Qiwu and Jinlu went up the stairs and heard noisy sounds while still in the stairwell.
It seemed like someone was arguing, and the two of them hurried upstairs.
There were a few people standing on one side of the ticket checking area, and the sound of quarreling came from the rest area next to it.
There was still some time before the show started, so Qiwu and Jinlu turned around and walked towards the rest area.
Many people gathered in front of a row of strange boxes. There were two types of boxes. One of them was transparent on the front, with strange grooves on the right and bottom. The front was filled with cylindrical jars. The jars had different colors and patterns, and there was a bulge under each jar. I don't know what it was used for.
Another type of box has a transparent top half, and inside are some strange-looking dolls and a square box with a hook similar to a flying claw hanging on top. Outside the transparent wall are several red buttons and a red handle that seems to be able to be moved.
At this moment, there was an argument in front of the second box. A man wearing a gray cloth hat and a big man with a beard were talking to the shopkeeper of the cinema, and there were people watching the fun around them.
The bearded man glared at Lu Yao and shouted, "This thing of yours is a lie. It can't be picked up at all!"
Someone nearby whispered in agreement, "It really can't be clamped. I tried five times and it didn't work. I managed to clamp it once, but when I tried to pull it up, the hook was weak and it fell off again."
The scholar in the hat also said, "We don't mean to cause trouble. We have tried it for more than ten times but still haven't been able to pick up anything. The claw in the box is not stable at all. Even if it caught something, it would fall off halfway due to the shaking."
The bearded man was tall and strong, with a loud voice: "I have always liked movie theaters, but this is really not fair. I don't want much else, just return the money you cheated me of. Brother Su and I grabbed more than ten handfuls, five cents a handful, and we will leave after returning them."
The claw machines and vending machines come from the shopping street and can only recognize the RMB and coins commonly used in China. For this reason, Lu Yao set up a coin exchange counter next to it, similar to a blind box store.
One copper coin is roughly equivalent to one yuan in RMB, and five copper coins can be exchanged for a corresponding amount of coins, which can be used to grab a doll once; vending machines use copper coins to exchange for an equal amount of coins based on the price of the drink.
There are three claw machines, two of which are filled with dolls of movie characters, and one of which is filled with some small blind boxes from a blind box store, with small tools, such as lighters, nail clippers, paper towels, soap... There are also some snacks, such as instant noodles, milk tea, candy... Sometimes you may get some rare things, such as razors, flashlights, hair dye, thermos cups...
When the second floor opened in the morning, the claw machines immediately attracted the attention of customers.
After listening to Lu Yao’s explanation of how to play, many people exchanged their coins and tried to catch the dolls.
At the beginning, the two claw machines equipped with movie peripherals attracted the most people. More than a dozen people lined up to take turns to grab them, but no one got one.
This kind of thing happened too many times and without exception, leading to the scene that Jin Lu and Qi Wu saw.
Lu Yao was surrounded by a group of men. Jin Lu and Qi Wu, who were both from the underworld, were worried about her and immediately squeezed in to help her out, or at least pull the men out first.
Just as the two of them squeezed to the front, Lu Yao had already broken free from the bearded man.
She took a step back, not looking panicked, and even started to taunt: "I just started playing with the claw machine today, and I only played a dozen times. You want to conquer it? How naive."
guest:"… "
The bearded man felt his fist itching.
Lu Yao turned and walked towards the claw machine next to the vending machine, raised his hand and put five coins into the coin slot, operated the handle and button, and the claws in the machine started moving.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk—" With a slight mechanical sound, the flying claw had already fallen into the pile of dolls, and when it was lifted up, its claw was holding a furry little seal.
I saw the claw began to move shakily under the operation of the shopkeeper. When it was close to the landing point, the claw swung and released.
The little seal fell and hit the killer whale doll that another guest had dropped on the edge.
Everyone held their breath unconsciously.
"clatter-"
The little seal knocked down the killer whale doll, and both of them fell into the dark hole.
Lu Yao squatted down, took out two rag dolls from the groove below, turned around and looked at the guests: "You can't catch it, there is no other reason, it's just that your skills are not good enough."
The air was silent and the guest had a dull expression, as if he was doubting himself or still didn't believe it.
Lu Yao turned around and put a coin into the claw machine next to him. Soon, a prince Jing was caught eating a roast duck.
That’s not all. She moved to the side and inserted coins into the claw machine that contained a blind box.
This time I failed twice, and on the third time I grabbed a box.
She squatted down to take out the box, weighed it, turned around and opened it in front of everyone, saying, "The surface of this box is too smooth. It's a little harder than a rag doll, but it's not completely impossible."
A rectangular box slightly smaller than the palm fell out of the box. The surface had a faint metallic luster. When it was opened, a small mirror was embedded inside. The box contained a blade and some assembly parts.
She simply assembled it and handed it to the bearded man. "It's an old-fashioned razor, used for shaving. I have no use for it, so if you don't mind, I'll give it to you."
The bearded man felt his pride being rubbed and rubbed against the ground, but he was also a little moved. In short, he had mixed feelings and didn't know how to respond for a moment: "..."
Jin Lu looked at him with envy, "Young shopkeeper, this thing looks new and novel, please don't give it to me."
The bearded man got anxious and took it from Lu Yao. "I have a lot of beard, let me try this thing to see if it works. I'm sorry for what happened just now."
Lu Yao waved his hand to indicate that he didn't take it to heart.
Others can see clearly that there is indeed no problem with the machine, so is it really their skills that are not good enough
After seeing what the shopkeeper did, it seemed there was no reason to argue.
This is very frustrating, but it also arouses my fighting spirit. I must catch a doll from the claw machine!
I want the rag doll, but I also want the square box in the machine closest to the inside, and it seems like I can grab something different.
Taking advantage of the crowd, Lu Yao demonstrated once again in public how to use the vending machine: insert coins, select drinks, squat and take them out, all in one go.
"These two machines are different from the claw machines next to them. You put in coins and press a button, and the drink you want will fall out. When drinking, just pull the tab on the can." Lu Yao explained, pulling the tab of the grape soda, and the sweet grape flavor spread.
The guests actually noticed the vending machine, but the claw machine next to it was more attractive, so they forgot about it for a moment.
When I saw Lu Yao’s demonstration at this time, I suddenly thought this was very interesting.
Lu Yao stepped back to the currency exchange counter and let the customers choose to grab dolls or buy drinks.
She saw Jin Lu and Qi Wu still standing by, so she handed over the little seal and Jing Hao's dolls in her hands, "If you don't mind, take them and play with them."
Qiwu wanted to, but then she thought of Dieqi and hesitated: "Can I?"
Lu Yao tilted his head: "It's useless for me to keep it. If you don't want it, I'll put it back in the machine tomorrow."
Jin Lu immediately reached out and took the snow-white little seal, "I want this, thank you, little shopkeeper."
Qiwu glanced at the killer whale doll in Lu Yao's other hand, then reached out to take the doll of Jinghao eating roast duck.
They saw similar things hanging on the wallets of customers in the restaurant yesterday, and it turned out that they were from the cinema.
Lu Yao handed over the grape soda again, "I'm at work and can't eat. Take this with you. The show you bought is about to start."
Jin Lu and Qi Wu bought popcorn and drinks before coming up and placed them on the coin-operated counter.
They had never had grape-flavored soda, and this can was different from the one downstairs.
The two gradually forgot Die Qi's instructions, took the dolls and grape soda, thanked Lu Yao, and went to the screening room chattering all the way.
Qiwu: "Shopkeeper Lu is a very nice person. Is Qiqi overthinking too much?"
Jin Lu nodded: "She is generous and capable. I like women like this."
Qiwu stopped and looked over with an indescribable look: "Don't have any bad thoughts."
Jin Lu looked puzzled: "...What?"
Qiwu saw his silly look and thought she was overthinking it, so she shook her head to indicate that it was nothing. After walking a few steps, the aroma of grapes kept wafting out from the small opening on the top of the can. Qiwu couldn't help but take a sip, "This is better than orange soda!"
Jin Lu grabbed it and took a big gulp, saying sincerely, "I really want to work in a movie theater."
Qiwu nodded. She wanted to do the same.
Two people were checking tickets at the door and took one more look at Mingyuan.
Changming is two years older than Gouzi, but he is thin and looks too delicate, even a little feminine.
Jin Lu and Qi Wu were surprised when they saw him.
They didn't seem to have seen this person yesterday.
Changming is relatively silent, but his business ability is also very strong, second only to Dieqi and Hongyu.
After the first movie in the morning ended, claw machines and vending machines became a hot topic.
The claw machine is a little better, it does require some skill, and no one has successfully grabbed a doll yet, so there is no need to restock it yet, but it has also aroused the competitive spirit of more customers.
There are two vending machines next to it. They are simple and easy to operate. There are many flavors of drinks. The design of the cans is also very eye-catching. You can take away what you buy.
Customers came to buy from the machines, and during the 20-minute break, both machines were almost sold out.
-
The Jiang family also came to the cinema early in the morning. Without disturbing others, they followed Zhao Guanghong to buy tickets and went straight into the screening room.
Originally, Zhao Guanghong planned to book a private room for the Jiang family's daughter to watch a movie.
But Jiang Yudie changed into men's clothes in the morning and said she wanted to go to the ordinary screening room with the butler and Jiang Cheng.
Zhao Guanghong naturally couldn't resist and took the three of them to the cinema.
They chose to watch "The Sea Train Serial Murder Case". Zhao Guanghong had mentioned the peculiarity of this film on the way.
After sending the three people into the screening room, Zhao Guanghong went back home again, picked up the goods he brought back from Jiangnan, and went to the cinema to find Lu Yao.
He learned that Lu Yao was on the second floor, so he went up the stairs and found Lu Yao. His attention was attracted by the machine next to him, but he quickly came back to his senses: "Hello, Shopkeeper Lu."
Lu Yao looked at him and immediately remembered, "Mr. Zhao, you are back from Jiangnan. Are the mooncakes selling well?"
Zhao Guanghong nodded repeatedly: "It's going better than expected. Not only mooncakes, but also tissues and hand sanitizers are selling well. These are the brocade, porcelain, embroidered handkerchiefs, ink sticks, and tea leaves that I brought back from Jiangnan. If Shopkeeper Lu doesn't mind, please accept them."
Lu Yao was startled, "Mr. Zhao is too polite."
To Lu Yao, these things were extraordinary.
It’s just like how Zhao Guanghong and others view the paper towels and hand sanitizers in movie theaters.
Just by opening a corner of the brocade, one could see the luster. The porcelain was delicate and exquisite, the embroidered handkerchief was double-sided, and the ink sticks and tea leaves did not look like ordinary goods.
Zhao Guanghong smiled naively: "Thanks to Shopkeeper Lu, I have gained a lot during my trip to Jiangnan. It's just a small gift, don't mind. I have something else I want to discuss with Shopkeeper Lu."
There were customers nearby buying drinks and playing claw machines, and they would come to Lu Yao from time to time to exchange coins.
Zhao Guanghong also saw that she was busy, so he went straight to the point and said that he wanted to introduce her to some wealthy businessmen from Jiangnan.
When Lu Yao heard the word "richest man", he thought of the TV series he watched when he was a child - The Richest Man in Jiangnan, Rich enough to rival a country.
It seemed that he also wanted to discuss cooperation, as Lu Yao said that we could have lunch together at noon.
After delivering the gift and informing Lu Yao of the matter, Zhao Guanghong felt that his mission was completed and he kept glancing at the machine next to him.
Lu Yao laughed, gave him a handful of coins, and explained how to play.
Zhao Guanghong couldn't wait to go and experience it.
He stayed upstairs until the Jiang family finished watching the movie, and even paid for it out of his own pocket several times.
In the middle, Die Qi came up once, followed by Chen Lianlian from Jinghong Pavilion and Xu Niangzi from Yanzhi Tower.
The two of them made an appointment to see Lu Yao. Madam Xu wanted to see the strange rouge and powder in the cinema, and also wanted to learn how to apply "dawn makeup".
Lu Yao was too busy in the morning and had an appointment for lunch at noon. After explaining the situation to the two people, he asked them to come over in the afternoon.
After Chen Lianlian and Xu Niangzi left, Lu Yao called Die Qi, "Qi Qi, you learn things the fastest. Let me tell you about the work upstairs. You can take over for a while in the afternoon."
After Dieqi joined the convenience store, she gave Gouzi some strict "training and education". Gouzi's arithmetic and service awareness improved a lot than before.
When it's not too busy, he can support the store by himself.
Die Qi had no objection to Lu Yao's arrangement, and was also able to gain a deeper understanding of the cinema.
These five machines appeared last night and it was the first time she saw them.
The guests around were already fascinated, and Die Qi liked this opportunity to get close to new things.
Lu Yao added: "You can still return to the store after you recruit new people. I'm sorry to have troubled you these few days."
Die Qi shook her head, "I'm happy to help the young shopkeeper."
Die Qi went downstairs to say something to Gou Zi, then went upstairs to start training.
At the same time, the news that the cinema was recruiting new employees had spread, and people who wanted to apply were already on the way in waves.
It was almost noon and no one had made it to the cinema.
Lu Yao felt a little strange. He didn't expect that after so long, the cinema's business was still so bad.
-
Qin Sanwei has recently taken on a lot of book copying jobs in order to support his expenses at the cinema.
The cinema was really a "gold-spending den". He just couldn't help but grit his teeth and went to watch a show. After that, he couldn't stop anymore and kept wondering if there were any new films in the cinema.
Today I went to Rong Xi Study to hand in a book, and heard the waiter excitedly say that the second floor of the cinema had opened and there were new things.
Qin Sanwei came out of his study, holding the fifty copper coins he had just exchanged in his pocket, but his feet were not under his control. He turned around and walked to the entrance of the cinema, then looked up and saw the recruitment notice.