“Boss Pei, we have something to report to you. Ocean Stronghold’s active players and top-ups have recently experienced a spike. Also…”
Pei Qian smiled slightly as he nodded. “I already know that.”
“Oh, okay then, Boss Pei.”
Lu Mingliang quietly sat down as he felt that his actions had indeed been unnecessary.
How could Boss Pei miss such a simple statistic? That was not possible. Indeed, he had thought too much.
Before Pei Qian left, he glanced over at Lu Mingliang and nodded slightly.
Not bad!
It had been the right decision to make you chief planner; you are more reliable than Bao Xu and Huang Sibo! Although your information has come a little late, your actions are worthy of commendation. Your chief planner position is secured!
Chapter 180 - Boss Pei, Hurry Up and Watch the TV!
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.
&nb
sp; 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.
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