Detective Agency Opens for Business

For the latter half of the journey, Lin Xiaosu didn't look.

He stood on the bridge, quietly watching the rushing Yi River water below.

After seeing the situation at the internet cafe, Lin Xiaosu felt a certain understanding for his mother. As parents, wanting their son to have a legitimate profession was not only about providing for the family, but also because there were too many idle ruffians in society.

His mother worried he would become one of them.

If Lin Xiaosu hadn't stumbled upon a fortunate encounter, would he have truly become one of them?

Who could say?

In modern society, the job market is too severe. Every sector is highly competitive, competing with colleagues, with other industries, and even with machines. Technology is constantly advancing, and robots are widely used. It used to be difficult to find a good job, but now ordinary people's jobs are being squeezed out by machines, leading to widespread unemployment. If people can't earn money, what else is there but to seek illusory satisfaction in the game world?

He walked along the sidewalk, ate breakfast, and upon returning to Fengshan Police Station, he saw Zhou Mei and Miao Ruolan chatting in the reception room.

Seeing him, Zhou Mei smiled, "It's been confirmed, the great detective has scored another success!"

"So? Are you going to do what you promised me?" Lin Xiaosu asked with a smile.

Zhou Mei replied, "Sun Yang is already handling it. Also, Captain Zhang has made calls to everyone at the key checkpoints. Your license should be fully processed within three days at most!"

"Captain Zhang personally handled it?" Lin Xiaosu was a little surprised. In his impression, Captain Zhang always had a cold demeanor. He had met him a few times, and each time he hadn't received a pleasant look.

He found it hard to imagine such a person asking favors for someone.

Zhou Mei smiled, her eyebrows curving into crescent moons, "Captain Zhang, he has a face like a coffin, but that's for professional reasons. As a captain of criminal investigation, he needs the special ability to suppress all sorts of trouble with just his face. He actually admires you very much... Don't worry about the license. I'll deliver it to you myself in three days!"

"Thanks!"

Zhou Mei said, "If you really want to thank me, just help me with a few more cases in the future..."

Lin Xiaosu scratched his head, "I suddenly realized, this was actually your agreement with me, a fair return for this case. As of now, we seem to be even."

Zhou Mei shot him a look and smiled. Miao Ruolan also smiled...

After Zhou Mei finished laughing, she picked up her teacup. "Setting up a detective agency requires more than just a license. Do you want me to introduce you to a place for rent?"

"Do you have a suitable one?"

"There's a place. Whether it's suitable or not, you can judge for yourself," Zhou Mei said.

She gave Lin Xiaosu a phone number.

When the call connected, a woman named Cui answered. She owned a shop next to the Duangiao Commercial Center and could meet them there if they were genuinely interested in renting.

In Duangiao, Lin Xiaosu and Miao Ruolan met Ms. Cui. She was around forty years old, still possessing a captivating charm. Seeing Lin Xiaosu, she smiled amiably. The shop behind her was already open. As they walked inside, Lin Xiaosu and Miao Ruolan's hearts pounded. It was perfect!

It was practically tailor-made for them.

The storefront didn't look large from the outside, only about four to five meters wide, but it was very deep inside. It was also exquisitely and cleanly decorated, with a computer on a desk. The second floor was for living, with three bedrooms, a bathroom, and even a kitchen.

There was even air conditioning!

And a kettle for boiling water!

It was truly a place where you could just move in with your bags.

Sister Cui introduced it as the former tenant's place, a studio that started in Fengcheng. Later, their business grew, and Fengcheng couldn't contain their ambitions, so they moved to Jiangcheng.

They felt this place was their lucky spot for starting out and didn't want to damage it, so they generously gave everything inside to Sister Cui, including the air conditioning and computers, without dismantling anything.

Lin Xiaosu and Miao Ruolan exchanged glances, seeing the word "satisfied" in each other's eyes...

Managing a storefront wasn't easy.

Choosing a location, decorating, and purchasing necessary office and living supplies – it sounded simple, but in reality, it was a mess of details.

Having a ready-made place in front of them saved them so much trouble!

The only issue now was the price.

This was an old commercial area, and rent had always been relatively high. It was only in recent years, with the rise of e-commerce and the mass closure of physical stores, that renting out physical storefronts had become more difficult. But regardless of the difficulty, a place like this should cost at least 3,000 yuan per month.

Sister Cui smiled gently, "It's not easy for you young couple to start a business. I won't charge you a high price either. It's the same as ten years ago, 2,000 yuan per month, how about it?"

"Young couple?"

Lin Xiaosu quickly explained, "Sister Cui, we are... classmates!"

"Oh, I misjudged. My apologies..."

Miao Ruolan, with a blushing face, haggled with her. Perhaps because the rent was clearly not high, she couldn't bring herself to haggle too aggressively. She symbolically cut the price by 200 yuan, and they settled on 1,800 yuan.

With the contract signed, their detective agency took another significant step forward.

By lunchtime, the two had a new discovery in the nearby mall. The mall had a canteen that was open to the public, with dishes categorized into low, medium, and high price ranges. The low-end option, an eight-yuan bento box, was practically the same price as buying groceries and cooking themselves.

This was understandable. Cooking involved buying ingredients like rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, all of which cost money. Here, although they didn't earn much, they relied on volume and sold at a small profit.

Now, even their meal problem was solved.

When they went to the mall to buy bedding and returned to their newly rented place, Miao Ruolan was very excited. She brewed Lin Xiaosu a cup of tea and, resting her chin on her hand, asked him, "Will that license really be processed so smoothly?"

"It should be!"

Small towns were different from big cities.

Big cities emphasized management rules, while small cities, to a large extent, still operated on personal connections.

Going out for a stroll, you'd bump into familiar faces from almost every profession. A quick greeting, a chance to ask around for news, it's incredibly convenient. Why do parents in some rural areas hope their children get jobs in the system? Sometimes it's just for the convenience of getting things done.

The same things that are as difficult as climbing to heaven for ordinary people.

But for those who know the inner workings or have acquaintances working in a certain department, it's much easier.

This isn't favoritism, nor is it an unwritten rule.

This is just the basic principle of how things get done…

Think about it, they're familiar with the procedures, know the key points of each position, and can give a heads-up in advance to avoid detours. Can that be considered favoritism?

This is just handling things efficiently!

This is why Captain Zhang could get the license issued sooner after making a few calls.

This is also why Zhou Mei's phone number allowed Lin Xiaosu to find the most suitable rental, because she had resources, making it easier to succeed than you stumbling around everywhere.

Three days later, Zhou Mei delivered the business license. On the fourth day, a sign Lin Xiaosu had made for three hundred yuan was hung up.

"Fengcheng Detective Agency" in black letters on a white background.

Two flower baskets stood outside the door, one a gift from Zhou Mei, the other bought by Miao Ruolan herself.

She'd been walking with a spring in her step lately, her excitement as immense as the Yi River…

When registering, she had initially wanted to register it under Lin Xiaosu's name alone, feeling that working for him was enough. But after receiving the business license and seeing the equity registration certificate within, she held a 50% stake. This was an official document, a proportion fixed by legal procedures.

Zhou Mei said this was Lin Xiaosu's insistence.

Now it was a done deal.

Therefore, this detective agency became her new home!

She resolved to make her work worthy of this share.

She wasn't proficient in the detective agency's business, so she had to learn!

Meanwhile, the agency's finances, logistics, and internal affairs naturally fell to her.

From the very beginning, this detective agency had a very typical style: Lin Xiaosu handled external affairs, and she handled internal matters.

Looking at the registration form on the computer screen, Miao Ruolan still felt a little nervous. Detective work was uncharted territory even in the most cutting-edge cities; would there really be any business in this small county town?

What if no clients ever showed up?

Suddenly, a woman rushed in, "My baby is lost, can you help me find him?"

Miao Ruolan's heart leaped: "Big sister, for a lost child, you should report it to the police first."

For a detective agency, routine investigations, such as lost pets, cheating spouses, or hidden matters, were generally inconvenient to report to the police. But a major incident like a lost child could absolutely be handled by reporting it, so Miao Ruolan's first suggestion was the correct one.

The woman panicked: "I already reported it! The police said not to waste their resources on finding cats and dogs… they actually suggested I find you! If you don't take the case, I'll report you for shirking your responsibilities…"

Miao Ruolan frowned: "Big sister, didn't you say your baby was lost?"

"The dog I raise, I treat it like my son, is that not allowed? You're just a young girl with no experience, babbling annoyingly. Get your person in charge out here!"

The woman plopped down on the sofa, her ample body jiggling, revealing the dazzling array of necklaces and bracelets on her wrists.

"Please have a seat for a moment, big sister, and have some tea! I'll go get him right away." Miao Ruolan poured her a cup of tea and offered it to her.

The woman glanced at it dismissively: "I only drink 'Fusang Tea'; you can keep this tea!"

Fusang, an island nation neighboring Great Xia, harbored a deep-seated enmity with Great Xia, yet its tea was renowned in affluent circles. Drinking Fusang tea was a term exclusive to wealthy ladies, signifying a refined and high-class lifestyle.

"Ahem!" Lin Xiaosu descended the stairs from the second floor. "Madam, we can take this case, but the price is a bit high!"

"High price?" the woman sneered. "How high can it be? Here's 5,000 yuan! Is that enough?"

She took out her small purse and casually tossed 5,000 yuan onto the table, the red bills scattering everywhere.

Lin Xiaosu: "5,000 yuan, that's actually not enough!"