Chapter 124: Chapter 123: Monthly Tickets 80+
When Shi Yang went over, the Naughty Castle was still under renovation, surrounded by canvas, filled with smoke and chaos, making it impossible to see clearly inside.
Despite this, Li Shuren still rented a small booth in the mall’s first-floor lobby, located next to the escalator.
A table and a few chairs, with a large promotional sign standing on one side, written in cartoonish font was the phrase "** Mall Children’s Amusement Park," the sign was colorful and decorated with balloons around it, making it particularly eye-catching.
Li Shuren took him up to closely follow a day of construction, teaching Shi Yang little by little from the details, and finally around three o’clock in the afternoon, Li Shuren took him to the first floor, not going near the booth he rented, the two stood in a rest area a dozen meters away, observing the young female attendants in uniform sportswear sitting at the table and chairs beside the sign, paying attention to their attitude when attending to customers who occasionally came to inquire.
Li Shuren only hired two attendants in total, one responsible for reception downstairs, and the other for taking customers upstairs for a tour.
Only then did Shi Yang understand why the design and effect illustrations were printed all over the canvas of the renovation.
The two stayed until the mall was about to close when Li Shuren finally took Shi Yang over to the booth.
The two attendants handed over the cash bags containing the remaining membership cards and customer information registration cards.
Li Shuren utilized the remaining half an hour to sit at the booth and quickly reconcile the accounts.
Shi Yang was surprised looking at the thick wad of cash in Li Shuren’s hand, but he suppressed his emotions without showing them on his face.
In the evening, Li Shuren, carrying a large sum of money, took Shi Yang to stay at the most upscale hotel in the provincial capital.
Li Shuren didn’t take Shi Yang home, saying it’s inconvenient to talk at home, as there are many business matters a man wouldn’t want his family to know, whether good or bad.
Shi Yang didn’t quite understand some of Li Shuren’s ways, but he never opened his mouth to ask.
In the evening, the two ordered barbecue and beer, leaning on the hotel window sill, eating and chatting.
Li Shuren was a Southerner, not very tall, with a perpetual ring of stubble around his lips, which Shi Yang found dirty, so his gaze usually only stayed at Li Shuren’s eyes and eyebrows.
Shi Yang had the habit of wiping the skewer end with a napkin before eating it.
Seeing the way Shi Yang ate, Li Shuren laughed, "A man who lives so meticulously will likely find a carefree woman in the future!"
Shi Yang paused his action of eating skewers and turned his head, "Hmm, it seems like sister-in-law is a meticulous person."
Li Shuren laughed out loud, "Hmm, your sister-in-law is hard to describe, calling her meticulous sometimes, and yet she’s quite rough at times."
Shi Yang didn’t ask more, as he didn’t have the habit of prying into others’ privacy.
It was precisely because of such that others were more willing to engage in conversation with him.
After a busy day, even the most astute person will feel tired and need some proper relaxation.
Li Shuren pressed his forehead with his hand and said to Shi Yang, "Rest assured and follow me, this path is definitely feasible."
Shi Yang nodded, not denying this point as the Naughty Castle contracted by Li Shuren hadn’t officially opened yet, but just selling membership cards had roughly broken even, and it was estimated that within three months of official operation, the rent could be covered, and after excluding basic employee salaries and daily expenses, it was indeed a very considerable number.
Li Shuren ate skewers heartily, not like most people who take a bite, chew, and swallow before taking the next bite, but rather pulling the entire skewer into his mouth and chewing it all together.
Because of this unique way of eating skewers, his speech was also intermittent.
"It might be a bit tough at the start, but once the business truly expands, it will gradually get smoother."
"When a man fights for his career, he can’t be afraid of hardship; daring to fight, daring to work, and daring to take action is the only way to seize money-making opportunities. Money is never saved, it’s spent."
"Do you know why I still strive despite having a solid family foundation?"
Shi Yang raised an eyebrow, skillfully peeling garlic, placed it all together, hesitated for a moment, and offered two cloves to Li Shuren.
Li Shuren picked up a clove, bit into it, the spiciness made him gasp, he didn’t bite into the skewer, letting the spiciness roam around in his mouth, after grabbing the beer bottle for a big gulp, he let out a burp before continuing, "Because when I was young, I misunderstood a principle. I thought that as a man, I should make those around me happy, and what is happiness? Happiness is letting her have a good life, but I neglected one thing; people get lonely, and emotions aren’t like solar energy, not something that can recharge anytime under the sun."
Li Shuren tossed the remaining garlic directly into his mouth, the spiciness making him gasp, and took another gulp of beer, "Having money, but the emotions faded, and it’s too late to regret."
Shi Yang paused his wiping of the skewers, staring steadily at the thousands of lights outside the window, feeling a sudden sense of loneliness at the moment.
"Brother! What are you thinking?"
Shi Yang snapped back to reality, his eyes meeting Zhao Meimei’s face up close.
Zhao Meimei had been diligently studying hard these days, Liu Xiue worried about her not getting enough nutrition, provided lavishly with fish and meat every day, and her schoolbag was always stocked with bread and sausage and milk, Zhao Meimei’s originally slender face was visibly rounder, making her long eyebrows and eyes appear softer, and when she looked at someone, her thin eyelids gently lifted, making her seem to lose her youthful innocence overnight, gaining a touch of womanly charm.
Shi Yang gazed into Zhao Meimei’s eyes, his gaze slowly falling on her naturally slightly puckered red lips; he had kissed them before, no, it could only be said as a soft collision, it felt very soft.
Shi Yang had never kissed a woman, he had thought about it, imagined it, but when it came to the actual situation, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it, he had a phobia, though mild, he couldn’t accept mingling saliva with others, inexplicably finding it very disgusting.
He recalled that peck from Zhao Meimei back then, other than a racing heartbeat, there were no other feelings.
From childhood, Zhao Meimei’s leftovers were always his to finish, taking care of Zhao Meimei seemed to have become a conditioned response, a natural reaction, so natural that he never considered what he would do if one day Zhao Meimei no longer needed his care.
Xu Shuren’s words had indeed struck a chord with him, and during his occasional free time in his busy work, Shi Yang would wonder whether his exclusive focus on his career would affect his relationship with Zhao Meimei.
Would it? Or wouldn’t it?
This thought was but a fleeting moment, as he clearly knows he’s not like Xu Shuren; his relationship with Zhao Meimei was different from that of husband and wife like Xu Shuren and his power.
Zhao Meimei would never turn away from him, much less abandon him; the bond between them far exceeded his imagination.