Chapter 9: 9: Bargaining skills? What is that.

Benny’s gaze drifted toward the conference area once more.

"Meeting table," he murmured.

Then, internally he asked the system what the purchase limit for the meeting table was.

[System Evaluation Complete]

[Meeting table purchase approved.]

[Recommended conference table: ¥12,800]

He paused for a moment and hold his breath. For the first time after entering, the system wasn’t being stingy for once.

"Any meeting tables around ¥12,000?" he asked right away. He had to strike while the iron was hot, lest the system suddenly changed its mind.

The salesgirl immediately nodded.

"Yes, sir. We do have a few options in that range."

She guided him toward the conference section, her tone becoming more detailed as she explained.

"This one is ¥11,900. It’s a standard rectangular design, very stable, suitable for formal meetings."

She moved slightly to the side.

"This one is ¥12,200. It has a slightly upgraded finish and reinforced legs for heavier setups."

Finally, she gestured to a darker wood table with a smooth polished surface.

"And this one is ¥12,500. It’s our most refined option in this range—better polish, smoother edges, and a more premium look overall."

Benny didn’t hesitate for long.

"...I’ll take this one."

He pointed directly at the ¥12,500 table.

The salesgirl paused for half a beat, then smiled and nodded.

"Understood."

She quickly marked it down on the order sheet, her handwriting moving steadily as the list of furniture kept growing longer and more expensive.

Benny, on the other hand, simply exhaled quietly.

She guided him through the final selections, her tone steady and professional as she confirmed each item.

"Ten desks.

Ten chairs.

One meeting table."

Benny gave a small nod. "That’s all."

She tapped a few more times on her tablet.

A soft chime followed as the total was calculated. Looking up, she offered a polite, practiced smile.

"Your total comes to ¥21,000, sir."

"Will you be paying in cash or card?"

"Card," Benny replied, already pulling it out and handing it over.

She accepted it with both hands and turned toward the payment terminal. Everything proceeded smoothly, until, just as she was about to process the payment, her fingers paused.

She glanced back at him, a hint of curiosity slipping into her expression.

"Sir... Benny, was it?" she asked.

He frowned slightly. "Yes?"

"Do you... perhaps know someone named Sarah?"

Benny blinked. "Sarah? From a café?"

Her eyes lit up. "Yes! That’s right. My name is Annie—I’m a good friend of hers. She mentioned you yesterday."

The moment those words left her mouth, a faint, inexplicable chill crept up Benny’s spine.

An ominous feeling settled in his chest. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

And then it came, the news came with a huge smiled attached on her face.

"Since you’re friends with Sarah, I can give you a 20% discount on your purchase today."

A discount? And 20% at that... do you hate me? Did I do something to offend you?

Those were the first thoughts that flashed through Benny’s mind.

Outwardly, his expression tightened, and his tone grew tense.

"No need," Benny said quickly. "Just charge the original amount."

Annie blinked, caught off guard.

"Uh, sir... it’s a discount," she clarified gently, thinking he might have misheard.

But Benny doubled down.

"I won’t repeat myself a second time."

For a brief moment, confusion flickered across her face but professionalism quickly took over. She straightened and gave a small nod.

"...As you say, sir."

She turned back to the terminal and completed the payment without another word.

In her line of work, she had seen all kinds of customers, wealthy elites, shameless show-offs, even persistent flirts.

But this one?

She couldn’t place him at all.

Because for all his firmness... she had clearly seen that flicker of genuine fear in his eyes the moment she mentioned the word discount.

What the heck... why are rich people always so weird? she thought.

Benny silently watched her get back to work.

Then he suddenly remembered something.

"Do you also do delivery and setup?"

The salesgirl nodded immediately.

"Yes, sir. We provide full transportation, installation, and arrangement services."

Benny’s eyes lit up slightly.

"Good."

He tapped a finger against the list of furniture.

"How much will it cost to transfer all of this and have it delivered to Building No. 69 on Dog Street?"

The salesgirl lowered her gaze, fingers moving swiftly across her tablet.

"For standard delivery and full setup..." she murmured under her breath.

A few seconds passed before she looked up again.

"It will be an additional ¥4,800, sir."

Benny nodded without hesitation.

"Good. Add that to the list."

With that, his total expenditure came to ¥25,800.

He couldn’t have been happier. In less than two days, he’d already spent nearly half a million yuan.

Now, there was only 820¥ left in the system funds... and ¥8,000 of that was meant to be Neo’s salary.

[Ding! Dong!

Neo does not possess the required skills to qualify for a monthly salary of ¥8,000.]

"...Huh?" Benny halted mid-step.

He had already said ¥8,000 in front of Uncle Shen and Aunty Luo last night.

So what now?

Was he supposed to pay Neo out of his own pocket?

What am I gonna eat if I pay him 8000¥ when I don’t even have 7000¥. Should I not pay him this time?

Sure, Neo was rich but refusing to pay him just because of that... that would be downright scummy.

"I can probably pay him after the café loses a bit more money..." he muttered.

Then he immediately shook his head.

"No, no. I can’t go around wishing for losses like that..."

A moment later, his expression shifted again, a sly grin spreading across his face.

"But it’s already operating on a loss, I can get more funds next month and invest even more into Golden Spoon Café... let it snowball into my personal wealth..."

"Hehehe..."

As he stood there grinning to himself, a child passing by tugged at his mother’s sleeve.

"Mom, look... a weird guy."

The mother quickly hushed the child and pulled them along.

"If you don’t study, you’ll end up like him."