Chapter 149: Chapter 146: No One Goes to the Temple of the Three Treasures for Nothing

“Are all special forces survival experts as tough as you?”

Yao Jun found it hard to believe. His father’s entourage included numerous retired special forces bodyguards, each incredibly brave and unsurpassed in hand-to-hand combat, but he hadn’t sensed any exceptional wilderness survival skills from them. Should he take them out for a test next time?

Bi Fang shook his head without a hint of modesty and admitted frankly, “That’s impossible. When it comes to professional wilderness survival skills in the country, I’m probably number one.”

In the System, special forces skills are merely at the Blue Level. Unless regularly involved in jungle warfare, the wilderness survival aspect when taken alone might only reach the Green Level. It might be extremely impressive to ordinary people, but in Bi Fang’s eyes, it wasn’t enough.

However, for some specialized units that are strong in jungle warfare, their wilderness survival skills could reach the Blue Level. That would be more than sufficient to serve as instructors at a high-end club and could also help address employment issues.

Not all special forces soldiers are well taken care of after retirement.

“Leave this aspect to me. I’ll make the selection and conduct interviews when it’s time. I’ll provide them with specialized training whenever there’s an opportunity,” Bi Fang asserted.

Lin Chang and Yao Jun felt reassured upon hearing this, confident in Bi Fang’s professionalism in this area, “Alright, we’ll leave this part to you then.”

As for the shares, how should they be distributed? It doesn’t matter how much we hold; it’s up to you to decide how to allocate them.”

Yao Jun became much more serious when it came to business, nothing like the “devoted fan” he was before.

Even with brothers, accounts must be settled clearly. Rewarding even hundreds of thousands casually during ordinary times was fine, but when it came to moving funds over ten million, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

The most critical point was his fear that if relationships were mishandled, it could cost him his friendship with Bi Fang in the future, which would be a significant loss.

“You mentioned earlier that the venue and decorations will cost about thirty million, right?” Bi Fang asked.

“Correct, that’s the estimated cost from our team previously, but following your requirements, it might not be enough,” Yao Jun admitted. He had connections in the outdoor branding industry.

Moreover, the thirty million was for the decorations alone, with Lin Chang taking care of the venue.

When the time comes, factoring in the standard rental cost into the expenses would indeed be a considerable expenditure.

Moreover, the venue’s opening surely wouldn’t be a one-off affair. Starting with initial construction and then gradually investing more over time would be a massive challenge for the cash flow.

The actual cost upon completion would be unimaginable.

Bi Fang didn’t hesitate and laid out his terms, “I’ll put up ten million outright. You guys cover the rest. Decide amongst yourselves how much each contributes, but I want a sixty percent share.”

After some consideration, Lin Chang and Yao Jun nodded in agreement.

“What about the division of responsibilities…”

Yao Jun spoke up first, “I’ll take care of the decoration, I’m more familiar with that.”

Lin Chang also pondered and said, “I’ll provide the venue. Our company Shenhua has quite a lot of real estate in the suburbs.”

Bi Fang’s arrangement was also in line with what both of them had expected.

The Wilderness Club project was after all developed by Bi Fang alone. It could attract fans through live stream broadcasts of wilderness adventures and also interact with these fans through the offline club.

Both complement each other, with the live stream bringing customers to the club, while the club would solidify Bi Fang’s position as a Wilderness Master, always as the benchmark in the wilderness niche.

Without Bi Fang, who knows how long it would take for a second survival master to emerge and drive the industry’s development.

Plus, there are his adventure and survival games.

Lin Chang and Yao Jun could almost see a vast commercial empire centered around “wilderness” slowly taking shape.

A complete one-stop service from entertainment to products.

Bi Fang had baked this cake, and now only the three of them were sharing it. Forget forty percent— even thirty percent would bring them a good profit.

“With your smarts and skills, it would be a waste not to go into business,” Lin Chang sounded somewhat regretful.

This thought came from deep within.

He and Yao Jun were, after all, just successful “rich second-generations,” and even if they owned their own businesses, they had, to some extent, used resources from their families.

Without such a foundation from home, it was uncertain whether they could have reached even half of their current achievements.

Bi Fang, on the other hand, was genuinely self-made, carving out an industry that predecessors hadn’t found solely through his capabilities and courage, an achievement no less significant than Mr. Ma’s development of online treasure hunting.

Even if this new industry chain couldn’t compare to treasure hunting in commercial terms, its nature was similar.

Hearing Lin Chang’s comments, Bi Fang shrugged, “Frankly, money doesn’t matter to me. I’m not interested in money because the happiest I’ve ever been was when I earned a few thousand a month at the company, looking forward to traveling during the New Year.”

Yao Jun laughed heartily upon hearing this, “Your words are interesting. Actually, my dream is simple: to lie at home every day with a lot of money flowing in.”

Lin Chang joined in, “I, too, want to travel the world. Unfortunately, the old man keeps pushing me to achieve minor goals, like earning a billion. It’s so dull.”

The three men exchanged knowing glances and laughed heartily together.

Next, they finalized some details, with Yao Jun to find a professional to draft the project plan and then Lin Chang to oversee the renovation, aiming to start the work before December.

And so, the affairs of the Wilderness Club came to a close for the time being.

A future city of the wilderness gradually took shape within the walls of a restaurant.

A day later, Bi Fang returned to Xicheng City.

This time, he planned to terminate his lease and pack up his things to leave.

Having not returned for nearly a month, he wondered what state his rundown apartment was in, whether it had become too moldy to live in.

On the train, Bi Fang browsed his social media circle, which consisted of just a few people, fewer than ten in total.

Suddenly, one social media post caught Bi Fang’s attention.

“So annoying, the boss is nitpicking again. If it weren’t for the mortgage I have to pay, I’d have quit long ago. I really want to throw a cup of coffee in her wrinkled old face to iron it out!”

Bi Fang glanced at the nickname; it was posted by Gou Qi.

One of the three contacts he’d kept from before.

When he first arrived, eager to straighten out his relationships and indeed short of cash, he used the excuse of borrowing money to sever unnecessary ties, keeping only three people.

The method might have been improper, but it was quick and effective.

Gou Qi was one of them—when Bi Fang repaid the money, Gou Qi had asked if Bi Fang had found a way to get rich and to not forget him if he did, to bring him along for the ride.

Looking at it now, it seemed he was not doing well.

Without hesitation, Bi Fang commented, “If you really want to throw it, you can come work for me. The salary might not be higher, but unless you live in Tomson Riviera, I don’t think paying off a mortgage would be difficult.”

Back when he was streaming solo, he couldn’t offer a job, and giving money would only sour the relationship.

Now that he was opening a club, there would always be positions suitable for him; Bi Fang remembered that Gou Qi was into software development, which could come in handy for designing an app for the club, making it easier for everyone to access information.

After sending this message, Bi Fang didn’t follow up; there was no need to rush into explaining.

Upon arriving in Xicheng City, Bi Fang entered the deep, sunlight-deprived alley, feeling a sense of everything and nothing having changed.

Two months, and nothing had changed, yet everything had.

The old building with red brick facades, cement balconies, and wooden windows painted green—it was hard to determine its age. The hallway was poorly lit, with a few dim incandescent bulbs providing the only light, and the walls plastered with small ads for “Drain Clearing” or “Invoice Services.”

The “12-102” unit number plated in blue paint on the green door; a month away, and the doorknob was covered in a thick layer of dust, with layers of small ads completely covering the keyhole.

The scent of cooking and the sound of children being taught drifted from next door.

As Bi Fang gently touched the rusted plate, he realized he had established a foothold in this world in less than two months.

And it would only get better from here.

The landlady appeared from some corner, carrying two green onions as if wielding dual swords, her face lighting up in surprise upon seeing Bi Fang, “Ah, a big star!”

“Good evening, landlady,” Bi Fang said with a smile.

“I haven’t seen you in ages. I even saw you on the news; you are so impressive!”

The landlady warmly welcomed Bi Fang’s return, even inviting him over for dinner, but Bi Fang declined, leaving her with a few autographs instead.

Delighted, the landlady accepted the autographs—she knew well that celebrity signatures could be worth quite a bit of money.

Just as she was enjoying her good fortune, she suddenly remembered something, “Oh right, there’s been someone looking for you these past few days.”

Bi Fang, just about to insert his key, paused, “Oh, who?”

“Someone with the last name Wang, something Wang Weifeng, I think. I can’t quite remember, but he’s been here every day, very persistent. I suspect he might be some sort of fan, so be careful.”

Bi Fang chuckled in disbelief, “A fan? That’s unlikely, isn’t it?”

“Why not? Even though the guy looks to be in his forties, I’ve always had a funny feeling about him. Hey, hey, look, he’s coming again!”

As they were talking, the landlady suddenly pointed behind Bi Fang, “That’s him, that’s the guy!”

Out in the alley, Wang Weifeng was jogging towards Bi Fang, all smiles.

“Ah, Mr. Bi, oh no, Mr. Bi, it’s been so hard to get a chance to see you; I’ve been waiting for a week!”