At noon, Musheng once again experienced the divine taste of exquisite culinary skills, never before had she thought something made by someone could be so delicious that she felt like swallowing her tongue.
Upon inquiry, Mo Yao told her that her ancestors in the Mo Family were all famous chefs, and there was even one generation that served as royal chefs in the imperial palace.
However, in Mo Yao's generation, her father did not have a passion for cooking; rather, it was she who had mastered her grandfather's cooking skills to perfection. Yet, her heart was set on entering the entertainment industry.
After hearing this, Musheng could only sigh, feeling that with Mo Yao's cooking skills, she would have no problem becoming a renowned chef. Why insist on entering that murky entertainment industry?
But Musheng still held her initial belief. She wouldn't meddle in other people's affairs. She could help Mo Yao, but wouldn't forcefully change her mind.
In the afternoon, after eating, Musheng went job hunting. Mo Yao, who disliked the heat, opted not to go out. Instead, she stayed home and contacted the telecommunications bureau to have them install internet cables. Mo Yao had brought her laptop along. Although there was internet at the landlord's place, it didn't seem like they were willing to share, and the speed probably wasn't fast, so she preferred to get her own.
Despite the afternoon heat, Capital City was still bustling with activity. It wasn't the city center, but Huayang District was also a famous spot, bustling with activity that surpassed that of Huai City.
Musheng wore a simple red-lettered T-shirt with ultra-short shorts, revealing her straight and slender legs. She donned an orange sun hat that Mo Yao had bought her, which concealed her face and made her look no different from any other girl on the street.
The streets were dense with traffic, flanked by rows of shops varying in style—some posh and grand, others quaint and delicate, some narrow and cluttered, of mixed standards.
There were help wanted signs in front of some stores. Musheng glanced at them and saw jobs that didn't suit her. With plenty of time left in the afternoon, she wasn't in a hurry and nonchalantly checked out various stores.
The streets wound on and on, growing wider, and the crowds denser. Even the carefree Musheng could feel small beads of sweat forming on her forehead. As she passed by shops, bursts of air conditioning hit her; the alternating sensations of hot and cold made her somewhat uncomfortable. Just as she thought of resting in a cold drink shop, she suddenly saw a job advertisement that caught her eye.
The advertisement was posted at the entrance of an internet café, urgently hiring two internet café managers with a monthly salary of 3,500, no days off, including board and lodging.
These terms were generous, except for the lack of days off, which was a bit harsh, but that didn't bother Musheng. The job was quite appealing to her.
The internet café was named "Difeng." The exterior was not particularly extraordinary. When Musheng entered, she saw layers of beaded curtains and screens separating the modern computers, exuding a special charm, especially since the spaciousness allowed the sound to spread out, making it less noisy.
The décor was creative. At a glance, Musheng saw that there were at least 300 computers on this floor, and none of them looked average. The headphones and keyboards were the most popular gaming sets of the time. The internet café owner was clearly generous.
Seeing the lively scene in the hall, it was clear that the business was booming, and the money could be earned back quickly.
The payment counter was right by the entrance, to the right, situated on a stone platform tiled with marble, somewhat reminiscent of bar counters.
Two people were playing on the computers behind the bar, a man and a woman. Behind them were two freezers filled with bottles of cold drinks, and to the right, there was a large shelf with everyday snacks. There was also a small cabinet for cigarettes.
When Musheng approached, the woman seemed to sense her and lifted her head, "ID card."
The woman's voice was faint, tinged with a habitual numbness. Musheng shook her head, "I'm not here to surf the internet, I'm applying for the internet café manager position."
The woman seemed surprised. The man next to her also lifted his head and revealed a somewhat unruly face, "Applying for an internet café manager?"
Musheng nodded. The man gave her an incredulous look before picking up the landline phone in front of him, dialed a number, and said a few words: "Hello, third brother? There's someone here applying for the internet café manager position, yes, downstairs, yep, okay."
After hanging up, he glanced at Musheng, "Wait a minute, my third brother will be down soon."
Musheng nodded in acknowledgment. Then the woman looked at her for a long while before speaking again, "Are you of age?"
"Definitely of age. I brought my ID card," Musheng replied. Hearing this, the woman muttered, "Well, you'll be managing the second floor, not the first floor. Make sure you're clear about that. The second floor has those..." She couldn't finish her sentence when the man next to her suddenly jabbed her in the arm and glared at her. The woman shrank her neck back and stopped talking.
Musheng's eyes narrowed slightly. Was there a problem with the second floor?
However, she didn't ask. Before long, a young man came down from nowhere looking quite handsome, but with a bit of a thuggish aura on his face. He noticed Musheng and after a moment began, "You're the one applying for the internet café manager?"
Once again, Musheng nodded. The young man turned swiftly, a touch of impatience in his voice, "Then follow me up."
Musheng did as instructed, following him up and realizing that there was a second floor to this internet café—it appeared to be quite large.
Reaching the second floor, she saw that the environment was even better than the first floor, and much more spacious. At least from Musheng's view, it was endless, although there seemed to be a greater density of machines than on the first floor, and likely many more.
However, the second floor was obviously different from the first floor. Most of the internet users were groups of young men in black or white tank tops, hair dyed in various colors. At least Musheng saw all the hair colors that she had only seen in magazines, and each haircut was quite personal. She thought the few bald ones she saw were somewhat more pleasing to the eye...
One could tell at a glance that the atmosphere was not good, hence the woman's remark about problems on the second floor.
Turning around, Zhao Junjie saw Musheng surveying the second floor, her face betraying no emotion. Intrigued by her rarity, as she didn't look like a delinquent girl, he felt an unusual interest, "Do you really want to be an internet café manager?"
He thought she would be scared off by the second floor.
Musheng looked at him, puzzled, "If I didn't want to, why would I come here?"
Zhao Junjie's face stiffened, and he snorted coldly, "If you think it's fine, I'll tell you the situation. Here, the second floor is separate from the first floor, and you will be in charge of the second floor, not concerned with the first floor..." He hadn't finished speaking when several loud whistles came from the second-floor bar, "Yo yo yo, Junjie, who's the girl you got there? She looks quite pretty!"