Chapter 355: Personnel Selection

Li Baoguo rolled his eyes, ignored Zhang Ping'an, and opened the car door to sit inside.

Five minutes later, the office of Chen Guowei, Director of the Street Office.

"Old Li, why did you come over? And who is this?"

"Old Chen, this is my niece's husband, Zhang Ping'an. He wants to open a restaurant at that Cannonball Pit spot. What procedures do you think are needed?"

"Are you sure about that place?" Chen Guowei took the cigarette Li Baoguo tossed over, and like Li Baoguo, he looked at him with a strange expression.

"Yes, sorry to trouble you, Uncle Chen."

"Alright, but land cannot be bought or sold right now; you can only get usage rights. If it were private, you could buy it in the form of a mortgage, but as it stands now..."

"Old Chen, is there no other way?"

"Hmm... not for the moment."

"Uncle Chen, if I donate a sum of money to your Street Office, could the Street Office award me the land as a reward for my outstanding contribution?"

"This..."

Chen Guowei quickly thought about the feasibility of this plan. If he received a donation for the street, he could use it to repair the residences of the widowed elderly in the street;

or select abandoned Siheyuan to renovate and distribute to those in need, which would reduce the immense pressure on the street to provide housing, and he might even be able to advance his career.

"It's possible, but the amount certainly won't be small. It would have to be at least fifty thousand to start. How much do you intend to donate?"

"Then one hundred thousand."

"How, how much?"

"One must make some contribution to the street, after all."

Zhang Ping'an had estimated it before; that ruin was at least seven or eight mu of land. One hundred thousand was not a loss, and it would make the street willingly issue a certificate of donation.

"Ping'an, don't be impulsive."

"It's fine, Uncle Li. I can't make things difficult for Uncle Chen."

"Ah, haha, Ping'an, you've given your Uncle Chen a surprise! Alright, I'll handle this for you immediately. Old Li, I'll treat you to a meal another day."

Chen Guowei had felt that five thousand was a bit much when he blurted it out, but he hadn't expected the other party to double it. He truly couldn't think of any reason to refuse.

Now, not only could he repair houses, but he could also renovate some abandoned Siheyuan. He was grabbing both ends of the stick, and his transfer to work in the district was as good as set in stone.

"Uncle Chen, then I'll bring the money to you tomorrow."

"Good, good, good."

After the two of them left the Street Office, Li Baoguo couldn't help but say,

"Ping'an, you were too impulsive. Fifty thousand would have been enough. You just threw away..."

"Uncle Li, since we are asking for favors, it's better to be generous than stingy. Besides, there isn't much difference to me between fifty thousand and one hundred thousand."

"And I'm not close with Chen Guowei. Even if he's willing to help, it's for your sake. I don't want you to owe him a favor; it's better to have him owe you one instead."

"You... you're just like Huaide, a total upstart."

"Hehe, Uncle Li, just tell me, aren't those fifty motorcycles I got you great?"

"Great my foot. Fifty? I only got five in my hands; the rest were all carved up by the higher-ups."

"..."

Zhang Ping'an really hadn't known this, but he didn't find it strange either. After all, fifty was not a small number; it was still too many for a single Sub-bureau.

"Should we donate a bit more then?"

"Forget it. Even if I donate, I won't get them. And you lot had better keep a low profile."

"Alright, I understand."

After dropping Li Baoguo back at the Sub-bureau, the sky had darkened, and Zhang Ping'an returned directly to the Siheyuan.

The next morning, Zhang Ping'an carried two large parcels to the Street Office. Since the largest denomination was still ten yuan, one hundred thousand yuan in two large parcels wasn't much.

"Uncle Chen."

"Ping'an is here. Sit down quickly. Give me your identification information, and I'll process this for you right now. Accountant, hurry up and count this into the accounts."

"Alright."

"Very well, Director."

The Accountant, accompanied by two young men, took the parcels from Zhang Ping'an's hands and began counting on the spot.

This one hundred thousand still had a huge impact on them; after all, the Street Office was a "clear-water yamen" (a poor department), and they had never seen so much money.

"Ahem, Old Cao, why are you spacing out? Hurry up and count."

"Oh, oh, alright."

Chen Guowei and Zhang Ping'an chatted idly. The speed at which he processed the land deed for Zhang Ping'an wasn't fast, and there was a large red certificate of merit nearby, just waiting to be stamped.

"Director, counted it three times, it's correct."

"Mm, good. Hurry and record it. Ping'an, this is your land deed, and the certificate of merit."

"Good, thank you, Uncle Chen."

"Hey, this time it's Uncle Chen thanking you. You helped me solve a huge problem. You don't know, I've been..."

"Ahem, getting off track. Ping'an, come find Uncle Chen if you have anything in the future; I'll definitely get it done for you."

"Alright, then I'll thank you in advance, Uncle Chen."

"Hahaha, easily done."

Leaving the Street Office, Zhang Ping'an let out a long sigh of relief. It was finally done; now he could start cleaning up.

Jia Family Courtyard

"Donglai, I will open a restaurant after the New Year. You go over and be the manager then. Bang Geng, you go over too. Spend this time before the New Year reading more books on management."

"And Jiabei, Xiangcao, if you are willing to learn accounting, I will ask Teacher Yan to find time to teach you."

They were at least junior high graduates, and Donglai and Jiabei were even high school graduates; being a manager or such was more than enough for them.

"Very well, Uncle (Great-Uncle)."

"Mm, Huairu, you go too when the time comes, and be responsible for the head waiter."

"Uncle, I don't understand anything at all."

"It's fine, in a couple of days I'll give you a waiter training manual, you read it carefully and you'll understand."

"Alright, don't forget to study during this time; I will have Weidong send over some management books, you all read them carefully."

Zhang Ping'an went to Yan Bugui's house again; at over sixty years old, it is the prime age for striving, how could one go fishing every day?

"Teacher Yan, I have to ask you to come out of retirement again."

"I knew that whenever you brat show up, it's never for anything good."

"It's paid."

"Yo, no wonder the magpies in the tree at home were chirping this morning; it turns out there really is a happy event."

"..."

Yan Jiecheng awkwardly covered his forehead with his hand; Jiefang and Jiekuang were much the same.

"Zhang Shu, um, I heard from my master that the restaurant..."

"What? You want to dive into business too?"

"Mm-hmm," Yan Jiecheng nodded like a chick pecking at rice; he had long wanted to find Zhang Ping'an, but never had the chance, and today he finally caught him.

"Mm... fine. By the way, Liu Lan, do you want to join too?"

Originally five mu of land, now it's at least seven; when the time comes, Shazhu and his fellow apprentices probably won't be able to keep up, so letting Jiecheng join is just right.

Moreover, the restaurant will definitely have pots, bowls, plates, and basins that need washing, so Liu Lan would be perfect as a leader.

"Ah? Me? Zhang Shu, I don't know how to do anything except wash vegetables."

"Washing vegetables is exactly what I need; you've been in the back kitchen for many years, so you must be familiar with this routine; you'll be responsible for all the washing and cleaning for the entire restaurant."

"This... alright." She wasn't confident about other things, but she was familiar with this.

"That's settled, this is all for after the New Year; you all need to prepare for your work handovers at the Rolling Mill in advance."

"Very well, Zhang Shu."

At Yi Zhonghai's house.

"Dongzi, you and Jiabei work together and study accounting well with Teacher Yan; when the time comes, Uncle's purse will be handed over to you."

"No problem, Uncle, I will definitely study hard."

"Mm."

At He Daqing's house.

"Zhuzi, the plan has to change; it's gone from five mu to seven mu now. How many people have you found for your back kitchen?"

"Uh, including my fellow apprentices, there are fourteen of us in total, and they all have level four skills; plus thirty-five prep cooks, and my two apprentices."

"That's completely insufficient; Jiecheng just asked to join, and I agreed, but the manpower is still a bit tight."