Lu You's brain stalled for a full two and a half seconds.
He barely managed to recover his consciousness from the mountain-tsunami-like crowd.
When had he ever witnessed a scene like this?!
Having grown up, let alone being surrounded by so many people, his legs would go soft even when giving a speech on stage.
The scene before him was even more exaggerated than a celebrity walking the red carpet.
Everyone's gaze was like a searchlight, scrutinizing him completely, inside and out.
If it were any ordinary person, they probably would have long since retreated into the store, pulling down the rolling shutter door.
But Lu You was no longer an ordinary person.
His formerly slacker heart had long since become incredibly resilient.
His excellent psychological fortitude allowed him to quickly adjust from the initial shock.
He took a deep breath, and his gaze became firm again.
He knew that today was a crucial turning point for his small store, and even for his own life.
He turned and went back into the store, digging out a dusty handheld megaphone from the bottom shelf.
It was something used during previous community events and had been left there ever since.
He blew off the dust, skillfully flipped the switch, and tested it.
"Hello? Hello, hello? Any beauties here?" He put the megaphone to his mouth and tested the sound.
"Pfft—"
The sharp yet slightly comical shout, amplified by the megaphone, clearly spread throughout the entire alley.
The originally noisy crowd paused, stunned by the sudden shout.
Immediately, the whole area erupted in laughter.
The tense atmosphere was instantly diluted.
After confirming the effect was fine, Lu You walked to the store entrance and raised the megaphone.
Using all his strength, he shouted at the massive, dense crowd outside:
"Friends! Everyone! Thank you for your support! But given the current situation, no one can come inside!"
"Everyone, please form a line first! We will only start doing business once the line is neat and orderly, traffic isn't affected, and there is no crowding!"
Lu You was also being firm.
He knew very well that if he dared to let anyone enter first in this situation, the people behind would definitely explode in chaos.
He wouldn't do such a thankless and difficult thing; he simply passed the buck to them.
Sure enough, as soon as he said this, the previously restless crowd immediately began to coordinate among themselves voluntarily.
With the help of several enthusiastic Big Brothers and traffic police who rushed over after hearing the news.
A long queue, albeit winding, but relatively orderly, finally formed in Wutong Alley.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere was equally heated inside the office of the Yangcheng City Publicity Department.
A middle-aged man who looked like a Leader was frowning while looking at the data report in his hand.
"Xiao Wang, what's going on with the tourist inflow data these past few days? It suddenly spiked so much, but the visitor traffic at our City's tourist attractions hasn't changed significantly."
"They aren't here for tourism..."
"If these people aren't here for tourism, then what are they here for?"
The staff member called Xiao Wang reported with a look of disbelief mixed with amusement, "Leader, I just found out. These people... they... they are all coming to check in at a Hardware Store!"
"A Hardware Store?" The Leader frowned even harder.
"What is there to check in at a Hardware Store? Did our City open some new industrial tourism project that I don't know about?"
"No, Leader." Xiao Wang quickly handed over his phone.
Playing on it was Old Tang's store-visiting video that had gone viral across the entire network.
The Leader took the phone and watched it carefully from beginning to end.
The expression on his face gradually changed from initial confusion to astonishment.
Finally, it turned into uncontrollable excitement.
He slapped the table and stood up.
"Talent! This is simply a heaven-sent opportunity!"
Yangcheng, as an unremarkable fifth-tier small City, had no resources and no tourist attractions.
For years, they had tried to develop tourism and publicity, but with minimal success.
Now, an obscure little Hardware Store had managed to attract such massive traffic all by itself!
This was simply a pie falling from the sky!
"We must seize this opportunity! We must publicize it vigorously!" The Leader made an immediate decision and issued the order.
"We will first confirm the actual situation, and then the Publicity Department will immediately follow up with reports, turning the 'Old Lu Hardware Store' into a new calling card for our City's Old District!"
"Then, have the Transportation Department cooperate, send more personnel, and ensure smooth traffic flow around Wutong Alley!"
"The Culture and Tourism sector must immediately design a tourist check-in route centered around the 'Old Lu Hardware Store' to guide visitors to our other consumption venues!"
All departments responded quickly.
With such massive traffic, Yangcheng needed to get a piece of the action too.
Seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
Even if it was just a small burst of popularity, they absolutely couldn't let it go!
Meanwhile, Lu You was completely swamped.
He strictly enforced the purchase limit rules he set, crossing off one category on the small blackboard outside the door after serving ten customers from that major category.
"Food and Beverage Category, Sold Out Today!"
"Beauty Category, Sold Out Today!"
"Digital Category, Sold Out Today!"
The customers who didn't manage to buy anything weren't in a hurry to leave.
Many of them simply stayed in nearby hotels, preparing to queue up again the next day.
For a time, the occupancy rate of guesthouses around Wutong Alley increased by several percentage points.
Lu You was busy from morning until sunset.
Only after seeing off the last customer who bought hardware items could he finally collapse onto the rattan chair and catch his breath.
Although his body was exhausted, his spirit was incredibly euphoric.
He opened the System Panel to check his final earnings for the day.
When he saw the number in the business points column, his heart skipped a beat.
[Current business points Balance: 105,320 points]
And on the System Upgrade page, a constantly flashing bright red dot was emitting an enticing glow.
It could be upgraded!!
Lu You, filled with excitement, clicked on the red dot.
[Detection successful: Host's business points meet the upgrade condition. Do you wish to consume 100,000 business points to upgrade the System Shop to Lv2?]
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Lu You shouted frantically in his heart, immediately clicking the "Confirm" button.
[Confirming consumption of 100,000 business points... Consumption successful!]
[System Mall is upgrading...]
Immediately afterward, the System Interface in his mind underwent an incredibly cool transformation.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! System Shop has successfully upgraded to Lv2]
[Lv2 Shop New Features Unlocked:]
[Product Catalog Expansion: Single item value limit increased from 1,000 Dragon country currency to 100,000 Dragon country currency!]
[Back Storage Space Upgrade: Store back storage renovation completed, and special functional zones added, including "Constant Temperature and Humidity Zone," "Precision Instrument Zone," and "Temporary Live Storage Zone."]
[Store Renovation Function Activated: Host can consume business points to customize the exterior and interior structure of the real-life "Old Lu Hardware Store." All renovation materials and construction will be automatically completed by the System overnight.]
[Skill Shop Update: More advanced and professional skills unlocked.]
...Looking at the dazzling series of new feature introductions, Lu You's breathing quickened.
Any item under 100,000 yuan! Store renovation! Near-Future Technology!
"Awesome!"