The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 122 Job Hopping and Poaching

Tong Huaqiong recognized the person as Hong Xiaoxi, a shop assistant at Su Shi Yuan.

That is, the young man who came to buy pastries from Peach Blossom Dessert Shop when it was still a stall opposite Crispy Food Garden, and was recognized by Tong Huaqiong.

To be honest, Tong Huaqiong had a good impression of this clean-cut and cheerful young man.

Ever since he was recognized, he has turned his head away shyly every time he sees Tong Huaqiong.

I wonder what he's doing at Peach Blossom Dessert Shop this time.
But Tong Huaqiong knew one thing for sure: he wasn't there to buy pastries, because it was closing time, and who would rush to come right before closing?

It didn't seem like he was there on behalf of Ma Ming. Tong Huaqiong felt that this kid couldn't enter Ma Ming's inner circle.

Could it be that he's here to replace the new manager of Su Shi Yuan?

"Manager Tong." Hong Xiaoxi stood in front of Tong Huaqiong amidst Gu Taohua's cold words, and smiled at Tong Huaqiong, revealing a pair of tiger teeth.

"What brings you to my shop? Spit it out." Tong Huaqiong spoke crudely.

Hong Xiaoxi wasn't angry. She rubbed the corner of her clothes a little embarrassedly and asked, "Manager Tong, is Peach Blossom Dessert Shop hiring?"

Tong Huaqiong raised her eyes and looked Hong Xiaoxi up and down. It turned out that she was here to apply for a job. She just didn't know if Su Shi Yuan knew that her employee was going to switch jobs to Tao Hua Desserts.

"Weren't you working at Su Shi Yuan? Why are you here?" Tong Huaqiong said. "Su Shi Yuan is a great place. It's been open for over ten years. My Tao Hua Dessert Shop is a small business, too small to accommodate you."

Hong Xiaoxi didn't mince words with Tong Huaqiong and said, "To be honest, Manager Tong knows that when Manager Feng was in charge, he didn't value me. Now that the new manager has taken over, he not only doesn't value me, but he also deducts everyone's wages."

Hong Xiaoxi had a lot of grievances to share. Ever since the Su Shi Yuan restaurant changed its manager, everyone's life had become difficult.

In order to please the boss and make the accounts of the pastry shop look good, the new manager did not focus on innovation in pastries, but instead kept deducting everyone's wages.

Hong Xiaoxi's wages as a young apprentice were already meager, and with this deduction, his livelihood was in jeopardy. He felt that if things continued like this, he would eventually have to pay out of his own pocket to work at the Su Shi Yuan restaurant.

In the past, Su Shi Yuan was the only dominant player in Yan Guan Town. Customers had no choice but to choose Su Shi Yuan, and many of the employees had become spoiled and were now quite unaccustomed to lowering their standards to treat customers.

Instead of focusing on the problems at Su Shi Yuan, people complained about Tao Hua Desserts, unanimously believing that Tao Hua Desserts had stolen Su Shi Yuan's business, making everyone's lives so difficult.

Hong Xiaoxi didn't think that way. He felt that everyone from Manager Feng to the staff was responsible for Su Shi Yuan's current predicament. Tao Hua Dessert Shop's transformation from an inconspicuous stall into a competitor to Su Shi Yuan wasn't due to luck at all, but rather to its delicious taste and warm, attentive service.

While he was at the Su Shi Yuan restaurant, he watched Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua enthusiastically promoting their products every day, and he felt an urge to join them.

He can no longer make a living at Su Shi Yuan, and with Tao Hua Dessert opening a shop, he's considering switching jobs.

Whether you work for Su Shi Yuan or Tao Hua Dessert, it's all the same.

People naturally strive for higher positions, and he was no exception.

Besides, he did right by Su Shi Yuan. Before he officially started working there, he worked for two whole years without a single penny of pay, following the rules set by Manager Feng.

When Tong Huaqiong heard Hong Xiaoxi's reasons for changing jobs, she thought to herself that whether in her previous life or in this era, once a company is poorly managed, it will start by cutting costs. After all, if revenue generation is not effective, the only way to cut costs is to reduce employee wages, and some companies will even lay off employees.

It's understandable that Hong Xiaoxi ran away before the Su Shi Yuan laid off its employees.

Tong Huaqiong asked Hong Xiaoxi, "What do you think of Su Shi Yuan?" Hong Xiaoxi looked sad and said, "It's a pity. Su Shi Yuan shouldn't have come to this. Su Shi Yuan has been in business for more than ten years, and its products are highly recognized in the surrounding area of ​​Yan Guan Town. But it failed to maintain its advantages and instead lost its footing when faced with Tao Hua Dessert. It's such a pity."

He was genuinely heartbroken for Su Shi Yuan, after all, it was a shop he had worked for for several years.

Tong Huaqiong carefully examined Hong Xiaoxi and said, "My Peach Blossom Dessert Shop does need a helper. I can let you work for a month first. How soon can you start working?"

Tong Huaqiong didn't intend to beat around the bush with Hong Xiaoxi. Since she needed manpower and Hong Xiaoxi was experienced and wanted to switch jobs, she was willing to hire him.

Unlike later generations, there were no non-compete agreements in this era. Besides, Hong Xiaoxi had not entered the core circle of Su Shi Yuan and was not familiar with Su Shi Yuan's recipes and operations. She was not worried about offending Ma Ming because of an insignificant employee.

When Hong Xiaoxi heard that Tong Huaqiong was willing to hire him, he was overjoyed and said, "Three days from now. I will hand over my current work in these three days and then I will start working."

Tong Huaqiong readily agreed and began discussing wages with Hong Xiaoxi.

Tong Huaqiong was very generous with wages, paying Hong Xiaoxi 200 more than Su Shi Yuan. However, this higher salary came with conditions: if Hong Xiaoxi failed to satisfy Tong Huaqiong after a month, he would be fired.

Hong Xiaoxi happily went to the Su Shi Yuan to resign from her job.

Seeing Liu Shan and his wife officially join Peach Blossom Dessert Shop, and witnessing Tong Huaqiong hiring Su Shi Yuan's employees without holding a grudge, temporary worker Qin Qingyou couldn't help but want to become a permanent employee of Peach Blossom Dessert Shop.

Qin Qingyou originally thought that since both he and Liu Qiaoyun were working in town, it would interfere with their work in the fields.

Two days ago, he discussed with Liu Qiaoyun and felt that working at Peach Blossom Dessert Shop was more profitable than farming.

As soon as Hong Xiaoxi left, Qin Qingyou went to Tong Huaqiong to ask her to be promoted from a temporary worker to a permanent employee.

Because Qin Qingyou had a foundation of trust with Tong Huaqiong, Tong Huaqiong agreed almost without hesitation.

Qin Qingyou is quite handsome, and he's considered one of the good-looking guys in Qinghewan. Tong Huaqiong felt that having him do odd jobs at Peach Blossom Dessert Shop was a waste of his potential.

So he waved his hand and ordered him to take over from Gu Dahan and deliver pastries to the wealthy families who had ordered them.

When Peach Blossom Desserts was still a small stall, Gu Dahan often delivered desserts to the Lu family in Fucheng. Since the shop opened, Gu Dahan has been responsible for delivering desserts to the surrounding villages and towns.

Gu Dahan worked diligently, but Tong Huaqiong knew that her stepson didn't genuinely like the job; he only took it because he dared not disobey her.

Compared to engaging in business, Gu Dahan preferred tending to the crops and the livestock at home.

Tong Huaqiong thought that since she had earned money to buy land and open a pig farm, someone in the family needed to manage everything. She thought it would be better to let Gu Dahan focus his energy on the family and leave the task of delivering snacks to someone else.

Fortunately, the person beside her was Qin Qingyou, so Tong Huaqiong felt more at ease.

Qin Qingyou was just as excited and moved as Liu Shan when he got the job, feeling that he had been given an important position by Tong Huaqiong.

And so, just over ten days after Peach Blossom Dessert opened, all personnel arrangements and operations were on track.

Every day after Tong Huaqiong finished checking the accounts, she couldn't stop smiling.

Within six months, Peach Blossom Desserts will be able to open branches based in Yanguan Town.

(End of this chapter)