Chapter 207: Two Old Dogs
Chapter 207: Chapter 207: Two Old Dogs
If Boss Jin weren’t his own brother, Jin San would have leaped up and given him a huge slap.
He really hated it when people called him stupid.
"What did I say wrong now?!" Jin San scratched his hair. "Isn’t that the most direct and simple solution?"
"Yes, it’s the most direct and simple. But have you considered the consequences?" Boss Jin looked at his brother’s defiant face, not in the mood to explain. "Just focus on improving your superpower. You don’t need to worry about anything else."
"Fine, I won’t!" Jin San shot up and stormed out angrily.
Boss Jin rubbed his throbbing temples and called for Mr. Sun and General Manager Chen, both senior managers in the Commerce Association.
"Mr. Jin, you called for us?" Mr. Sun asked.
"Sit." Boss Jin gestured, and someone immediately brought them tea and water.
Mr. Sun and General Manager Chen sat on the sofa. Boss Jin handed each of them a cigar, and only after lighting them did he slowly begin to explain his plan.
"I’ve been thinking. Just blocking her supplies isn’t enough. We need to use other methods."
Mr. Sun asked, "What brilliant idea do you have in mind, Mr. Jin?"
"The only reason her shop is successful is that she’s using price cuts to attract customers. If she can cut prices, so can we. Oh, right, and she’s also doing some kind of raffle."
Boss Jin paused and took a drag from his cigar. "Li Zexing’s merchandise is hard to get, but we don’t necessarily have to offer the same prizes as her. It’s all just about driving traffic, after all. As long as it’s appealing enough, it’ll work."
General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun exchanged a look. General Manager Chen spoke up, "Mr. Jin, do we really have to destroy that shop?"
Mr. Sun added, "How about I go talk to that young lady and get her to raise her prices?"
General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun weren’t against blocking Shen Lu’s supplies—they just wanted to teach her a lesson. But resorting to a price war meant launching a full-blown business war.
Traditionally, wars leave both sides wounded, and they had no desire to do that.
Boss Jin knew what they were thinking. He wasn’t angry, just chuckled. "I’m not asking all of your restaurants to do this. Just pick one or two low-end places to go head-to-head with Little Deer Cuisine."
Mr. Sun still winced at the thought of the cost, hemming and hawing without giving a clear answer. General Manager Chen just kept drinking his water, not joining the conversation.
Boss Jin cursed them as cowards under his breath and personally refilled their tea.
"I’m just discussing it with you. How about this: you can try it your way first. We’ll talk again after you’ve given it a shot."
Mr. Sun immediately nodded. "In business, harmony is what matters most. I’ll go to Little Deer Cuisine later and meet with that young lady."
General Manager Chen chimed in, "I’ll go too. Don’t worry, Mr. Jin. With the two of us on the case, we’ll solve this problem perfectly without firing a single shot."
Boss Jin smiled through gritted teeth. "Fine. I’ll leave it to you, then."
Mr. Sun and General Manager Chen took their leave together. The moment the door closed, Boss Jin smashed his teacup.
’Those two old dogs!’
An idea flashed in Boss Jin’s eyes, and he gave his assistant a few instructions.
’Thinking harmony is what matters most?’
’Impossible. I’ll make sure they don’t have a pleasant chat.’
Mr. Sun and General Manager Chen were the two titans of the Lower City District’s restaurant scene. Between them, they controlled eighty percent of the restaurants in the area.
They didn’t particularly hate or approve of the appearance of Little Deer Cuisine.
After all, Little Deer Cuisine was in a remote location and only sold lunch. Aside from its excessively low prices, there didn’t seem to be any other major issues.
So, in their minds, as long as Shen Lu raised her prices, everyone would be happy.
As prominent businessmen in the Lower City District, General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun certainly wouldn’t visit her in person. Instead, they had someone deliver an invitation to Shen Lu, asking her to meet them that evening at the Golden Years.
The Golden Years was located on Gold Street. It was a relatively high-end song and dance hall, without too many shady dealings, so it was a place where women could also go to watch performances.
When Shen Lu received the invitation, she had a sense of, ’Ah, so that’s what this is about.’
’So the ones making a move against me are probably this General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun.’
’So, should I go see them or not?’
’Of course, I’ll go.’
’I need to see just what kind of people would resort to such dirty tricks to deal with me.’
At eight o’clock that evening, Shen Lu and Ye Fan arrived at the Golden Years as scheduled.
After showing the invitation to the doorman, they were led to a private booth on the second floor.
The booth wasn’t fully enclosed. The side facing the stage was open latticework, offering a complete view of the performance.
Right now, only a few warm-up dancers were bouncing around on stage; it wasn’t the main performance yet.
There was no one in the booth. Shen Lu pursed her lips, thinking, ’These two have no class. They’re the ones who invited me, but I’m here and they haven’t even shown up yet.’
Since she was already here, she might as well make herself comfortable. Shen Lu casually picked a chair and sat down, telling Ye Fan to sit as well.
"That’s against protocol." Ye Fan’s professional integrity was still intact. He stood behind Shen Lu with his hands clasped behind his back, his eyes and ears taking in everything. Not the slightest disturbance could escape his senses.
"Suit yourself, then."
Shen Lu didn’t touch the snacks or tea on the table. After she had been sitting there for half an hour, there was a knock on the door of the booth.
Shen Lu turned her head. After the door opened, two men in their forties walked in, followed by the manager of the Golden Years, who introduced them to Shen Lu with a grin.
"Boss Shen, this is General Manager Chen, and this is Mr. Sun. General Manager Chen, Mr. Sun, this is Boss Shen."
General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun nodded to Shen Lu. "Hello. We’ve heard a great deal about you."
To show her respect, Shen Lu stood up. "General Manager Chen, Mr. Sun, hello."
After the brief greetings, both parties sat down.
General Manager Chen and Mr. Sun knew Shen Lu was a young woman, but they hadn’t expected such a beautiful and delicate-looking girl.
She looked even younger than their own daughters.
They were rather unaccustomed to discussing business matters with such a young girl, so they beat around the bush, making all sorts of pointless small talk.
The corner of Shen Lu’s mouth twitched. She folded her hands in her lap. "You two invited me here, and I doubt it was just to ask about the weather, right?"
’Can’t you just get to the point?’
Mr. Sun gave an awkward cough. "As a junior, it’s only right that we, as your elders, show a little concern."
Shen Lu scoffed mockingly. "Concern? The greatest concern you could show me would be to stop blocking my supplies."
Now that the pretense was shattered, General Manager Chen dropped the false pleasantries.
"Blocking your supplies wasn’t our decision. Besides, you were the one who broke the market rules first."
Shen Lu fell silent for a moment. "I only sell lunch."
"This isn’t about you only selling lunch. Your prices are too low. How are other businesses supposed to survive?" Having found a flaw in Shen Lu’s argument, General Manager Chen acted as if he had seized the moral high ground. "You’ve set your prices so low you’re barely making a profit, but the customers don’t know that. They’re demanding other shops lower their prices to match yours. How are other shops supposed to do business?"
"So what you’re saying is?"
"Raise your prices. A meal set like your braised pork belly should sell for at least 200 Star Coins."
Shen Lu was speechless.
’I see now,’ she thought. ’I’m really not cut out for business. I’m not ruthless enough, and my heart isn’t black enough.’