Even if they added in the cost of water and electricity, a hot drink would cost two yuan at the most. The shared phone booth would continue to make profits.
Of course, customers could not choose their own flavors.
Furthermore, customers would have to pay extra to play the capsule machine.
The couple picked up the microphones from the table and found a small box that contained free microphone covers. They received two for free upon entry, but if they wanted to use more, they had to pay.
The melodious music sounded, and both of them started singing.
At that time, outside the phone booth, everyone in the queue heard soft music coming from inside the phone booth.
“Eh? Are they really singing?” “How long… do they plan to sing?”
“Holy sh*t, they’ve paid more to stay in there for longer. The remaining time has increased!”
“…Let’s go, let’s go. How long must we freaking wait?!”
It looked like the couple that had just entered the shared phone booth was planning to stay in there for a long time. The timer on the screen started again at thirty minutes. Many people who had been queuing with the intention to try out the booth gave up and dispersed.
However, a realization suddenly dawned on Zhang Wang-who had been sitting at the drinks stall nearby-once he witnessed what had happened.
If everyone who went in came out again quickly, it would have been a bad thing. It would have meant that the phone booth had not been attractive enough!
However, now the couple had decided to stay and sing for at least half an hour. That meant that the shared phone booth itself had no problem!
The other shared phone booths would be done soon. Then, they would move into the various shopping malls in Jingzhou City… They would be money trees that raked in profits for a long time!
Once all twenty shared phone booths had been set up and they had recovered their capital, Zhang Wang would immediately report the good news to Boss Pei!
In the afternoon, on a hired car heading from Jingzhou’s airport to Shenhua View…
A young man accessed the author’s platform application on his cell phone, created a new chapter, and then habitually typed the words ‘taking leave’ in the subject.
“I’m attending Zhongdian Chinese Network’s first class for online authors in Jingzhou, and so I’m taking one day’s leave—just for all of your information.
“On top of that, please vote!”
He typed the entire message at one go. Then, the young man kept his cell phone and looked out of the window of the hired car, appreciating Jingzhou’s views.
A few minutes later, he took his cell phone out again and accessed Zhongdian Chinese Network’s application to read the readers’ comments under the chapter. “Pfft, I thought he updated the book!”
“He’s bailing on us again like he always does? Think about how many times you’ve taken leave in the past month alone.”
“Sh*t, it’s only 3 PM. Can’t you just write at night?”
“Not bad, you’ve improved. You said you had to attend your classmate’s weddings the past few times. I wondered why all of your classmates were getting married at the same time! Your excuse is not bad this time. Keep working hard!”
“Taking frequent leave is a sign that the author isn’t going to finish the book. Tell us, are you going to leave this book incomplete as well?!”
“Sh*t, don’t do that! I just caught up, and you’ve only written about six hundred thousand words for this book. It’s only a child!”
“You’re asking for votes even though you’re taking leave… how shameless!” “Do you see this vote? F*ck, even if I have to waste it, I wouldn’t vote for you!”
Reading the angry comments left by his readers, the young man smiled. He was already used to this.
Cui Geng was one of the students who would be attending Zhongdian Chinese Network’s first authors’ class. His pen name was ‘The Tentacled Beast that Writes for His Life’. However, that name turned out to be perfectly ironic.
He was known for updating his books very slowly and taking leave whenever he felt like it. Each time he took leave, he would also shamelessly ask readers to vote for him.
He was also infamous for not finishing two or three online novels.
Yet, he always had good ideas for novels and a perfect grasp of writing and rhythm. He could always draw people in. Although his readers constantly cursed at him, even they could not help but keep reading his novels.
Cui Geng sighed. “Ai, I’m telling the truth this time. I’m really going to take part in a class. Why doesn’t anyone believe me?”
Among online authors, there were hard workers and slackers. Authors like Cui Geng were especially slack.
That was because he lacked motivation.
When he graduated from university, he had immediately felt pressured by the real world’s materialism. Thus, having had nothing to do, he began writing online novels to support himself.
However, half a year after he had started, his house was demolished.
Cui Geng had wandered around for some time and then had felt empty once again. Thus, he had decided to repent and turn over a new leaf. This time, he had decided to finish his book and become a novel god.
In the end, several other flats belonging to his family were demolished as well.
Cui Geng felt sorrowful. Life had a way of making a fool of people. Who would have had the mood to continue writing?
Thus, Cui Geng left everything to fate now.
This time, he had come to Jingzhou with the intention to go on holiday.
He had no idea what he was going to learn in the class as well. He had signed up the moment he heard that he would receive a basic salary and that his food and accommodation would be provided for.
He had not expected to be chosen immediately.
It was probably because there weren’t many successful authors on Zhongdian Chinese Network Cui Geng had started off by writing on Infinite Chinese Network. However, many readers heard about him having a habit of not completing his books. Even editors came to hear about it. Each time he started a new book, his old readers would comment on it to diss it.
Helpless and not lacking money, Cui Geng had decided to change platforms and give himself a new lease of life.
Thus, thanks to a freak combination of various factors, Cui Geng started writing for Zhongdian Chinese Network which treated its mid-tier writers quite well.
“I heard that there are many fun places to go to in Jingzhou. It’s just as well. I can use this class as an excuse to play here for a few days.
“I’m taking leave for an official reason. The readers can’t say anything about that, right?
“I’m collecting material for my novel. What’s more, writing novels requires a lot of brainpower. If I play more, I can refresh my mind and cheer myself up. That’ll allow me to come up with more content.
“They’ll understand for sure!”
After thinking about this for some time, Cui Geng arrived at Shenhua View. He alighted from the car and took the elevator up to the editors’ department in Zhongdian Chinese Network.
Someone welcomed him warmly and led him to the conference room.
A while later, Ma Yiqun entered the conference room, and the two men began chatting
From their conversation, Cui Geng learned that he was the first author to arrive in Jingzhou for the class. That surprised him.
However, on further thought, it made sense. He had only received the invitation yesterday, and yet he was already here today. He had been quite fast.
The main reason for his enthusiasm was that he wanted to find an excuse to take leave as soon as possible.
After chatting for some time, Ma Yiqun retrieved an agreement.
“This is the agreement for the online literature class. Everyone has to sign one. Please read the details in the agreement very carefully. Once you’re sure that there are no problems with it, you can sign it.
Cui Geng was stunned. “Huh? There’s an agreement?”
It was quite formal.
Chapter 390 - The No-Show Walks into the Trap
Chapter 390 The No-Show Walks into the Trap
Cui Geng roughly scanned the document. Its main provisions concerned the rights and responsibilities for this class.
The website was obligated to provide a basic salary, insurance and funds, a working environment, accommodation, food, and the like for the authors. There were set standards for the salary, the insurance, the funds, as well as the food and accommodation.
On top of that, about ten hours each weekor two afternoons—would be spent on team exercises.
On the other hand, the authors would only have to submit themselves to the website’s scheduling. Otherwise, the website would be allowed to terminate the contract unconditionally and retract all promises and benefits under the contract.
There were also details about the flow and arrangement of the class.
What concerned Cui Geng the most was that, under the agreement, all authors would have clear work and rest times. Each day, they would work at their desks from 9 AM to 6 PM. In between, they would have an hour for lunch and rest.
Cui Geng was very happy with all the other provisions, but that one provision about work timings made him hesitate.
A frequent no-show like him, who had been used to working only two or three hours a day, now had to work eight hours a day at a work desk?
That sounded very difficult.
He worried that the website would retract all his benefits and privileges if he failed to hit the targets. Wouldn’t that be embarrassing?
Cui Geng voiced his concerns. “Boss Ma, the agreement states that we have to work for eight hours, right? Are there any other requirements, such as writing a minimum of four thousand words?”
Ma Yiqun shook his head. “There won’t be a word count.
“Writing is a creative process. Every author will experience writer’s block and be unable to produce anything. That’s why we decided not to set a hard and fast rule for the word count.”
Cui Geng heaved a sigh of relief.
It was good that they did not have a word count!
During working hours, he could surf the net, slack, and do whatever he wanted. Then, the eight hours would pass quickly.
The website was providing food and accommodation. They were even allowing everyone to travel around Jingzhou regularly to relax. Cui Geng could also look forward to eating, drinking, playing, and chatting with the other authors; and all he would have to do was surf the net in another location.
For all he knew, the computer they would provide him with would have better specifications than the computer he had at home.
All in all, it was a good deal.
Cui Geng continued flipping through the agreement and found no provision that put him at a disadvantage. Relieved, he signed his name.
“Alright, we will arrange for someone to send you to your accommodation later.
“We’ve arranged for everyone to stay at a guest house on the outskirts of the city to ensure that you can enjoy a relaxed and peaceful environment. Your workplace will be a five-minute walk from that guest house.
“Don’t worry, we say it’s the outskirts, but the accommodations will not be of low-standards.”
Ma Yiqun kept the agreement. Cui Geng nodded and said, “No problem.”
They were a bunch of tough men anyway; they did not have high expectations for the accommodations. Even if the accommodations were located in a deserted place, so be it. Most authors were homebodies who did not fancy going out, too. It would not be a problem.
January 14th, Friday…
At 8 AM, Cui Geng was woken up by his cell phone’s alarm ringing. He instinctively switched it off and went back to sleep.
“Brother Cui, it’s about time to wake up. You told me to wake you up last night,” said a voice next to him.
Cui Geng suddenly realized something. He opened his eyes wide and sat upright.
He was not at home; he was in a hotel!
He and a few other authors had checked into the hotel that the website had arranged for them yesterday.
The hotel environment was quite nice. Although it was on the outskirts, it was considered one of the better three-star hotels. The room was spacious, clean, and tidy. It also provided everything that its guests needed.
There were two people in a room, and Cui Geng was rooming with a new author who was about a year younger than him. The latter referred to Cui Geng as ‘Brother Cui’, and he was quite respectful.
“I’ll be ready soon!”
Cui Geng rolled out of bed, brushed his teeth, and washed his face at lightning speed. Five minutes later, he was all dressed.
Both of them had breakfast in the hotel and then walked to the nearby workplace together.
Yesterday afternoon and night, all the authors had arrived in Jingzhou one by one. Not one of them had backed out. They were all writers on Zhongdian Chinese Network who had heard about one another here and there. Thus, they all engaged in polite conversation. Zhu Xingan had arrived as well. He led everyone to the place where they would be writing normally.
The workplace that the website had prepared for them was in an office building nearby. They rented a spacious place and set up neatly-arranged work desks.
Apart from mechanical keyboards and big monitors, there were also fountain pens and notebooks on the large work desks. Those were probably for authors to write down their thoughts and inspirations.
On top of that, there was a long conference table in the room and a snack area by the side. Aside from various snacks, there was also a coffee pod machine.
All in all, this place already had much higher standards than most offices.
Zhu Xingan watched as everyone chose their respective seats.
“Alright, it’s almost time. You can rest for a while at your seats, have some coffee, and then start brainstorming.
“My workspace is near the door. If you have any questions while you’re writing, feel free to approach me and ask.
“You will also get ten minutes of rest every hour. We’ll ring the bell, and you can all stand up and move around, look out the window, or stretch. That should get rid of any signs of exhaustion.”
Cui Geng purposely chose a seat near the corner, the furthest away from Zhu Xingan. This was a perfect blind spot. Zhu Xingan would not realize what he was up to.
As long as he could slack the eight hours away and spend two or three hours in the middle writing something, he would be able to get by.
Cui Geng clicked on the power button of his computer and lightly tapped on his keyboard, producing crisp tapping sounds that were extremely pleasing to the ears.
The monitor’s quality was not bad. It had high resolution, and it looked like it had been adjusted to provide blue-light protection. As Cui Geng looked at it, his eyes felt comfortable; they did not hurt as much as they would when looking at other monitors.
The table was of standard height, but the chair and monitor’s heights could be adjusted at will.
The ergonomic chair was extremely comfortable as well. The backing of the chair fit perfectly against the curves of one’s back. The armrests were level with the table, and when one’s arm bent at ninety degrees, they could rest their elbows on the armrests. Since they could also rest their hands on their keyboards, typing felt effortless and comfortable.
The mouse and headphones were not necessary for writing novels, but they were of high-quality, too. In fact, they had even better specifications than what Cui Geng had at home.
Although he was not sure about the computer’s specifications, there seemed to be a cool logo on the computer that said ‘ROF’.
Since this was a desktop, Cui Geng guessed that the monitor would be passable. He should have no problems playing
large-scale games.
Even if he could not play games, watching shows on such a big monitor would be perfect.
Tap, tap, tap…
Crisp, tapping sounds of people typing away at their keyboards filled the room. Soon, the tapping became continuous and fast-paced. It was like a mechanical keyboard party.
If only one person had been typing on a mechanical keyboard—with the loudest click sounds, at that-in a quiet room, it would be akin to a person smoking cigarettes indoors. Everyone else could forget about working because they would be too distracted.
However, if everyone in the room was using the same mechanical keyboard to type, it would be like a group of smokers gathering to smoke. Nobody would be bothered by the sounds. Instead, they would form a unique environment in which they found pleasure.
Still, for Cui Geng—who was only interested in slacking—the sounds were very disturbing. Sh*t, we just sat down a minute ago. How do all of you have inspiration? Are you even human?
Forget it, forget it. Think on the bright side. Since the sound of typing is so loud, no one will notice me slacking.
These headphones should be good at canceling noise. I’ll look at the computer’s specifications and
Holy sh*t!
The computer’s specifications were obviously excellent. The computer switched on very quickly.
Since Cui Geng had been seated at the desk in the far corner, he had gone to grab snacks and a cup of coffee before he came back to switch on his computer. Thus, he was behind everyone else. Cui Geng had initially intended to check the computer’s specifications and internet speed upon switching it on. Then, he would think about what game to download or what show to watch.
However, the moment the computer switched on and before he could even move his mouse, the writing software automatically opened up. It filled the entire screen and was locked in place.
Cui Geng, “???”
He felt slightly light-headed. Instinctively, he clicked Alt + F4, but the computer did not respond.
Then, he tried Ctrl + Alt + Delete, but still, the computer did not respond.
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