Chapter 212 - 187: I Quit! I’m Resigning

Chapter 212: Chapter 187: I Quit! I’m Resigning

’I sent the proposal to the client! I even sent a screenshot and tagged the client in the group chat! The boss is in the group too! He sent me so many messages, couldn’t he deign to just open the work chat and take a look?!’

’I’m so exhausted. When will the world just end? Or if not, can my boss just explode on the spot?!’

"Hey, bro, did you buy this braised food from Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant? Where’s the shop? How much does it cost? My roommates want to try it too." With a SLAP, SLAP, SLAP of her slippers against the floor, Liu Xiaoyan appeared at Liu Zhaowen’s bedroom door, a duck foot in one hand and her phone in the other.

"Yeah." Liu Zhaowen turned off his phone screen and looked at his cousin. "It’s on South Zijing Road. Get off at the Zijing Road bus stop and walk a little over 300 meters, and you’re there. As for the price, the vegetarian items are a flat five yuan per jin, and the meat dishes range from eighteen yuan per jin for the cheaper ones to thirty or forty for the expensive ones."

"That cheap!" Liu Xiaoyan’s eyes filled with disbelief. "Bro, are you sure you remembered the price right? Five yuan per jin? *Five yuan per jin!*"

"That’s the price," Liu Zhaowen said. He remembered Xu An mentioning that a dedicated shop was about to open, so he added, "You guys could also wait until tomorrow. Xu’s Braised Shop is opening tomorrow. It’s located over by the Silver Star Office Building, which is a bit closer to your school. Plus, a bus goes straight there."

"Awesome!" The hand gripping the duck foot struggled to give Liu Zhaowen a thumbs-up. "Tomorrow, huh? Will there be any opening day discounts? Bro, you have a fridge at home. I can buy a bunch and store it here to eat over time, hehe!"

At the mention of the fridge, a regretful look crossed Liu Xiaoyan’s face. Her tone grew a little dejected as she said, "But the bus ride is still almost half an hour. By the time I get it from the shop back to my dorm, it won’t be nice and cool anymore, so it won’t be as good. If only the shop was right next to campus. These braised dishes taste way better than the ones from the places near my school, and they’re cheaper too. It would definitely be super popular."

DRING-DRING—DRING-DRING—

Before Liu Zhaowen could reply, the phone he was clutching rang again. The caller ID read—Boss.

"Uh, boss..." Liu Zhaowen had just said two words when an unending, torrential lecture began from the other end of the line.

Liu Xiaoyan didn’t know who the person on the other end was, nor could she hear what they were saying, but she could clearly see a hint of anger appear on her cousin’s face. It was a fury that grew more intense with each passing moment.

’Time to bail!’

The boss on the other end of the line was still rambling on. Liu Zhaowen listened, the veins on his temples throbbing. ’How can someone like this be a leader? It’s an insult to the very word.’ Just as Liu Zhaowen felt his head start to buzz, the words Liu Xiaoyan had just spoken popped into his mind with startling clarity.

’...My roommates all love it... This braised food is way better than the stuff from the three shops near campus... It would absolutely sell out...’

The words he had spoken in his childish voice during an elementary school language arts class, for an assignment titled "My Dream," also surfaced in his mind.

’...I want to open a small shop, and I’ll sell whatever I like to eat...’

Liu Zhaowen’s gaze fell on the duck foot he was still clutching in his left hand. His Adam’s apple bobbed. ’The thing I like to eat right now is—braised food...’

’Braised food... Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant... Xu’s Braised Shop... Franchise... Bank savings: thirty-four thousand, eight hundred and twenty-seven yuan...’

"Zhaowen! Liu Zhaowen!"

The repeated shouts from the other end of the line pulled Liu Zhaowen from his reverie. He quickly stammered a few "uh-huhs" to show he was listening. The person on the other end sighed and said in a tone of deep disappointment, "Zhaowen, let me be honest with you. I’m not satisfied with you. When it comes to dealing with people, you’re not as sharp as Ming. In terms of work performance, you’re not as outstanding as Hong. And then there’s Qiang—he’s a very eager learner. He’s recently been studying your area of work, and I am quite satisfied with him. You get what I’m saying, right?"

’Here we go again. This boss must take me for an idiot. "Quite satisfied" with Qiang? Don’t think I don’t know how his "studying" is going. He’s like a college student cramming for an English exam whose progress is permanently stuck on the very first word of the vocabulary book. And he’s "satisfied" with that? Satisfied my ass!’

The boss was still droning on. Liu Zhaowen pressed the phone against his temple, then suddenly coughed twice, interrupting him. "You’re right, boss. I certainly have many shortcomings. That’s why I’ve decided to resign, so I can focus wholeheartedly on learning new skills and abilities!"

The line went silent for a full five seconds before the voice returned.

"Resign? There’s no need for that. Wouldn’t it be better to keep working and earning money while you study? Besides..."

Hearing the start of what was sure to be another long-winded lecture, a vein in Liu Zhaowen’s temple throbbed violently. The discomfort from his hangover began to rise, and with it, a rage that boiled over into malice. He suddenly raised his voice and roared at his boss, "Can’t you understand fucking human speech? I’m not doing this anymore! I’m quitting! Do you understand the word ’quit’? If you don’t, go fucking look it up in a dictionary! Got a Xinhua Dictionary? If not, I’ll send you one tomorrow!"

That roar seemed to vent all the anger he had accumulated since starting the job. Before the other party could react, Liu Zhaowen slammed the end-call button and then blacklisted his boss’s number.

Staring at his boss’s name in the blacklist, Liu Zhaowen suddenly felt an incredible sense of release, as refreshing as drinking iced bayberry juice on the hottest day of summer.

It felt so damn good!

A moment later, a wave of regret washed over him. Since he’d already burned his bridges, he should have cursed him out a bit more and gotten it all out of his system. Now there was no turning back. He could either find another company and grind his way up the ladder again, or he could open a braised food shop. Right outside his cousin’s university seemed like an excellent location.

Liu Zhaowen put down his phone, pulled out the chair from his desk, and sat down. He pressed the power button on his computer. The screen lit up, displaying a familiar grassland wallpaper. He opened a Word document, typed a title on the first line, and centered it.

’Xu’s Braised Shop Franchise Proposal - Draft 1’

「Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant.」

Just as he got out of the insulated food truck, Xu An looked up and saw Tang Wen standing by the window. The moment their eyes met, she vanished from the window, and the sound of footsteps, CLACK CLACK CLACK, echoed down the stairs. An instant later, Tang Wen was standing before Xu An.

"Boss, the commercial for Xu’s Braised Shop is finished. Once you’ve confirmed everything is correct and signed off on it, we can send it to Hai City TV Station for approval. I’ve already contacted their staff. They will review it as soon as it’s delivered. If there are no issues, it will be scheduled to air during prime time on the local Hai City channel tonight—three times before, during, and after the news broadcast, for a total of nine loops."

’The commercial for Xu’s Braised Shop is finally ready! I thought it wouldn’t be done in time to air before tomorrow’s opening. I can’t believe Tang Wen managed to rush it through!’ Xu An immediately nodded and followed Tang Wen up to the second-floor office of Shop No. 2 to review the five-second ad.

After watching it three times, Xu An signed his name on the approval document and affixed the company seal. Tang Wen placed the signed document into a folder, turned, and walked back downstairs. She got into a pre-booked taxi and headed toward the Hai City local TV station.

Zhao Wei, his face gaunt and his spirit drained, was slumped bonelessly in his office chair. When he saw the two letters Tang Wen sent—"OK"—he let out a deep breath. His upper eyelids, which had been taped open, finally drooped shut. This time, with nothing holding them back, they met their lower counterparts, and a thunderous snore echoed through the office.