Chapter 132 - 100: The War Has Begun

Chapter 132: Chapter 100: The War Has Begun

Zhang Lin knew exactly what Miss Lin was getting at. He smiled and said, "Miss Lin, as it happens, I’m about to start recruiting. We’re definitely in need of people in the HR department!"

The truth was, his HR department had no one.

For his next two projects, he could transfer staff over from the rapeseed Flower Sea to the Seven-Color Flower Sea. But once the campsite was built, he would definitely need to hire externally. That was going to be a ton of work. Since that was the case, there was no harm in doing her a favor.

It’s all about connections, isn’t it?

In this country, you can never completely escape the influence of personal connections. Even the world of sports, which should be purely about physical prowess, relies on them. Otherwise, how could a hack like Eldest Young Master Su possibly make the Olympic team roster?

"Thank you so much, President Zhang!"

"Don’t mention it, Miss Lin!"

Zhang Lin hung up the phone. The water for tea had just finished boiling. While it was still steaming, he used it to sterilize the tea set.

A short while later, a staff member led Huang Tao to his office.

As soon as he sat down, he exclaimed in amazement, "Zhang Lin, I saw a video of your office center online yesterday! It looked great in the video, but coming here in person, I now see just how incredible this place is. How is it so cool the moment you walk in?"

Zhang Lin just bs’d an answer. "What, you think I built that rockery and garden for show? That I just threw money away? Go build one yourself if you want the same effect!"

Huang Tao quickly shook his head. "I don’t have that kind of spare cash. Besides you, what other boss would build an office center with flower walls, a planted courtyard, *and* a rockery garden?"

Zhang Lin didn’t answer, busying himself with brewing a pot of tea. He poured a cup for Huang Tao and said, "This is just some ordinary stuff, so make do for now. I’ll look into buying some high-quality leaves later, and then I’ll properly invite you for a tea session."

Huang Tao took a sip of tea and said with a smile, "By the way, what kind of workshop did you want to build? I can get things rolling on my end right away."

Zhang Lin explained, "I want to set up a workshop for making moisturizing cream. It needs to be big enough for a couple of oil presses and a stove for producing the cream. The main thing is that the ventilation and construction specs have to be up to code."

"That’s easy. I’ll arrange for my guys to get on it as soon as I get back," Huang Tao agreed immediately. Then he added, "Oh, right, about those oil presses—I have a friend in that line of business. I can put you in touch!"

"Great, that’ll save me the trouble." Zhang Lin nodded, then picked up the teapot and refilled Huang Tao’s cup.

With business out of the way, they spent the next two hours just shooting the breeze.

That’s how it often is with people from the south; they can sit around a tea table for half the day.

Most of their conversation, however, was just them reminiscing about their high school days.

"You were the man, though. You hooked up with Lin Xin in high school and took her to a hotel. We wouldn’t have even dared to dream of something like that back then!" Huang Tao said, his face a mixture of awe and admiration. After all, Lin Xin had a lot of guys chasing after her back in the day.

"What’s so great about that? You guys are the ones who got married and had kids first," Zhang Lin said, not wanting to dwell on the past. ’In my mind, there isn’t even a trace of that idealized ’first love’ glow left for Lin Xin. Now, she’s just a high school classmate, nothing more.’

"You’re the one who hasn’t changed in ten years. Your taste is exactly the same. A decade later and you’re still into girls from our old high school. Speaking of which, have you sealed the deal with that girl from No. 1 High I saw you with last time? If you ask me, she’s way prettier than Lin Xin ever was, and more innocent-looking too. You’ve always had a sharp eye."

As he spoke, Huang Tao got worked up all over again and couldn’t stop himself from giving Zhang Lin a thumbs-up.

Zhang Lin knew he was talking about Fu Yao and instantly rolled his eyes at him. "What the hell? Is that the kind of guy you think I am? Don’t project your own sleazy thoughts onto me."

Just as Huang Tao was about to retort, his phone rang. He answered it, then put it down and said, "Zhang Lin, I’ve got to go. My wife needs me for something, so I’ll head back and take care of it. I’ll get the workshop arrangements sorted out as fast as I can!"

"Okay," Zhang Lin nodded.

Huang Tao said his goodbyes and left Zhang Lin’s office. He hadn’t gotten far when he saw two young women walking in, and wasn’t one of them the familiar face of that girl from their old high school?

’Aren’t they heading for Zhang Lin’s office?’

He couldn’t help but scoff. "That guy, Zhang Lin. He’ll deny it till his dying day!"

Zhang Lin was in the middle of cleaning up the tea set when Fu Yao came in with another young woman.

Seeing Zhang Lin, Fu Yao reported, "Uncle, I’ve checked out a few places for those supplies. I talked to a few vendors about long-term contracts. At first, they thought I was a scammer!"

Zhang Lin laughed at that. The various departments at the Li Yuan Farm office center would need a lot of daily supplies; for vendors in You City, this was no small account. It was no surprise that someone as young as Fu Yao wasn’t taken seriously at first.

He looked curiously at the young woman beside her. "And this is?"

Fu Yao quickly explained, "This is Mengxi’s younger sister, Lin Mengyao. She said she was here to start work, so I brought her over. Mengyao, this is Uncle, the owner of the farm."

Lin Mengyao quickly and respectfully handed him a resume. "President Zhang, hello. I’m Lin Mengyao. This is my resume."

Zhang Lin took the resume and glanced over it before saying, "You’re here for an HR position. As it happens, the farm is about to launch a new campsite project. Why don’t you calculate how many people we’ll need to recruit, and I’ll get a contract ready for you."

"Yes, President Zhang." Lin Mengyao was clearly surprised to be hired and given an assignment so quickly.

’I had expected to go through a round of interviews like at big-city companies, and then have to wait to hear back.’

’The hiring process at this farm seems a bit... casual.’

But she knew how well Li Yuan Farm was doing and what a great opportunity this job was. Otherwise, her family wouldn’t have asked her sister to pull strings to get her in.

’Besides, the more casual the process, the more it suggested the farm’s corporate structure wasn’t fully developed. And that was her opportunity.’

So, she immediately got to work understanding the situation and drawing up a plan.

By evening, she had found Zhang Lin with a recruitment spreadsheet in hand. "Boss, I’ve put together a rough plan. For a 2,000-mu campsite with a capacity for 5,000 guests, we’ll need a lot of people. Front-end customer service, tent guides, security... In total, we’ll need at least 150 staff members, plus around 50 or more for the cleaning crew!"

’In other words, the campsite needed over 200 new hires. The monthly payroll would definitely exceed 1.5 million yuan.’

’However, if the campsite could host a full 5,000 people every day at 200 yuan per person, the lodging fees alone would generate a million yuan in revenue daily.’

With that in mind, he added salary information to the list of positions and then called for Lin Muxue.

"President Zhang, you needed me?" Lin Muxue asked as soon as she entered the office.

"Muxue, post this recruitment notice on the farm’s official accounts." Zhang Lin handed the spreadsheet Lin Mengyao had prepared to Lin Muxue. He thought for a moment, then added, "Oh, and specify that we’re giving priority to local residents of You City for now."

’It wasn’t a strict requirement, but he figured Zhao Han from the tourism bureau and the people over at Liu County would be happy to see it.’

"Understood, President Zhang!" Lin Muxue nodded and left with the recruitment list.

Zhang Lin then handed a contract to Lin Mengyao. "This is your contract. After you sign it, you have a few more things to take care of. First, hire a few more people for the HR department. Second is the issue of housing. With this many new hires, some will definitely need a place to stay. Go to the nearby town and see if you can rent an entire building on the cheap to use as a dormitory."

"Yes, President Zhang!" Lin Mengyao replied, taking the contract. Her eyes lit up as she read its contents.

HR Department Manager, salary 13,000 plus bonuses!

This salary was 2,000 yuan higher than what the HR manager at her old, big-name company was making.

’Looks like the prospects at Li Yuan Farm really are amazing.’

There was no hesitation with a contract like this. She immediately signed her name, officially joining Li Yuan Farm.

That night, a recruitment notice on Li Yuan Farm’s Tiao Yin account once again drew widespread attention. After all, hiring 200 people in one go—all of them preferably locals—was a major move in You City.

And with Li Yuan Farm’s current reputation in You City, countless people were eager for a chance to work there.

At Kailin Investment, Zhao Neng naturally learned of Li Yuan Farm’s recruitment notice right away.

He immediately called his assistant. "Did you see Li Yuan Farm’s recruitment notice?"

"I did, President Zhao. It looks like they’re starting to make their move," his assistant’s voice came over the line.

Zhao Neng nodded. "Exactly. We can’t fall behind. Let’s start recruiting for our Kailin Investment Farm as well. But if we’re going to crush Li Yuan Farm, our recruitment drive needs to be even bigger. Offer 200 yuan more for regular positions and 500 yuan more for management."

The first head-to-head battle with Li Yuan Farm had begun!