Salon Rules and Li Bing's Call
Take the Zhang Lin deal, for example—last night, He Peiling had already announced it. Since He Shishi had made the introduction, she was getting a 10% commission this month: a cool 8,800 yuan!
That news had the other girls green with envy, their eyes practically glowing red...
So Du Wenli had hurried over, trying to cozy up to Chu Fei a bit. But he'd been giving massages all day and was genuinely wiped out, so he dozed off right there in his chair. Her little scheme fell flat, and soon enough she had to go serve some shampoo clients anyway, leaving her no choice but to walk away.
Though Chu Fei's family salon was small, it had its own strict rules. With over twenty girls working there, they had to make sure everyone got a fair shot—no way could they let all the girls swarm new customers the second they walked in...
Every client meant commissions, and everyone wanted more. So the shop kept a numbered blackboard for turns. Each girl had her own number, and they served customers strictly in that order—unless a client specifically requested someone, in which case no cutting in line.
Girls lower on the list usually hid out in the private rooms, chatting or scrolling on their phones, only emerging when it was nearly their turn. Otherwise, they'd risk offending others by looking like they were jumping the queue...
Because if you lingered out front, some customers would spot a prettier girl and say, "I want her!"—effectively cutting in line. That way, the beautiful ones would work themselves to death every day, while the less attractive ones starved. To prevent that, the shop enforced the numbering system: fair play, everyone fends for herself. The skilled ones turned clients into regulars who asked for them next time, just like how He Shishi handled He Peiling and Zhang Lin's shampoo sessions.
But precisely because of that, He Shishi hadn't shown her face at all...
She'd already raked in so much this month—coming out to snag those little tips would piss everyone off.
He Shishi had been at the salon for over four years and seen it all, so she simply holed up in a private room and stayed out of sight.
Finally, it was Lin Juan's turn. She stepped out to take her place in line and spotted Chu Fei dozing in his chair. Without a second thought, she walked over, gently cradled his head in her arms, and started massaging. The women nearby—He Peiling included—all shot her puzzled looks. Lin Juan wasn't the proactive type; she never buttered anyone up...
Why was she being so sweet to Chu Fei?
And right then, Chu Fei finally appreciated the magic of Lin-style massage. Her soft, gentle fingers neither woke him nor skimped on the soothing pleasure...
As he floated blissfully in that tender embrace, his phone suddenly buzzed in his pocket.
Chu Fei's number was still a Wuhan one; he hadn't bothered changing it after moving here. It was a no-minimum-plan SIM—only charged for actual calls—so those were rare these days anyway. Plus, hardly anyone ever called him...
That was probably another of his four fruitless college years.
Chu Fei stirred awake, fished out his phone, and saw an unknown number. He hung up without thinking. But two seconds later, it rang again, persistent as hell...
"Hello?"
"Chu Fei? It's Li Bing."
The voice on the line was young and feminine.
"Li Bing? Who's that?"
Chu Fei frowned. The name rang a faint bell—where had he heard it before?
"You heartless jerk... Forgot about us already?" The girl laughed lightly. "Remember back in the dorm, when you fucked us half to death?"
"Ah... Oh, right. You. How'd you get my number?"
Chu Fei remembered instantly. Li Bing was a model too, Zhang Qian's roommate—one of the "perpetrators" in that gangbang back then. At just five-foot-eight, she didn't match Zhang Qian's leggy five-ten, but she was stunning enough for print work. That was all he knew; after breaking up with Zhang Qian, he'd cut ties and never followed their lives.
"Zhang Qian gave it to me, duh. She said you're in Shenzhen now and asked me to look after you... Heh, handsome, you free to meet up?"
"You're in Shenzhen?" Chu Fei sat up straight.
"Yup. Came right after graduation. Don't know many people here, and with New Year's, I'm totally alone. Just called Zhang Qian to vent, and she mentioned you're around—thought I'd hit you up... C'mon, give me some face? Dinner together?"
"Uh, hold on..."
Chu Fei turned to his mom, He Peiling, who was watching him, and shrugged. "Mom, it's a college classmate. Wants to treat me to dinner. What do you think?"
"You've been busy all day anyway. Go stretch your legs." He Peiling was pretty open-minded. "Go on. Call if anything comes up."
"Okay..."