In the midst of this chaos, many things became unclear. For example, some people paid but didn't get any drinks, while others drank several bowls without paying. Thanks to the combined efforts of Zhu Gui and me, we finally turned the bar into a soup kitchen.
The brand of Reverse Time Bar, whose five-star gin became famous overnight, is actually built on a large bump on a man's head.
Feeling a little dizzy, I looked at the frenzied crowd and slowly turned to find Chen Kejiao. I saw her finally pick up the glass of wine I had poured for her, slowly drink it all in one gulp, stand up, and say something to me:
"Hurry up and make those long wooden counters you mentioned."
Chapter Seventy-Four: Li Bai
Tonight, our five-star juniper sold a little over ten thousand units. This figure doesn't tell the whole story yet, because at the original price, it would have been ten times that. Also, many people drank but didn't pay—only a small percentage paid but didn't get a drink. Most importantly, we only served two-thirds of our customers. Those who waited all night and left empty-handed angrily confronted the bar owner, threatening to report us to the relevant authorities and consumer association if this continued tomorrow. They said the charge was similar to a taxi driver refusing a fare, since the drinks are scooped out and sold, and what we did was "refusing to scoop."
Regardless, the future of Five Star Juniper is undoubtedly bright. It has a pure flavor, and due to its short aging period, it has a mild aftereffect, making it perfect for men to enjoy like beer. Women, when mixed with green tea or cola, represent a huge consumer group.
Chen Kejiao never went back; she handed over all power to me. Of course, she did this on conditions—I promised her that when she redeemed the bar a year later, I would waive the 20% storage fee.
The wooden counter I mentioned wasn't difficult to make; it was ready in two days. However, the overall style seemed too out of place. The Five-Star Juniper jelly bowl has maintained its price of 5 yuan a bowl, and it's now the absolute star dish, accounting for over 80% of daily revenue. I wanted Li Yun to help with a complete renovation according to his ideas, but he's been unavailable for the past week or two because the school is in its final sprint.
I noticed a phenomenon among these time-traveling clients: great fame and ability don't necessarily guarantee success in modern society. Take the five-person group, for example: one emperor became a professional gambler, the other only plays mindless games; one hero is hopelessly immersed in his own world, the other spends his days and nights tending a cheap van. Only Li Shishi, the mistress, harbors grand ambitions, wanting to surpass Zhang Ziyi and Tang Wei, and has not only mastered using Baidu but also has an ID on Tianya…
Now let's talk about the Liangshan heroes. Famous heroes like Lu Junyi, Lin Chong, and Li Kui are currently just loafing around waiting to die. Conversely, Jin Dajian, who only appeared once in the original story, easily brought me 3 million yuan; Zhu Gui, ranked lower, took over the bar for me; Du Xing will become a renowned private entrepreneur in a short time; and the unassuming Song Qing practically carried half the school's burden—with the school nearing completion, he took on the role of logistics director, handling everything from beds and bedding to desks and chairs, and even the blackboards and chalk needed later.
Li Yun, needless to say, has been so busy with my affairs that his schedule is already booked for the next three months. During this time, he also turned down invitations from several construction companies. It seems that learning a practical skill is the best way forward. Poets are more likely to starve than carpenters—that's a conclusion drawn by a philosopher who has already starved to death.
If my son ever dares to write modern poetry, I'll break his legs! When he's four or five, I'd like to host Wu Daozi, Wang Xizhi, and Yu Boya here. We'll learn painting in the morning, calligraphy at noon, and the zither in the afternoon. If it's a daughter, she can learn to dance from Zhao Feiyan, sing from Huo Xiaoyu—or even the white girl from *The Travels of Lao Can*—and study etiquette with Shangguan Wan'er for a few days. Girls can learn to write poetry and lyrics, but try to keep them away from people like Li Qingzhao and Cai Wenji; they're prone to pessimism.
A week passed in the blink of an eye, and according to the original plan, the school should have been able to hang the signboard. But An Daoquan told my fortune and said that three more days would be the auspicious day for the shop to open—you might not know this, but in the past, doctors often did fortune telling, and some even made it their main profession. In addition, Li Yun also wanted to make the project as perfect as possible, so I decided to postpone it for another three days.
Our Yucai Martial Arts School occupies a vast area with a long walled enclosure. We currently have one dormitory building, accommodating 500 students (4 students per room); a three-story teaching building that can hold 1500 students; and a large auditorium that can comfortably accommodate 1000 people. The only downside is the canteen, which is a bit small, built to seat 300 people at a time. I'm particularly proud of our outdoor swimming pool, converted from a former fishpond. All of this cost me a little over 3 million yuan. Building this school taught me a painful lesson: before constructing a building, you not only need to calculate the cost of its doors, windows, and walls, but also what you'll need after completion. For example, dormitories need beds and bedding, classrooms need blackboards and desks and chairs, and if possible, closed-circuit television and projectors…
I made two mistakes regarding this issue, and another one was that I forgot to factor in the cost of renovating my villa. Song Qing kept asking Dai Zong to get money from me for things he bought, and the school's software facilities also cost me over 1 million yuan, which just used up the money I had saved for renovating my house. The cost of having Dai Zong run errands wasn't low either; a pair of Nikes would be completely worn out after just two days of running around.
On the last day before the construction team was to leave, Li Yun gave me a small suggestion: out of a defensive habit, he wanted to build a barbican both inside and outside the gate of my school...
Fortunately, this project was in charge of Li Yun. If it had been handed over to Qin Shi Huang, he probably would have built the school's walls into double walls that were wide enough for horses to run on, and then added arrow towers on top of them.
Of the 3 million I kept at the bar, Song Qing has taken half of it these past few days. I don't dare touch the rest. You know, with such a big school, even the smallest things require money to settle. And there's also the risk of accidents, like Xiang Yu scratching someone's car or crashing into a pineapple stand—that all costs money.
Fortunately, the bar is on the right track, and people flock there every day to sample the Five-Star Juniper. It has become my main source of income. With the current business situation, making a profit of 500,000 yuan per month shouldn't be a problem.
For the past week or so, I've finally been able to stay peacefully at the pawnshop and enjoy a few days of quiet life. My greatest pleasure each day is using those three mind-reading techniques. I use them most often on Jing Ke, because I'm very curious about how long he can remain in a thoughtless state each day. The answer is very satisfying; I used them on him once a day for nine days, and six of those times resulted in ellipses.
Everyone around me was doomed, of course. Li Shishi was very busy every day, trying to enrich herself. A single use of mind-reading ability could display a short segment of a person's thought process, roughly two minutes in time. Sometimes, Li Shishi could display three pages of thoughts within those two seconds, but most were reflections on history and performance; I lost interest after watching twice. Qin Shihuang's thoughts were more interesting; he was calculating how many people he had killed in the game these past few days, whether it was more than when he unified the six kingdoms.
Liu Bang was thinking about gambling, while Xiang Yu was thinking about a chariot. Of course, there were also a few instances where the information he obtained was meaningless. For example, when he grabbed Xiang Yu while he was eating, he might have been thinking: "Should I eat more after I finish this bowl of rice?" When he grabbed a steamed bun while cooking, he might have been thinking: "Did you put salt in the garlic sprouts?"
So, you also need to know how to seize the opportunity, just like a photographer. The difference is that while a photographer may not always have time to get out their camera, at least they know what they missed. But human thinking is much more complex. For example, one second this person might be thinking about what sauce to put in their noodles, and the next second when you grab them, they might be thinking about the Afghan crisis. You might be immediately filled with respect.
On the day the construction team withdrew, before the 300 students and their heroes had even moved into their dormitories, Principal Zhang called me to ask when the plaque would be hung up. I said the day after tomorrow. Principal Zhang said, "Tell the students not to take down their tents yet. The day after tomorrow, we'll hold a celebration ceremony, and then let them come out of their tents and move into their dormitories together. It will make the new school look like a new place."
I said, "Wouldn't that just be a show? What's the point of celebrating? Can't we just open it quietly?"
Old Zhang said, "No way! I just don't understand. Other schools open with a lot of fanfare, but you're afraid people will find out. Are you running a shady business? Never mind that, I'll find the guests, and you can call a few of your cronies to show their support. Also, isn't this a martial arts school? Have the students prepare a few performances."
"...Principal Zhang, we don't have any female students whose measurements meet the standards, so should we just cancel the performance?"
"Stop being so glib. Oh, and also arrange for a few reception staff."
Reception? Who among the 300 and the heroes is supposed to be the one receiving others? Old Zhang has countless students, many of whom now hold high positions. You expect the heroes to be all over them, calling them "Brother Bureau Chief" or "Brother Section Chief"? Song Qing might be able to help a little, but he definitely wouldn't understand the guests' identities. As for Yan Jingsheng, forget about it—a bookworm and stubborn fool.
That evening, Zhu Gui called me and said, "Xiao Qiang, come over quickly, something's wrong."
I could tell he sounded a bit anxious, so I quickly asked what was wrong. Zhu Gui said, "Come quickly."
I had no choice but to hurry, guessing the way. When I arrived at the bar, I was surprised to find Du Xing there, surrounded by several young men and women. They all bowed and greeted me, "Uncle-Master—" I asked, puzzled, "How is this done?"
One of the pretty girls winked at me playfully and said, "Uncle-Master, you don't remember us anymore?"
I looked at her intently a few times and said, "Please forgive my failing eyesight, Uncle-Master..."
"Hehe, we're the same group that had a street dance competition here last time, remember us?"
"Oh—" I said suddenly, "No wonder I can't remember what she looks like, but that waist looks familiar."
The girls giggled and linked arms with Du Xing. Du Xing looked at me awkwardly and said, "You insist on learning street dance from me—I really only learned Tiger Crane Double Form from an old boxing master for a few days when I was a kid..."
“Teach them how you were jumping around that day.” I turned to the two girls and said, “From now on, don’t call them uncle, just call them brother.”
I chatted and laughed with them for a while before finding Zhu Gui. He didn't seem to be in any hurry, sitting casually by the wooden counter watching the waiters scoop wine with wooden spoons. I asked him what was wrong, and he nodded towards a table. I turned around and saw a man slumped over the table with a pile of bowls in front of him; he looked quite old. Zhu Gui said, "He's drunk."
I didn't understand what he meant, so I asked, "Didn't you pay?"
"They didn't give it to me."
"...Is this what you're talking about?"
Zhu Gui nodded.
"Damn it, are you kidding me? Just search him to see if he has any money. If not, just take him out and that's it, right? You call me over for something like this..."
Zhu Gui interrupted me: "It was sent by Liu Laoliu."
...I finally know what it is.
I cautiously asked Zhu Gui, "Didn't Liu Laoliu say who this person is?"
"without."