Reform

Half an hour later, the owners of the various casinos, brothels, taverns, and inns in Happy Forest gathered in the main hall of Drunken Moon Pavilion. They exchanged greetings with cupped hands, all wearing expressions of bitterness.

In their line of business, paying protection money to gangs every month was standard, but had anyone ever seen it paid three times in a single month?

At the start of this month, Happy Forest had belonged to the Green Bamboo Gang, and they had already paid once.

As soon as that payment was settled, the Flying Eagle Gang seized control of Happy Forest.

After being squeezed by that greedy wretch Liu Sandao, they were already bleeding, and now that Su Xin had arrived, they expected another massive loss.

"Boss Liu, Boss Huang, you two arrived early today. Have you heard what kind of person this Boss Su is?" someone asked the two owners sitting in the front row.

Among these merchants, the wealthiest was Boss Liu, who ran the brothels; Drunken Moon Pavilion was his property.

Next was Boss Huang, who ran the casinos; his Shunde Casino was ranked in the top five across the entire Changning Prefecture.

Although Boss Liu ran brothels, he possessed a refined and upright appearance.

Despite being middle-aged, at first glance, he looked more like a scholar teaching at an academy than a brothel owner dealing in flesh and blood.

As for Boss Huang, he was short and stout; while he looked like a wealthy man, his face was etched with deep resentment.

His casino raked in gold daily, but he had been heavily fleeced by Liu Sandao previously, and he had no idea how Su Xin would squeeze him this time.

Faced with the crowd's inquiries, Boss Liu smiled and remained silent, but Boss Huang said viciously, "Who knows what kind of character he has? He's certainly no good; I heard he just beat the owner of Wang's Pharmacy into a cripple."

The crowd exchanged glances; this new boss did not seem like someone easy to deal with.

However, they were not worried that Su Xin would lay a hand on them; their status was different from that of Fatty Wang, who ran the pharmacy.

They had large businesses and hundreds of subordinates relying on them for food, making them influential figures within Changning Prefecture.

If the Flying Eagle Gang dared to beat or maim them at will, the repercussions would be too great, and the authorities would not sit idly by.

"Boss Su has arrived!"

A shout from a gang member outside the door interrupted the owners' wandering thoughts.

Watching the young and handsome Su Xin walk into the hall, the owners felt a sense of awkwardness.

Su Xin was simply too young; having to call a man under twenty "Boss" felt very strange to them.

But even if it felt awkward, they had to endure it. Su Xin was not just a minor leader in charge of Happy Forest; he was also the godson of Third Master Hu.

Ji Gang and the cold-faced Li Huai, who followed behind him, were there because Third Master Hu had sent them to back Su Xin up.

"Gentlemen, I am Su Xin. As I have just taken charge of Happy Forest, I ask for your continued support."

Su Xin took his seat at the head of the table, smiling and cupping his hands toward everyone in a friendly manner.

The owners secretly glanced at Boss Huang; this Boss Su seemed quite decent, not as vicious as you described—at least much better than the previous Liu Sandao.

Liu Sandao had been suppressed for years, and once he gained power, he acted like a petty man who had finally made it, his attitude being incredibly arrogant.

"Hehe, Boss Su is too polite. In the future, we will have to rely on you to protect us," replied Boss Liu of Drunken Moon Pavilion with a chuckle.

"Boss Liu is too kind. As the saying goes, if you take someone's money, you must resolve their troubles. Since we have taken your protection money, how could the Flying Eagle Gang let anyone bully you?"

Upon hearing this, the owners thought to themselves: Bully us? If you Flying Eagle Gang members don't bully us, we'll be thanking the heavens.

At this point, Su Xin suddenly changed the subject. "Speaking of protection money, there is actually something I would like to discuss with everyone today."

Hearing this, all the owners thought simultaneously: Finally, we are getting to the point.

In truth, they had already guessed why Su Xin had summoned them; it was for one thing: money.

As the saying goes, a new emperor brings new courtiers. When the Green Bamboo Gang managed Happy Forest, the protection money was thirty taels a month.

Later, when Liu Sandao took over, it became fifty taels.

Now that Su Xin had arrived, although this young boss looked friendly, his appetite was likely not small.

Boss Huang said sarcastically, "I say, Boss Su, the rules of your Flying Eagle Gang are truly strange. You just set the protection money at the start of the month, and now you want to change it?"

His Shunde Casino raked in gold daily, and he had been squeezed quite hard by Liu Sandao recently.

Therefore, he was most sensitive to the words "protection money" and couldn't help but mock him.

However, he regretted it as soon as he spoke. The other party was, after all, a minor leader of the Flying Eagle Gang in charge of Happy Forest.

While he couldn't do anything to him openly, it would be very simple to make things difficult for him in private or even make it impossible for his business to survive in Happy Forest.

The simplest way would be to have a few gang members stand at the entrance of his casino and chase away every customer; within three days, his casino would be forced to close.

Fortunately, Su Xin did not hold it against him. He just glanced at him indifferently and continued, "Rules are made by people. If Liu Sandao could set them, why can't I, Su Xin? I have decided that from now on, I will waive everyone's protection money!"

As soon as Su Xin said this, everyone was stunned.

No protection money? Then what would Su Xin and his men eat and drink?

The Flying Eagle Gang did not pay monthly wages to their members; the money these members had came from their respective bosses, who were responsible for distributing it.

If there were no protection money, the sixty or seventy men under Su Xin would scatter in less than three days.

Boss Liu chuckled, "Boss Su, you are joking."

Su Xin shook his head. "I am not joking. I don't intend to collect protection money anymore, but I plan to collect it in a different way."

Hearing this, everyone understood, and at the same time, they felt a bit of disdain for Su Xin.

Same old wine in a new bottle—why bother with all that useless talk? Do you think changing the method makes you stand out?

"Boss Su, please explain what kind of method you have in mind." Boss Liu followed up, knowing when to play along.

Su Xin stood up and said, "It's simple. I want a ten percent stake in all of your businesses, with monthly dividends."

The moment these words left his mouth, the entire room was stunned.

No one had expected Su Xin's appetite to be this massive; he opened with a demand for a ten percent stake.

To call such greed "lion-like" would be an understatement!

Ji Gang, standing behind Su Xin, still wore his habitual smile, though his thoughts remained unreadable.

Li Huai, however, showed no expression at all, maintaining his deadpan face as if he hadn't heard a word Su Xin said.

Meanwhile, Huang Bingcheng, guarding the door, felt a surge of secret anxiety.

Su Xin hadn't given him the slightest hint of this beforehand. Had he known Su Xin would pull this, he certainly would have stopped him.

"Boss Su, you aren't joking, are you?" Boss Liu managed to squeeze out a strained smile.

For these establishments, especially the casinos and brothels, the monthly net profit could reach over ten thousand taels during peak times.

By that math, a ten percent stake would be one thousand taels—dozens of times higher than the usual protection money. This was practically cutting the flesh right off their bones!

Boss Huang let out a cold snort. "Boss Su, they say greed knows no bounds. I, Old Huang, have been in Changning Prefecture for many years, and I've never heard of such a rule! Even the Three Heroes Association, the strongest among the Three Gangs and Four Associations, has never demanded a stake in our businesses!"

If Su Xin went through with this, he would be the one hit hardest.

Because his Shunde Casino made the most money, he would naturally have to pay out more than the other merchants.

Su Xin pressed his hands down, signaling everyone to stay calm.

"Listen to me first. I'm not taking these stakes for nothing; I have a way to double your monthly profits."

Hearing this, the bosses curled their lips, clearly unconvinced.

Boss Huang added with a sarcastic tone, "Oh? Boss Su has such skills? I've been in the business world for decades, and even I wouldn't dare make such a claim."

Su Xin ignored him and looked at Boss Liu. "Boss Liu, I heard your Drunken Moon Pavilion used to be the largest and most luxurious brothel in Changning Prefecture. Why is it that it can no longer compare to the ones in the center of the city?"

Boss Liu gave a bitter laugh and explained, "It's all because of the capital relocation. Back when our Changning Prefecture was the capital, the central districts like Changde Ward were the location of the Imperial City. They had to maintain appearances, so casinos and brothels were strictly forbidden.

Because of that, everyone opened their casinos and brothels in the peripheral Joyful District to entertain the children of the nobility and the wealthy merchants. Even the name 'Joyful District' came from that.

But after His Majesty moved the capital, Changning Prefecture didn't have those restrictions anymore. Several large casinos and brothels gradually popped up in places like Changde Ward.

Since the conditions are similar on both sides, people naturally choose places closer to home rather than riding a carriage for half an hour to get to the Joyful District.

If it weren't for the nostalgic customers who still visit, I'm afraid the Joyful District wouldn't even be able to keep the Happy Forest running."

The other bosses present nodded; they had lived through that era and naturally understood the situation.

You could say they rose because of the Joyful District, and they fell because of it.

After the Great Zhou Dynasty moved the capital, some shrewd people had already bought land and built buildings in districts near the center like Changde Ward. By the time the others realized it, there wasn't even enough land left there to build an outhouse.

Su Xin sat down, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the table. "Boss Liu explained it very clearly. The decline of the Joyful District fundamentally comes down to two words: location.

Because the location is remote, when the scale and decor of both sides are the same, customers rarely go out of their way. Since that's the case, why hasn't anyone thought of reform?"

"Reform? Reform with what?"

Boss Huang scoffed, "Our current scale is already about as large as it gets in Changning Prefecture. Even if we invested more capital into renovations, it would only be a marginal improvement.

Such a small advantage wouldn't attract a large influx of customers, and we'd likely never even earn back the cost of the renovations!"

Su Xin shook his head. "I'm not talking about redecorating. I'm talking about reorganizing the Happy Forest through service."

Service?

The bosses exchanged glances, feeling unfamiliar with the term.

"Our Happy Forest is filled with casinos, brothels, taverns, and inns. To put it bluntly, we only provide four things: food, drink, entertainment, and lodging.

But we aren't doing enough; we haven't allowed our customers to experience the most convenient service.

If a customer is gambling in a casino and has a girl by his side, I believe he will be much more generous when placing his bets.

If he wins, he'll tip the girls; if he loses, the girls will offer soft words of comfort to help him regain his fighting spirit.

And when they're tired of gambling, the food and wine from the tavern can be served at a moment's notice, right there.

When they're finally exhausted, the inn is right behind them. They won't need to rush home; they can just stay right here in the Happy Forest.

So, my idea is to break up all the shops in the Happy Forest and reorganize them so that every casino is surrounded by a brothel, a tavern, and an inn.

Whatever a customer wants to do, they can get it done in the shortest amount of time."

As Su Xin finished speaking, the bosses were stunned. Then, they all slapped their thighs—why hadn't they thought of this idea themselves?

In fact, some customers had done this before—going to a brothel to find a group of girls before heading to the casino to play.

However, only the most extravagant customers would do that.

The Happy Forest was a long street, after all; walking from one end to the other took a quarter of an hour, and the girls charged double for traveling such a distance.

And the reason Boss Huang's Shunde Casino was so popular wasn't just because of its scale, but because the Drunken Moon Pavilion was right next door.

In truth, this tactic of Su Xin's was nothing new; many large casinos abroad in his past life operated exactly this way. To put it simply, it boiled down to four words: customer is king.

The many bosses present had navigated the business world for years, and not one of them was a fool. With Su Xin's slight hint, they understood immediately.

Boss Liu asked cautiously, "If that is the case, wouldn't some of us have to relocate our shops and move to different spots?"

Su Xin nodded. "That is necessary. However, the land in Happy Forest was planned out in advance, and the plots are all roughly the same size. Swapping them won't leave any of you at a disadvantage; the only difference between your storefronts is the decor."

"You all have vast estates and deep pockets; you should be able to afford the silver for a renovation. Besides, you can move the items from your original shops into the new ones. I believe this is an expense you can all manage."

The bosses pondered this for a moment, and all felt a stir of interest.

If it were merely a matter of redecorating, it would be nothing but throwing money into a pit with no hope of a return.

But if they added Su Xin's plan into the mix, a turnaround was very possible.

Huang Bingcheng, standing beside Su Xin, hurriedly handed him a cup of tea.

He was truly convinced by his boss now; with such a sharp business mind, if Su Xin had gone into commerce, he might have even driven all the bosses present out of business.

Ji Gang, standing behind Su Xin, also wore a look of shock. It seemed he had still underestimated Su Xin.