As it turned out, Yang Jia's imagination had been overblown. The event she'd imagined hadn't materialized. From the moment she entered the city to the moment she returned to the hotel, no one recognized Li Bai. However, the increased number of people in Phoenix City was clearly noticeable. The area around the hotel was especially bustling with activity, with people coming and going. Some had even seen the business opportunity and set up small stalls nearby, and it seemed to be doing quite well.
"How many people are here?" Yang Jia looked around and couldn't help but sigh in a low voice.
When I thought about my part-time job handing out flyers, I suddenly felt that it was such a promising job. I really had misunderstood it before!
Just as Bai Ting was about to speak, she was interrupted by a stall owner who was inviting them to buy something. "Girl, come and take a look at this bracelet of mine. I guarantee it's made of pure silver, and the shape is also my own design. It's completely different from those popular items on the street. It's absolutely good value for money, much more cost-effective than buying it in a store." The male stall owner enthusiastically pulled Yang Jia to his side, and spoke a lot of words without giving her any chance to refuse. "If you don't like bracelets, this hand-woven belt of mine is also--"
He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly got stuck, as if someone was pinching his throat.
Yang Jia turned around and saw that the stall owner was looking at Li Bai. The expression on her face looked like she had seen something terrifying and wanted to run away immediately but was afraid to do so.
We should know each other.
"Ha...ha...I suddenly remembered that I seem to have something else to do, so I'll leave first." After a moment of stalemate, the stall owner suddenly let go of Yang Jia's arm, turned around in a hurry and went to pack up his stall.
Seeing him like this, Yang Jia suddenly had a thought: Remember to pack your things? It seems Li Bai's intimidation isn't that great. Otherwise, he would have left his things and run away. With so many people here, it's hard to find him even if he slips away.
Sure enough, before he finished packing, Bai Ting came forward with a smile and patted his shoulder like a good brother. "Qin Yan, what a coincidence, you are in Phoenix City too?"
Qin Yan was trembling all over when she patted him. He put down the things in his hand stiffly, turned around and smiled, "Yes, what a coincidence." He nodded to Li Bai again, and then his eyes fell on Yang Jia who was standing next to him. Realizing something, he immediately straightened his back.
He probably wanted to maintain his composure and demeanor in front of Yang Jia, but unfortunately, as a bystander who watched the entire incident, Yang Jia said that no matter how hard he tried, his image in his mind would never be positive and healthy. It was just like the street vendors in college who ran away from the school gate and were chased by the urban management for several blocks!
However, Yang Jia finally found an opportunity to speak, "Do you know him?"
Bai Ting said, "We know each other very well. We grew up together." Seeing Yang Jia's eyes sweeping over the things on the stall, she said, "This guy's hobby is doing business. He can't do big things, so he has to tinker with these small commodities. In fact, his craftsmanship is not bad, but it's not a good influence for a grown man to be busy with these things all day long." She introduced Yang Jia to Qin Yan again, saying only that they met in the game.
"Did you do all this?" Yang Jia was surprised.
She had previously thought this person's boast about crafting his own bracelets and hand-woven belts out of pure silver was just a false advertisement. But now, hearing Bai Ting say this, it actually turned out to be true?
When Qin Yan mentioned this, he immediately became enthusiastic. "Yes. They are absolutely handmade, and I earn my hard-earned money. It's not shameful to take things out of here. Many people are repeat customers! Since we are all friends, I will give you whichever one you like. Please take care of my business in the future."
Bai Ting coughed and said, "Let's talk about this later. We're going back to the hotel now. Do you want to come with us?"
Yang Jia was certain that, although Bai Ting's question was a question, it definitely didn't give Qin Yan a chance to refuse. Qin Yan was also very straightforward, quickly packing his things and saying, "Let's go together. Now that we're in Phoenix City, we definitely have to meet everyone."
But the expression on his face was completely different, and it was obvious that he was forcing a smile.
Li Bai hadn't said a word the entire time. Seeing they'd finished their discussion, he started walking towards the hotel. The others quickly followed.
Back at the hotel, he ran into Zheng Yizhao. While no one seemed to recognize Li Bai along the way, it now seemed that wasn't entirely certain. Zheng Yizhao had clearly received the news and rushed over specifically. This showed that, despite having only recently taken over Phoenix City, he had indeed managed everything perfectly. With so many players, the streets, while bustling, were not chaotic, and the usual in-game sword-drawing was completely absent.
It can also pass back various messages without leaving any trace.
Although Yang Jia didn't want to admit it, he was indeed quite capable. In comparison, her own luck, which she wasn't sure if it was real or fake, seemed dim.
"Are you back?" Zheng Yizhao asked, looking at Li Bai first, then turning his gaze to greet the others one by one. He was obviously surprised when he saw Qin Yan, but he quickly smiled and glanced at the things in his hands. "Come to Phoenix City to do business? You have good vision. This will be the most developed city in the game in the future, and there will certainly be more business opportunities."
These words obviously suited Qin Yan's taste. He laughed and said, "Are you praising me or yourself? Everyone knows that Phoenix City is your territory now."
"Don't say that." Zheng Yizhao's expression remained unchanged, but his tone became more serious. "Phoenix City belongs to everyone. If we need someone to lead us, it's not me, it's Li Bai. I'm just working for her."
Expressing loyalty can be so natural and appropriate.
Unfortunately, Li Bai didn't receive any of this information, or perhaps he received it but didn't care. He just said to Zheng Yizhao, "Let's have a meeting now."
Zheng Yizhao nodded and said, "That's perfect. I'll report to you about what's been going on these past few days."
Then he took out his cell phone and called the people who needed to attend the meeting.
Yang Jia, walking behind, noticed Qin Yan staring at Zheng Yizhao's phone after he pulled it out, so he whispered something to him. Qin Yan immediately became excited, "Who came up with this idea? What a genius! I used to think it was inconvenient that this game didn't have a friend system, and I never considered looking for a replacement. Now it seems I was completely mistaken."
He stroked his chin, his eyes sparkling. "Maybe we could consider this business. Most players probably wouldn't think of it, and even if they did, they'd be too lazy to search for it. If we could wholesale good, affordable phones, we could make a killing reselling them. And there's a lot of people coming to the tournament these past couple of days!"
Really good at business!
Yang Jia thought about it and agreed that this was a good idea. Just as he was thinking this, Zheng Yizhao, who was standing in front of him, finished his call, turned around and said with a smile, "Great minds think alike. I think so too. While keeping secrets can give us an advantage, there are always smart people. Turning advantages into profits is the best way. But I've been very busy these past few days and haven't had time to do this yet."
"Then why not let me handle it!" Qin Yan said immediately. He didn't really care that the benefits would go to the team, not him personally. Putting aside the relationship, he was probably going to join this organization. Even though his hobby was business, he wasn't particularly obsessed with money.
Zheng Yizhao didn't agree immediately, but looked at Li Bai, "What do you think?"
"You decide." Li Bai said.
Zheng Yizhao finally nodded and said, "Then I'll trouble you, Qin Yan." Then he looked at Yang Jia, "I think I'll need to ask Miss Yang for help with this matter. Do you mind?"
Yang Jia knew that Zheng Yizhao could sense her subtle hostility towards him, and they both probably understood where it came from. Love rivals might even have radars. So now, she could only smile and say, "It's okay."
Upon learning of Li Bai's return, the meeting quickly gathered. They were all the people who had come with Li Bai, now assigned by Zheng Yizhao to different tasks. Even Qiu Yue was there. Yang Jia, Bai Ting, and Qin Yan were also present. Qin Yan had initially tried to avoid suspicion, but Bai Ting dragged him away.
Zheng Yizhao first reported on his progress. Over the past few days, they've already recruited a group of players willing to stay in Phoenix City. Although the tournament hasn't started yet, these players weren't planning to participate, simply because they value Phoenix City's development potential.
These people came from all walks of life. Some hoped to join teams and fight monsters outside the city, while others were arranged to enter various industries for development. This was also a form of soft control over Phoenix City, but it took a long time to take effect. Despite this, Zheng Yizhao still made this arrangement, believing that since the game had designed this feature, it must be meaningful. Moreover, when inter-city battles began in the future, this kind of infrastructure and livelihood development would become one of the criteria for measuring strength.
Then there's the team. They currently have three ten-person teams, each heading out of the city to kill monsters daily, bringing back a large amount of materials as they level up. Zheng Yizhao is keeping the materials for now because they're easy to exchange. After all, some of them might be needed later in development, and selling them now would only lead to regrets later. It's not too late to sell them later if funding becomes a real issue.
Next, Zheng Yizhao raised two issues that needed to be resolved.
The first was that they were now a fairly large organization, and it was time to formally form a team. Before that, the team needed a resounding name, and Zheng Yizhao planned to have Li Bai come up with one.
The second is the subsequent arena competition. The City Lord's Mansion has already given the specific competition process. Of course, they also need to familiarize themselves with the rules and discuss how many people Phoenix City will send to participate this time, what the goal is, etc.
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