A Way to Break the Deadlock?
"You're not planning to change the name?" Kong Baosheng asked in surprise.
When others bought a shop, they couldn't wait to throw away all the things from the previous closed shop, deeply afraid those things would bring bad luck. But Chen Ling spent two hundred thousand to buy the Theater House, not only making no renovations but even keeping the original name... This puzzled Kong Baosheng.
"No need to change it, changing the name also requires changing the plaque." Chen Ling casually found an excuse. "I only have two hundred thousand on me in total. Now I have no money to buy those things, everything has to be kept simple... Besides, the original name is not bad, so let's continue to use it."
Kong Baosheng scratched his head. Seeing Chen Ling pay so readily last night, he thought he was incredibly rich. Now it seemed Mr. Lin's life wasn't easy either... He probably bet all his family property on this Theater House.
"Then, then I'll go hang it up."
Kong Baosheng carefully cleaned the plaque and walked out the door carrying it. Just as he reached the entrance, three people walked in head-on and almost bumped right into him!
Carrying the plaque, Kong Baosheng subconsciously dodged to the side. His center of gravity was unsteady, and he pitched headfirst onto the ground.
"Fuck, what the hell?"
Chen Ling, who was drinking porridge, looked up and saw a figure wearing a purple shirt standing outside the door, followed by two tall and burly men in black Suits who looked like bodyguards.
The figure in the purple shirt furrowed his brows, his gaze falling on Kong Baosheng who had fallen to the ground, and clicked his tongue.
"Kid, what's wrong? Not welcoming us?"
"Boss Li?" When Kong Baosheng saw that face clearly, he was taken aback for a moment, then as if thinking of something, hurriedly climbed up from the ground.
"Not bad, you cleaned it quite well." Boss Li's gaze swept over the Theater House, lingered briefly on Chen Ling, and then carelessly moved away. With his hands behind his back, he led the two bodyguards into the Theater House and began casually sightseeing.
Seeming to notice Chen Ling's confused gaze, Kong Baosheng quickly walked to Chen Ling's side and whispered:
"This is the boss of the Great World Cabaret diagonally opposite, surnamed Li. The person I told you about before who was also looking at this Theater House is him..."
Chen Ling remembered. Last night Kong Baosheng did say that, but at the time he thought it was just a means for the boy to drive up the price and didn't think much of it.
"Mr. Lin, please give me a little time, I will explain it to him clearly."
After saying that, Kong Baosheng took a deep breath and walked straight toward the three.
"Didn't I tell you though, I'm going to open a record store here. Even if you cleaned it so well now, it will still have to be demolished." Boss Li patted the dilapidated stage and said with some disgust.
"Boss Li..."
"I've considered the price you mentioned last time. A hundred thousand is still too high. With this crappy location and crappy renovation of yours, after buying it, it all has to be demolished and rebuilt, the cost is too high... So, seventy or eighty thousand is the max."
Boss Li gently waved his hand at the bodyguard behind him, who immediately took out a stack of banknotes and threw them on the stage.
Seeing this, Kong Baosheng opened his mouth to say something, but Boss Li continued:
"I know you're selling the building to cure your Grandmother's illness, but she's about to die anyway, what's the use of throwing more money at her? I say it's better for you to keep it for yourself. For a kid like you, seventy or eighty thousand is really a lot..."
Hearing this sentence, Kong Baosheng's gaze hardened, and he interrupted Boss Li in a deep voice:
"Sorry, Boss Li, this Theater House has already been sold."
Boss Li froze, then sneered:
"Are you kidding me? A crappy building like this, who else would buy it besides me?"
"Someone bought it." Kong Baosheng didn't explain much, just raised his hand and made a "please" gesture to the three. "Anyway, this Theater House has changed owners and will not be sold to the outside again... Boss Li, please go back."
Boss Li's eyes gradually narrowed. He stared at the boy's face for a long while, then looked at the man by the table whom he had previously ignored.
"I thought he was some distant relative of yours... So he is the one who bought the Theater House?"
Kong Baosheng didn't want to involve Chen Ling. He took a step to the side to block Boss Li's gaze and stubbornly continued to invite them out, but was impatiently pushed aside by Boss Li, who strode toward Chen Ling.
Boss Li dragged a stool, making a creaking sound as it scraped against the ground, and finally slammed it down beside Chen Ling with a thud, sitting down unhurriedly...
"Brother, you look quite young... Which path are you from?" Boss Li squinted and asked.
"Does it have anything to do with you?"
"Hehe, isn't this just fearing the flood washing away the Dragon King's temple... Let me introduce myself first. I am Mu Chunsheng's nephew from the Beidou Consortium, and the boss of the Great World Cabaret, Li Ruohong."
Beidou Consortium, Mu Chunsheng?
Hearing this name again after half a year, Chen Ling immediately recalled the old man sitting in a wheelchair flattering him endlessly back then, and casually glanced at Li Ruohong.
"Oh, and so?"
Looking at Chen Ling's expressionless face, Li Ruohong suddenly chuckled, "It seems you are not one of my Maternal Uncle's people. That makes things easy... I brought seventy thousand in banknotes today. How about you sell this Theater House to me?"
"Sorry, this place is not for sale."
"Oh? Then what kind of business do you plan to do after buying this Theater House and tearing it down?"
"The original business."
"Still opening a Theater House?" Li Ruohong laughed heartily, looking at Chen Ling as if looking at a fool. "Are you crazy, brother? Didn't you see what this Theater House looks like now? In this day and age, how many people are willing to come and watch you guys babble and sing operas? Are you stupid or just have too much money?"
Chen Ling had no expression whatsoever, his gaze on Li Ruohong calm as water. Their thoughts were not on the same level at all, and he couldn't be bothered to argue with this kind of person.
"If you don't sell the Theater House to me today, you can forget about doing this business." Li Ruohong directly tore off his friendly facade and smiled sinisterly. "Didn't you ask around to see who calls the shots on this street? As long as my Great World Cabaret exists for one day, don't even think about running this Theater House. I guarantee you won't have a single customer!"
"That would be wonderful."
Chen Ling's eyebrows raised. Just now he was worried that after hanging the plaque and opening for business, there would definitely be people coming to patronize, which meant he had to actually sing operas and run the business. He had to think of a way to solve the Casino's dilemma, where did he have the time to actually run a Theater House... Li Ruohong's threat was simply a godsend to him!
Li Ruohong was stunned. He seemed to doubt what he had heard, but when he saw Chen Ling's smiling face, he felt as if he was being looked down upon, and the anger in his heart instantly flared up.
"Good... You don't believe me, right? Just wait! If this Theater House of yours has even a single customer, I'll take your fucking surname!"
Li Ruohong slammed the table, glared fiercely at Chen Ling, turned around, and walked out of the Theater House, followed closely by his two bodyguards.
The Theater House fell into a dead silence.
Kong Baosheng's face was deathly pale, seemingly frightened by this scene. He looked anxiously at Chen Ling,
"I'm sorry, Mr. Lin, I'm really sorry... I didn't handle it well. Give me a little more time, I will definitely explain it clearly to Boss Li, I..."
"No, no need."
Chen Ling patted his shoulder. "You did very well, child."
After saying that, under Kong Baosheng's astonished gaze, Chen Ling walked straight up to the second floor and unhurriedly arrived at the handrail facing the street.
His gaze first swept over the Police Officers monitoring the Casino, then looked at the three people walking angrily back to the dance hall across the street. The extremely close Casino and dance hall were simultaneously reflected in Chen Ling's pupils, and an idea gradually emerged in his mind...
The corners of Chen Ling's mouth curled up unconsciously.
The Casino, the dance hall, the Dusk Society, the Police Officers...
"I think I know how to break this deadlock..." Standing on the second floor of the Theater House, looking down at the street below, Chen Ling unhurriedly took out a pen and paper from his pocket, and like a director about to arrange a play, slowly began to write.