Chapter 255 Changing from a Web-Based to a Mobile Game, In Progress!

Lin Chang replied quickly, "Boss Pei, you're awesome! At the time, I thought you were going to take the money to play around. I didn't expect you to create an account in the electronics area and gain six hundred thousand fans in under two months! You even did all of these things alone!

"It looks like you're not just an expert in games; you're also extremely talented in creating media."

Pei Qian sniggered inside.

Initially, he only wanted to take the money and play around. He had not expected his own account to grow in popularity so quickly.

Pei Qian said nothing in response, but Lin Chang's next message came in almost immediately.

Lin Chang said, "Apart from that, my older sister told me to thank you."

Pei Qian, "?"

At lightning speed, Pei Qian recalled the information he had read before. Lin Chang had an older sister, Lin Yu. At the moment, she was in charge of the cell phone arm of Shenhua Corporation.

She was also a boss.

However, Pei Qian was confused. Lin Yu was in charge of Shenhua's cell phone arm. One could say that it was the core of the core businesses. How was Pei Qian related to her?

Lin Chang said, "Boss Pei, do you remember your three earliest videos?

"Shenhua has always used solid material to create phones. However, illogical netizens and fake reviewers would try to smear anything to do with Shenhua's cell phones.

"Although many reviewers have reviewed Shenhua's cell phones, they have always achieved mediocre results. People who liked the cell phones from the beginning continued to like them, but those who did not continued to dislike them. People who were prejudiced against Shenhua's cell phones naturally thought these reviewers had been paid by Shenhua to praise their phones.

"Yet, Boss Pei's Hardcore Reviews is completely different. Your violent tests immediately revealed Shenhua's cell phones' sturdiness. They're not worse off than foreign cell phones!

"Although you destroyed a Shenhua cell phone, you managed to positively influence your viewers. I came across your video on the official platform for Shenhua cell phones and noticed that the host in the video looked quite familiar. It was only then that I recalled you, Boss Pei.

"I told my older sister about it, and she became overjoyed. She expresses her deepest thanks and appreciation for your videos.

Pei Qian, "…"

So that's what happened.

He had not expected that his casual destruction of a cell phone would have caused such complicated effects.

"Strictly speaking, the credit should go to Shenhua for creating such good cell phones. I didn't even think that much when I was trying to destroy it." Pei Qian replied, "You don't have to thank me. After all, Boss Lin was the one who sponsored 'Hardcore Reviews'."

Pei Qian could tell that Lin Yu's thanks would come in the form of material rewards, but he had no intention to accept the gifts.

On one hand, he really had not done anything. He would feel guilty taking any money offered to him. What's more, as long as he could successfully incur losses this time, tens of thousands of yuan would be a petty sum to Boss Pei.

He was a man with a System after all. He was not one to always receive financial assistance from others.

Boss Pei was a prideful man.

Lin Chang said, "You're too polite, but whether you intentionally did it or not, Boss Pei has done us a huge favor. We have to thank you. "This is what my older sister thinks: If Shenhua manufactures new products in the future, they will send one to Boss Pei immediately. "Oh, no, they will send two to you. Boss Pei, you can use one and destroy the other.

"Apart from that, she will give Boss Pei a hundred thousand yuan as thanks. I'll transfer that amount to the account number you gave me the last time.

"After all, you have been taking very good care of Ah Wan during this period as well."

Indeed, things were playing out just as Pei Qian had expected.

Once he heard 'a hundred thousand yuan', Pei Qian wavered. However, he very quickly regained his composure.

He could take the money, but there was no need to.

Pei Qian replied, "Boss Lin, you are too kind. Lin Wan has worked hard. I haven't had to take special care of her. Everything she has achieved can be credited to her own hard work. You can give this money to Lin Wan instead. After all, she has cautiously and conscientiously shared my burdens during this period."

Pei Qian was taking advantage of the situation and trying to pass the hundred thousand yuan, which Lin Yu had initially prepared for him, over to Lin Wan.

Lin Wan had indeed just achieved considerable success. She single-handedly lost eight million yuan.

This hundred thousand yuan should be dissipated within the Lin Family.

Lin Chang only responded a while later. "Boss Pei, you know that my older sister is not on good terms with Ah Wan, don't you? You're trying to take advantage of the situation and help them repair their relationship? Pei Qian, "?"

What the hell? You're overthinking! I didn't intend to do that!

Lin Chang minded his own business and continued, "Boss Pei, you are so considerate. I can use this as a reason to try and repair the relationship between the sisters.

"Since that's the case, I will not turn down your good intentions. We owe you a favor. Boss Pei, if you need help in any area in the future, feel free to ask us."

Pei Qian, "…Alright." Although he did not fully understand what had happened, he felt like he had triggered a series of hidden events.

Yet, he did not pay too much attention to this. After all, the Lin Family should be left to deal with their own family problems.

Boss Pei was only interested in how to incur losses.

Lin Chang and Pei Qian exchanged a couple more pleasantries and then ended the conversation.

Pei Qian thought hard about what Lin Chang said before. He felt like something was amiss, but he could not put his finger on it. "Lin Yu and Lin Wan are not on good terms? Yet, Lin Wan seems to be on good terms with her two other brothers. Does that mean that Lin Yu is more similar to Old Master Lin? Lin Yu must be hoping that Lin Wan would give up on the game industry and go home to take over the family business.

"That means… Lin Yu and I are on the same side. We might have a chance to work together in the future.

"Yes, I'll take it that I'm doing her a convenient favor this time."

Pei Qian did not think too much about this. Instead, he went back to suffering in Repent and be Saved.

At Shang Yang Games… Lin Wan was still reading the posts in the forum.

Gamers seemed to be very divided on Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version. Some praised it to the heavens, but some dissed it mindlessly. Others even offered some suggestions for improvement.

However, most old players seemed to support the new game. Many players had offered suggestions, but even after spending half a day reading them, Lin Wan could not find any valuable post.

She sighed softly.

Players were giving all sorts of suggestions, but most of them were impractical.

As opposed to wasting time considering these ridiculous suggestions, Lin Wan would do much better thinking about what Boss Pei had told her. She wanted to understand the deeper meaning in his words.

"Boss Pei said that when it's time, the situation will change. Yet, what is Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version's fate? "When would the right time be? "What if it never comes? What shall I do, then? Can I possibly allow this game to keep incurring losses?" Lin Wan's head hurt as different thoughts fought for space in her mind.

Although Boss Pei had shown her a path, the path seemed to be extremely blurry. She had no idea how to continue working from here on out.

As the director, she felt a strong weight on her shoulders once again.

Lin Wan was still struggling internally when her cell phone rang. It was a call from Lin Chang.

"Eh? Brother, what's the matter?"

Lin Wan was slightly irritated that her thoughts had been interrupted.

Lin Chang smiled. "It's nothing. Our older sister decided to give a hundred thousand yuan to Boss Pei as thanks, but Boss Pei told me to transfer it to you. You haven't changed your account number, have you? I'll transfer the money to you in a moment."

Lin Wan frowned and turned him down at once. "I don't want it! I can earn my own living now, and I don't want Lin Yu's money.

"Didn't you say the money was meant as thanks to Boss Pei? What are you transferring it to me for?"

Lin Chang quickly explained, "Boss Pei thinks that you have been working hard and making significant contributions to the company. That's why he told me to transfer the money to you. Don't turn down Boss Pei's good intentions.

"What's more, it's not right to allow this cold war between you and our older sister to continue. Boss Pei wanted me to transfer the money to you, so that both of you can work towards mending the relationship." Lin Wan was even unhappier. "Brother, I think you're overthinking. Boss Pei probably just doesn't care for this hundred thousand yuan. Lin Yu is too much-she's so petty even when she's trying to thank someone.

"In any case, I'm not lacking money. You can keep it."

Lin Chang was speechless. "You don't have to accept the money, but you can ask for something else. I was having a meal with our older sister a few days back, and I could tell that she genuinely cares about you. Stop being stubborn."

Lin Wan fell silent for a moment. "I know, but I really don't need anything. They're treating me very well here. The salary and bonus alone are providing me with more than enough to spend. I appreciate your good intentions. Help me thank our older sister."

"Don't be too fast to reply to me." Lin Chang pondered for a while and said, "Aren't you working at a game company? If I'm not wrong, our older sister's cell phone business is working on a revised edition of their application store. Do you want to select a few of Tengda's games to put in the application store? We can put them on recommendation spots as thanks to Boss Pei as well."

Lin Wan shook her head. "There's no need. Those are mobile games. We only have one mobile game-Ghost General. What's more, the number of players has already stabilized. I don't think you can boost its popularity any further."

Lin Chang replied, "It doesn't have to be a mobile game. You can create a mobile version of the other games. In any case, they're our own recommendation spots. It'll be a waste if you don't use them.

"I heard that mobile games are starting to flourish. There are also many users of Shenhua's cell phones. These recommendation spots will prove to be extremely useful."

Huh? Create a mobile version for the other games? An idea suddenly surfaced in Lin Wan's brain. She seemed to realize something. What did Boss Pei say before? They had to wait for the right time for Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version to become famous.

He was absolutely right. Why were the game's figures so horrible? It was because it was not yet the mini-clients' time. At the moment, even web-based games were on the decline in the game industry. It was quite impractical to hope to create innovative web-based games that went against the current.

However, mobile games were all the rage. They were starting to flourish!

What's the right time? The time for mobile games!

Web-based gamers would find it hard to tolerate Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version's 370 MB mini-client, but what about mobile gamers?

They would not have the same problem! There were already 200 to 300 MB mobile games. Gamers did not turn away from such games. Instead, they seemed to be having a lot of fun.

Turning Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version into a mobile game would solve the mini-client problem completely, wouldn't it?

Lin Wan immediately perked up and shouted excitedly, "Brother, that's great! I finally understand what Boss Pei meant!"

Lin Chang answered, "Huh?"

"Ask our older sister to leave me a couple of recommendation spots for mobile games! I'm going to ask the rest how long it would take to create a mobile version of our games!"

Lin Wan hung up and called a meeting with the others at the speed of light.

In Shang Yang Games' conference room… Once everyone arrived, Lin Wan jumped straight to the point. "How long would it take to change our game into a mobile game?"

Everyone was confused. For a while, they did not know how to respond. Change it to a mobile game? Why do we have to change it to a mobile game? Nobody in this company had experience researching and developing mobile games.

Everyone faced one another, at a loss as to what to do. None of them understood why Lin Wan was asking this question.

At last, Wang Xiaobin spoke up, "To change it to a mobile game… won't be difficult."

"Actually, there are precedents for web-based games being changed to mobile games in the industry. Web-based games do not have high hardware requirements, and neither do mobile games. We can shift the entire client over.

"What's more, our mini-client's size is 370 MB. That's within the acceptable range for mobile games. We don't have to compress our resources and whatnot. It would be very convenient.

"The only problem is the vast difference between operations for web-based games and mobile games. One would use a mouse for web-based games, but a touch-screen for mobile games. We'll have to make the necessary adjustments to the gameplay and UI.

"Apart from that, none of us have any experience in creating mobile games. If we want to change the game to a mobile game, we will have to play more popular mobile games and learn from them.

"In terms of time… I think if everyone works hard, we'll be able to finish it in two weeks at best. If we're slow, we would probably finish it in a month."

Lin Wan nodded. She was satisfied with this response.

They would be able to make it on time!

Lin Wan cleared her throat. "Everyone, I have a bold suggestion. I went to speak to Boss Pei earlier. He said that our game is doing well, and we don't have to make any changes. We just have to wait for the right time. "What time is it now? Web-based games are on the decline, and mobile games are on the rise. That's the right time! "Boss Pei was hinting to us to keep up with the times. As long as we can ride the wave as mobile games become popular, wouldn't our game become equally popular? "What's more, we can create two versions of the game.

"Once we create the mobile version, people can play the game on the phone or on their computers after downloading the mini-client. Since we'll be able to reach players on both of these platforms, we'll gain an exceptional advantage!"

As Lin Wan described this bright future, everyone began to understand.

That seemed to make sense!

None of them had thought in this direction earlier because they had been limited by what they were comfortable with.

Everyone worked on web-based games from the beginning. That was why none of them thought about changing the web-based game to a mobile game. Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version was top-quality. The only problem was that traditional web-based gamers would not download the mini-client.

The natural solution was to give up on traditional web-based gamers and run into the arms of mobile gamers!

They did not have any advantages in the field of traditional web-based games. However, in the field of mobile games, they had a huge advantage!

If the mobile version really became popular, they would try to reach out to web-based gamers using their original mini-client. The fact that the game was available on both of these platforms would be the selling point.

The plan made sense!

Ye Zhizhou nodded profusely. "I think it's worth a shot! Changing it to a mobile game sounds more practical than segmenting the mini-client. This seems to be the most reliable?path."

Wang Xiaobin nodded, too. "Yes, that makes sense. We have never worked on mobile games before, but mobile games are much simpler than traditional web-based games. As long as we do some research, I'm sure it will not be difficult to change our game's operations to be suited for mobiles."

Lin Wan was elated. "It's decided, then. Changing Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version from a web-based to a mobile game, in progress!"

Chapter 256 Boss Pei's Balanced Theory of Relativity

September 5th, Sunday…

Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Handong University branch…

Qiao Liang looked at Boss Pei with his light smile and was a little hesitant in whether to say something or not. Pei Qian smiled and said, "Speak frankly; it's alright. I am a designer that loves hearing others' opinions."

Qiao Liang's mouth twitched as he thought quietly internally. En, I do not doubt this at all. After Qiao Liang had spoken frankly the previous time, the game had been speedily updated; around 90% of the changes had been related to what he had said.

However, the only problem was that all the changes were exactly the opposite of what he had suggested!

Qiao Liang wanted Pei Qian to make some less popular weapons stronger; Pei Qian had ended up nerfing the popular ones;

Qiao Liang had wanted Pei Qian to reduce the difficulty level of the game in the early-stage; Pei Qian had elevated the difficulty level of the mid- and late stages of the game.

Boss Pei was right: he indeed was a designer that loved to hear others' opinions. However, after taking in feedback, that didn't exactly mean that he would follow and change accordingly…

These three days, Qiao Liang had had a horrible time.

The rebalancing of Repent and be Saved resulted in him having to suffer continuously in the game. As the weapons that he had gotten used to weren't that effective anymore, he could only try and use other weapons.

Furthermore, as the difficulty level of the later parts of the game had been raised, Qiao Liang had been stuck at certain points of the game for some time. Even some settings where he could easily defeat monsters had become extremely difficult; if he wasn't careful, he might have died many more times.

All in all, his improved game experience had worsened a lot!

However, after thinking about this deeply, Qiao Liang felt that he couldn't entirely blame Boss Pei. Qiao Liang might have been too reserved the previous time. He had only said that the chopper and crescent blade were useful; he had not explicitly said that he wished other weapons could be strengthened.

Boss Pei might have misunderstood.

Hence, Qiao Liang decided that he had to speak plainly in front of Boss Pei this time!

"Boss Pei, as a games tester, I should be able to give some feedback, right?" Qiao Liang tested the waters.

Pei Qian smiled, nodded, and said, "Of course."

"That's good!" Qiao Liang considered his words carefully, "I felt that the rebalancing of the game had not been down well…" "En? Why do you say so?" Pei Qian asked, "After the previous adjustments, the balance of the game is still off?"

Huh?

Qiao Liang didn't know what to say at that moment.

From a weapons perspective, the balance had been improved no doubt. Previously, the chopper and crescent blade had been too powerful; the other weapons couldn't compare. Now, the chopper and crescent blade were equally as trashy as the other weapons; equilibrium had been achieved.

"Err, the balance is indeed better. However… those rather handy weapons have become useless. This…" Qiao Liang was a little tormented. Pei Qian smiled and said, "By nerfing popular weapons, that essentially means that in comparison, the other weapons have been strengthened. You should understand the theory of relativity, right? This is what I am gunning for." Qiao Liang, "…"

Bloody hell! What theory of relativity!

Pei Qian continued, "At present, Repent and be Saved has tens of weapons; many unpopular weapons have been well-balanced. If I increase the strength of these weapons, I have to do so for tens of weapons at one go. After doing so, some of these weapons might be overkill; that would create a vicious cycle.

"There are actually only two or three popular weapons. As long as I nerf all of these, wouldn't that mean that in comparison, the tens of weapons have been strengthened?

"Furthermore, this would ensure that the balance of the majority of the weapons is not affected as much as possible; this is the perfect solution."

Qiao Liang, "??"

This sounded logical… not!

Qiao Liang ached as he replied, "Boss Pei, you can't achieve a balance like this! You can't nerf whatever that is good to use. As the saying went, if everything was nerfed and nothing was strengthened, even an incredible game would be abandoned by players. Nerfing cannot be done without a thought!" "Who said I only nerfed the game? Hadn't I increased the difficulty of the game and the damage done by little monsters?" Pei Qian immediately pointed out where Teacher Qiao had misspoken.

Qiao Liang, "…However, this is increasing the difficulty of the game!"

Pei Qian smiled slightly, 'Indeed, all these have increased the difficulty of the game.

"Is that a bad thing?"

Qiao Liang was stunned.

Of course, it is!

I have been playing this game daily; I haven't managed to break through and have been tortured by puny little monsters daily. I have finally found an easier way to play the game, but it turned out that everything had been nerfed in two days. Now, I have to find an alternative way again.

How is this not a bad thing?

Without waiting for Qiao Liang's further protestations, Pei Qian cut in and said, "Teacher Qiao, think about this. That the game's difficulty is high; for a professional player like you, is this really a bad thing? "The difficulty of any game is like the ceiling. If you and other players all can smash through the ceiling, no one would be able to tell who did a better job.

"However, if the ceiling was raised, this could be easily distinguished.

"Raising the difficulty of the game has essentially given professional gamers like you a larger platform to display your skills and talent, to do some things that ordinary players couldn't.

"Is this really something bad?"

Qiao Liang was stumped by this earnest question from Boss Pei.

Eh, even Boss Pei thinks that I am a professional player? How embarrassing is this!

Qiao Liang couldn't contain his smile. "Aiya, actually, this isn't anything. I am just a little more hardworking than other players, a little more serious…"

Pei Qian smiled, "Teacher Qiao, you are too humble. A true pro like you naturally deserves a greater challenge. "Reducing the difficulty? That is a form of humiliation for someone like you! Increasing the difficulty of the game allows it to remain challenging; that would be the greatest show of sincerity to hardcore players!"

Qiao Liang looked at his own screen and then at the very serious-looking Boss Pei. He felt all better all of a sudden.

This made sense.

Why did Boss Pei especially ask me to come and try such a difficult game?

He trusted my game instincts and ability to persevere!

Thinking about this, Qiao Liang didn't feel that it was that hard to accept the nerfing of the chopper and crescent blade anymore.

As a professional player, he should be able to master all weapons. If he only fixated on two and used the best two, that indeed would be letting Boss Pei down! After adjusting his feelings, Qiao Liang now felt that this game wasn't that repulsive anymore.

However, Qiao Liang had another thought. He had been able to persevere until now because Boss Pei had been encouraging him!

Which other player would have such special treatment?

This was a severe design flaw! Qiao Liang hurriedly pointed this out. "Boss Pei, speaking of this, I have a new suggestion.

"While the game is a good one, I feel that the early stage of the game is too onerous on gamers! I have only managed to persevere until now because of your repeated encouragement, slowly building up my interest in this game.

"Hence, perhaps there needs to be a solution to this?"

Pei Qian thought for a few seconds. "This is easy; I'll have someone make changes immediately."

Qiao Liang was impressed instantly.

Boss Pei is indeed Boss Pei. He managed to think of a solution so swiftly?

Pei Qian said, "I can add a segment to the game. After the game starts up, players would be able to write an epitaph for themselves to encourage them while they are playing. Every time they died, the epitaph would surface on the screen; that would be a source of motivation."

Huh?

Epitaph?

Qiao Liang vaguely felt like something was amiss; however, he couldn't pinpoint it exactly.

Pei Qian took a look at his watch, "Alright, it's getting late. Thanks for your hard work all this time; let's go and eat!"

"Ah, alright!"

Qiao Liang had wanted to think about what was wrong with this 'epitaph'. However, hearing Boss Pei's suggestion to have dinner, Qiao Liang instantly forgot about this matter.

He was in for a treat again!

Boss Pei is so good to me. Sigh, I really cannot repay him! Qiao Liang sighed emotively.

The two got off the car at the entrance of Ming Yun Private Kitchen. Seeing Teacher Qiao's eyes sparkle at the thought of eating delicacies, Pei Qian couldn't help but chuckle internally.

I have been messing about with Teacher Qiao for so long. Sigh, I am such an evil person.

However, taking a look at the surroundings of Ming Yun Private Kitchen, Pei Qian soon lost his mood. Ever since Ming Yun Private Kitchen had grown popular, Pei Qian had not visited

yet.

All in all, it was a long story.

Pei Qian had purchased a semi-commercial villa. It was completely separate from other residential villas. It had its own space and cars had their own private entrance as well. Originally, this had been the reason why these villas had been hard to sell.

However, this semi-commercial villa area near Ming Yun Private Kitchen was now filled with luxury cars. These were cars that were rarely seen in Jingzhou.

Furthermore, cabs also kept on arriving.

Ming Yun Private Kitchen's clients were not just big bosses now; some ordinary salarymen also came by. The latter came all the way here on a Sunday to have a good meal and to enjoy the good food and service.

While there weren't that many people, it was very different from before.

The last time Teacher Qiao had come, Ming Yun Private Kitchen didn't have any other customers. It looked rather deserted and only had some waiters running about.

This time, besides the luxury cars parked outside, the villa had many more guests.

Only four or five tables were in the main hall. At this time, all of them were filled. Customers were conversing softly while taking their time to enjoy the meal. No one took out their cell phones and the whole atmosphere of the place was harmonious and natural.

Of course, as Ming Yun Private Kitchen's seating capacity was limited, even though all the seats were filled; the main hall still felt rather spacious. It was completely different from those popular, packed-to-the-brim restaurants with people queuing outside.

Pei Qian was rather pained by what he was seeing.

From his perspective, these customers were troublemakers one and all. They weren't here to throw money at him; they were here to steal money from him!

Behind Pei Qian, Qiao Liang sighed internally. The last time he had come and saw how deserted the place was, Qiao Liang had thought that this was Boss Pei's private set-up and was for his personal entertainment and indulgence.

From the looks of it now, that was evidently not the case. So many customers were around, and this place was now so popular; this restaurant was raking in money, right?

Although the food here was really good, how on earth did Boss Pei manage to make this place a hit within a mere two weeks?

Qiao Liang could only sigh emotively. It seemed as if not only was Boss Pei good at creating games, but he was also a real business genius. Regardless of which industry it was, he could make it work!

Chapter 257 You are Ming Yun Villas' Friend Forever!

After the meal… As per usual, Pei Qian arranged for the driver to send Teacher Qiao off as he remained in his private room. He was prepared to have a chat with Lin Canrong.

This chat was a little heavier for Boss Pei to?have.

Now that Ming Yun Private Kitchen had become famous, it was too late for him to do anything. Pei Qian could only try his best to instruct Lin Canrong so that the situation wouldn't get any worse.

After the dishes on the dining table were cleared, Lin Canrong sat across Pei Qian, beaming with joy.

All this while, Lin Canrong had been extremely busy.

Ever since Ming Yun Private Kitchen became a hit, all lunch and dinner reservations were full for the next two weeks.

He had been bored to death initially; now, he was working to death.

He had to preorder ingredients daily according to the reservations and make the necessary cutlery and settings changes based on each group of customers. He also had to make sure that the waiters knew what they were doing while dealing with last-minute scenarios.

Fortunately, Ming Yun Private Kitchen had many chefs and wait staff with the latter all well-trained. Hence, he had still managed to make things work.

Although he was so busy, Lin Canrong was extremely happy. He felt that he could finally showcase his true worth.

Boss Pei had handed him such a good restaurant; he naturally couldn't let Boss Pei down and had to continue helping the restaurant thrive. He even wanted this restaurant to become the best in Jingzhou City!

Although there were many customers-as there weren't that many seats in the private kitchen to begin with, all the guests were still manageable.

Speaking of this, Lin Canrong was even more impressed with Boss Pei's foresight.

Previously when Ming Yun Private Kitchen had been quiet and deserted with few customers, Boss Pei had requested for him to focus on running the restaurant and not caring too much about publicity.

Indeed, within two weeks, the restaurant had become a hit!

Fortunately, Lin Canrong had been very obedient. He had put his heart and soul into the kitchen and on the wait staff, ensuring an extremely high standard dining experience. That was how Ming Yun Private Kitchen's reputation had maintained at such a high level.

This time, Boss Pei must have more words of wisdom for him.

Pei Qian drank his tea as he said indifferently. "I don't have much to say, actually. I just want to instruct some matters.

"Regarding ingredients, we definitely cannot use any inferiors. We can't think that just because customers might not realize it, we cut down on the quality of the ingredients. Every customer must be treated as a food critic.

"The seating arrangement needs to be stringently adhered to; let's maintain the status quo. "Don't come up with any policies banning the bringing of alcohol or having a minimum spending for private rooms, extra costs for disinfection, etc.

"I had mentioned all these at the start; I just want to reiterate these points again.

"You also know that all the company's projects, including Ming Yun Private Kitchen, will be under a reputation-based reward system."

Pei Qian felt that he had to emphasize all these again.

If Lin Canrong suddenly started having ideas and wanted to add more seats or enacting policies banning the bringing of alcohol, implementing a minimum charge for private rooms, etc.; wouldn't that result in more profits?

The next settlement was only slightly more than a month away. Ming Yun Private Kitchen was already a burden to Boss Pei; this burden couldn't get heavier!

If Pei Qian couldn't make a loss, he would really puke blood.

Lin Canrong hurriedly nodded. "Understood, Boss Pei. You are afraid that I might be too mindful of costs, and that might affect Ming Yun Private Kitchen's reputation. Rest assured that I will remember everything you have said. Customers' opinions of us will always be the priority!"

Pei Qian nodded his head. "Alright."

Although Lin Canrong didn't know the true meaning behind Pei Qian's words—since Ming Yun Private Kitchen had deteriorated to this stage, Pei Qian didn't have any good ideas to remedy the situation. He would be very thankful if things didn't worsen.

"That's all. I won't hold you back. I'll head to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and hang about."

Pei Qian left Ming Yun Private Kitchen and headed outside the villa.

The sky was a little dark. Pei Qian turned and looked at Ming Yun Private Kitchen. For some reason, he felt rather terrible internally.

Really terrible!

Pei Qian sighed quietly as he was prepared to leave Ming Yun Villas and head to a nearby Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to sit and drink some coffee.

Now, only the peace and serenity of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe could soothe his wounded soul.

He had just walked two steps when someone shouted, "Boss Pei?"

Pei Qian paused as he turned. It was actually Manager Cui. This was Ming Yun Villas' sales manager. When Pei Qian had purchased this villa, Manager Cui had personally brought him over to see the villa.

ma

Manager Cui was rather happy to see Pei Qian. "What a coincidence, Boss Pei! We actually managed to meet! I was still thinking when I could pay you a visit to thank you in person!" Pei Qian was confused. "Thank me?"

Manager Cui laughed. "Yes, Boss Pei. Of course, I have to thank you! Take a look. These are Ming Yun Villas' new publicity slogans."

Manager Cui tapped his phone a few times as he opened a PDF picture with the new publicity material for Ming Yun Villas.

Pei Qian was stumped as he took the cell phone and had a look. When he had bought this villa, Pei Qian had seen Ming Yun Villas' publicity material before. These so-called publicity materials were basically pictures of villa districts, the scenery, as well as some slogans.

For example, 'picturesque and a natural wonderland', 'a villa hidden in the mountains and rivers'; 'a mountain villa, a new trend'; "happily staying in a cash cow, appreciation of value just a matter of time', etc. All in all, Pei Qian had found these materials to be rather fake and were just artificially praising the villa district; he had not paid much attention.

This new publicity material on Manager Cui's cell phone was completely different!

'Ming Yun Villas, pioneering Jingzhou's new commercial district'; 'far from the hustle and bustle and yet near to a flourishing region'; 'a nameless restaurant is just in your backyard'; 'enjoy domestic delicacies and meet Jingzhou's celebrities'…

Furthermore, the pictures were also completely different!

Besides the normal pictures of villas and the scenery, many pictures regarding Ming Yun Private Kitchen and the nearby commercial district were included as well!

One was 'Jingzhou's new commercial district'.

The picture had all the shops near Ming Yun Villas, such as the internet cafe, bar, board games cafe, coffee shops, etc. It seemed very happening.

Another was 'a 5/5 mysterious restaurant making waves on the internet; the nameless restaurant is here!'

This picture had Ming Yun Private Kitchen's Quanmin Reviews profile page as well as some pictures inside of Ming Yun Private Kitchen.

One other picture was 'being neighbors with Jingzhou's celebrities'.

This one zoomed in on all the luxury vehicles parked near to Ming Yun Private Kitchen, as well as a few group shots of successful persons.

Pei Qian felt that he was growing a little dizzy.

What was going on?!

As the sky had darkened, Manager Cui completely missed Boss Pei's rather pale face as the former said excitedly, "Boss Pei, these flyers had been sent out; within a week or two, we should be able to see the effects!

"This time, our boss has decided to go all out. We have purchased publicity slots in newspapers, on TV, the exterior of buildings, magazines, public transports, as well as advertisement signboards in Jingzhou City!"

Pei Qian felt even more light-headed.

What the hell? They had bought advertisement slots everywhere? Wait a minute, I thought that you guys couldn't sell any villas in this area?

I had done my due diligence before making my purchase previously. Didn't they say that there wasn't any investment value in the villas here and that they were not competitively priced?

Why the sudden widespread publicity?

Also, you guys can do all the publicity you want; don't drag my restaurant into it!

Pei Qian was a little flustered. "You guys are spending so much."

Manager Cui laughed. "Boss Pei is joking. Whether we would make a loss or not, wouldn't you know already? To be honest, when you had said you wanted to buy this villa that time, I had not thought much of it. I had just assumed you were going to use this as a vacation home.

"After that, I found out that you're really a genius!"

Manager Cui raised his thumb energetically.

"Your nameless restaurant had become an instant hit; it is now the most popular high-end restaurant in Jingzhou! I heard that the restaurant is booked two weeks in advance; it is becoming hard to get a dining time slot!

"So many Jingzhou big honchos want to have a meal here; all of them have to make a reservation beforehand!

"However, many bosses feel that it is rather troublesome having to entertain clients so far out here. They feel that their guests have to travel all the way here just for a meal and that that is a little taxing.

"As such, some bosses have come over to look at houses. They want to buy some villas to be used to entertain guests while they could stay here themselves sometimes as well.

"Of course, that isn't their only reason for purchasing villas. They are also targeting the potential of a rise in the value of property here!

"Recently, there has been word in investment circles in Jingzhou City that this region is going to become the new commercial district of Jingzhou City! Many have already heard the rumors. Some other shops here have all shut; now, they have all been rented or bought!

"This is a very good sign. The entire Jingzhou City is now focused on this region. Our housing prices are naturally increasing as well. Our boss has already decided to inflate the prices of all the villas we still have on hand. We cannot sell them cheaply anymore!

"Boss Pei, when the time comes, your villa's value would rise as well easily. Rising to ten million from six million would definitely not be a problem!"

Pei Qian's legs grew weak; he almost collapsed.

Rising to ten million? He was going to be in deep trouble!

Pei Qian almost wanted to puke blood. Who said that this was going to be Jingzhou's new commercial district? Who?

Where were all these so-called shops? Weren't those shops what I used to fool Boss Li?

Wait a minute, Boss Li…

Pei Qian suddenly thought of a problem. Li Shi was the boss of Fu Hui Investments; he was rather influential in Jingzhou's investment circles.

A while ago, he had been crazily investing and opening up shops near Ming Yun Villas. Ming Yun Private Kitchen's stellar success must have been noticed by Boss Li as well!

That meant that Boss Li must have thought that Boss Pei was the backer behind Ming Yun Private Kitchen, that this restaurant was a key piece of the puzzle that would make Ming Yun Villas a hit!

According to Boss Li's character, he definitely wanted to seize the opportunity and continue investing here.

Pei Qian felt very uncomfortable.

He had thought that Ming Yun Private Kitchen's success was the worst news he could get. Now, that didn't seem to be the case.

If this area became popular, that would affect the neighboring shops and Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.

Furthermore, this villa's valuation would rise as well!

Was this what the saying 'trouble never came alone' meant…?

Pei Qian quietly returned the cell phone to Manager Cui. He was silent and in a daze. Manager Cui did not know that Boss Pei was still dealing with the shock of what he had heard. Manager Cui thought that all was within Boss Pei's expectations, and that was why Boss Pei was so indifferent.

"Boss Pei, our boss has said that he will definitely pay you a visit to thank you personally. You have helped us so much this time; we definitely have to repay the favor. "For our publicity, we will definitely promote Ming Yun Villas and your nameless restaurant to increase the visibility of your restaurant even more.

"Besides this, your villa's property management fees and cleanings fees will be permanently waived. Your utility bill will be halved perpetually.

"We will also give you a few parking slots for free.

"Also, we will hire a professional gardening team to take care of the garden in your villa's backyard. Someone will maintain the place regularly.

"Naturally, all these are peanuts to you. However, this is our form of appreciation.

"All in all, you will now be the most honored landlord in Ming Yun Villas; you are Ming Yun Villas' friend forever!"

Chapter 258?Could it be My Fault?

After saying goodbye to Manager Cui, Pei Qian left Ming Yun Villas, feeling confused. He walked in the direction of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.

After suffering blow after blow, he felt lost. Now, all he wanted to do was sit in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and have a cocktail. He wanted the quiet and peaceful environment in the internet cafe to calm him down.

As he walked, he began to sense that something was amiss.

It was already night. Why were there still so many people on the path?

Ming Yun Villas had very low traffic. Even on Sundays, there were normally very few people on the roads.

Yet, there seemed to be many people today!

People were walking in pairs and trios, and most of them looked like students, although a few looked like working adults. There also seemed to be more cars parked along the side of the road!

When he looked at the shops on either side, Pei Qian began to feel like he had been cut off from the world for a long time.

When did these shops open here?!

A while ago, only Fish-Catching Internet Cafe existed along the entire pathway. The other shops were either cold and deserted or closed down altogether.

Pei Qian even intended to set up an Upwind Courier station here; there were so many suitable locations that he was at a loss.

Among all the available options, he could pick the biggest one in the best location. That was because nobody wanted these shops at that time. Every shop was empty and available. Yet, now, even shops in the less ideal spots had been taken!

What's more, there were all kinds of shops here!

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.

Why 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 continue 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?

What's more, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was mainly earning revenue from the sale of alcohol and coffee, as well as a cut of the tips offered to singers. Getting rid of singers in the new branch meant that customers would not be able to tip them. That also meant that the internet cafe would not get a cut of the tips.

Of course, there was no need to make changes to the five existing branches. He would leave them as they were.

Only the new branch in the shopping center would purely be an internet cafe.

Zhang Yuan looked at the map, feeling perplexed. "Boss Pei, are we really opening a branch here?"

Opening a branch in the shopping center would ensure high traffic flow, but the rent would be too expensive!

They were now paying about three to four yuan per square meter for most of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's branches. An area of three thousand square meters cost about three hundred thousand yuan a month.

However, the rent in a big shopping center like that would not be as cheap! It could cost at least seven or eight yuan per square meter, and perhaps even more. The rent would be doubled just like that.

These shopping centers mostly contained international clothing, jewelry, bags, and cosmetics brands. Ordinary businesses would not be able to afford such high rent.

Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was not even earning that much money at the moment. They would surely incur loss if they spent so much money on rent now.

What's more, the new Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branch would go down a different path from the existing ones. Their existing branches were diversified. Each branch contained an internet cafe, a coffee shop, and a bar.

If the new branch followed this model, they would at least be able to generate revenue from the sale of alcohol and drinks in the shopping center.

However, Boss Pei was introducing the second stage of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's plan. He wanted to 'emphasize the true nature of the business—the internet cafe'. That meant the new branch would only allow people to surf the net.

It sounded unfeasible!

Who would travel all the way to a high-end shopping center in Jingzhou City, just to play games by themselves in an internet cafe?

Wasn't that akin to burning money?

Of course, Zhang Yuan knew some men might feel frustrated while shopping in the shopping center. They might have the need to vent their frustrations by playing games. However, that was not considered the norm at the moment.

Even if their girlfriends were so benevolent as to allow their boyfriends to play games while they shopped on their own, how long could the boyfriends play for?

They could play for an hour in the morning before it would be time for lunch. If the girlfriends continued to shop after a movie in the afternoon, they could only shop for a maximum of an hour before they would have to return home for dinner.

At most, these men would only be able to play games for about two hours. What's more, that was on the pretext that their girlfriends were benevolent people.

People like that would probably have poor gaming experience. What's more, the internet cafe would not earn much money from them. Based on these considerations, the chances of the internet cafe recouping its capital were negligible.

That was unless… they raised the price! Zhang Yuan quickly asked, "Boss Pei, shouldn't we raise the prices for this new branch as well? We could charge twenty yuan per hour."

Pei Qian shook his head at once. "No, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's official guiding price is ten yuan. We shouldn't raise the price as and when we want to."

Zhang Yuan, "…"

Ma Yang was silent the entire time, but at that moment, he raised up his thumb. "Good! Brother Qian, that's a good idea. Fish-Catching Internet Cafe is making a name for itself. We cannot keep renting such deserted locations. In order to become famous, we have to move into shopping centers like that!

"Then, we would be lumped together with international cosmetics, clothing, and jewelry brands. The effect would be significant!"

Pei Qian and Ma Yang high-fived. "Great minds think alike!"

Zhang Yuan, "…" As if noticing Zhang Yuan's confusion, Ma Yang smiled. "It doesn't matter even if we incur losses in the short term. Our long-term goal is to build a good name for ourselves. "Look at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's flagship store. Didn't it incur significant losses in the beginning? Slowly, we started to generate revenue and make profits. Now, it's doing so well!

"Look at everyone's comments about Fish-Catching Internet Cafe on Quanmin Reviews. They're all positive. What do you call this? These are the fruits of our labor. We persisted in building a name for ourselves and are now reaping the rewards!

"Do you understand?"

Pei Qian, "…"

This Old Ma-he's stealing all of my lines!

However, on second thought, it seemed natural. Pei Qian had said these words to Old Ma four or five times now. The constant brainwashing ensured that Old Ma would remember these words, no matter how forgetful he was.

Although his lines had been stolen and his wounds had been exposed, Pei Qian did not feel upset. Instead, he felt comforted.

Old Ma understands me more and more! If all my employees could understand me the way Old Ma does, I would not have to suffer so much worry and anxiety as the boss.

After leaving a few more instructions, Pei Qian entrusted the preparations for the new branch to Ma Yang

As he thought about the new branch incurring losses, Pei Qian felt less upset.

Ming Yun Private Kitchen had gone awry. However, the situation was still under control. As long as Pei Qian lost more money through the new Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branch and opened more Upwind Courier stations, he would still be able to incur losses in the end. There should be no problem.