Chapter 10: Boss Jiang, You Don

When I applied, it was clearly written in black and white: “Financial Assistant.”

Lin Jingyi slammed the stack of courier boxes onto the desk, the tape ripping loudly, “Now what? I have to maintain the financial system, verify inventory data, and even record all the customer service voice messages—should Boss Jiang give me an Employee of the Year award?”

After hearing her complaints, Jiang Ming knew he was in the wrong and hurried forward to steady the towering pile of packages, grinning as he handed her a milk tea he’d bought on the way: “Calm down, calm down, my Director Lin—I’ll hire today! I’ll post notices on campus groups, love confession walls, and cafeteria bulletin boards!”

As for salary, Jiang Ming waited until she stood up, then stepped closer and made a gesture with his hand.

Let’s talk about the money privately!

There’s no choice—if this hardworking, low-salary, all-in-one assistant quits, where will he find another college student so skilled yet willing to work for only three thousand a month?

She handles finance, doubles as an assistant, manages logistics, and occasionally steps in as customer service, telling customers, "Dear, all items in our store are genuine products with guaranteed quality and quantity."

He agreed so readily to hiring because, besides the fact that S3 and LOL have grown increasingly popular thanks to Tencent’s promotions, increasing store traffic truly demands more staff—also, tasks like packing are extremely cheap among college students.

The hourly wage is basically ten to fifteen yuan, negligible compared to Lin Jingyi, who juggles multiple roles and is indispensable to the online store.

She complained, but as she looked at this slick younger brother, Lin Jingyi found herself smiling despite her anger.

After all, he really is capable—while his peers were struggling with the CET-4 and CET-6, Jiang Ming had already led their group of part-timers to transform the campus warehouse, once filled with broken desks and chairs, into an online store averaging over five hundred shipments per day through gaming video promotions.

Several junior freshmen beside her looked at him with respect; they admired and were curious about this legendary second-year senior from their School of Management.

With daily sales reaching tens of thousands, monthly revenue hits hundreds of thousands; after expenses, annual income still reaches the million-yuan mark.

A regular second-year college student, starting from scratch with only minimal school funding, earning a million a year… his talent was unmistakable—something you couldn’t envy.

“I’m not joking—our daily order volume keeps rising; we simply can’t handle it with this few people.”

She slapped the inventory sheet onto the desk, “Also, customer service shifts must be split into morning, afternoon, and evening; the warehouse team needs two boys to carry goods. Most importantly…”—her pen jabbed hard at the skyrocketing sales curve—“if we don’t expand the warehouse tomorrow, you and I will be packing orders out in the playground!”

“Boss Jiang, you don’t want your online store shipping orders out in the open air, do you?”

Cough cough, Japanese senior, please tone down the drama.

Jiang Ming nodded repeatedly, jotting down every point, then thanked her: “Thanks, Senior, I’m here precisely to handle all these issues at once.”

“Talk is cheap—don’t just draw big pies just because you’re young,” Lin Jingyi shot him a look, “Our friendship is fine, but I’ll fight for what I deserve—don’t think you can get free meals.”

“Haha, of course not.”

…

He agreed, but aside from raising wages, all other improvements to the store’s structure must proceed step by step.

College entrepreneurship has advantages and disadvantages—the advantage is that the school gave him startup funding and two huge basement rooms as warehouse space; the original storefront was merely a display spot, placed there so faculty could check on him anytime and ensure he wasn’t selling weird, school-damaging goods under Jinling University’s name.

Snacks, gaming peripherals, clothes—fine. But if he started selling some obscure specialty from Lianyungang Guanyun, the dean would never live it down.

The problem is this: the university’s support varies, and departmental resources can’t be unlimited. Once the two warehouses are full, should he move the store off campus, or apply for more space from the school?

And what about staff?

After all, working adults aren’t college students—their salary demands…

Well, Jiang Ming admitted it—he simply couldn’t bring himself to let go of these hardworking, cheap, eager-to-be-exploited classmates from his own university.

“I hope this business plan, ‘Operation of E-Sports Clubs Under the Emerging E-Sports Industry,’ will convince my advisor.”

He hefted the thick manuscript in his hand.

Jiang Ming felt uncertain—if he were at an ordinary university, or even a lower-tier second-tier school in a small city, convincing school leaders to expand his entrepreneurial support would be no problem at all; for a typical second-tier school, a student who built a million-yuan “company” in his second year is a dream come true.

But this is Jinling—though it doesn’t rival Beijing or Shanghai, its cultural depth, national priority, and economic strength are equally formidable; Jinling University, as its flagship institution, sees his million-yuan online store as little more than a trivial hobby.

But if he could tie it to an emerging industry poised to grow into a billion-yuan sector, the significance would be entirely different.

Economics is secondary—what better keyword could attract school leaders than demonstrating visionary support for an industry on the rise?

For the team’s future development, Jiang Ming already had a plan—he wasn’t coming to ask the school for money.

What he wanted was the Jinling University name—a shield that would greatly aid him when applying to join the LPL as an e-sports club.

Having someone behind you is completely different from having no one at all.

The devil is easy to deal with; it’s the minor officials who are hard to handle. As an ordinary person, he’d rather cling tightly to his alma mater’s apron strings.

What bad intentions could Jiang Ming possibly have? He just wanted to help the school improve its employment rate.

He wanted to earn the title of “Outstanding Graduate of Jinling University” for himself, and give his advisor the title of “Exemplary Mentor to an Entrepreneur.”

Oh, and incidentally, gift the university a new title: “Pilot Base for Research and Innovation in a New Field.”

Once he saw it clearly, Jiang Ming quickened his pace, carrying the tea leaves he’d picked up on the way, heading toward his advisor’s office.

“Knock knock!”

“Come in!”

After two knocks, the middle-aged man at the desk lifted his eyes and smiled faintly as he called out.