2 The First Nascence
The sun was going hard and strong, but he wasn't sweating even after he walked for a quiet distance, one of the upsides of living on a hill. The downside was everything was far as hell. Even just going to the nearest atm, it already took him at least 30 minutes, but it felt good using his legs again.
But he would never forget how he pulled out cash from his wallet just to realize there was no cash in it, in front of the store clerk's as well. She was kind enough to pay for the bottle of water, but her giggle while doing so was absolutely embarrassing.
That won't ever happen again.
He stopped in front of a small ATM when he realized he didn't know the pin number. Did embarrassment turn off his brain?
[Ding! The pin is 129148 host!]
He was surprised by the system sudden presence but tried the number the system told him. It worked but he couldn't say thanks.
The number of zeros in his account was so long he suspected it was a glitch. But opening it and closing it didn't work, it's still there. If he was to liquidate all his assets, properties, and stocks in his previous life, he would still lack two zeros to match the number on the screen, and he was considered a billionaire.
[Ding! It's money for the host to help the plot and protagonist! The host can take a little bit to live!] The system said.
Suddenly the ATM spat out money and his card on its own. The system could control the ATM? That was unprecedented. Then he heard someone tapping their foot behind him waiting for him to move, so he grabbed the money and left.
…....
"How about a name, system? Alexa sounds good isn't it?" Li Yuheng said while walking to his home.
After he got his hearing back, he noticed the system sounds like Amazon Alexa with a bit more emotion. So why not call it that, the system sounds awkward as well.
[What is wrong with calling this system a system? It must be a mortal thing, call this system however the host likes] Alexa said grumpily.
He smiled and asked, "Can you explain what the money is for Alexa?"
[It's the money for the host to help the protagonist, but for personal use the host gets 10000 a day to spend on.]
10000 a day was not bad, even in his previous life he rarely spent that much on a day. But It's probably the first time he agreed that money didn't bring happiness. If the money in his account was to help the protagonist, was his purpose in this world to become the protagonist's piggy bank? To be a licking dog? What a joke.
He would retaliate if he knew how. Alexa was clearly on the protagonist's side and he was stranded in an unfamiliar world without a single influence or power, and money was pointless with Alexa's limitation.
His only advantage currently was time and he needed to be very careful with his next move. Seems like his bed needed to wait a little more.
Once he arrived back home, he washed and drove to the city.
…...
…...
Li Yuheng just proved searching for information without direction was a huge waste of time. Not only did he need to avoid raising Alexa's suspicion, but there was also no clear starting line for where to search for one. The only thing he got was the city information he was in.
He was in a city called Jinpeng, the capital city of Jinpeng province. An area around the size of London, but instead of rain and freezing temperature, replaced it with a high heat oven. A city bordered by skyscrapers and the night stars were just a myth.
Jinpeng was that kind of city.
But it's exceptionally weird how hard it was to find an information broker, and every city had one, especially a big city like Jinpeng. The men behind the scenes must've played a role to prevent uninvited guests from sniffing around. With his current situation, it's hopeless to solve it today.
But his soft, warm bed was waiting at home, and he always served who came first, so the priority was clear.
Just when he tried to move, he was stopped by the smell from the side of the street. The rich languid smoke of BBQ. He hadn't eaten anything since he transmigrated, that was probably why his stomach growled like an angry cat after smelling it. Good food was just what he needed right now, it's been less than a day since he was transmigrated and he was already stressed out.
He sighed and entered the restaurant.
....
FLORA Restaurant
It wasn't prime time but the restaurant was still decently packed, it's a good sign.
He was immediately greeted by one of the waitresses that explained the many different sets the restaurant has, which he stopped her from talking any longer by just ordering them all. He followed the waitress a bit farther back than the rest of the customers, then he arrived in a large private booth. It's big for 6 people, of course it's plenty for him.
After some minutes, there was a knock on the door from the several waitresses who brought the necessities and even offered to cook for him, which he rejected without a second thought. Cooking it alone was the most enjoyable part of BBQ.
.....
After some time, he was finally done. The only reason he was able to finish nine BBQ packages was that it's a restaurant portion. If it's his BBQ chain back home, he would puke to death. But the food was good and the service was excellent, so expectations were met.
He decided he wanted to buy this restaurant. It wasn't a very rational decision to buy a restaurant because the food was good, but money will be gone when you're dead. He learned it the hard way.
About Alexa, he would just say it's for business expenses, which was not wrong.
He pressed a special button to call for the waitress to which she came instantly.
"What can we help you with?" The waitress asked with a smile.
"Can I talk to your manager?" He said calmly.
"Eh!?" She looked around in panic.
"It's fine you are not in trouble, it's about business" He smiled.
She sighed from relief before bowing down and said, "Alright sir, please wait a bit." and left running.
Not long, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," He said.
"Excuse me, I'm the manager of Flora Restaurant. I heard Mr uhm wants to talk with me?"
A middle-aged man opened the door but didn't go in, he has a slight wrinkle and white hair and kind eyes. The hard-working old man type.
"Call me Mr. Li. Is this restaurant for sale?" He asked with a smile.
"Hmmm...I'm only the manager so Mr. Li has to talk directly with the boss."
"Can I talk with your boss then?"
"Please wait for a moment, I will make a call." The manager hurriedly left.
After 15 minutes, not only he was sleepy but his butt also started to numb, but luckily the manager came back at the right time, "Mr. Li, t-the boss is willing to talk about it. W-we can go now!" The manager said panting.
"Sure, guide me through your boss?" He sat up and stretched a little bit.
"Naturally!" The manager exclaimed and went to order the workers to work hard when he left.
After paying the bill, he rode with the manager to the boss' place.
…..
…..
He stopped in front of a medium-sized building, a small building if compared to the skyscrapers around it. No sign, no name, looked like a normal house in a central business district, certainly mysterious.
"We have arrived Mr. Li," The manager said, opening the car door for him.
"Thanks a lot. Right, who is your boss's name?" He asked after going out while fixing his rumpled clothes.
"I apologized, I don't know it myself. I have never seen or heard from the boss, only with the secretary."
"Oh? What a mysterious person. Thanks for guiding me here" He said with a smile.
"No no no, I'm sorry for having to ride Mr. Li's car." The manager lowered himself.
Li Yuheng patted him on his shoulder, "Don't lower yourself like that. Thanks for guiding me here."
The manager bowed with a smile before leaving. There won't be any reason to replace the manager if he bought the restaurant.
A beautiful receptionist was already waiting for his arrival. One seat table with no decoration with fresh paint on the wall, without a company name mentioned anywhere. Just a small functional front desk. After confirming his identity, he followed her through an elevator to the highest floor.
The highest floor was wider and at least a bit more colorful than the front desk, but still humble without anything luxurious. A proper office he might say.
"The boss is inside Mr. Li. I will only go this far." The beautiful receptionist said, smiling.
"Thank you for guiding me." He answered with a smile.
She bowed and left.
This place was as shady as it got, it felt like he was in a gangster headquarters. And he took a deep breath before opening the door, and saw a woman working on a document fully concentrated; she probably didn't even realize his arrival.
A woman in her middle or late 20s with a face like nectar, like sweet water, plain attractive even without emotion on her face. If that pants suit was used to make her look professional, it failed miserably, because it's drawn more attention than it tried to hide. But what was unnoticeable was her scent, that smell like an aphrodisiac rose, even if fingers would be full of cuts or poisoned from its thorns, no one could resist touching it with bare hands.
After some time, he decided it was enough to appreciate her and cleared his throat, "My family name is Li, I'm here to talk about the restaurant" He said standing on the front door.
The documents on her hands crumpled instantly, "Oh Mr. Li, I've been waiting for you. Just call me Rose, please sit down." She said after putting down the document.
Rose? A truly fitting name for her, He smiled and sat down on the couch.
She called someone with the office phone, presumably the front desk before saying, "Mr. Li wants to buy Flora restaurant, correct?"
"Yes."
"Can I know what Mr. Li plans to do with it? Re-management, new style?"
He shook his head, "No. I don't plan to do anything with it."
She looked a bit cynical but continued, "Please wait for a moment Mr. Li, I will come back soon."
He nodded and exactly when she left the room, the receptionist came with tea and snacks before leaving again. He was alone in the office.
Rose probably went to check his background, the usual stuff. He smiled and enjoy the provided beverages.
15 minutes later, Li Yuheng was eating the last cookies when the door suddenly opened.
"Sorry to make you wait Mr. Li. Do you enjoy the tea?" Rose asked with a smile.
"No worry. It's good tea," He smiled.
It's impossible to not notice the change in her tone, a bit more cautious and anxious but respectful.
"About the restaurant, how does 3 million for 5 years minus tax sound?" She asked.
Considering he came so suddenly, 3 million was an extremely reasonable price. With restaurants with a value of around 2 million, asking for 5 million would not be surprising. So why did she ask for such a low price? Obviously it's the usual routine.
"3 million? Sure."
"Then please come again tomorrow, it's too sudden so the paperwork isn't ready yet."
"How about 10 tomorrow morning?" He sat up.
"Perfect, thank you."
They both shook hands and he left the room.
It's not his first day in the game, he knew she wanted something. But why was he so interested in her request? He could just press the deal right there by using a contract, maybe because he was just bored. It won't hurt to listen anyway.
Exactly when he stepped outside the door, Alexa suddenly turned on without warning.
[Ding! The host had met one of the protagonist's helpers! Please befriend them!]
He froze for a second before closing the door in a hurry and said in low volume, "Protagonist's helper? Rose?"
[Yes! It would benefit every party if the host managed to befriend protagonist helper no.1, so do it!]
It must have had something to do with her request and whatever it was, he knew he needed to comply. This was his important start, his starting line. To beat the protagonist, he needed to be far ahead and to do that, he would race before the race even started.
