A waiter plucked up the courage to say, "Don't worry, Boss Pei. We will never betray Fish-Catching Internet Cafe! I will turn him down at once!"
Another waiter nodded and said, "That's right! Boss Pei, you have treated us exceedingly well. As long as you don't give up on us, we will never sell information about any of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's branches!"
Looking at these people's determined expressions, Pei Qian cursed in his heart.
Don't! You should sell as much as you can. That's exactly what I want!
What is the other party buying information on the Ming Yun Villas branch for? Isn't it to do harm to it?
That's just as well! It could help Ming Yun Villas incur more losses. I couldn't ask for anything better.
When the time comes, a few waiters would have made more money and Pei Qian would have lost more money. Wouldn't that be a win-win situation?
Pei Qian waved his hand and said, "No need. Sell the information for as much as you can earn. Don't be kind to them. Otherwise, negotiate and ask them for more than three thousand yuan."
The waiters were confused.
What's this? Was Boss Pei giving them permission to sell information?
One of the waiters thought about it, and a realization dawned upon him. "I know, Boss Pei! You're going to come up with a scheme! Do you want us to sell fake information and lead them on?"
Pei Qian smiled without saying a word.
Fake information?
Not fake information – I'm talking about true information. Just do your best to sell information about this branch.
Pei Qian took out his phone and started recording without changing his expression.
"Coincidentally, I wanted to tell all of you about the future arrangements for Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
"In the next few months, the branch at Ming Yun Villas will become our utmost priority among the entire Fish-Catching Internet Cafe business. At the same time, our internet cafe business is going to continue in full force!
"Although the flagship store is doing extremely well now, only the bar is doing well. The internet cafe is not."
He turned to Ma Yang and said, "Old Ma, didn't you always hope that Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would be turned into a bar? I never agreed because of this. High-end internet cafes do not seem as popular now, but they will definitely be the future of our business!
"I predict that in less than a year, these high-end internet cafes would replace traditional internet cafes. They'll become the mainstream in the market!"
There was some truth to what Pei Qian was saying, but there were also lies.
Cheap internet cafes would indeed have to be converted to high-end internet cafes in the future in order to remain competitive and stay mainstream. However, this transition would not be complete in the next one or two years.
According to Pei Qian's memory, such high-end internet cafes would only begin to get popular in 2012. In about 2014 to 2015, they would expand outwards from first-tier cities to second tier-cities. Only they were slowly and increasingly accepted by the majority.
Thus, as Pei Qian understood the situation, he would be incurring losses for another two years or so.
So what if this was the future of internet cafes? He could incur losses for two years, and that was great. He could talk about the future next time.
Pei Qian continued speaking. "What happened with Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store was a pleasant surprise. Honestly, it was not within my plans."
This was 100% the truth.
"Given the flagship store's success, there has been a huge disturbance in our customer traffic and the like. We can no longer test out our internet cafe model at the flagship store. That is why I chose the Ming Yun Villas branch to test out the internet cafe model. At the moment, it looks like this branch is doing the worst.
"Our goal is to focus on the surrounding high-end villas and university. We will fully display the benefits of a high-end internet cafe like Fish-Catching Internet Cafe here.
"Please believe me, everyone. Ming Yun Villas will become the next core commercial district in Jingzhou City. It will be a place where high-class people gather to relax!"
After hearing Pei Qian's speech, the waiters turned to look at one another.
Is Boss Pei speaking the truth or not? He's saying all of these to his opponents – most of it must be fake, right? Yet, why didn't it sound fake? Why did it sound like the truth?!
What's more, it seemed to completely match the way Boss Pei had been acting recently.
One of the waiters raised his hand weakly and asked, "Well, Boss Pei… What should we do, then?"
Pei Qian smiled subtly and said, "Treat our customers well and wait patiently."
After the meeting, Pei Qian sent the recording to Ma Yang
"Send this recording to one of the waiters."
Pei Qian was afraid that the waiters would leave out something that he had said. Thus, he very considerately recorded everything down. With this recording, the other party was more likely to believe it.
Of course, even though Pei Qian had gone to this extent, the other party could be suspicious. He might think that this was fake information. He might not take it seriously.
However, whether he took it seriously or not, Pei Qian would stand to gain and not to lose.
That night…
Li Shi collected the updates that one of his subordinates bought from three different waiters. There was even a recording. He was pleasantly surprised to have received this recording.
Overjoyed, Li Shi instructed his subordinate to reward the waiter who gave him the recording with another five hundred yuan. The information and recording verified one another. The contents of the messages were all the same.
However, since the information had been paraphrased, Li Shi feared that there may have been gaps. The most important of all was the recording. It contained Pei Qian's actual words.
Li Shi went into his study and sipped his tea as he listened to the recording.
"Boss Pei's speech can be summarized into two points. First, high-end internet cafes will be the mainstream model in the future. It is now very promising. Second, Ming Yun Villas will be Jingzhou City's next core commercial district where all the high-class people would gather…
"I am on the same page as him on the first point. Indeed, high-end internet cafes will definitely be the mainstream model in the future. People's standard of living would improve, and personal laptops would be common. People would begin to visit internet cafes not because it is necessary for gaming but because it is necessary as a means of socialization and playing with their friends. Their demands for the environment would naturally become higher as well.
"The second point, however, was up for discussion. It is well-known that Ming Yun Villas has failed as a high-end residential area. The nearby Handong Jiaotong University's East Campus is also a far cry from Handong Jiaotong University's main campus. Thus, there were not many students there.
"Is Boss Pei hoping to make this branch popular based on these two groups of people alone? That seems too idealistic and positive.
"What's more, this Fish-Catching Internet Cafe is quite a distance from both places. It's almost two kilometers away; it would take twenty to thirty minutes for them just to get there.
"This is such an awkward distance. It's too far to walk, and it's too troublesome to take public transport. Both means of transport don't seem to make sense. The students in the East campus would probably lean towards the internet cafe at the entrance of their school. The rich folk in Ming Yun Villas would also likely not drive all the way here just for a cup of coffee.
"Did he hope to draw customers from both sides? He might be too ambitious. If this was a high-end restaurant, perhaps people might travel the distance to get there. However, the internet cafe is just not attractive enough.
"Yet, given Boss Pei's strategizing skills, this doesn't seem impossible…"
Ever since Pei Qian made Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store famous with one resident singer, Li Shi prostrated himself in admiration of Boss Pei's marketing skills.
Boss Pei might have said in the recording that it had been a surprise for him, but he was obviously being overly-modest.
Was it possible for such a good surprise to take place?
Thus, Li Shi only believed 80% of what Pei Qian said. He even suspected that this might be fake information. However, on further thought, it would not have made sense.
Chapter 206 Truth Becomes Fiction When Fiction's True
Would the three waiters whom he bribed gang up to come up with false information? What's more, none of them reported this to Boss Pei. The chances of that happening were very low.
After all, these waiters were not related to Boss Pei in any way. They were workers at the bottom of the hierarchy. How could they be that loyal?
The most important thing was that based on Li Shi's complete analysis of Boss Pei, the information was highly likely to be true.
What had Boss Pei been doing recently?
He had indeed stopped visiting the flagship store. Every now and then, he would visit the branch at Ming Yun Villas instead!
On top of that, both Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan were stationed at Ming Yun Villas as well.
All of these proved that Boss Pei had shifted his attention there.
Boss Pei had so many businesses to take care of. He was busy enough as it was. If he did not have a plan for this branch, why would he waste that much time over there?
Would he do all of these just to concoct false information and play Li Shi?
How could that be? Boss Pei would not do such meaningless things.
Thus, on the whole, the information was very likely to be true. Boss Pei was really making the Ming Yun Villas branch the center of his development plan for Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. He was already prepared with a back-up plan. He had confidence in making this commercial district popular!
At that thought, Li Shi felt excited.
After all, Jingzhou City was a second-tier city. There were very few good investment opportunities. Li Shi had spent money allowing other businesses to run promotions earlier, in hopes of disrupting the growth of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. He wanted to create opportunities to invest in the business early on. In the end, his plan fell through.
Fortunately, he did not lose that much money because he did not work at it for a long time. Once Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store became popular, Li Shi stopped spending money.
What's more, ever since the flagship store became popular, more customers visited that street. The other shops profited from it, too.
This time, Li Shi would not hope to invest in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe again. He knew that this would be wishful thinking on his part.
Yet, even then, he wanted to do something with the information he had on hand.
For example, he wanted to jump at the chance to develop something at Ming Yun Villas! When Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store became popular, the shops near it became popular as well. The coffee shops, bars, and internet cafes on the same path saw more customers as well. Rent for the popular shops nearby increased as well.
From this, Li Shi learned that Boss Pei might not be bragging when he said he wanted to turn the Ming Yun Villas area into a commercial district.
Since that was the case, why not develop something near Ming Yun Villas? He could invest in several restaurants, coffee shops, bars, internet cafes, and board game cafes in the vicinity. He could open a shop or two and wait for business in the area to pick up. Then, his shops would start making money.
Even if Li Shi did not plan to run these shops himself, he could probably sell the shops when the time was right. Someone would want to take over them. For all he knew, he could earn a windfall from this venture!
The more Li Shi thought about it, the happier he became. This was why he wanted the information! Although Boss Pei was young, he had a keen eye for business. He also had a unique talent for marketing. Li Shi would be right to keep following him!
As for how much he should pour into the venture…
Li Shi pondered for a while. The more he invested, the more he would earn. The less he invested, the less he would earn. However, as an investor, he knew that he could not put all his eggs in one basket. Thus, he decided to invest in one high-end internet cafe, one coffee shop, one board game cafe, and the like.
He would choose the locations carefully. The high-end internet cafe and board game cafe would be placed closer to the university. After all, university students would be the main spenders. At the same time, he might be able to attract some of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's customers.
Of course, Li Shi would not personally run these businesses. He had to make use of his connections. Perhaps he could convince one of the bosses of the internet cafe chains he had already invested in to open a branch in the area. There, they could set up an internet cafe based on the trendiest model.
Then, all Li Shi would have to do was to provide the funds.
Since Li Shi was sure that there was no way he would be able to invest in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe anymore, he had to look for other alternatives. He had to look for other investments to make.
Then, all he had to do was follow what Boss Pei was doing. Once he succeeded, there would be lots to earn!
Pei Qian was not sure who was interested in obtaining inside information about the branch at Ming Yun Villas. However, it did not matter to him. Anyone who wanted the information could buy it.
The information that Pei Qian released was fake indeed. However, it seemed more real than real information.
Pei Qian's real motive was quite simple. He wanted to create an illusion that the branch at Ming Yun Villas and the surrounding region were going to become extremely popular. Then, more people would want to invest in this area.
If more internet cafes, restaurants, and coffee shops opened in the area; wouldn't there be fewer people visiting Fish-Catching Internet Cafe?
Ming Yun Villas had been making a steady loss because there were few customers in the vicinity. Ming Yun Villas' occupancy was low, and there weren't many students in Handong Jiaotong University's East Campus. What's more, the cafe was far from the latter.
It was already so miserable. If more shops opened in the area, fewer customers would visit Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. Then, they would be doing even more miserably!
As for who the unlucky b*stard was…
All Pei Qian could say was that he willingly took the bait. In the first place, he harbored ill intentions and wanted to buy insider information about Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. What's more, he was not buying this information from Boss Pei. Boss Pei did not earn a single cent from this venture. Of course, Pei Qian had to note it down in his notebook and take revenge!
Pei Qian guessed that he would not see any reaction in the short-term. After all, it would take at least a month to set up shops in the area.
Thus, Pei Qian decided not to think about this for now. Instead, he busied himself with other things.
The preparations for Headwind Courier stations were almost complete. They had already locked down the locations for the various courier stations. They were mainly residential areas. They could not cover all of Jingzhou City, but they had covered a significant area.
Pei Qian had been busy with recruiting people, purchasing shelves, renovations, and the like recently. If all went well, Pei Qian would be able to observe the first Headwind Courier station in about a week.
Apart from this, there was something else: the high-end restaurant that Pei Qian had been thinking about earlier.
Swan Lake Restaurant could no longer fulfill the requirements that Pei Qian's team had. He had to spend a load of money on this and custom-make a restaurant.
During this period, Pei Qian considered the best location and set-up for this restaurant.
The problem of the location was enough to give Pei Qian a headache. At first, he wanted to choose a quiet commercial district to set up the restaurant. However, he felt that this would be inappropriate. This was because consumer review sites had already been created. The internet was also widespread. It would be very difficult for him to hide an extremely expensive restaurant like that for long.
Pei Qian also could not turn such a high-end restaurant into an internal canteen, which was only to be enjoyed by his employees. The System would not agree to it. The high-end restaurant had to be made available to all consumers in Jingzhou City.
Of course, ordinary consumers would not be able to afford it. However, if whales really wanted to visit the restaurant, Pei Qian could not chase them out forcefully.
Pei Qian had several options in Jingzhou City like Guangming District and Lincheng District. However, once the restaurant was discovered, all high-class people would turn into its customer base. After all, there was only one high-end restaurant in all of Jingzhou. People would not mind traveling a distance for a good meal every now and then.
Of course, he would not necessarily profit. However, he would definitely incur less loss.
Thus, after some consideration, Pei Qian decided to set up the restaurant as far away from the city center as possible. The more deserted the location, the better. He wanted to attract as few customers as possible!
After looking around, he discovered that the best location was one he had already seen before. It was where Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's Ming Yun Villas branch was located.
Chapter 207 Small Website, Definitely a Scam!
On further thought, this was very logical.
When Pei Qian was scouting for suitable locations to set up Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branches, he looked for all the deserted spots. Basically, he scanned all the worst locations in Jingzhou City.
The Ming Yun Villas branch was incurring the most losses out of all the branches. Of course, this showed that the location was also the worst of the worst. It should be no surprise that while looking for an appropriate place to start his high-end restaurant, Pei Qian narrowed his options down to this location once again.
After thinking about all these, it seemed right.
How about pulling off an 'Old Temple Hidden in Mountains[1]'? There were other shops near Ming Yun Villas as well. However, most shops were unable to cope with low traffic. One by one, they closed down.
At the time, Pei Qian chose the shop space furthest away from Ming Yun Villas. There, he set up the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branch.
Now, the other shops would be of use to him. Pei Qian planned to pick a more hidden location; it was best if he could find a vast space. Then, he would do some renovation and open a high-end restaurant.
He would not leak information about the restaurant on consumer review sites. His own employees could enjoy meals here, but the restaurant would otherwise be cold and deserted. It was perfect.
Pei Qian would not use the buffet model because there was only so much he would be able to spend. He would not be able to lose money fast enough.
He had to create a menu with sky-high prices. When he came here with his employees, he would choose the most expensive items on the menu. Only then would he be able to spend money quickly.
He would also choose the best and freshest ingredients. All in all, he would make use of all the best ingredients in Jingzhou City.
What if they had few customers and all the ingredients went to waste?
The System would probably not allow for such behavior.
Otherwise, Pei Qian could just buy an insane amount of food and allow them to rot somewhere. However, this did not seem to tie in with the System's requirements.
Of course, Pei Qian had a plan for this as well.
They could purchase ordinary ingredients as and when they wanted. They could also be used for employee meals. In any case, these would be consumed internally; there was only so much that could be wasted. Pei Qian guessed that the System would likely not mind such petty quantities.
As for more valuable ingredients such as European lobsters, Kobe beef, white truffle, blue lobsters, and the like; they could use a pre-order system. They would reserve a day for a meal and pre-order as many ingredients as they needed.
To Pei Qian, this was no big deal. After all, he always had a rough idea of when they would gather for a meal. Now, whenever he wanted to gather his employees for meals, he would just have to inform the restaurant in advance so that they could prepare the high-class ingredients.
Customers who came to the restaurant would also discover that the restaurant lacked all the valuable ingredients, and all of them had to be pre-ordered. This would probably persuade them to stop visiting the restaurant as well.
Pei Qian would be killing two birds with one stone!
When the time came, he would also hire famous, well-known chefs from Beijing and Shanghai. Paying their monthly salaries alone would ensure that Pei Qian could spend a huge sum.
He would be able to incur losses and enjoy feasts whenever he wanted to. Wouldn't that be perfect?
At that thought, Pei Qian decided to have a walk around in the next two days. He would find a location that was deserted yet big enough. There, he would set up the restaurant. They needed a big space in order to fit all the employees.
July 19th, Monday…
Ma Yiqun arrived at Zhongdian Chinese Network and began his daily work. There were not many manuscripts that had to be reviewed. Including the ones they received over the weekend, it was still few. He finished his reviewing work very quickly. Then, he started writing the plot for Repent and be Saved. Suddenly, he felt bored and decided to take a break.
Thus, he opened the online literature forum and began browsing. He scanned the hot topics on the first page and found that many people were discussing Zhongdian Chinese Network.
This was expected. After all, Ma Yiqun had spread the news that Zhongdian Chinese Network was looking for more manuscripts on several channels including forums. Naturally, many authors would discuss this.
However, Ma Yiqun found that based on the comments on the forum, his website was not very well-received.
"Recently, a new website was started. It's called Zhongdian Chinese Network. Some people say that the pay is not bad. You just need to write three thousand words daily in order to earn a thousand yuan a month. It's much better-paying than Infinite Chinese Network. Is it worth it? Can any expert offer opinions?"
"It's a small site. I don't advise it."
"Some people have tried it. They say that the traffic on that website is way too low. It doesn't seem like the website is buying any popular authors over or redirecting traffic from other sites either. You might have to be prepared to only receive the basic, full-time pay for a long time…"
"That can't be… so miserable?"
"It really is that miserable. Someone even talked to their editors. I think the website does not offer any benefits other than the high, basic, full-time pay. If you have dreams of becoming popular, you should still try writing on Infinite Chinese Network. Even if you write good novels on that small website, nobody will subscribe to them."
"If you write rubbish and cannot even hope for subscriptions, you can go to that small website?"
These were comments written by users. Ma Yiqun continued scanning the comments and found that some were even written by editors or authors from other websites.
After all, Ma Yiqun had been keeping up with these forums for a long time. He was familiar with these IDs.
"Everyone, don't go there! It must be a scam!"
"The website hasn't done any marketing, and it does not have channels to reach out to people! Of course, it would not have any readers! The books in the library are trash as well. This will surely become a vicious cycle as time goes by. If you write for Infinite Chinese Network, even if you get less basic pay, you will still have chances of fighting for subscription!"
"That's right. I wonder if this website was set up for money-laundering. Otherwise, the creator must be very childish to think that providing high basic pay alone would draw good authors. It's a joke."
"Exactly! He could have bought more expensive manuscripts. At least the books on the first page of the website would be readable,
right?"
"That's why I'm warning all the newbies to avoid the website at all costs! It's a scam for sure! If you want good online literature, you should go to bigger websites. If this website closes down and you don't even get your basic pay, wouldn't you have no choice but to cry?"
As Ma Yiqun read these comments, he sighed. Although he wanted very badly to rebut these comments, he felt that they made sense. From Ma Yiqun's standpoint, he had complete trust in Boss Pei. He also believed that Boss Pei would have a way of making the website popular.
However, all outsiders would see was that Zhongdian Chinese Network looked absolutely unreliable.
Although editors and authors from competing websites were adding oil to the flames, Ma Yiqun could not help but admit that most of what they were saying was true. They were not buying good authors over, not accepting buyouts, and not redirecting readers to their site. Based on their meager full-time pay alone, they could not attract any good author.
Ma Yiqun quietly closed the forum and went back to work.
The website had already been set up. The authors of the manuscripts they had accepted were already writing new chapters. They had already filled up various areas, including the recommendation spots on the first page of the website. At the very least, they looked good on the surface.
What's more, the website was quite beautifully made. They had spent money on it after all.
However, one only had to scan the books on the first page to see the truth. They were all unbearable to read! Their names all contained the words 'God Emperor', 'Mad Husband', 'Mad Mercenary', or something similar. Some books—such as 'Your Naughty Wife was Disobedient, Don't be Angry, CEO' or 'Masked CEO's Young, Delicate Wife'-were even targeted at females.
The book titles were very ordinary, and their content was even more so. Basically, all of them had cliche plots. If they had been uploaded onto Infinite Chinese Network, they would have failed for sure.
The worst part was that these were the better books. That was why they were placed on the home page. More books were below this standard.
Ma Yiqun shook his head and sighed. Indeed, just like Boss Pei said, they could not rush these things.
He should focus on writing Repent and be Saved's plot instead. There was nothing else for him to do anyway. He could focus his energy on perfecting the details of the plot. Several editors were also excited about writing Repent and be Saved's plot. They discussed it regularly. Whenever they faced problems with the details, they would communicate and resolve them.
The new chapters were coming in slowly. In fact, they were barely even keeping up with the basic requirements.
However, no one really minded. After all, the welfare and remuneration they were receiving from Boss Pei were good. There was no need for them to work so hard for the sake of the additional basic pay for writing.
To Ma Yiqun, this was a good thing. At the very least, there would be no unnecessary padding for the plots that were being written.
As the saying went, 'a slow artisan produces skilled work'. There was no guarantee that they would write better if they wrote slowly. However, if they wrote any quicker, their writing would most definitely be flawed.
Repent and be Saved's plot was meant to be a service to the game. Their aim was not to hit any number of words. The fewer the number of words, the better.
[1] This is a famous Chinese painting which does not actually contain a temple despite its title.
Chapter 208 Who is This, Harming Himself and Others?!
At Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's branch at Ming Yun Villas…
Pei Qian was with Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan, visiting and surveying locations for the new high-end restaurant. In fact, they had already surveyed all the shop spaces in this area once before. They also generally understood the business environment in the area.
All in all, the place was cold and deserted. Boss Pei was very happy with it.
The original plan for Ming Yun Villas was for there to be shops in the vicinity. However, since the place did not become popular and the occupancy rate of the villas was, the traffic in the shops was low as well. No shop could recover their capital. One by one, they closed down.
Now, the rent for many shop spaces was cheap. Basically, one could rent a space for about seventy percent of the average price in the market.
A few days ago, Pei Qian picked two or three spaces which he liked. All of them were located further in from Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.
These shops had several points in common. First, all of them were big, with large areas, this satisfied Boss Pei's requirements for a large restaurant. Second, they were all in the center of a bunch of closed shops. The surroundings were particularly cold and deserted, and the restaurant wouldn't draw attention on normal days. Third, it was not exactly convenient to get here.
There was a lot of parking nearby. However, one would have to walk a long distance to the restaurant after parking.
Thus, Pei Qian planned to visit the locations for the last time today. After finalizing the location, he could sign the contract and begin renovations. If all went well, perhaps he would be able to bring his employees here for a good meal next month.
Zhang Yuan continued to follow behind Boss Pei and Ma Yang in silence. He found it sad that it was getting harder and harder to predict what Boss Pei would do next.
The locations he chose for the restaurant were really ridiculous.
When he first heard that Boss Pei would open a high-end restaurant, Zhang Yuan felt quite happy. He thought he had finally managed to predict what Boss Pei would do next.
While Fish-Catching Take-Out covered low-end daily meals, the high-end restaurant would take care of those with more high-class taste. The two would complement each other – it was perfect! Zhang Yuan thought that the high-end restaurant would be opened at the city center. There, it would surely become popular and busy!
However, what Boss Pei did next utterly confused him.
He picked a location close to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's branch at Ming Yun Villas even though that branch was doing the worst of all?
Ming Yun Villas was located in the south-east region of Jingzhou City. It was already a deserted location to begin with.
If Boss Pei had opened the restaurant in the city center, he would be able to cover all of Jingzhou City. Even if one lived in the outskirts, it would only take them about an hour to drive down to the city center.
Of course, this was provided that there was no traffic jam.
Yet, setting up the restaurant in the south-east region of the city would mean that those in the north and west regions would have to drive across the city if they wanted to visit it. That would take them more than an hour… or close to two.
After they finished eating, they would have to drive for another two hours back, in the evening peak-hour traffic.
The thought of that alone would be too suffocating
What's more, the business environment there was no good. There were no entertainment facilities; why would people travel all that way for a meal?
From any angle, this plan seemed ridiculous.
However, Boss Pei had already explained his reason for selecting this location. He predicted that the Ming Yun Villas area would become Jingzhou City's next commercial district. That was why he was making these moves in advance.
On this point, Boss Pei was being consistent.
However, no matter how Zhang Yuan studied the area, it did not look like a commercial district. It was too cold and deserted. The three of them walked and scanned the area.
All of a sudden, Zhang Yuan's eyes lit up.
He saw a shop being set up and renovated! It was a two-story shop, and it looked quite cool. Zhang Yuan remembered that the last time he came here, the shop had been closed. What's more, it looked abandoned.
Had someone taken over the shop in just a few days?
Zhang Yuan arrived at the front of the shop and approached one of the construction workers to ask some questions. After that, he realized that a coffee shop was being opened here! From the looks of it, the owner of this shop was hoping to attract the high-income residents of Ming Yun Villas!
It was obvious that the coffee shop would steal some of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's customers and affect its sales. After all, it was much closer to Ming Yun Villas. It would only take the residents ten minutes to get there on foot.
However, the place immediately looked less abandoned!
Boss Pei remained expressionless and kept walking. Then, they arrived at the first location which he chose. At first, Pei Qian chose this location because it was in the middle of many closed shops. It was cold and deserted, and the perfect hiding spot for his new high-end restaurant.
However, along the closest road, another big shop space was being renovated!
Zhang Yuan went to chat with the construction workers again and found that someone was opening a bar here. What's more, from the size of the shop space and the extravagance of the renovations, it looked like this bar was not going to be a small one!
Zhang Yuan could not help but glance at Boss Pei with utmost respect. Boss Pei's eye for business was indeed amazing!
A few days ago, he had said that the business environment in this place would develop at rapid speed and that it would become Jingzhou City's next commercial district. Now, someone had indeed invested in this area! Although the place still looked deserted and nobody was walking around here, once the facilities were completed, the place would become livelier for sure!
When the high-end restaurant opened here, customers would have a place to have their meals. They could then head to the nearby bar for a drink or two. This place would immediately look much more attractive!
Boss Pei had a sharp eye indeed. Everything was in the palm of his hand!
At that moment, the corners of Pei Qian's mouth twitched slightly.
Who is this?!
It took me such a long time to look for a deserted place like that. Why are you creating trouble here?! This place is so abandoned, and you still want to invest in it. You're even setting up a coffee shop and bar. Aren't you afraid of losing money?
Even if I lose money, I have the System to make up for the losses. You don't, do you?
You're harming others and yourself. You're crazy!
Pei Qian was speechless. All I wanted was to find a quiet place where I could incur losses. Why is someone joining me?
The most important thing is that the person is setting up a bar and a coffee shop. Once they are completed, people from Ming Yun Villas would really be attracted to this area.
If I open my high-end restaurant here, it would be too exposed! If people came here to drink alcohol, there is a chance that they would stumble upon my restaurant when they walk around.
For no reason, the traffic flow in this area would increase!
Who the hell is so bored as to invest money in a place like that…?
Pei Qian suddenly recalled something. A realization dawned upon him.
Oh, it must be the person who bought information on Fish-Catching Internet Cafe! He really took my false information to be true! He might have thought that the area around Ming Yun Villas would really become popular. That was probably why he chose to invest in the region; he wanted to earn from it in the future.
Pei Qian could not help but feel sorrowful. Guys, you're reacting so quickly…
I only released this false information a while ago, and you've already taken the bait. How much do you trust me…?
Pei Qian's confused expression turned into a joyful one all of a sudden.
Since that's the case, I couldn't ask for more!
You're burning your money by opening shops here and pulling Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's customers over to your shops. You're setting yourself alight and spreading the glow to me
Although this would cause a disturbance to my high-end restaurant and increase the chances of it being exposed, it wouldn't matter. I haven't decided on a location for my restaurant. I can always choose somewhere else!
Pei Qian decided to give up this location and continue walking.
Ma Yang followed suit, but Zhang Yuan became confused. He studied the bar under renovation and then glanced at Boss Pei, who was now walking away. Suddenly, he did not know where to go.
After a moment, he chased after Boss Pei.
What's this?
More shops were being opened here. Wouldn't that be good for our restaurant? Shouldn't we choose it right away? Why is Boss Pei walking away without turning back?
His mind was full of questions, but he dared not ask a single one. Instead, he silently followed behind Boss Pei.
Chapter 209
It Doesn't Sound… Too Expensive
Pei Qian looked around as he walked. At the same time, he thought hard.
Many shops were being renovated in the area. This meant that if he opened the high-end restaurant here, there was a significantly higher chance of people finding it. Thus, all the locations that he chose a few days ago had become void immediately.
Pei Qian walked and walked and subconsciously arrived near the Ming Yun Villas residential area. When he saw the faintly discernible villas halfway up the hill in front of him, he fell into deeper thought.
Ming Yun Villas' was built at the base of a nameless hill (or a little bump) in Jingzhou City's outskirts. Most villas were at the foot of the hill, but some were built halfway up the hill. These were referred to as 'hilltop villas'. Based on Pei Qian's understanding, not many of the Ming Yun Villas were sold. This was true especially for the ones built halfway up the hill.
There were two main reasons for this.
First, the villas had no investment value. They were too expensive, and few people would have been able to afford them.
Ming Yun Villas was considered the outskirts of Jingzhou City. In order to buy a place here, most people needed to have a similarly-priced property in the city. What's more, most people were not willing to live in the outskirts.
If they only bought a villa as a holiday home to stay in occasionally, the quality-price ratio would be too low.
Thus, it was easy for the villa to completely lose its value after being purchased. Unless they were extreme ballers who had too much money and who only wanted to spend it all, people would not be inclined to buy a villa here.
Second, the hilltop villas in Ming Yun Villas were built based on the standards of hilltop villas overseas. All of them were designed by top designers who personally led the renovations. Thus, they were much more expensive than the villas at the foot of the hill. There were even infinity pools and gaudy decorations in the hilltop villas.
After they were put up for sale, most people had no idea how to foot the bill.
On one hand, they were too expensive. On the other hand, ballers who bought villas normally had specific requirements for the renovations. Some hated the designers' work and insisted on having things done their own way.
The plans that many ballers had were indescribable. Some wanted Baroque architecture with old-fashioned square tables that could seat eight; some wanted French-style villas with red, wooden furniture; some wanted Mediterranean-style villas with stone lions at the entrance; some wanted courtyard cottages with Koi ponds; and some wanted Chinese-style villas mixed with European neoclassical styles.
These were just the more basic ones.
After buying their villas, the first thing many ballers did was to knock down the walls and institutions and change the structure of the house. Then, they got their own designers to turn the villas into self-built homes. They even insisted on adding a bunch of prohibited structures in the process.
After all, not all ballers and rich people would have good taste; but all of them would have unique requirements for the villas they bought.
That was how these hilltop villas in Ming Yun Villas ended up in this awkward situation.
They had all been renovated and uniquely designed, so that they were being sold at sky-high prices. Yet, ballers still did not like them.
After buying these villas, ballers would have to undo all the renovations and spend another one or two million yuan renovating everything from scratch. Instead of doing that, they would much rather buy semi-finished products.
Based on these considerations, the quality-price ratio would be as good as zero.
Thus, these hilltop villas did the worst out of all of Ming Yun Villas. One could say that they were ultimate failures.
This was the most ridiculous thing: a plot of land in the residential area was to be used for commercial and residential purposes. Thus, a small portion of the villas was to have commercial qualities as well. According to the original plan, these semi-commercial villas were to be placed in the north-west region. What's more, they were to be separated from the other purely-residential villas. This was even more unappealing.
Yet, Pei Qian thought that this was not a bad location.
If he could set up the restaurant there, wouldn't it be even more difficult for people to find it? Compared to the previous shop spaces he chose, this one would be even more hidden!
In terms of practicality, the semi-commercial villas could be used for purely commercial purposes, as long as he fulfilled the fire stations' and hygiene authorities' requirements.
Since Pei Qian was starting a high-end restaurant, he would definitely work according to those standards. On top of this, he would pay attention to the effect he would have on the surrounding residents.
The restaurant could create noise pollution, disturbance to residents, and problems with parking management. This might affect the residents' daily lives.
However, this should not be much of a problem.
This was because the semi-commercial villas had already been separated from the purely residential villas. What's more, the hilltop villas stood alone. There were no surrounding buildings either.
According to the plan, semi-commercial villas had their own entrances. This would make it convenient for cars to come in and out.
The restaurant would not have too many customers as well. At the very most, Pei Qian would bring his employees here for a meal. They would only have meals here and would not engage in other activities like singing. By 8 PM, they would be gone. That would ensure that they did not disturb the residents.
Compared to the shops he chose earlier, this place was located much deeper in the area as well. It would be much harder for people to find it!
Who would expect a restaurant to be hidden among a bunch of villas?
Pei Qian was overjoyed. See, this was a blessing in disguise! I had to give up the few shop spaces that I found, but I ended up stumbling upon an even better location!
The only question is whether I can rent a villa and how much that rent is. If I can't, I wonder if I can buy it.
According to the System, Pei Qian could not purchase and invest in property on a large scale.
However, he wanted to use System Funds to buy a semi-commercial villa in order to open a high-end restaurant under his business name. He would not be purchasing properties in bulk, and he would not be investing in the property market either. There shouldn't be a problem, right?
At that thought, Pei Qian led Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan straight into Ming Yun Villas.
Zhang Yuan was even more confused.
What is Boss Pei doing?
Was he hoping to buy a villa for himself just because they accidentally stumbled upon Ming Yun Villas and he suddenly felt like it?
Yes, given Boss Pei's income, it should not be that difficult for him to purchase a villa here.
Zhang Yuan did not think too much and continued following behind Pei Qian.
When they arrived at the sales building, Pei Qian explained the purpose of their visit. The lady at the front desk made a call and then offered drinks to the three men. About half an hour later, Manager Cui rushed over.
While rushing over, Manager Cui had felt confused. Why was a customer taking the initiative to approach the sales building today? This was mysterious!
This was like people taking the initiative to approach insurance companies, wanting to buy insurance. It's unheard of.
From the get-go, Ming Yun Villas has been up for sale. Almost a year has passed since. Interested ballers would have bought their villas a long time ago. Why would they wait until now?
Yet, whatever it was, it was a good thing that customers were coming of their own accord. Even if they were not sincere about buying a villa and merely wanted to take a look, Manager Cui still had to host them.
After greeting Manager Cui, Pei Qian got straight to the point.
"Manager Cui, can I rent a hilltop villa?"
Manager Cui had just sat down and taken a sip of tea. He nearly choked on his drink when he heard the question.
The young man in front of him was dressed in a custom-made suit. He did not look poor. Yet, he was not here to buy a villa but to rent one?
According to the relevant regulations-if developers had ownership of the properties, they could rent them out.
However, who could afford to rent villas?
If they really rented the villas according to market price, it would cost about two to three hundred thousand yuan a month to rent a villa. Who would be bored enough to rent a villa in such a deserted place? This area was not even suited for living long-term.
What's more—even if people really were interested in renting the villas, the developer was not.
The villas had all been uniquely renovated. The pools and various furniture also had to be regularly maintained. Every now and then, they would have to be cleaned and repaired. For all they knew, a baller would take a liking to the villa; and they would be able to sell it.
Maintenance problems aside—even if they rented the villas out, the developers would only get two or three hundred thousand yuan a month. They really did not care for that.
Manager Cui looked apologetic as he said, "I'm really sorry, Sir. We can only sell our villas, not rent them out."Pei Qian nodded. He had been prepared for this. "Is that so? What a pity. I have no choice but to buy one then."
He said this for the System to hear. Look, I tried to save the company's money. I've found a villa suitable to turn into a high-end restaurant, but the developers would only sell the villas, not rent them out!
Manager Cui looked confused and shocked.
What did he mean by 'What a pity, I have no choice but to buy one then'?!
Why did he sound reluctant?!
Pei Qian sipped his drink and asked about the price.
Manager Cui quickly answered, "If you're looking at our hilltop villas, they are almost six hundred square meters big. They have independent lifts, pools, gardens, and maintenance. They are being sold at about twelve thousand yuan per square meter. That adds up to about 6.3 million yuan in total."
Pei Qian remained silent for a moment and said, "It doesn't sound… too expensive."