Emma, Smells So Good!

"Membership... cards?"

Lu Xiaobei's eyes lit up, and she was clearly moved. "Go on, tell me more."

"Mm."

I nodded lightly and explained at length, "I've observed the operations of every internet cafe around Creek City. So far, none of them have introduced membership programs. A membership program is basically giving consumers a discount and firmly tying them to your shop. For example, with our cards, topping up 100 gets you 20 extra, topping up 500 gets you 120 extra, and so on. The more you top up, the bigger the discount."

"Wouldn't that... mean we'd lose money?" Lu Xiaobei blinked her big eyes and asked worriedly.

"We wouldn't."

I shook my head. "Look at it from a longer-term perspective. Think about it: even during the prime time of eight o'clock at night, Feiyang Internet Cafe's idle computer rate is over 30%. Leaving those machines empty is a waste. Giving discounts to members will actually improve the cafe's overall performance."

"That does make sense..."

Lu Xiaobei nodded deeply in agreement, then said dreamily, "How great would it be if we could keep our idle computer rate below 10% during prime time..."

I glanced at her with a smile in my eyes.

The very next second, a ding-dong ringtone sounded beside my ear. Another quest had actually been triggered!

[Business Goal (B-rank) quest triggered! Quest Objective: Reduce Feiyang Internet Cafe's idle computer rate at around eight o'clock in the evening to below 10%. Quest Reward: A large amount of Experience Points, with a certain chance of obtaining an additional bonus item!]

This was a B-rank quest!

I was overjoyed. This would kill two birds with one stone—not only could I help Lu Xiaobei, but I could also reap some rewards of my own.

"Ding Han..."

Lu Xiaobei was still somewhat worried. "It's easy to say, but not so easy to do. If we're going to offer memberships like you said, we'll need to remake the internet cafe's whole system, right?"

"Mm, that's true."

I nodded. "There isn't a system like that in Creek City right now. We'll need to write a new program from scratch and build our own membership database on the cafe's server. It'll definitely be troublesome, but if you're truly determined to do this, I can try helping the cafe write the program. I can probably handle the database too."

"What?"

Lu Xiaobei's beautiful eyes were filled with shock. "You... you know programming too?"

"I know a little."

I modestly brushed it off, though in truth, I would still have to rely on the game system to improve my programming skills.

"Alright!"

Lu Xiaobei bit her red lip and said, "Then I'll leave the system remake to you. If you can really pull this off, I'll definitely give you a raise!"

"You said it. It's a deal!"

"Mm!"

Lu Xiaobei said, "Also, once you've finished the system, come with me to check out the other internet cafes on Qianjin Street. We'll do some market research. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you'll never be defeated. Then we can make targeted adjustments and try to get Feiyang Internet Cafe's business fully up and running. What do you think?"

"Alright."

I had no objections, but at this rate, how was I still an internet cafe manager? I was running around inside and out, practically acting like one of the cafe's shareholders.

"Ding Han!"

Lu Xiaobei reached out and patted my shoulder. "Don't worry. If the internet cafe's business really takes off in the future, I definitely won't shortchange you. After all, you'll be the top contributor to this business overhaul plan. I'll never forget your contribution!"

After painting me that rosy picture, she went upstairs for a while before heading out to set up her stall and earn money.

Watching her youthful figure from behind, I couldn't help but laugh. This girl really lived without a care in the world.

"Hangzi, get me a computer. I need to do some work on improving the internet cafe."

"Sure thing, Brother Han!"

After getting a machine, I began searching online for Basic Programming tutorials. Well... I had learned some programming basics in real life too. C++, JAVA, SQL—I could handle all of them. But I had never put them into practice, so using that shallow knowledge to create a membership system was obviously unrealistic.

After watching the tutorials for a while, a text prompt appeared before one's eyes.

[Do you wish to learn Basic Programming (C-rank)?]

Confirm. Learn!

Previously, the skill point I got at level 10 had been used to learn Dragon Blade. The skill point from level 12 had gone to Explosive Charge, while the one from level 14 had been used on Earthspike Slash. So, the skill point for learning Basic Programming came from level 16. It was also the last skill point I currently had.

"Whoosh~~~"

After a streak of golden light, an icon of "hands typing on a keyboard" appeared within the skill slot. It was Basic Programming.

I immediately poured in Skill Experience and began rapidly leveling up the skill!

[Congratulations! Your Basic Programming (C-rank) skill has successfully risen to level 4. Your programming ability has greatly improved, and you have additionally gained 1 point of Spirit!]

[Congratulations! Your Basic Programming (C-rank) skill has successfully risen to level 7. Your programming ability has greatly improved, and you have additionally gained 2 points of Spirit!]

[Congratulations! Your Basic Programming (C-rank) skill has successfully risen to level 10. Your programming ability has greatly improved, and you have additionally gained 3 points of Spirit!]

In an instant, countless pieces of basic programming knowledge surged into my mind, bringing an incredible rush of getting something for nothing!

The Skill Experience I had accumulated over the past few days was once again spent clean, but I felt much more fulfilled. I also gained a clear and definite idea of how to build the membership card system. I immediately downloaded a software suite and started writing the program.

Level 10 Basic Programming sounded complicated, but it really wasn't simple at all. At the very least, it was more than enough for writing a membership card program. After all, I wasn't designing some high-end equipment like Power Armor, Power Sword, or storm shields.

By the end of the morning, Feiyang Internet Cafe's membership card system database had been successfully completed.

Feeling somewhat excited, I transferred the software to the server operated by the internet cafe manager. Then I casually redid the server system, using it to map all the client machines and bring the cafe's computer management onto the right track. After that, I only needed to perform a few operations on each client machine to complete their connections and synchronization. This way, I wouldn't have to waste time dealing with every individual client machine whenever it ran into a problem.

"Damn..."

Zhao Yihang watched from the side with his jaw hanging open. "Ding Han, where did you learn this stuff... That's insane... I don't think even the programming teachers at our school know how to do this."

"..."

I glanced at him without saying anything.

"Fuck, what kind of look was that? Just say what you want to say..."

"I don't even want to criticize the level of your vocational school teachers..."

"Damn it!"

The next day.

Feiyang Internet Cafe officially launched its membership system. A huge sign stood at the entrance, with the words: "Top up 50, get 8 extra. Top up 100, get 20 extra. Top up 500, get 120 extra. Top up 1,000, get 300 extra."

At first, the people who came to use the internet were skeptical. It was something new, after all, and not so easy for people to accept.

I gave Lu Xiaobei a suggestion and told her to hire some shills. She immediately set her sights on Old K, who came by every day. Then, led by Old K, a group of shills frantically promoted the membership cards throughout the cafe, saying they were convenient and saved money. Before long, more and more people were signing up!

At around ten that night.

"Ding Han!"

Lu Xiaobei looked exhilarated as she pulled open a drawer and pointed at rows of brand-new Star Coins. Smiling, she asked, "Guess how much we made today just from selling memberships?"

"How much?" I was a little excited.

"Over seven thousand! That's almost as much as our revenue from the previous entire month!" Her face was full of excitement.

"Over seven thousand is just over seven thousand. Adding 'a full' isn't grammatically or semantically precise."

"Don't sweat the details!"

Lu Xiaobei said, "Tonight, I'll take turns covering the night shift with you. Get some extra sleep. Tomorrow morning, after breakfast, we'll start our market research and check out the other three internet cafes."

"Alright."

I nodded.

Early the next morning.

After Zhao Yihang handed over his shift, Lu Xiaobei came back with breakfast. Her outfit today was entirely different from usual. She wore a black trench coat, sunglasses, and a baseball cap.

With her perfect figure, anyone who didn't know better might have thought she was some female celebrity hiding her identity.

I squeezed in behind the bar counter with her to eat breakfast. As I slurped spicy hot pot, I asked, "Do I need a disguise?"

"No."

Lu Xiaobei said, "I'm the owner of Feiyang Internet Cafe. In the internet cafe scene on Qianjin Street, everyone knows me. But you're just a nobody. No one pays attention to a mere internet cafe manager."

I looked up at her. "Don't you think that sounded a little too smug?"

Lu Xiaobei smiled faintly and changed the subject. "Hurry up and eat. Eat more. We're going to use the internet at other cafes later."

"Mm!"

After breakfast, the two of us walked side by side along Qianjin Street.

The weather was slightly cool. Lu Xiaobei tucked her coat tighter around herself, and I fastened the buttons on my jacket as well. Soon, we arrived at Fengyun Internet Cafe together. It was an internet cafe that focused on Legend, and the moment we entered, we heard curses rising and falling all around us.

"Fuck! Chop him! A pathetic level 30 mage actually dares act tough against my level 40 Well Moon warrior? He's courting death!"

"Brothers, get him! If we don't kill this bastard, he won't know who rules Telecom Zone 66!"

"Chop him! If he dares run, kill his girlfriend first!"

"CNMD, you dare act tough in front of me? You must not know how powerful my Blazing Fire Cigarette Lighting is!"

Lu Xiaobei and I quietly got on two computers and huddled in a corner, trembling.

"Fengyun Internet Cafe's computer specs really are amazing..."

I checked the specifications and whispered to Lu Xiaobei, "The machines here cost at least 4,000 each. They have the best setup on Qianjin Street. We definitely can't compete with them in that regard, so we need to think of other ways to improve business."

"Mm!"

Lu Xiaobei agreed wholeheartedly.

"Ding Han, do you know how to play Crazy Arcade?" she suddenly asked.

"A game that childish? Even dogs wouldn't play it."

"Register an account and play with me for a bit. If you can beat me, I'll treat you to a boxed lunch at noon."

"Your words, not mine..."

For the sake of a meal, I registered an account and began facing off against Lu Xiaobei.

At noon.

By the canal outside the Old City District, Lu Xiaobei and I each held a boxed lunch. It was really just rice with toppings—rice covered with fast food like chicken legs, green peppers with shredded pork, braised green beans, and more. After shoveling a mouthful of rice into my mouth, I couldn't help recalling that famous scene. I grinned at Lu Xiaobei and said:

"Emma, it smells so good!"