I paused for a moment, pondering the meaning of Huan Ge's words, and cautiously replied, "He's still the same; he hasn't done anything out of line."
"Hmm." Huan Ge pondered for a moment: "Xiao Wu, you know that A Qiang is not one of us. There are four managers in the nightclub now, and you are the only one who is my trusted subordinate. You have to take good care of the place. I treat you like family."
I was touched: "Brother Huan, I understand."
"Okay, you're smart. I won't say any more." Huan Ge chuckled on the other end of the phone: "It's been a while since we've had any activities. I was planning to ask you to play a couple of games with me today, but you're injured now, so let's wait for another opportunity."
After saying that, the phone call ended.
Everyone in the nightclub knows I'm the youngest manager. I'm only twenty-three, yet I'm in charge of such a big place. Many people guess I have connections.
Only I know that my success today is entirely due to Brother Huan's kindness.
I'm from this city, but I later went to middle school in another city. There, I studied martial arts under an old master for a few years. But as a young man, once you learn a bit of skill, you inevitably become too hot-blooded and prone to fighting. As a result, my studies suffered, and naturally, I didn't get into university. Five years ago, I returned to this city, all alone.
My parents passed away a long time ago, leaving me only a house. Five years ago, when I first came back, I got into a fight for my brother and injured someone. After that, I had to pay a lot of money in compensation, so I had to sell the house and go to work at Jinbihuihuang.
By sheer chance, Huan Ge took a liking to me. After working as a waiter for a year, I became a receptionist, then a waiter for another year, and later, I was promoted to manager, and then became a supervisor.
In less than four years, I became Huan Ge's protégé.
He rarely comes to Golden Splendor now, and I know he's essentially handed the nightclub over to me. Aside from financial matters, which I don't understand, I handle almost everything else.
I don't care what Huan Ge's intentions are in cultivating me. Maybe he just wants to train a confidant. But at least I know that people should know how to be grateful. Everything I have now, my job, my salary, and the fact that I am respected by others, is all thanks to Huan Ge. That alone is enough for me to work my life for him!
Another thing is, Huan Ge really loves boxing. He's incredibly skilled; it's not just fancy footwork, it's genuinely impressive! I studied martial arts for a few years, and he often practiced with me when he had free time. I noticed he had many scars on his body, and once, out of the blue, I asked him about them. His gaze was very deep then, and he told me something:
"Xiao Wu, in this world, you have to pay the price for whatever you want to gain!"
The first book, "A Man in the Jianghu, Forced by His Own Circumstances," features a very "creative" conman in its fifth chapter.
I can imagine this man, twenty years ago, carrying only a thousand yuan, heading south to the coast alone to make his way in the world! What a heroic spirit and ambition that must have been! I know very well that everything Huan Ge has today is the result of paying a price and fighting for it!
I know that Huan-ge had taken a liking to me back then, and could have promoted me immediately if he wanted to. But he made me work my way up for two whole years. In his words, young people won't mature without experiencing some hardship. He was intentionally grooming me.
Since I had the day off, I simply slept at home until the afternoon. In the afternoon, my phone rang again, and when I answered it, it was a real estate agency I had registered with.
I'm planning to move out of here. The area I live in is a mixed bag, and the security isn't great. I used to be attracted by the cheap rent, but now I earn a decent amount each month, enough to move to a better place. So, after my lease expires next month, I've decided to move out.
Actually, I'd been thinking about moving for about six months, but unfortunately, I'd already prepaid a year's rent. The landlord refused to refund the money, so I had no choice but to stay here.
Although with my current income, I don't care about wasting a few thousand yuan on rent, Huan Ge once told me that one can be extravagant, but not wasteful.
Huan-ge practices this principle himself. I've dined with him a few times, and with his wealth, he often eats things like shark fin, abalone, and bird's nest. But what I noticed was that no matter what he eats, Huan-ge always finishes his food. Even if he's holding a gold-plated bowl, he'll absolutely eat every single grain of rice! He'll never waste a single grain!
I don't know why, but I feel that I have been deeply influenced by Huan Ge.
The real estate agent at the rental company told me that there was a house that perfectly suited my needs, and I could go and take a look.
My requirements for housing are very simple: first, the location must be in the city center; second, the living environment must be clean and quiet; third, transportation must be convenient; and fourth, it is best if the housing is fully furnished with furniture, appliances, and other facilities so that I can move in with just my bag.
With so many requirements, you call that simple?
Damn, I haven't mentioned one last thing: I don't care about the rent! I'm not afraid of high prices, as long as it's worth the money!!
What? Money can make the devil turn the millstone?
Wrong! Let me tell you, it should be: Money makes the world go round!
My real estate agent told me about a house that's fully furnished and equipped with appliances, located just four blocks from my workplace, Jinbihuihuang, and in a very nice environment. The only problem is that the rent is a bit expensive.
I immediately told him that the rent shouldn't be a problem, but I'd have to see the place and decide if it was worth it.
So, the real estate agent gave me an address over the phone and told me to go see the apartment myself this afternoon. For small rental businesses like this, real estate agents usually don't handle things directly; I figured I'd know once I got there myself. He'd already arranged for the landlord to be waiting at home.
After hanging up the phone, I casually threw on a spare suit that I wear to work and prepared to go out.
But at that moment, I had no idea that this rental would change the course of my life...
...
At four o'clock in the afternoon, with a bandage on my head, I steeled myself and, under the strange looks of the people around me, appeared precisely on a road not far from the city's commercial street. My destination was a newly built residential complex.
The building was constructed on a street that was not very wide. The ground floor was built as a shopping mall, while the upper floors were office buildings.
Looking at the address in my hand, I was a little confused.
Why is it a commercial building? The address I have is: No. 36, XX Street... That's right!
But I need to rent an apartment building!
Because the building had only been built and handed over recently, the interior was still quite empty, and there were large advertising signs for investment opportunities downstairs. I tried to go inside, but there wasn't a single person in the lobby on the first floor.
"Fine," I sighed. "Since I'm already here, I might as well go up and see what's going on."
Stepping into the elevator, I pressed the number 22, which is the top floor of this building.
The elevator was going up, but I had a nagging feeling of unease, as if something was about to happen. Watching the numbers on the elevator screen flash by, a malicious thought suddenly crossed my mind: Could this be a scam by a real estate agency to steal my commission…?
Ding-dong, the elevator display showed "22", but I stood there for a full ten seconds and the elevator doors didn't open. What's even stranger is that, standing inside, I felt as if the elevator was still going up...
I immediately felt a chill run down my spine.
I've heard many terrifying stories about paranormal events in newly opened housing developments, such as an ever-ascending staircase that leads directly to the spirit world.
A full minute passed before I finally heard the elevator doors open. I quickly stepped out, but I was even more confused.
This elevator probably has quality problems... I gave this place a failing grade in my mind from the start.
I looked at the elevator's sign, and damn, no wonder... it's a piece of junk from Japan.
Stepping out of the elevator, I found myself in a very small space, not like the one-story building I had imagined. To put it simply, there were walls all around, and it was only about ten square meters in size. There was a set of steps in front of me, and about four or five meters up, there was an iron door.
The scene was somewhat eerie. I hesitated for a moment, then walked up the steps to the iron gate, where a small sign was prominently displayed.
"The 22nd floor"
I'm a bit annoyed. This place doesn't look normal at all. Even if it's a commercial building, let alone a residential building, it shouldn't look like this.
But I still pushed the door open, and then things got even stranger...
The 22nd floor... Turns out, it was the rooftop terrace...
I pushed open the door and stepped out into a spacious, open area with fresh air and plenty of sunshine... but where was even half a building? Looking at the rooftop insulation panels spread across the ground and the air conditioner compressors around me, I couldn't help but curse, "What kind of place is this? It's clearly a rooftop!"
Just as I was about to turn back and give that damn real estate agent a good beating, I finally spotted a figure here!
This is truly unbelievable, a ghost sight in broad daylight! Right at the corner of the rooftop exit, there's an elegant reception desk! And behind the desk, there's a tall screen with several signs hanging on it, gleaming in the sunlight…
A tall, thin young man stood at the front desk, wearing an extremely old-fashioned suit in a dark, outdated navy blue. He also wore thick glasses that were incredibly thick, like the bottom of a wine bottle, indicating severe nearsightedness.
Good heavens, what era are we living in? People still wear such thick glass lenses? These days everyone uses resin lenses…
The man looked up and immediately saw me walking towards him. He was clearly a little surprised, but he quickly composed himself and said in very standard "white-collar Mandarin," "Welcome! How may I help you?"
What is "white-collar Mandarin"? It's simple: many white-collar workers nowadays don't speak proper Mandarin and prefer to speak gibberish. They're clearly native mainland Chinese, but they like to deliberately add one or two English words to a sentence.
There's another, even more disgusting type: they always deliberately speak with a lisp, imitating Hong Kong or Taiwanese accents. Actually, if you check their background, they might actually be from Northeast China… (Just an example, please don't take offense, Northeastern folks.)
I looked around several times, still not understanding what the purpose of having a company receptionist on this empty rooftop was. There were only two people on the rooftop, including me and him.
I've never heard of any company putting its reception desk on the rooftop of a building, have I?
However, this person's expression was very polite, and his smile seemed very sincere. I felt somewhat bewildered and, without thinking, blurted out something even more outrageous:
"Um... well... I'm here to rent a room. Do you have any rooms available on the 22nd floor?"
As soon as I said that, I almost wanted to slap myself.
The 22nd floor? Isn't this the 22nd floor? The 22nd floor is basically a rooftop! There are no apartments for rent here!
My face immediately turned bright red, and I stammered to cover it up, "Um, I think I've come to the wrong place... Goodbye!"
Just as I was about to turn around, the tall, thin man called out to me: "Please wait a moment. Since you're here, we do indeed offer rental services. Please wait a moment while I have one of our staff members speak with you."
After saying that, he casually pointed to my left. I looked in the direction he was pointing and was immediately startled!
What the hell! This place was completely empty just a moment ago, but in the blink of an eye, a small round craft table and two single sofas have appeared!
Looking at that style, it seems to be a new model I saw at IKEA last month!
But... damn it, there was nothing here just now!
Could I have misread it...? But I've practiced martial arts since I was a child, and my eyesight is extremely sharp. I can hit a bird with a slingshot from twenty meters away!
Filled with utter shock, I almost instinctively walked to the round table and sat down.
Then the tall, thin man picked up a small folder, walked towards me, sat down in front of me, and introduced himself with a polite smile: "Hello, I am a sales representative from our company."
I stared at him in surprise again: "You...aren't you the receptionist? Are you also a salesperson?"
He smiled kindly: "Can't a receptionist also do sales work?"
I finally realized...
I must have encountered the legendary...
Leather! Bags! Company!
"Uh... I think I'd better leave." After saying that, I stood up.
He remained seated leisurely and began, "Your name is... um, Mr. Chen Yang, right?"
This is unbelievable! Could he be a fortune teller?
I was stunned, but immediately became instinctively alert!
I make a living in this industry, so it's inevitable that I'll have one or two enemies. Could it be that my enemies have set a trap to ambush me?
But then this guy looked at my chest with a smile, and I realized what the problem was.
I came wearing my work uniform, and I still had my work badge hanging around my neck, which clearly stated:
Golden Splendor KTV
Account Manager: Chen Yang
#◎! ￥％※……
Damn, am I too stressed, or have I been reading too many fantasy novels and become paranoid... or is it because that bastard hit me last night and I'm still suffering from the aftereffects?
I breathed a sigh of relief: "I may be wrong, but I'm here to rent a place. Where do you have a place for me to rent?"
"Don't worry, our company also has housing, and it's right here." The tall, thin man smiled confidently, extending his hand to me: "Mr. Chen Yang, please have a seat."