Super Rich: It all started when I met a young woman in a sleeper car.

By the time the car drove back to the back door of the shop, it was already getting dark.

Chen Xun parked the car but didn't get out immediately. He sat in the driver's seat, took out the signed settlement agreement and the voice recorder again, and then let out a long sigh.

Zhou Wenbin's car followed behind and stopped. He rolled down the window and shouted at Chen Xun, "Brother Chen, aren't you going to have a couple of drinks to celebrate? My heart's still pounding, it's so exciting!"

Chen Xun smiled and rolled down the car window: "Brother Zhou, let's skip it today. There's a ton of work at the shop, and the three of them are probably waiting too. Another day, I'll treat you another day, you can choose the place."

"Okay! I'll remember that!" Zhou Wenbin said cheerfully. "I'll head back now. Call me anytime if anything comes up!"

Only after watching Zhou Wenbin's car drive away did Chen Xun push open the door and get out.

The lights were still on on the second floor of the shop.

He walked up the stairs, and just as he reached the second-floor corridor, the door to the monitoring room opened, and Yang Xiaotao poked her head out, her eyes wide: "Big Brother! You're back! How did it go? Sister Qian just said she tracked down that Manager Wang and made a phone call!"

"Come in and talk." Chen Xun walked into the temporary office.

Lin Xinyue and Li Qian were both there. Lin Xinyue had a pile of neatly organized documents spread out in front of her, while Li Qian's computer screen had several tracking software interfaces open.

"It's settled." Chen Xun placed the agreement and recorder on the table, and said succinctly, "Apologize, pay 500,000 yuan in compensation, and withdraw from the catering market. Jiang Tianxiong should quiet down for the time being."

"Yay!" Yang Xiaotao jumped up, almost bumping into the chair next to her. "That was so satisfying! Let them be so arrogant!"

Lin Xinyue picked up the agreement and examined it carefully. Her brows relaxed. "Once it's signed and stamped, it's legally binding. Five hundred thousand... that's a reasonable amount of compensation."

Li Qian closed several windows on her computer and turned her head: "I've saved the communication records, and I've also completed the chain of evidence linking them to their internal network. If they go back on their word, this will be enough to make them suffer."

"Thank you all for your hard work." Chen Xun looked at the three women, feeling quite reassured. This victory wasn't due to him alone, but to this team that was starting to take shape. "The compensation will arrive in three days. I thought about it on the way here, and we need to use this money wisely."

"Upgrade the equipment!" Yang Xiaotao was the first to raise her hand. "The noodle cooker in the kitchen sometimes has unstable heat! And the sound system in the shop needs a better one! Playing some classic oldies will really enhance the atmosphere!"

Lin Xinyue thought for a moment: "The equipment does need to be upgraded, but I suggest we do it in two parts. One part can be used to address the aging issues of the existing equipment, such as the noodle cooker that Xiaotao mentioned. The other part, could we consider adding some interactive equipment to the 'Themed Experience Area'? Like those old-fashioned cassette players, or cartridge game consoles? Something that customers can actually play with."

Li Qian chimed in, "I agree with Xinyue. However, besides hardware, software also needs to catch up. This incident exposed our shortcomings in crisis management. I suggest setting aside some money to establish a small 'brand protection fund'—it doesn't need to be large, but it's necessary. In the future, if we encounter similar smear campaigns or malicious competition, we can have a budget to react quickly and hire professionals to do professional things, such as lawyers or public relations."

Chen Xun listened and nodded. The three people's ideas all hit the nail on the head in different ways.

"Alright, let's allocate the compensation like this." He made the decision. "Two hundred thousand will be used for equipment upgrades, including kitchen equipment and interactive equipment in the experience area. One hundred thousand will be the seed money for the brand protection fund. One hundred thousand will go to Xinyue; you can enroll in a short-term business law course or hire a reliable long-term legal advisor to formalize our contracts and procedures. The remaining one hundred thousand..."

He paused, then looked at the three women: "Fifty thousand, as an extra bonus for everyone's hard work this time, will be divided among us. The other fifty thousand, the team can go out and relax, you can choose the place, consider it a celebration of this stage of victory."

"Wow! Big brother, you're my god!" Yang Xiaotao's eyes lit up.

Lin Xinyue and Li Qian also smiled. Money was secondary; the key was the feeling of being recognized and valued.

"However," Chen Xun changed the subject, tapping the table, "Celebrating is fine, but we can't forget about business. Jiang Tianxiong has temporarily stepped down, but the renovation of our new store's 'themed experience area' isn't finished yet. We'll be having a trial opening next week, so time is tight and the task is heavy."

He stood up: "Let's go, while we still have some time, let's go to the new store and check the finishing touches on the renovation. Let's see if there are any details we need to work on."

"Okay!" the three women replied in unison.

The four people locked the old store and walked to the new store in MixC World, which was not far away.

The new store's roller shutter door was closed, but the lights inside were on; they were left by the renovation team.

Chen Xun took out his key and opened the door.

"Wow!" Yang Xiaotao was the first to go in, letting out a gasp of surprise.

The once empty and ordinary shop has now been completely transformed.

The walls were painted a light green, mimicking the wainscoting of an old-fashioned classroom. Decorative replicas of fluorescent light tubes and old-fashioned electric fans (of course, just decorative items) hung from the ceiling. The main dining area wasn't made of ordinary tables and chairs, but rather rows of yellow-painted "desks" paired with matching "chairs." Each "desk" also had a crookedly carved "early" character or a line drawn across it.

The "themed experience area" in the corner was even more immersive. One wall was transformed into a giant blackboard, covered with colored chalk drawings of a message welcoming new students and a class schedule. Several brooms and dustpans leaned against it. Another wall was set up as a "wall of honor," displaying a rotating red flag and some replica certificates. Scattered on the floor were a few beanbags and chalk squares drawn on hopscotch.

"This...this is so similar!" Yang Xiaotao excitedly ran to the "desk", plopped down, and touched the surface. "I feel like the homeroom teacher is about to come in through the back door any second."

Lin Xinyue, however, focused more on the practical aspects. She went over to check the conduit for the electrical wires, tested the passage next to the fire hydrant to see if it was clear, and even touched the wall paint to check if it was completely dry. "Overall, there's no problem; the workmanship is decent. It's just that the junction box cover in this corner is a bit loose; I'll have the installer tighten it again."

Li Qian stood in the center of the shop and slowly walked around, her eyes scanning every detail. "The atmosphere is good enough. But atmosphere alone isn't enough; there also needs to be 'content.' The chalk drawings on the blackboard can be changed regularly, for example, to a countdown to the college entrance exam or a holiday theme. These beanbags and hopscotch grids are great interactive props, but they need to be designed with guiding game rules, otherwise customers might not know how to play, or they might get bored after playing for a while."

Chen Xun listened and watched at the same time.

Indeed, the basic construction is in place, but the soft furnishings and content operation are the key factors that determine the success or failure of this "themed experience area".

【Ding! 】

[Detection indicates that the host's investment in the "Nostalgic Campus" themed renovation project for the "Seeking Flavors Instant Noodles" MixC World store has been fully completed.]

Total project investment: 85 yuan (including design, construction, hard furnishings, soft furnishings, and some equipment procurement).

[Investment nature determination: Brand differentiation building, immersive experience creation.]

[Triggering the basic calculation for a 10x rebate...]

[Due to the project's high level of completion and its alignment with the system's encouragement of "innovative investment"...]

[Additional evaluation factors...]

Final rebate amount: 100,000,000 yuan.

[The money has arrived.]

Eight million five hundred thousand.

Chen Xun looked at the bank deposit notification that popped up on his phone screen and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

This money is much more reliable than the 500,000 yuan compensation I got from dealing with Jiang Tianxiong. It's a real investment in my own business, and I've gained recognition from the system.

"The money's in my account." Chen Xun put away his phone and said to the three women, "It's the return on investment for the renovation. Perfect, with the compensation money, we're even more financially comfortable now. We can increase the budget for equipment upgrades a bit more; if we're going to buy anything, we should buy the best, the most durable ones."

"Great!" Lin Xinyue immediately took out her notebook. "Then I'll redo the shopping list and add back the interactive equipment that we cut out due to budget constraints."

"Now that the hardware and funding are in place," Chen Xun walked to a "desk" and sat down, "then we need to focus on discussing how to conduct the trial operation. We can't just have the store renovated and then sit around waiting for customers to come in, can we?"

Li Qian pulled up a "chair" and sat down: "I have a preliminary idea. Aren't we a 'nostalgic campus' theme? Then why don't we just call the trial opening event 'Nostalgic Graduation Ceremony'?"

"A nostalgic graduation ceremony?" Yang Xiaotao blinked.

"Yes," Li Qian explained, "It's aimed at young people who have graduated and entered the workforce. During the event, customers who come wearing school uniform-themed clothing or show their graduation certificate or student ID (regardless of the year) will enjoy a discount. We can set up some nostalgic photo spots, such as taking photos in front of the blackboard, imitating the exercise poses, etc. Uploading to social media will earn them a small gift, such as... our custom-made 'Three Good Student' eraser or 'Five-Strike' stickers."

The more she spoke, the clearer her ideas became: "In the interactive area, we can hold a small competition for the hopscotch and beanbag toss games designed by Yang Xiaotao, with the winner receiving a 'no-homework card'—which is basically a free coupon for the next purchase. We can also set up a 'time capsule' mailbox where customers can write messages for the past or future, and we can periodically select and display them to increase participation and generate buzz."

As Lin Xinyue listened, she quickly calculated on her notebook: "Discount costs, gift costs, free coupon costs, and potential additional materials and manpower... The budget needs to be carefully calculated. However, if the traffic generation effect is good, the initial investment will be worthwhile."

Yang Xiaotao excitedly raised her hand: "I'll go over the details of the interactive game rules! Hopscotch can be a points-based competition, and beanbag toss can be a team competition! In addition to 'no-homework cards,' prizes could include 'Outstanding Class Leader' badges and stuff! Oh, and how about we add a 'classroom back door glass window' so customers can pretend to be the homeroom teacher peeking in? That would definitely be a hit for photos!"

As Chen Xun listened to the three women chatting away, he quickly fleshed out the idea of ​​a "nostalgic graduation ceremony."

This is the state he wants. He provides the direction and framework, and they are responsible for bringing the ideas to life, refining them, and executing them.

"Okay!" Chen Xun slapped the "desk". "Let's go with this approach. Li Qian, you're in charge of developing the overall event plan and marketing framework for the 'Nostalgic Graduation Ceremony,' including how to promote it online and how to execute it offline. Lin Xinyue, you work with Li Qian to calculate the detailed budget, and at the same time, hurry up and finalize the procurement of equipment upgrades, especially the items needed for the experience area, which must be in place before the trial operation. Yang Xiaotao, I'll leave the interactive game rules and check-in point details to you. Make sure they're fun and have something to attract attention."

The tasks were clearly assigned, and the three women nodded and took note.

"Time is tight," Chen Xun glanced at his phone. "The trial operation is scheduled to start next Friday night and last all weekend. Everyone, please work hard for the rest of this week and get your respective parts done. We'll meet before leaving get off work each day to check on our progress."

"No problem!" Yang Xiaotao said with great enthusiasm.

Lin Xinyue and Li Qian nodded in agreement.

And that was the end of it. After the crisis, the team didn't relax; instead, they immediately turned to their next objective—to make the new store an instant success.

After leaving the new store and locking the door, the four of them walked back.

Night had fallen, and the neon lights on the streets came on.

Walking down the street, Chen Xun suddenly remembered something and asked Lin Xinyue, "Xinyue, do you have reliable sources for equipment procurement, especially electrical appliances? We don't want to buy substandard products."

Lin Xinyue nodded: "I contacted several suppliers I've worked with before and compared prices. Brother Zhou Wenbin also recommended a wholesaler he knows, saying the prices are reasonable and the after-sales service is reliable. I'll go check it out tomorrow."

Zhou Wenbin?

Chen Xun paused almost imperceptibly.

Yes, Zhou Wenbin played a crucial role in dealing with Jiang Tianxiong, delivering a brilliant performance as a double agent. Afterwards, he was so busy reassuring his team and planning for the future that he forgot to properly thank this "ally."

Moreover, when Lin Xinyue mentioned Zhou Wenbin just now, her tone was very natural, as if she were mentioning an ordinary business partner.

But a faint sense of unease inexplicably crept into Chen Xun's heart.

Zhou Wenbin helped him this time because he had a past grudge against Jiang Tianxiong and their interests aligned. Now that Jiang Tianxiong has withdrawn, Zhou Wenbin got what he wanted (stable rent and a potential tenant), and he also got what he wanted (removing obstacles and compensation).

It was a pleasant and mutually beneficial collaboration.

But why would he proactively recommend suppliers to Lin Xinyue? This kind of attention to detail seems to go beyond the scope of an ordinary landlord.

Is it out of a good intention for long-term cooperation? Or... something else?

Chen Xun suppressed the thought. Perhaps he was overthinking it. After this incident, Zhou Wenbin had a new understanding of his tenant's abilities and methods, and it was understandable that he wanted to further strengthen their relationship.

"Okay, you handle the distribution channels and just make sure the quality is up to you," Chen Xun said to Lin Xinyue.

Back at the old shop, everyone packed up and prepared to leave work.

Chen Xun stood by the window on the second floor, looking at the city's night view outside.

The new store renovation is complete, the trial operation plan has been finalized, the team is operating smoothly, and the system offers generous rebates.

Everything seems to be moving in a positive direction.

But he always felt that the ground beneath his feet had not become completely solid because of Jiang Tianxiong's retreat.

That vague unease, like a cold breeze, seeped in through the crack in the window and lingered.

He took out his phone and looked at the long string of asset figures on the screen.

Money provides confidence, but it's not a panacea.

In this world, some things are harder to guard against than overt malicious competition.