FWF Chapter 234 Taking Advantage of the Vulnerability
Chapter 234 Taking Advantage of the Vulnerability
The news of Chen Yuan's breakfast shop catching fire had already spread throughout the entire city.
Zhou Zhenbang sat in his office at the Chengdong Building Materials Market, a half-smoked cigar between his fingers. He took a few puffs, pretending to be serious, and then stared at the local news feed on his phone screen.
It should be about time by now.
He immediately called the secretary in charge of the matter.
"Xiao Chen, let's open those two stores today. You've already prepared the product list, right?"
"It's all done, Mr. Zhou. As you said, all the prices have been lowered. The pork buns that were 3 yuan will be sold for 2.5 yuan. The fried cakes that were 1.5 yuan will be sold for 1 yuan. The braised eggs that were 1 yuan each will be sold for 1.5 yuan for two. And the buns that were 88 yuan will be sold for 68 yuan, with no limit on quantity."
"Okay, that's fine. Make sure it's prominently displayed. Also, find a few local internet celebrities to play GG and take advantage of this time to establish a foothold in the market."
The secretary's hesitant voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Mr. Zhou, there's another issue. Regarding quality control, we use quick-frozen embryos and frozen seafood, which are machine-pleated. The cost and taste are quite different from our competitors. What if the customers can tell the difference..."
"So what if they can tell the difference?" Zhou Zhenbang sneered. "Tourists are in a hurry, so what if they can tell the difference? The local residents are just looking for a bargain. Nobody will make a fuss. Besides, it's already so much cheaper, so what if the taste isn't good? It's their own fault for being greedy for a bargain."
The secretary hung up the phone.
The two shops opened for business that morning.
Both the signboard and the overall layout are somewhat similar to Chen Yuan's old shop.
They also successfully fooled many tourists from other places.
Some were catching an early train, some were tourists from out of town who stumbled upon the place by chance, some didn't want to queue at Chen Yuan's place, and some were simply drawn in by the 68-yuan eight-ingredient buns.
"Hello, I'd like an eight-treasure bun, unlimited, right? How long will it take? Give me two, and then give me more... one eight-immortal bun, one custard bun, to go, and two tea eggs." The young man speaking was dragging a suitcase.
The shop assistant had a perfect smile and spoke very quickly: "No need to wait, we'll have it right away."
The young man scanned the QR code to pay with some skepticism and then accepted the steaming hot buns.
Before he even ate it, he sensed something was wrong. The noodles looked similar to those sold at other breakfast shops, but they were too white and obviously not handmade.
However, the young man was in a hurry to catch the train, so he didn't say much and left in a hurry with his bag.
An elderly couple ordered soy milk and fried cakes.
The old lady took a bite and muttered, "This fried cake tastes so-so. It doesn't even taste as good as the ones from any random breakfast shop outside. There's too little red bean paste inside!"
The old man waved his hand, lowered his voice, and said nonchalantly, "Isn't it cheap? Just make do with it. I think it tastes alright."
Around noon, a high-speed train stopped at the station.
A girl dressed very plainly stepped off the car carrying a suitcase.
She took out her phone and sent a voice message to Sister Tiantian.
"I just arrived. I've been on the bus for ages, I'm exhausted. I'm going to find somewhere to eat first, see you this afternoon."
The girl's name is Lin Youzi. She is a rising star blogger in the food section of the neighboring province, with just over 400 million followers.
I finalized the co-creation plan with Sister Tiantian half a month in advance before coming here. I was supposed to take the direct high-speed train, but I couldn't get a ticket, so I had to transfer at one stop and it took me more than 6 hours to get here.
She hadn't made any preparations in all this time, and her stomach was growling with hunger.
Before even leaving the station after getting off the train, I casually opened a local lifestyle app to search for good restaurants.
Unexpectedly, the first result that popped up was this fake vegan breakfast shop.
Lin Youzi, being from out of town, didn't know what was going on. Her eyes lit up, thinking that this was quite convenient and that the boss was too low-key, not even mentioning the opening of a branch.
Without thinking, she got into a taxi and dialed Sister Sweetie's number.
"Sis, I'm here. I'm starving. I need to go eat first."
"By the way, I found a vegan breakfast place, the one you filmed that was super popular before. I'm planning to go there for breakfast. Let's meet up this afternoon."
Sweetie, who was editing on the other end of the phone, didn't even bother to drink her water when she heard this.
"What? A vegan breakfast shop? Where is it located?"
"It seems to be the intersection of Zhongshan Road and Renmin Street, about a 15-20 minute drive from the train station. The sign looks quite similar to the one in the video."
Sweetie gasped, "Wait a minute, Yuzu, don't go yet."
"What's wrong?"
"Chen Yuan's shop was burned down a few days ago by the electric scooter next door. Now he runs a food truck and sets up a stall at the night market. How could he possibly have a physical store? It's in the Zhongshan Road and Renmin Street area. No, no, that's not right."
"Huh? What happened?"
As a veteran self-media practitioner, Sister Tian is very keen on traffic. She couldn't wait any longer, so she grabbed her car keys and coat and prepared to go out.
"Listen up, Yuzu, I think that's definitely a knock-off store. This is a huge source of traffic, let's just meet up at that store and do some collaborative content!"
"Huh? So fast?"
"What's the rush? Time waits for no one. Don't rush in when you get there. I'll go get the car, we'll be there in no time. Did you bring all your equipment?"
"Yes, I brought it all, everything is complete."
"Okay, wait for me."
Lin Youzi waited nearby for a while, pushing her suitcase.
A moment later, a black SUV pulled up neatly to the side of the road, and Sister Tian opened the window and beckoned her to get in.
Lin Youzi stuffed her luggage into the trunk, then opened the passenger door and sat inside.
"Sis, it's not lunchtime yet, and it's quite crowded. Why don't we just go in and film? I've already set up the camera angles, from the signboard all the way to the food pick-up area, to create a real, authentic record."
As she spoke, Lin Youzi began adjusting her stabilizer.
Sweetie didn't respond immediately.
She thought about it carefully on her way here.
"I don't think it's a good idea to just go in and take pictures. If we try the food and point out flaws on the spot, and the staff hears us, it could lead to an argument or other conflicts, which would be bad."
"And what if they smear us, saying they're only promoting for Chen Yuan? Wouldn't that be even worse?"
Lin Youzi paused for a moment, then thought about it and agreed that it made sense.
"Okay, sis, I think you make a lot of sense. So, what do you suggest we do?"