Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 237: Pay Attention to Costs

Han San said, "It's alright. People from Fengtian who come out to do some business can't be fooled. At worst, we can find some connections and get the local police station to take a share. Money is more useful than anything else."

Xiao Wei shook his head and said, "It's not that simple. Let's talk about it later. We need to think it over. But it's possible to do something big in Fengtian. Let's see next year. We'll discuss it next year."

Boss Shi nodded and said, "Okay, this can't be rushed. I'll wait for your news."

After dinner, Boss Shi continued assembling the billiard table, Master Chang led people to weld the frame, and Han San and his group helped install the DVD player, projector, speakers, and other equipment. Everyone tried it out, and it worked perfectly. It felt great, a world of difference compared to the outdoor one.

The dance hall is much simpler. Just install a sound system and a few microphones on the stage. Then you can find a few people to play instruments and sing. Before they arrive, just play a tape recorder. As long as there's music, you can dance. It's all the same.

Han San also brought over some lights for the dance hall—the kind of reflective balls that spin from the ceiling, spotlights that change color constantly, and laser lights—all free, saying they were opening gifts for a few people. Although the items weren't expensive, the thought behind it was genuine, and he did a great job.

Once those two rooms were finished, and Master Chang had also welded the frame and workbench over there, everyone came back, installed the machinery and equipment, and the job was done. They got in the car and headed to the compound.

The machinery here is large and plentiful, but the advantage is that there's plenty of space, so the electricians and welders can work together and actually get things done faster than over there.

Ovens, proofing boxes, dough mixers, and electric stoves were lined up against the wall, while six worktables were neatly arranged in a row in the middle of the floor. Because everything was made of stainless steel, the steel reflected a unique luster under the lights, instantly elevating the feel of the entire space.

Xia Maosheng, Xiao Wei, Chen Hui, and Han San stood to the side watching. Han San asked, "Where should we put those things?"

Xiao Wei pointed outside and said, "The main building across the street, they've converted two rooms on the first floor into practice classrooms."

Han San shook his head and said, "Then why not just do this side? Anyway, more than half of this area is still idle. What's the point of it being idle? This side is spacious." He pointed to the other side of the old building, where the main entrance was in the middle, dividing the entire space into two halves and four parts.

Han San said, "Put the pastry and Western-style pastry practice classrooms together in this room, one at this end and the other at that end. They already have a connection area, so we can just stagger the practice times. The chef practice will be here, with ten stoves. Divide the students into groups of ten or twenty people each, and they can practice in this room. The food they make can be shared by the students living in the dormitory and your staff, so there's no waste. It'll be like having half a canteen. After they finish eating, everyone can give feedback."

Xia Maosheng said, "This is a good idea, great, it will work."

Xiao Wei asked, "How are the electricity bills calculated? The electricity bills for the main building and the school are paid by the Labor Bureau, but the bills for this building are our own."

Han San said, "Just install a meter. You power companies are so familiar with this, it's no big deal. Besides, the whole school belongs to you, what's a little electricity bill? It won't use much electricity."

Xiao Wei said, "We're a contractor, we pay a contract fee, and we also have to support some people. Although the labor bureau doesn't separate the fees from the trainees, they still have to pay a processing fee based on the number of certificates issued. This increases our electricity costs, since all of these things use electricity. Just that oven alone costs a lot in electricity every month. This isn't just for a day or two, it's going to take ten years or more."

Chen Hui said, "Then let's install a meter. I still think Third Brother is right. Let's put it here and pay for the meter separately."

Xia Maosheng nodded and said, "I think so too."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said, "Then talk to Sister Li tomorrow and see if adding a watch would be okay. As long as they approve, it's fine."

Han San said, "In that case, where was the original table over there? Why not just merge it over there?"

Xiao Wei said, "This is a single transformer, 380V, and that's 220V. How can we connect them? Besides, there's no electricity meter upstairs. The main meter is with the government."

Han Dian tapped his forehead with his fist and said, "That's not good. If you ask me, you should also connect the electricity from the building over there, and install a meter for this half of the electricity together with that building, directly connecting it to the labor bureau's account. Otherwise, I'm afraid there will be changes in the future."

Xia Maosheng asked, "What changes?"

Han San said, "Once you start working on this next spring, the electricity consumption will be considerable each month. You don't even have a meter, so I'm afraid the government won't cooperate. They might make you pay for the electricity, and they'll just decide how much to charge. Will you pay or not? Paying would be humiliating, and not paying would cause a huge uproar."

Xiao Wei considered it for a moment and said to Xia Maosheng, "I think what Third Brother said makes sense. Let's put together a meter. If the Labor Bureau accepts it, they will; if not, we'll just pay it ourselves to avoid any future trouble."

Chen Hui turned to the electrician who was putting the circuit breaker on the oven and called out, "Hey buddy, come here, I have a question for you."

The electrician ran over with a screwdriver: "What's up?"

Chen Hui gestured and said, "If we bring in this transformer, and add this half to the upstairs, and install a meter on this row of bungalows, and then combine this half on the first floor with the other half on the other side to install a meter, is that feasible?"

The electrician turned and glanced across the street, saying, "That's municipal power over there, how do we connect?"

Chen Hui said, "The line was cut off from the incoming line and came from here."

The electrician walked to the door, looked across the street, thought for a moment, and said, "It shouldn't be a big problem. We just need to run two wires from this end, 220V, right? Run the wires from the top of that wall and connect them from that part of the building. I'll go over and check if it's okay after I finish this end. I don't know how the electricity gets to that half of the building; I need to check." He pointed to the kindergarten half of the main building.

Chen Hui nodded and said, "Okay, you take care of this." He took out a whole pack of cigarettes and tossed it to the electrician, who took it with a smile.

Xiao Wei whispered to Xia Maosheng, "This way is fine. We're planning to buy this yard anyway, and we'll have to make changes sooner or later. But what about the heating? Should we incorporate that too? Isn't this a huge project?"

Xia Maosheng said, "It's okay, the heating works fine, it'll definitely be fine."

Xiao Wei nodded.

Han San turned to the two and said, "By the way, when's your deadline for contacting GG? Have you decided? Do you need me to help you make the contact?"

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Sure, didn't we agree on this last time? It's fine for us, but we'll need you to handle it for us."

Han San chuckled and shook his head, saying, "Nonsense, you guys aren't even related. Fine, I'll go back and contact them. It's not a big deal anyway. Can I call a month in advance? Tsk, that's a bit short. How about two months? I'll arrange it when I get back. School starts in March, is that okay?"

(End of this chapter)