Tokyo: Starting with taking on his wife's debts

"Oh?" Jiang Qi chuckled twice, then suddenly asked, "You accepted all five AV actresses I sent over, right?"

"I've got it, great. By the way, give me Kitaro's phone number, I'll contact him to rent a shop."

"He went to sea with me. I'll arrange for someone to find you, and while I'm at it, I'll send you a few more, hmph!"

Ezaki hung up the phone prematurely.

Just as Hideaki hung up the phone, Riko came out with the business cooperation contract left by Ezaki.

Ezaki Design's cooperation model cannot be described as simply doing business; rather, it involves vertical integration, establishing joint ventures, and building a business system based on shared interests.

Because "Shanhe Foreign Trade" does not have its own port, but has its own fleet, it belongs to the flexible "asset-light operation + core logistics control".

The fleet previously operated in Southeast Asia, and although it secretly transported various "contraband," on the surface it was still a trading company focused on light industrial consumer goods.

Textiles, food, fresh produce, etc., perfectly align with the positioning of a 100-yuan supermarket.

As for Riko, Hideaki has already taken over the Sugita family's port, which can become the home port and exclusive logistics hub for the Ezaki fleet. Riko's supermarket will then become Ezaki Foreign Trade Company's most stable end-sales customer.

Finally, Ezaki also envisioned jointly investing in and establishing a "logistics and warehousing company" to jointly operate port and warehousing businesses, sharing profits and thus fully integrating interests.

However, we need to wait until she clears her name before discussing deeper cooperation. We can't let Riko be tainted by her connections with the underworld; Riko can only live in the sunlight.

“Look, that’s what you call professional,” Hideaki said to Riko, tapping the contract with his fingers. “I like this kid.”

Riko lowered her head deeply, letting out a nasal sound with a sob in her voice: "Mmm..."

"Riko is also great, but she still needs to work harder. Are you confident?"

"I'm sorry to have disappointed my husband... I will learn from President Ezaki."

With tears welling in her eyes, Riko secretly made a resolution: from now on, whenever she encounters something she doesn't understand, she must ask her husband. Even if she gets scolded, she should still ask; it's better than making a mistake...

"Studying is one thing, but don't blindly obey her; you can only listen to your husband."

Xiuming was a little worried; it seemed she had misunderstood. She took her cold little hand and explained again, "You are more important than her. I say this to her face too, because you are obedient, and she is not."

That female club president, who was involved in organized crime, always wanted to take the lead and maliciously pushed people down, not giving them a chance.

"I will definitely listen to my husband..." Riko said, slowly resting her head on Hideaki's chest. Because she was worried that Hideaki would push her away, she was very careful and slow, and her eyelashes trembled as she looked up.

After all, she had just done something wrong today and was criticized by her husband, who also praised Jiang Qi. She didn't know if her husband would still like her.

“Don’t be coy about this,” Xiuming said, opening his arms wide. “Hurry up and hug me, don’t make me angry.”

Riko, her eyes brimming with tears, tilted her head back, her trembling pink lips pursed, and buried her face in Hideaki's arms, sobbing, "Honey, thank you, I'm so sorry... I'll never discuss things with others casually again, I'll listen to you... If you're not here, I'll go find Ezaki..."

Xiuming wasn't angry about the lack of consultation, since everyone needs to consult with someone when they're unsure of what to do.

It's just that Riko chose the wrong people, there's nothing she can do about it, she only has those two oddballs around her.

What angered Hideaki was that Chieko, taking advantage of her favoritism towards Riko, blindly flattered her.

How could Riko, who had no work experience, possibly navigate such a situation, especially since she was naturally very trusting?

Eri is a gloomy, nerdy girl who always thinks she knows her own personality, and she is smug, self-righteous, lawless, and doesn't know her own place in the world.

Fortunately, it was discovered in time.

If Miyamoto Corporation is established, and office buildings for multiple departments are built, and hundreds or thousands of employees are managed, what would happen if a mess were to occur?

Given Riko's personality, she would probably commit suicide out of guilt after realizing what was happening so late.

Chieko is easy to educate now; she understands all about human relationships and social etiquette. However, the pressures of life have bent her spine, making her cautious in everything she does, afraid of making mistakes and being expelled.

As for Eri, she should go back to her rented room and go back to drawing her own comics!

"Stop crying, or I'll get angry." Hideaki grabbed Riko by the back of her green dress and pulled her out of his arms. "Are you and Eri really just best friends?"

“It’s not anymore, my husband wants to fire her, it’s not anymore…” Riko shook her head repeatedly.

That means it used to be.

If Riko fires Eri, it will indeed hone Riko's skills, allowing her to cut off a few more close friends and develop into a ruthless and iron-fisted woman.

But Eri is very cunning. If she plays the victim to the extreme, Riko will probably be in a dilemma, resulting in a situation where she "cuts off Eri in tears" and won't be able to recover for several days.

Then we need to let Chieko share the burden with her and, incidentally, teach Chieko a lesson.

"We'll see how you perform then, but you still need to strictly follow the rules: a three-day probationary period, including the five new ones who come tomorrow. Those with poor work performance will also be dismissed. You'll be paid for the days you've worked, and the remaining advance salary will be recovered. If anyone refuses to return their salary, we'll threaten to call Ezaki."

"Okay, okay..."

Riko took out a notebook from the cashier's drawer and wrote it down neatly.

Seeing how diligently she was taking notes, Xiuming nodded to himself and couldn't help but continue talking.

"These next few days, try to compile an 'Operations Manual,' the more detailed the better. Include how employees greet each other, how to work at the checkout, their clothing, hairstyles, makeup, how to display merchandise, how to handle customer complaints... Write down everything you can think of. If you have time, go to other supermarkets, restaurants, or other service establishments to conduct research, observe their service models, and learn from them to optimize your manual... This manual will be needed for future employee training..."

Standardization is the soul of a chain store. Success does not depend on a genius store manager, but on a streamlined system that any ordinary person can use to operate a store well by following the manual.

"Can I do this well?" Riko's hand holding the pen trembled slightly, her eyes filled with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

"Just keep writing, don't be afraid of making mistakes, I'll check it later... Also, ask about the rental prices of the two ground-floor shops next door later... The store needs an upgrade..."

As Hideaki explained to Riko what she needed to do over the next few days, Chieko stood anxiously at the door of the bedroom next to the massage room.

"Eri-chan, please come out quickly, please don't make things difficult for me, okay?"

Chieko pounded on the door and pleaded softly, afraid that Hideaki outside would hear her.

Her hands and feet are still trembling.

When Hideaki said, "You're teaching me how to do things," Chieko's mind went blank.

I can't recall at all what tone he used back then.

She had almost forgotten the way Xiuming leaned over and listened intently, and how he frowned and seemed to be staring at the ground. But the silence of those ten seconds or so was still fresh in her memory. The suffocating feeling that almost made her fall into an abyss and penetrated her soul made it hard for her to breathe.

At that moment, her mind flashed through images like a slideshow: her father and mother whom she needed to support, her ex-husband's father and mother, and the face of her one-year-old daughter.

She thought she was finished, that she was going to be fired... and that she would have no source of income in the future.

The thought of being abandoned by Xiuming again... never seeing him again, even brought back flashes of her childhood, of running under the setting sun amidst the foxtail grass...

When Xiuming finally spoke, driven by a desperate survival instinct, she rushed into the bedroom, grabbed Eri's arm, and tried to drag her out.

But she forgot her frail body and was freed by Eri, who pushed her out of the room and locked her in.

"Eri-chan, I'm really going to die, Eri-chan, please... Hideaki-kun will fire me... he really will fire me..."

Eri opened the door a crack, her eyes red, and then slipped a bank card into the door. "This is his money. I returned it to him; the PIN is on here. If I go over there now, he'll definitely kick me out. I'm not going..."

Chieko quickly pried open the door and said, "Don't you know Hideaki-kun very well? Why did you come up with such a terrible idea in the first place?"

Chieko wished she could bite Eri's head off.

"There's always room for error! I thought he just liked pretty women. Those five women weren't bad either, and they were even sent by Ezaki..."

"And what about you? You should know you can't get the job! I bet it's because you had Mrs. Riko process your onboarding that Mr. Hideaki is angry. I'm doomed too. Mr. Hideaki seems quite unhappy that I didn't remind Mrs. Riko."

"Then why didn't you remind me? If you had reminded me earlier, Riko might not have listened to me, and I wouldn't have to live in such fear."

"Is it my fault? I'm just a lowly employee. Who would I dare offend, you or Mrs. Riko?"

"It's understandable that you don't dare to offend Riko, but you don't need to be afraid of me either!"

"You're always so lazy and arrogant, and Mrs. Riko doesn't care about you. Mr. Hideaki even turns a blind eye. I thought you were really something!"

"Huh?" Eri was taken aback. "Is this how I usually am?"

"What do you think?" Chieko clenched her fists, her hands trembling.

"Why didn't you remind me?" Eri muttered to herself, her expression blank. "I... I think I was blinded by love. In my stories, women like that never have a good ending..."

"You're blaming me again... Are you going to leave or not? Please, let me live, okay? Even if you leave here, you can still make money drawing comics. Isn't your comic already in the filming stage? It'll be released soon in the late-night slot, you should get royalties, right? I can't leave here, I'll die, I really will die..."

"Is it too late for me to apologize to him now?"

"There's still time, there's still time, come out with me quickly..." Chieko was secretly delighted, grabbed Eri's arm, and pulled her out of the room.

Just as Chieko pulled Eri to the cashier, Hideaki finished explaining things to Riko.

Chieko quickly handed over the bank card and whispered, "President Yamanaka, this is Eri's..."

“I understand,” Hideaki handed the bank card to Riko, got up and walked towards the massage room. “I’ll let you off this time, but you won’t be so lucky next time. Chieko, come here, I want to talk to you.”

If I don't discuss the issues with them, Eri will be the chicken.

Chapter 121 Developing Arcade Games

Xiuming pushed open the massage room door and glanced back casually as he went in.

Eri, beaming with delight, pulled Riko aside to chat. Riko kept her head down and ignored her, but Eri persisted like a leech.

Look at her, so clueless. If we don't get rid of her, she'll definitely cause more trouble.

The massage room, even without the thick burgundy curtains drawn, was still bright and airy.

It was around 6 p.m., and it wasn't dark yet.

The north and east sides of the room are transparent glass curtain walls. Outside, hordes of office workers, like ants, swarm out of the revolving glass doors of the financial building, flowing in a dense mass toward the nearest train platform.

Hideaki sat on the beige tatami mat and placed the business contract drawn up by Ezaki on the low table in front of him.

Chieko stood at the door with her head down, her hands folded in front of her, her fingers constantly fidgeting with the white apron she wore, looking uneasy.

"Close the door." Xiuming gestured to the seat opposite the low table and said, "Come and sit down."

"Okay...okay."

Chieko nodded, turned her back, gently closed the door, and took the opportunity to quietly unbutton two buttons on her collar.

Then, stealing glances at Xiuming's expressionless face, she slowly moved to the opposite side of Xiuming, and as she slowly knelt down, she quietly lifted the hem of her green skirt a little.

After kneeling down, the white apron lay flat on her legs, but from the side, it revealed her entire fair, long leg, all the way to the top of her thigh.

She was still wearing the white striped underwear that Esaki had given to Riko.

"What are you doing?" Xiuming frowned. "Are you going to take a dump? Hurry up and straighten your skirt!"

"I'm sorry..." Chieko's oval face flushed red. She hurriedly got up, put down her skirt, and then knelt down on the ground in a prostrate position. "I... I really don't know how to make up for my mistake."

“Your approach is incredibly stupid,” Xiuming said irritably. “It makes me think you’re planning to freeload off me one last time before you leave. My already waning impression of you will only worsen further.”

Perhaps this is a common perception held by most women in a weak position since the thousands of years of patriarchal society: the instinctive thought of exchanging their bodies for something else.