Chapter 109: I Choose You—Bushes
Perhaps it was something he ate for breakfast. In the two hours after his shift started, Xu Dongliang had already made five trips to the toilet!
Just when it finally settled down and he thought he was in the clear, his stomach let out another loud GURGLE.
’Here we go again!’
Xu Dongliang dropped his tools, clutched his stomach, and ran toward the makeshift toilet on the construction site.
To his dismay, the toilet was occupied!
’No way! I can’t hold it in!’
Glancing around frantically, he spotted a large patch of tall grass behind the opposite building. It offered cover, and the leaves would have to do for wiping.
’Tall grass—I choose you!’
Xu Dongliang bolted into the patch of grass and finally found relief. Just as he was about to pluck a few leaves to wipe, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching.
’Shit! It’s too late to run. They’ll definitely spot me if I stand up now. Besides, I haven’t even wiped yet!’
Slowing his breathing, Xu Dongliang froze like a statue, hiding motionless in the grass.
The footsteps stopped a short distance away. Peeking through a gap in the blades, Xu Dongliang saw a pair of gleaming leather shoes and the cuffs of black suit trousers. Definitely not a construction worker.
The man stood there for a while before he finally spoke.
"Hey, Old Zheng, it’s Old Qi. Yeah, I’m calling about something."
"Yeah, yeah, that’s what I was about to tell you." Even though no one was around, Old Qi habitually lowered his voice. "A couple days ago, I heard the higher-ups held a meeting about it."
"No, no... sigh. I heard they’re planning to cancel the bidding process altogether."
"It wasn’t an inside deal. The executives decided to give the workers meal subsidies directly. Sigh... It’s not my call, I just have to follow regulations. So I’m guessing it’s a no-go this time."
"As for the Zijing Garden construction site... well, how do I put this? It’s not confirmed, but you should probably prepare yourself. It’s not looking good."
"But hey, it’s not all bad news. You can try to win them over on your own! The workers have been eating your food for so long, they’re used to it. You still have a great shot."
"..."
The rest of the conversation was just mutual consolation and complaints, which went in one of Xu Dongliang’s ears and out the other. His attention was completely fixated on one phrase: "give the workers meal subsidies."
’This news... is it legit?’
’True or not, I have to tell Anzi. If it’s real, he can prepare. The Zijing Garden site has five or six hundred workers, and Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant is the best and most affordable place around here.’
’If this news is true, Anzi is about to make a killing!’
The man in the leather shoes talked for a good five minutes before hanging up and walking away.
Xu Dongliang quickly plucked a few leaves for a hasty wipe-down. He then dragged his numb legs—a result of squatting for so long—back to the worksite.
The moment the clock struck eleven, marking the end of the shift, Xu Dongliang bolted like a horse breaking free of its reins and shot over to Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant.
He didn’t see Xu An at Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant, so he immediately headed over to Delicious Restaurant. And just as he suspected, there was Xu An, loading boxed meals into a small van.
"Anzi, I need to tell you something." Xu Dongliang strode forward and grabbed Xu An, who was in the middle of working. "I heard some news this morning. It seems like Xuguang Real Estate is going to cancel the boxed meal contract and just give the workers a meal subsidy instead!"
’How does Uncle Dongliang know about this?’ Xu An was secretly alarmed. ’Has the news already spread through the construction site?’
’If the news is already out, I’ve lost my early advantage. I’ll have to go head-to-head with the competition.’
But once Xu Dongliang explained how he’d gotten the information, Xu An relaxed. It was just a happy accident.
After hearing it from the man yesterday, Xu An had been seventy percent convinced. Now, with Uncle Dongliang confirming it, he was ninety percent sure.
’Time to make a move. I have to make a move!’
’Hire more staff!’
’Expand the restaurant!’
’Let’s do this!’
At two-thirty in the afternoon, Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant closed for the day. With the place mostly cleaned up, Xu An was ready to lock up and head home.
Suddenly, an electric scooter pulled up to the entrance. A man dismounted and began peering furtively into Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant. It was none other than the landlord of the vacant place next door.
He’d originally thought he could fleece the young punk from Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant for a hefty sum. After all, his was the only vacant storefront around.
’If that kid comes begging,’ he had thought, ’I suppose I could lower it a little. Say, to 2,888 yuan per month. Such a lucky number, with such wonderful connotations.’
But he never in his wildest dreams expected the perfectly fine Delicious Restaurant to suddenly close down, only for this young punk to take over the lease.
Then, for three days straight, only a single potential tenant came to view the property, and after looking, was never heard from again.
The landlord next door started to panic. The space had been vacant for half a month! At two thousand a month, that was a thousand yuan down the drain!
He’d lost a thousand yuan for nothing, and every additional day it sat empty meant more lost rent.
After turning it over in his mind, he finally decided that the kid from Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant was still his most likely tenant.
And so, after a whole morning of internal debate, he finally resolved to seek out Xu An.
"Uh... Is Boss Xu here?"
"Here!" Xu An replied instinctively before turning to see who had called. It was the landlord from next door. ’What’s he want with me?’
Though confused, he still walked to the entrance with a smile and greeted the landlord. "Boss, what can I do for you?"
"I just wanted to ask if Boss Xu is still looking to rent a space. Are you still considering my storefront?" The landlord’s expression was perfectly nonchalant, as if his previous attempt to gouge Xu An had never happened.
"Oh?" Xu An looked at the landlord with a faint, knowing smile. ’Well, if you’re going to play dumb, I might as well play along.’ "I wonder," he said aloud, "what’s the monthly rent? And what are the terms? How many months for the deposit, how many paid upfront?"
Xu An was just teasing him, but to his surprise, the landlord actually bowed his head and seemed to be seriously considering it.
A ridiculous thought popped into Xu An’s head. ’He isn’t actually going to rent the place to me, is he?’
"Two... two thousand a month!" the landlord said through clenched teeth after a moment of deliberation. "Three months’ deposit, three months’ rent paid upfront. Billed quarterly!"
For a second, Xu An thought he must have misheard.
How long had it been since their unpleasant last encounter? Not only had the man come to him, but he had also lowered the price on his own initiative.
If the landlord had offered this price last time, Xu An would have accepted on the spot. But things were different now!
’I’ve already leased Delicious Restaurant,’ Xu An thought. ’Its location might be slightly worse than his place, but for a prep kitchen, as long as it’s nearby, nothing else really matters.’
’Secondly, Delicious Restaurant came fully equipped. I bought all of it for just over three thousand yuan. The place next door has been completely stripped of its equipment. If I take it, I’ll have to outfit it with all new stuff.’
If the landlord had come to him yesterday, Xu An would have turned him down without a second thought.
But, as luck would have it, the landlord had shown up *after* he’d learned about Xuguang Real Estate’s plan to issue meal subsidies to the workers. At two thousand a month, it wasn’t completely out of the question.
’Still,’ Xu An mused, ’looking at how desperate the landlord seems, I bet I can push that price down even further.’
"Two thousand is still high," Xu An stated decisively. "Sixteen hundred. If you agree, we can sign the contract right now."
This time, it was the landlord’s turn to stare, his eyes wide with disbelief. He looked like he was about to ask, "Why don’t you just rob me instead?"
But his desperation to rent the place out made him swallow the words.
"Boss Xu, I’m not trying to be greedy. How about nineteen hundred a month? If that’s acceptable, we can sign the contract right now."
"Let’s both meet in the middle. Eighteen hundred a month. I can’t go any higher." Xu An gestured toward the construction site across the road. "You know as well as I do that business around here is tough. Any more on rent, and I’ll be operating at a loss."
The landlord glanced at the construction site, at Xu An, and then at the other nearby storefronts before finally relenting.
"Fine! Eighteen hundred!"
The two of them went to a nearby print shop to get the contract drawn up.
Since the landlord had a history of going back on his word, Xu An added a special clause to the contract: a lease term of two years at a monthly rent of 1,800 yuan, with a penalty of three times the security deposit for whichever party breaks the agreement.
The landlord, for his part, was worried that Xu An might decide business was too slow and break the lease after a couple of months, so he had no objections to the clause.
That’s right. This time, Xu An had no problem with the three-month security deposit.
’If the time comes and the landlord decides he’d rather break the contract to get the property back, he’ll have to pay me 16,200 yuan. Not a bad deal for me either.’
With the contract signed, the restaurant next door officially became Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant, Location #3.
「At the hotel.」
Nanny He watched as her nephew and his new wife completed their wedding ceremony. Her duties were finally done, and she could sit down, enjoy a nice meal, and chat.
As the conversation flowed, the topic drifted to everyone’s retirement lives.
Some people had incredibly vibrant retirements, traveling all over the country to see the sights and sample local delicacies.
Others were blessed with a house full of children and grandchildren, and spent their days looking after the little ones.
But most were like Nanny He. Their grandchildren were already in elementary school and didn’t need much looking after, leaving them with an abundance of free time.
"Sister He, what have you been busy with lately? You’re looking so much better, glowing even. And you’ve put on a little healthy weight."
"Oh, me?" Nanny He beamed, unconsciously touching her cheek. "I just found a nice, easy job. I only work two or three hours a day, and it even includes lunch. It’s a great way to earn a little pocket money and pass the time."
"Wow! You really know how to live, Sister He." The woman gave Nanny He a thumbs-up. "Which hotel is it? Are they still hiring? Do you think they’d take me?"
"It’s not a hotel," Nanny He said with a smile, waving her hands dismissively. "It’s just a small fast-food place. There are fewer than ten of us in total. They’re not looking for part-timers right now, only full-time staff."
The woman’s interest immediately died upon hearing it was a fast-food place. But then, as if a thought occurred to her, she asked, "Sister He, does that mean you eat your lunch there every day?"
Nanny He nodded, seeing nothing wrong with it.
Several others at the table looked astonished and chimed in with words of caution.
"Fast food is so unhealthy! Haven’t you seen the news? Gutter oil, expired ingredients, abysmal hygiene... eating it once or twice is one thing, but every day? You’ll destroy your body!"
"That’s right! Didn’t you see that story a few days ago? Some construction workers got food poisoning from a fast-food restaurant!"
"..."
Nanny He maintained a polite smile. No matter what they said, she just nodded along—"Yes, yes," "You’re right," "Absolutely"—with the air of someone completely impervious to their advice.
’You can say what you want. Whether I listen or not is my own business.’
After the banquet ended and Nanny He had departed, several of the women gathered to discuss the matter.
Their final decision: for the sake of Nanny He’s health, they had to make her see the error of her ways!