April 9th, Saturday……

  Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Handong University branch……

  After settling the two gaming departments and the initial preparation for the gym, Pei Qian planned to enjoy the relaxing weekend that he rarely had.

  He found a seat near the window in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and then sipped his coffee nonchalantly as he watched the busy street outside. He began to think about all the work he had to do from now on.

  The company was going to receive the shared revenue from the sale of the movie tickets soon. Then, a huge sum of money would be transferred to the company’s bank account.

  Pei Qian had already thought about how to spend the money: he would build a condominium.

  It would be just like Deposit Fitness. Not only would he be able to incur losses, but he would also be able to use it to provide benefits for his employees. He would be killing two birds with one stone and getting twice the happiness with a single move!

  Of course, he would have to spend a bit more money. Thus, he had to plan things carefully.

  Pei Qian thought about buying a suitable building, converting it into a condominium, and then using it to test waters. If everything went well, he would use the rest of the money to rent the remaining houses and renovate them.

  The System prohibited him from dabbling in the property market. In other words, he could only buy houses if he planned to use them for business operations. He could not leave them lying around and wait for their value to appreciate.

  In this regard, starting a restaurant or a hotel would count as ‘business operations’.

  However, after buying the villa for Ming Yun Private Kitchen back then, Pei Qian had not thought about buying another property. That was mainly because the starting sum in the System Funds had been too low for the past few cycles.

  Ten percent of the value of the company’s fixed assets would be included in the System Funds. That would affect settlement. If Pei Qian bought a building worth thirty to forty million yuan, three to four million yuan would be considered part of his System Funds. He only had ten million yuan at the start of the previous cycle. The value of the fixed assets alone would have accounted for thirty to forty percent of that amount.

  It would have been more difficult for Pei Qian to incur losses and easier for him to go out of line.

  However, this cycle started with twenty million yuan in the System Funds. Spending thirty to forty million yuan on a building would probably not affect settlement that much.

  Of course, there were risks to doing this. The building’s value could appreciate.

  After accounting for that, Pei Qian still decided to buy the building. He had three main reasons for that.

  First, this world was very different from the world that he remembered. Property prices would likely not rise so quickly. Second, even if the property prices increased rapidly, it would not happen in the next two years. Third, even if property prices increased during this period, it would not surpass the rate at which the starting sum in the System Funds increased.

  At the rate things were going, the starting sum in the System Funds was increasing by ten million yuan every half a year. That meant that it would be worth it for Pei Qian to buy a fixed asset worth thirty to fifty million yuan in each cycle. That could be a fixed expenditure for every cycle.

  On top of that, Pei Qian had to check on Dream Realization Ventures and Zhang Yuan. Pei Qian had not heard about any new investment projects since he had assigned Old Ma tasks earlier.

  Pei Qian was very happy with this, and he had no intention to rush Old Ma.

  However, he had to prevent Ma Yang and He Desheng from locking themselves away and causing chaos behind the scenes. Otherwise, if Pei Qian was not careful, something big could happen again. He had to be very cautious.

  As for Zhang Yuan, he was supposed to work on the E-Sports Club, but he did not seem to be very interested in it. Until now, preparations were still ongoing. Pei Qian planned to make some time to take a look and offer him some ‘guidance’ while he was there.

  In addition, there were other small matters that Pei Qian had to tend to:

  Pei Qian felt that he was failing in almost everything that he did, mainly because he was not well-informed. He had to think of a way to keep an eye on every department’s every move.

  He had also not made any headway on the System’s assignment for him to ‘invest in himself’.

  He also had to observe the other businesses that did not look threatening at the moment. For all he knew, one of the subsidiaries could cause trouble and suddenly stab him in the back……

  The more Pei Qian thought, the more sorrowful he became.

  Life was as lonely as winter.

  Just as he was wallowing in self-pity, Pei Qian caught sight of a familiar figure walking into Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.

  “Eh? Boss Pei? A rare guest, a rare guest.”


  Seeing Pei Qian in the corner and sipping coffee, Ruan Guangjian could not help but feel surprised and curious. Pei Qian, “?”


  Wait, what do you mean ‘a rare guest?!

  I’ve been busy working, and I haven’t had time to visit Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. However, if I’m not wrong, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe is my business, right?

  At the same time, Ruan Guangjian noticed a problem with his words. He made an embarrassed smile and said, “Ah, I’m sorry, Boss Pei. I was thinking about something, and my mind grew cramped. “This internet cafe is yours to begin with, hahaha. I have to admit, the coffee is really good.”


  At the moment, Ruan Guangjian was top on the list in Boss Pei’s notebook. Teacher Qiao had been a strong competitor, but Pei Qian had made Teacher Qiao suffer before. That was why he felt much more forgiving to him.

  As for the other people on the list, Pei Qian could normally force obedience out of them by making them go through roller coasters, pendulum rides, bungee jumps, and haunted houses.

  Ruan Guangjian was the only one who was completely different!

  He was happy and excited after sitting through roller coasters and pendulum rides! He claimed to be afraid of ghosts, and he screamed louder than anyone else upon entering a haunted house. However, once he emerged, he looked lively and full of color!

  He was an unstoppable human shield who could withstand anything and everything. Pei Qian’s methods of dealing with people counted for nothing to Ruan Guangjian.

  If Pei Qian really wanted to take revenge, he would have no choice but to cause Ruan Guangjian real hurt.

  was

  However, Pei Qian was not prepared to do that yet. Thus, he had no choice but to allow Ruan Guangjian to bounce around and show off in front of him.

  Pei Qian sipped his coffee and smiled. “How have things been since you’ve moved to Jingzhou? Have you adjusted to life here? If not, maybe it’ll be better if you move back to Shanghai—”


  Before Pei Qian could finish speaking, Ruan Guangjian interrupted him. “Don’t worry, Boss Pei. I’ve adjusted. I’ve adjusted very well! Everyone in our workspace is regretting not moving here earlier! “We should have moved to Jingzhou the moment our workspace was established!” The hand that Pei Qian was using to hold his coffee cup stopped in midair. “?”


  He had intended to sound sarcastic, and yet Ruan Guangjian seemed to have taken his words for genuine care and concern.

  A waiter walked towards them, carrying two huge paper bags. There were seven or eight cups of coffee inside.

  “Brother Ruan, your coffee is ready.”


  Ruan Guangjian reached out to grab the bags. “Alright, thank you.”


  It looked like Ruan Guangjian was a regular here. Even the waiters knew him well. He had probably called in advance to order the coffee and was only here to collect them.

  Pei Qian was shocked. “The boss of the workspace is coming to collect coffee for his employees?”


  Ruan Guangjian laughed. “I needed to walk around to clear my mind, anyway. We ordinarily take turns to collect coffee. Boss Pei, do you have time to walk around our workspace?”


  Pei Qian instinctively wanted to turn down the invitation.

  Do I have nothing better to do? Why would I want to look at the factory that manufactures back-stabbing weapons?

  However, on further thought, he had to keep his friends close and his enemies closer to win his battles.

  His enemy had already marched into his territory, Jingzhou. Danger was at his doorstep. All the more, Pei Qian should take the chance to understand his enemy well and make the necessary preparations.

  At that thought, Pei Qian stood up. “Alright, let’s take a walk.”


  Ruan Guangjian carried the bags of coffee and crossed the road with Pei Qian, leading him straight into Halo Workspace. This was Pei Qian’s first time visiting Halo Workspace.

  It had been a two-story bookstore before, which failed and had been forced to sell the space. Ruan Guangjian chose this spot because it was opposite Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and near Shenhua View. Thus, he happily began renting it.

  Pei Qian’s first impression as he stepped into the workspace was that it was full of life and artistic vibes. The temperature was just nice, and the genial sunlight shone through the full-length windows, making one feel comfortably warm.

  Various plants were lined up against the entrance, on the desks, and in the corners. There were also many pieces of artwork, like sculptures and portraits, meant for decoration. The desks, chairs, and the entire structure of the office were quite casual, but it did not come across as messy or unorganized. Obviously, the layout was carefully planned.

  Overall, the environment made one feel relaxed, which was optimal for activating one’s imagination and creativity. Someone had already noticed Pei Qian walking in with Ruan Guangjian. One by one, they greeted him.

  “Eh? Boss Pei!”


  “Hello, Boss Pei!”


  “Welcome, Boss Pei!”


  All of them looked very passionate.

  After all, everyone saw Boss Pei as a close friend of Ruan Guangjian and an important partner of Halo Workspace. He was an important source of income that they could cling onto now that they had moved to Jingzhou. However, Pei Qian saw them differently. If Ruan Guangjian was the assassin who would ultimately stab Pei Qian in the back, all of his employees were the people who would push him so that the knife went in deeper.

  Pei Qian had to be objective and noted all of their names down in his little notebook!

  Nevertheless, Boss Pei was a man of character. In the face of their warm welcome, he smiled and waved.

  Ruan Guangjian handed the bags of coffee to one of his employees. “Old Huang, distribute this. I’ll bring Boss Pei around.”


  Pei Qian followed Ruan Guangjian upstairs and walked around the entire workspace. As Ruan Guangjian introduced the various parts of the workspace, he could not help but feel emotional.

  “Coming to Jingzhou was a very good decision!

  “Jingzhou’s cost of living is a lot lower than in Shanghai. We’ve saved a lot, both in terms of rent and in terms of daily expenses.

  “The workspace is bigger, and our working environment is better. Everyone has obviously become more productive, and their physical and mental health has improved as well.

  “What’s more, life is much more convenient here!

  “Now, we always order Fish-Catching Take-Out for all of our meals. It’s nutritious and delicious, and yet it’s not expensive.

  “Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and Upwind Logistics have improved our standard of living as well.

  “Most importantly, with Tengda Corporation around, life in Jingzhou City will only continue to get more convenient. The economy will improve as well. Not all second-tier cities have prospects like that……”


  Pei Qian only had one feeling as he listened to Ruan Guangjian.

  He was extremely pained!

  Look, Ruan Guangjian’s enjoying so much that he’s forgetting his duties! Now that he’s here in Jingzhou, he’s completely abandoned Shanghai!

  B*stard!

  Still, Pei Qian could tell how much Ruan Guangjian loved Jingzhou from his excited expression.

  Ai, it looks like persuading Halo Workspace to move back to Shanghai would be impossible……

  How upsetting

  Ruan Guangjian continued to lead Pei Qian around the workspace and finally returned to his own desk.

  He did not have an individual office. On one hand, it was because those in the art industry had to work together with others, learn from others, and improve together. Inspiration came from conversation. On the other hand, Ruan Guangjian had to check the quality of all the projects that the workspace handled to ensure that their styles aligned.

  Pei Qian noticed that Ruan Guangjian’s computer screen was displaying an extremely fine portrait. A picture of a real person took up one-fourth of the space in the bottom-left corner of the screen.

  He was a white male who looked to be in his forties. He was handsome, and he looked kind. Apart from those, there was nothing extraordinary about his looks.

  What shocked Pei Qian was that the portrait did not look exactly the same as the photograph. Not only were there many additional details that were lacking in the photograph, but some parts of the photograph had also been edited.

  For example, a few wrinkles had been added on the model’s face. However, far from making him look older and more exhausted, the wrinkles made him look more charming.

  His mustache and hairstyle had been meticulously edited as well. His mustache, in particular, made him look like a very rich and free man, who had the time to take care of his own facial hair.

  His expression was different as well. He looked very kind in the photograph but very ambitious in the portrait. There was intense confidence in his eyes. The slightly-receding hairline had been covered in the portrait, and his head full of hair made him look to be full of life.

  If one described the man in the photograph as a ‘middle-aged white man in an average state’, then the man in the portrait could be described as ‘an elite white man who has excelled in every area of his life’.

  Only by comparing the photograph and the portrait did Pei Qian finally understand what ‘artistic exaggeration’ and ‘art processing’ meant.

  He could not help but feel moved. “This is so well-drawn! If the man in the photograph scored 70 marks for looks, I would give the man in the portrait 95 marks.

  “Not only did you keep his main characteristics, but you’ve also enhanced his special characteristics and enhanced his qualities!

  “Is this some sort of daily training for you artists? Do you find a random photograph and then come up with a living character based on it?

  “Artists really never stop working on their skills.”


  Feeling extremely interested, Pei Qian studied the portrait and praised Ruan Guangjian.

  Ruan Guangjian’s expression became strange. “Er…… Boss Pei. We have tight timelines. Normally, we wouldn’t spend so much time drawing such a fine portrait as practice.

  “This is what we’ve been working on lately…… can’t you tell? This is the latest request for art resources that we’ve received from Tengda Games.

  “It’s the rich protagonist in Struggle.”


  Pei Qian, “.……”


  These surprises always caught Pei Qian off-guard.