Chapter 203 - 179: A Mountain Between Professions

Chapter 203: Chapter 179: A Mountain Between Professions

At 7:50 the next morning, things in the kitchen were running smoothly after two days. Everyone knew their roles, so they no longer needed Xu An’s constant supervision. He returned to Store No. 1 and sat behind the cash register, preparing to sort and cut out the day’s delivery orders for Liang Dani and the others to use later.

Just then, Wang Fulong and his two companions appeared before Xu An. They were a motley group—one tall and two short, one heavyset and two thin.

"Boss, we’re here for work. Where do we clock in?" Wang Fulong asked with a smile, rubbing his hands together. He seemed perfectly at ease, not minding in the slightest that he was calling someone as young as Xu An his boss.

"For now, we don’t have a clock-in system here. Everyone just works their scheduled hours," Xu An replied. He then led the three of them on a tour of the three storefronts, giving them a general overview of the business as they went.

As Wang Fulong listened, he suddenly sensed something was off. After Xu An finished his introduction, he couldn’t help but ask, "Boss, from what you just said, you’ve only participated in two bids, and in both cases, the company or their staff approached you directly?"

"That’s right. Aisha Clothing Company was a referral from a regular customer, and for the expo, a staff member from the organizing committee came to me. I wouldn’t have known about them otherwise," Xu An explained with a nod. His expression was completely open, and he didn’t even realize anything was amiss.

But after hearing this, the expression on Wang Fulong’s face was a colorful, chaotic mess. He had the sudden urge to grab Xu An by the shoulders, shake him violently, and roar, ’Why! How is this fair! AAAAAARGH!’

It took him a full three seconds to suppress the chaotic thoughts in his mind. Staring at Xu An with a complicated expression, Wang Fulong asked again, "Boss, you really don’t know that there are dedicated websites where you can look up this bidding information? For example, right now in Hai City, there are thirty-seven companies, fourteen elementary and middle schools, and nine social organizations currently accepting bids..."

If real life had special effects, Xu An’s expression at that moment would have been the kind where he turns to stone and then cracks apart.

’Bidding information... actually has dedicated websites for it!’

’So this is what they mean when they say different professions are worlds apart! And this is what a true professional is! This is it! Man, poaching him was a brilliant move, absolutely brilliant!’ If Wang Fulong hadn’t joined Xu’s Fast Food, who knows how long it would have taken Xu An to learn about this information, which was practically an industry barrier.

Xu An suddenly stepped forward and gripped Wang Fulong’s hands tightly. With utmost sincerity, he declared, "Brother Wang, from now on, all matters related to bidding will be your responsibility! And let’s not beat around the bush. For every contract equivalent to 200 boxed meals, you’ll get a 200 yuan bonus for a three-month term, 400 for six months, 800 for a year, and so on. The bonus is uncapped!"

This time, it was Wang Fulong’s turn to grip Xu An’s hands back. His expression was even more reverent than Xu An’s as he replied in a firm and ringing voice, "Yes, Boss!"

’A boss like this, a job like this, a bonus like this...’ Even if the environment was a bit lacking, even if there were too few employees, even if the store wasn’t well-known, even if... ’Whatever. It can all be summed up in one sentence: with a bonus structure like this, I, Wang Fulong, have to land at least two or three contracts a month and make my bonus surpass my salary as soon as possible!’

He couldn’t help but think of the contract for the Zijing Garden construction site. That had been a huge one-year deal for 652 meals a day! According to Xu An’s formula, that would be a 2,608 yuan bonus—comparable to half a month’s salary!

’Follow the right boss and you’ll make a fortune!’ Although he was in a humble little shop, Wang Fulong could already imagine a beautiful future beckoning to him. However, Xu An’s next words plunged him into the depths of hell.

"Oh, right, Brother Wang. The computers won’t be set up until this afternoon, so for lunch today, you two will come with us to the Hai City Convention and Exhibition Center to sell boxed lunches at our stall. You two can take a taxi there and back; the store will reimburse the fare. Is that all right?"

Emotionally, Wang Fulong really wanted to say no. Rationally, however, he had no grounds to refuse. ’The computers aren’t even here yet, and the boss has all the store’s affairs arranged in perfect order. As a new employee, am I supposed to let the boss work on the front lines while I slack off in the back?’

Thinking about the bonus Xu An had just promised, Wang Fulong exchanged a look with his apprentice, Lu Ziyue. Gritting his teeth, he agreed, "No problem!"

With Wang Fulong and his companion’s work arranged, Xu An turned to Tang Wen to assign her tasks. "Right now, our internet promotion is basically a blank slate. I need you to come up with a detailed plan for me on that front. Secondly, the fourth Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant is preparing to open, but this one will specialize in braised foods. We’ve already commissioned an advertising agency to produce a commercial, which will air on the local Hai City station during primetime. I’ve compiled and printed out all the relevant materials. Familiarize yourself with them today. From now on, you’ll be responsible for following up on this."

Tang Wen nodded, took the documents from Xu An, and went to the second-floor office in Store No. 2. As she entered the office, she was slightly surprised to see an air conditioner mounted on the wall. She had been mentally prepared to make do with just a fan yesterday, not expecting the boss would have actually installed an AC unit specifically for them.

’The boss might be a bit young, but he’s very thoughtful in how he handles things.’

「Hai City Convention and Exhibition Center.」

Xu An and Wang Datou were the first to arrive at the venue in the insulated food truck. Today, the organizing committee had prepared three small pushcarts for the vendors. Xu An and Wang Datou each took one, and in a single trip, they moved all five hundred boxed lunches to their stall on the B1 level.

Next to the Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant stall was still the Brocade Hotel’s stall. Unlike yesterday, however, the people manning it had changed. The two newcomers clearly had no experience running a stall; they were flustered and looked completely overwhelmed. There was even a toppled box lunch on the floor, its sauce splattered everywhere...

Tsk tsk! Xu An merely glanced over before looking away to focus on setting up his own stall. ’Looks like aside from Wang Fulong and his apprentice, anyone else Brocade Hotel sends over here is just a duck being forced onto a perch—they’re completely out of their depth.’

"Supervisor Wang!" Two surprised and delighted cries rang out near Xu An. Looking up, he saw the two people from the neighboring stall beaming as they watched Wang Fulong and his companion approach.

"Supervisor, you couldn’t stay away, could you? Came over to help us out! Thank you so much!" The two of them hastily came out from behind their stall, walked right up to Wang Fulong and his companion, and grabbed their arms to pull them toward their stall. But after a few tugs, they couldn’t move them. One of them turned to look at Wang Fulong in confusion.

COUGH COUGH!

Wang Fulong raised his left fist to his lips and gave a couple of faint coughs to cover his embarrassment. As he pulled his arm away, he explained, "I’m here to help my new company, not to see you..."

The two men stiffened for a moment before continuing to schmooze warmly. "So where are you working now, Supervisor Wang? We always said you were a capable man. Look at you, just left one job and already started another."

These two had been Wang Fulong’s subordinates before, but their relationship was strictly professional. After the new supervisor started, they hadn’t even bothered to greet him. Now, all this flattery was starting to get on Wang Fulong’s nerves.

"Haha, you two are too kind. I was never any supervisor, I don’t know what you’re talking about! Besides, I’m not working for some big hotel or big company now. It’s just an ordinary roadside shop, nothing compared to you two working at a grand hotel." Wang Fulong quickly pulled back the hand he hadn’t been able to free earlier and even wiped it on his clothes, as if trying to rub off some bad luck.

"Don’t be like that, Supervisor Wang. In everyone’s hearts, you’re still our supervisor," the man said, refusing to give up. "There are only a few hotels at this event. Besides a bottom-feeder like Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant, none of the others are bad..."

At this point, the man seemed to realize something. He looked at Wang Fulong in disbelief, slowly raised his right hand to point at Xu An, who was standing at his stall watching them with a smile, and asked in a trembling voice, "S-Supervisor Wang... you’re not working at Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant now, are you?"

The corners of Wang Fulong’s mouth lifted into a wide smile, showing eight teeth. He nodded slowly and firmly. "That’s right. Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant."

...

It wasn’t quite clear how the conversation ended. Ultimately, the four of them returned to their respective places. By some tacit agreement, they all avoided eye contact, acting like complete strangers.

Starting from 11:20, customers began to arrive one after another. The convention attendees who had eaten at Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant before chose it again almost without hesitation.

Xu An had Lu Ziyue stay and help sell the boxed lunches, while Wang Fulong was entrusted with the important task of negotiating with companies interested in partnering with Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant.

That’s right. After learning yesterday that Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant also delivered employee meals for companies, many people had passed the information to their administrative departments and received the go-ahead to make inquiries. Today, they were here to get detailed information about Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant.

Peng Kaiqun was one such person, tasked by his administrative department with contacting the restaurant and gathering information. As soon as it turned eleven o’clock, he stopped browsing the exhibition, went straight to the B1 level, and walked up to the Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant stall.

"Excuse me, Boss. Our company is quite interested in your employee meal delivery service. Could I get some more details?" Peng Kaiqun asked politely. However, he wasn’t speaking to Xu An, but to Wang Fulong.

Wang Fulong was about to explain, but Xu An subtly shook his head at him and gestured for him to handle the discussion with Peng Kaiqun.

Since the boss didn’t mind, Wang Fulong didn’t get hung up on the small misunderstanding. With a friendly smile, he accompanied Peng Kaiqun to the dining area, where they found a table and began a Q&A session.

That morning, Xu An had briefed him on Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant’s short history and scope of business. In the taxi on the way to the convention center, he had also reviewed the store information Xu An had compiled. Wang Fulong was able to answer most of the man’s questions fluently, without any slip-ups.

As their Q&A session continued, more and more people gathered around to listen. Wang Fulong’s mood improved with the growing crowd, and his voice became increasingly loud and passionate. In his eyes, these people were no longer people; they were walking dollar signs...

Xu An watched the crowd gathering around Wang Fulong, a slight smile touching his lips. ’Among this dozen or so people, even if we only land two or three contracts, it’ll be a fantastic start.’

DRING DRING—DRING DRING—

The screen of the phone on the table suddenly lit up. The caller ID showed the call was from Uncle Dongliang.