Chapter 549

Because Bangeng was imprisoned, Shazhu's thoughts were hardly on Bai Xu; he still learned some destined ending details from You Fengxia.

Now Bai Xu looks just like a pavilion in the air.

The booming customer flow turned Bai Xu into the emperor's new clothes.

Those unaware of the inside story all spoke confidently of Bai Xu's merits, saying it would lead the Capital City's catering industry; those who knew the inside story, however, were worried about Bai Xu's future.

When the new restroom opened, people kept praising it, saying the air was fresh.

Moreover, the Bai Xu restaurant, which has been causing a stir lately, drew many people who came specially to support this Bai Xu that they either praised or cursed.

The throng of people naturally created a bustling scene for Bai Xu, but the IOUs customers wrote when settling bills became sharp weapons that punctured the emperor's new clothes.

Less.

Then again, it's fine.

More.

It's truly a thunderbolt.

At month-end accounting, the countless IOUs finally made Bai Xu like a lit explosive package, instantly blowing up everything, including those who plucked peaches.

The representative sent by the leadership looked expressionlessly at the pile of IOUs before him, then slowly turned his gaze to Factory Director Yang.

A grievance has a source.

A debt has an owner.

Bai Xu is affiliated with Yagangchang; its performance, good or bad, naturally requires asking Factory Director Yang, the head of Yagangchang.

Factory Director Yang, is this how Yagangchang explains itself to the leadership?

Clearly, it's the rival who is suffering.

But Deputy Factory Director Li, who is Factory Director Yang's rival, felt none of the spring-breeze ease; instead, a strong sense of dread spread over him.

What happens to Bai Xu is none of Deputy Factory Director Li's concern, but he must bear responsibility for Bai Xu's inaction.

A month ago, Shazhu was clearly in full charge, but because of some ideas of Deputy Factory Director Li, Bai Xu ultimately ended up under Huang Shiren's responsibility.

The pile of IOUs before them is Huang Shiren's answer; along with him, the person who recommended Huang Shiren will also be implicated.

Before I came, the leadership said this: Bai Xu is the pioneer feeling its way across the river for the Capital City's catering industry and even the national catering trade, representing the future of millions, even tens of millions, of catering workers.

Deputy Factory Director Li's face turned ashen.

These words are indeed weighty.

He suddenly regretted it, regretted vying with Factory Director Yang for power and profit, and also understood why Factory Director Yang had so readily handed over Bai Xu earlier.

It seemed he had resolved that he would meet such an outcome.

Old ginger is still spicy.

Been schemed against.

Secretary Xu, regarding Bai Xu's current situation, we do not deny it; a mistake is a mistake, we have let down the leadership's expectations… Please give us a punishment, leadership, and also give us some time; we will surely manage Bai Xu well.

Factory Director Yang. Secretary Xu pointed at the pile of IOUs before him, "I will truthfully report to the leadership; you must give me the specific numbers."

Section Chief Zhao.

Factory Director Yang greeted a middle-aged woman.

The woman was the head of Yagangchang's finance section.

She had been specially summoned by Factory Director Yang today to tally Bai Xu's marketing income for the past month.

Just now, while Factory Director Yang was reporting to Secretary Xu, the woman had already compiled Bai Xu's revenue data for this month; she placed the summary table she had prepared in front of Secretary Xu.

The handwriting was clear.

The logic was traceable.

Everyone present could see it clearly.

Based on the numbers given in the accounts, this month Bai Xu restaurant was profitable, with considerable profit.

The main hall has thirty-five tables, the second floor fifteen private rooms; on average each table generates two yuan of pure profit per day, one hundred yuan a day, three thousand yuan a month.

The problem is that these three thousand yuan are merely figures on the accounts, not actual cash in hand.

This is the crux of the problem.

Of the three thousand yuan, over two thousand six hundred are IOUs, signed by the heads of major factories and institutions in the Capital City, big and small.

To turn them into cash, one must take these documents and go door to door to demand payment.

Yagangchang owes money to others; others owe money to Yagangchang's subsidiary three-industry Bai Xu; or they owe money to Yagangchang's suppliers.

You can ask for money, but you must let me recover the funds.

The IOU problem is a major difficulty nowadays: A owes B money, B owes C debt, D is C's creditor while also owing A money.

This money is hard to recover; it's tantamount to throwing it into water.

In other words.

Bai Xu toiled for a month; the actual income from its book profit is over three hundred yuan, not even reaching three hundred fifty.

Bai Xu now has fifteen employees in total: seven waitstaff, four on the first floor and three on the second, with an average wage of twenty yuan, totaling one hundred forty yuan; You Fengxia is Bai Xu's manager, earning forty yuan a month; three kitchen chefs who cook, their combined monthly wage is two hundred yuan; four kitchen helpers and miscellaneous workers, together totaling one hundred yuan.

As for personnel expenses, they amount to 480 yuan; the actual income of 325 yuan minus 480 yuan in personnel costs results in a loss of 155 yuan.

Workers' wages must be paid; Yagangchang must make up this 155 yuan.

The remainder is water, electricity and material losses, which together amount to roughly seven or eight thousand yuan.

Because of the IOU issue, these expenses also have to go through Yagangchang's accounts.

The atmosphere indoors.

Because of these numbers on the accounts, things suddenly became very eerie; many people dared not even breathe, everyone stared wide‑eyed at the bill before them, truly not expecting that Bai Xu, after a month of booming business, would lose over ten thousand yuan if the IOUs were excluded.

Manager Huang.

Factory Director Yang. Huang Shiren no longer had the poise he had when he first took over Bai Xu; he now looked like Yang Bailao facing Huang Shiren, nodding and bowing as he looked at Factory Director Yang with a fawning expression, saying, "Please speak."

This is the answer you gave Yagangchang after being in charge of Bai Xu for a month? A big pile of IOUs—how am I supposed to explain this to the leadership? You have let down Deputy Factory Director Li, who recommended you and put you in charge of Bai Xu.

Factory Director Yang, these IOUs are also money, it's not like our restaurant alone got stuck with IOUs—many eateries have run into this; I've heard there are people who specialize in extending credit, they don't even sign the slips, but at least they acknowledge the debt.

According to your view, you're not only not wrong, you've actually done well?

Factory Director Yang's tone.

It became noticeably heavier, unnaturally so.

There was no intention to target Deputy Factory Director Li.

Once the Bai Xu issue came up, Factory Director Yang didn't even need to single anyone out—naturally someone would cause trouble for Deputy Factory Director Li.

"Factory Director Yang, I'm not saying I've done well either, but this matter can't really be blamed solely on me. Customers come to eat, after they finish they say they're some section chief of some factory, that Yagangchang owes our factory money, I sign a slip—if not, then the unit that owes Yagangchang money owes them, they insist on signing the slip; you can't just say no, can you?"

"Manager Huang, there's something I need to remind you of: although Bai Xu is attached to Yagangchang as a subsidiary side business, it operates on its own profit and loss."

Huang Shiren's complexion.

It changed drastically in an instant.

He's no fool; he naturally knows what those four words "self-financing, profit and loss responsibility" mean.

Previously Huang Shiren still held the idea of letting Yagangchang foot the bill—regardless of profit or loss, as long as he handed over the IOUs to Yagangchang's finance department, he considered the task done; moreover, according to the figures, he had even made a profit of three thousand for Yagangchang, but he hadn't expected that the arrangement was one of self-financing.

That instantly threw Huang Shiren's plans into disarray.

Leaving other matters aside.

At the very least, he has to cover the wages of Bai Xu's fifteen staff; the money Bai Xu actually received this month is nowhere near enough to pay their salaries, unless he offsets it with the IOUs.

Huang Shiren didn't dare either.

"Factory Director Yang, don't joke with me."

"You can look at the agreement."

Seeing that Factory Director Yang's expression didn't look feigned, Huang Shiren stopped doubting; he noticed the Bai Xu staff looking at him, he squeezed out a bitter smile, gazing at the tables and chairs, an idea struck him—if worse comes to worst, he could sell these things; whether Bai Xu could stay open, how it would operate, those questions were no longer his concern—he just wanted to get through the immediate crisis.

Factory Director Yang saw through Huang Shiren's thought and added a remark.

"According to the agreement between Yagangchang and Bai Xu, as a pilot point, Yagangchang provided Bai Xu with some extra conveniences, waiving one year's rent and also supplying some tables and chairs."

"Factory Director Yang, you need to give me a way out."

"Simple—take these IOUs and go collect money; whenever you get it back, that's when you'll have a way out."

Huang Shiren certainly didn't dare to pick up that thread from Factory Director Yang.

Triangular debt, IOU debt.

Not to mention just Huang Shiren himself—even if a hundred Huang Shirens were bound together, they probably still couldn't resolve it.

"If others owe me money and won't pay, why should I pay you? If you want me to pay you, you have to get others to pay me first. As soon as someone settles my account, I'll settle yours."

Most of those who sign IOUs or have triangular debt think that way, and that's how they act.

This is an unsolvable problem; many factories are on the brink of bankruptcy because of triangular debt.

Bai Xu seems to have no need to continue operating.

After seeing Secretary Xu off, Factory Director Yang and the others held a brief meeting, approved the proposal to temporarily shut down Bai Xu—better than receiving a big pile of useless IOUs; opening for a day would just mean losing a day.

This is all Yagangchang's money.

The day Shazhu dropped the ball, Factory Director Yang had already anticipated this scene, had made plans with Shazhu, and the current shutdown is also meant to pave the way for a better reopening.

Only back then, Shazhu was in charge, and no one would come to reap the benefits.

……

Ershitang

Shazhu, busy at work.

He heard Liu Lan boasting.

"Shazhu, something big has happened, something really big."

He hadn't even entered the door yet.

The hurried, frantic voice rushed in and slipped into people's ears ahead of him.

"What big thing?" Shazhu replied without looking up, "Could it be that Bai Xu has been shut down?"

Liu Lan froze on the spot.

The gaze falling on Shazhu had a hint of amusement.

How could she spread the news now?

"Look at you—could it be that I guessed right?"

"Shazhu, it's boring—if I guessed right, I guessed right, why do you look like that?"

"Sister Lan, has Bai Xu really been closed?"

Thus: Thus: Mahua's voice.

With a hint of surprise.

In the whole Ershitang, aside from Liu Lan, the only one hoping Bai Xu would fare poorly was Thus: Thus: Mahua.

"It's really been closed."

"What's going on?"

"Today Factory Director Yang and his group went to Bai Xu to settle accounts, and along with them was some leader's secretary; if they hadn't tallied, it would've been fine, but once they did, a major issue came up."

"Could it be that they issued IOUs?"

"Indeed, Factory Director Yang, you guessed right—Bai Xu shows a profit on paper, but it's just a pile of IOUs and triangular debt; the actual cash received is only two or three hundred, I hear not even enough to pay the staff wages; that secretary representing the leader was very displeased, saying you've let down the trust of higher leadership, Factory Director Yang's face looked grim, and Deputy Factory Director Li wasn't happy either."

"Deputy Factory Director Li being unhappy is entirely his own fault—if he hadn't meddled, Bai Xu wouldn't have ended up like this. Liu Lan, a big stack of IOUs—how did you handle them?"

"Just close it—what else can we do? Open for a day, collect a day's worth of IOUs."

"That's right."

"Shazhu, can we possibly go back to Bai Xu?" Liu Lan, taking advantage of the moment when nobody was paying attention, quietly asked Shazhu.

Let's see how it goes.

What virtue.

……

Inside the Publicity Section's loudspeaker.

Yu Haitang's voice sounded.

It was the Yagangchang leadership's response to the Bai Xu incident.

Huang Shirén bears the main responsibility; he is no longer in charge of the Bai Xu restaurant, returns to his original unit, and Yagangchang will still pursue his follow‑up responsibility.

Deputy Factory Director Li, because he recommended Huang Shirén, bears secondary responsibility for the Bai Xu incident; he will not hold any position at Yagangchang and will soon leave Yagangchang.

Factory Director Yang, due to inadequate supervision, received a warning.

Also announced: Ershitang's head chef, Master He Yuzhu, will again take charge of the Bai Xu restaurant; Yagangchang and other departments have no authority to interfere in Bai Xu's affairs.

It was merely an ordinary broadcast notice.

It stirred up Yagangchang.

The Yagangchang workers, who had just enjoyed a month of good days, were unhappy; whoever let Shazhu's cooking be fragrant, after eating Shazhu's food, eating other chefs' food felt like chewing a rag.

Unhappy as they were, they could do nothing but congratulate Shazhu on his reinstatement.

Those in Ershitang were again troubled; Shazhu's return made Ershitang the top cafeteria at Yagangchang again, and his departure would likely leave it at the bottom.

Some assistant cooks and laborers instantly turned their dissatisfied gazes toward the Ershitang squad leader.

As for that.

The Ershitang squad leader could do nothing either.

The cooking trade lives by skill; since his culinary ability is far inferior to Shazhu's, he can only endure his colleagues' sideways glances.

Liu Lan and Thus: Thus: Mahua, however, were extremely excited; after being cooped up in Ershitang for a month, they were almost going crazy, but now they can finally follow Shazhu outside to show off their martial arts.

Qin Huairu of the Cleaning Section, who was directing people to clean the factory area's hygiene, was now feeling a mix of emotions; the newly arrived Deputy Factory Director Li had actually packed up and left.

This was not good news for Qin Huairu.