June 27th, Sunday, at night…
Fish-Catching Internet Cafe…
Li Shi sat at a window seat as he drank his wine, very relaxed.
Pei Qian sat in another corner as he used his cell phone.
Although the two actually knew each other-as they both had an ax to grind, they were pretending not to recognize one another. Pei Qian did not intend to act rashly. As long as he continued to act splendidly and confused Li Shi, everything would be good.
These few days, the few shops nearby kept on continuing with their promotions. It was very clear that the street Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was on had become much more bustling.
The small commercial district nearby didn't have much human traffic normally. Recently, the area had suddenly started to become congested with cars.
Many people had heard that the shops here were all having promotions and had come after hearing the news. Many people that actually didn't intend to leave their houses had all come to take a spin.
As such, a rather beautiful sight could be seen in this area. All the neighboring shops were all full of customers, and considerable human traffic was patronizing them. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, however, was deserted. A stark comparison had formed.
Many people who did not know better had thought that Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was also having promotions. However, after entering and realizing the prices here were many folds higher than the shops nearby, they had all fled the cafe.
Pei Qian was a little puzzled. Hadn't I placed a signboard on the door? Why are so many people still coming in to ask?
After thinking about this for a while, that was probably because these people had a fluke mentality. As all the neighboring shops were all doing promotions, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe must have forgotten to write its own offering on the sign; and so they wanted to come in and ask to confirm.
Pei Qian then asked Ma Yang to write a few huge words 'No Discounts!' on the signboard. As such, before long, no one came to ask about prices anymore.
Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's predicament could be said to be 'everyone else was enjoying and benefiting while I had nothing'.
This was precisely what Pei Qian had pined for.
After making sure that Tengda's games were not going to be much of a problem-whenever Pei Qian had nothing better to do, he would come here.
Whenever he occasionally met Li Shi, Pei Qian would pretend to be brooding and anxious as if he was very conflicted inside.
As long as he managed to keep Li Shi on the hook and the neighboring shops kept on continuing with their promotions-resulting in a blockage of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's customer traffic, Pei Qian would have very high hopes of making a loss this cycle!
Li Shi kept on quietly drinking his wine as he furtively shot looks at Pei Qian. Previously, Pei Qian had not come to the internet cafe much, and Li Shi had not many opportunities to observe him.
Now, Li Shi could use this time to really take a good look at Pei Qian.
To become a boss at such a young age; he evidently was not ordinary.
Although he was evidently very anxious internally, he could still remain calm and composed, only revealing an inkling of his true feelings. This kind of temperament is admirable and surpasses that of normal people.
"Not bad; this affirms my desire to invest."
Li Shi's attitude was also experiencing a slight change. To him, investments were mainly about investing in people. For any company, encountering investment opportunities was not something rare. When such an opportunity came knocking, most companies would crash and burn; a minority would fly.
This had something to do with the company's boss.
Li Shi indeed had a lot of money on hand. However, having money didn't mean that he had to personally take the field.
Li Shi was not good at managing internet cafes. While he could provide the capital and connections, the management and operations of an internet cafe still needed someone with the expertise.
Li Shi was very clear about this. Not only did he look favorably upon Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's operating model, but he was also very certain of Pei Qian as a leader.
Hence, Li Shi wanted to invest in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe even more and not to create a fake version on his own. To create a fake Fish-Catching Internet Cafe required time, effort, and money; Li Shi would also need to find a manager. This was not very cost-effective.
For an investor like Li Shi, he was definitely not going to roll up his sleeves and do this tiring and dirty work.
Furthermore, he believed that he was on the cusp of victory.
Li Shi sipped his wine as he savored it.
Why do I still feel a little uneasy?
Did I miss something out?
Li Shi considered deeply; there was still one inexplicable thing.
Logically speaking, that Boss Pei could achieve such great things at such a young age; he should be someone rather capable. However, he seemed to not have suspected me at all? At least he hadn't shown it.
This is not very logical.
This Boss Pei had not acted or done anything to prevent the nearby shops from snatching his customers; he had not asked his Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to make any changes at all.
He didn't offer discounts or didn't do any sales promotion; he had even hung a sign saying 'no discounts' on the door to dissuade customers from coming to ask about prices.
Is he overly confident about Fish-Catching Internet Cafe?
Has he given up? Or perhaps… he had something planned up his sleeves?
Li Shi considered this for a long time. Finally, he still shook his head.
Ah, I must be overthinking. Under these circumstances, most people would indeed be at a loss as well. He can't lower his prices as that would hurt Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's high-class image. That would not be good in the long-term. This situation is indeed hard to get out of.
Or perhaps, he is doing this on purpose?
No, no, no; that is a little illogical.
While the other shops are burning money, at least they can raise their visibility. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, however, is purely burning money. Only if he is crazy would he continue to struggle while earning no income at all.
Unless he has some other plans that even I cannot fathom…
Forget it, I must be thinking too much. He is but a youngster; what card could he have up his sleeves?
Thinking about this, Li Shi started to laugh.
As this Boss Pei didn't seem to do things based on logic, Li Shi couldn't get a read on him; and so he had overestimated Boss Pei.
Li Shi thought for a while. He had entered the investment circle for so many years already; what storm had he not weathered? Even if this Boss Pei was a genius, he is lacking in experience after all. There was no point in overestimating him.
After finishing his glass of wine, Li Shi got ready to leave.
Today was a Sunday night. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was as deserted as ever. The outcome was a foregone conclusion, and Li Shi didn't need to keep an eye on things anymore.
I'll go and relax for a few days and wait patiently. Who knows? I might be able to pop the champagne and celebrate soon.
At this moment, Pei Qian's cell phone rang.
Li Shi had just wanted to stand up as he stopped himself. Although he didn't think that he could hear any secret message or code from this phone conversation, trying to eavesdrop wouldn't harm him.
Pei Qian was a little surprised as well. It was so late; who would call him?
He looked and saw that it was Huang Sibo.
Thinking about how Huang Sibo's Coming Out of the Cocoon as a Butterfly had almost caused him grief, Pei Qian instinctively wanted to reject the call. However, after thinking that at least on the surface, Huang Sibo had successfully made a loss this time and had even gotten into debt; Huang Sibo had actually done well this time.
I'll take the call.
"Boss Pei!"
"Do you have a TV near you? Hurry up and turn on Shanghai TV channel!'
Pei Qian was very confused. "What's up?"
Huang Sibo, "Don't ask so much. You'll know once you switch to Shanghai TV! I'll offer my congratulations in advance, Boss Pei!"
Chapter 181 Boss Li, Don't Go! This was a Misunderstanding!
The hand that Pei Qian was using to hold his phone shook furiously.
What did he mean by 'congratulations?!
Pei Qian kept his phone and walked briskly to the second floor. There was a small, private movie hall on the second floor. People could also use it to watch television shows.
Li Shi was nervous as well.
What was going on?
Seeing Pei Qian's movements and expressions, Li Shi guessed that the phone call was very serious. Five minutes after Pei Qian left, Li Shi got up from his seat and pretended to saunter to the second floor.
There were two levels in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. Both had an internet cafe area and a coffee area. There were two or three customers on the second floor now, too. That was why nobody paid much attention to Li Shi when he went upstairs.
The private movie hall was meant for screening movies. However, since nobody was watching anything at that moment, Pei Qian switched on Shanghai's satellite television program.
The moment the image changed, Pei Qian was stunned.
On the huge screen, Chen Lei's figure appeared! He was standing in front of a microphone, strumming his guitar and singing passionately.
"On a quiet night, I walked on the street.
"In the dim light, you waited.
"In the hustle and bustle of the city, only you understand my sorrows.
"No matter how far I drifted, I never forgot you and that intoxicating wine…"
The melody was already moving, but Chen Lei's unique voice made the indolence in this song much more vivid. The song was slow. There was a special touch of humanity and life in it, but it also felt faintly sorrowful. It was quite an unforgettable song.
Bang!
One of the teachers excitedly hit the light in front of him.
Bang!
Bang! Bang!
Chen Lei had only sung a couple of sentences, but once he got to the chorus, all for teachers had turned!
Pei Qian looked closely at the title of this program.
The Voice of China!
Pei Qian, "???"
As he watched the big screen, Pei Qian fell into a state of shock. He began to doubt his own memory.
What was going on?
If I remember correctly, The Voice of China only started in the Year 2012, right? What's more, it didn't start as a Shanghai satellite television program. Was the disaster of Aili Island happening all over again?
Pei Qian immediately understood. It was no wonder that Huang Sibo called him himself!
Huang Sibo knew that Chen Lei was a singer produced by Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. What's more, Boss Pei had carefully instructed them to take good care of him. It was obvious that their relationship was extraordinary.
Now, Chen Lei had shown his face on a national television program. Of course, Huang Sibo had to inform Pei Qian.
Li Shi found a corner to sit down on the second floor. He pretended to look out the window to appreciate the scenery. However, in actual fact, he was focusing on the screen.
When he saw Chen Lei, Li Shi heaved a sigh of relief.
"It was a false alarm. I was overthinking.
"Chen Lei was once the resident singer here. He's on good terms with the people in this cafe. It doesn't seem like a big deal that Boss Pei rushed upstairs to watch him on television as his friend.
"Wait…
"Something's wrong!"
Li Shi suddenly realized the severity of this problem. There was no way he could remain calm any longer!
Chen Lei was already finished with his song. However, the applause and cheering continued.
"Hello, Teachers. I am Chen Lei, from Jingzhou."
After obtaining some simple information about Chen Lei, one of the teachers went straight to the point. "I noticed that the name of this song is Waiting. It's a love song. When you sang it earlier, I wanted to say that the lyrics are very nicely written! These are lyrics written by someone with a story.
"'On a quiet night', 'only you understand my sorrows', 'no matter how far I drifted, I never forgot', 'that intoxicating wine'…
"Did you write this for your girlfriend? She's still waiting for you somewhere, isn't she?"
Chen Lei smiled, embarrassed. It was obvious that he was not used to performing for such a huge audience. He looked very coy.
"No. I wrote this song about a place. It was an internet cafe where I felt at home.
"Actually, I've always had low self-esteem. After I graduated from high school, I never found a job. That was until, one day, I passed by a nearby internet cafe…"
In his corner on the second floor, Li Shi's hand began to tremble. He glanced at Pei Qian, whose eyes were glued to the big screen. His back view made Li Shi feel like a huge mountain was weighing down on himself!
Could he be… playing this for me on purpose?
Li Shi's heart hardened.
On the screen, Chen Lei continued to talk about the story of him and Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
"Later, with Boss Pei's strong encouragement, I finally plucked up the courage to come to Shanghai and chase my dreams.
"I heard that after I left, the traffic in the internet cafe deteriorated significantly. However, Boss Pei never looked for me again. He must have hoped that this bad news would not affect me.
"That's why I wrote this song, in remembrance of that unforgettable period in my life.
"For this chance to come on the stage of The Voice of China, I really want to thank Boss Pei, Boss Ma, and everyone at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. Thank you all for allowing me to go down this path. To me, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe will always be like home!"
The teachers began to clap.
"Oh my! I thought that this was a touching love story. I never imagined that this would be a story about your dreams!"
"That was very well said. I am very moved. It made me think about when I was at a particularly low point in my life. It was also the little things that brought me the most warmth…"
"Don't worry, Chen Lei. I promise you that you have already become famous! Join my team. Next year, I have more than twenty shows around the country."
"Stop, stop, stop. It's not time to fight for him yet. Just wait a while! Chen Lei, four teachers have turned around. You've made it to the next stage. What do you plan to do from now on?"
Without any hesitation, Chen Lei said, "I want to go to Jingzhou and sing a couple of songs at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. I want to tell them right here and now that I miss them."
There was a blissful, bright smile on Chen Lei's face.
Bam! The screen went black.
Pei Qian switched it off.
The moment the screen went off, Li Shi's heart sank. It was almost as if his heart had fallen straight onto the floor and broken into a thousand different pieces. In the darkness, Boss Pei's back view resembled a huge beast. He looked like he was going to swallow the rich at any moment!
To Li Shi, Pei Qian was exuding confidence with every movement.
Although Boss Pei did not turn his back, Li Shi could imagine his extremely confident expression. It seemed to be saying 'The winner and loser have been decided. You don't need to stay to watch the show, do you?'
That's right, there was no need for Li Shi to stay to watch the rest of the show.
It was only now that Li Shi finally understood. Pei Qian did not come to watch Chen Lei sing. All of this was a show that he was putting on especially for him!
There was no need to say how popular The Voice of China was. Chen Lei's song, Waiting, was probably going to spread like wildfire across the internet. What's more, the sharing Chen Lei gave at the end-about the story of him and Fish-Catching Internet Cafe-would blaze discussion as well!
Chen Lei said that he would come back to Jingzhou and sing a couple of songs at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. Even idiots would be able to predict what would happen here in the future.
Li Shi forced himself to stand up. He walked towards Pei Qian, his heart filled with bitterness. He thought that Pei Qian was at a complete loss, and that he had been waiting for defeat. Now, it was obvious he was terribly wrong.
"Boss Pei, I respect you. You've kept this move so well under wraps. You did not do much, but once you acted, you surpassed my expectations. I did not expect this. I really underestimated you.
"You've won this time. I hope that we will have a chance to work together in the future."
Li Shi shook his head, turned around, and walked downstairs.
Everything had fallen apart in that instant. There was no point in him sneaking around behind the scenes anymore. It would be impossible for him to seek to invest in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe from now on.
Of course, doing business was like fighting a war. It was common for there to be winners and losers.
Li Shi was an experienced businessman. Naturally, he was not a sore loser. There was nothing to complain about. In fact, he respected Pei Qian that much more in his heart. Pei Qian was now a very deserving opponent to him.
Pei Qian was buried deep in shock and sorrow. By the time he regained his composure, Li Shi had already left Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
Pei Qian was dumbfounded.
Holy sh*t, don't leave! Misunderstanding! This was a misunderstanding!
Chapter 182 How was This Data Calculated??
In front of him, the screen was still black. Far away, Li Shi was still walking.
Pei Qian had a feeling that he had been abandoned by this world.
It was easy to predict what was going to happen next in this plot planner. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would become extremely popular!
Popular television programs like this were extremely influential. It could be likened to food programs recommending certain delicacies; the delicacy would be sold by chain stores all around the country in a short period.
Of course, things were not that bad. After all, the business model of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was quite different from restaurants.
No matter where restaurants were opened, they sold the same types of food. It did not make much of a difference which branch one went to. However, Chen Lei was only referring to one Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
Many of Chen Lei's fans would come here to try and get closer to him. They would want to come to the 'little internet cafe' where Chen Lei once worked just to take a look. However, to them, the rest of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would not look as attractive.
The Beatles had a similar story. They started out as resident singers in a small bar. Until now, that bar was a famous tourist attraction. However, the other bars in the same street did not receive the same treatment.
For fans who were interested in chasing their idols, only the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store would have a pilgrimage-like value. There was no need for them to visit the other Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
Thus, the worst-case scenario that Pei Qian was facing was that the flagship store's income would expand rapidly. The other Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branches would not face that big of a problem for now.
However, the expansion of this flagship store's income was enough bad news for Pei Qian!
That was because the week had not ended. If Chen Lei returned to the flagship store to sing, who knew how much money he would receive in alcohol tips in these last three days?!
Pei Qian wanted to turn Chen Lei away, but there was no valid reason.
At that thought, Pei Qian's limbs went cold and numb. He felt absolutely awful.
Pei Qian sat there for a long time before he finally stood up.
Li Shi was gone. The shops around Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would no longer hold promotions to draw Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's customers away. Of course, now, they would not be able to snatch anyone away even if they tried.
During this period, the shops around Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had been holding promotions to increase their popularity. However, now that Chen Lei had become famous, all the customers they gained would turn their attention to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
Pei Qian spent a lot of effort trying to push Chen Lei out before because he had been generating business. Yet, now, he was coming back worse than before!
He was very tired and miserable. He wanted to go back to his warm bed, hide under his blanket, and have a good sleep.
The moment he got to the stairs, he heard a noise coming from downstairs. Ma Yang was running up towards him excitedly. "Brother Qian! Brother Qian, are you up there?"
Pei Qian sounded listless. "What's the matter?"
"There are customers! Many, many customers!" Ma Yang's long face was filled with excitement and joy.
Pei Qian looked downstairs and saw more and more customers gathering at the entrance. A number of people had already squeezed into the main hall of the first floor. One by one, they whipped out their cell phones to take pictures.
Some people rushed to find seats before they ran out. Some others saw that there were no more seats and tip-toed to take pictures of the singer on stage. Many others rushed upstairs to look for more seats.
Pei Qian and Ma Yang were nearly pushed back by the incoming crowd. They wrestled their way downstairs and sneaked out of the internet cafe by the back door meant for the staff.
Once they got out, they saw a crowd on the street, rushing towards Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
After Pei Qian took a closer look, he finally understood. The people patronizing surrounding bars and staying in surrounding residential areas were all rushing over! Since the nearby bars had been holding promotions and giving discounts, night-time was their peak period. As these people were enjoying their drinks, they found out about Chen Lei and Fish-Catching Internet Cafe!
The news spread like wildfire. Since they were only a street away, they decided they had to come and take a look.
As for Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's expensive price…
Nobody complained about it anymore. If they could go in and take pictures to show off to their friends, what was spending tens of dollars for a glass of alcohol?
As he watched the crowd headed towards Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store, Pei Qian's eyes welled up.
My nice internet cafe is all gone!
Painful!
"Boohoo!"
Pei Qian was shocked. What is going on? I haven't cried.
He turned around and saw that it was Ma Yang who was crying. "Brother Qian, I finally understand why you sent Chen Lei to Shanghai. You always believed he would be popular, right?
"Brother Qian, I misunderstood you before. Boohoo…"
Pei Qian really wanted to cry at first, but after seeing Ma Yang cry like a hippopotamus, the urge he felt dissipated at once. He had lost the mood entirely.
Pei Qian looked inside the internet cafe sorrowfully. "Where is Zhang Yuan?"
Ma Yang wiped his tears and answered, "He's receiving the guests with the branch manager inside. There are too many people. We were just discussing earlier; we'll keep this store open overnight!"
Pei Oian, "…There's no need for that. Take care of your bodies."
Ma Yang patted his chest. "Don't worry, Brother Qian. The three of us will take turns to rest. If the need arises, we would go to the surrounding bars and ask to borrow their waiters. We'll give them three times the overtime pay. There'll be no problem!
"You put so much effort into making the internet cafe popular. How can we let it all go down the drain?
"Speaking of which-as part of the management of the internet cafes, neither Zhang Yuan nor I could share your burdens. I feel guilty enough."
"Don't worry this time. Leave it all to us!"
The corners of Pei Qian's mouth twitched. "…. I'll thank you, then."
Ma Yang wiped his tears as a smile spread across his long face. "No worries! Brother Qian, we don't have to be so formal with each other. Leave it all in our hearts."
Pei Qian was speechless. "…"
There was really no solution. There were still three more days. Whether they kept the store open overnight or not, it did not really matter.
"Alright, Brother Qian, I'm going back to work. You've worked hard during this period. Go back and rest!"
Ma Yang went back to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe through the staff entrance. Pei Qian watched his back view and felt inexplicable loneliness.
The next day…
Monday…
Pei Qian opened his eyes. It was noon. After struggling for a long time, he finally made up his mind. He summoned the system.
Last night, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe must have remained open throughout. Pei Qian had no idea how much alcohol they managed to sell. However, he would probably be able to see how much money they earned through the System Funds reflected on the screen.
At midnight tonight, the income earned over the last week by their games would be deposited into their account, too.
Before he went to sleep, there was still a loss in the System Funds. There was a loss of more than 2.1 million yuan.
Pei Qian had wrecked his brains thinking of ways to spend all of that money.
According to his initial plan, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was not supposed to reap in profits. As for the games, he expected to earn about 1.6 million yuan this week or 1.8 million yuan at the very most.
Ghost General and Game Designer earned about six to seven hundred thousand yuan each month. Ocean Stronghold earned about 3.4 million yuan each month. That meant that they earned about 1.2 million yuan each week in total.
After the official games' platforms altered the way they split profits and considering the income earned from their downloadable content, Pei Qian guessed that they would earn about 1.8 million yuan the previous week at the very most.
Even if Fish-Catching Internet Cafe stayed open all night, Pei Qian guessed that they earned about a hundred thousand yuan at the very most. It could not have been more than that.
Other bars could earn thousands of yuan by allowing groups of customers to have private tables and private services. However, there was no such thing in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. At the very most, people could spend money buying alcohol or surfing the internet.
The real challenge was what was going to happen in the next two days. Once Chen Lei arrived, many people would start giving alcohol tips.
However, Pei Qian had many employees under him now. It should not be too difficult to spend money on them, get rid of the hundreds of thousands of yuan, and incur a loss.
Thus, Pei Qian felt that if his luck was good, he would probably be able to incur a loss of three or four hundred thousand yuan.
That was still acceptable.
The screen appeared in front of Pei Qian.
"What the f*ck!"
Pei Qian nearly coughed out blood.
"How the hell did I get over 1.5 million yuan more than I expected?! There's a huge problem!"
Pei Qian was very close to vomiting blood. He quickly jumped out of his bed and ran to open his laptop. He wanted to check on the income of Tengda's games.
Income earned by Ghost General and Game Designer was a bit higher than Pei Qian expected, but it was still within an acceptable range.
Ocean Stronghold, on the other hand, was earning over a million yuan more than the worst-case scenario Pei Qian was prepared for! According to the numbers, Ocean Stronghold was earning more than ten million yuan this month. Seventy percent of that, minus taxes, would still amount to more than two million a week.
Pei Qian had not accounted for these earnings from Ocean Stronghold when he made his initial calculations!
He felt his limbs grow cold.
What was going on?
Didn't he check and find no problem with Ocean Stronghold earlier?
Pei Qian had placed all his focus on Fish-Catching Internet Cafe over these few days. He had not expected that Ocean Stronghold—which he had been neglectingwould be fatal to his plans!
"What happened to Ocean Stronghold last week?!"
"Li Zhengwei did advertise Ocean Stronghold, but it could not have been that effective, could it?
"What's more, I haven't even started selling the five hundred Barrett Doom for next month! Yet, I sold over ten thousand Red Kilins in one week?!
"What is going on? This doesn't make sense! What have I overlooked?!"
Chapter 183 No Way!
Pei Qian was dumbfounded.
Ocean Stronghold's data was so different from his expectations. Something must have gone wrong somewhere. Even if a new group of players joined the game, there was no reason for them to buy Red Kilins at such an insane rate. There must have been some important pull-factor!
Pei Qian looked closely at the data for all the games. Not only had there been more top-ups, but there had been significantly more active players as well! What's more, the average amount of time players spent on the game had increased, too!
One could say that people were grinding even more in Ocean Stronghold.
This was very strange.
Logically, the downloadable content Pei Qian added this time did not contain anything for which players had to grind. People could slowly play in story mode for a few days, and they would complete it. The PvP modes remained the same. Pei Qian did not add events that gave away packages to reward players for staying longer in the game.
Yet, the average time that players were spending in the game increased!
Were players suddenly deciding to play the game for a longer time because they felt like it?
Impossible.
The data behind the games would not lie. Pei Qian faintly felt like this was the reason for the sudden explosion of income!
Pei Qian searched Qiandu once again to find out why players of Ocean Stronghold were becoming so active.
Finally, he found his answer in a post.
"I've heard of trading in stocks and property. This is the first time I'm hearing of trading in accounts. You win!
"When Ocean Stronghold released its update, I was cursing as well. Why were they only selling five hundred of such good-looking Barrett Dooms? Were the officials insane? Why were they turning down the chance to earn more money?
"However, from the looks of the situation now, Tengda's plan was very deep!
"Yesterday, a friend of mine—who never played FPS games-suddenly came up to me to ask if I played Ocean Stronghold. He wanted to add me as a friend so we could play biochemical mode.
"At the time, I was confused. He never played FPS games; why did he suddenly change his mind?
"I asked him and found out the answer. He was trying to earn money!"
"People selling Barrett Dooms on trading platforms were pricing them at two to three thousand yuan, and yet they still went out of stock! After all, there were only five hundred of those for sale each month. Many people wanted to buy them for their own use. Otherwise, they planned to keep them for longer and wait for the price to increase. If whales wanted to obtain them, they would increase the price significantly!
"Many scalpers were overjoyed. They spent a lot of money to buy them and then kept them. After all, there are only going to be five hundred more for sale next month. This thing holds its value!
"In the end, the officials released another patch. After that, people could snatch Barrett Dooms using their credit rating! The higher one's credit rating, the higher their chances of pre-ordering a Barrett Doom.
"What's more, it's not like ordinary people would have no chance. As long as you are a real player and not a scalper who created an account just to obtain a Barrett Doom, you would have a chance to get the weapon!
"The higher one's credit rating was, the more chances they would have to obtain the Barrett Doom!
"Although this sounds unreliable, it's a type of metaphysics!
"Everyone began to think of ways to increase their own credit ratings. They kept grinding in the game; they played story mode and wanted to increase their ranking. People even discovered that topping up their accounts would increase their credit rating. Many rich players started to buy as many Red Kilins as possible!
"This weapon was good anyway, and they could look impressive in the game. It would even increase their chances of obtaining a Barrett Doom…
"People in our gaming circles really managed to obtain a Barrett Doom. The day before, they sold it for more than three thousand yuan. There are even bosses with third-grade credit ratings selling their accounts because they no longer have time to play. Now, whales are buying their accounts for over fifteen thousand yuan!
"Now, accounts with second- and third-grade credit ratings are becoming more valuable than Barrett Doom. After all, there will be more and more epic weapons in the future. These accounts can be seen as money trees!
"I've activated the three other people in my hostel to play the game now. I've asked them to play two games each day to keep the account alive. If we can get a Barrett Doom next month, we will be rich!"
After reading the post once through, Pei Qian was completely dazed. He finally understood where the problem was.
"…I'm too naive. I thought that by limiting the number of weapons for sale, the game would not generate too much income…"
Pei Qian finally understood that the problem was with limiting the number of Barrett Dooms for sale to five hundred!
The weapon was too popular. Selling only five hundred of them each month made them very valuable. Players who obtained them would be able to turn around and immediately sell them at a profit of one or two thousand yuan!
Accounts with third-grade credit ratings that owned a Red Kilin and a Barrett Doom would have unimaginable value.
Players would not be able to resist temptation like that.
What's more, Ocean Stronghold was a free game to begin with. It had rich content. Many people were already considering starting the game. This was the straw that broke the camel's back.
Players had not been that passionate at first. This was because scalpers and studios predominantly snatched weapons. However, since Pei Qian could not stand scalpers, he decided to start up a credit system that would allow ordinary gamers to obtain Barrett Dooms as well!
Thus, players became exceedingly passionate. Coupled with the fierce publicity by official gaming platforms and recommendations from people like Li Zhengwei and Teacher Qiao…
The week's income exploded!
What's more, it would not be so for just one week. In the next one or two months, Ocean Stronghold would surely make a lot of money.
Pei Qian thought about Chen Lei coming to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to sing for a couple of days.
He came face-to-face with a painful fact. He would not be able to incur losses this week.
Pei Qian slumped down on his chair, feeling suicidal. On further thought, who could he blame this time? He could not blame anyone…
It was Pei Qian who asked Chen Lei to go to Shanghai, who decided to sell only five hundred Barrett Dooms… and who allowed ordinary players to buy Barrett Dooms based on their credit.
The only problem was that Pei Qian did not make clear to Lin Wan what kind of factors to include in the credit rating system and how the players could increase their credit rating.
Lin Wan told Lu Mingliang and allowed him to come up with these details. Thus, Lu Mingliang included accounts' spending as a consideration.
This was very natural. It would be illogical not to increase the credit rating of whales who spent 888 yuan on Red Kilins.
Therein was the problem.
Many players, who had no intention to buy the Red Kilin, did so in order to increase their chances of obtaining a Barrett Doom. Now, they could spend money to increase their credit rating. When more Barrett Dooms were put up for sale the following month, they would have higher chances of obtaining them.
That was why many people splurged on Red Kilins in this final week. That was why Ocean Stronghold made so much money this week!
That was probably what people meant when they said 'one false step brings everlasting grief'…
What hurt Pei Qian's head the most was that he could not undo this mistake. Could Pei Qian take away the limitation on the number of Barrett Dooms for sale now? Sorry, the players would go even crazier over it.
What's more, he could not get rid of the credit ratings. The players would curse him to death. Pei Qian and the team in Tengda would fall apart.
Thus, nothing could be done about Ocean Stronghold anymore.
No way!
Boss Pei was miserable. He wanted to drink his worries away.
"Forget it. I'll go to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to have a couple of drinks. In any case… I won't be able to incur losses this month."
Chapter 184 Absolutely Irreconcilable!
At Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store…
The entrance was blocked by a passionate crowd that even water could not pass through the gaps between them.
On the stage, Chen Lei was strumming his guitar nonchalantly and singing.
Although it was still day time, the audience was very cooperative. They listened quietly and suppressed their applause and cheers. They waited until Chen Lei finished singing before they went crazy.
People kept walking towards the bar counter. They whipped out several red cash notes at once and then only took one glass back with them. The other drinks they paid for were to be tips for Chen Lei.
The bartender, waiters, and even Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan were so busy that they forgot the time.
Even in their dreams, they did not see Fish-Catching Internet Cafe becoming this popular!
It was a good thing that they transferred waiters from the other Fish-Catching Internet Cafes over to help the night before. It was only then they were barely able to hold the fort.
Ma Yang felt a wave of emotion. It was all thanks to Brother Qian who repaired the house before it rained by opening a couple more branches. Where else would they have found the extra help?
The traffic in the other Fish-Catching Internet Cafes was increasing as well. However, it was nothing compared to the flagship store. After all, people were coming for Chen Lei.
Now, the flagship store was really a flagship store!
On the second level, a long-legged girl was seated by the windows. She struck a pose and took a picture. She was holding a book from one of the bookshelves, reading it seriously under the sunlight. Looking at her, one would feel like everything was at peace.
However, the cover of the book was in Greek, and it was upside down. It read 'Use and Maintenance of Hand Tractors'.
Some people ordered drinks and listened to Chen Lei's singing. However, there were too many people in front of the stage. There was no way they could squeeze in. Thus, many people headed towards the internet cafe area to explore more of this mysterious place.
The internet cafe area was clean and neat. It was surrounded by filled bookshelves. A private movie hall with great ambiance was also there, along with very respectful waiters.
It was only then that people began to realize this internet cafe had so much quality!
Among these customers, most lived in the area. When they heard that Chen Lei would be coming, they rushed over at once. They had passed by this internet cafe before, but they had never stepped in to take a closer look. They were all dissuaded from doing so by the high prices.
However, on closer inspection, the prices were not that high!
On one hand, the internet cafe's environment; and the waiters were good. All things aside, the hardware in this internet cafe alone could beat all the other internet cafes.
Of course, there were other high-end internet cafes in the area. However, all of them tended to save as much as they could in terms of hardware. After all, it would be too huge of an investment to make. Most internet cafes opted for hardware that would give them the highest
payoff.
Yet, the hardware here was flawless. Many people determined to get a good computer for themselves might not even choose ones of this quality. The gaming experience was so good!
was so
There was no need to even talk about the alcohol and ambiance here; everything was top-notch.
On the other hand, the place did not raise their prices! They kept their prices the same before and after Chen Lei came. This was too kind of them!
If the boss were a different person, he would probably have started selling entry tickets once Chen Lei came to perform. Even if he did not, the alcohol and other drinks here would probably be more expensive.
He was out to make a profit after all. These were all common tactics.
However, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was different. Even now that Chen Lei was here, the prices remained the same. Many customers were touched. Not many shops were as kind as this now!
We were wrong to think this place was too expensive!
What's more, from tonight onward, Chen Lei's hardcore fans might continue to fly in from other cities. The scene then would probably be even more chaotic and lively than now!
When Pei Qian arrived at the entrance of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store, he realized that he should not have come. He was already in a bad mood. His intention was to come here and drink his sorrows away.
In the end, he discovered that there was no space for him to even step into the internet cafe!
Both levels of the internet cafe were full. The bar area aside, even the internet cafe area was filled. Behind each player at the computer were three or four more bystanders.
Pei Qian wanted to walk in, but that was also what the hundreds of people outside the entrance were trying to do. What's more, the people inside did not look like they were intending to leave.
Many people remained at the entrance of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to listen to Chen Lei sing. As they did so, they raised their hands, holding out money to the waiters passing by. They all bought only one drink but gave the rest to Chen Lei.
Even the shops next to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe were filled. Many people also went to the second floor of the board game cafe opposite Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, just so that they could get a good top-down view of the performance.
It was a good thing that the road outside Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was not a main road, too. There were a few cars. Otherwise, Pei Qian was sure that there would have been a traffic jam.
Pei Qian was absolutely hurt.
Is this the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe that I opened?
It was good before… it was cold and empty. I could come in and drink alcohol, and sit at any seat I wanted. The entire internet cafe was running for me. I could even incur losses at the same time. It was perfect!
Now, look. I cannot even find a spot to place my foot.
"Forget it, I'll go somewhere else."
Pei Qian was speechless. It looked like he did not even need to come back to this flagship store. The good thing was there were several other branches.
Just as Pei Qian turned to leave, a waiter serving guests outside spotted him. He ran all the way to Pei Qian's side. "Boss Pei, you are here. Quick, come in. We've saved a seat for you!"
Pei Qian paused. "You saved a seat for me?"
The waiter nodded. "That's right. Chen Lei is waiting for you. Come!"
Several other waiters came to him as well. They led Pei Qian to enter Fish-Catching Internet Cafe through the staff entrance.
Beside the bar counter was an empty seat. These people must have purposely saved it for Pei Qian.
Ma Yang looked very tired, but he still perked himself up as he continued working. "Brother Qian is here? Quick, sit! Your alcohol will be here at once!"
On stage, Chen Lei looked at Pei Qian, smiled subtly, and nodded. Then, he began singing nonchalantly.
"On a quiet night, I walked on the street.
"In the dim light, you waited.
"In the hustle and bustle of the city, only you understand my sorrows.
"No matter how far I drifted, I never forgot you and that intoxicating wine…
The song-Waiting, which became famous on The Voice of China and made it to the music billboard-started echoing throughout the internet cafe.
Chen Lei was performing it live.
At that moment, in that place, everyone felt moved and connected. A man seated in the front row, who was dressed casually but who looked charismatic, called a waiter over and whispered a couple of words.
Very quickly, Chen Lei finished the song.
The waiter walked on stage and said, "Let me tell everyone some good news. All the expenses from now until the night will be paid for by Young Master Lin!"
Pei Qian had been sipping his alcohol, but he immediately spat it all out.
As the crowd cheered, Pei Qian turned to look at the man. Immediately, there was a sense of strange familiarity.
Young Master Lin was looking in Pei Qian's direction. He smiled subtly and nodded.
Pei Qian was speechless. "…"
This man looked vaguely like Lin Zhou whom Pei Qian had seen in pictures. Lin Zhou was the President of Shenhua Real Estate. However, this man looked slightly younger…
Pei Qian's heart thudded.
He remembered. It was Lin Zhengnan's third son, Lin Chang. He was Shenhua Film and Media Co. Ltd.'s president.
Pei Qian finished his drink quietly.
Lin Chang was surprised.
This Boss Pei was not simple indeed.
Someone was paying the bill. Everyone would surely spend more than they intended to. Tonight, he might pay hundreds of thousands of yuan. To Lin Chang, this was no big deal. He would take it as a greeting gift for Boss Pei. What's more, he appreciated Chen Lei's singing.
What made him more curious, however, was Boss Pei's reaction. He did not look moved at all. He even looked cautious of Lin Chang.
The profits he was making had not gone to his head. Even in the face of such huge success, he could remain calm and collected. He could still be cautious of gifts that seemed to be out of nowhere. He was always keeping an eye out for any risk.
He is just like Ah Wan said. He's an impressive talent! Lin Chang exclaimed in his heart.
Pei Qian slammed his glass harshly on the table. He had only one thought in his mind.
The Lin Family and I will be absolutely irreconcilable!
However, on second thought, something was amiss. He could forget about incurring losses now. If he could earn more money, he would be able to convert more.
Thinking of things this way, he began to feel grateful to this Lin Chang. A single move from him might allow Pei Qian to add thousands more yuan to his Personal Wealth.
This was something to rejoice about. Yet, why did it feel almost impossible to rejoice…?
Pei Qian felt melancholic.