Pei Qian had only one feeling now: I’m really stupid, really.

I simply thought that as long as Ming Yun Private Kitchen was fully booked, it wouldn't be able to earn me more money.

Never would I have imagined that Quanmin Dianping would interfere!

Quanmin Dianping's special feature, combined with a little hype, turned the fame of No Name Restaurant into real traffic, and then guided it to Tengda's other industries, turning it into real money again!

What's even worse is that this special feature seemed to reveal some information in advance.

That's Sinister Hostel!

Originally, Pei Qian's plan was to have Sinister Hostel construct secretly, and even if President Li and the others wanted to promote it, it would only be something to worry about when it was almost completed.

But now, by adding it to this special feature, it's already been exposed!

Of course, Sinister Hostel is not yet completed. Most of the projects are in the midst of intense finishing work, and the Golden Maze has an even lower completion rate. It will take at least another month before it can be opened for trial operation.

But the problem is, reservations at Ming Yun Private Kitchen were never something you could make just because you wanted to...

Now that they're doing a special feature, many people are starting to make reservations. By the time they come to No Name Restaurant to eat, Sinister Hostel will already be officially open for business. The timing is perfect.

Pei Qian looked at Li Shi's smiling face and realized that this guy definitely had a hand in it.

Otherwise, how could Wang Peng have deliberately added such a low-key project as Sinister Hostel to this special feature?

President Li must have blabbed!

However, looking at their friendly smiles, Pei Qian didn't know what to say. He just felt a little tired.

"President Wang, I really thank you."

"If there's nothing else, I suddenly remembered that I have something else to do. I'll be leaving first."

Pei Qian's words had a somewhat gritted-teeth tone.

Wang Peng was stunned for a moment, then quickly said, "Okay, President Pei. If you have any questions about the special feature, you can contact me at any time!"

After watching President Pei leave, Wang Peng scratched his head, a little puzzled. "President Li, why does President Pei look so unhappy?"

Li Shi chuckled. "It's nothing, President Wang. You haven't worked with President Pei for long. If you interacted with President Pei as often as I do, you'd get used to it."

"President Pei is an actor. He doesn't show his emotions easily. When he's nice to you, he's often hiding a knife behind his smile. You have to be vigilant."

"Conversely, if you give him real benefits, he may not react much on the surface, and may even seem indifferent, but he will always reward you in other ways afterward."

"He's a commercial genius. How can his thoughts be easily understood by ordinary people? He definitely has to wear a mask to hide them. Only those who have spent a long time with him can understand his true inner thoughts."

Wang Peng suddenly understood. "Oh! I see! Then, according to President Li, can I be friends with President Pei in the future?"

Li Shi smiled. "At least you're heading in the right direction, President Wang."

Wang Peng nodded silently, thinking how lucky he was to have President Li as a guide.

Otherwise, he really wouldn't understand these secrets of President Pei's personality!

...

Pei Qian left Moyu Internet Cafe and went straight to Moyu Takeaway Store No. 1.

Because he suddenly realized something very dangerous.

Moyu Takeaway was in Quanmin Dianping's special recommendation!

Moyu Takeaway is President Pei's precious baby now. If it makes money, wouldn't he have a stroke on the spot?

He had to immediately confirm the safety of Moyu Takeaway!

Pei Qian was a little puzzled at first. Logically speaking, Quanmin Dianping should also have a takeaway business, right? Shouldn't Moyu Takeaway be classified as a competitor? Why are they recommending Moyu Takeaway stores?

But after carefully checking on Qiandu and combining it with some previous memories, Pei Qian roughly understood.

The current Quanmin Dianping has nothing to do with takeaway.

Quanmin Dianping should have jointly issued a statement with a certain takeaway software three or four years later, announcing a strategic cooperation. Now, the two are still competitors, fighting fiercely in the concepts of "group buying" and "local life platform."

Moreover, Moyu Takeaway's current positioning in the eyes of outsiders should be more inclined to "express delivery" and other fast food services, not a takeaway platform.

Because Moyu Takeaway only delivers its own meals, doesn't invite merchants to join, and doesn't do things like scoring, rating, and ranking, its general direction clearly doesn't constitute a competitive relationship with Quanmin Dianping.

That's why Quanmin Dianping is willing to give Moyu Takeaway so many recommendations.

In short, he had to first determine the safety of Moyu Takeaway!

First, ask Rui Yuchen in person, and then have Guan Peisheng verify it. Once he discovers that Moyu Takeaway has any signs of making a profit, he must take decisive measures to prevent it from happening!

As for what specific decisive measures to take...

He could only see how things went and adapt accordingly.

Soon, Pei Qian arrived at Moyu Takeaway Store No. 1, which is also the location of the Gourmet Laboratory.

"President Pei?"

Rui Yuchen was again moonlighting as a waiter. She was a little surprised to see President Pei come in person.

Two customers who had just left seemed to have eaten the Gourmet Laboratory's new product and offered some suggestions. Rui Yuchen was carefully recording them, preparing to submit them to the Gourmet Laboratory for improvement.

Pei Qian decided to make it short and sweet. "Nothing special. I just wanted to ask about the current situation of Moyu Takeaway."

Rui Yuchen thought for a moment. "Everything is going smoothly, President Pei. It's all going according to the script you planned."

Pei Qian: "..."

What the hell do you mean according to my script? Do you even know what my script is?!

My script is for Moyu Takeaway to keep losing money and never make it back for me!

Pei Qian coughed lightly twice. "To be more precise? There shouldn't be any surplus on the books right now, right?"

Rui Yuchen nodded. "Don't worry, President Pei. I've strictly followed your instructions and used all the funds, including the funds you allocated, to open new branches. Absolutely no saving money!"

Pei Qian was slightly relieved and asked again, "Then, how big is the gap to reach profitability?"

"Uh..." Rui Yuchen pondered for a moment. "This is not easy to estimate, President Pei. I can only say that even if everything goes smoothly, it's unlikely to become profitable in the next few months. After all, too much money was burned in the early stage. Opening stores, personnel salaries, and other expenses are very..."

Rui Yuchen briefly introduced the current situation. In short, Moyu Takeaway's costs have remained high. Profits were already low, and to become profitable, the customer base would have to increase significantly on the current basis. She didn't see such a possibility in the short term.

Pei Qian nodded slightly. "Then, what if Quanmin Dianping were to give Moyu Takeaway a special, long-term recommendation?"

Rui Yuchen's eyes lit up. "Really?"

The corners of Pei Qian's mouth twitched slightly. "What would happen?"

Rui Yuchen thought carefully. "Uh, of course it's a good thing to have such a recommendation. More exposure, right? But this kind of recommendation is more of a long-term, subtle effect. The effect won't be particularly obvious in the short term."

"However, it's definitely a good thing that President Pei was able to get such a recommendation for Moyu Takeaway!"

Pei Qian breathed a sigh of relief.

Okay, as long as there's no major danger in the short term.

Moyu Takeaway is now being heavily relied upon by himself. It must not have any accidents.

Hearing Rui Yuchen say that even in the best-case scenario, it would take several months to become profitable, and even then only some stores would be profitable, Pei Qian felt much more at ease.

Then he could worry about other places, such as the Managed Fitness Gym...

After all, this time, Quanmin Dianping's attack was too broad, basically encompassing all of the Tengda Group's still-losing projects.

Fortunately, the Sloth Apartment project was very low-key, with basically no publicity, so it temporarily escaped the disaster.

"I understand. Just maintain the status quo and continue!"

...

Watching President Pei leave, Rui Yuchen was full of energy again.

It seems that President Pei still attaches great importance to Moyu Takeaway!

Although President Pei is busy with work, he still personally ran to Store No. 1 to inquire. Most importantly, he actually got such an important recommendation from Quanmin Dianping, which is very helpful for Moyu Takeaway's long-term planning!

Rui Yuchen summarized the improvement plans she had collected earlier and handed them over to the kitchen, asking them to make a new version based on the improvement plans.

Just as she stopped to rest for a while, she looked up and saw a familiar face again.

"Brother Lin?"

"You're a little late. President Pei left just five minutes ago."

Rui Yuchen invited Lin Canrong to sit down.

Lin Canrong was a little surprised. "President Pei was here? That's a pity. I wanted to thank him in person and tell him about my new insights."

Rui Yuchen: "It doesn't matter. President Pei isn't someone who cares about these small details. What do you want to thank President Pei for?"

Lin Canrong said seriously, "Of course, to thank President Pei for letting me find my true and correct position in the catering industry!"

Rui Yuchen was stunned for a moment. "Oh? How so?"

Lin Canrong took a sip of his drink and asked, "You should know about the foreign food blogger, right?"

Rui Yuchen nodded. "Yes, I've heard of it."

Lin Canrong had previously discussed with Rui Yuchen the true meaning of President Pei not allowing Ming Yun Private Kitchen to open branches, because the scarce resource of this high-end restaurant lies in the chefs. The chefs of Ming Yun Private Kitchen are all poached from all over the country at high prices. Such talents cannot be mass-produced, so opening branches would inevitably fail to guarantee quality.

After Lin Canrong understood this, he invested all the money in employee training and reaped the rewards.

But clearly, Lin Canrong now has new insights.

"I thought before that President Pei's thinking only went this far. Now I realize that I only understood it to this point!"

"I originally thought that the most a recommendation from a famous foreign food blogger would do for Ming Yun Private Kitchen would be to bring in some foreign guests and increase its popularity."

"But after seeing President Wang of Quanmin Dianping's operation, I was deeply inspired and realized that there's more to it than that!"

"Turning reputation into heat; turning heat into traffic; and then using traffic to turn into tangible benefits in other areas!"

"And all of this is premised on Ming Yun Private Kitchen being able to provide customers with the best taste, becoming a high-end catering brand widely recognized by the public!"

Rui Yuchen nodded. "Yes, that's right. And then?"

Lin Canrong smiled slightly. "President Wang has already shown us the correct solution to President Pei's thinking. The next step is of course to copy the homework!"

"Let's go back to the original question and think carefully."

"Since President Pei knows that continuing to invest in Ming Yun Private Kitchen won't earn more money, why does he keep investing money here? Obviously, it's for more reputation, and more reputation can be exchanged for heat and more profits..."

"Obviously, President Pei had long thought of the plan to exchange reputation for heat, traffic, and profits in other places, and was waiting for us to unlock it."

"It's just that President Wang of Quanmin Dianping guessed it one step ahead of us!"

"In fact, if you think about it carefully, this should be a pleasant surprise, because President Pei's routine is more like it's prepared for us!"

"Now I understand, the branches that I've been struggling with have always been there, isn't it Moyu Takeaway?"

Rui Yuchen was stunned. "Brother Lin, what do you mean..."

Lin Canrong smiled slightly. "Great chefs are limited. If we open a new store, we can't find such great chefs or use such valuable ingredients. Then what's the difference between that and Moyu Takeaway?"

"Although we're not in the same department, we're both in catering. If we can use the reputation of Ming Yun Private Kitchen, which is No Name Restaurant, to convert a portion to Moyu Takeaway and create a cheaper version, wouldn't that also achieve President Pei's expectations?"