Free Web NovelChapter 331: Chapter 204: Genuinely Dumbfounded
This would affect the malls these people usually frequented, especially Xinghe Plaza, which was not far from Radiant Square.
Every plaza pays close attention to foot traffic, or at least the flow of people during specific time periods each day. After all, it’s the lifeblood of a plaza.
Without foot traffic, who would rent a shop in your plaza? If the variety of goods isn’t wide enough, the foot traffic will decrease even more. And with less foot traffic, you can’t charge high rent for the shops.
Of course, this was just one aspect. The impact of foot traffic also affected many other areas, such as advertising screen fees.
At Xinghe Plaza, Zhao Yuan was watching the interview video from the Coastal City Publicity Association, and he was in a very bad mood.
Because of this interview video, Xinghe Plaza’s foot traffic had hit new lows during several time slots today. Many people had been drawn over to Radiant Square.
Radiant Square originally had very little foot traffic and was almost completely suppressed by his Xinghe Plaza. But now, thanks to this interview from the Coastal City Publicity Association, its foot traffic had suddenly exploded. This was definitely not good news for them.
"Damn it, how did Radiant Square get so lucky?" Zhao Yuan cursed, his face dark.
His assistant immediately said, "President Zhao, our people on the ground sent back news. A lot of people are going there for that Zhu Ling. The commenters on that video who said they were coming to Coastal City to find the Street Vendor Girl weren’t just talking."
Zhao Yuan processed this and replied, "So you’re saying the Street Vendor Girl is the key? That makes things easy. We just need to spend three million to sign her to set up a stall at our plaza. That way, we can hijack their popularity. Hurry up and look into this Street Vendor Girl. She just blew up overnight; she probably hasn’t even seen three million before!"
Hearing this, the assistant nodded, knowing this was the best solution.
Zhao Yuan waited while also checking for news related to Radiant Square online. Radiant Square was now on the verge of becoming a check-in spot. Many people were going there to "check in," shoot videos, and upload them.
Soon, the assistant returned and reported, "President Zhao, I found a business contact through the Street Vendor Girl’s homepage. She’s an artist with a company called Second-Life Star. Moreover, her boss is quite famous in Coastal City. His name is Chen Jincheng. You’ve probably heard of him."
"Chen Jincheng?" Zhao Yuan paused for a moment.
Not only had he heard of him, but he had also spoken with him before. The man had wanted to discuss some kind of project with him. Zhao Yuan had suggested he bring that Ximeng to a dinner party, but the man didn’t know what was good for him.
He never expected this Street Vendor Girl to also be an artist from his company.
He immediately looked up his last call with Chen Jincheng and dialed his number directly.
’Since that’s the case, I just won’t mention bringing a girl to a dinner party this time. Signing his company’s internet celebrity for three million and having the Street Vendor Girl set up her stall at Xinghe Plaza... he’ll make a hefty profit too.’
At Radiant Square, Chen Jincheng had already arrived with Zhu Ling. He met with Zhang Tao and Lin Jian, as well as Lin Hao, who had naturally come along to see what was happening.
"Mr. Chen, please take a look at this contract." Zhang Tao immediately handed over a contract.
Chen Jincheng opened the contract to look it over. It was the ten-million-a-year contract. Once signed, Zhu Ling would have to set up her stall at Radiant Square.
The contract required him to sign on behalf of the company, and Zhu Ling also had to sign her name.
Just as he was about to sign, his phone suddenly rang. It was an unknown number.
But the number looked a little familiar.
He answered the call, and a voice that left him stunned came through the phone: "Chen Jincheng, this is Zhao Yuan. I want to discuss something with you. We at Xinghe Plaza want to sign that Street Vendor Girl from your company to set up a stall at our plaza. Three million a year. When you have time, bring her over to sign the contract."
Hearing this, Chen Jincheng didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "President Zhao, who gave you the courage to think I would bring someone to sign a contract with you? I’m sorry, but I’ve already agreed to sign with Radiant Square. Besides, I’m a man of my word. Goodbye!"
With that, he hung up the phone and blocked the number.
In his office at Xinghe Plaza, Zhao Yuan was dumbfounded when the call was hung up on him.
He subconsciously wanted to lash out in anger—it was a habit of his, as he’d never taken some internet celebrity seriously. But he quickly came to his senses and realized the situation was dire.
Radiant Square was already blowing up because of the interview from the Coastal City Publicity Association. If the Street Vendor Girl was also signed by them, Radiant Square might actually gain momentum. Even if it just caught up by a large margin, it wouldn’t be good for him.
He was currently being evaluated along with several of his brothers, all in competition with each other. He had to develop Xinghe Plaza well to surpass them. If Radiant Square gained momentum and closed the gap, it would affect Xinghe Plaza’s business, and in turn, his evaluation score.
With that thought, he immediately tried calling Chen Jincheng again, but this time, the call wouldn’t go through. It seemed his number had been blocked.
"Fuck..." Zhao Yuan swore aloud.
’That guy is dead set on opposing me.’
’Seriously, once I win this evaluation against my brothers and inherit the family group, he better not give me an opportunity. Otherwise, I’ll definitely make him pay.’
"President Zhao, is that Chen Jincheng not planning to sign with us?" the assistant asked with a frown, having clearly figured it out.
"If he won’t sign, he won’t sign," Zhao Yuan said, his face dark. "It’s just one street vendor girl. I refuse to believe that adding one girl will let Radiant Square surpass Xinghe Plaza. Once these next couple of days pass, I doubt there’ll be any lasting impact."
Hearing this, the assistant’s expression grew more worried. The level of online popularity wasn’t that simple. It was subtly concerning.
...
Back at Radiant Square, Chen Jincheng had already signed the contract. He then handed it to Zhu Ling so she could sign her name on it as well.
In fact, after Chen Jincheng took that call, Lin Jian and Zhang Tao had already guessed that someone was trying to poach the Street Vendor Girl. And since his surname was Zhao, it was likely someone from the Zhao Family of Xinghe Plaza.
The two plazas were, after all, competitors.
Seeing Chen Jincheng sign the contract, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Naturally, their attitude toward Chen Jincheng improved even more. He was, at the very least, a man of his word, and the fact that he was completely unfazed by Xinghe Plaza gave them a very favorable impression.
Once the contract was signed, Chen Jincheng took Zhu Ling to the area that Radiant Square had designated for street vendors.
One could see that quite a few people were already planning their stall locations in this area. The people from Radiant Square had already taken action, having made arrangements with the vendors from the Night Market Street long ago. They would come out to set up their stalls after dusk, and later, the plaza would also look for some daytime vendors.
Chen Jincheng also brought Zhu Ling to a spot in the vendor area to set up. Her stall cart had already been brought over. freewёbnoνel.com
Since the crowds were all coming for Zhu Ling, her stall definitely needed protective measures. Otherwise, the sheer number of people crowding forward could cause problems on site.
In addition to building a separate space for Zhu Ling’s stall cart, they would also set up a cordon. Security guards would be positioned all around to protect her. If anyone tried to rush forward and cause a disturbance, these guards would intervene to ensure Zhu Ling’s safety.
Of course, the grass jelly at Zhu Ling’s stall wouldn’t actually be for sale. It would certainly sell out in an instant, and she would be worked to death.
Therefore, the plaza organized a promotion: people entering the vendor area could scan a QR code to follow the plaza’s social media, which would enter them into a lottery. Winners would receive a free cup of grass jelly from Zhu Ling and could also take a photo with her.
Naturally, Radiant Square would provide this as a performance bonus, with extra payment.
In other words, she could earn an additional salary.
Chen Jincheng continued to direct the setup, only feeling at ease once he was certain that Zhu Ling would be absolutely safe while at her stall.
「Time passed, and night fell.」
In the Night Market Street not far from Radiant Square, Liu Dong arrived right after finishing dinner.
As the manager of the Night Market Street, he was in an excellent mood today. He had implemented several measures, and the market’s performance had been consistently good. His evaluation was in two days, and as long as he passed his superiors’ assessment, he believed he could get a promotion.
However, when he entered the Night Market Street and saw the usually bustling vendor street now completely empty, he was dumbfounded.
"Where is everyone? Where are the vendors?"
