Chapter 29: Little student! Put away those little tricks of yours!

From this moment on, Xue Ergou never looked at Huo Qitai as just a child again.

Glancing at his own son, Xue Xiaoshan, he couldn't help but compare them. Even though they grew up together and Xiaoshan’s college entrance exam scores were seemingly higher than Huo Qitai’s, Ergou had always felt proud of his son’s competence. Yet, compared to the Huo Qitai standing before him now, the difference was like that between heaven and earth.

Huo Qitai was the same age as Xiaoshan, yet he possessed an uncanny ability to manipulate human nature and had devised such complex, interlocking marketing strategies that he seemed to be turning the art of promotion into a spectacle.

"Xiaoshan! You must learn from Little Tai from now on, you hear me? You spend all day playing games; if you could just pick up a trick or two from him, you’d never go hungry in this life," Ergou said, scolding his son while simultaneously showering Huo Qitai with high praise.

"Dad, can you blame me? It’s your own genes! Little Tai has a mother who is a teacher, while you and Mom are just humble folk who didn't even finish middle school!" Xiaoshan retorted, immediately shifting the blame. Before his father could reach for him, he chuckled and ducked behind Huo Qitai, asking, "Little Tai, what’s our next move?"

"Back to the hotel. The marketing phase is essentially finished. Now we need to prepare properly for the lecture the day after tomorrow. I wonder how Lulu is getting along with the setup."

With the hired extras dispersed, Huo Qitai felt a sense of relief. He hailed a taxi, intending to return to the Prosperity and Splendor Hotel with Xiaoshan. However, just as the taxi came to a stop, Xue Ergou pulled the door open and climbed in as well.

"Dad! What are you doing? Aren't you going to run the shop?" Xiaoshan asked, eyes wide.

Ergou gave a brazen laugh and replied, "To hell with that broken shop. I’m coming with you to broaden my horizons. Little Tai, that’s alright, isn't it? Maybe I can even help out."

"Of course," Huo Qitai nodded with a smile. He knew that Uncle Ergou’s greatest strength was his ability to constantly absorb new, useful things to better himself, lacking the stubbornness typical of the older generation.

...

Soon, the three of them returned to the Prosperity and Splendor Hotel to meet up with Chang Lu. When they arrived, however, they found Chang Lu working alongside two waitresses, struggling to move boxes of materials just delivered from the printing shop.

"What’s going on? Lulu, there are so many people idle in the hotel; why are only Sister Qian and Sister Fen helping you?" Huo Qitai frowned, realizing immediately that Chang Lu was being given a hard time.

If not for that, there would be no reason for the hotel’s hundred-plus employees—most of whom were free this early in the morning—to leave the task solely to the two waitresses who were close friends with Chang Lu.

"Pfft! It’s that vixen, obviously! She just can’t stand the sight of me," Chang Lu sneered, though she didn't seem to care much. "But she hasn't had it easy either. The conference room originally booked for the day after tomorrow was for her best friend’s company mid-year review, and I forced her to cancel it."

The waitress, Chen Qian, leaned in and added, "Student Huo, Manager Wu from the marketing department is one of Director Hu’s people. Unless he gives the word, no one else dares to help the young miss with these things. You know how it is—the young miss doesn't concern herself with hotel operations. Most of the other staff don't really take her seriously; they only listen to Director Chang and Director Hu."

Another waitress, Liu Fen, chimed in, "Plus, Manager Wu has been saying that your 'Peking University High-Achiever Lecture' won't attract anyone at all. He says it's just children playing house and that you’re bound to lose a fortune. He says Director Chang will just end up cleaning up your mess, and the rest of the staff are just waiting to see you make fools of yourselves."

"Fine! This started because of me, so I’ll handle it. I’m going to see him," Huo Qitai said. After a moment of contemplation, he took several stacks of tickets from the pile of materials.

"Little Tai, why are you going to see Manager Wu? It’s obvious he’s trying to sabotage us. We should just report him to Uncle Chang," Xiaoshan said, following him with visible frustration.

Xue Ergou, however, just smiled and shook his head at his son’s suggestion.

Huo Qitai explained, "If you want to report him, just think: why hasn't Lulu done it? We are outsiders here. We are already taking advantage of the hotel’s resources. If Manager Wu is bold enough to trip us up like this, he won't be afraid of a complaint. He has countless excuses ready—lack of manpower, being too busy at the time, claiming he thought you were just playing around, or saying he had everything arranged and it would have been ready in time."

"Huh? What a crafty old fox," Xiaoshan grumbled in annoyance.

Ergou added from the side, "Little Tai is right. Anyone who can become a hotel manager has a thousand tricks up their sleeve. If you run off to tattle like children, it only proves you are incapable of solving your own problems. Director Chang might scold Manager Wu and order him to help, but from that moment on, your reputation in his eyes will be nothing more than 'incompetent'."

"How can a simple lecture to make a little money have so many twists and turns?" Xiaoshan asked, feeling deflated. Like many students just entering society, he had naively believed that earning money was simply a matter of hard work leading to a reward. But in the true melting pot of society, one only realizes after stepping inside that every person and every event is far more complex than it appears on the surface.

"Well, you can't hit a smiling face, can you? We’re not just going to win over Manager Wu; we’re going to help Lulu win over the hotel staff as well. Just watch—if this Manager Wu doesn't know what’s good for him, he’ll be waiting to slap his own face..."

With that, Huo Qitai walked to the second-floor marketing office, knocked, and politely stepped inside.

"Manager Wu, I’m Huo Qitai, Lulu’s classmate. I’m the one organizing the Peking University High-Achiever Lecture. I’ll be needing your help over the next few days. These hundred or so tickets are a token of appreciation from Lulu and me; feel free to distribute them to the hotel staff as a perk."

As soon as Huo Qitai mentioned the word "perk," the five or six other employees in the office looked up. But upon realizing they were just tickets for a lecture organized by a student, they lost interest immediately. In their eyes, this was hardly a perk—it was worth less than a box of milk.

Manager Wu didn't react either. He rolled his eyes and gave a cold, mocking laugh. "Oh! A high schooler like you is so generous, handing out 'perks' to our hotel staff?"

As he spoke, Manager Wu brushed the stacks of tickets onto the floor, his jowls trembling with disdain. "Listen, kid! Put away your little tricks. You just want our staff to advertise for you for free, right? And you’re calling these tickets 'perks'? Do you think your lecture is a celebrity concert? You dare to charge 999 yuan for a ticket? I’m afraid people wouldn't even bother to come if you gave them away for free!"