Chapter 19

"Just call them big brother and big sister, what kind of school brother or school sister are you, a dropout! Don't you feel ashamed!" Zhao Lin spoke bluntly, not at all afraid of Song Chen's embarrassment or anger. Perhaps her family background gave her such confidence; she never knew how to be polite.

"What, you dropped out? Why?" Zhai Yue's big, watery eyes were full of curiosity.

"Maybe the old man was unhappy, so he stopped giving me tuition!" Ye Lin stretched lazily and made a guess.

"Can't you keep quiet? You always have to argue!" Zhang Ruoxi, fearing that her boyfriend would be embarrassed by Zhao Lin, deliberately patted Zhao Lin's shoulder, making a loud noise but not really using much force.

Song Chen, however, smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. I don't really care about a diploma. If I succeed in my career, people will naturally praise me; if I fail, even with a university degree, I would just be an ordinary person! It's not that big of a deal!"

He shrugged, "Even if I go bankrupt one day, I can do some manual labor to support myself! In modern society, hardworking people won't starve to death!"

"You take it pretty lightly!" Liu Jun smiled, "But that's how the world is, not too extreme!"

"Maybe some delicate person won't follow you through hard times! So don't speak too confidently!" Ye Lin laughed, but when Zhang Ruoxi and Zhao Lin glared at him, he raised his hands, "Consider I didn't say anything!"

As they were talking, the door to the private room was pushed open, and Yang De led a group of waiters pushing carts with various foods inside. Yang De, while instructing the waiters, laughed, "What are you all chatting about so enthusiastically? Can you tell me?"

Chen Daohui pursed his lips and said, "We were saying that if we go bankrupt one day, we can work as waiters in your bar, Mr. Yang!"

"If you don't mind the salary, I can consider it!" Yang De smiled slightly. After the waiters placed the food on the coffee table, he gestured for them to leave.

"There's a lot of food here, don't be shy!" Yang De patted Song Chen's shoulder from behind the sofa, "Brother Song Chen, you're new here, don't be too formal!"

"I won't, thank you! Mr. Yang is too polite!"

"You're probably around 20 years old, right? I'm 8 years older, call me Brother Yang!" Yang De smiled and sat down next to Ye Lin.

Ye Lin, who was comfortably sprawled out on the sofa, had to reluctantly move his right hand to make room for Yang De. He said lazily, "He was born in 1979, he's only 19, the youngest here! Zhang Ruoxi, you're 20, right?"

Zhang Ruoxi gave Ye Lin a dirty look and spat, "I'm the same age as my boyfriend..."

Zhao Lin, not wanting to let the situation calm down, shouted, "But Ruoxi is a few months older than Song Chen, hahaha!"

With Zhao Lin's taunt, Zhang Ruoxi started tickling her, but Song Chen smiled and said, "I'm not very sensitive to age differences!"

Zhai Yue gave Song Chen a flirtatious look and said in a sweet voice, "So I still have a good chance, right?"

"No one said you don't have a chance!" Liu Jun slapped his thigh and laughed, "As long as Ruoxi agrees!"

"Dream on, Song Chen is mine alone!" Zhang Ruoxi glared at Zhai Yue with a playful smile, snuggling into Song Chen's arms.

Song Chen, helpless, could only laugh, "No one said otherwise!"

Everyone laughed again. Shi Tao smiled shyly and then asked Song Chen curiously, "Song Chen, I know a little about your family situation. You said you dropped out, what are you doing now?"

Yang De raised a finger and pointed at Song Chen, smiling, "I was completely stunned by your long speech last time, I forgot what you do! Do you have any good opportunities to bring your brother along? To be honest, this bar is still my father's, I'm just working for him! I've long wanted to start my own business!"

"If I say I'm now penniless, using the money from my house mortgage to do some small business, you probably won't believe me!" Song Chen's eyes flashed, and he smiled.

Jiang Yan glanced at Song Chen, who looked calm and confident, and said in a leisurely tone, "No one said they don't believe you!"

Yang De looked awkwardly at Jiang Yan, cleared his throat, and laughed, "Your situation, Ye Lin mentioned. How much did you mortgage your house for, and what are you doing now?"

Various gazes, some hot, some curious, some probing, were cast at Song Chen. He smiled, picked up a bottle of JDB from the coffee table, opened it, and took a sip, "A computer room! Have you heard of it?"

"Computer room? What is it? Is it like an internet cafe?" Liu Jun gave an answer similar to Zhang Ruoxi's.

To put it bluntly, computer rooms, located in remote corners with dirty environments (including most early internet cafes), were hotspots for the underprivileged, but not favored by the children of officials and the wealthy. Nightclubs and high-end venues were their preferred places to spend their time.

"Similar to an internet cafe, but it operates computer games!" Song Chen gave a brief introduction.

"How profitable is it?" Chen Daohui asked with interest, "Since you chose it, it must be good!"

"Pretty good, but the cost is only a few hundred thousand. Since it's a small business, even if it makes a profit, it won't be much! I did some calculations, the annual return on investment is about 400% to 600%! If there are no unexpected events!"

"So high?" Ye Lin's eyebrows shot up, looking incredulous.

"Even with a few hundred thousand in costs, it's still a significant increase!" Chen Daohui also looked excited, "Running a computer room is so profitable?"

"It's more profitable these past two years, but I predict it will only last two to three years. The return rate will definitely drop over time! And there's some risk..." Song Chen shrugged, and at the end, he said with a sheepish smile, "I'll need your help when the time comes!"

"Be more specific! I don't understand what business has so many concerns!" Yang De was surprised.

"To put it bluntly, it's not much different from the electronic game arcades on the street!" Zhang Ruoxi smiled, "Although the state hasn't explicitly banned operating games with computers, it might change over time!"

"Oh! I see! I see!" A few people laughed.

"But the annual return rate is quite high! Song Chen!" Chen Daohui licked his lips and made a circular motion with his finger at his temple, smiling, "You have such a good head, why did you choose this business?"

Before Song Chen and Zhang Ruoxi could speak, Jiang Yan said calmly, "Didn't he say he's doing a small business with his own assets? It can't compare to your father's health supplement business!"

Health supplements? Song Chen's eyes flashed.

Chen Daohui shrugged, "It was good a few years ago, but the health supplement market has collapsed this year. Business is tough, so my father is thinking of moving into real estate!"

"Health supplements, hahaha! Only the bold and meticulous can make big money! Especially in a down market!"

Song Chen spoke calmly, and Chen Daohui frowned, about to ask a question, but Yang De laughed, "Song Chen, I mentioned you to my father, he said you have a unique eye! I have a lot of idle money to invest, do you have any good suggestions? Is it only real estate?"

Everyone's gaze turned to him, and Zhang Ruoxi, sitting next to Song Chen, frowned slightly, her beautiful phoenix eyes flashing with displeasure.

Song Chen glanced at Yang De, weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

Indeed, he had many profitable ideas that he couldn't use due to lack of capital, but he wasn't a pushover. He wouldn't give others benefits without getting anything in return! After a moment of thought, he smiled faintly.

"There are many ways to make money. Like me, there are ways to make money with ten thousand, and different ways with a hundred thousand!" Song Chen looked at Yang De with a half-smile, "How much private money do you have, Brother Yang?"

Yang De was straightforward, "Only two or three hundred thousand, I can barely gather four or five hundred thousand! Any more would require my father's approval!"

Yang De leaned forward, smiling and looking at Song Chen seriously, "Of course, if your idea is good enough, no problem! I can get a group of brothers to chip in, and I'll give you some shares!"

Song Chen smiled modestly, "Brother Yang is too polite, I'm just giving an opinion, you decide whether to do it or not!"

Initially, everyone thought Song Chen was being modest, just flattering them, but he really had ideas. Not only did the men show excitement, but even the two women present showed curiosity.

Song Chen took a razor from the second layer of the glass coffee table and placed it on the table without saying a word.

"A razor?" Liu Jun laughed.