pjbooks Chapter 74 [It's finally here]
Chapter 74 [It's finally here]
Chapter 74 [Finally Here] (I've been updating 10,000 words a day for the past two days~~~~)
"Boss, one classic pan-fried dish, please!"
"Give me a whole-cut mushroom sauce, please!"
"Hey boss, can you make that red wine sauce in your video for an extra charge?"
Over the next few days, the "Chestnut Beef Steak," a new addition to the menu, went from being expensive and only purchased by couples at first, to gradually gaining acceptance among customers, and the brand has slowly established itself.
The price was high, and at first it was sustained by couples "pooling their money to try it out".
But the quality of the food is undeniable. The moment the knife and fork cut into it, the tender pink surface and the oozing juices clearly tell customers that prepared steak is not the same as original cut steak.
This is not the same product; it has a different name, and the price has been increased.
This money was indeed spent on different things.
From taste to appearance, the difference is real and tangible, and that's more effective than any fancy words.
Liu Zhuohao's shovel flew through the air, his mind perfectly clear.
He wasn't surprised at all that the new menu was a success.
After all, street-side steak stalls will be everywhere, turning the city into a sea of red.
It's saturated.
Because sales were so good, too many people followed suit, leading to market saturation.
The first people to try something new had already left by then.
Ten years can bring two different situations to the owner of a street vendor selling snail rice noodles.
One reason is that business is dismal, and they regretfully terminate their lease.
Another type is booming business with a constant stream of repeat customers.
Luosifen is a local delicacy with an extremely strong regional flavor. Without extensive promotion by bloggers and e-commerce platforms, it would be difficult for it to become a big seller and be accepted by people in other regions.
Even if Liu Zhuohao, who was reborn, were to sell snail rice noodles, the result would probably be bankruptcy and termination of the lease.
No, the result will definitely be the same.
This is a business idea that is out of touch with the times.
But steak is different. It may seem novel to appear on the street, but it's not special. The earlier you get in, the more you earn.
He was reborn, and he seized the opportunity to be the first to try something new.
"That's strange, boss. Those people haven't made a sound for days—" Huang Weixiong approached as they packed up, his brows furrowed. "And Ah Kai and I have been to several night markets nearby these past few days, but we haven't seen another steakhouse."
He counted on his fingers: "We've been setting up this stall for over two months now. At the beginning, I thought it wouldn't last more than half a month before someone would follow suit, but now—"
"I see that every two weeks or a month, one or two milk tea shops or fruit juice shops that are doing well will suddenly appear out of nowhere."
Such a good business, yet only this one street stall is selling it.
"Following the trend?" Liu Zhuohao continued wiping the iron plate with his hands. "These guys over there, everyone knows we're making money."
"Then what about them—"
"Can scallion pancakes and steak be the same thing?" Liu Zhuohao straightened up, threw the dirty rag into the bucket, and said, "Scallion pancakes, batter, eggs, and ham sausages—you can get everything you need by just going to the market."
"For this, we need to find a stable source of beef, figure out the sauce, and invest in equipment. Just modifying this food truck will take a week."
"If you really want to be with someone, you won't even get close to them without a month or two of preparation."
He paused for a moment, then added, "As for those who sell milk tea and fruit juice, those are franchise stores."
"The brand owner sends people from headquarters to provide store decoration plans, food supply channels, and even confirm whether the store location meets the operating conditions and can attract customers. This franchise fee is for these services."
"For us self-employed individuals who want to set up our own businesses, we have to navigate through these pitfalls one by one on our own."
Right now, he's gradually getting to know the local suppliers. He started by looking at cold chain suppliers, then fresh meat suppliers, and recently he's been working on seafood suppliers.
These are not just for shooting videos and taking commercial orders, but also for opening a store in the future.
Huang Weixiong said "Oh," seemingly understanding but not quite, but his doubt deepened: "Then—could it be that the people watching us have given up? Seeing that our business is getting better and better, stirring up trouble is useless."
If we switch to a stall with less foot traffic, where some people buy but there aren't long queues, most of the regular customers will leave.
But at their stall, these people come in line, deliberately delaying the process and trying to argue with other customers.
But once they started arguing, the people in line behind them glanced at them and slunk away.
It won't cause any significant disturbance.
Liu Zhuohao dried his hands, took out his phone, and started idly turning it on.
"give up?"
He replied, "Maybe, but they could also be plotting something else. Maybe they'll report us, or they'll have someone eat our food and then fall to the ground pretending to be sick, or—anything is possible."
He glanced at Cheng Bing and Yang Boran, who were tidying up tables and chairs in the distance, and lowered his voice: "You didn't let them know we're being watched, did you?"
"Definitely not!" Huang Weixiong quickly shook his head. "Boss, you instructed us to keep our mouths shut. Ah Kai and I didn't pull them into the group."
It was just a few of them, plus someone studying in another city who was in charge of post-production editing, and my cousin Liu Zhuoyue in the group chat.
These two new employees, although they were hired and started working.
However, they are not considered part of the team yet.
"Yeah, it's good to be careful. Right now, our advantage is that the other side probably still thinks they're hiding well," Liu Zhuohao said. "They blend into the crowd every day, and they probably don't expect that we've even dug their faces out of the video from a few days ago."
"But boss—" Huang Weixiong still didn't understand, "Even if they're in the same business, we're the only one in the whole city. They could set up a stall somewhere else and make money just as well, right? Why do they have to fight us to the death and resort to these underhanded tactics?"
Looking at his serious-looking subordinate, Liu Zhuohao suddenly smiled, a smile tinged with helplessness and coldness.
"Ah Wei, many things in this world don't make sense to you."
"Some people think that business is bad not because you are better than them, but because you are blocking their way. They are stubborn and believe that as long as you are ruined, customers will naturally go to them."
He paused, recalling a joke that had later circulated online, which now seemed incredibly apt: "What was that saying again? Instead of reflecting on whether you're incompetent, just blame others!"
Old E: "That lord—it seems he has truly perished this time."
Sanwu: "Wrong? Who is it, sir?" (sends a muddy question mark emoji)
Old E: "Who else could it be but Captain Yan Tou!" (There's only one truth.)
-
Factory manager: "What riddle-solving person for adults and children? Isn't that the one who ran away?"
Chi Jiu: "Has he become someone whose name can no longer be addressed directly?" (Sad)
Biting Cat: "Speaking of which, in the comments section of your videos, have you seen those 'Broken Station is doomed' kinds of preachers saying things like 'Have you delivered your faith coins?' or 'Why not follow the oracle?'?"
Old E: "Of course there are! And many of them are high-level followers! With so many senior users being taken away, didn't the site activate an emergency recall protocol?"
Factory Manager: "+1, if we really want to activate the Bond Summon, isn't that something for us 'regional lords' to do? Old E, quickly use your invincible 'omniscient sage' mode to think of a way!"
Red Nine: "+1" (Toshita seat)
"+1" (I'm begging you)
Inside the rented room, Huang Weixiong and the others had all gone out to run errands.
Liu Zhuohao, enjoying a rare moment of peace, leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over the constantly popping QQ group messages on his computer screen.
This is the "secret base" that the biting cat dragged him into. There are only about ten names in the group, but all of these IDs look very familiar.
He's someone who had his moment of glory on Bilibili from its early days to the later ones.
-
At this moment, the "big event" they were discussing was not unfamiliar to Liu Zhuohao. In his own video comment section, there were often "followers" of "that person" who would flood the screen with pessimistic predictions, claiming that Bilibili was going to die.
"Nothing will change now or in the future—"
Liu Zhuohao muttered to himself, saying that after Bilibili became commercialized, fan culture flourished. Ironically, their current behavior is no different from that of those fan groups.
The group chat continued: "But everyone's saying that 'that person' has been recruited, and C-site is going to switch from live streaming to video—it seems like their resources are definitely much stronger than our little site's?"
"Shh—! How dare you say such a thing! Aren't you afraid of being banished by Bi Shi?!"
"There shouldn't be any traitors taking screenshots here, right?"
After this post, the group chat immediately flooded with messages like "We are all loyal partners!"
"It seems like a lot of people on the neighboring A-site are watching us make a fool of ourselves—are we really about to face our final moment?"
"It's all over! This little website is going to be completely taken over by elementary school kids and low-level comments! Waaaaah~"
Amidst laughter and cheers, the group typed "GG".
Liu Zhuohao watched them chat with some helplessness. No wonder Bi Shi and Wu Ya seemed so unreliable when they first started working with him.
He recalled what happened to that "adult" after leaving the small, runaway station; how to put it, it should be described as making his home wherever he went.
I've been to Youku, YouTube, Zhanqi, Douyu—I've been to all the places I could stay, both domestically and internationally, but after almost a complete change of plans, I've finally returned to Bilibili.
But times have changed. It's no longer the time when he could command the winds and waves, and even if he was banned from the platform, he still had a large number of die-hard fans stirring things up.
As for A-site mentioned by these bloggers—
Liu Zhuohao typed a message: "A-site has been undergoing a management reshuffle for the past two years. It seems they even forced several technicians out this year, causing frequent server crashes. They have significant internal problems, and their main business lacks a clear profit model. They can't tell the capital market a reliable story about how to make money, and they're incapable of handling any unexpected shocks."
Old E: "!"
Sanwu: "!"
Old E: "!"
Ao Changzhang: "!"
Chijiu: "!"
The biting cat: "!"
The message was sent, and the group chat interface, which was originally full of anime references and lighthearted banter, suddenly seemed to be paused. The screen full of emoticons and exaggerated emojis froze instantly, replaced by a series of uniform, astonished exclamation marks.
The biting cat: "!!! Boss Liu! You—you're not mute?!"
Factory Manager: "—Really? (Tactical inhale) Are they constantly changing players on A-site?"
Old E: "—Wait, where did you get this top-secret internal intelligence, Boss Liu? (Suddenly alert.jpg) We've ejaculated—"
For Liu Zhuohao, who returned from 25 years ago, these are nothing more than old news that has been settled.
However, at this point in time, the specific turmoil within AcFun (A-site) remains shrouded in mystery for most content creators on the site.
His fingertips tapped on the keyboard, the text he typed without a single emoticon, completely out of place with the astonishment and playful banter that filled the group: "There are some scattered reports online that can be pieced together. Douyu is currently gaining momentum, and the path of monetizing live streaming could have been taken. However, AcFun spun off this part, and the key person originally in charge of this area took away the core technical team, as well as the most important base of paying users."
"Moreover, their community environment has always had a closed-off feel to it. Old users habitually refer to newcomers as 'elementary school students' or 'cute newbies.' This exclusionary nature may unite the core in the short term, but it is poison in the long run. Who hasn't been a 'newbie'?"
"A system that rejects fresh blood will ultimately only leave behind an ever-growing but dwindling number of old-timers—an ecosystem with no future."
"On the other hand, although we haven't made a lot of money from the joint operation of Honkai Impact 2 this year, and are even still losing money, our determination and speed in transforming and trying new tracks are visible. I heard that the senior management is also actively contacting the Japanese side to introduce the official animation copyright. In the future, the focus will likely shift to strongly supporting original video content."
"So, here's my advice: switch to original content as soon as possible, reduce copying, focus on cultivating your own channel, and try not to direct traffic to other video websites. The competition between platforms is fierce now, and diverting traffic may affect your ranking and recommendations on this platform."
"Of course, social media platforms like Weibo can still be used as a supplement for promotion—"
This well-organized and almost industry-analysis-like speech was somewhat out of place with the atmosphere in the group.
Liu Zhuohao certainly wanted to build good relationships with these bloggers, since most of them had the potential for great success in the future.
You need friends to play on the internet.
However, he doesn't need to change his personality to fit in with their atmosphere; he can do it in other ways.
There was a moment of silence in the group chat.
"—Sounds really professional. (I don't understand, but it sounds impressive)"
"∑（°△°）Boss Liu's style has suddenly become serious!"
"Hey Mr. Liu, did you secretly watch some get-rich-quick channel?"
The reaction within the group was not beyond Liu Zhuohao's expectations.
He never expected these content creators, who were currently engrossed in creating content and playing with memes, to take his words seriously.
He didn't send these messages for the immediate sake of the moment.
The seeds that have been planted need time to germinate.
This kind of advice, for oneself, is an explanation based on existing information; it is established information.
But for them, and for their future selves, their current statements are predictions.
While Liu Zhuohao and his friends were constantly thinking about when to report the crime, always feeling like there were eyes watching them from the shadows, their vigilance was almost turning into an impatient "come on, hurry up!" One evening, as soon as the stall was set up and the charcoal fire had just started to burn the iron plate and produce the first wisp of smoke, the queue of people had already stretched for more than ten meters. The air was filled with the aroma of the surrounding stalls as they heated up and the laughter of the diners.
"Boss!"
Liu Zhuohao, who was looking down and waiting to open his stall, heard Huang Weixiong's surprised voice from the side. Then, he looked up and saw a white car with the words "Market Supervision and Management" sprayed on it parked right next to the road.
The car doors opened and closed, and several comrades in dark uniforms stepped out and walked straight toward the most bustling center of the neighborhood.
At that moment, Liu Zhuohao's heart skipped a beat, but then it felt like a stone had finally been lifted off his feet, and he even felt a strange sense of relief.
They've finally arrived!
He barely hesitated, ignoring the oil heating up in the pan, wiped his hands, put on an unusually "enthusiastic" smile, and took the initiative to greet her.
Huang Weixiong and Li Zekai exchanged a glance and then followed in tacit agreement, their steps even light and quick.
Only the newcomers Cheng Bing and Yang Boran turned pale, stood frozen in place, and looked at the uniform with a bit of fear.
The people in line noticed the unusual commotion, and a low murmur arose: "Oh, someone in uniform?"
"What are you checking? This stall is perfectly clean, isn't it? The owner keeps saying he filmed the whole thing?"
"Could someone have gotten sick from eating it?"
"No way, look at the boss's smiling face—"
Amidst curious, inquisitive, and even slightly sympathetic gazes, Liu Zhuohao approached the law enforcement officers and even extended his hand, saying, "Comrades, thank you for your hard work. We've been waiting for you for quite a while!"
'
The leading law enforcement officer visibly stopped in his tracks, his hand, which was halfway out to take out his identification, froze in mid-air, his face full of astonishment and confusion.
No one returned the handshake, but Liu Zhuohao wasn't embarrassed. He naturally withdrew his hand, his tone still warm: "Did you receive a report from the public? Or—is this a routine inspection in our area?"
As he spoke, he quickly scanned the shoulder insignia of the group. "Excuse me, may I ask which department you all belong to?"
"Since we're cooperating with the inspection in compliance with regulations, could I first see everyone's law enforcement credentials? I'd like to verify their names and credentials. Is the procedure correct?"
His words were both polite and somewhat unquestionable, which only made the people on the other side even more confused.
The older man in the lead finally came to his senses, cleared his throat, gave a proper salute, and then took out his identification and handed it over, speaking in a very businesslike tone: "Hello, Mr. Liu."
"We did receive a formal complaint regarding your stall's suspected illegal operations, and we are now conducting an inspection in accordance with the law."
"We need your cooperation to provide all the ingredients and raw materials used recently, purchase invoices, and also—"
"No problem! Absolutely cooperative! 100% support!" Liu Zhuohao didn't even wait for him to finish speaking. He took the documents with both hands, glanced at them carefully, and then his voice suddenly rose, almost shouting to all the customers in line behind him, "Please wait a moment! Cooperate with the market supervision bureau officers!"
He turned around and waved his hand forcefully towards the food truck. Huang Weixiong and Li Zekai had already understood and, as if they had rehearsed it, "whoosh" opened all the lockers and insulated boxes.
"This way, comrades!" Liu Zhuohao led the law enforcement officers towards the food truck, his voice booming as he displayed the items one by one: "These are our stall's lease agreement and registration certificate!"
"These are our health certificates, then this is the steak supplier's qualification certificate, these are the vegetables, these are the eggs—and the quarantine certificates for each batch!"
"This is a copy of the health permit! Oh, and we've also paid special attention to the fire safety; the fire extinguishers are valid until next year, and all the electrical wires are protected with conduits—"
He recounted each and every incident as if it were his own treasure, revealing in front of all the onlookers and law enforcement officers all the things that ordinary street vendors might never have prepared or would have hidden away.
Inside the glass refrigerator, rows of bright red, whole-cut steaks were neatly arranged.
Finally, he tapped on the freezer glass, turned to the law enforcement officers, his smile unchanged, but his tone now carried a perfectly measured hint of "negotiation."
"Comrade, these steaks are all high-quality meat from legitimate sources; they weren't cheap to buy."
"If all of them need to be randomly sampled and taken away—you see, if the final test results are fine, what about the cost and losses of this random sampling—according to regulations, shouldn't we have a solution?"
His question was reasonable, and his eyes were open and honest.
Among the people in line, some had already begun to whisper among themselves: "Wow, they're so well-prepared?"
"He doesn't seem to have a problem."
"Is the person who reported them just jealous of other people's business?"