At the beginning of the famine, I became famous all over the world with my useless system

Lin Qing was not in a hurry to take the membership card, but leisurely admired the movements of Manager Yu as he wrapped the books.

Don't be fooled by his chubby hands, he is an artist when it comes to work.

Shopkeeper Yu quickly packed up the book and found a dark grey silk ribbon to tie it into a knot that was easy to carry. He then handed over a small bundle of beige rice paper for waist seals.

"This is the best-selling Ningguang paper in our bookstore. Take it back and use it for your calligraphy practice. This is my advance congratulations to you on your success on the list."

Lin Qing didn't feel anything about his compliments, but was a little surprised when she heard the name Ningguang Paper.

This kind of paper had long been lost in her time, and only historical records recorded that it was "as delicate as frost and as white as silver light", so it is also called frost paper and silver light paper.

Seeing it today, I found it to be true.

But she really didn't expect that she could get such precious paper when buying books. The boss was so generous that she felt a little embarrassed!

What she didn't know was that in the eyes of her boss, she was a wealthy customer, and giving her some slightly expensive paper just to win her over was a win-win situation for her boss.

After thanking the boss, Lin Qing looked down at the small card on the counter. Surprised that the boss had such advanced ideas, she praised him, "I didn't expect Boss Yu to be so creative. This membership card is beautifully made."

Although Shopkeeper Yu made this card, he still didn't know what to name it, so he could only call it "Post".

So when he heard the word "membership card", his eyes lit up and he thought to himself that this name sounded really good. From now on, he might as well change it to membership card!

Lin Qing didn't want to take advantage for nothing, so after checking it over and over again, he slowly spoke.

"Manager Yu, with all due respect, there's a serious problem with your membership card."

These words made the smile on Manager Yu's face freeze instantly. His good impression of Lin Qing dissipated a lot, and he immediately returned to his arrogant look.

"Madam, I'm not being self-deprecating. I've been running a bookstore in Anping Town for over twenty years. Do I understand this or do you?"

Gu Ermiao looked at Shopkeeper Yu with sympathy, a smile on his lips, and thought to himself, "You'd better hold on, you won't be so stubborn later."

Or you can go directly and talk to the owner of the candied fruit shop, Qian, and find out what it feels like to be slapped in the face.

Lin Qing did not refute Manager Yu. Instead, she placed the card on the counter and tapped the table to signal him to look down and take a closer look.

Not only did Shopkeeper Yu not understand, the two children also looked over curiously, wanting to hear what shocking words their mother was going to say next.

Lin Qing said slowly, "This membership card is made of high-quality materials and has a simple and elegant design. You can tell at a glance that a lot of thought went into it, but it has a fatal problem. Look, there are only two words written on the front: Yu Ji..."

At first, Shopkeeper Yu heard her talking excitedly and thought she was going to say something shocking, but he didn't expect that it was just that. Now he didn't want to pay any attention to her and even started to prepare to kick her out.

Although this woman is short-sighted, she did say one thing that was right.

This membership card is his masterpiece. He even hired a famous engraver in town to carve the woodblock. What could be wrong with it?

Seeing that he was stubborn and unrepentant, Lin Qing sighed and said, "It's easy for people to turn a blind eye to their own mistakes. Manager Yu, did you really not notice?"

Before Shopkeeper Yu got completely angry, Lin Qing smiled, which made him a little dazed.

"The answer is actually very simple. It's the word 'bookstore' that's missing!"

Shopkeeper Yu: “Ah?”

Is it really that easy, the answer to the riddle is right on the surface?

Lin Qing explained slowly, "In Anping Town, when people mention Yu's, they probably all know it as a bookstore. But if your store opens branches outside of Anping Town, there might be Yu's preserved fruit shops, Yu's cloth shops, and Yu's butcher shops. Who would then know that Yu's is a bookstore?"

Shopkeeper Yu was stunned.

It's no wonder he didn't think of these things. He was the only branch of the Yu family who came to Anping Town. His surname was extremely rare here, so he had never expected this possibility.

After Lin Qing's reminder, he suddenly realized that he was indeed lacking in thought.

But he didn't realize it until he went to bed that night:

Why was I so excited at that time?

I don’t plan to open the bookstore somewhere else!

Lin Qing continued, "Of course, the front is just a minor problem, the more serious one is on the back."

She turned the card over, met Shopkeeper Yu's scrutinizing gaze, and spoke word by word:

"The inscription on the back, 'The sea of ​​learning is boundless, the mountain of books has a path,' is vigorous and powerful, but it lacks the Yu family's unique logo, let alone the membership number. This would reduce the cost of counterfeiting due to the lack of security measures."

Lin Qing looked at the still confused Shopkeeper Yu and struck him with a heavy hammer.

"So I guess there are a lot of people using fake membership cards to trick the boss into giving them discounts, right?"

Shopkeeper Yu was dismissive at first, but when Lin Qing said this, he was so shocked that he couldn't move. He kept repeating in a daze, "Mysterious, mysterious..."

After saying that, he looked at Lin Qing carefully again. He had a photographic memory and was sure that this lady was visiting his store for the first time, but how could she know such a secret?

The lady was right. This was indeed a troublesome thing that he had encountered frequently recently, but had never mentioned it to anyone.

It is said that scholars are the most noble and do not care about the trivial matters of the world, and even disdain to get entangled with businessmen. However, Shopkeeper Yu does not agree with this.

Those sanctimonious hypocrites, holding shoddy membership cards, arrogantly demand discounts.

No matter how Shopkeeper Yu pointed out that this thing was not produced by their bookstore and could not be used, the other party would use all means to make trouble.

Some who were a little thin-skinned but still had some conscience, after a few arguments, realized they couldn't gain the upper hand, and left in disgrace, thinking they were rude.

But there are also some arrogant ones who threaten, "It's just a shabby bookstore. Do you want to solve the problem with a few dozen cents cheaper, or do you want me to tell everyone not to come to your place for bargains in the future?"

When faced with such a situation, Manager Yu could only swallow his anger and consider himself unlucky.

Originally, there were only two or three cases of extortion every month, but recently, for some reason, more and more people have been using this trick to defraud money.

Manager Yu also went to the police to file a complaint, but the police officer, Captain Jin, shook his head when he heard what he said.

"Boss Yu, you don't have any apprentices or accountants in your shop. You're responsible for everything yourself. Doesn't that mean you don't have any witnesses?

"I asked you for the fake post, but you couldn't produce it. You only gave me the real one, which means there's no physical evidence."

Captain Jin sighed deeply and said, "Manager Yu, I'm not trying to scare you, but you'd better accept that you've suffered the loss in this matter. If you insist on suing, not only will it delay your business, but if that group of scholars unites and accuses you of maliciously defaming them, you'll probably end up facing additional lawsuits."

Shopkeeper Yu felt cold all over and walked out of the yamen with profuse thanks. Looking back at the steps that seemed to reach the clouds, he thought to himself, no wonder everyone says that the yamen gate faces south, and you can't come in if you don't have money.

After reopening the bookstore, he had no choice but to be cautious and accept the messy account of losing several taels of silver every month.