147: Fireworks show goes wrong, senior citizens' carnival becomes a hit.

Early the next morning, before Xie Hui was even awake, his mobile phone was relentlessly bombarded by Wang Duoyu's WeChat messages—all of them promotional posters for his fireworks show, accompanied by an extremely arrogant caption: "Tonight at 8 PM, by the Xihong City riverside, a thirty-million fireworks show! Let all of Xihong City know who the real Spending Tycoon is! Xie Hui, do you dare compete?"

Xie Hui rubbed his eyes and chuckled, then forwarded the poster to Xia Zhu with a note: "Get ready to watch the show, and maybe stir up some trouble while we're at it."

Half an hour later, the two met at a breakfast stall. Xia Zhu clutched the accounts she had just tallied: "Wang Duoyu spent these thirty million too recklessly. Renting the riverside venue alone costs two million, fireworks procurement is at least twenty-five million, and the remaining three million is for hiring the setup team. It seems like a lot, but it's all wasted on one-time items, making no lasting impact."

"He wants a splash, but unfortunately, fate is not on his side." Xie Hui handed her a cup of sugar-free soy milk—he had taken a detour to buy it after hearing yesterday that Xia Zhu liked it for breakfast. "We won't compete with him on extravagance; we'll compete on 'popularity.' We'll host a 'Xihong City Senior Carnival,' guaranteed to be livelier than his fireworks show."

Xia Zhu's eyes lit up: "Senior Carnival? How do we organize it?"

"Simple." Xie Hui took a bite of his bun and spoke quickly. "Rent a Citizen's Plaza that can hold thousands of people. Spend one hundred thousand on twenty sets of high-power square dance speakers, and another five hundred thousand on one hundred Senior Smartphones—give one to every elderly person who attends, pre-installed with square dance videos and Opera Apps. Hire ten professional Square Dance Instructors, paying them fifty thousand a month. Provide two Box Meals and Bottled Water; that's one hundred thousand per meal, two hundred thousand for two. Then, organize a 'Square Dance Competition,' with the champion winning a year of free physical exams, costing fifty thousand. In total, it's less than eight hundred thousand, much more practical than his thirty-million fireworks show."

Xia Zhu quickly jotted notes in the ledger, finding the plan more reliable the more she calculated. "This is a great move! The elderly love this kind of excitement, and giving out senior phones and providing meals are reasonable, compliant expenses. But Wang Duoyu's fireworks show is tonight, will we have enough time?"

"We have time." Xie Hui pulled out his mobile phone. "I'll contact the venue and suppliers now. You draft an event notice and send it to the Community Centers and Senior University. Just say, 'Free mobile phone, free food, and a chance to win a physical exam,' and I guarantee it will be fully booked within two hours."

Just after hanging up the call about the venue, Xie Hui suddenly remembered something and silently chanted "Time Stop"—the next second, everyone around him froze. The breakfast stall owner held his spoon motionless, and the cars on the road stopped in place. He quickly walked to a nearby Newspaper Stand and found the fireworks procurement advertisement Wang Duoyu had posted yesterday. Sure enough, the supplier was a small workshop, and the "Grade A Fireworks" they listed were actually defective products that wouldn't explode properly if they were even slightly damp.

Xie Hui knew what to do. He canceled Time Stop, and when he returned to the breakfast stall, Xia Zhu happened to look up: "The notice is out! The community center says over fifty elderly people have already signed up, and the number is still rising!"

"Perfect." Xie Hui smiled as he finished his soy milk. "Let's go pick up the speakers and senior phones now, and aim to have the venue set up this afternoon."

They were busy all morning, and the Citizen's Plaza quickly transformed—twenty sets of speakers were arranged in a circle, a Simple Stage was set up in the middle, senior phones were piled on a nearby table, and the instructors were already practicing dances to the music. The elderly people passing by gathered around, three layers deep. An elderly woman wearing a Red Armband grabbed Xie Hui's hand and wouldn't let go: "Young Man, are these mobile phones really free? It's not a scam, is it?"

"Ma'am, please rest assured, they are absolutely free!" Xie Hui handed her a Senior Smartphone and helped her turn it on. "Look, inside there's Qin Opera, Peking Opera, and square dance tutorials. Just tap the one you want to learn."

The elderly woman tried it, smiling broadly, and immediately turned to shout: "Old Zhang, Old Li, hurry and get your mobile phones! This boss is genuine!"

Before 5 PM, the plaza was already packed with people. Xia Zhu held the Attendance Roster, beaming: "Over twelve hundred people signed up, far exceeding expectations! We need to increase the order for box meals and bottled water, which will cost another fifty thousand."

"Spend it! The more, the better!" As Xie Hui spoke, he saw Wang Duoyu's Sports Car parked by the road. He was wearing a Bright Blue Suit and Sunglasses, followed by Zhuang Qiang and several Bodyguards—it was obvious they were here to cause trouble.

"Xie Hui, what kind of rubbish are you organizing here? A bunch of old men and women jumping around together, and you call that spending money?" Wang Duoyu sneered. "As soon as my thirty-million fireworks show lights up tonight, no one will remember your pathetic event."

Xie Hui ignored him, turning instead to shout at the elderly woman nearby: "Ma'am, someone said our dancing isn't pretty!"

The elderly woman immediately glared, waving the Fan in her hand: "Who said that? Step forward! Our Square Dance Team won the city championship, how dare you say it's not pretty?"

The surrounding elderly people also started heckling. Wang Duoyu was surrounded, his face flushing red and pale. Zhuang Qiang quickly protected him, pushing outward: "Duoyu Ge, let's hurry and leave, these old folks are too fierce!"

Just as they squeezed to the car, Zhuang Qiang suddenly cried out, "Aiyo!"—another clump of Bird Droppings had fallen on his head, landing right on the spot from yesterday. Xie Hui shouted from behind: "Qiang Ge, one more time! Be careful!"

Zhuang Qiang was both angry and scared, covering his head as he scrambled into the car. Wang Duoyu gave Xie Hui a fierce glare and drove away, leaving a trail of dust. The surrounding people laughed heartily. The elderly woman patted Xie Hui's shoulder: "Young Man, well done! We will definitely do well in the competition tonight!"

At 6 PM, the Senior Carnival officially began. Twenty sets of speakers simultaneously blasted "The Most Dazzling Ethnic Style." Thousands of elderly people danced to the rhythm, creating a magnificent scene. Xie Hui and Xia Zhu sat on the nearby Stands. Xia Zhu recorded with her mobile phone, saying with a laugh, "Look at the Trending Topics. 'Xihong City Senior Carnival' is already ranked fifth, while Wang Duoyu's fireworks show is only twentieth."

Xie Hui was about to speak when suddenly a loud "bang" sounded from a distance—a plume of black smoke rose from the riverside direction. Immediately afterward, someone in the crowd shouted, "Wang Duoyu's fireworks exploded! And it's raining!"

The two quickly tuned into the Live Stream and saw the fireworks show site in chaos: the defective fireworks exploded halfway through, coinciding exactly with a sudden downpour. The venue was covered in mud, the spectators scattered everywhere, and Wang Duoyu stood in the rain, his hair soaked, looking like a drowned rat.

"Hahaha!" Xie Hui couldn't help but burst out laughing. "I knew his fireworks were unreliable. Now look, thirty million down the drain, and he's a laughingstock."

Xia Zhu couldn't help but laugh either: "Did you know this would happen? You suddenly froze this morning, did you use that 'Time Stop' Skill?"

Xie Hui didn't deny it, raising an eyebrow: "Even if I knew, I couldn't say; it would ruin the fun. Our carnival has just begun, let's ignore him."

At 8 PM, the Square Dance Competition finals began. The elderly women wore matching outfits and danced with great effort. Finally, a seventy-year-old elderly man led his team to win the championship. When he accepted the Physical Exam Card, he was so emotional that tears nearly fell: "Thank you, CEO Xie! I haven't had a physical exam in years. Now I can finally put my mind at ease!"

Xie Hui smiled and said, "Elderly man, if we have events like this in the future, I'll definitely invite you!"

The carnival ended close to 10 PM. Xie Hui drove Xia Zhu home. On the way, Xia Zhu suddenly said, "My mother called me today and asked who I was working with lately. I told her it was you, and she asked what kind of person you are..."

Xie Hui's heart skipped a beat. Just as he was about to reply, Xia Zhu's face flushed red, and she quickly changed the subject: "Right, Wang Duoyu just posted on Moments, saying he's investing in the 'Largest Water Park in Xihong City' tomorrow, with a budget of fifty million, and he plans to hire a Celebrity endorser."

"Water Park?" Xie Hui raised an eyebrow. "Fine, if he wants to play big, we'll play along. Tomorrow, let's see if there's a project even more outrageous than a Water Park. We have to outspend his fifty million."

Xia Zhu nodded, her eyes full of anticipation: "I'm already thinking about how we're going to spend the money tomorrow."

Xie Hui looked at her smile, feeling a warmth in his heart—when he was a Corporate Slave in Modu, he never imagined that spending money could be so meaningful, nor that he would meet such a wonderful person. He gripped the steering wheel, already calculating: A Water Park? Then we'll create a "Xihong City Parent-Child Fantasy Park." Parents with children get in free. We'll hire a bunch of Clowns and Magicians, and give out toys. We'll spend more than him and attract more people. Let's see how he competes.

The streetlights outside the car window flickered, reflecting their shadows. Although it was a spending war, it carried an unspoken sense of warmth. Xie Hui knew that this adventure in Xihong City had just entered its most exciting phase. Next, there would be more jokes and more twists waiting for him and Xia Zhu to experience together.