Chapter 84
Mysterious visitor?
Shu Mo was stunned for a moment.
While she was in a daze, the iconic countdown page of the limited-time task popped up in her face again, tapping, tapping, with a strong sense of urgency.
【Countdown: 07:59:59】
Shu Mo came back to his senses and began to check which new guests had entered the range of the barrier.
Since the system has just issued the task, it means that the guest should have entered the barrier at about the same time as the reminder popped up. It was not the time for the Arctic Fox bus to arrive, and those who came were individual tourists, so the targets were not difficult to identify.
Shu Mo quickly found two groups of guests who seemed to have just arrived.
One was a high-level team. They were probably fighting monsters nearby and came to the hot spring to rest, so they didn't take the bus. They were currently gathering at the front desk to check in.
The captain in the lead chatted with Gu Xiao in a familiar manner, while the team members beside him took the time to run to the specialty area and replenished some melon seeds snacks. "Two bags of cream-flavored watermelon seeds, please. Thank you."
The tone was very familiar, as if this was not the first time he had come.
She observed their actions for a while and passed this group.
Since he is a mysterious visitor, he should at least be a new face, otherwise how can he be called "mysterious"?
This team clearly isn't.
Before changing his target, Shu Mo's eyes accidentally swept over one of the people in the team.
The man was wearing a colorful hood, so his face couldn't be seen clearly, but his outfit was really eye-catching, causing passers-by to turn their heads frequently.
Unable to bear looking at him for two more seconds, Shu Mo silently turned to the next group.
This group is more intriguing.
It was also a team, but nine of them were fully armed. When they opened the panel, they found that the average level was above Lv.75.
They seemed relaxed, but in fact they were secretly protecting a player in the middle. Occasionally they looked around vigilantly with sharp eyes, and their expressions were clearly different from other tourists who came here for vacation.
They don't look like a combat team, but more like a well-trained bodyguard group.
——A bodyguard group composed of elite players.
What kind of person could travel with such a grand ceremony?
In the center of the crowd was a beautiful young girl, about twenty years old. Shu Mo fixed his gaze on her and called up her player panel.
【Player Information】
Name: Xia Qing
Age: 20
Occupation: Swordsman
Level: Lv.64
When the natural disaster struck, the girl was only 10 years old, and her level 64 was far above the average for players of this age.
But compared with the group of elite players around her, this level seems a bit embarrassing.
However, judging from the positions of this group of people, it was obvious that she was the leader. Although he didn't know the reason, Shu Mo quickly confirmed the target.
——Xia Qing should be the “mysterious visitor” this time.
*
Gu Xiao swallowed his saliva and stuttered, "I'm really sorry, our rooms need to be booked in advance, and there are no vacancies this week..."
She looked at the young girl in front of her, feeling a little nervous.
She had just heard it all. Those people spoke to Xia Qing in a very respectful tone, and the message revealed in their words indicated that these people were her "subordinates."
Being able to lead an elite guard group to travel in the doomsday, Xia Qing is obviously a real young lady!
Gu Xiao exclaimed "Wow" in her heart. This was her first time meeting a young lady who only appeared in novels.
However, even if you are a young lady, you don’t have any privileges in Nuannuan Hot Spring. If the rooms are sold out, they are gone. You can only wait until the reservation is open later and then rush to buy them together with everyone else.
After explaining to Xia Qing apologetically, the latter was a little disappointed, said "Oh", and initiated the transfer.
【Received: 100 points】
Gu Xiao was stunned for a moment, "What is this...?"
"Please introduce this place to me." Xia Qing had a cold and aloof temperament, and seemed difficult to approach. "This is my first time here, and I'm not familiar with the situation."
Gu Xiao felt like he had become an ordinary NPC in a domineering boss novel. In the past, 100 points would have been enough for her to earn for several days, but Xia Qing smashed it without blinking an eye, just wanting to ask a question.
She was flattered. "It is our duty to answer customers' questions. Actually, you don't have to be so polite. What do you want to ask? We provide hot spring bathing, accommodation, massage, catering and many other services..."
Xia Qing interrupted her and asked calmly, "When did this hot spring open? Who is the owner?"
Gu Xiao exclaimed "Ah", feeling that these questions were not right, and the danger radar that he had developed from reading novels in the past began to beep.
——Could this be another competitor?
As she hesitated, someone patted her shoulder from behind and asked, "Do you need help?"
Shu Mo smiled and looked at Xia Qing, "There are still customers waiting in line behind me, let me answer your question."
Seeing her, Gu Xiao felt saved. He hid behind Shu Mo and whispered, "Boss, she is asking about us."
Speaking of the 100 points just now, could it be the intelligence fee?
Didn't that mean she had already accepted bribes from her enemies?
Gu Xiao thought of this and said in a horrified tone, "Boss, I am sincere to you..."
Shu Mo squeezed her hand soothingly, asking her to stop imagining those unreliable things.
Xia Qing frowned slightly, "Who are you?"
"I'm the boss here." Shu Mo's expression remained unchanged, and his smile remained the same. "You just mentioned me."
The two girls are of similar age, but have completely opposite temperaments, one is gentle and the other is fierce. Gu Xiao continued to think, and felt that under this configuration, the sense of enemy seemed to be even stronger...
She was worried.
Then Xia Qing was stunned, "Are you the boss here?"
Her eyes flickered, and she suddenly rushed over excitedly and grabbed Shu Mo's hand, "I finally found you!!"
The cold filter of "Miss" shattered at this moment.
Gu Xiao: “?”
Facing those affectionate eyes, Shu Mo also took a step back: "???"
This unexpected reaction made her a little confused. "Why do you say that?"
Xia Qing took a deep breath and quickly recounted what had happened.
It turns out that all this is because of the high-end series that Shumo placed in the specialty area - Chinese pastry gift boxes and canned fruit gift boxes. Her original intention was to give them as gifts to some elite players and wealthy people, and these people did not disappoint her expectations. One of the boxes was delivered to Xia Qing's mother by Mayor Guangming.
Xia Qing and his family were not from Guangming Town. They only learned about Nuannuan Hot Spring after receiving the gift box, so they took the group of people straight to Guangming Town. I arrived at the town yesterday and after talking with the mayor, I got information about the hot springs. So I set off that day and arrived today.
Shu Mo captured the key point—how could Xia Qing's mother receive a gift from the mayor of Guangming Town?
According to Chinese tradition, if the gift giver is not lower than the gift receiver, then at least he or she is on the same level as the gift receiver. Who could make the mayor of Guangming Town send such a high-end gift?
She asked the question carefully, and Xia Qing replied casually, "Oh, my mother is the mayor of Qingshui Town."
hiss--
Shu Mo and Gu Xiao both leaned back.
She is indeed a young lady!
No wonder the mayor's daughter's trip is so grand. And listening to the name of this town, Qingshui, three drops of water and one Qing, it seems to come from the daughter's name. Xia Qing's mother should be quite doting on her.
This thought quickly crossed Shu Mo's mind and he continued to listen to her.
In short, Xia Qing's mother received a gift from the mayor of Guangming Town - a box of Chinese pastries. At first, she thought it was just beautifully made and did not take it too seriously.
After all, in the past world, there were things like food toys. Given the doomsday players' desire for food, it is not surprising that they tinkered with some food-shaped ornaments.
But after opening the box, she was hooked by the "realistic" shape and mouth-watering fragrance, and couldn't take her eyes away.
If this is fake...then it is too real (?).
Xia Qing's mother picked up a piece of date paste cake with doubt in her mind, took a bite, and was immediately amazed by it.
She quickly called her daughter over and pushed a whole box of pastries that she hadn't touched after taking a bite to her, "Try this!"
Xia Qing ate it and was amazed by the delicious food x2.
So the next day she brought her people and rushed to Guangming Town in a hurry.
After explaining the whole thing, Shu Mo felt relieved.
It seems that the other party really has no ill intentions, but the impression he gave when he first appeared was a bit intimidating.
and……
She couldn't help but look at Xia Qing, and felt that she didn't look like a bad person at all.
Xia Qing was halfway through her speech when she couldn't resist the aroma wafting from the glass cabinet next to her. She bought something and held it in her hands before continuing. At this moment, she was holding the buns and spoke vaguely, "Actually, if you ask me... compared to those exquisitely packaged pastries, meat buns are more to my taste..."
Chew chew chew.
"I heard that the hot spring also sells sweet and sour pork tenderloin and braised pork. I think those would be great gifts—"
She swallowed a mouthful and expressed a feeling that had nothing to do with her cold face with a straight face: "Gifts should be more substantial!"
The aura of the flower on the mountain is gone.
The serious bodyguards behind her didn't say a word, but they were not listening carefully to the eldest lady's important speech on "Which is more suitable as a gift, pastries or braised pork?" Instead, they were eating voraciously.
He was holding a bun in one hand and chicken feet in the other, nibbling left and right, so busy that he had no time to listen to the lecture.
There was even a burly knight in plate armor who choked on his food. He was so choked that his face turned red and his neck became thick. He pounded his chest hard, making a series of banging noises, and finally managed to breathe slowly.
Shu Mo: “…”
She had a vague feeling that the so-called "vigilant look around" she had just observed with the help of the barrier was actually that this group of people were looking at the wide variety of merchandise in the hot springs...
It’s just that for some reason this group of bodyguards are all like Xia Qing, with evil faces that are not easy to mess with, which led to Shu Mo’s misunderstanding.
After Xia Qing finished eating, Shu Mo said, "So what you just asked about me was..."
If Xia Qing was simply interested in the hot spring food, there was no need to meet the operator. Why would he ask about her?
"Oh, this topic may be a bit long." Xia Qing groaned, "I wonder if we can change the place to talk?"
She couldn't stop looking upstairs.
Shu Mo immediately understood her subtext: while chatting, the young lady also wanted to eat something as quickly as possible.
Shu Mo: “…”
She thought for a moment and said, "Please follow me. There should be a place better for conversation than a restaurant."
*
A few minutes later, Xia Qing and his group stood in front of a building on the commercial street, their eyes wide open in shock.
With the official support of Guangming Town, Nuannuan Hot Spring has a more stable publicity channel. Not only has the customer base increased, covering almost all residents of the town, but more people have come here to apply for jobs and open shops.
After all, consumption is only a one-time behavior. Even if you stay in a hotel, it is only for a few days. However, opening a store is equivalent to tying yourself and the hot spring together.
Not everyone has such courage.
If you want to open a store, you have to prepare initial capital, which will be a huge investment. Even if players don't sell their houses like Lao He, they will at least have to spend all their savings. Suppose the owner of the hot spring runs away after the store has been open for only a few days, or the hot spring goes bankrupt, they can easily lose everything.
In the end of the world, everyone tends to live a more stable life, and not many people have the determination to make such a decision.
But with the support of Guangming Town, the meaning is different. Unlike hot springs, the mayor can't run away, and he will not waste his credibility to recommend an unreliable company.
This has led to a significant increase in the trust in hot springs among players who are interested in opening a store.
After Shu Mo's review was passed, several more companies started construction.
New stores are popping up like mushrooms after rain.
However, the preparation time required varies depending on the business content of the store. Nowadays, there are many small shops with signs saying "Opening Soon" on the commercial streets, which presents a thriving scene.
The opening of a new store means that more people will come to the hot springs, and many players in the town who originally had nothing to do and wandered around relying on odd jobs to make a living now have a place to go.
Shu Mo suspected that this was also part of the mayor's plan.
The first town to benefit from the expansion of the hot springs is Guangming Town. Just the solution to the employment problem has helped him solve many problems.
The "gifts" given last time seemed to be unilateral contributions from Guangming Town, but in reality they were an exchange of interests.
The mayor's position as the mayor depended on more than just his combat prowess in the game.
even……
Shu Mo glanced at Xia Qing obscurely, thinking of the gift the mayor had given.
Resources are scarce in the apocalypse, and rather than establishing friendly relations, different towns are more in competition with each other. Could it be that the mayor's purpose of giving gifts suddenly was also to promote the hot springs?
If people in other towns knew about the existence of Nuannuan Hot Spring, they would surely rush here.
If the hot springs are full and they don’t want to camp, where will they choose to live?
There is only Guangming Town.
Since there are big guys like Yao Yonghui who gave up their status as combat players for delicious food, there must be people who are willing to change their place of residence for hot springs.
By then, the housing prices in Guangming Town may also rise, and the flow of people means that more people with high spending power will move in. And high spending power, in this world, is equivalent to high combat power, or a high-level living player.
No matter which one, Guangming Town can benefit from it, there will be more talents in the town, and Guangming Town itself can become a town similar to the towns near tourist attractions in the past world, and be driven to develop together.
No wonder he abandoned the Priests Association without hesitation and stood on the side of Hot Springs. Because from a long-term perspective, the revenue that hot springs can bring is far greater than the small amount of tax that the Priests Association provides by squeezing players.
Although Shu Mo was vaguely aware of the various calculations involved, he had no intention of caring about them.
Anyway, this is a hundred benefits for hot springs.
If popularity can be measured numerically, then the current popularity of Nuannuan Hot Spring on the map of Guangming Town has probably reached close to 100%. If it wants to continue to expand its customer base, it can only start from the surrounding towns.
The mayor helped her promote her, which was exactly what Shu Mo wanted.
Back at this time, Shu Mo brought Xia Qing to a store that had just opened on Nuannuan Commercial Street.
Just like the bakery, when the owner first came over and told Shu Mo the name of the store he was planning to open, Shu Mo agreed almost immediately.
Not only her, but all the employees who happened to be present nearby had green lights in their eyes. The opening preparations were completed at the speed of light under everyone's anticipation. On the first day of opening, Shu Mo brought his employees to participate in the team-building activity.
There aren’t many stores that receive such a warm welcome, but the one in front of you is definitely one of them.
“This, this, this…”
Xia Qing and the players behind him swallowed their saliva wildly as they looked at the specially made large copper pot high on the door lintel and the large characters written in a flamboyant style below it.
--hot pot!
It’s still Sichuan hot pot!
At the beginning, just hearing these four words, many people were so shocked that they plunged into despair, and Xia Qing's performance was no less impressive.
The beautiful and cool lady walked uncontrollably inside. The elite players behind her exchanged glances and cried, "Luckily we got this mission."
"My ten years of hard work and dedication to leveling up have finally paid off..."
Shu Mo: “…”
It seems like I accidentally found out how this dazzling bodyguard team was configured.
Hot pot restaurants are different from restaurants. The first floor is a hall, while the second floor is a series of special private rooms. The environment is more secluded, suitable for families or small groups to talk together without worrying about being overheard.
As soon as Shu Mo entered the store, he was immediately warmly welcomed by the store manager and easily occupied the largest private room.
“Here’s the menu.”
The store manager personally brought the menu over and said to Shu Mo enthusiastically, "Boss, just order whatever you want. It's free."
Hot pot and the extremely cold apocalypse simply cannot go together. Since its opening, the hot pot restaurant's business has been booming. The income from just a few days is enough to offset the hard work of the past few months. The manager and his wife smile in their dreams every day.
They were extremely grateful to Shu Mo for giving them this opportunity. After discussion, they offered a 30% discount to all hot spring employees, and even gave Shu Mo a free meal.
Shu Mo took the menu and handed it directly to Xia Qing, then waved his hand, "Please don't be like this, otherwise I won't dare to come. Xiaoxiao and the others told me yesterday that they are craving hot pot, but they are afraid that they will come too often and take advantage of you. The original price is fine."
"Ah?" The boss hesitated for a moment, "Then 20% off... it's 20% off for you and your employees, is that okay? It can't be any lower."
He said sincerely: "Let us do something too."
Shu Mo laughed: "Thank you very much."
This bargaining method of "it can't be any lower" might make those who are not in the know think that she is trying to take advantage of the store owner. Who would have thought that the other party was offering the discount proactively?
Xia Qing, who was next to him, was flipping through the menu. She took the time to look up and secretly glanced at Shu Mo.
The boss must be a good person since he can have such good relationships with his employees and merchants. She felt relieved.
This menu is hand-drawn. The first page shows various soup bases, and the rest are different ingredients.
In fact, Shumo has opened up operating rights to all stores. Everyone can use the operating system to set up an electronic menu and directly call it up to order food.
But different businesses have different pursuits. Some hope to maintain the pre-Doomsday model, giving customers menus to order food, and then letting waiters place orders through the system, and she will not stop them.
Different stores have different ideas and their business methods are also innovative. The fun of open investment is to let a hundred flowers bloom.
"Please give me three hot pot bases, and fat beef, fat lamb, duck blood, tripe, bean curd skin, kelp, fish, tofu, and baby cabbage... I want ten plates of each. No, fifteen plates, please."
Xia Qing read out a long list in one breath, and the waiter next to him quickly took the order, "Your dishes will be here soon. The condiment table is outside, you can go and get them yourself."
Shu Mo raised his eyebrows and found that she had ordered all spicy hotpots, so he kindly reminded her, "Would you like some Yuanyang?"
"What kind of evil is it to eat tangy hotpot in a Sichuan and Chongqing hotpot restaurant?" Xia Qing flatly refused, saying firmly, "Even if I die from the spiciness, I will never eat clear soup!"
Shu Mo remained silent and smiled politely.
Well, every time I come here, there are always a few people who don't believe it.
Ten minutes later, everyone at the table was in tears from the spiciness of the food.
"hiss……"
"Water! Give me water!"
Several elite players burst into tears.
Shu Mo: “…” So she had said it a long time ago.
I haven't eaten spicy food for ten years, and now I'm treated to this intensity. How can I adapt?
But it was spicy and really delicious, and everyone was crying and showing off at the same time.
The waiter handed over the soy milk without any surprise, "Hello, this is a gift from the boss."
Unlike soy milk and soup bases made by hot pot restaurants themselves, these products are purchased from hot springs. The purchase price of the merchants is lower than the price for players, but higher than the price Shu Mo pays for himself.
There is not much profit in hotpot restaurants selling soy milk, it is simply to add a necessary item that is "absent from" the store.
Xia Qing's lips were red as he was still eating the tripe vigorously. After a while, he finally remembered the purpose of this trip.
She wanted to speak, but ended up choking on the spicy food. She quickly picked up the soy milk and took a big sip through the straw.
The sweet soy milk slid down her throat, effectively relieving the spiciness, and she finally spoke.
"Boss, I actually want to ask you if you are willing to open a branch in Qingshui Town."
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