Li Shi silently finished smoking a cigarette at the entrance of Lazy Fish Internet Cafe.

After listening to his subordinate's report, Li Shi began to seriously doubt his own judgment.

Although Fuhui Capital wasn't one of the top investment companies nationwide, shouldn't every company in Jingzhou know about it?

However, even after announcing his company, CEO Pei was still unmoved and rejected him with lightning speed?

This didn't seem to make sense.

After all, similar investment activities were very common in this circle.

When venture capital firms approached, most people would choose to talk first and see what terms were offered.

If they were truly dissatisfied and couldn't reach an agreement, they could simply part ways and look for cooperation opportunities in the future, without any loss.

Refusing without even asking was rare.

Li Shi was a mature investor, after all, and wasn't easily discouraged by this minor setback. He aired out the cigarette smell on his clothes and returned to Lazy Fish Internet Cafe.

Li Shi noticed that Pei Qian had stopped writing and drawing in his notebook, but was still staring at it with a solemn expression, seemingly lost in thought.

If he didn't trust his subordinates enough, Li Shi would have even wondered if CEO Pei had even received the olive branch he'd offered.

"Strange, he's completely unmoved by my investment."

"Could my judgment be wrong?"

"Even though CEO Pei is currently facing difficulties and the internet cafe is constantly losing money, he's still stubbornly convinced that he can turn things around?"

"I can provide him with a lot of capital and cooperation opportunities. Could it be that CEO Pei values absolute control more than all of that?"

"In any case, he seems like a person with a strong desire for control, unwilling to let anyone interfere."

"Heh, young people are just young people, wanting to hog everything for themselves. That's not the mindset of a good entrepreneur."

Analyzing it from any angle, Li Shi found it difficult to understand why CEO Pei would reject his investment so decisively.

The key was that the rejection was too blunt; he hadn't even asked about the specifics.

Li Shi could only think of one explanation: this CEO Pei was a reckless youth, a very stubborn person with a strong desire to control his own business, unwilling to let anyone dictate to him.

Of course, another possibility was that CEO Pei still firmly believed that there was nothing wrong with his internet cafe's direction and that he would definitely be able to turn a profit in the future, so he didn't want to share the fruits of his victory with anyone else.

Although Li Shi could directly find Pei Qian and explain things clearly right now, he didn't intend to do so.

He was the boss of an investment company, after all. How could he do something so undignified?

What if he handed over his business card and CEO Pei politely declined, not buying it? Wouldn't that be embarrassing?

Moreover, judging from the previous situation, there was a high probability of being turned away again.

"Hmph, young man, no one can refuse my investment, and you won't be an exception."

"When it comes to investment, some companies yearn for it, some gladly accept it, and some... need a little help…"

Li Shi quietly observed Pei Qian, a confident smile appearing on his lips.

…

…

June 24th.

Lazy Fish Internet Cafe, flagship store.

A taxi stopped in front of the entrance. Ma Yang pushed open the car door, got out, and entered the internet cafe.

"CEO Ma, you're done with the exam? How did it go?" Zhang Yuan greeted him enthusiastically as he saw Ma Yang arrive.

Ma Yang found a seat at random, stretched, his long face becoming even longer as he yawned, "It was a not-so-important course. Passing shouldn't be a problem."

"I even borrowed my homework from Brother Qian, helping him get at least 10 extra points on his attendance grade. I think he won't pursue the losses of the internet cafe and the takeout business for at least a month or two."

Zhang Yuan was filled with awe.

So, this was the so-called "having someone in court makes things easier"?

Zhang Yuan had previously been unable to understand why someone like Ma Yang could be appointed to such an important position as the general manager of Lazy Fish Internet Cafe, but now he understood completely.

He even thought it was only natural.

Although it might sound like Ma Yang obtained this crucial position by relying on some improper relationship, Zhang Yuan felt very comfortable following a leader like Ma Yang.

At least he didn't have to worry about being questioned by CEO Pei!

The waiter had already brought a cold drink. Ma Yang drank it while sighing, "That being said, we still have to work harder."

"I was originally hoping that the takeout business would turn a profit, but now it's all for naught. The takeout business is also losing money…"

Hearing this, Zhang Yuan also felt a little worried, "Yeah, the other day CEO Pei was here writing and drawing in a notebook with a very serious expression. I wonder what he was writing."

Ever since he sent Chen Lei away last time, Ma Yang had been a bit depressed.

In order to help him find something to do again, Pei Qian specially entrusted him with the important task of Lazy Fish Takeout.

Ma Yang was indeed full of fighting spirit at first, recruiting deliverymen, buying dishwashers, and even finding someone to develop the first version of the app. But in the end, he found that there were hardly any orders…

It was just supporting a group of people for nothing, adding another expense.

Of course, it couldn't be said that no one ordered Lazy Fish Takeout. There were still some customers who liked the taste, but it was difficult to recover the costs.

There were many aspects to the problem:

CEO Pei was very opposed to "ground promotion" methods like distributing flyers, so not many people knew about Lazy Fish Takeout;

The Lazy Fish Takeout app only provided its own food and didn't integrate other businesses, which severely limited its appeal to general customers;

The dishes were all home-style dishes, the variety was limited, and the prices were also significantly higher than those of ordinary home-style dishes.

In short, due to the lack of exposure and the general consumer mentality, Lazy Fish Takeout was not operating at full capacity at all, and many employees had nothing to do.

According to the original plan, deliverymen could deliver to several homes at once, and dish collectors could also collect dishes from several homes at once, but now, because there were too few customers, they had to make a trip for just one set of dishes.

Although the tableware was good, it was inevitable that it would be damaged or lost. According to Pei Qian's requirements, even if similar situations occurred, the customer would not be held responsible, unless there was evidence of deliberate damage time and time again.

Although there were no such customers deliberately causing trouble for the time being, the occasional damage to the tableware still made Ma Yang feel heartache.

Judging from this situation, making money was basically impossible.

Both of them were silent.

Ma Yang drank his drink and looked around the internet cafe, his brow suddenly furrowing, "Strange, why does it feel like there are so few people in the store today?"

Zhang Yuan was stunned, "Oh? Is that so?"

He hadn't paid attention to it, since there had never been many people in Lazy Fish Internet Cafe during the day. There were always only a dozen or so people surfing the internet, and the number of people drinking coffee was about the same.

Today was a weekday morning, so it was normal for there to be fewer people.

But now that Ma Yang mentioned it, Zhang Yuan did notice that there seemed to be especially few people today!

There were only two people playing in the internet cafe area, and there was only one customer in the coffee area.

"Maybe it's a coincidence," Zhang Yuan said.

Just as the two were wondering, the door of the internet cafe opened, and a Lazy Fish Takeout deliveryman rushed in with several flyers in his hand.

"CEO Ma, CEO Zhang, something's happened!"

"Take a look at these flyers!"

Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan were a little confused. They took the flyers from the deliveryman's hand.

Although Lazy Fish Takeout's current operating situation wasn't very good, it still had some customers. Obviously, this deliveryman was out delivering food and saw something on the way back.

There were several flyers, some from internet cafes, some from cafes, and some from bars, with a few duplicate flyers mixed in, probably because the deliveryman had accidentally picked up duplicates in his haste.

Ma Yang and Zhang Yuan spread the flyers out on the table and checked them one by one.

Internet cafe, recharge discounts, limited-time discounts!

Cafes and bars also had drink discounts, second cup half price, and other similar activities!

Ma Yang was a little puzzled, "What does this have to do with us?"

The deliveryman was still a little out of breath, "CEO Ma, these... these stores are all around us!"

Zhang Yuan frowned and immediately realized that something was wrong!

Taking a closer look, it was true. These stores were indeed around the Lazy Fish Internet Cafe flagship store, and they were not far away.

Ma Yang's long face also tensed up instantly, realizing the seriousness of the problem, "This… could it be that they're targeting us?"

He thought for a moment, then shook his head, "That's not right, we don't seem to have offended anyone, and we haven't started a price war with them. Would these stores go so far as to target us like this?"

Ma Yang was puzzled. Logically speaking, if Lazy Fish Internet Cafe was thriving and taking business away from others, that would be one thing.

But the key was that Lazy Fish Internet Cafe was already so deserted. What was the point of targeting them like this?

Zhang Yuan's expression was even more serious, "That's not necessarily the case."

"Although Lazy Fish Internet Cafe is losing money, as long as our store is still open, we're in competition with these stores. Maybe they just want to kick us when we're down and won't stop until they see Lazy Fish Internet Cafe close down?"

"Moreover, internet cafes, bars, cafes, so many stores doing promotional activities together, it's like they have an unspoken agreement… maybe someone is behind this!"

Ma Yang was alarmed, "Then what do we do?"

Zhang Yuan frowned, thinking for a long time.

"This is not going to be easy; they are obviously prepared!"

"These stores have taken the lead in starting a price war. Whether it's internet cafes, bars, or cafes, they're all doing price cuts and handing out flyers like crazy."

"If I'm not mistaken, the intersections near our internet cafe have already been occupied by them."

"This way, anyone who wants to come to our internet cafe will definitely see their flyers and promotional ads."

"The traffic in this area is not that big to begin with. After they suck it all away, our place will naturally become even more deserted."

Ma Yang suddenly understood and was also a little angry, "No wonder there are so few people in the internet cafe today!"

Zhang Yuan continued, "It's not just that!"

"I feel that they are prepared, and this move has directly hit our weakness!"

"According to CEO Pei's plan, our internet cafe has been positioned as high-end from the very beginning, so the prices are relatively high."

"They want to drag us into the water and start a price war with us, which is a difficult situation."

"If we don't lower our prices, then we will have a huge disadvantage in terms of price."

"For example, our original prices were 40% higher than other places, but we have a better environment and service, and many customers are willing to spend more money to enjoy better service."

"But now that they are burning money to lower prices, and our prices are 60% or more higher than theirs, will customers still be willing to spend so much more money to buy our environment and service?"

Ma Yang frowned, "Then, should we also lower our prices?"

Zhang Yuan shook his head again, "No! We are going for the high-end route. Lowering prices will damage our reputation. Moreover, we have been losing money all along, how can we burn money like them?"

"Besides, have you forgotten what CEO Pei said when we proposed lowering prices last time?"

Ma Yang was speechless.

When Lazy Fish Internet Cafe first started losing money, Zhang Yuan had proposed a price-cutting strategy, but it was directly rejected by Pei Qian.

It would probably be the same result if they brought it up again this time.

But if they didn't lower prices, it wouldn't work either. The Lazy Fish Internet Cafe flagship store was now completely surrounded. As long as these stores handed out flyers like crazy at the intersections near Lazy Fish Internet Cafe, they could intercept most of the traffic.

Even if a few wealthy customers were very loyal to Lazy Fish Internet Cafe, it wouldn't help, since customers who don't consider prices at all are ultimately in the minority. Most people still have to consider the cost-effectiveness.

Zhang Yuan said seriously, "Let's report it to CEO Pei. This is not something we can decide!"

…

In the rental house, Pei Qian was sleeping soundly.

The phone rang.

Pei Qian was awakened from his dream and was very unhappy.

However, when he saw that it was Ma Yang calling, and considering that he had just borrowed his homework for reference, Pei Qian forgave him.

"What's up, Old Ma?"

On the phone, Ma Yang quickly told him about the major crisis that Lazy Fish Internet Cafe was facing.

"Brother Qian, that's basically the situation."

"Zhang Yuan and I analyzed that this is definitely not that simple. Someone must be stirring things up behind the scenes!"

"What should we do now?"

Ma Yang's voice was very anxious.

Pei Qian instantly lost all sleepiness.

There's such a good thing???

Pei Qian almost laughed out loud. The loss pressure this cycle was already very high, and he was still worried about whether he could successfully create losses by the time it was due.

As a result, someone came to deliver him a pillow just as he was about to go to sleep!

Currently, the Lazy Fish Internet Cafe flagship store was losing about three hundred thousand yuan a month, but that was under the premise that the drinks and internet cafe business had a certain income.

Although Chen Lei was gone, the impact was still there. Many old customers still liked to come to Lazy Fish Internet Cafe when they had nothing to do, so the internet cafe's losses had decreased a lot compared to the beginning.

Now that the surrounding stores had started a price war and the traffic to Lazy Fish Internet Cafe had been cut off, it meant that Pei Qian could reduce his income before settlement!

If these stores could persevere, it would mean that in the next cycle, Lazy Fish Internet Cafe's income would continue to plummet, which was really…

Great!

There was only a week left until settlement. A portion of Lazy Fish Internet Cafe's income would be washed away, potentially reaching seventy to eighty thousand yuan.

Don't underestimate this seventy to eighty thousand yuan; perhaps the loss of this seventy to eighty thousand would turn a profit into a loss, which would be a world of difference!

Pei Qian tried his best to calm his mood, not letting himself laugh out loud.

Ma Yang heard the silence on Pei Qian's side and felt that the situation was even more serious, "What should we do, Brother Qian?"

Pei Qian rubbed the corners of his mouth, which he couldn't stop from turning upwards, and said in as calm a tone as possible, "Don't panic. At times like this, it's best to remain calm and not take action."

"Don't do anything. I have my own arrangements!"