Hearing the price,
Chen Fang was still shocked.
The daily management fee and sanitation fee alone were forty yuan.
If that wasn't considered much, then taking 20% from the revenue was unheard of throughout Wulan City.
"Sister, taking a cut from the revenue is also a rule set by Starlight Night Market?"
Chen Fang asked.
The middle-aged woman gave him a look and said, "What are you talking about? It's not like we willingly offer it. This cut is mandatory; if you don't pay, you can't set up your stall. We small vendors out here might have it slightly better. You go inside and see, some of those shops with slightly better revenues get tapped for 30% or more. They are a bunch of vampires."
"Sister, this is unreasonable, why don't you report this to the authorities?"
"Report? To whom do you suggest we report? Is reporting useful? Nowhere in Qingling District is allowed for setting up stalls; they've driven us all here. Kid, you don't understand the ins and outs of this. This is a huge piece of fat meat."
The woman looked around and lowered her voice as she spoke.
"Oh, Sister, can you explain more about this to me?"
Chen Fang asked with great interest.
There was no business at that moment, and the woman was eager to talk.
She spoke softly: "This Starlight Night Market is a joint venture by the local bigwigs and leaders up there. They rake in tens of millions a year, a few people split it among themselves, lips greasy with glut. Spending government money to do their own bidding, how nice is that? I heard that it's now hard to get a spot in Starlight Night Market, some people even have to bribe to secure a stall. With nowhere else allowed for doing business and the high foot traffic here, who wouldn't want to come in?"
After speaking,
she mysteriously continued, "I tell you, but you mustn't tell others. Doing business here in Starlight Night Market is protected. Urban management, market supervision, industry and commerce, fire department—none of them will trouble you. It's like buying a talisman with money. Just take a look around, all sorts of fake and shoddy goods. Tourists get ripped off here and there's nowhere to complain; it's useless. Who would care if those above are also making money? Alas, the world is in decline!"
The middle-aged woman's words brought a great shock to Chen Fang.
He walked around the inside of the night market with Yu Zhengchuan and Li Xiaodong.
Even though it wasn't the weekend,
business was still booming.
Just as the sister had said,
the prices for the things here were much higher than in other markets outside.
Quality varied greatly.
To say there was a proliferation of counterfeit goods would not be an exaggeration.
As they were about to leave, Chen Fang bought a bag of pork jerky.
He took out a piece and bit into it, immediately sensing something was off.
Turning back, he confronted the vendor, "Boss, there's something wrong with this pork jerky, isn't there? It doesn't taste like pork at all?"
The vendor was a man in his forties who frowned and said, "Pork jerky is all like this, haven't you ever eaten it before?"
"Of course, I have, but let's not even talk about the taste, just the price alone is double what it is outside. Shouldn't the quality be better than this?"
Chen Fang challenged.
The middle-aged man gave him a look.
He said, "Goods once sold are not returnable. Move on quickly, don't disrupt my business."
Upon hearing this, Yu Zhengchuan became angry,
and said, "You, the boss, won't listen to reason, will you? This is clearly fake goods, do you take us for fools?"
The middle-aged vendor just sneered.
He said, "Judging by your accents, you're not from around here, right? Take my advice, don't go looking for trouble; just get as far away from here as you can!"
"Boss, look around; most people here are tourists in Wulan City. Aren't you afraid of damaging Wulan City's reputation by doing this?"
Chen Fang asked, holding back his anger.
Upon hearing this, the vendor put down what he was doing.
He sneered and said, "Reputation? What does reputation have to do with me? I didn't force you to buy. If you want to eat, then eat; if not, scram. Don't stand there being an eyesore. A bunch of poor bastards, if you can't afford it, don't eat!"
"Hey, how can you speak like that?"
Even the usually silent Li Xiaodong couldn't stand listening anymore.
At that moment,
the argument caught the attention of several market management staff nearby.
One of them took out a walkie-talkie and said something into it.
Then,
the number of people in security uniforms began to increase in the crowd.
They started to gather towards Chen Fang and his group.
Seeing that they were still arguing,
a portly man in a white shirt with a red armband approached with an ingratiating smile and asked, "Folks, what seems to be the problem?"
Noticing that a manager had arrived,
Yu Zhengchuan pointed at the brazen shopkeeper and said, "This guy is selling fake pork jerky, and he refuses to let us return it even after we've discovered the fraud. Is there no law and order anymore?"
At that moment,
when the shopkeeper saw the portly man,
he clearly became more obsequious.
He bowed and scraped, saying, "Manager Wang, my apologies for troubling you with such a minor issue."
The portly man offered no particular reaction.
Still smiling genially at Chen Fang and his two companions, he said, "Are the three of you from out of town?"
"What if we are from out of town?"
Chen Fang asked.
Manager Wang waved his hands dismissively and said, "No problem, no problem. Since there's a dispute, as the market management, it is certainly our responsibility to address it. Come with me to the office; it's not far, just over in that building. Let's discuss this in the management office, how does that sound?"
Finding Manager Wang's attitude agreeable,
and also curious to see how such matters are typically resolved,
Chen Fang nodded and said, "Alright, we'll go with you!"
Under Manager Wang's lead,
the group made their way through the noisy crowd to the base of a two-story building.
A sign hung above.
It read: "Starlight Night Market Management Office."
"Please come in; let's talk inside the office,"
Manager Wang invited them politely.
Without giving it much thought, Chen Fang, followed by Yu Zhengchuan and Li Xiaodong, entered the manager's office at the front.
Upon entering,
Manager Wang invited them to sit down on the sofa.
He then called someone to bring over three glasses of water.
Pulling up a chair, he sat across from the three of them and introduced himself, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Wang Gaoxing; 'Wang' as in 'king,' and 'Gaoxing' as in 'happy.' I'm the operations manager of the Starlight Night Market. I am very sorry for the unpleasant shopping experience you three had today."
His words were polite and well-mannered.
Not like what the woman at the entrance had said about scamming customers.
What's going on?
Could it be that they already knew his identity?
Chen Fang cleared his throat and asked, "Manager Wang, we're reasonable people, too. How does your side intend to deal with this situation?"
Wang Gaoxing leaned back in his chair.
He crossed his legs in a casual pose.
After a moment of contemplation,
he said, "I see that you've come from afar, and the people of Wulan City are known for their hospitality. So, how about 3,000 each for you?"
3,000 each?
Is the compensation amount that high?
Yu Zhengchuan and Li Xiaodong exchanged incredulous glances with Chen Fang.
After all, they had only spent less than a hundred yuan on the pork jerky.
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