Losing Money to Be a Tycoon c1-883

by Inebriation-seeking Blue Shirt, 青衫取醉

  There were bars, board game cafes, and the like. The ones which Boss Li had opened looked lively.

  He could hear music from the entrance of one bar in particular. So many young people were trying to squeeze their way into the bar that Pei Qian could almost feel the heat from their bodies.

  Many other shops were selling snacks that were popular online, including Dirty Buns, Remicones, Mini Pork Floss Cakes, and Durian Layered Cakes. In fact, they seemed to be doing well.

  There were also shops selling traditional food and drinks, such as pan-fried buns and dumplings, soya bean, and dough fritters.

  Apart from these, there were shops selling bubble tea and drinks, as well as convenience stores.

  What Pei Qian found hardest to accept was that a shop had opened in the busiest spot of this region. It was called ‘Nameless Kitchen’, and there were many customers inside! Pei Qian wanted to vomit blood.

  What kind of behavior was this? They were clearly imposters! They were intentionally cheating paying customers who had traveled from afar!

  Yet, it did not seem wrong for them to name their restaurant in this manner. Strictly speaking, Boss Pei’s restaurant was called ‘Ming Yun Private Kitchen’. It had no name on Quanmin Reviews. There was no copyright infringement for this restaurant to be named ‘Nameless Kitchen’.

  Pei Qian was furious. He opened his phone and logged onto Quanmin Reviews, wanting to expose this restaurant.

  In the end, he found that the restaurant had a rating of 4.3.

  He scrolled down to read the comments.

  “This restaurant is riding on someone else’s fame, but their food is passable.”

  “The nameless restaurant is good, but it’s always fully booked. We had no choice but to try our luck at this restaurant.” “One can only say that the nameless restaurant made the food and drinks around it popular. Everyone’s here to hop on the bandwagon. It feels like this place is becoming a famous food street in Jingzhou.”

  “I don’t suggest coming to this restaurant. Go to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe instead. The food there is very healthy. If you’re not full, you can buy some snacks from the surrounding shops as well. I strongly recommend Dirty Buns and Remicones.”

  “Indeed, this is just an ordinary restaurant. The Fish-Catching Internet Cafe beside it serves better food.”

  Pei Qian, “???”

  He had only wanted to expose this restaurant for shamelessly riding on others’ fame. Yet, when he read the comments left behind by fellow netizens, he realized a more serious problem. Who did this? Who advertised Fish-Catching Internet Cafe? Pei Qian quickly looked for Fish-Catching Internet Cafe on Quanmin Reviews. The ratings scared him half to death.

  4.8!

  He scrolled down to read the comments.

  “The machines and internet speed are great. It’s the exact same standard as the flagship store. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s chain guarantees quality!” “It’s my first time here. I did not expect there to be a Fish-Catching Internet Cafe here-I quite like it. The cocktails are nice, and the resident singer is not bad. Needless to say, the environment is excellent for surfing the net as well. As always, I am satisfied.”

  “It’s a chain store. Smoking is prohibited throughout the internet cafe. The environment is good, and the food is delicious. Xing Le Internet Cafe is becoming more popular. While it looks good, it’s still worse compared to this place.”

  Pei Qian kept his phone as a bad feeling rose in his chest.

  It looked like something went wrong!

  Pei Qian sped up and walked past many more shops which used to be cold and deserted but were not hustling and bustling. Finally, he arrived at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s entrance.

  When he saw the situation inside the internet cafe, Pei Qian was stunned. The gaming area was almost full. There were only two or three empty seats left.

  There were also many people in the bar area. The resident singer was singing soothing folk songs on stage. From time to time, customers would head to the bar counter to order drinks and tip the singer.

  Pei Qian stood at the door, at a loss for words.

  The waiter at the door immediately recognized Pei Qian. He quickly rushed forward to welcome him. “Boss Pei, you’re here! Quick, come in!” Pei Qian had been very busy during this period. He had not come to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe in more than a month. Although he often visited Ming Yun Private Kitchen, he would always be driven by the company chauffeurs. That meant he did not even walk past Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.

  Who would have thought that the street would become like this?!

  Without even thinking, he knew that Boss Li had done this.

  Pei Qian’s first reaction was not to look for Boss Li but to look for Ma Yang.

  Where’s Old Ma? I entrusted Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to you, and what have you done?! You’re the CEO of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe after all. You’re my most trusted right-hand man. Is this how you share my burdens?!

  Pei Qian scanned the internet cafe and quickly found Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan seated in a corner.

  Ma Yang was holding a glass of cocktail and sipping it nonchalantly. As he enjoyed the singer’s performance on stage, he looked extremely pleased.

  Pei Qian felt his anger rise in his chest as he looked at them. How dare you look so pleased?!

  The waiter walked briskly to Ma Yang’s side. “Boss Ma, Boss Pei is here.”

  Ma Yang turned around, and a grin spread across his big, long face. “Boss Pei, you’re here? Come and take a seat!

  “The shop has been doing much better recently. All of a sudden, we got busier. School just resumed, right? I was thinking about how I could share this good news with you if I bumped into you in school, but here you are! You’ve found out on your own.”

  Pei Qian was speechless.

  Old Ma, Old Ma. I trust you the most. How can you mess this up for me?

  “Why didn’t you tell me that our internet cafe suddenly saw a boost in customers?” Pei Qian was extremely unhappy.

  Ma Yang paused. “Huh? Brother Qian, didn’t you plan for this?”

  “In our previous meeting, you said that Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s branch in Ming Yun Villas is the center of your plans for the future. You also set up Upwind Courier stations and bought a villa for a private kitchen here. Didn’t you do all that to improve the business environment in this region?”

  While enjoying the music, Zhang Yuan happily added, “That’s right. Didn’t you plan for all these?

  “I thought you intentionally bluffed Boss Li into coming here, purely to make him incur losses. Now, I realized that I was too simple. “Not only did Boss Li invest in this area, but he even persuaded a lot of other people in the investment industry to invest in this area. The nameless restaurant added to the popularity of this place, causing it to become the new “Jingzhou Business District’ and ‘Jingzhou Food Street’. That was how Fish-Catching Internet Cafe became so famous!

  “Before this, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had been incurring losses, not because it was bad in itself, but because traffic in this area was low. Now that the root of the problem has been dealt with, our Ming Yun Villas branch is able to stand out among the crowd!”

  Pei Qian did not know what to say as he looked at both of their excited expressions.

  He began to seriously doubt himself.

  What happened? Could it be that the problem lies with me?

  Pei Qian had indeed said before that the Ming Yun Villas branch would be the focus of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s development. He was also the one who lured Boss Li to invest in this area.

  However, his motives were completely different from what everyone thought!

  Yet, from Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan’s perspective, it seemed reasonable not to report the developments to Pei Qian.

  Everyone knew that Tengda had many businesses, and Boss Pei was extremely busy. If there was nothing urgent, there would ordinarily be no need to inform him.

  Wh
y were the shops around Ming Yun Villas doing better now?

  It was because Ming Yun Private Kitchen had become popular.

  It was because Boss Li and Fu Hui Investments were investing in this area.

  It was because Boss Pei had bought a villa in Ming Yun Villas, and Ming Yun Villas took the chance to market themselves.

  Everything pointed back to Boss Pei. Didn’t that mean that Boss Pei expected the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s Ming Yun Villas branch to succeed?

  Since Boss Pei had already expected this, why would Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan have reported such a small development like an increase in customers at the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe?

  “Boss Pei, your cocktail.”

  The waiter served Pei Qian his favorite Aurora Jungle – Juice.

  Pei Qian sipped it quietly, starting to close himself off from everyone else.

  It seemed like Old Ma had acted as reliably as he always did. From beginning to end, he did absolutely nothing.

  Everything that had happened so far seemed to be Pei Qian’s fault…

  Pei Qian felt upset and happy at the same time.

  He was upset because two of his businesses had been implicated. Ming Yun Private Kitchen made Fish-Catching Internet Cafe famous. Not only were they both generating profits, but the villa itself was appreciating as well.

  Yet, he was happy because Ma Yang was still reliable.

  He only had himself to blame for everything so far.

  Pei Qian sipped his cocktail in silence, his heart filling with sorrow.

  Alright, pin the blame on me, then.

  Ma Yang did not know that Pei Qian was seriously reconsidering his own life at the moment. Excitedly, he asked, “Brother Qian, has the battle plan for the Ming Yun Villas branch been completed?”

  Battle plan?

  Pei Qian paused and then nodded. “Yes.”

  Not only has it been completed, but it has achieved much more than I had hoped for.

  It has completely surpassed my expectations!

  Ma Yang grinned, elated. Then, he continued, “Brother Qian, I told you that I’m not the CEO of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe for nothing, right? I can share your burdens!

  “Now that the Ming Yun Villas branch-which had been incurring the most losses-has become popular, I think it’s time to expand our business! We should strike while the iron is hot, and open more Fish-Catching Internet Cafe in Jingzhou City. We will take a greater share of the market!”

  Ma Yang lowered his voice slightly. “Boss Li has invested in Xing Le Internet Cafe, and they have been opening chain stores like crazy now. “Brother Qian, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was the first to adopt the high-end internet cafe model. We cannot let them overtake us.”

  Pei Qian could not help but stare at Ma Yang, stunned.

  Expand our business?

  Having two branches generating profits is problematic enough. Do you want to create more problems for me? Do you think I would even be able to incur a loss in this cycle?!

  Huh?

  Wait a minute.

  Pei Qian suddenly realized a problem.

  Everything has changed!

  Should he adjust his strategy now?

  Chapter 259 - Fish-Catching Internet Cafe Enters the Second Stage!

  Pei Qian pondered for a moment and looked at Zhang Yuan. “What’s the financial situation for these internet cafes?”

  Zhang Yuan immediately answered proudly, “They’re looking good!

  “The flagship store’s getting about seven hundred thousand yuan per month in revenue. After deducting our expenses, we’re making about two to three hundred thousand yuan per month. The other shops are doing slightly worse, but we’re more or less balanced out.

  “Our Ming Yun Villas branch was incurring the most losses among all the branches. However, its revenue has increased recently. I think we can generate an overall profit soon.” Hearing this, Pei Qian felt his heart begin to bleed.

  However, this also gave his thoughts validation.

  Again, Pei Qian asked, “Our main source of income in the internet cafes is the sale of alcohol, right?” Zhang Yuan nodded. “That’s right. The internet cafes’ main sources of income are the sale of alcohol and coffee, as well as tips for the resident singers. Another important source of revenue is the internet-surfing fee. However, while more people are paying to surf the net at our internet cafes, there still aren’t that many of them overall.”

  Pei Qian roughly understood the situation now.

  “We do have to expand. We’ll open a new branch in a location where the rent is the most expensive!”

  Ma Yang’s suggestion to expand the business reminded Pei Qian of something.

  Pei Qian had not intended to throw money into a failed project like Fish-Catching Internet Cafe anymore. Now, both the flagship store and the Ming Yun Villas branch have become popular. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe also had pretty good ratings on Quanmin Reviews. The internet cafes were now considered very famous in Jingzhou.

  Once paying customers formed an impression of such high-end brands, they would remain forever. Even if Boss Pei opened a new branch, people would likely visit it as well.

  Thus, opening a new branch would have been disadvantageous to Boss Pei.

  Why would he open new branches if they could not incur losses?

  However, after some thought, Pei Qian thought of another problem.

  Among all the businesses, Upwind Logistics was probably the best at losing money.

  Still, Ma Yang was the CEO of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe after all. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was now doing so well; it was now well-reputed and making profits. How could they just stop now?

  How would Pei Qian explain this to Ma Yang?

  Of course, Boss Pei did not need to explain anything to anyone. He could choose to cast Fish-Catching Internet Cafe aside if he wanted. After all, allowing it to earn hundreds of thousands of yuan a month was a small burden which Boss Pei could afford to carry.

  However, would people grow suspicious?

  After all, something would be off.

  Thus, Pei Qian thought of another idea.

  Making some profit would not be a problem for now. There was still more than a month until settlement. He could spend all the money on Upwind Logistics and a new branch for Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, right?

  Even if all of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s branches generated profits, it would be fine as long as the new branch didn’t earn money, right? Those two Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branches were making profits, but that was due to two main reasons.

  First, most of the revenue was coming from the sale of alcohol and customers’ tips for the resident singers. At the moment, most customers preferred to take Fish-Catching Internet Cafe as a coffee shop or a bar, and not a place to surf the net.

  Pei Qian had nothing to say about this.

  His original intention was to create a complete hodgepodge. He wanted to confuse everyone about what Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was in order to minimize the chances of the internet cafe becoming famous.

  He would never have expected that the bar and coffee area would become more popular than the internet cafe area!

  He could only say ‘man proposes, God disposes’.

  Apart from that, the few Fish-Catching Internet Cafes were located in deserted areas, and the rent was cheap.

  Pei Qian had picked these locations out in order to keep the internet cafes hidden and traffic low. He hoped word about Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would not spread, and rich customers would not be satisfied. That would have ensured that they would not recover the cost of daily operations.

  However, the situation was completely different now. Since Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had become famous, there was no point in keeping the branches in inconspicuous locations. Pei Qian would be better off looking for a busier location and spending more on rent!

  To Pei Qian, as long as he could resolve both of these problems, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would be able to c
ontinue incurring losses.

  That was why it was important for people to think in reverse.

  The resident singers are bringing in money? Get rid of them!

  The rent is too cheap? Find a more expensive place!

  Pei Qian considered for a while and immediately decided on a perfect solution.

  “Since that’s the case, we can enter the second stage of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s plan,” said Pei Qian in a serious tone.

  Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan immediately perked up and listened closely.

  The second stage! It looks like our hard work on Fish-Catching Internet Cafe has paid off. Boss Pei is validating us!

  Pei Qian continued, “Once we enter the second stage, we will improve Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s reputation. At the same time, we will do as much as we can to emphasize the true nature of the business—the internet cafe.”

  Ma Yang became confused. Zhang Yuan was stunned as well. What did he mean by the internet cafe area being the true nature of the business? Wasn’t diversification the advantage of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe?

  They were earning the most from the sale of coffee and alcohol now!

  Zhang Yuan continued to hear Pei Qian out despite the questions in his head.

  Pei Qian pulled out his phone and opened the map application inside it. After scanning it for a while, he locked in on a few big shopping centers in Jingzhou.

  “In the second stage, we will open a new branch to test waters. Location-wise… we’ll pick a location in one of these shopping centers.

  “We might not have as much space as we do now so we can forget about selling alcohol and coffee. We’ll use up all the space for computers instead.”

  Pei Qian’s thinking was quite clear. Many branches were now breaking even in terms of finances. Even the flagship store, which was generating the most revenue, was earning only two to three hundred thousand yuan a month.

  What if he could spend another three to four hundred thousand yuan a month on rent? Wouldn’t he turn the profits back into losses?