"Sister Liu, this is the place you come to every day?"
"Is that the Internet Cafe up ahead?"
"Has even His Majesty the Emperor really been here? Is it really that much fun?"
Liu Shiwan walked through the alley and quickly arrived outside the Internet Cafe, but this time, she was not alone.
Following behind her were three exquisitely beautiful women in brightly colored clothes.
They walked and looked around curiously.
The three of them, like Liu Shiwan, were entertainers from Spring Breeze Pavilion.
Although they only received Liu Shiwan's invitation last night, they had actually noticed Liu Shiwan's abnormality a long time ago.
They had already been suspicious when they found that she had been leaving early and returning late whenever she had no work recently.
Now that they heard she was coming to this place called an Internet Cafe to play games every day, they became even more curious.
So they all followed along.
They wanted to see what was so special about this Internet Cafe that it could make so many people obsessed with it.
The four of them walking together formed a beautiful scenic line, which would have been very impactful on any other day.
However, the players outside the Internet Cafe at this moment seemed to ignore them.
The Farming Team standing in front of the Internet Cafe's entrance were all serious and meticulous, queuing up, not daring to make any mistakes.
And the other players slightly further back were either intensely discussing games or bowing their heads, thinking about games.
Even when the three of them saw acquaintances among the players and went forward to greet them, some only responded absentmindedly a few times, and some even ignored them completely.
"Are these people possessed?"
The three of them were dumbfounded, looking at the players with strange expressions.
Although they were not as famous as Liu Shiwan, they were still quite popular on weekdays, and it was common for people to come up to them on the street to greet them and ask for autographs.
But why, once they came here, did they seem to become invisible, so unwelcome?
Liu Shiwan, however, had long since grown accustomed to this.
Shortly after they arrived, the Internet Cafe opened its doors.
Everyone started walking inside.
Liu Shiwan couldn't help but remind them, "Let's go in too!"
Without allowing the three to think further, they also followed inside.
However, once inside the Internet Cafe, Liu Shiwan did not rush to take the three to start playing the game immediately.
Instead, she first went to the counter to find Su Ran.
"Boss, I want three copies of the Stardew Valley beginner's farming guide!"
"Hmm?"
Su Ran was a little surprised to see Liu Shiwan coming to him to buy a guide, and a beginner's guide at that.
Liu Shiwan herself rarely bought game guides from him; she only occasionally asked him for advice.
However, after noticing the three people behind her, Su Ran probably understood what was going on, and then he responded.
"Alright, just a moment!"
Liu Shiwan nodded and took out six gold notes, placing them on the counter.
"Sister Liu, what are you doing? Why are you taking out so much money?"
"Yes, didn't you say it only costs 1 gold per hour to play games here?"
"This place isn't… a black market, is it?"
The three people following behind her, who had originally been bewildered, were startled by this scene.
"This isn't for playing games; it's for buying game guides!"
Seeing that the boss had already started writing the guides, Liu Shiwan briefly explained to the three.
"One guide costs two thousand gold?"
"That's too expensive!"
The three of them stared wide-eyed, gasping in disbelief, feeling that this Internet Cafe made money too easily, and then they quickly advised.
"Sister Liu, I think you shouldn't buy it, there's no need!"
"Exactly, can't we play without this guide?"
Liu Shiwan shook her head: "I'm just afraid that without a guide, you won't even be able to stick through the early stages. Since I brought you here, I don't want you to give up halfway!"
The three, of course, didn't understand what Liu Shiwan meant.
But thinking that Liu Shiwan had spent so much money for them, they still cried out in distress.
However, just then, the three looked at Su Ran, who was writing the game guide, and their hearts stirred.
The three exchanged glances, then couldn't help but step forward with enchanting smiles, softly saying.
"Boss, look, it's our first time at your shop. As new customers, can you give us a little discount, please?"
"Of course, if it could be completely free, we'd be even more grateful to you!"
Su Ran's expression didn't change: "Sorry, this Internet Cafe doesn't have that rule!"
The three were stunned, but immediately began to wink wildly at Su Ran again: "Rules are made by people, Boss, please!"
"No!"
Su Ran still refused flatly.
The three, however, did not give up, continuing to wink and bat their eyelashes at Su Ran, speaking in sweet, bird-like voices, using all their tricks.
However, Su Ran still kept his head down, writing the guide, looking calm and composed.
Finally, he didn't even bother to reply, ignoring the three.
The three looked at each other, dumbfounded. They felt that their charm shouldn't be so low, right?
Unless…
Finally, the three, feeling bored, couldn't help but probe: "Boss, you're not… not a man, are you?"
Su Ran was speechless, raising an eyebrow: "If you say such things again, not only will your Internet Cafe usage fees be doubled in the future, but the cost of buying game guides will also be doubled!"
"You…"
The three were utterly bewildered now.
In all the shops they had patronized before, which one didn't try to please them in every way with just a slight gesture?
But this boss, right now, didn't fall for it. Let alone free, he wasn't even willing to give a discount.
He was too stingy.
They were so angry in their hearts.
Liu Shiwan stood behind, seeing the three being rebuffed, and couldn't help but chuckle.
Every old player of the Internet Cafe knew the boss's temper; he was usually quite easygoing.
However, once it came to matters of rules and principles, no matter what methods you used, it was useless.
After a while, Su Ran finished writing the three guides and handed them to the three.
Then he collected the gold notes from the counter.
This again caused the three to glare at Su Ran with resentful expressions.
"Alright, let's go play the game!"
Liu Shiwan urged them at this moment.
The three then followed Liu Shiwan to the next room.
As they passed through the corridor, one of the women in purple said dejectedly, "Sister Liu, this place is too abnormal. I feel like both the customers and that boss are!"
The other two also nodded: "They all ignore us. Are we that unpresentable?"
Liu Shiwan, however, smiled: "I think it's quite normal. You just don't know that people who come here are usually only obsessed with one thing!"
The three were startled and subconsciously asked, "What?"
Liu Shiwan said as a matter of course: "Of course, it's games!"