Era: Life's Big Winner

Chapter 80: Business is booming, but crisis is lurking

Back to the yard.

Liu Hongchang said something to his family, then immediately took his bicycle and went out.

He went to the cafeteria first and talked to Manager Li and Director Yao for a while.

Then he rushed to the machine repair factory in the suburbs, found the canteen chef Nan Yi there, and invited him to be the chef in the club he opened next year.

The reason why we are here to discuss this now is because Liuzi brought back news yesterday, saying that someone in the city wants to transfer Nan Yi away.

Nan Yi is about the same age as Sha Zhu, tall and thin, with a straightforward personality, and did not hide anything:

"That's true. I went to the office cafeteria, but I haven't received a reply yet. I said I need to think about it."

"My main concern is that if I go to work in a canteen in the city, it will be difficult for me to take care of my children at home."

Liu Hongchang handed over a cigarette and said with a smile: "I mainly sell private dishes there, serving high-end customers. It's a lot easier than working in a big canteen."

"What about you? Your skills are so good, there's no need for you to hire me and pay me an extra salary." Nan Yi asked with a smile.

Liu Hongchang smiled and said, "I have contracted a factory. I will sign the contract on the first of next month and officially take over the operation. I don't have much time."

"Of course, I will stay in the restaurant on weekdays, but I will focus more on other businesses."

Nan Yi said admiringly: "I didn't expect that you have become a well-known figure without making any noise."

"Okay, you came here in person to invite me, what else can I say? Isn't it too late to quit my job by the end of the year?"

Liu Hongchang shook his hand and said with a smile: "That's very kind. You can quit your job in the winter. I plan to officially start operations in the twelfth month."

He let go of his hand and asked again, "By the way, I just came here and heard from the workers that Cui Dake is not on good terms with you?"

Nan Yi's expression froze, he nodded silently, and said: "I have been fighting him back and forth for decades. If he hadn't been suppressing me and always causing trouble for me, I would definitely be higher than you now."

"In that case, you should quit your job now, sell your position, and then come to help me." Liu Hongchang pondered.

"I'll pay you as usual, temporarily set at 2,000 a month, and we can talk about it later depending on the situation. How do you think?"

Nan Yi's eyes lit up, he gave a thumbs up and said excitedly: "Open, OK, I'll find someone to take over first and then quit my job. From now on, I'll hand over my 100 pounds to you."

If Liu Hongchang took private jobs according to his standard, he would have to cook 400 tables of meals to earn 2,000 yuan.

Of course, business is a little better at the private restaurant, with more than 400 tables a month, but the advantage is stability.

In fact, Nan Yi has taken a lot of private jobs, but his wages have never increased. In recent years, they have been hovering around three yuan per table.

Ultimately, it was his background that affected his development, and he was despised and looked down upon because of this over the years.

He and Liu Hongchang had known each other for a short time. A few days ago, Liu Hongchang had too much work to do and was too busy, so he took the initiative to find him.

However, Liu Hongchang was very generous. He priced the private work at five yuan per table, took one yuan from him, and gave Nan Yi four yuan per table.

The two of them cooperated very happily. Recently, even the private work that Nan Yi did after work in the evening was introduced by Liu Hongchang.

Therefore, there is a foundation of trust between the two of them, which is why Nan Yi agreed as soon as Liu Hongchang opened his mouth.

After discussing the matter and chatting for a while, Liu Hongchang said goodbye and left.

……

In the following week, Fang Yongfu's pickle sales were so hot that he sold seven or eight hundred kilograms every day.

This number was the result of Liu Hongchang's deliberate suppression.

It's really scary to see so many pickles sold every day at three yuan per pound.

What the world lacks the least is smart people. From the day when the pickles were sold, someone discovered that they were different the next day.

After eating it, the man will not feel full of energy immediately, but he will have more energy than usual.

With a little thought, you can find something strange.

Not to mention women, as long as they eat a few meals, their faces will be flushed, their whole bodies will feel warm, and all the pain from the cold will disappear.

Word spread from one person to ten people, and from ten to a hundred. Every day, the pickles in Fang Yongfu's shop were in short supply, and people would line up to buy them in the middle of the night.

There were even some smart and quick-witted ones who bought it at 3.9 yuan per pound and then quietly sold it at a higher price to make a profit from the difference.

Neither Liu Hongchang nor Fang Yongfu could have prevented this from happening, and they could only watch helplessly when they knew about the situation.

In just one week, Liu Hongchang earned more than 16,000 yuan just by selling pickles.

Together with the earnings from selling medicinal liquor and working as a chef privately, he not only raised enough money to contract the factory, but also had another three or four thousand left.

So Liu Hongchang and Fang Yongfu discussed it and decided to temporarily stop selling pickles. After all, the money was really enviable.

If this continues, even if Fang Yongfu swears that he is willing to take full responsibility, Liu Hongchang will still feel uneasy.

It would be better to endure for a few more days, wait until the factory is completely contracted and qualified, and then focus on development.

Fang Yongfu earned five or six thousand yuan following Liu Hongchang. Although he was reluctant to give up selling pickles, he was not greedy.

As expected, I stopped selling pickles the next day. As luck would have it, someone from the district came to investigate that afternoon.

Fortunately, Fang Yongfu did not sell it again, and with the mediation of Director Wang, the matter was dropped. However, Fang Yongfu was still scared out of his wits.

Before something happens, people always hope for the best. But once trouble comes, as ordinary people, no one will not be afraid.

Not only him, Liu Hongchang also felt very fortunate, and decided in his heart that he would never do such a thing again.

Time flies, and three days have passed. Early in the morning, Liu Hongchang received a call from Wang Shaofen, saying that Zhou Hao had left home and was about to take the train to Beijing.

Also coming was Zhou Hao’s father Zhou Futao.

It was the first time for his daughter to go away from home, so naturally he was worried as a father. He wanted to send her off in person and check on the situation before he could feel at ease.

Liu Hongchang said he would check the train arrival time in Beijing and meet them at the station on time.

Good things come in pairs. After hanging up the phone, Director Yao told Liu Hongchang that he had already negotiated with the replacement he had helped find.

With the return of educated youth to the city in previous years, there are many unemployed young people in recent years, and it is difficult to find a wife without a job.

The job of cook is still very popular these days and there is no shortage of people to replace them.

Liu Hongchang naturally had no objection to Director Yao's recommendation, and asked the other party to come over to complete the formalities that afternoon.

Liu Hongchang will resign on the first of next month, and the other party will officially start working as a level 10 cook.

At around eight o'clock in the evening, after finishing his private work and returning home, Liu Hongchang told his family that he was going to resign, but they didn't say anything.

Knowing that he was about to take over the soy sauce factory and had a lot of things to do, working would not only earn him little but also waste his time, so they were very understanding.

Of course, the main reason was that the pickles were selling so well some time ago, which gave Wang Cuilan confidence, so she didn't complain.

There was a crescent moon hanging in the sky and the breeze was blowing gently, making the weather particularly cool. After taking a bath, Liu Hongchang came to the yard and sat down to enjoy the cool air.

It was quite lively. Not only the Liu family was there, but also the Fang family, as well as Yu Qiuhua and He Wenyuan, mother and daughter. It was very lively and crowded.

Perhaps because of Wang Cuilan's guidance, during this period, Yu Qiuhua gradually came out of the sadness of He Wentao's death.

As there were many people here and people were talking a lot, Yu Qiuhua became more cheerful than before.

He Wenyuan took Fang Tianxin to the sink, brought over two watermelons, cut them up, and shared them among everyone.

"Mom, Zhou Hao and her father are coming." Liu Hongchang said while eating watermelon.

Wang Cuilan asked happily, "The letter that came today?"

"Well, my aunt called from the commune and estimated that she would arrive in Beijing on the 3rd or 4th of next month." Liu Hongchang nodded.

"I'll probably be very busy then, and I don't know which train it is. I'm afraid you'll have to wait for it at the station."

He Wenhui replied, "Let Wenyuan go with you."

"Sister, I'm going to school next month." He Wenyuan reminded.

Nowadays, students have 30 days off regardless of whether it is summer or winter vacation.

The only holiday is Sunday, there is no weekend.

He Wenhui patted her forehead and said awkwardly: "I forgot about it. I'm used to you hanging around at home."

"Mother-in-law, after Wenyuan goes to school, it's time for me to go back too," Yu Qiuhua negotiated.

Wang Cuilan held her hand and frowned, "Why are you joining in the fun? Are you short of food? Keep playing here!"

"Yes, Mom, after I quit my job and have nothing to do, you can accompany me!" He Wenhui also persuaded.

Yu Qiuhua chuckled and said, "What are you saying? Can I still accompany you for the rest of your life? Stop trying to persuade me. I want to go back and live there."

"Mom, I'm going to get into college, what are you going to do?" He Wenyuan suddenly interrupted and asked.

Yu Qiuhua was stunned for a moment and remained silent.

The third child died, and the fourth child was given away. Now she is counting on the two girls to support her in her old age.

But He Wenyuan is still in high school, so it is hard to say whether he can be admitted to university.

If you pass the exam, you will have to wait many years before you can start working. If you fail, you can only find a job, which can only support yourself in the early stage.

So the only person I can rely on now is my eldest daughter, He Wenhui.

This is also the reason why after He Wentao passed away, she was able to generously give tens of thousands of yuan in compensation to He Wenhui for safekeeping.

"Mother-in-law, please live here for a while. I told my mom that. Do you think you need food?" Liu Hongchang said.

"We also have to consider Wenyuan. Her academic performance has improved a lot this year, and it will be more convenient for Wenhui to tutor her if she stays here."

Without the burdens of He Wentao and He Wenda, Yu Qiuhua was not the person with a weird temper and difficult to get along with.

She has been staying here for the past few days, and Wang Cuilan is also happy because she has someone to talk to and keep company.

Since her son-in-law had asked, Yu Qiuhua could no longer refuse and readily agreed to stay for a while.

At this time, Fang Yongfu asked, "Hongchang, the soy sauce factory is a bit shabby, we need to repair it a bit, right?"

"Yes, it needs to be repaired. I have the money ready, but we have to wait until the contract is officially signed." Liu Hongchang nodded in response.

"In addition to repairing the factory, we also have to recruit workers, purchase various production materials, and find a good sales channel. There are so many things to do!"

Fang Yongfu said with a smile: "I don't have to worry about sales. Didn't you see how booming my business was in the past few days? It's great to make money!"

"To be honest, seeing how much money Uncle Fang makes, I want to quit my job and open a pickle shop." Liu Yunchang continued with a smile.

Wu Xiaoying rolled her eyes at him and said unhappily, "You're not cut out for business, so just go to work!"

"Xiaoying is right. Yunchang has too many ideas, and he is always worried about this and that. He is not suitable for doing business." Wang Cuilan echoed.

(End of this chapter)