We agreed not to date, so why are you crying now that I've become the richest man?

Last night, Sun Haoyu spent half the night scrolling through the chat history but couldn't find a single word that could support him. He was still asleep under the covers this morning.

Light shone through the gap in the curtains, and Ye Chen was awakened by two consecutive vibrations on his pillow. He sat up, grabbed his phone, and unlocked it.

Xu Jiao has already sent several messages to my QQ account:

"Ye Chen, last night Wang Yao and Li Meng almost interrogated me until I was completely exposed, they kept asking me where I'd been these past two days."

"I insisted I had something to do at home, that I was tired from the bus ride, and that I ran to the water room with the basin in my hand. I didn't leave out a single word about the house... Wasn't I very obedient?"

It was followed by an emoji sticking out its tongue.

Ye Chen pressed the nine-square grid and returned two lines:

"Yes, you're understanding. I have an internet cafe opening this weekend, so I can't go shopping with you."

"Take a look at the house and see if there's any missing furniture, pots and pans, or anything else. Pick what you need and buy it."

Before I could even put my phone down after sending the message, a reply came rushing in.

On the other side, in room 417 of the girls' dormitory at Jiaotong University.

Xu Jiao huddled under the covers, dangling her legs at the foot of the bed.

She read the message over and over again, stopping at the internet cafe.

She had been in contact with the Mercedes-Benz and the house with her name on it, but Ye Chen didn't elaborate on where the money came from, and she didn't dare to ask him.

This time, he told her on his own initiative.

The blanket was pulled up over his head again, hiding his phone inside, the lit screen lingering.

Xu Jiao kept tapping her thumb, adding another sentence before she had even finished typing the message:

"Open this weekend? Which street is it on? I'll come support you after I've finished shopping... I'll just be a regular customer surfing the internet, I promise I won't cause you any trouble!"

Ye Chen sent the address, adding the old name: near the business school, formerly Sky Internet Cafe, the new signboard has been changed.

"Come whenever you want, we'll save you a machine."

Upon receiving the message "Boss is generous," he locked the screen and put his phone back on his pillow.

He threw off the covers and got out of bed, his slippers making a soft sound as he stepped on the floor. Sun Haoyu turned over, the corner of the blanket still covering his head.

Ye Chen splashed two handfuls of cold water at the sink before he finally opened his eyes.

As he left home around noon, he changed into a black hooded sweatshirt, grabbed his car keys and jacket, and closed the dormitory door.

He rode his bike through the tree-lined avenue, the wind seeping into his collar. Once outside the school gate, he turned into the underground parking garage, changed into his Mercedes, and drove towards the business school.

The car came to a stop in the marked parking space on the side of Wenhui Road.

As I opened the car door, the sounds of duct tape being torn and workers shouting drifted down the street.

The yellowed plastic sheeting on the old storefront has been removed, replaced by a matte black metal panel. Two workers, secured by safety ropes, are peeling off the protective film, gradually revealing the Sky Dome Internet Cafe sign, its lettering glowing white.

The floor-to-ceiling windows were sparkling clean, and several boys with backpacks stood outside the door, peering inside through the glass.

"Is this a converted Sky Internet Cafe? Wow, it's decorated like a hotel lobby."

The boy next to him looked up and read the sign, then looked for the price list by the door.

"They call it an internet cafe now... How much would you charge per hour with this kind of decor?"

Ye Chen walked through the door past the group.

The exhaust vents hummed and turned; the smell of sweat, cigarette grease, and instant noodles from the old shop was gone, but the smell of new leather remained.

Under the cool light strip, dark gray floor tiles stretched all the way to the bar. The exposed wires and pipes that used to block the view were now hidden in the floor trenches. People carrying the main unit could carry boxes across the hall without having to squeeze around the back of the chairs.

"Slow down, lift the corner of the box! Don't let it scrape against the decorative panel on the wall!"

Zhao Peng's loud voice echoed back and forth in the high-ceilinged hall.

Dust smudged on his gray overalls, a soft measuring tape hanging around his neck, Zhao Peng clutched a purchase order covered in checkmarks and crosses, pointing out the location of the booth to the movers.

Beside him, store manager Ma Xiaodong, wearing a dark blue jacket, was checking the seals on the cases of the brand-new consoles one by one with a box cutter in hand.

"Chenzi, you're finally here! All 180 vehicles arrived at 10:00 sharp!"

Zhao Peng turned around to greet him, pulled a towel off his shoulder to wipe his sweat, handed over the purchase order halfway, then took it back and added a checkmark to the column he had just checked.

Ma Xiaodong also put down his work, put away his paper cutter, and stepped forward to meet him:

"Mr. Ye."

Ye Chen nodded and walked through the booths. The sofa had been replaced with a dark brown wide leather seat. The two of them didn't need to give way when they walked towards each other. The adjacent camera positions were separated by a frosted glass panel, and they didn't block each other's arms after sitting down.

The circular open bar in the center of the hall has been set up with a grinder and a standing refrigerator. The countertop is still empty, waiting to be used for serving drinks.

Go up the stairs to the second floor, and you'll find several team booths with their doors open. Red and black racing chairs are lined up on the tables, mechanical keyboards are neatly arranged, and the computer slots are still empty.

A young internet cafe manager in a black apron was squatting by the table tidying up the cables, while another person was wiping the counter with a rag. Ye Chen walked around the aisle before going downstairs and returning to the bar.

Ye Chen stopped in front of the bar, ran his palm across the smooth quartz countertop, leaving no dust behind.

He turned his head to look at Ma Xiaodong:

"Are the people getting along well?"

Ma Xiaodong took a glass of ice water from the bar and placed it next to him.

"Everything is in place. We've recruited network administrators, bartenders, cashiers, and cleaners. These past two days, I've been working through the entire process with them, practicing making drinks, carrying trays, and inspecting machine stations. Now they can handle order processing and coordinate with each other."

"I've practiced with them so much I'm almost memorizing it!" Zhao Peng said, wiping his neck with a towel. "They were all a bit clumsy at first, but now they're much more nimble."

Ye Chen raised his hand and glanced at his watch. It was just past 12:15. The purchase order in Zhao Peng's hand was already crumpled at the edges.

"That's enough. The supplier's people will install the machine. Our people can put aside what they're doing for now."

He patted Zhao Peng's dusty back and gestured to Ma Xiaodong.

"Let everyone go eat first, we can continue this in the afternoon."

Zhao Peng draped the towel back over his shoulder and finally put down the purchase order.