The beauty consultant had been talking non-stop for nearly half an hour, but she couldn’t compete with a single word from the handsome guy.
The girl’s face was flushed, her gaze dazed as she stood up, probably not even remembering where she was at that moment, her mind only looping the handsome guy’s compliment about her cuteness, unable to hear anyone else’s voice.
Using the same method, Lu Qingjia managed to bring all the girls out, leaving the hospital amidst the angry shouts of the men and the dissatisfied accusations from the beauty consultants.
The commotion was quite loud, and as Lu Qingjia left, he passed through the lobby and saw the other three players Yang Qian had mentioned.
One was a male player dressed in a doctor’s white coat, looking to be in his thirties, with a refined and elegant appearance that fit the role perfectly.
Another was a young girl in a pink nurse’s dress, not as striking as Yang Qian but still cute and charming—after all, the female staff at a cosmetic hospital wouldn’t be unattractive.
The last was a cleaning lady who looked to be in her fifties, slightly plump, with a rosy and friendly face, appearing to be there just to watch the excitement. If it weren’t for the sensing ability among players, she would have seemed like a bewildered outsider.
This was interesting; generally, players over fifty weren’t common, and those that were, were particularly rare.
After all, aside from a few well-maintained individuals, physical functions decline rapidly after fifty, and having lived more than half a life, they tend to be dulled by life’s grind, making them less adaptable to extreme new experiences, which makes them particularly easy to eliminate in beginner levels.
Especially older female players, who in reality, are usually focused on family at that age, with their lives revolving around children and husbands, content with a stable and ordinary life. Adapting to a horror game that constantly threatens life is truly challenging.
From the ‘company’ employee structure Lu Qingjia extracted from Zhong Liyu, the age and gender distribution among employees provided a good explanation.
Overall, the number of male players was more than double that of female players, and among female players, those over forty made up less than five percent.
Of course, as the game’s difficulty increased and players were eliminated in layers, the gender ratio among the remaining players became less skewed.
Especially at the high levels like Zhong Ye’s, according to him, the management team had a male-to-female ratio of only 1.5:1, aside from the universally disliked stupid boss.
This shows that the overall quality and survival rate of female players who made it through the initial eliminations were higher than that of male players.
In summary, under such big data, a woman over fifty entering a clearly pivotal dungeon indicates she has her strengths, just as Yang Qian said; it seems all players in this dungeon are quite capable.
At the very least, they were upper-tier players in this beginner stage.
Lu Qingjia brought the few girls back to the square, added them on WeChat, advised them not to leave the crowd casually in the future, and politely declined an invitation to eat together before returning to the cosmetic hospital.
The man managing the temporary workers was still in the hospital lobby, explaining something to a person in a suit who looked like management.
Seeing Lu Qingjia through the glass door, he immediately ran out, mocking, “Oh, did you drop something? Aren’t you a college student looking for better opportunities, too good for this meager salary? Why are you back?”
“What’s wrong? Regretting it now? Let me tell you, it’s too late; we won’t give you a single cent here. Get lost, get lost—”
Lu Qingjia smiled, “No, compared to that insignificant salary, I actually regret losing someone like Brother Liu.”
“Aren’t you also not a formal employee here?” Lu Qingjia pulled out his phone, which had a WeChat group for temporary workers managed by someone named Liu.
He scrolled through the other person’s WeChat moments and found that this person was involved in quite a few businesses.
Not only the cosmetic hospital but also gyms, real estate sales, renovation companies—basically, he was involved in any sales channel that required a broad network.
He wasn’t a formal employee of any company, just an intermediary, recruiting college students and cheap laborers who had just entered society and were struggling to find jobs, leading them to distribute flyers and promote.
The companies that hired him would pay him according to the customer flow during the event, but this cosmetic hospital had been running promotions for a long time, so Liu had been stationed there for quite a while, even managing the temporary workers’ accommodation and meals.
Lu Qingjia said, “It’s such a hot day, Brother Liu, you’ve worked hard all morning. How about we grab lunch together?”
Saying this, he added with a smile in the face of Liu’s disbelief, “Consider it an apology for what happened earlier.”
In the end, Liu still accompanied Lu Qingjia to a high-end Sichuan restaurant on the commercial street, where the average cost per person was at least three to four hundred, and just ordering a couple of signature dishes would easily exceed a thousand. It was notorious for being expensive with small portions.
It didn’t seem like a place a poor student could afford, nor was it suitable for a work lunch.
Brother Liu had some doubts: “You kid, making a little money isn’t easy; don’t waste it all on one meal.”
He was mainly worried that this kid couldn’t pay the bill and would end up getting him into trouble.
But soon, he didn’t have to worry about that, as after ordering through a mobile app, Lu Qingjia directly paid the bill.
He even ordered a good bottle of wine, smiling, “Although it’s not appropriate to drink during work hours, I asked, and this wine is sweet and low in alcohol, so it shouldn’t affect Brother Liu’s work this afternoon.”
The restaurant served the dishes quite quickly, and soon their expensive signature dishes were all on the table. Brother Liu estimated that this meal, plus the wine, would cost at least five thousand.
With the taste of food in his mouth, he lost the earlier commanding attitude towards Lu Qingjia.
While eating, Brother Liu asked, “Xiao Lu, your family background seems good. What’s up? Out here working a summer job to experience life?”
“Come on! I previously underestimated you, thinking you were just an ordinary poor student. Here’s to you, as an apology for my earlier thoughtless words.”
They clinked glasses, and he continued, “But don’t blame me; nowadays, many young people are lazy and slippery. If I’m not strict, it’s hard for me to do my job.”
Lu Qingjia smiled, “I admire Brother Liu’s work ability, so I naturally understand your difficulties. Besides, you’re not just someone who can talk; you manage a whole group of inexperienced newcomers, and most of the work is done with your help. Just like earlier, you didn’t take credit for my employee number, showing that Brother Liu thinks of the people below you.”
After flattering Liu, who became a bit embarrassed after a couple of drinks, he said, “Oh, come on, I’m just trying to make a living. You can ask around; in the whole university town, there are so many shady temporary worker bosses scamming young students, but only I, Brother Liu, have people who worked under me, and not to say they praise me, at least they know I’m honest; you’ll definitely get your pay for the work you do.”
He then curiously asked, “But brother, why did you just interfere with someone else’s business?”
Lu Qingjia didn’t answer, but Brother Liu speculated that the young student probably hadn’t seen the harsh realities of society and couldn’t bear to see a few girls being deceived.
He comforted him, “Hey! Beauty treatments, aren’t they just a tax on women’s intelligence? Those who are interested will eventually be lured away by other places if they don’t act today.”
“You, Brother Liu, aren’t a bad person. Although this hospital isn’t as good as what the online water army claims, it’s not too shady either; at least, nothing serious has happened so far.”
“The doctors they hire are all licensed. Just think about it; some shady beauty clinics have people trained on chicken legs who dare to perform double eyelid surgeries.”
Lu Qingjia replied, “Brother Liu, you’re overthinking it. I’m not someone who can’t tolerate a grain of sand in my eye.”
“I’m just concerned about Brother Liu working in this heat. May I ask, how much can you earn during one promotional cycle?”
If it were someone else asking, he might have dodged the question, but given that they were enjoying a meal worth thousands, he felt casual about it.
He said, “Just enough to get by, if the promotional month goes well, I can earn around twenty to thirty thousand, but it’s not like this kind of business is available all year round. It’s barely enough to support a family, and I definitely can’t spend money like you do.”
After saying this, Lu Qingjia took out his phone and fiddled with it, and soon he received a WeChat notification.
When he opened it, he was surprised to see a transfer of fifty thousand.
Brother Liu was stunned: “Brother, you—”
“Don’t get me wrong, I mentioned when I came that I really appreciate Brother Liu’s work ability. I just hope that when you have some free time, you can help me out a little.”
Brother Liu, being a seasoned player in society, naturally knew that money was easy to earn, and quickly said, “I won’t do anything illegal or against the rules, and I won’t engage in any shady practices that harm others.”
“How could that be?” Lu Qingjia said, “I’m also a law-abiding citizen. Besides, with Brother Liu’s skills, a mere few tens of thousands to buy your connections and reputation in this line of work, I wouldn’t dare to be so presumptuous.”
“I just want to ask you for some insider information and, if necessary, use your connections and local relationships.”
“Of course, all of this will be paid separately.”
Brother Liu looked at the real money in the WeChat notification and then at Lu Qingjia’s generosity, and he really couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
He gritted his teeth and said, “Fine, brother, as long as you don’t go overboard. If it exceeds my capabilities, don’t blame me for not being able to help.”
With that, the two clinked glasses, and the lunch ended on a high note.
After the meal, Brother Liu went back to his work, and Lu Qingjia returned to the area next to the cosmetic hospital, but this time his target was the two residential buildings next door.
There were signs indicating they were for rent or sale. Lu Qingjia made a phone call, and before long, he quickly negotiated a deal at double the market price. The owners of both houses personally brought the contracts for him to sign, and the entire process took less than three hours.
These two buildings were old and naturally uninhabitable, but Lu Qingjia had Brother Liu contact a renovation company. The person he reached out to was indeed well-connected; as long as the money was right, efficiency was guaranteed.
In less than two hours, the area around the cosmetic hospital began to echo with the sounds of construction, and in the scorching heat, no one wanted to step inside.
Yang Qian, as the receptionist, had been observing Lu Qingjia’s every move. Seeing this, she came out, found Lu Qingjia sitting in the shade, fanning himself and eating an ice pop, and smiled, “Not bad, taking the encirclement route.”
“I estimate the administrative manager will come out soon, but how’s your clue gathering going? The game can issue tasks at any time, and if your intel is late, it could be very detrimental.”
Lu Qingjia smiled and handed Yang Qian one of the seven small ice pops, saying, “For those needing identity convenience, I’ve already learned what I could from you. Based on the intel I gathered from you, it seems the doctor who knows the most about the hospital’s secrets has likely kept the key information.”
“This shows he’s not someone who shares easily, and his style of clearing levels seems to be one of hoarding resources. Of course, I don’t mean to criticize him; after all, there’s no rule that players must cooperate fully. The fundamental reason for forming teams is simply that one person is insufficient to handle the difficulty of clearing levels.”
“As the receptionist, since you can’t leave your post for long and your game time is only second to the doctors, it indicates that the computer data at the front desk and various records contain important information about the tasks.”
“What does the front desk computer generally have? The most important are visitor records and customer consumption data. Since cosmetic medicine involves repeat consumption, I guess the most likely thing to check first would be the historical consumption items of past clients.”
“I glanced at the promotional flyer, and the prices for various items are slightly lower than the market but not outrageous; it seems just to attract customers. Additionally, there’s a suspicion of guiding customers to borrow money for consumption, likely in long-term cooperation with some high-interest online loans.”
“But this isn’t surprising; after all, many industries are infiltrated by such gray projects, even buying a phone has its share. What makes me feel off is their liposuction project pricing.”
Lu Qingjia pulled out a promotional flyer he had kept in his pocket: “Logically, liposuction projects in cosmetic medicine aren’t low-cost, but this price is almost on par with my calculated costs. Plus, the few girls I brought earlier, although they inquired about different projects, all indicated that the beauty consultants frequently bundled and promoted liposuction projects, even those girls weren’t particularly overweight and mentioned Localized Liposuction.”
“You can check the historical consumption items of past clients; if I’m not mistaken, most of them have undergone liposuction, the only difference being whether it was localized or full body.”
Yang Qian, who had been chewing on her ice pop, became increasingly serious as she listened to Lu Qingjia’s analysis. She quickly returned to the front desk, pulled up the customer files, and rapidly reviewed dozens of them.
Those historical clients, aside from their preferred projects, indeed had over eighty percent who had undergone liposuction. After all, even a small face is picky, let alone the body.
Back, arms, waist, abdomen, thighs, buttocks—there’s always some annoying fat that doesn’t match, not to mention that there are quite a few people who are overweight.
Yang Qian had been in the game for seven or eight hours, and during this time, she had also served returning customers. It was only now that she realized that all historical clients were, without exception, thin, some even remarkably so.
Now that it was summer, through shorts and light clothing, it was easy to see that some people’s skin wasn’t smooth and even, with even some scars.
If they were purely clients for liposuction projects, like those with larger bases, the fees were astonishingly cheap.
Yang Qian came out and had to admit that if her previous goodwill towards Lu Qingjia was based on a comprehensive judgment of the game, now she was genuinely impressed.
Not to mention the doctor and her position could directly reveal clues; this person had managed to identify key information through just a flyer and limited sources of information, and even the game’s deliberate timing of each player’s identity and analytical abilities was part of his clue sorting.
No wonder the game had eliminated any advantages he might have based on identity.
Lu Qingjia handed her another small ice pop: “Their liposuction technology should be quite good; otherwise, such a dangerous project would have caused issues long ago. A heartless industry wouldn’t hire high-level doctors without reason.”
“Therefore, doing so many liposuction surgeries, or collecting so much fat, must have other uses. If the game is using a time difference to let us discover this key information, then the task must be related to it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, they heard the game’s reluctant voice—
[Dungeon Name: Heartless Cosmetic Hospital.]
[Dungeon Task: Obtain the perfect beauty recipe.]
Lu Qingjia frowned; it seemed this dungeon’s game had set more obstacles for him than he had imagined.
He directly asked, “Is this my test for advancing to the intermediate level?”
The horror game lazily replied, “Yes, do you expect to continue bullying weak players in the beginner level?”
Lu Qingjia nodded, “The tasks of the other four players conflict with mine, right?”
The horror game responded, “You’re directly asking me? That’s a serious violation of the rules.”
“Because you’re easy to deceive,” Lu Qingjia chuckled. “I didn’t ask you to answer, but I already know the answer.”
The horror game: “…”
Damn it, if it weren’t the game boss, it would really not want to play with someone like this.
Yang Qian had just accepted her task and smiled, “It seems your speculation was correct. Once this point is noticed by the players, the task will be issued.”
“What’s your task?”
Lu Qingjia looked at her and smiled, “Shouldn’t you first tell me what your task is?”
Yang Qian’s expression was awkward; she knew that trying to extract information at this level had a low probability of success and hadn’t held much hope from the start.
After thinking for a moment, she simply said, “Forget it, anyway, if I don’t say it, you can get it out of the other three.”
“The task I just received is to exorcise the vengeful spirits of the hospital. What about you? Given your schedule, the likelihood of our tasks being the same is low; otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair to the other three players.”
“I’ll assume that in the game’s judgment, your overall strength is the strongest, so to balance things out, your teammates can’t be me and the doctor. It’s very likely to be the nurse or the cleaner who entered the game first, or even—”
Yang Qian glanced at Lu Qingjia: “You’re taking on four by yourself.”
Lu Qingjia was unconcerned about her wariness and simply asked, “So far, what’s the highest clearance rating you’ve received?”
“A grade.” Yang Qian replied, “There was one time I almost got an S grade, but a player in the team messed up and ended up getting themselves killed, which lowered my rating.”
Lu Qingjia said, “That’s easy; let’s go by the A grade standard. I guarantee you’ll reach that rating, and if not, I’ll make up the reward. Can this be our formal alliance?”
Yang Qian was indeed a rare smart woman. Even though this was a beginner level, the other party already showed signs of rising. In this one or two dungeons, she would definitely be able to level up.
Lu Qingjia wasn’t afraid of competing with her, but he also didn’t want to push her towards those three, as they had absolute advantages in identity. If they banded together to prevent him from approaching the hospital, it would only add unnecessary difficulty for himself.
Yang Qian didn’t expect him to be so generous. Upon further thought, she was shocked by the hidden information.
The reward for an A grade evaluation was a full five thousand points. Even if she couldn’t get anything, the other party had to be prepared to supplement her with a few thousand points, but he seemed completely unfazed.
This was just a beginner level; players had limited resources. After buying items to enhance their abilities, how much would be left?
But from Lu Qingjia’s attitude, it seemed completely normal. Did he have an S grade evaluation before, or even more than once?
Even in this dungeon, he firmly believed he would achieve a rating above S; otherwise, making a deal with him would be a loss.
Yang Qian’s expression was incredibly complex. At that moment, the manager indeed came out, and upon seeing the bustling construction scene around, he immediately became furious.
Yang Qian quickly got into action, turning to the manager and saying, “Manager Zhu, you’re here? This is the new tenant around here; I asked him to keep the noise down, but he wouldn’t listen.”
Manager Zhu nodded and said to Yang Qian, “You can go back first; I’ll handle this.”
Yang Qian glanced at Lu Qingjia before returning to her post.
Manager Zhu, with a stern face, said, “Sir, your construction work is greatly affecting our business. I don’t know if you’re living here or running a business, but since we’re neighbors now, it’s better to keep things friendly. How about asking the workers to keep the noise down?”
Lu Qingjia smiled, “I’m sorry, but I’m in a hurry to start work; please bear with me for now. My renovations are simple and will only take a day or two.”
Seeing this, Manager Zhu wanted to explode, but it seemed unreasonable to do so for such a short time, yet it was still quite annoying.
He asked, “What are you planning to do?”
Lu Qingjia looked innocent: “I’m planning to ferment stinky tofu.”
“Hey, you—”
Just as he was about to lose his temper, an old lady appeared at the entrance of the cosmetic hospital.
The security guard at the hospital entrance immediately stopped her, saying, “What are you doing here again? Haven’t you had enough trouble last time?”
The old woman had disheveled hair and a stubborn gaze, appearing quite mad as she disregarded the guard’s obstruction and pushed her way inside. “Let me in! I need my treatments. You can’t stop me; I’m a senior VIP member.”
Lu Qingjia raised an eyebrow upon hearing her voice; surprisingly, it sounded quite youthful. Her hair was only streaked with a few gray strands, and although her skin was wrinkled like orange peel, her posture was still upright, and her figure had not lost its shape, let alone hunched over.
She looked extremely out of place, as if her real age did not match her appearance.
Upon seeing her, even the management manager forgot about Lu Qingjia and hurried over. “What are you doing here again?”
“I’ve told you countless times, your membership balance has long been spent. You can no longer enjoy our senior VIP services. Are you trying to dine and dash? Get lost!”
The old woman pleaded desperately, “Did I not spend enough here before I went bankrupt? Your costs can’t be that high, right?”
“Back then, everyone smiled like flowers when they saw me. Now you treat me like a beggar. Let me tell you, don’t provoke me. At worst, I—”
She only got halfway through her sentence, and the other party seemed intent on hiding something. Manager Zhu’s expression turned harsh.
With a sneer, he said, “We run a business here. If you have money to spend, you’re a god. If you don’t have money and still want to enjoy, what kind of logic is that?”
“Who are you trying to threaten? Think about your family. I heard your son is in school now and doesn’t have a bodyguard anymore, right? You’re not exactly barefoot either; you should weigh your options.”
Fear flashed across the old woman’s face as she mumbled a few words before reluctantly turning to leave.
Lu Qingjia did not rush to follow her; instead, he texted Brother Liu to see if he knew anything about her.
Brother Liu quickly replied, saying that the old woman had been there before.
It was said that she used to be a wealthy lady and a regular customer, but she went bankrupt six months ago and naturally could no longer afford to spend. However, she was obsessed with beauty and felt that since she had prepaid so much money, she kept coming back to cause a scene.
Brother Liu sighed, remarking how terrifying women can be when it comes to beauty, even at sixty or seventy years old, still so persistent.
Sixty or seventy? That might not be the case. If the old woman’s age truly matched her appearance, excluding the possibility of being a high-risk pregnant woman, her son should have been an adult by now.
A son who needs a bodyguard for school likely wouldn’t be too old.
At that moment, Manager Zhu returned, his attitude becoming quite rude. “Are you specifically renting the space next to our beauty hospital to ferment stinky tofu? Are you looking for trouble on purpose?”
“No matter where you come from, it’s best to inquire before doing things. Don’t offend people casually.”
Lu Qingjia smiled, “I’m just doing honest business, not stealing or robbing. How could I offend anyone?”
Manager Zhu scoffed, clearly not wanting to engage in a verbal spar with Lu Qingjia, and headed back to the hospital while dialing a number on his phone.
Seeing the other party’s figure disappear, Lu Qingjia returned to his rented place and reminded the workers, “If someone comes to stop your work later, just listen to them. No need to get into a conflict; you’ll still be paid.”
After saying that, he stepped out and followed the direction the old woman had left.
Fortunately, she wasn’t walking fast and seemed preoccupied with her thoughts. When Lu Qingjia found her, her eyes were red, clearly having cried and reached a breaking point.
Lu Qingjia gently patted her shoulder, and when she turned around, he smiled and said, “Ma’am, do you remember me?”
“You are—”
Lu Qingjia’s smile grew more sincere and compassionate. “I accompanied my mother here for beauty treatments before, and we met briefly. You might not remember me, but your elegance has always stayed in my heart.”
This wasn’t Lu Qingjia lying; although the old woman’s skin was sagging and wrinkled, her facial contours were still there. One could see from her bone structure and the faintly supported features that if her skin were in good condition, she would truly be a beauty.
Upon hearing Lu Qingjia’s words, the old woman’s face showed pain, and she quickly covered her face. “Don’t look at me, don’t look at me.”
It was as if she didn’t want anyone to remember her past and then compare it to her current downfall.
Lu Qingjia gently took her hands and pulled them away from her face, smiling, “Ma’am, you don’t need to feel embarrassed. In my eyes, your charm is still as it was in the past.”
“Stop lying to me,” she cried.
Lu Qingjia’s expression softened even more. “It’s true. When I didn’t recognize you and mistakenly guessed your age, what I thought was, ‘What a remarkable beauty, aged gracefully.’ If possible, I would really like to take her out on a date.”
“However, I can also understand your situation. Don’t misunderstand; I’m not a bad person. I just can’t bear to see a remarkable lady fall into the abyss of self-doubt.”
“If you would allow me, let me help you.”
Lu Qingjia extended his hand, his smile brighter than the sun behind him.
The woman felt a daze in her heart and slowly reached out her hand.
The author has something to say:
Lu Ge: I said it, I said it! If necessary, the old woman can’t escape his clutches. (Crying) Of course, I didn’t escape either.
