Chapter 9: The Ignorant Xu Musen! (Don't keep it anymore, sob sob sob~)

Zheng City, Yinki Wholesale Market.

He Qiang watched as Xu Musen haggled with the shopkeeper.

"Boss, just charge me thirty cents each for these," Xu Musen said.

"That won't do, it doesn't even cover my costs. At least fifty cents," the shopkeeper replied.

"Let's each take a step back—thirty-five cents it is. If that's okay, I'll take them," Xu Musen proposed.

Xu Musen took out several red banknotes from his pocket and stuffed them directly into the shopkeeper's hand.

All sorts of household items were sold wholesale here: spoons, chopsticks, scrubbing pads, nail clippers, with pricier items like magnifying glasses mixed in among them.

These were regulars in two-dollar shops.

"That won't do, the lowest I can go is forty cents. I have to consider my costs too. Add a bit more..." The shopkeeper shook his head, but once the money was in his hand, he really didn't feel like giving it back.

This psychological tactic was unfailingly effective in bargaining.

Xu Musen spoke with genuine sincerity, "Let's just do thirty-five cents. We're all students here, it's not easy for our families. We're trying to earn some pocket money with a street stall. Look at my brother here, he's been working in the construction sites in the daytime and has almost turned African from the sun..."

Xu Musen's tale grew more pitiful as he spoke, and he patted He Qiang.

He Qiang: ???

The shopkeeper glanced at He Qiang's sun-darkened, almost glowing face and, whether he believed it or not, he felt too embarrassed to keep raising the price.

"Fine, fine," the shopkeeper conceded.

"Boss, I see this little table here is pretty old, why not just give it to us? And this little cart looks good too. And how about throwing in a couple of extra woven bags, we're students after all..." Xu Musen eyed the gear needed for setting up a stall, his gaze shining with the prospect of getting a freebie.

The corner of the shopkeeper's mouth twitched; he hadn't made much profit as it was and would soon be at a loss.

Observing Xu Musen repeatedly emphasizing that he was a student, the shopkeeper inwardly mocked him—what a student, animals didn't even have as thick a skin as him.

Thanks to his thick-skinned approach, Xu Musen managed to save two hundred yuan from his original budget of just under a thousand.

The two men had just left,

when Yao Mingyue appeared around the corner. She, too, approached the stall to take a look.

These little trinkets, which likely cost only a few cents to produce, were things she would never normally spare a glance.

Could he be buying so much because he's setting up a stall?

But Yao Mingyue clenched her teeth, annoyed. It was the weekend and instead of spending time with her, he chose to run a stall?!

Yao Mingyue really wanted to slap the nearly seven-figure bank card from her wallet across his face! After all, all he needed to do was to be with her. As a couple, she would support him, did he really need to try so hard?

"Ungrateful!"

With a cold huff, Yao Mingyue continued to follow them.

...

Eventually, Xu Musen and He Qiang came out, each carrying a burlap sack and pushing a simple cart.

"So this is the 'get-rich plan' you were talking about?"

He Qiang felt a bit duped. Even though it was already afternoon, carrying the heavy bags in the summer heat had left him drenched in sweat.

Isn't this just hard labor at a street stall?

"Everything is difficult at the start. Trust me, there's absolutely no problem. If we succeed today, I will gift you a carbon fiber fishing rod," Xu Musen promised, painting a grand vision for him.

"Yeah, right. We won't make much money from a day of street vending, and by the time you buy that for me, I'll be half buried in the ground," He Qiang retorted, though he was diligent in helping carry things.

Xu Musen smiled at the goods they had, "Who said I was going to set up a street stall?"

He Qiang paused, "If you're not setting up a stall, then what are all these things for?"

Xu Musen glanced at the plaza nearby, a sly smile curving up his lips, "Of course to give away for free!"

He Qiang looked confused, while Xu Musen had already pushed the cart towards the plaza to secure a spot.

After paying a hundred yuan for sanitation management, Xu Musen got a spot where there was a good flow of people.

The night began to fall.

The weather finally cooled down a bit, and people started coming out to shop after work.

The two began to arrange their wares.

He Qiang was still puzzled, "What do you mean by giving things away for free? Are you doing charity or what?"

Xu Musen smiled and said to him, "Qiang Zi, in time you'll understand that nothing is more expensive than a gift that's free."

With that, Xu Musen took out the banners and posters he had made at the print shop and set them up.

[Beautiful gifts, free for everyone!]

As for the poster, it featured a QR code for a game.

Once the banner was up, it immediately attracted the attention of many people.

Chinese people's enthusiasm for freebies never wanes.

Xu Musen took out a megaphone that he had used when he declared his love for Yao Mingyue.

Before, it was for love, now it's for career.

He adjusted the volume control, preparing to record the hawkers' calls, but as he pressed down, a loud voice suddenly blared out.

"Ming Yue! I love you!"

Xu Musen: ...

Dammit! He had forgotten to delete the previous recording.

The surrounding crowd was also taken aback before they couldn't help but laugh.

He Qiang was also dumbfounded. Weren't you saying you were done with the fawning, bro?

"My bad, my bad..." Xu Musen's face flushed with embarrassment as he quickly deleted and re-recorded.

However, just then, at a coffee shop a dozen meters away, Yao Mingyue almost didn't keep her hold on her coffee.

Her innately intimidating phoenix eyes now held a touch of a girl's coyness, seemingly enjoying this moment quite a bit.

She took out her phone and snapped a photo of Xu Musen, who was slightly flustered...

The stall got on track.

Although the items on the stall weren't worth much, they were daily necessities that every household could use.

"Young man, are all these things really for free?"

"Can't be true, right? There's no such thing as a free lunch these days."

Someone asked.

"Of course, everything here is for free," Xu Musen said with a smile.

The crowd began to prepare for their selection, but Xu Musen spoke again, "Please wait a moment, everyone. These items are indeed free, but you'll need to scan a QR code over here. Once the information is confirmed, you can pick up an item for free."

Xu Musen brought out the printed QR code.

"I knew it! They wouldn't let people get stuff for free just like that."

"What is this anyway? It's not some kind of scam, is it..."

In this day and age, many people still viewed scanning QR codes with a sense of mystique, crowding around to watch.

Xu Musen explained that it was just a game, and he even mentioned its no-registration, no-download features.

Moreover, he specifically stated that it was in collaboration with Q, having a big company as a guarantee, naturally increasing its credibility.

And not many people were conscious about mobile security at that time... Anyway, a junior high school student couldn't resist and scanned it.

He was attracted by the unique gameplay, even though the game's graphics were crude.

"Wow, it really works!"

The boy's eyes lit up instantly, and he started playing without even picking up his free item.

Xu Musen immediately took up the megaphone, shouting, "Congratulations! You are our first user to scan the code today, and you may select three extra gifts!

The first one hundred users to scan the code can also get an additional free item, first come first serve, until they're all gone!"

This call made many people feel that missing out was a loss, and soon many began to scan.

He Qiang mentally cursed.

Honestly, he had been embarrassed since it was their first time setting up a stall.

But whether it was Xu Musen's pitch or his tactics, he was pulling them off with finesse.

Within half an hour, the number of people who scanned and logged in had broken through one or two hundred.

Xu Musen glanced at the backend data on his phone; half the gifts were already given out.

Yet, he smiled even happier.

According to the contract signed, he could get a two yuan commission for every new user login.

Meaning, the more he lost, the more he made!

As evening began to fall.

Half of the small items on the stall had been given away, and there were a good three to four hundred logins.

In other words, by just taking advantage of the platform's loophole today, he had made almost a thousand yuan.

Of course, that bit of money was not Xu Musen's goal.

He Qiang leaned in and whispered, "Most of the gifts are given away, we've lost a few hundred already, huh."

Xu Musen couldn't help but laugh, patting his shoulder: "You ain't seen nothing yet, I'm still planning on giving away more money!"

He Qiang didn't understand what that meant.

Then he saw Xu Musen grab the loudspeaker and shout again, "Listen up, everyone, I've actually got another gift for you all!"

As soon as they heard there was more, the crowd quickly gathered again.

"You've seen the game you just played, no need to download or register a phone number, anyone with a phone can play.

To thank our fan family, we've specially secured a new benefit!

There's an exclusive link on the game's share page, and if you share it with a new user, you can enter a draw, guaranteed to win a cash reward of at least one hundred yuan!"

That's right, it's the famous Pinduoduo red packet model!