
"For every like, Tengda's boss will shrink by a centimeter!"
"F*cker! Sell more soon! I can't wait until next month!"
Pei Qian quietly closed Ocean Stronghold's comments section. Hehe, the atmosphere there seems to be quite different.
It doesn't matter. You can continue to curse and scold. As long as you don't continue to throw money at me before this settlement, I'll still take you as my brothers!
Chapter 166: Can Teacher Qiao Be Smothered?!
After Tengda's games were updated, a commotion spread across the internet.
The players of Ocean Stronghold cursed at Tengda's boss, hoping that he would release the limit on the number of Barrett Doom up for sale. However, all the other players were thankful and touched, excited beyond compare.
The various media outlets naturally reported the commotion as well. Some self-media outlets also jumped on the bandwagon. Take Teacher Qiao for example. After Products of the Gods became successful, Qiao Liang accepted an olive branch from Aili Island. He hopped over to their platform from Potato Web.
He signed an ordinary creator's incentive agreement with them, under which he would earn about thirty yuan for every ten thousand views. However, Teacher Qiao's stable fanbase coupled with the website's recommendation of him as a celebrity UP Master in the gaming area guaranteed that he had over hundreds of thousands of views for every video.
This way, Teacher Qiao no longer had to live a life of instability. His income was more or less stable.
He only needed to produce two videos each month. One of them needed to be popular, and the other needed to have sponsored partnerships. Altogether, he would have about 1.5 million views or so. The remuneration he got from the incentive plan and the advertising fees could give him a stable five or six thousand yuan each month. Compared to his situation before, this was much better.
However, up until now, the second episode of Products of the Gods—which made Teacher Qiao as popular as he was now—was still not uploaded.
People were chasing him to upload more videos every day, but Teacher Qiao's reply came quickly as well: "I'm sorry. There are no other games in the country that can compare to Game Designer in terms of content and concept. If there are any, this segment will be updated at once. Otherwise, I cannot forcefully update it and ruin my own reputation."
Qiao Liang's words were thirty-percent true and seventy-percent false. Actually, he knew that if he wanted to update this segment, he would just have to look for foreign games and classic games. That would enable him to create videos for sure.
However, he could earn five or six thousand yuan each month from Trash Games Diss, New Recommended Games, and other random videos. He had no time or energy to carefully look for new games in order to update Products of the Gods.
After Tengda completed the wave of 'the kindest updates of downloadable content in history', Teacher Qiao could not hold back his excitement. He wrote a new article to update his own special column.
"I have also been keeping an eye on Tengda Games' most recent kind updates. I guessed that Ghost General and Ocean Stronghold would be updated. However, I did not expect The Lonely Desert Road to be updated as well!
"Speaking of this game, many people might have misunderstandings towards it.
"This was Tengda's first game. I dissed it before. In terms of various aspects, this game looks roughly produced. This seemingly carelessly-produced game has also been viewed by many as a black spot in Tengda Games' history.
"I once thought that this was because Tengda Games had just started out. It must have been limited in terms of costs and the like; that was probably why this game looked so carelessly-produced.
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"But now, I finally understand: I was wrong. Everyone who thought that this was a rubbish game is wrong! If Tengda really took this game to be a black spot in its history, it would have stopped updating it. It would have allowed the game to fizzle out and be destroyed.
"Yet, they did just the opposite. Tengda knew that this game had already lost its popularity. Not many gamers are still playing it. However, Tengda continued to arrange for it to be updated. Not only did they add five times the number of backgrounds, but they also added the Endless Mode and multiplayer function like I suggested in my video!
"What does this mean?
"This means that Tengda does not view this game as a black spot in its history. Instead, it treats this game as seriously as it does all its other games. With utmost sincerity and passion, Tengda gives back to the loyal players of the game!
"Even though they knew full well that the downloadable content would not recover their capital, they continued to provide it without any hesitation, and at a kind price. Even with five times the content, the game is sold at the same price. It's so valuable!
"This proves that The Lonely Desert Road is also a game that Tengda put effort into creating. It's the same as Game Designer; a work of dark humor and satire. It's also a part of Tengda's performance art!
"The summary of this game and the final line that appears on the black screen show that there is a deeper meaning to it!
"What's more, Tengda is indeed a company that pays special attention to its players. Here, I would like to show off a little: they really listened to the suggestions I made in my video. I do have some level of influence; hiahiahia!"
Teacher Qiao's special column was downloaded all over. People liked it, and more and more gamers were praising it!
"Well said! So The Lonely Desert Road has always had such deep meaning!"
"Holy sh*t, this was also in Tengda's plan, wasn't it? What a huge plan!"
"I'm more and more interested in Tengda's boss!"
"From the looks of the situation, we can download any game that Tengda produces from now on. We can also mindlessly buy their downloadable content. They're persevering with updating such a rubbish game even if they would incur losses doing so. What's there to worry about?"
…
Pei Qian read Teacher Qiao's special column in his office and then fell into deep thought.
"System, can I count it as an expense if I hire a murderer?"
After he got a negative response and a light warning, Pei Qian felt sorrowful.
What do I have to do to shut Teacher Qiao up…?
You've been haunting me persistently!
Each time I make a new game, you help me blow it up. Now, every time I think about making a new game, I feel worried and scared. As if that weren't enough, you're even helping me blow up my downloadable content?
"Can I smother Teacher Qiao…? No. No, I must get him to shut up."
Pei Qian's head began to hurt. This hatred he felt towards Teacher Qiao did not develop in a single day. It all began with one dissing video made by the bastard. That video made The Lonely Desert Road popular and dashed Pei Qian's hopes of losing all fifty thousand yuan his company had.
Game Designer was one step away from complete success, and Qiao-logy was successfully created. Pei Qian had planned to take revenge, but Teacher Qiao flipped the situation around completely.
This time, publicizing the downloadable content would not cause much loss to Pei Qian. At the very most, it would increase their sales volume. However, as the saying went: things could happen once or twice, but they could not be allowed to happen over and over again.
It was too much!
Pei Qian had a feeling that Teacher Qiao would become an obstacle to him in the future. He had to think of a way to deal with the problem as soon as possible. However, how would he do it…?
He could not use the 'hard' method so he had to use the 'soft' one.
Could he give Teacher Qiao a sum of money and ask him never to talk about anything related to Tengda again?
No, that would be too unreasonable. If news leaked, everyone would praise Boss Pei for not caring about fame and fortune.
Pei Qian could not think of a good solution just yet. He had no choice but to call Assistant Xin in.
"Get two people to look into Teacher Qiao for me. I want a detailed report on him."
As the saying went: know yourself and your enemies, and you will never be defeated…
Pei Qian planned to research extensively into this enemy of his, who destroyed his plans time and time again. He wanted to find out what his situation was and what his weaknesses were. Then, Pei Qian would hit him where it hurt the most.
If he was greedy and could be easily defeated by material things, then the problem could be easily dealt with.
Chapter 167: Change in Profit-Splitting!
June 20th…
From mid-July, the summer holidays were going to begin. As it was about time to enter exam week, Pei Qian still had to spend a little time catching up with his school work. Although examinations were not that hard for him, Pei Qian still had to spend a few all-nighters to prepare for the closed-book ones.
Regarding this, Pei Qian was very impressed by Ma Yang.
Ma Yang could actually manage Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and Fish-Catching Take-Out and still listen earnestly in school. Although he might not get high marks for the exams, it would be a breeze for him to pass.
Sometimes, being able to handle so many things was a very powerful ability.
To date, Pei Qian's identity had not been exposed. Although he rarely went back to the dormitory and hadn't been seen much, many students were like him in the university; and this wasn't something that strange.
Only Ma Yang knew about him, and he kept it a secret really well while none of his classmates would purposely ask him about this.
Every time Pei Qian went to school, he would return to his rented apartment and change back into his ordinary clothes; no one's suspicions had been raised.
Ma Yang, on the other hand, wore more and more expensive clothing. The electronic devices he used also became more and more high-tech. Many classmates all thought wrongly, that perhaps Ma Yang's family had struck gold recently.
With Ma Yang attracting most of the attention, Pei Qian was also happy to just be an ordinary student in school.
Of course, Pei Qian also knew that he couldn't hide this from his classmates and his parents much longer. However, he also didn't have a pressing need to expose himself now. He actually thought it was rather nice to hang out with people as a normal person.
However, as the term-end exams were coming, Pei Qian had to revise while keeping an eye on the company; he was rather pressed.
Self-Revision Room…
Pei Qian forced himself to memorize the photocopied notes he had borrowed as he occasionally checked on his cell phone.
Although he couldn't constantly keep track of what was happening online, he could ask Lu Mingliang to summarize and send over some relevant information as and when.
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"Boss Pei, Amusement Times had reported on our downloadable contents and have praised us for being a domestic games company with a conscience; the feedback has been rather positive!"
Pei Qian took a look at his cell phone as he put it down again.
Amusement Times was the games media company that had first reported on Tengda. This kind of news article that wanted to ride Tengda's recent popularity was within his expectations; it also wouldn't have that much of an impact.
"Boss Pei, the news that we have launched new downloadable content has created a buzz on Weibo; many players are debating this matter!"
This wasn't a big problem either. To be one of the top trending searches was something that happened fast and disappeared fast. As it was something that could be bought with money as well, Pei Qian wasn't that concerned.
"Boss Pei, according to the black market, accounts with Barrett Doom are already selling for at least 2000 yuan…"
What in the world? It was already almost the end of the month; another five hundred were going to be on sale the next month. Why are you guys so anxious…?
Oh, I guess this is understandable. Most people probably wouldn't be able to buy it next month; if they bought it now, they would be able to enjoy it for ten days more.
Go ahead and buy these accounts! I have said that the limit is 500 a month; I won't sell a single more.
"Boss Pei, Aili Island has created a special zone for our games!
"Boss Pei, a game producer had gone on Weibo to scold us for spoiling and disrupting the market conditions; he is being scolded bloody by players!
"Boss Pei, ESRO official games platform had done a special item on our few games. It is now on their front page in the recommended section. In the next few days, our games and downloadable content sales would probably experience yet another boost!"
Seeing this message, Pei Qian's hand shook furiously.
The official games platforms are causing trouble again! The front-page recommendation of Game Designer the last time had already been a little intolerable for Pei Qian. This time, they had actually done a special piece on all the games and placed this on the front page?
Steady, steady…
Pei Qian took a few deep breaths as he forced himself to calm down. From the experience the last time—although this front-page recommendation had an impact, it was still within the acceptable range.
Pei Qian still had the opportunity to go on a spending spree. Furthermore, since the recommendation only went up now, there won't be a huge increase in income next week. Before sales exploded the week after, the settlement would have been done; and there shouldn't be much problem.
"Boss Pei, also, official games platforms think that our company is now the model for the entire game industry; they have decided to go all out to help and support us!"
Pei Qian was confused. They wanted to go all out to help and support? To give a front-page recommendation here and there for free; that was already quite significant. How many game companies could have this treatment?
How else could they go all out to help and support?
"Boss Pei, the official games platform has already given us a heads up. To encourage us to have more and sufficient funds to continue with game designs, they have decided to change the original fifty-fifty split to a seventy-thirty split; seventy in our favor!
"This treatment is normally reserved for very big and influential game companies or game companies with a very good reputation. Only those viewed as role models can enjoy this privilege; this is evident of how highly the official games platform views our games!
"I heard that the highest we can go is a ninety-ten split, ninety in our favor. Boss Pei, we will definitely continue to work hard!"
Pei Qian's hands shook as his cell phone. Pang! It dropped on the table.
Finished!
From fifty-fifty to a seventy-thirty split… didn't that mean that from now on, he didn't have to do anything and get another twenty percent in income?
For a game like Ocean Stronghold that earned three million five hundred thousand, having this additional twenty percent was another one million three hundred and forty thousand!
That meant that as there was only one week left until the next settlement, even without considering the income from the downloadable content, the games' incomes would be twenty percent higher than ordinary. That would at least be an additional six hundred to seven hundred thousand!
Adding the downloadable content sales to that…
Pei Qian cursed in his heart.
He had expected that his games would continue to make money and had roughly calculated the sales from all the downloadable contents. Originally, the profits had been within his expectations. However, with the official games platform making trouble now, it had foiled his plans!
If other companies heard this news, they would definitely be celebrating; however, Pei Qian was now very anxious. If he didn't pay attention to this, he might not be able to spend all his money!
After all, he couldn't put more money into developing new games one week before settlement. He could only rely on giving more bonuses and such methods to spend more money; he wouldn't be able to spend much money from this.
If he had one or two million in profits during settlement, he would only be able to convert ten thousand-odd into his Personal Wealth; however, if he had just slight losses, the amount converted would be much more than this. Furthermore, losses that he incurred would be replenished by the system into the System Funds.
This was too stimulating; it was the difference between heaven and hell.
Pei Qian couldn't sit still anymore as he immediately kept his books and left the Self-Revision Room.
At this crucial time, could he still focus on revising?!
His splurging plan had to be carried forward!
…
…
Entering the company, Pei Qian looked flustered as he called out Assistant Xin and sprinted to his office. Lu Mingliang, Ma Yiqun, and company say that Boss Pei looked so serious as they all sighed with emotion.
Tengda had just received a named commendation from the official games' site and the profits had been revised in their favor; this was something that all other games companies dreamed of, and everyone would be envious of them if this news spread.
However, Boss Pei actually still looked as usual; it seemed as if nothing had happened! He was actually acting a little rushed and flustered and looking stern; he was still worried about other company matters.
This temperament was really like a great general's!
…
In the office…
Pei Qian opened a table and looked closely at the overall company expenses.
Tengda's various expenses were now very complicated. From rentals, utilities, to all sorts of development capital injections, company benefits, and others; it was a massive table that made Pei Qian's head big just by looking at it.
He could only look at the big picture.
As he glanced through, Pei Qian thought of a rather good point of entry to execute his plan. "Our company's operations have been getting better and bigger; it's time for an expansion. Ask each department to come up with a recruitment plan; we will start recruiting people next month. Administration, human resources, finances; all these departments would be included and have to be expanded.
"There will not be a ceiling on the number of hires; they could propose as many as they liked."
Chapter 168: Indeed, A Good Act will be Well-Rewarded!
Assistant Xin nodded as she recorded all these down. "Alright, Boss Pei. We actually still have some space available on this floor. We can squeeze a little and add a few office tables and chairs…"
"Squeeze a little? How could you have this kind of thinking?!
"To cater to a comfortable and spacious environment for employees to work in has always been the mantra of this company. There are already too many people on this floor; it is rather saturated.
"Go and talk to the office manager and inform him we wish to rent another floor. All the designs and furnishings will be exactly the same as this floor!"
As renting office space was considered a normal expense and not for opening a new business, this would not result in a deferment of the upcoming settlement.
Although Tengda's office layout was rather illogical—there was still much empty space spreading out, all the office tables and chairs sparsely had actually made the place packed. Renting another floor under these circumstances was not considered going against the rules.
"Oh, also. The previous lease we signed had been for a year, right?" Pei Qian asked.
Assistant Xin nodded, "That's right; for a year. Manager Zhang had given us a special rate. We had paid one month upfront and one month deposit; our initial costs were lessened."
Pei Qian gestured widely, "This time, ask Manager Zhang if we could change the contract. We don't need to pay one month upfront and one month deposit anymore. We will pay quarterly from now on. Since we are in a rather good cash flow position now, it is rather troublesome if we still have to pay the rent month-by-month. We'll lease another floor, and you can sign the contracts together with Manager Zhang."
Assistant Xin asked, "Do you want to take another look at the contract details?"
Pei Qian pondered for a moment and said, "There's no need to."
The previous time, Pei Qian didn't even look at the contract much; he couldn't possibly read every single line of it anyway. He only knew the price and had delegated everything else to Assistant Xin.
This time, he was only changing the payment to a quarterly system and just adding another floor. This naturally didn't require Pei Qian to make another trip just to review the contract. This way, the new floor's contract would be three months upfront and one month deposit; that would instantly cost one million and eight hundred thousand yuan.
Adding the costs of the office tables, chairs, computers, etc. If they replicated this floor they were currently renting, that would cost another seven to eight hundred thousand.
All in all, a total of around two million five hundred thousand thereabouts would be spent.
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Perfect!
Pei Qian had previously intended to rent another floor. However, as office space had been more than sufficient back then, the system had not allowed that.
After this period of natural expansion and with Tengda's games expanding and having more new content, the number of employees the company had naturally increased as well. Although everyone on this floor still had much personal space, it was basically filled; and it was finally time to continue expanding the office space.
"Oh, regarding Teacher Qiao, don't forget about that." Pei Qian reminded her.
Assistant Xin nodded, "I am already investigating."
"Alright. In that case, please go and find Manager Zhang now. We should hurry up and fix a time to sign the contract and transfer the money for the new floor rental."
Pei Qian wanted Assistant Xin to spend this money first so that he wouldn't have to worry so much.
"Once the contract has been signed, come back again; and I'll talk to you about the new employee benefits."
"Alright, Boss Pei." Assistant Xin turned and left.
Pei Qian did a rough calculation of the current employee strength.
Tengda already had more than sixty people; it was nearing seventy.
The five Fish-Catching Internet Cafes had servers, chefs, bartenders, takeaway delivery men, etc. All in all, each internet cafe had around twenty employees; that was nearly a hundred people in total.
Fei Huang Workspace had also expanded to around a ten-odd people outfit.
Pei Qian's employees from his personal endeavors now added up to just less than two hundred people.
There was an exception: Shang Yang Games.
To date, Shang Yang Games was still trying to repair its reputation while it continued to bleed.
After buying over Shang Yang Games, Pei Qian had not forcibly increased Shang Yang Games's employee salaries to the same as Tengda's employees; he had also not provided them with the same benefits.
Shang Yang Games had around fifty people. However, rental a month was only one hundred and fifty thousand while employee salaries were but two hundred thousand in total. Regardless of the working environment or salary standards, they were far lower than Tengda's.
On May 10th, Pei Qian had officially taken over. In order to preserve Shang Yang Games's loss-making state, Pei Qian had not made any rash moves. He had not raised salaries or given more benefits.
More than two months had already passed. Although Shang Yang Games's reputation had turned, it had been making stable losses; Pei Qian was very pleased with this.
Hence, he felt that it was about time for Shang Yang Games's employees to take on a little more responsibilities. If he directly raised Shang Yang Games's employee salaries and benefits to Tengda's level, some problems might arise.
As the saying went, one must distinguish clearly between punishment and reward.
Tengda Games's results had been stellar; giving more employees benefits was very normal and logical.
Shang Yang Games was just a newly bought-over company; it was a 'godson' that was still making losses. If Pei Qian gave his 'godson' and his 'own children' the same amount of benefits, he would not be able to justify that.
Hence, he would only make changes piecemeal. They had acted according to Boss Pei's wishes and worked hard to change their games, rescuing Shang Yang Games's reputation. This was a small achievement that could be rewarded.
Enacting an across-board raise as well as giving a few benefits should not be that unreasonable.
As for their office workplace, office chairs and tables, computers, etc.; they could all be made the same as Tengda's. After all, this was a way to increase working efficiency and productivity. This could be justified and would not be disputed. This way, Pei Qian would be able to splurge another one million-odd for Shang Yang Games.
However, all these were still a little insufficient.
Pei Qian thought about this again. His own Tengda employees—the two hundred-odd of them—should get some more compensation.
From where, though?
Clothing, food, accommodations, and means of traveling: the first two had been compensated; Pei Qian could work on the latter two.
He had already been providing assistance for the latter two, by providing for overtime taxi reimbursements. However, he had not given anything yet for their daily traveling expenses. Pei Qian decided to give everyone another 500 yuan a month for transport expenses. This would cost another hundred thousand.
Accommodations could be a significant spending area. Pei Qian tested the system and then decided everyone would be given 1000 yuan as a housing allowance! That was another two hundred thousand out of the window. Although this amount was little, it was the limit the system would allow.
Pei Qian actually wanted to fork out some money to build a company dormitory for his employees. However, it was evident the system felt that at this stage, building a dormitory was a little too luxurious; and it had not agreed.
Pei Qian could only put up with what was allowed and gave everyone a 1000 yuan housing allowance.
After making all these decisions, Pei Qian started to relax slightly.
Not bad. If I continue working hard before this settlement, I should be able to create losses of around a million this time.
Although the official games platform had suddenly changed the profit splitting amount to thirty-seventy and had thrown Pei Qian off his footing, after doing some detailed planning, Pei Qian still managed to remedy the situation.
Or at the very least, this wouldn't be fatal to the settlement a week from now.
The biggest impact this would have would be after this cycle. However, Pei Qian could think about that in the future. In the next cycle, Pei Qian could continue thinking of other loss-making ventures. At the very least, he could open a few more Fish-Catching Internet Cafes and buy-over a few more loss-making companies; all these would help.
After smoothing out his thoughts more or less, Pei Qian comfortably leaned into his chair; he felt much more relaxed.
Knock, knock!
Someone knocked on the door. Assistant Xin had returned.
"Boss Pei, we have already successfully rented the entire floor above us. The contract has been signed, and the money has been transferred," Assistant Xin reported.
Pei Qian nodded. Assistant Xin was really efficient.
"These are the new benefits that I have thought of for everyone. They include housing allowance…"
Pei Qian explained his rough thinking to Assistant Xin.
Assistant Xin smiled slightly and said, "Boss Pei is indeed generous. As the saying went, a good act will be rewarded; this is really true."
Pei Qian was confused.
A good act would be rewarded? What was the meaning of this?
Assistant Xin smiled again, "Speaking about the rent, I actually have a piece of good news.
"Manager Zhang said that ever since Tengda had rented a floor at Shenhua View and become a model and benchmark for all companies, our collaboration this past half a year had been very good. As such, Manager Zhang has waived all the deposits and estate fees. The rent has also been reduced from 4 yuan to 1.5 yuan per square feet.
"Just like this, our rent for both floors would be reduced by over four hundred thousand monthly!
"Boss Pei, when good things come, the heavens and earth would do their best to support as well; this is a very joyous event!"
Pei Qian, "???"
Don't lie to me just because I didn't study much; how could Manager Zhang have such authority to make this decision?
Chapter 169: There's a Mole!
"Did you… bargain?" Pei Qian asked.
Assistant Xin smiled. "I had wanted to, Boss Pei. In the end, I didn't even manage to say anything; and Manager Zhang proactively raised the topic."
Pei Qian felt that he was growing a little dizzy. That made sense though. No matter how eloquent Assistant Xin might be, how could she have unilaterally cut the rent by so much?
There was more than meets the eye!
Manager Zhang was only the manager for Shenhua View; where would he get so much authority to decide on reducing rent and waiving a deposit?
If 4 yuan had been the standard, cutting it to 3.5 yuan would already be not bad while reducing it to 3 yuan would be a very generous discount. However, it was immediately cut all the way to 1.5 yuan per square feet?
Who was he trying to kid?
In an instant, that was several hundreds of thousands less a month. If Manager Zhang had this authority, he would have long moved on to something better instead of just being a manager of this building, right?
There must be something going on behind the scenes!
If it was someone else, they would have happily accepted this offer.
Pei Qian couldn't.
Reducing a small sum might be alright; Pei Qian could still try to do something else before this cycle ended. The crux was this was a substantial amount and a huge problem for him!
This time was reducing rent; what about the next time?
Something worse might even happen!
Hence, Pei Qian was determined to find out the chief culprit; once he knew his enemy, then he would know how to fight and overcome. He would be able to take into account all these uncertain variables when he calculated his losses next time. If not, he might bring himself everlasting grief with just one misstep.
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Pei Qian thought for a moment. "Bring me to go find Manager Zhang."
Assistant Xin nodded. "En, my thoughts exactly. Boss Pei should make a trip yourself."
Assistant Xin also felt that something was fishy, and this matter needed investigating? Indeed, great minds think alike!
Pei Qian couldn't help but think that.
A knock rang out as an administrative assistant handed Assistant Xin a bag of fruits.
Pei Qian, "?"
Assistant Xin said, "Manager Zhang had been so generous in reducing our rent by so much; I also felt that Boss Pei should personally pay a visit to thank him. I had arranged for someone to buy some fruits to bring along."
Pei Qian, "???"
Was this what I meant when I said I wanted to go and find Manager Zhang? Who said I wanted to thank him?!
However, seeing Assistant Xin carrying the fruits and waiting for him, Pei Qian was speechless as he stood up. "Let's go, then."
The two went straight to Manager Zhang's office.
The door was ajar, and Manager Zhang was busy with some work.
Pei Qian wanted to knock on the door to catch Manager Zhang's attention when Manager Zhang already saw Pei Qian as he stood up and said, "Boss Pei! What brings you here today? Please come in and have a seat!"
Pei Qian was a little flabbergasted.
Something was indeed up!
Manager Zhang had not been like this the last time.
Although Manager Zhang had been polite the previous time, it had been more of professional courtesy as part of the service he provided. Whenever Manager Zhang spoke to the bosses of companies in the building, he always had the same manner and posture.
This time, Manager Zhang's attitude was more respectful, a little like when someone was addressing his superior.
Pei Qian sat down suspiciously.
"Manager Zhang had given Tengda such a big discount for our rental; Boss Pei has especially come to express his thanks," Xin Hailu left the fruits on the table as she smiled and said.
Pei Qian begrudgingly forced a smile. "Yes… that's right."
Manager Zhang hurriedly said politely, "Sigh, Boss Pei, you shouldn't stand on formalities! It is our honor that Tengda has decided to set up shop in Shenhua View. It is part of my job to look out for our tenants; how could I accept your gifts? It should be me going to pay you a visit, actually."
Pei Qian was speechless, "…"
Something was not right; something was really amiss! Pei Qian was more and more certain that some things that he didn't know about were happening behind his back; these were important facts at that.
Pei Qian decided to cut to the chase.
"Manager Zhang, let's be frank with each other. Reducing the rent to 1.5 per square feet… it wasn't you who made this decision, right? Regarding this matter, I am very grateful and I wish to know which saint had rendered aid to Tengda. I hope that one day, I would be able to return the favor."
Pei Qian was very sincere.
"Errr, regarding this…" Manager Zhang was a little hesitant.
Indeed, to reduce the rent by so much; it was not something a small manager like him could have decided. He definitely needed approval from above.
Boss Pei wasn't stupid. Manager Zhang knew that if he said that there was nothing of the sorts; that would not fly with Boss Pei.
Furthermore, Boss Pei wasn't here to look for trouble or exact revenge; he just wanted to know who had helped so that he could return the favor. It seemed as if there was no reason to hide anything.
The problem was… Manager Zhang actually wasn't very sure himself where this order had come from.
Manager Zhang was in a bind. He smiled along and said, "Boss Pei, I was only following orders; please don't make things difficult for me. Actually, I am not sure what is going on as well. This was an order that came personally from a high-level superior within Shenhua Real Estate. As for which boss made this decision… I really don't know."
An order personally from a Shenhua Real Estate's high-level superior?
There was something wrong. There was something terribly wrong!
Why would someone high-up from Shenhua Real Estate know about Tengda Games? Could it be that they also played Tengda's games?
What am I thinking? No way!
Seeing Manager Zhang's face, he evidently didn't know who had given the order. Pei Qian could only give up as he exchanged some pleasantries and left.
Manager Zhang repeatedly emphasized and asked that if Tengda encountered any problems in Shenhua View in the future, Pei Qian should let him know immediately to not put him in a tough spot.
Returning to his office, Pei Qian sat quietly in front of his computer as he turned to the Qiandu search engine for help.
Shenhua Real Estate was one of the companies under Shenhua Corporation. As the real estate industry had been booming in recent years, Shenhua Corporation had also ventured into some real estate projects. Although it wasn't number-one or number-two in the country—capitalizing on Shenhua Corporation's financial strength, Shenhua Real Estate had become one of the forerunners in the country.
Shenhua View was one of the many properties that Shenhua Real Estate owned in Jingzhou City.
Shenhua Real Estate's President was Shenhua Corporation's President Lin Zhengnan's second son, Lin Zhou. In recent years, he had just fully taken over Shenhua Real Estate to manage and had moved the company into more modern developments that suited the lifestyles of youngsters more.
"Lin Zhou?"
Pei Qian felt that this name was a little familiar. He looked at a picture of Lin Zhou and saw that his features were rather familiar.
"Our company seems to have a rich second-generation heiress… also by the family name of Lin?"
Pei Qian's heart sank.
Could it be?
Lin Wan searched 'Lin Wan' in Qiandu; however, he did not manage to find anything. However, the more he thought about it, the more he thought something was wrong!
Pei Qian's impression on Lin Wan had been formed when she had first come for an interview wearing a dress that Assistant Xin said was worth tens of thousands. Lin Wan had looked like an innocent and sweet person without any work experience and someone who hadn't seen much of the world. As Pei Qian didn't mind having one more or one less employee at the time, he had taken her in.
After that, Lin Wan had used her connections gained from working at Sun Strike Studios to liaise with some FPS elite gamers, who had objectively helped Ocean Stronghold with its first wave of publicity.
However, this matter had not sounded any alarm bells for Pei Qian. After all, anyone would have been able to get in contact with these gamers if they had been in charge of this. Pei Qian also didn't feel that Lin Wan had any special identity and just thought of her as a normal rich second-generation heiress.
Subsequently, Lin Wan had been made responsible for some simple tasks in the company. She was conscientious and earnest and had kept a low-profile. She had not done anything outstanding, and Pei Qian had not made any attention to her.
However, Pei Qian now realized he seemed to have made a grave mistake.
There was a difference between rich second-generation heirs. Some were just more well-off while some could actually reduce Boss Pei's rental expenses by hundreds of thousands with one phone call.
Pei Qian fell into a trance.
There was a mole!
The mole had been hiding within the company for so many months; he had not realized at all!
What should I do? How should I handle this?
Pei Qian thought about this repeatedly as he had no ideas at all.
This was too difficult!
"Calm down; I have no leads to work on now primarily because I know nothing about her. I need to know my enemy before I can win my battles; Lin Wan wouldn't have come work for me without a reason.
"If I can figure this out, perhaps I can make her rethink her decision and leave to inherit her millions and billions in wealth?
"Even if I can't make her leave, at least I can gather some valuable information…"
Thinking about this, Pei Qian decided to give a call to Zhou Muyan from Sun Strike Studios.
Zhou Muyan would definitely know something!