Chapter 278 - 276: Member 003

Chapter 278: Chapter 276: Member 003

"You can ask her yourself in a bit just how serious it is." Zhang Zhe gave a mysterious smile. He had come out because there was something important he needed to discuss with Old Bai.

It was about the fees she had just mentioned.

Zhang Zhe pulled Old Bai to one side. Once he was sure they were far enough away that the rich lady in the room couldn’t hear their conversation even if she had superhuman hearing, he finally spoke.

"Old Bai, can you give me some pointers? For people with your kind of wealth, how do you usually pay for a consultation with a Matchmaker?"

"I told her I charge by the hour, but the problem is, the most expensive Matchmaker I’ve ever seen only charged 1,200 an hour."

Poverty limited Zhang Zhe’s imagination.

The people he dealt with were all legitimate matchmakers from legitimate agencies, and their fees were all on the books. The only one who wasn’t so by-the-book was Mrs. Xu, and her prices were very affordable.

Zhang Zhe truly had no idea how much to charge the rich woman. If he charged too little, he’d be taking a loss. If he charged too much, it would likely be a one-shot deal and ruin his reputation.

"You don’t know?" Old Bai almost burst out laughing. "I thought you’d already worked it out with her. I was even trying to think of a way to get her to pay more, maybe persuade her to sign up for a membership."

"We didn’t talk about money. We just talked about her relationship problems," Zhang Zhe said with a shrug.

"Brother Zhang, oh, Brother Zhang... It looks like business really isn’t your strong suit." Old Bai shook his head. "Actually, I noticed it a long time ago. You’re just a little lacking when it comes to business."

"I mean, you opened your matchmaking agency at the entrance of a regular residential complex..."

"If it were me, I’d definitely set up a small storefront in the CBD. Even if the rent is a bit higher, it wouldn’t matter. With all the people coming and going there every day, would you ever have to worry about not having business?"

"That’s true." Zhang Zhe took Old Bai’s advice to heart and was already mentally planning to open a branch office once he had the money.

’A HUAWEI store on the left, a MI store on the right, and "Brother Zhang’s Matchmaking" in the middle, right in the CBD. What a stunning sight that would be.’

But that was for the future. Right now, Zhang Zhe had to consider the issue of payment. He asked tentatively,

"What do you think about charging four thousand an hour for consultations?"

"That’s fine, but it’s very cheap." Old Bai nodded. "So cheap that it doesn’t feel like a high-end matchmaking agency."

"If you don’t dare to charge a high price, then just make that the member price."

"For non-members, charge eight thousand an hour."

"To become a member, they pay a hundred-thousand-yuan annual fee. That gets them the member price and one personal consultation per month. That way, the membership offers good value."

"And then you can prepare some small gifts for members, like chocolates or coffee beans that are nearing their expiration date. That should be about right."

"Oh, right, you also need to hire a few people." Old Bai slapped his forehead. "I’ve been meaning to tell you this."

"But with all the trouble my second uncle caused, I completely forgot. I was too busy thinking about how to explain things to his friends and relatives."

"Actually, I was originally planning to recommend him to work for you."

"But after he told me how he got beaten up, I knew he wasn’t cut out to be a Matchmaker..."

"Actually, your uncle is perfect for being an unhinged influencer," Zhang Zhe suggested, suppressing a laugh. "If he did his matchmaking online, it’d be safer."

"HAHAHA, that’s true."

"Brother Zhang, what I’m trying to say is, you’re famous now, and if you want to do high-end business, you can’t possibly take on every job yourself."

"You need to hire at least one person to handle the low-end business. It’s best if they’re a little less skilled. That way, it’ll feel more meaningful when people pay a high price for you."

"That makes sense, Old Bai. Do you have anyone else to recommend?"

"Nope." Old Bai shook his head, laughing loudly. "Ah, I can’t. Every time I think of my uncle, I can’t help but laugh."

"Brother Zhang, enough about that. It wouldn’t be a problem for you to give me two membership cards, right?"

"I’ll use one for myself, and I want to keep the other to give away as a favor later."

"No problem! Is two enough? I’ll give you five."

Zhang Zhe had been wondering how to thank Old Bai, so when he brought it up himself, Zhang Zhe was overjoyed.

"I don’t need that many. For a business partner I’m not that close with, just giving them an introduction is already doing them a huge favor." As Old Bai said this, he gestured toward the inside of the agency.

He was implying that Ms. Li, who was inside, was one such business partner he wasn’t particularly close to.

Seeing Old Bai’s reaction, Zhang Zhe figured he already had someone in mind for the membership card. He didn’t insist on giving more—scarcity creates value, after all. He’d just mark Old Bai’s cards as "SVIP" to distinguish them from the regular "VIP" cards.

Seeing that time was about up, the system also notified Zhang Zhe that the effects of the Stealing Love Powder had worn off.

Only then did Zhang Zhe let Old Bai go inside.

As soon as the two of them entered, they saw the rich lady emerge from the room with a frown, clutching her phone with the ferocity of someone holding a meat cleaver.

Seeing Zhang Zhe, she immediately said, "I just spent ten minutes rereading my entire chat history with that man."

"I found out that on several occasions when he replied with a voice message, there were sounds of a woman moaning in the background."

"Holy crap!" Old Bai burst out laughing. "Doesn’t that make you a part of their ’play’?"

"Tiffany, are you really that oblivious? You’re only just now discovering this?"

"I’d like to know why the hell I’m only just now discovering it too." The rich lady laughed at her own stupidity as she spoke. "And to think I was hoping something would happen between us. I was so pathetic."

"Brother Zhang, can you help set me up with someone? I only have one requirement right now: find me a handsome, single man. I’ll make it worth his while."

"..." Seeing the rich lady’s posture, which suggested she was looking for someone to blow off steam with, Zhang Zhe quickly waved his hands. "My selection of men here is notoriously bad. There’s not a single one who’s better-looking than me."

"What about you?" the rich lady asked bluntly. "You’re not married, are you? Even if you are, I bet it’s not a happy one. I don’t even see a picture of a woman on your desk."

"Don’t you go hitting on Brother Zhang," Old Bai cut in, afraid Zhang Zhe might do something foolish. "He has a fiancée. His future father-in-law’s rank is about the same as your grandfather’s."

"Besides, don’t you need him to help you analyze your relationship problems in the future?"

"..." The rich lady tilted her head, staring at Zhang Zhe’s face for a long moment.

Fortunately, Zhang Zhe was already used to the heated gazes of women. If this had been the old him, he definitely would have felt uncomfortable.

After a while, the rich lady sighed. "Sigh. All the good men are already taken."

"I don’t even know what the point of blind dates is anymore. It’s either marriage shills or some inhuman things pretending to be men. Where did all the actual good men go to die?"

Both Zhang Zhe and Old Bai wisely chose not to respond. When someone you’re not close with is complaining, it’s enough just to listen; there’s no need to even offer a word of agreement.

After the rich lady had a moment to cool down, she brought up the day’s bill herself. "Brother Zhang, let’s settle up. How much is it?"

A charming smile instantly appeared on Zhang Zhe’s face. "Would you be interested in signing up for a membership?"

"If you sign up now, you’ll be our matchmaking agency’s member number 003~"