Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 250 Closure and Renovation

Xia Maosheng laughed and said, "He's really addicted to making money. Are you just putting all the year-end bonuses on us?"

Old Xu laughed and said, "Don't I make sense? Making money has to be about finding a way that benefits everyone. Otherwise, why would you do it? Look at all these windows, and this watchman's booth—aren't they nice?"

Xiao Wei asked, "Then what should we do?"

Old Xu gestured and said, "From the window of the watchman's room to the stairwell, we'll enclose the whole area and build a big bar. Your restaurant doesn't even have a bar yet. We'll put up wine racks and stuff on the walls, and then we'll create a decorative feature on the stairwell side, maybe with some lettering or a painting, and a few potted plants. We'll also add some small decorations to this side of the wall, and the whole first floor will come alive."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and then asked Xia Maosheng, "What do you think?"

Xia Maosheng looked around and said, "Anyway, this floor is definitely a bit worse than the upstairs, but I can't quite put my finger on why. Let's just do it then."

Chen Hui asked, "Brother Xu, you've prepared this again, haven't you?"

Old Xu laughed and shook his head, saying, "No, no, this is something I just thought of. But I really think we have to do it. Before the upstairs renovation, the difference between the top and bottom was negligible, so we couldn't really tell anything. But now that you've done this upstairs, the difference downstairs will be huge if you don't."

Xiao Wei said, "Let's get it done, let's see if there's anything else that needs fixing, and then we can get it done in one go."

Chen Hui said, "The kitchen should be tidied up too. It's a bit messy right now. The dough work area is over there, isn't it? Let's move all the shelves to that room where the dough work area is, and put all the vegetables and other ingredients there. Put the cutting board against the wall, and have Chef Chang make a new work surface out of steel in the middle. Wouldn't that be better than it is now?"

Xia Maosheng peered out the window for a while and said, "Hmm, that works too, anyway, that room's pretty useless."

Li Wen asked, "Then where should we change our clothes?"

Xia Maosheng said, "You can change your clothes while you're setting up your goods. It's not like we're stopping you from going in."

Xiao Wei said, "She's worried about not having a place to put her clean clothes, right? The watchman's room, she can change her clothes there from now on, since people only stay there at night anyway."

Xia Maosheng asked, "Didn't you go to answer the phone? When did you come out? You startled me."

Li Wenchong and Xia Maosheng made a face and said to Xiao Wei, "Boss, Bei Xi called and said your dad, mom, and younger brother are taking the train tonight, and they want you to pick them up at the station. Boss, has your whole family moved here? Is your sister-in-law coming?"

Xiao Wei said, "No, she's not coming. She's still in school, not on holiday yet."

Li Wen then asked, "How old is your younger brother? Is he older than me?"

Xiao Wei was speechless, Chen Hui laughed heartily, and Xia Maosheng said, "He's not even as old as you, do you think his younger brother is older than you?"

Li Wen exclaimed, her eyes widening as she looked at Xiao Wei: "Boss, you're not older than me? Why do I feel like you're much older than me?"

Li Wen is actually 21 years old. She is the youngest among the people in the restaurant, and she always has a quirky and mischievous look, so everyone treats her like a child. She is older than Xia Maosheng, a little younger than Chen Hui, and a little over a year older than Xiao Wei.

Chen Hui said, "I'm almost twenty-two, Lao Xia is twenty-one, and Xiao Wei will be twenty after the New Year."

Li Wen stared at Xiao Wei, looked him up and down, and said exaggeratedly, "So it's just a little brother. He looks like an old man. I thought he was much older than me."

Xiao Wei said, "Is it wrong for me to have a mature mindset?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Then I'll have to get off work later tonight, Uncle Zhang and Aunt Zhang need to eat."

Xiao Wei said, "It's okay, let Sister Zhang prepare it, and we'll cook it ourselves. It's family food after all."

Old Xu took out a measuring tape and measured back and forth, asking, "Are there any tables available tonight?"

Xia Maosheng said, "I don't know. How would we know if it's not even noon yet?"

As Old Xu calculated, he said, "If there aren't any tables tonight, I'll go back and prepare the ingredients now, start working this afternoon, and get the first floor ready for you tonight."

Xiao Wei said, "Then we'll close today. Some people who booked tables said they can't get things done because of the renovations. Let's get everything sorted out today. We haven't received any orders yet."

Xia Maosheng pointed to the kitchen and asked, "What should we do with the groceries we bought today?"

Xiao Wei said, "Just pack it up and put it away. If you can't leave it, cook it yourself. There are two meals a day, lunch and dinner, and what about all these people?"

Xia Maosheng clicked his tongue twice and said, "Alright, then eat it yourself."

Li Wen screamed and rushed to the kitchen to announce the good news.

Sister Zhang came out carrying a kitchen knife and asked if it was true. Xiao Wei said, "It's true. You and Xie Na sort the vegetables and put them away. After we finish eating, we'll clean up the kitchen and rearrange things. You can prepare a meal for me this afternoon and then go home. You should all go home early. See you tomorrow as usual."

Sister Zhang said, "That's great, I thought Xiao Liwen was lying." When she returned to the kitchen, she heard Li Bing and Xie Na shouting, and the kitchen was filled with howling.

After finishing their meal quickly, everyone started tidying up the kitchen, moving the entire dough preparation area over there. The two private rooms were transformed into a storage room and a work area, while the dining room became a processing and sales area. They cleaned, set up tables and chairs, and with many hands making light work, they finished almost everything in about an hour. Then they worked on the kitchen, giving it a thorough cleaning.

At noon, Xie Na prepared some food for Huang Laowu and his two companions, as well as the carpenters upstairs. The billiards game had just started, and Huang Laowu and his two friends were in a state of excitement; the three of them had been staying there all day long for the past few days.

At 2:30 pm, the rest of the items were finally tidied up and arranged neatly, and all that was left was Master Chang's new case.

The truck from the lumberyard outside arrived for the third time. The upstairs loading was finished, and several carpenters started working on the second floor.

The tables and chairs used later have been put into storage. The tables and chairs in the karaoke room have been placed in place, and the small stage in the dance hall has been set up and covered with a red carpet.

The tables and chairs on the first floor of the restaurant were all piled up to one side, and carpentry tools were brought in, along with piles of materials.

In just a few hours, the restaurant turned into a construction site, with a dozen or so people working around the clock, and Old Xu shouting to direct them.

If someone actually made a reservation, Xia Maosheng thanked them profusely but politely declined. People are doing you a favor by coming, so you should always give them face in return.

Around 3:00 PM, Sister Zhang and Chef Zhai finished preparing the dinner table. The restaurant staff changed clothes and happily went home. Old Xu led the workers in their work with great enthusiasm. Xiao Wei and his two companions looked around and, finding nothing else to do, closed the kitchen doors and went to the billiards hall to watch a game.

"What brings you three here? Aren't you busy today?" Old Huang greeted the three men with a grin, showing his shiny white teeth.

The billiard hall was quite crowded, with five out of six tables occupied. A number of people were also sitting around the heated wall watching, making it as noisy and bustling as a market. Huang Laowu and his two companions leaned against the wall, chatting and joking with these people.

(End of this chapter)