Pang Ban noticed the commotion and hurried over to maintain order.
After learning what had happened, he faced the two people who had cut in line with a cold expression, pointed toward the end of the line, and spat out two words: "Get in line!"
Then he pointed at Li Xiang. "You, shut up!"
If Li Xiang had discussed it properly with the people behind him, everyone would have understood, and Pang Ban could have turned a blind eye.
But since he had failed to prepare in advance and then tried to force his way in, making the other party uncomfortable, Pang Ban could only handle the matter according to the rules!
The fat man recognized Pang Ban and secretly nudged his colleague to signal him. Seeing that Li Xiang still wanted to argue and save face, he quickly whispered something in his ear and gave him a meaningful look. Li Xiang obediently went to the back of the line.
Li Xiang looked up and saw Pang Ban's narrowed eyes. His whole body shuddered. He had never met Pang Ban, but he had heard about the man's exploits. Supposedly, Pang Ban had come out of prison and had killed someone before. Anyone who caused trouble at Pentium Internet Cafe supposedly left with few limbs intact. The rumors were wildly exaggerated, but there was no need to risk his own safety just to verify them.
He opened his mouth, then forcibly swallowed the words that had reached his lips. The anger that had been blazing inside him was extinguished by a bucket of cold water.
Forget it. There's no point arguing with them. Endure a moment, and all will be calm.
Then he thought about it again. With someone like this guarding Pentium Internet Cafe, the sense of security was absolutely top-notch.
Earlier, at New Century Internet Cafe, Li Xiang had personally witnessed a high school student who had rented a room overnight being dragged away by some gangsters and extorted for money, while the internet cafe manager simply looked on without doing anything.
After this little incident, Pentium Internet Cafe instead left the people around them with an excellent impression of being reliable and fair.
Half an hour later, Li Xiang finally made it from outside the building to inside.
There was a whole other world inside. He still had to go upstairs, and after that the path curved into a U-shaped loop. Everywhere he looked, there were people packed together.
There were actually another twenty or thirty people ahead of him!
Damn, this is seriously screwing me over.
Li Xiang and the others only had an hour and a half for their lunch break. The line would probably take an hour. Forget going online—even eating lunch would be difficult.
He turned around to look behind him, but he couldn't even see the end of the line. How had he never noticed that there were so many rich people around?
There was nothing he could do but keep waiting. He had already lined up this far—what else could he do, leave?
How did this place get so popular?
Seeing computer magazines on both sides of the stairs, Li Xiang picked up one with content related to Legend and started flipping through it to pass the time.
Another half hour passed before it was finally his turn.
Behind the counter stood a handsome young man who looked like a celebrity.
"Hello. How much would you like to recharge? The different recharge tiers and their bonus amounts are listed here." The handsome young man pointed to a clear chart on the counter showing the recharge amounts and membership cards.
Li Xiang had originally planned to recharge 500 yuan, but after waiting in line for so long, he wasn't sure whether such a generous promotion would ever happen again. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Recharge 1,000!" He pulled ten one-hundred-yuan bills from his wallet and handed them over.
Xu Pengkun took the money and passed it to Chen Hao behind him. Then he shouted, "One new Diamond Member~~~~" dragging out the final syllable.
Hearing that, Li Xiang unconsciously straightened up a little. He felt incredibly proud.
Chen Hao took out a new card, entered the card number and recharge amount into the membership system, and then handed the card to Xu Pengkun.
Xu Pengkun accepted the card, turned around, and presented it with both hands.
"Congratulations. You've become the sixth Diamond Member of our internet cafe. From now on, you'll receive a 20% discount on internet usage. The card has been loaded with 1,200 yuan. Please keep it safe.
"From now on, all payments must be made with this card. We recognize the card, not the person. There are no refunds or replacements, so please take good care of it."
Li Xiang accepted a small silver-white card. In the lower-right corner was the membership number: 00168.
Pretty lucky.
Clinging to a sliver of hope, he asked, "Are there any computers available now?"
Xu Pengkun looked apologetic. "Sorry, all the computers are occupied. The current queue number is 21. You can wait in the waiting area over there. There are some snacks and various board games to help pass the time."
"Oh, okay~"
Li Xiang walked over and took a lap around the waiting area. It was already packed with people waiting to get online. They sat in groups of two or three, either playing board games, playing cards, reading game guides, or chatting and joking around.
The service at this internet cafe was pretty good. Unlike other internet cafes, where you could only stand around once all the seats were taken.
After Li Xiang left, Xu Pengkun called out, "Next~~~"
The same process repeated itself as they signed up several more members, most of whom recharged between 100 and 300 yuan.
Oh, a young beauty. You don't see those very often.
Xu Pengkun put on what he considered a suave smile, his eyes seeming to sparkle with romance. In a gentle voice, he asked, "Miss, are you here to recharge and get a membership card?"
Looking at the handsome young man's brilliant smile, the young woman's face flushed slightly. In a soft voice, she said, "Recharge 300~ No, recharge 500!"
As she spoke, she pulled five one-hundred-yuan bills from her purse.
"I'd be delighted to serve you. Please wait a moment."
After finishing the membership card, Xu Pengkun didn't just call out the new membership. He also attached a small slip of paper to the card. "This is my phone number. If you have any problems with the card, contact me anytime. Xu Pengkun is at your service, on standby twenty-four hours a day~"
Chen Hao caught sight of this from behind and chuckled. Xu Pengkun's role as the receptionist was finally proving its worth.
This is the proper way to put the headliner to work.
Not long afterward,
"Boss, you're generous! One new Supreme Member~~~~" Xu Pengkun's voice rang out through the internet cafe. His volume was several notches higher than usual, and his clear voice echoed throughout the entire venue.
It immediately sparked discussion among the people nearby.
"Holy crap, who's that loaded? I remember a Supreme Member costs 5,000 yuan, right~?"
"Isn't that the truth? Five thousand yuan could buy a computer, couldn't it? Anyone who plays here after spending that much must have something wrong with them."
"That's different. My family has a computer too, but I like the atmosphere at an internet cafe. A few people playing together and shouting at each other—you can't experience that at home."
"Isn't that the guy? I know him. His family owns a factory, and he's Not Bad Money. I heard he bought the first Staff of Judgment around here. Supposedly, he paid 10,000 yuan for it."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. The world of the rich is truly crazy."
The center of attention was a thin man wearing glasses, casually playing with the best Nokia phone available on the market.
He accepted the card and looked at the number, 00001. Clearly satisfied, he casually asked, "Are there any seats available now?"
Before Xu Pengkun could refuse, Chen Hao personally attended to the current top spender. "We're fully occupied at the moment. However, since you've become a Supreme Member of our internet cafe, you don't need to wait in the regular queue. You'll be placed in the separate Supreme queue. As soon as someone logs off, you'll be next. Please wait over there for the moment."
The skinny man blinked. Huh? This place was surprisingly considerate. He instantly felt that the internet cafe operated on an entirely different level. Then he thought, Of course. What kind of status do they have? How could they possibly be qualified to stand in line with me? Following Chen Hao's directions, he strolled over to the exclusive waiting area beside the counter reserved for Supreme Members.
The others felt somewhat uncomfortable, but no one objected. After all, those who could spend 5,000 yuan in cash were the real big shots. Even banks had VIP lines!
One person handled the outside, while two handled the inside. The three worked together seamlessly.
Under the unending assault of money, they were full of energy and excitement, having long since forgotten what fatigue was.
When Chen Hao saw that the internet cafe's cash box was already full, he immediately opened his backpack, emptied out everything inside, and prepared to continue loading it with money. They were truly using sacks to hold cash.
At 2 p.m., the line for membership cards finally disappeared, and the three of them were finally able to catch their breath.
Xu Pengkun patted his own face. "Damn, by the end, I'd been smiling so much my face went numb."
Old Ban brought some food up from the shop downstairs, and the three of them gathered behind the counter to dig in.
They each talked about what had happened that morning.
There were still more than twenty people waiting in the waiting area to get online. One should never underestimate the enthusiasm and perseverance of the internet users of this era.
Before you continue