The Gate of Rebirth 04

"Hurry up, Xiao Ming! We open in less than fifteen minutes!"

"Alright, I'm almost done!" Xiao Ming was busy checking the smart robots, while Xiao Hong was already urging him on.

In the KTV department, although most of the work was handled by smart robots, their maintenance and supervision still required constant human attention. Xiao Hong's job was to stand at the front desk, providing necessary guidance to guests who struggled to communicate with the robots, and "educating" the unruly children who treated the machines roughly.

Manager Luo, of course, ran the entire KTV, coordinating all functions to ensure things ran smoothly. Whenever a guest encountered a tricky problem, it was almost always left to Manager Luo to handle alone. For instance, if someone lost a handbag or a drunk patron started a commotion, he was the one who dealt with it.

You might wonder how someone as thin and wiry as Manager Luo could mediate when faced with a hulking, intoxicated man. You might not believe it, but all Manager Luo had to do was repeat one phrase over and over: "This is Cow KTV!"

You may be skeptical, but I won't offer much of an explanation. If you were to carefully ponder the snippets of information I've provided about this company, you might suddenly see the light.

The company's boss would occasionally drop by for a visit, though it rarely happened more than once a month. The real reason for this was that this branch relied primarily on the bathhouse and buffet on the fourth floor and above for its profits; the KTV was essentially just there to occupy space.

After finishing his tasks with the electronic control panel, Xiao Ming headed over to the front desk, where Manager Luo and Xiao Hong were chatting idly.

It was Friday, but as they watched the night sky gradually descend outside, there were still no customers in the shop. It seemed business was a bit dismal today. Xiao Ming sighed. He had learned from his conversations with Xiao Hong that their monthly commissions were directly tied to how well the business performed, but Xiao Ming felt he would be content just earning enough for his tuition fees, so he didn't feel too downhearted looking at the empty lobby.

"After all, I'm an only child. I’ve never known hardship since I was small, and no one cared that my grades were poor. Sigh, living in a big city is actually quite boring..."

The more Xiao Ming listened to Manager Luo’s humble-bragging, the more he felt something was off—he was just too envious of the manager! The sense of pride he had just felt about getting into university was stripped away by Manager Luo’s nonchalant narrative as cleanly as if by a deboning knife.

Xiao Hong showed no reaction to Manager Luo’s "sermon." She just kept her head down, typing away on her phone, seemingly busy with an endless conversation, completely indifferent to what he was saying.

Xiao Ming, however, felt differently. Yes, if he had been born in a big city, if his parents were wealthy or well-educated, worldly people, perhaps he wouldn't have faced so much pressure and anxiety during his schooling—the expensive tuition, the miscellaneous fees, the study materials... Xiao Ming began to spiral into an emo state again.

Back in his hometown, they still used livestock to plow the fields, while his current job involved maintaining over a dozen smart robots to serve guests. This vast difference was something he could only truly grasp after leaving his rural home for the big city.

Unfortunately, one's origin is not something that can be decided by one's own will. Since he had left home to attend university, he would treat it as a chance for a fresh start.

Xiao Ming looked at Xiao Hong, who was around his own age, and cheered himself up. He successfully pulled himself out of his ruminations and began silently mapping out a plan for his studies and life once the semester started.