Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 924 Making a Mark

Chen Hui said, "Two hundred thousand. We gave Hao Xiaobo fifty thousand. He couldn't have taken the beating for nothing; we wanted to show him that his efforts for us weren't in vain. The chef, though not closely related to us, still works here. The three of you should discuss how much to give him."

Huang Laowu's hand trembled: "Holy crap, we're bleeding heavily! You guys are awesome."

Xiao Wei said, "Hurry up and find someone to get it done, then open for business as soon as possible. We're making money from entertaining guests; if we drag this out, people will move on to other places."

Huang Laowu said, "I've arranged everything, I'm just waiting for your letter. I'll make a call right away." The three of them walked into the office as they talked.

The office wasn't small, with a desk and a sofa. It was Xiaowei and Chen Hui's first time there. Chen Hui said, "It's nicely set up. Why did you put so many sofas there?"

Huang Laowu said, "It's old. I don't know where Huasheng got it from. Sometimes he lies on it for a while." He put down the bag and went to make a phone call.

Xiao Wei and Chen Hui sat down, and Huang Laowu, after finishing his phone call, came over and sat down, saying, "This is actually a good thing. I guess no one will dare to cause trouble here anymore. Didn't Sun Hongbao say he was rich and powerful? Nobody's going to bail him out, is he?"

Xiao Wei said, "I don't know him, I don't know anything about him, but he's quite arrogant. Eighteen years, he'll be ruined when he gets out."

Huang Laowu paused for a moment, a hint of reluctance appearing on his face. He then shook his head and said, "He's completely ruined. It all depends on whether his wife is willing to spend the money."

Xiao Wei asked, "Where's Lao Hou? Are you still at work?"

Huang Laowu said, "I'm not going anymore. That job is incredibly tiring, only about three hundred yuan a month, and there's no motivation at all. Lao Hou went to the hospital; his child has a cold."

Chen Hui asked, "Did you talk to him?"

Huang Laowu said, "I told you, he'll take charge of the billiards hall, restaurants, and everything here, and hire a few more people. They all know what's going on, so don't worry. We'll pay them their salaries."

Chen Hui turned to Xiao Wei and said, "Actually, I feel like that room in the dance hall could be turned into a convenience store. The dance hall isn't really that interesting."

Xiao Wei said, "It's a bit small. If we open it up, we'll have to close the karaoke bar too. Is Lao Wu making money at karaoke bars these days?"

Huang Laowu said, "It depends on how you compare it. It's definitely better than working, but it's too expensive, really expensive."

Chen Hui said, "You need to know how much money was invested; the price was much cheaper than in Fengtian."

Huang Laowu flashed a bright white smile: "Can Longcheng compare to Fengtian? It's way inferior to the seaside."

Xiao Wei said, "Then let's move it here. We can move the stuff to the restaurant. There's not much to do on the first floor anyway. We can put it down there, play some music, and if people want to sing or dance while eating, they can do it right there. There's enough space."

Huang Laowu asked, "After that, we'll do that convenience store thing you mentioned, right? What's that?"

Xiao Wei said, "It's a shopping mall, selling a wider variety of things. Is it possible to find a suitable person to look after the place? We need to maintain order and be wary of pickpockets, since the items are all scattered around."

Huang Laowu said, "That's alright. Just give them a heads-up, and then find a few people to keep an eye on things. As long as the people in the community know what's going on, that should be fine. What are you selling? General merchandise?"

Chen Hui said, "We have everything you need for daily life: daily necessities, tobacco, alcohol, sugar, tea, snacks, groceries, rice, flour, cooking oil, and so on."

Xiao Wei said, "We still need to discuss whether to open it. The place is too small. We need to see what to put in and what not to put in."

Huang Laowu said, "Then let my brother-in-law manage it for you. He can quit the barbecue business. My wife and I are going to Fengtian. He can't manage it by himself, so this is perfect. Besides, that kind of thing is quite tiring. It's done late at night every day, and only during the summer."

Xiao Wei said, "Just follow the instructions. There's a company that specializes in that area, and it will be under their jurisdiction. Don't even think about contacting us for anything."

Huang Laowu scratched his head and said, "How could that be? He'll definitely obey. If he doesn't, I'll beat him up."

Xiaowei said, "Come to Yandu after dinner tonight. Xiaohui said he wants Liwen to work in Fengtian. Liwen's parents might be meeting with them tonight, so you should come and stay for a while. You'll get to know them better."

Huang Laowu asked, "Send Li Wen to Fengtian? What for?"

Chen Hui said, "You manage the property and the Liberty Shopping Mall, and let her manage the cake shop chain. I feel she can definitely handle it. She's decisive, ambitious, quick-witted, and most importantly, I trust her. I can rely on her."

Huang Laowu raised his eyebrows: "So, you mean I can trust that group too?"

Chen Hui's face twitched: "Mainly because nobody else is using it, so we'll just have to make do. Let's observe and see."

The phone rang, and Huang Laowu got up to answer it. He hummed a few times, put down the phone, and came back over, saying, "Hua Sheng said we should keep 50,000 of this money."

Chen Hui asked, "Did you just call him?"

Huang Laowu said, "Of course, I have to ask about something this important." He took the money, took 50,000, and threw the other 100,000 to Chen Hui.

……

In the evening, Xiaowei and Chen Hui had dinner at the hotel restaurant and then returned to Xiaowei's room to sit and talk.

Xiaowei wants a suite with a living room. He mainly knows there will be guests coming and going, so having a living room is convenient.

After sitting for a while, Huang Laowu arrived with his wife and child. It was a daughter, and she looked like Huang Laowu's child. She stared at everyone with her big eyes, looking around without crying or making a fuss.

Chen Hui slipped a thousand yuan into the child's pocket. In Northeast China, it's customary to give a red envelope (containing money) when meeting a child for the first time, so people generally don't hold children they're not close to, to avoid misunderstandings. Of course, some people deliberately carry a child everywhere they go to make money.

Chen Hui loved children, so he reached out and picked up Huang Weiting, showering him with affection. The child wasn't shy at all, tilting his little head to look at Chen Hui, and then happily splashed some water on Chen Hui's leg. At that time, diapers didn't exist in Northeast China.

Chen Hui didn't dodge, afraid of upsetting the child. He waited until she finished urinating before standing up and handing the child to Huang Laowu, saying, "I'm going to change your pants. This is quite a mess." Everyone laughed. Huang Laowu's wife was a little embarrassed. She took the child and changed his pants. Huang Laowu laughed and got up to find something to wipe the sofa, which was soaked.

Just as they were busy, Li Wen and her family arrived. The door was ajar, and Li Wen came in, sniffling, "What are you all doing?"

Huang Laowu's wife laughed and said, "Tingting peed, she peed all over Chen Hui, and the sofa is wet."

Xiao Wei was wiping the carpet with toilet paper when he said, "Why didn't you come sooner? I could have let you hold me." Li Wen snorted and said, "These are my grandpa and grandma, this is our boss, where's Chen Hui?"

Xiao Wei stood up, threw the tissues into the trash can, and said with a smile, "Uncle Li, Aunt Li, come and sit down. Let's not shake hands."

Li Wen's parents and Huang Laowu were both acquainted. When Li's mother went to hold the child, Li's uncle said, "No need, no need, don't be so polite, we're all family here."

Everyone found a place to sit down, and Chen Hui, having changed his pants, came in from outside: "Oh, you're here. This must be your aunt and uncle? I'm Chen Hui."

Li Wen giggled and said, "I heard you had Tingting mark your place."

Huang Weiting saw Chen Hui in Li Ma's arms and stretched out his hands: "Hmm, hmm, Bao Bao." He actually let Chen Hui hold him.

(End of this chapter)