Original subtitles

=No Pain No Gain= (Adapted from the Qidian novel)

("Losing Money to Be a Tycoon" by Qingshan Quzui)

=Episode 11= (This story is purely fictional.)

What's going on?

I think it's here.

I think this should be the place.

It looks like it.

Hello.

Did Lu Zhiyao

come to this farm before?

Farm?

Do you mean the garden?

Is this the private kitchen at Mingyun Villa?

Why isn't there a restaurant name?

Lu Zhiyao was here, right?

Lu Zhiyao was...

Look. It's this place!

Yao's farm is inside!

Yes!

Everyone!

This is the farm Lu Zhiyao visited!

(Lu Zhiyao)

Let's go!

Go!

What are you doing?

All of you!

No!

You can't come in!

All of you have no reservations!

No! You can't come in!

Someone!

Help!

Someone!

You can't make reservations today!

You can't come inside!

Stop!

♪Catch the vibe♪

Don't push me!

♪Feeling good♪

♪Feeling light♪

♪Into the atmosphere♪

♪It's how we make it♪

♪No matter how we shake it♪

♪Cause when we participate♪

♪The party always elevates♪

- Zhiyao is the best! - Zhiyao is the best!

- He aces every test! - He aces every test!

- Zhiyao is the best! - Zhiyao is the best!

You can't go inside!

We're closed!

Mr. Pei!

What's going on?

Mr. Pei, help!

Are you okay, Chef Lin?

Who are all these people?

Why did Lu Zhiyao

upload a photo

of himself at the private restaurant?

That's from a long time ago.

Zhongdian Web Fiction

hasn't been doing well,

and I noticed his fans

love his posts,

so I made a deal with him

and got him to upload a post.

He uploaded the post yesterday,

and it's trending until now.

Lu Zhiyao is reading again.

Nobody cares, okay?

Oh my god.

Top three.

He's a trendsetter.

He attracts views.

But his fame didn't benefit

Zhongdian Web Fiction.

Instead,

he managed to viralize the restaurant.

I guess my efforts didn't go to waste.

Yeah, good job.

His fans

don't look like bookworms to me.

They're into selfies and photos.

If Lu Zhiyao could go viral,

why not Shi Huo?

I think that guy's got potential.

Look at the comments.

It says,

"Isn't that the handsome genius

from the other class?"

"Hubby.

Those who say the stars look beautiful have never seen your eyes."

"Nonsense. Where are his eyes?"

They're arguing in the comments, look.

No, thanks.

That's too scary.

"If I knew he were in Jinchuan, I'd have gone there.

So, where's the private restaurant?"

(Mingyun Villa)

These netizens really found it?

They can search for anything.

Impressive.

No wonder Mr. Pei wasn't sad at all.

He even came to cheer us up.

He was banking on the restaurant.

He must have seen this coming.

He's good at holding surprises back.

Despite the challenges, he's built a successful restaurant.

I can't drag Tengda down.

I must find a way

to make my project succeed.

Bye.

Huang is right.

We can't let our game fall into hiatus.

No action, no progress.

There must be a way.

Let's get to work.

Come on.

Zhang Wang.

Even the restaurant is picking up.

We can't do worse than that, right?

We need to work hard.

What do you think the gym

and the phone booth have in common?

Call Tian Mo. We need to meet and discuss.

Goodness, what in the world is this?

They're trending again.

Pei Qian got Lu Zhiyao

to promote his nameless private kitchen.

I knew it.

He had an ulterior motive for venturing into showbiz.

Customers are actually flocking over to that deserted hill.

Did you see the news?

Yes.

In the era of information technology,

he's just heaping resources.

No.

No...

I think I get it.

This guy is deep.

He's not just heaping resources.

He's doing cross-industry marketing,

you know?

He's integrating resources.

Mr. Li Jr.

Are you sure Pei Qian thought of that?

Incredible.

Such heights.

No way.

I've already reached amazing heights,

and I never even thought of that.

Pei Qian.

What kind of heights have you reached?

Hello, this way.

So pretty.

Yeah.

Zhen.

Put this at the back.

(Loving Zhiyao is an attitude.)

Come on.

Selfie.

(No Photographing)

No photos.

Seriously, no photos?

They're crazy.

Let's go.

Excuse me.

Do you have a reservation?

Yes, we have.

Zhen, come here.

Usher the customers in.

Hello, this way.

Thank you.

Mr. Pei.

So,

our customers are very enthusiastic.

What's more,

they've been using the reservation system

as we asked.

This means they can accept

our current model.

This is great.

So,

should I report to you

our income for the past two days? Okay?

Mr. Pei, I can see

you're not in the mood to talk.

Enjoy some wine and fresh air.

Take a break.

I need to get back to work.

Zhiyao took that photo here!

It's here!

Come on!

(Zhiyao is the best!) Let's take some photos!

Come on!

(Zhiyao is the best, he aces every test!)

Li Shi?

Why are you looking at me like that?

You...

You saw through me?

Come on.

Was I too obvious?

You're here to spy on us?

No.

I noticed that you

have done a good job turning the tide,

so I'm here

to learn from you.

Mr. Li.

If you want

to replicate our business model,

as an honest businessman,

I must tell you responsibly

that our business model

cannot be replicated

because it's purely based on luck.

Mr. Pei, you're too modest.

As far as I know,

you've invested a lot

in this private restaurant.

If there's no substance,

why would you persist until now?

I'm telling you. Since I was a kid,

I've been studying MBA.

So, I can tell there's something here.

Mr. Li.

If you must

replicate our business model,

how about this?

Let's exchange numbers.

When you open your restaurant, I'll bring some friends over to support.

Mr. Pei, how generous of you.

Sure.

(Mingyun Villa)

(Multi-Front Loss Strategy: Staff Management,)

(DreamForge Capital, Games, Zhongdian Web Fiction)

(Privite Restaurant) I was too careless.

To think a puny person like Lu Zhiyao...

You're not going to ruin my plan.

Thank goodness

there are still Zhongdian Web Fiction,

DreamForge Capital,

and Returning to Shore,

steadily losing money.

Mr. Pei, bad news!

I'm telling you...

Are you okay?

Sit down.

There's a new private kitchen in town.

Oh.

Oh?

That's all you have to say?

It was called Ming House.

Lately, they renovated

and got renamed as Ming House Banquet.

They also have a vegetable and fish farm.

It's obvious that they're copying us.

Wait, let me call to confirm.

Call who?

Li Shi?

Since when did you add his number?

He...

Hello?

Mr. Li Jr., I wanted to ask

if Ming House Banquet

is yours?

Yeah, Mr. Pei.

You keep saying you don't care,

but you've been keeping an eye on us?

Who's keeping an eye on you?

Why would we?

Who are you?

Shameless!

What the heck?

You jerk!

No.

We're calling

to congratulate you.

Call you next time.

So,

since when did you become friends with him behind my back?

What do you mean?

He kept asking me about our restaurant,

so I figured out he's opening one, too.

Clever.

I realized that Li Shi

and Zhou Muyan are the same.

They're both copycats.

Shameless jerks.

Ming House Banquet?

More like Hell's Banquet!

Well...

Disgusting.

Let's get everyone

to go there.

It's time for me

to settle some scores with them.

I'm going to gather our comrades

in DreamForge Capital.

Got it!

Congratulations, Mr. Gao!

Lucky catch!

Try catching another one.

Mr. Wang, what do you think?

You can fish your own fish and cook it here.

Isn't it a novel idea?

Not bad.

Pretty interesting.

(Welcome to Ming House) When a customer passes by...

Hello.

How many people are there in your group?

Don't ask.

They're not here to eat.

Li Shi!

Carry on.

What kind of look is that?

What are you doing?

Fighting for my rights.

What rights?

Let me remind you.

Is your

restaurant

copying

our

private

kitchen?

Ma Yang!

What's with that outfit?

We're here to eat.

Don't worry, Mr. Pei.

I'll get rid of him today!

I get it.

Pei Qian.

You brought these thugs here

to sabotage my place,

right?

I'm telling you, if that's the case,

we don't welcome you.

If you don't go,

I'll call the cops!

Mr. Li, you've gotten the wrong idea.

I'm here to congratulate you.

Don't move!

What? Don't move!

Congratulations, Mr. Li.

Here's hoping that your restaurant...

Will achieve great success.

Here's a token from me.

I hope you like it.

(Best Wishes)

What's going on?

I don't know.

(I miss you at Ming House)

I'm one!

I'm two!

I'm three!

I'm four!

I'm five!

Pei Qian's team

has such great camaraderie.

Yeah.

By the way,

you found out

that it was Pei Qian who took over

our gym, Xingniao?

Yeah.

DreamForge Capital, which bought the gym,

is owned by Pei Qian.

See, he's into

restaurants

and Internet cafes.

Both were profitable.

This shows that he's got substance.

When he noticed

Xingniao Gym was doing badly,

he automatically

took our problem into his hands.

Today,

my private banquet is open,

and he's here to support me.

I guess

he's not really that hostile

towards us.

I think so, too.

Hello?

Mr. Li Jr.

I just received news

that it was Pei Qian

who bought Xingniao Gym.

Is he

trying to rob us clean?

Muyan.

Your news travel slow.

Besides, I think your word choice

is inaccurate.

How is he robbing us clean?

In fact, he's doing us

a huge favor.

Mr. Li Jr., what do you mean?

You're getting the wrong idea.

Pei Qian.

You're constantly surprising me.

(We are finding a driver for you.)

Ma Yang.

Ma Yang.

We haven't talked for days.

Why are you so mad at me?

The Tang poet Bai Juyi wrote,

"Heaven and earth may cease to exist someday,

but this hatred shall remain indefinitely."

Ma Yang.

Listen to me.

Li Shi and I

are not what you think.

The Tang poet Yuan Zhen wrote,

"When you've seen the ocean,

even rivers would look like puddles."

Ma Yang.

I know you've been holding a grudge against Li Shi

because of the Internet cafe.

I went to his restaurant

simply because their food is expensive.

The Song poet Lu You wrote,

"In the palace you sit,

surrounded by wine and luxury.

The wind has thinned our love.

My nostalgia

has pained me for years.

Alas, alas, alas!"

The modern poet Ma Yang says,

I dedicated my heart

to the moon,

but the moon would rather

shine at the gutters.

(Game Over)

(Dead)

I have decided.

I will duke it out with Li Shi

in the venture capital industry.

Ma Yang.

Looks like you've been reading ancient poetry.

Ever since we developed Returning to Shore,

everyone in Tengda

has become more cultured.

So what?

After I finish this,

I'm going to write

a new investment proposal.

Tengda won't be just

making waves in poetry.

In the venture capital industry,

we'll beat the crap

out of Fuhui

and Li Shi.

I'll show them

who's the god-tier investor

in all of Jinchuan.

Nice!

Eat slowly.

Once you come up with a proposal,

I'll be behind you all the way.

But now,

we already have the phone booth project

and Sloth Gym.

DreamForge's quota

for this quarter

has been used up.

Ms. Xin wouldn't approve new projects.

Otherwise, I would've let you invest more.

It's all because

our investments failed.

Don't be so pessimistic.

I told you.

You can't forge dreams overnight.

I will persist.

One day, you will see

your dreams blossom.

Exactly.

(Moving on to local news.)

(Let's look at the next story.)

(Lately, shared phone booths)

(built across Jinchuan)

(has become a sensation among youths,)

(turning into viral spots)

(on social media.)

(Its inventor Zhang Wang said)

(Jinchuan Phone Booths go viral) (he's glad to see his creation)

(Artisan Ice Cream) (provide a tranquil spot)

(Shared Phone Booth) (for the city's youths.)

Qian, you're right!

My dreams

have blossomed!

(Grilled Cold Noodles, 35 yuan)

What kind of grilled cold noodles would cost 35 yuan?

Sir.

Want to buy a bag?

Your girlfriend would love it.

Look at this.

Top quality

and trendy design.

Come on, I can give you a good deal.

(Artisan Ice Cream)

(Shared Phone Booth)

(Scan for Queue Number)

Dude.

Want to get a number?

What number?

For the phone booth.

30 yuan for one.

50 yuan for two, absolutely genuine.

There are even scalpers for this dumb phone booth?

Get me a number.

I've been coming for days,

and I haven't gotten one.

Me too.

Look at the line today.

I don't think I can get in.

Not to mention the other 18 booths over there.

The 18 booths over where?

At Fanshen Road. There are probably fewer people,

(Shared Phone Booth) but it's not ready yet.

I'll scan to pay.

For two?

Yes.

(Returning to Shore)

(Fanshen Road)

Excuse me.

Ruan Guangjian?

Mr. Pei.

Are you here to console me?

Why would I?

Anyway, perfect timing.

Just finished the final touches.

What do you think of this beast?

Why are you drawing this?

Ma Yang and Zhang Wang, do they know this?

Of course.

I was officially commissioned by Returning to Shore.

Lin Wan helped me.

I know.

I mean,

why are you drawing here?

Mr. Pei.

Lin Wan told me all about it.

You got Lu Zhiyao to promote

your private kitchen.

Your cross-promotion campaign

is awesome.

We didn't even think about it.

So,

I'm here to apply a new skin

on the phone booth

to promote

(Scan to download game) the game as well.

Promote the game?

No way!

I'm telling you.

I don't even know

how this dumb booth got viral.

You don't know?

(Here's what happened.)

(Not long ago,)

(there was a typhoon in Jinchuan.)

(A young lady couldn't get a taxi late at night.)

(As the rain poured, she had nowhere to go.)

(So, she sought refuge at a phone booth.)

(And then...)

(Ladies' Essentials)

Hello?

Mom.

Feifei.

Happy birthday.

Remember to eat some longevity noodles.

Don't tell me you're still at work.

Take care of yourself out there.

I can't help you much.

Don't overwork.

Thanks, Mom.

I'm doing great.

Mom, I need to go now.

I've got friends

waiting to celebrate my birthday.

Okay.

Go ahead.

See you.

Bye.

♪Happy birthday to you♪

(Also,)

(you made the wise decision)

(of building the phone booths)

(at the Central Business District.)

(Your phone booths)

(have become a sanctuary for many workers.)

Hold on.

I have that...

I mean...

I...

Wait.

I'll send you the files when I find them. Hello?

(Shared Phone Booth)

Hello, Mr. Zhao.

I'm in a quiet place.

I can talk to you now.

This Saturday,

I didn't come to Jinchuan on a leisure trip,

but on a work trip, as you ordered.

When I return to Xinyang on Monday,

I will go back to office

and solve this issue.

Okay.

Don't worry.

Got it.

(Everyone says)

(our phone booths are like treeholes in the city)

(that soothes the heart.)

(Now, it's gone viral.)

(It's even become a tourist attraction.)

Everyone's stressed out.

This is a great place.

No matter how rowdy the city is,

we can still have

a safe, personal space

where we can

make calls, gossip, and complain about our bosses.

Anything is fine.

It accommodates

our youths' mental desires.

I must say,

Mr. Pei,

you have a keen eye

for investment.

Guangjian.

Go get some rest.

Let me destress inside.

Sure.

Mr. Pei!

That's right!

Vent it all out!

That's right!

Excuse me.

It's Mr. Pei!

Mr. Pei is here?

You're awesome!

- We want to play, too! - Me too!

Sorry.

This phone booth

is still under renovation.

That's right.

If you want to vent out...

What else can you do...

Here's a free voucher for you.

(Sloth Gym, FREE) Head to Sloth Gym and try out

all our services for free!

Calm down.

I need to calm down.

There's still Sloth Gym.

(Sloth Gym)

Come on, let's do this.

Yeah.

Come on.

Wait.

Take that!

See?

That's your trump card?

Genius.

Pass.

I've been reserving this card.

I'll take it.

I got it.

Anyone else?

Here.

Have some tea.

Come on.

I hope I get a good card this round.

I love this flavor, but it's sold out.

Let me try.

Peace.

(Don't be angry.)

I can't take it anymore!

Take that, you jerk!

(Jerk)

(Jerk)

Tian Mo, Li Yaling!

Where are you?

Mr. Pei, you're here.

Calm down.

Everyone's napping.

Welcome to Sloth Gym.

Peace.

Mr. Pei!

Mr. Pei.

Mr. Pei.

Mr. Pei.

Peace, peace...

(Shenhua International)

Can anyone tell me

what happened?

Why did things turn out this way?

The phone booths

and Sloth Gym were doing badly before, right?

Ma Yang, is your mouth

feeling constipated today?

Here's the thing.

I was inspired by Lu Zhiyao.

He promoted the restaurant, right?

So, I talked to Tian Mo

and decided to launch a cross-promotion

between Sloth Gym

and the phone booths.

Then, the phone booths went viral,

and so did

Sloth Gym.

Mr. Ma made a swift, wise decision.

Zhang Wang.

Mind your words.

We're just executing

Mr. Pei's

visionary ideas.

Mind your words.

Yes.

Forget about the phone booths.

How did the gym go viral?

It's not even a gym anymore.

It's all because of your wise decisions, Mr. Pei.

Again?

What's it

got to do with me?

You created the business model.

We didn't understand back then,

but now we do.

Now, everyone's promoting healthy lifestyles,

but no one's got the energy to work out

after a long day at work.

However,

Sloth Gym

provides the solution

to help everyone achieve their gym goals

while relaxing the body.

It's two birds with one stone.

Mr. Pei.

Our client base is the same.

Whether it's the phone booth users,

the gamers,

or our customers

at Sloth Gym...

If you keep talking like that,

I'll beat your head off your neck.

Basically, we just

integrated our client base.

Why didn't anyone tell me?

Everyone was busy...

Busy?

You have time to set up 18 phone booths,

but no time to tell me?

Mr. Fei...

It's Pei.

Mr. Pei, here's the thing.

The phone booth is running on a franchise system.

We already have a franchiser.

DreamForge Capital

mainly provides

sales and assembly services.

The franchiser manages the operations.

That's why we could branch out quickly.

Where did the franchiser come from?

Even I was amazed.

He came to us

to offer his support.

Mr. Li Jr.

It's Mr. Pei.

Mr. Pei?

(Mr. Pei)

Friendships

are often built

unknowingly.

(Mr. Pei)

Hello, Mr. Pei.

What is it?

Mr. Li Jr.,

why did you

invest in the phone booths?

Why not?

Mr. Pei.

Thanks for supporting Ming House Banquet

as well as Xingniao Gym.

You were a great help.

You deserve my gratitude,

and I, Li Shi,

am a grateful man.

That's why

I invested a little money

into your phone booths.

Take it as my token of gratitude.

Xingniao Gym?

Naughty boy.

Even now,

you're still going to deny that you knew

Xingniao Gym was mine?

Mr. Pei.

We had some misunderstandings in the past,

but now I understand

you've never treated me as an enemy.

Mr. Pei.

I shall remember

your friendship.

No matter what people say about you,

I will support you.

Mr. Li Jr.,

please don't.

I don't expect anything in return.

I know.

Mr. Pei, you have a keen eye.

So, I just want to collect

some scraps along the way.

Now that your gym

and phone booths

have gone viral,

I called some contacts,

and we've got dozens of interested franchisees

from all over the country.

Mr. Li Jr., there's been some sort

of serious misunderstanding between us.

I've been trying to explain,

but you refuse to listen.

I'm being honest now.

I never wanted to earn money.

If I did,

that's purely coincidental.

Don't follow blindly,

got it?

I totally get it,

Mr. Pei.

You don't.

My achievements today are all based on pure luck.

Taking one correct step, that's pure luck.

But taking every step correctly?

What's that?

Bad luck.

I know

you're wary of

other investors.

That's why you often

talk ambiguously.

I can understand.

But I'm different.

I can totally understand you.

And I think

smart people like us

should work together

and make an impact

on the market.

Together, we can expand

the market!

Like what I said,

Mr. Pei,

you can take the meat,

and I'll just

collect the scraps.

You like collecting scraps?

Are you a garbage collector?

I don't care whether I collect garbage or scraps.

Anyway,

I'm looking forward to working with you.

In the future,

I hope we can benefit each other

and make

big money.

Let's make big money!

Yeah!

Sibo?

Sibo?

Over here!

I'm here, Mr. Pei! Here!

Here!

Stand there!

Sibo.

Zhongdian Web Fiction is my pillar of strength.

You won't betray me, will you?

Mr. Pei, what do you mean?

You uncovered my potential.

I have only gratitude towards you.

Why would I betray you?

There's nothing unusual going on here, right?

I can't afford to take

another blow.

Mr. Pei.

I may have to disappoint you.

We have published

our contract writers' fictions

online, but the data

isn't promising.

Let me see.

I was reading it just now.

Most of them haven't generated any hype.

That's great.

Keep it up.

Mr. Pei.

The overall data is bad,

but there's still one fiction that's made its mark.

It's called "The CEO Has an Exclusive Crush on You".

It's ranked No. 2 on the trending list,

and is generating positive income.

It's also attracting lots of new readers.

What CEO is that?

It doesn't sound like

what I asked you to write.

Yes.

They're actually external submissions.

I didn't pay much attention at first,

but it's been generating good reviews.

It's just that...

The story doesn't follow

our unconventional model.

Mr. Pei, what do you think

we should do?

Remove it.

We've already published 101 chapters.

Look.

Many netizens are asking us to update quickly.

Remove it.

Mr. Pei.

If we remove it,

the penalty fees would be high.

Pay them three times.

By the way,

you said that was No. 2 on the list.

What about No. 1?

Me.

I wrote a novel tied in to Returning to Shore.

I...

Yes!

Mr. Pei.

It wasn't my idea alone.

It was Lin Wan who proposed it.

Huang.

I have an idea

about your web fiction.

Why don't you write

a tie-in story about Returning to Shore?

We're under the same company, after all.

Let's connect everything

and turn Returning to Shore

into a corporate IP.

First step,

a tie-in novel.

Great idea.

Let me try it out.

Don't tell Mr. Pei.

Mr. Pei, don't worry.

I followed the unconventional model

you have instructed us.

At first, we didn't get any views.

But when the game became viral,

so did the novel.

The game has gotten viral?

No. 1, Mr. Pei!

(Zhongdian Web Fiction)

He looks stronger

than he is.

♪We're dancing on a broken beat♪

♪Exhaustion is written all over us♪

♪Watching as the colors fade away♪

♪Your silence♪

♪It's a fortress and I'm running out of ways to get to your heart♪

♪It's harder to see you when I get too close♪

♪The buzzing in the air♪

♪The static's getting louder♪

♪Shadows dancing♪

♪Say you've had enough♪

♪I say I've had enough♪

♪I struggle on, holding back the clouds♪

♪With the city inside♪

♪Say you're holding on♪

♪I say I'm holding on♪

♪Can you see the weight behind this pain, this smile I'm wearing♪

♪I'll never let it show♪

♪Curating the highlights in my story♪

♪Filter out shaky frames from my glory♪

♪All this noise and mess♪

♪Needs some stillness♪

♪Say you're holding on♪

♪I say I'm holding on♪

♪If you need to say goodbye, just let it out, baby♪

♪I'll get by♪

♪Say you've had enough♪

♪I say I've had enough♪

♪If you're bearing the ache of every single breath you take♪

♪And I'm watching him escape♪

♪I'm falling through the space into the silence you make♪

♪Just a flicker in the dark and saying out your name♪

♪All this noise and mess♪

♪Needs some stillness♪

♪Say you're holding on♪

♪I say I'm holding on♪

♪Darling♪

♪I'll gently feel your face♪

♪I'll reach you before dawn♪

♪I want you to keep believing♪

♪Darling♪

♪Let's take it slow and play our parts♪

♪And fool our hearts♪

♪In this static, this buzzing air♪