Resumen del episodio 10 de No Pain No Gain
> Resúmenes de No Pain No Gain
Pei Qian encountered Tian Mo distributing flyers, recognizing her as the diligent salesperson who had sold him a car previously. He learned that she had been fired for failing to meet sales targets, having only managed to sell a single car in the entire year. Seizing the opportunity, Pei Qian promptly offered her a new job. Soon after, Tian Mo became the new manager of Xingniao Gym, a venture Pei Qian had recently acquired and invested in.
She met Li Yaling, a personal trainer at the gym, who expressed considerable skepticism about Mr. Pei's serious intent to run the business. Li Yaling explained that many branches of the Xingniao Gym chain had already closed down. She was particularly perplexed by Mr. Pei's insistence on replacing all the existing, high-quality gym equipment with new ones and his decision to transfer all current members to other branches, even paying compensation for breach of contract.
Li Yaling pointed out the immense operating costs, including high rent in the CBD, the expense of new equipment amounting to more than a million yuan, and the constant maintenance of an underutilized pool, emphasizing that personal trainers in the industry were primarily salespersons. She felt that Mr. Pei's vision was entirely contrary to the normal operations of a gym. Tian Mo, finding herself once again in a sales-oriented role, felt a pang of frustration.
Li Yaling, similarly disillusioned, announced her intention to resign and leave the fitness industry altogether. However, Tian Mo quickly relayed Pei Qian's counter-offer: Li Yaling would receive triple her current salary with no sales requirements if she stayed. This generous proposal instantly changed Li Yaling's mind, convincing her that she could indeed continue working in the industry. She then asked Tian Mo about Pei Qian's specific plans for the gym.
Tian Mo explained that the gym, which would eventually be renamed "Sloth Gym," would operate without traditional memberships; customers would pay per visit. The philosophy was to encourage an "enjoyable life without competition," meaning members could relax or even lie down if they wished. Furthermore, the gym would not provide personal trainer services, and customers were free to eat and drink whatever they desired, without any dietary restrictions.
Li Yaling was stunned by these radical ideas, arguing that they completely contradicted the goals of fitness and the expectations of customers who sought muscle gain and fat loss through disciplined training. Tian Mo, however, suggested that Pei Qian might be attempting to revolutionize the industry. To staff the newly acquired gym, Pei Qian reassigned his idle employees from DreamForge Capital, his investment company, to work as "coaches" at the gym.
When Ma Yang visited DreamForge Capital, he was surprised to find the office deserted and learned that everyone had been moved to the gym for manpower. He agreed that the shared phone booth project was now settled, and the gym required more focus, commenting on Pei Qian's seemingly "lunatic" decisions. Meanwhile, at the gym, Li Yaling suggested distributing flyers to attract customers, given the slow business.
Tian Mo, however, explained that Pei Qian had explicitly forbidden any active promotion, instructing them to simply wait for customers to arrive. Li Yaling scoffed at this, arguing that if they blindly trusted the boss, the gym would inevitably close down again. Just then, Pei Qian arrived and, after overhearing the conversation, unveiled the gym's new name: "Sloth Gym."
He then met the owner of the rival "Steady Fitness Club" from across the street and, to everyone's astonishment, proceeded to enthusiastically distribute flyers for the competing gym, declaring that his own "Sloth Gym" would aim to be defeated.
Later, Pei Qian, reviewing a budget, revealed his true intention, stating that "with Sloth Gym by my side, my plan to lose money is now fortified," and instructed his designer to further inflate renovation costs, even adding a sunroom for his cat. Huang Sibo approached Pei Qian to discuss Zhongdian Web Fiction. He suggested that hiring a scholarly celebrity for endorsement would be prohibitively expensive and offer a poor cost-performance ratio.
Instead, he proposed recruiting popular webnovel authors to enhance content and reputation. Pei Qian, however, dismissed Huang Sibo's focus, stating that the primary goal was to generate "popularity" and that content and reputation were secondary concerns for a later phase. He unequivocally declared there was "no cap on the budget" and ordered Huang Sibo to find a celebrity with immense popularity. Following this directive, Huang Sibo secured a high-paying endorsement deal with popular celebrity Lu Zhiyao and his agent, Mandy.
Mandy initially indicated that Lu Zhiyao typically only endorsed luxury brands but agreed to the collaboration due to his scholarly image, which they wished to promote. During their meeting, when Huang Sibo inquired about Lu Zhiyao's favorite books for promotional activities, the celebrity struggled to name any, prompting his agent to quickly intervene and move the conversation towards finalizing the contract, citing a busy schedule with a "Hollywood project."
Reflecting on the deal later, Huang Sibo admitted that the substantial endorsement fee had not significantly boosted the website's traffic, as Lu Zhiyao's fans were mainly interested in his personal content rather than the web novels. Bao Xu finally returned from his extended travels, where Pei Qian had assigned him to tour attractions and interact with locals, forcing him to constantly record videos and endure poor signal abroad, leaving him feeling disconnected and stressed.
His colleagues welcomed him back, joking about his newfound fitness and mentioning the new "Sloth Gym." Lin Wan informed him about the upcoming test release of "Return to Shore," their new Soulslike game, and invited him to test it. Bao Xu eagerly accepted, confident in his ability to tackle challenging games. As he began playing, he discovered a unique and frustrating mechanic: to unleash an ultimate attack, players had to vocally recite an ancient poem, including its dynasty and author.
When Bao Xu attempted to use a simple children's poem, the game's "taunting system," another of Pei Qian's requirements, mercilessly mocked his limited literary knowledge, stating such basic poems wouldn't work. Despite his colleagues' attempts to help him recall more complex verses, they repeatedly failed, facing increasingly sarcastic taunts from the game. Bao Xu, exasperated, declared he'd rather travel.
It was only when Huang Sibo arrived, demonstrating his extensive knowledge of ancient Chinese poetry by accurately reciting several intricate poems, that they were able to successfully clear levels and execute ultimate attacks. Impressed, his colleagues urged Huang Sibo to create a strategy guide, but he attributed the game's unique design to Pei Qian. Lin Wan then presented the game to Pei Qian for his test play.
However, even Pei Qian struggled to advance, repeatedly failing and triggering the game's mocking system, which sardonically labeled his attempts "Free Dying mode." Lin Wan suggested reducing the game's difficulty, but Pei Qian adamantly refused, insisting the current challenging level was perfect and even encouraging them to "keep increasing the boss's power." He expressed feigned surprise that his seemingly absurd requests had been fully implemented.
Later, Mr. Qiao discussed issues with the game's balance, noting that some equipment had been "nerfed" and the difficulty of later bosses increased, contrary to his previous suggestions. Pei Qian, however, offered a convoluted explanation, claiming that by weakening some elements, others were implicitly "improved," and by making later bosses harder, earlier ones seemed "easier," all aligning with his "theory of relativity."
He also argued that the taunting system was less harsh due to the inclusion of puns, providing a "buffer" for players. As a direct consequence of the game's extreme and peculiar difficulty, employees across Tengda, including those from other departments, were observed diligently memorizing ancient poems, even during their commute or in the restroom, in a collective effort to master the game.
Zhou Muyan spoke with Li Shi about Pei Qian's recent unconventional business decisions, musing if he intended to expand into the literary or even film industries, perhaps developing intellectual property from literature into entertainment. Zhou Muyan characterized Pei Qian's methods as "unorthodox" and driven by an "unknown and ruthless reason," noting his ambition in all ventures. Li Shi, however, offered a more profound interpretation, believing Pei Qian to be a "far-sighted man" whose actions, though seemingly strange, held deep significance.
He speculated that Pei Qian was patiently awaiting someone who could truly comprehend his grand vision, quoting a proverb about friendship forming quickly between understanding souls. Pei Qian found Lin Wan secretly working overtime to refine the game, having just ended a phone call with her mother who was pressuring her about returning home. Lin Wan expressed her dedication to the new game and her desire to remain at Tengda.
Pei Qian, pretending to be a benevolent boss, offered her candy and even alcoholic chocolate. He feigned concern, telling her he wasn't a good boss for making her work late and that her parents, with their successful business background, "knew a lot better" than either of them. He strongly advised her to discuss her future with them and to "listen to them," secretly hoping they would persuade her to leave Tengda.
Lin Wan, misinterpreting his intent, agreed to speak with her parents, planning to explain her reasons for staying at Tengda, which left Pei Qian visibly dismayed. Following Pei Qian's instructions, Mr. Qiao proceeded with the game's marketing. " Return to Shore" launched to an immediate and overwhelming wave of negative feedback online.
News outlets reported widespread criticism, with players denouncing the game as "stupid," "lousy," and "crazy" due to its forced poem recitation and merciless taunting system, questioning if they were "playing a game or going to an exam." Lin Wan and her team rushed to inform Pei Qian about the online backlash, noting that many comments appeared to be from "troll accounts" due to their rapid posting in a short timeframe.
Pei Qian acknowledged that while some feedback might be genuine, they were clearly under attack. His staff's investigation confirmed that the negative campaign was orchestrated by Zhou Muyan's rival company. Despite the clear sabotage, Pei Qian remained unfazed, declaring that "time will prove everything" and that engaging in arguments would be "against Tengda's values." Meanwhile, Zhou Muyan observed the game's disastrous launch with satisfaction and, proud of his team's efforts, granted them the entire weekend off.
Xin Hailu reported to Pei Qian that several of his new projects, including DreamForge Capital, the Shared Phone Booth, Sloth Gym, and Zhongdian Web Fiction, were all incurring losses. She also confirmed that "Return to Shore" had generated a substantial loss due to its high production costs. Consequently, she informed him that he was projected to receive a significant personal bonus at the end of the month.
Elated by this news, Pei Qian announced to his bewildered employees that he was "very satisfied" with their "hard work" and the "results" they had achieved, declaring it a "good day." He invited them all to a celebratory lunch at his private restaurant, the private kitchen at Mingyun Villa, and granted them the rest of the day off.
His employees, however, were utterly confused by his inexplicable happiness, wondering what "results" he was referring to, if he was in shock, or even if he was sarcastically criticizing them. Their appetites diminished, they questioned if they had actually made any money. Pei Qian, undeterred, encouraged them to eat heartily, even asking Chef Lin to prepare more dishes. As the celebration was underway, a large crowd of celebrity Lu Zhiyao's fans unexpectedly descended upon the private kitchen.
Having tracked him there, they mistakenly referred to it as "Yao's farm" and overwhelmed the staff, storming into the restaurant in a chaotic rush to find their idol, much to Pei Qian's dismay.
