Chapter 21 Vending Machine
"That's fine! How could a tavern in a Western fantasy world not have a quest board?" Jiang You surveyed his masterpiece. "Although this isn't exactly a tavern, it's a brewery... well, it sells alcohol and snacks, so it's pretty much the same thing~"
Jiang You had always loved the atmosphere of a Western fantasy tavern, including the all-knowing bar owner, the occasional adventurer, and all sorts of interesting gossip... Now that she was her own boss, she could naturally put this dream into practice. Not to mention, she, Xiao Nian Gao, and her entire family of employees needed a supply of soul fire.
The soul fire energy extracted from daily food is very low. Usually, Jiangyou has to add soul fire from Andre and others to his own food. If he wants to rely solely on food to solve the energy problem... then he probably has to eat a full banquet for every meal.
Not to mention how much the ingredients would cost, just making so many dishes would make Jiangyou exhausted.
Not to mention feeding such a large family... Well, it's definitely not possible with food alone.
In all her time in this world, Jiangyou's most satisfying meal was Mrs. Samantha's hot and sour pork rind soup with soul fire. The richness of emotion and memory filled her from soul to bones to her nonexistent stomach after watching the "Truth Memories" video. She was practically satiated to the point of burping.
The current sources of soul fire, in addition to Jiangyou asking for it from relatives, friends and diners, are obtained from suspects and witnesses when he and Andre are working on cases. It is time to add some new fixed channels.
"However, we need clues about the robbers... Did Baron Neumann give you the task of capturing them?" asked Jiang You.
"Right." Andre nodded. "This case isn't that easy to investigate. Those criminals are so elusive they've almost become a kind of local legend. But there aren't many clues we can use. Most of them are just ghost stories made up by local residents to scare children."
Sometimes what worries people is not the lack of clues, but the fact that there are too many confusing and mixed clues, with true and false, real and unreal, all mixed together, making it difficult to distinguish which ones are what people really see and which ones are fabricated rumors.
Especially when the Knights of the Kingdom came to investigate, the residents fell silent, as if nothing had happened. It was unclear whether they were protecting the robbers or fearing retaliation from them if they informed on them.
Therefore, Andre was particularly satisfied with Jiangyou's approach - the residents only needed to deliver the message quietly under a pseudonym, without anyone noticing, and naturally would not attract the attention of the criminals; the paper clues had traces to follow, and could be repeatedly scrutinized, confirmed, and checked; after catching the person, he would naturally know which clues were really useful... In just a few words, the entire process was arranged properly, and even the problem of how to receive the reward anonymously was solved.
"He's really worthy of being called Little Bones!" Andre exclaimed in admiration.
Takumi: "Hey!"
She hadn't logged onto the internet in her past life for nothing! Isn't it just a login username and password? She knew this!
"The only thing that needs to be improved is the placement of the clue box." Andrei walked around the bar a few times. "It can't be too exposed, making it easy for people to know who left the clue, but it can't be too difficult for people who want to submit clues to find them..."
Once the notice is posted, it will not only be visible to ordinary residents, but also to criminals hidden in the crowd. In order to cover their tracks, they may send people to monitor the box, intending to take action against the people who submitted the clues.
"The shop is usually very busy, so the boxes can't be left in places where there's too much traffic and the staff can't keep an eye on them. There's a cash register over there, and behind it leads to the kitchen, so there's always someone there. I told Jericho and Layla to keep an eye on it, and safety was guaranteed.
"The box must be made sturdy, with a narrow opening on the top for delivery, and the real door at the back requires a special key to open. In this way, only we can see the clues." Jiangyou said.
Since the tip-off is anonymous, it can't be handled by anyone else. Otherwise, the informant's identity won't be protected, and the clue letter could be tampered with. A sturdy, reliable, and secure box actually provides greater peace of mind.
"But how do we protect the people who deliver the clues... Well, we need to give ordinary people a reason to go near the box." Jiang You thought for a moment, "If everyone has a reason to go near the box, then the informant can be hidden from the public."
Andre's eyes flashed: "So, how do we do this?"
"That depends on how much money you plan to invest, Lord Knight." Jiang You grinned and chuckled. "For example, put a tasting basket on top of the box and put some snacks in it for people to take in limited quantities. For example, small cookies, small candies..."
"It's too expensive." Andrei refused expressionlessly when he heard the word 'candy'. "Let's get something cheaper."
"Then let's go with alkaline bread cubes," Jiang You said. "Roll them in caramel and sea salt, and they'll taste amazing. You'll never be able to stop eating them... If caramel is too expensive, you can roll them in barbecue powder for a spicy, salty flavor."
"Spicy flavor is better." Andre made the choice without hesitation. "We just need to give people an excuse to come to the box. It doesn't have to be delicious... For example, if the line for the tasting is too long, it will affect those who want to submit clues and act stealthily."
But then again, given the poor people of Huntington's love of taking advantage, the line would be endless as long as they said it was a free sample.
Andre imagined the scene and rubbed his brow. "How about putting those... bread cubes into small bags and selling them there? We can set a low price that can still break even... For example, only sell a bag of bread cubes for a nickel or a few?"
"How about we build a vending machine..." Takumi pondered. "Whenever a customer drops a nickel into a box, a bag will automatically fall out. We can combine the vending machine with the clue box. That way, the criminals won't be able to tell whether people are dropping off clues or buying something."
It's a good idea, but if you want to make something like this, you'll probably have to find a dwarf craftsman.
"Let's have Tukes come over tomorrow morning." Andre sighed. "This is a long-term investment. If we can make this work, we can apply it to other cases in the future... I'm investing in this machine."
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