Rebirth: Fan Debiao rises from the Liaobei land

At 7:30 a.m. on July 30th, the entrance to Dexing Communications was already set up.

Red silk ribbons hung down from the doorway, with large red flowers tied up like embroidered balls. Gangzi was directing people to set up the salute cannons; the 50,000-gun salutes were arranged in eight large circles, covering half the width of the street.

Wu Derong's Mercedes-Benz was the first to arrive, parked right in the middle of the Hengdian entrance. He got out and laughed, "Debiao, not bad, you've got a decent look!"

"Mr. Wu, you're here to show your support!" Fan Debiao greeted him.

Then cars arrived one after another. Section Chief Liu from the Industry and Commerce Bureau got out of a gray Jetta, carrying a small leather bag. Manager Zhou from the mobile company drove a Santana. Director Sun from the local tax bureau, Deputy Director Wang from the Six Doors Bureau... Before eight o'clock, the parking lot in front of the gate was completely full, and flower baskets were piled up three or four layers deep.

The Ma family walked over, craning their necks at the back of the crowd to see. Ma Dashuai's pig-kidney-shaped face was full of envy, jealousy, and resentment. He clicked his tongue and said, "Good heavens, what a spectacle..."

Before he finished speaking, a group of people strolled over from across the street.

Leading the group was Old Qian, dressed in a white suit with a dazzling gold chain around his neck. Behind him were four men with crew cuts, all wearing black short-sleeved shirts and tattoos of dragons and phoenixes on their arms.

Old Qian walked up to the flower baskets and kicked one with his toe: "Hey, Boss Fan, congratulations on your grand opening!"

Fan Debiao turned around: "President Qian is here, please come in."

"What's with the invitations?" Old Qian lit a cigarette and tilted his head at the henchman next to him. "See this? This shop alone cost over 800,000 yuan. Fan Debiao is all the rage now, he's practically invincible in Kaiyuan City."

The henchman grinned: "Brother Qian, whatever you say goes."

Old Qian sneered, "What to do? Go all out, of course!"

The noise was quite loud; everyone around heard it. Gangzi's face darkened, and he was about to rush forward when Fan Debiao reached out to stop him.

At 8:08, the auspicious time arrived.

The drums and gongs sounded, and two lion dancers began to tumble and leap. Fan Debiao and Wu Derong stood in front of the red ribbon, each holding a pair of golden scissors. The emcee shouted, "Ribbon cutting—!"

The scissors fell, and the silk was separated.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

The cannons roared into the sky, and 50,000 firecrackers exploded simultaneously, shaking the entire street and sending plumes of smoke soaring high. The sounds of gongs, drums, firecrackers, and cheers mingled together, creating a scene so lively it felt like the rooftops were about to be lifted off.

"Dexing Communications - Grand Opening!" Fan Debiao shouted.

The roller shutters were flung open, and the shop was brightly lit. The crowd began to surge inside, and Old Qian and his gang squeezed in as well.

As soon as he entered the store, Lao Qian's eyes were fixed on the display stand.

On the left are ten Xiaxin A8 phones, black in color, with dancing animations playing on their screens. On the right are ten TCL 3188 phones, five white and five gold, their faux diamonds sparkling under the spotlights.

Old Qian walked over and reached out to touch a white TCL.

"Mr. Qian, you can't touch the prototype." Fan Debiao's voice came from behind.

Old Qian turned around, a forced smile on his face: "Boss Fan, that's not right of you. If you don't let people touch the things on display, are you running a shop or an exhibition?"

"The prototype was for demonstration purposes, and it got damaged..."

"I'll pay for it if it breaks!" Old Qian interrupted him, raising his voice so the whole store could hear, "I want all of these display models! Ten from Xiaxin, ten from TCL, twenty in total, name your price now!"

The shop fell silent. Wu Derong frowned—ten of these were phones he had ordered as gifts.

Fan Debiao smiled: "Mr. Qian, the demo unit isn't for sale, it's only for display and pre-sale. If you really want to buy one, you can register, and it will arrive in October."

"I want the demo unit!" Old Qian slammed his hand on the counter. "What? You're opening a business and you won't sell to customers who want to buy? What kind of shop are you running? Are you just putting it up here to fool people?"

The four henchmen behind him moved forward. Gangzi and his men also pushed forward, and the two sides were about to meet.

"Fan Debiao," Old Qian grinned, "if you don't sell today, I'm not leaving. I'll show everyone how Dexing Communications does business!"

The customers in the store all looked this way, and there was a lot of discussion. Ma Dashuai was so anxious at the back of the crowd that he kept stamping his feet, while Yu Fen gripped Ma Xiaocui's hand tightly.

Just as Wu Derong was about to speak, a voice suddenly came from the doorway:

"Hey, Lao Qian, having a good time, huh? Do you still remember me?"

The voice wasn't loud, but it carried a certain force. Everyone turned to look.

A man in his forties stood at the door, wearing glasses, with thinning hair, and a Chinese-style jacket, twirling two walnuts in his hands. He didn't look fierce, but his eyes, when they swept over you, sent a chill down your spine.

When Old Qian saw this man, his face turned pale instantly.

"Brother Liu...?" Old Qian quickly threw away his cigarette and stomped it out. "What brings you here?"

The man called Brother Liu slowly walked in, his eyes scanning the shop before finally settling on Lao Qian: "Gangzi is my little brother, so his friends are my friends. How could I not come to my friend's opening?"

Gangzi immediately stepped forward: "Brother Liu!"

Brother Liu nodded, then looked at Old Qian: "What's wrong? Are you causing trouble here?"

"No, no!" Old Qian was sweating profusely. "I just wanted to buy a cell phone..."

"Buying phones?" Brother Liu walked to the display stand, looked at the twenty demo units, and asked, "You want to buy all of these?"

Old Qian dared not utter a sound.

"Let me tell you, I ordered two of these phones." Brother Liu's voice turned cold. "What kind of class do you belong to, using the same phone as me?"

The moment those words were spoken, the shop became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Old Qian's henchmen had already shrunk to the back, not daring to raise their heads.

Brother Liu turned to Fan Debiao and smiled: "Boss Fan, right? Gangzi mentioned you to me. Congratulations on your opening."

"Brother Liu, you're too kind," Fan Debiao quickly said. "Your presence is an honor to my humble shop."

"I'm a straightforward person," Brother Liu pointed to the display stand, "I'll take one of each of these two demo units. The price is what it should be; I won't take advantage of you."

Fan Debiao immediately said, "Brother Liu, you've come to support us, how could we accept your money! Xiao Juan, get one of your best white TCL and one of your best black Xiaxin phones, and wrap them up for Brother Liu!"

Xiao Juan quickly went to get it. Brother Liu waved his hand: "No, just take the amount you owe."

"Brother Liu, aren't you slapping me in the face?" Fan Debiao said sincerely. "Your presence is a huge favor to me, Fan Debiao. If you don't accept these two phones, I'll have no face to show my face in Kaiyuan from now on."

Brother Liu stared at Fan Debiao for two seconds, then laughed: "Alright, you know how to handle things."

By this time, Xiao Juan had already wrapped the two phones in the best gift box. Brother Liu took them, casually pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket—it looked to be about ten thousand yuan thick—and threw it directly onto the counter.

"Brother Liu, this won't do..." Fan Debiao quickly took out the money to return it.

"Take it!" Brother Liu's voice wasn't loud, but it brooked no refusal. "I, Liu, never take things for free. I'll accept these two phones; this money is a gift. If you refuse again, you're disrespecting me."

Fan Debiao glanced at Gangzi, who nodded slightly. Fan Debiao then accepted the money: "Thank you, Brother Liu!"

Brother Liu turned to look at Lao Qian, who was still standing there, his face as white as paper.

"Old Qian," Brother Liu said slowly, "what are you still standing here for? Waiting for me to treat you to dinner?"

"No, no!" Old Qian said, feeling like he'd been granted a pardon. "Brother Liu, you're busy, I'll go now, I'll go now..."

After saying that, he and his men slunk out, and he even tripped and almost fell over as they went out.

Brother Liu then smiled and patted Fan Debiao on the shoulder: "Your shop is doing well, keep it up. If anything comes up, have Gangzi contact me."

"Thank you, Brother Liu!"

Brother Liu nodded to Wu Derong again, as if to say hello, and left with the phone gift box. From entering to leaving, less than ten minutes had passed.

The atmosphere in the store only comes alive once everyone leaves.

Wu Derong breathed a sigh of relief: "Debiao, you've got some connections, managing to get Brother Liu here."

"I don't have that ability," Fan Debiao said honestly. "It's because of Gangzi."

Gangzi chuckled: "Brother Liu is a loyal friend. When he heard that I was working for Brother Biao, he insisted on coming to support Brother Biao's opening."

Only then did the customer start looking at his phone again, as if nothing had happened. But everyone understood—Dexing Communications was no ordinary store.

Ma Dashuai leaned closer and whispered, "Biaozi, who was that guy just now? He scared Lao Qian like that!"

Fan Debiao smiled and said, "A friend."

"Your friend is tough enough..."

As they were talking, the first sale was completed. A man who looked like a boss bought two Nokia phones, saying they were for his company. Sister Zhou counted the money, and the money counter beeped.

Then came the second, the third… The display stands were surrounded by people, all asking when they could buy TCL and Amoi products. Xiao Juan and Xiao Ling were busy registering pre-orders, their hands pounding from collecting deposits.

Liu Qiang and Wang Fang were handing out flyers at the entrance, telling everyone they met, "Kaiyuan's largest mobile phone store, genuine products, nationwide warranty!"

The excitement continued into the afternoon.

When closing time came, Sister Zhou wanted to take stock of the accounts, but Fan Debiao waved his hand and said, "We'll talk about it tomorrow. I'm tired today."

Actually, he didn't want to calculate the accounts in front of so many people—he only needed to know how much he sold on the first day.

Everyone was gone, and Fan Debiao sat alone in the shop. He turned on the security camera footage and saw Lao Qian's arrogant demeanor when he came in, Lao Qian's instant change of attitude when he saw Brother Liu come in, and Brother Liu throwing money at him when he offered him a phone…

The phone rang. It was Gang calling: "Brother Biao, Brother Liu said he has to pay for those two phones, and he told you not to worry about it. He also said he'd warned Lao Qian, and he won't dare to act arrogantly for a while."

Fan Debiao replied, "Please thank Brother Liu for me. I'll host a banquet another day."

He put down his phone and looked at the ten thousand yuan on the counter. It was a brand new stack, sealed with a bank seal.

Today's opening was a success.

For now, we've managed to keep Old Qian's troubles under control.

But Fan Debiao knew this wasn't over. Old Qian, having lost face so badly today, would get his revenge sooner or later.

He locked the shop door and stood at the entrance. The neon signs for "Dexing Communications" shone brightly, illuminating half the street.

The largest mobile phone store in Kaiyuan has finally established itself today.