132: Wishing well coins are yours!
Chen Kai just walked into the visitor center, asked about the cleaner recruitment at the front desk, and was told to go to the manager's office.
He walked quickly toward the general manager's office, only to find a man already inside when he arrived at the door.
Chen Kai's heart tightened; the notice at the ticket booth said they were only hiring one person. If he didn't get the cleaning job, he wouldn't be able to Score a Bargain on that Dazhong Tongbao copper coin.
He couldn't exactly suffer a social death by tripping and falling into the water, could he?
By then, not only would he be socially dead, but his heart would be dead too.
He immediately knocked on the door and walked into the manager's office.
There was a man and a woman in the office. Behind the desk sat a slightly plump woman wearing black glasses, who was flipping through the job application files in her hand.
The man sitting in front of the woman looked a bit nervous. "Um, miss… what do you think of my qualifications?"
Suddenly seeing Chen Kai standing at the door, his heart also tightened.
Could this kid be here to steal the job? He looks presentable, so why would he be interested in a cleaning job?
The manager flipped through the resume in her hand and nodded in satisfaction. When she looked up and saw Chen Kai standing at the door, she asked suspiciously, "Who are you looking for?"
Seeing this, Chen Kai hurried forward two steps. "Manager, I'm here to apply for the cleaning position."
The manager gasped upon hearing this. "This Young Man is also applying for the cleaning position, and his resume is quite good. What kind of resume do you have?"
The Young Man who had submitted his resume panicked instantly; he really needed this job!
"Um… manager, I don't really have any weekend plans. A single day off is fine for me, I don't need two. I can come in to clean on Saturdays too."
Upon hearing this, the manager was stunned for a moment, her eyes lighting up as she wanted to make the decision to hire him right then and there!
Who doesn't love free labor? An unpaid day of overtime on the weekend—how could she let such a beast of burden go? It would be such a pity to let him slip away!
Working four extra days a month without asking for overtime pay—this beast of burden was just too good.
"Deal!"
Chen Kai immediately got anxious when he saw this. "Um, manager, why don't you take a look at my resume too?"
The manager was taken aback. "Go ahead then."
Chen Kai coughed twice. Since he was just going to grab the copper coin and run, he just needed to secure the job first.
"Um, manager, I'm allergic to seafood, and I have arithmophobia."
The manager was full of question marks. "Are you introducing your resume or are you on a blind date? You're allergic to seafood and you want to work at our Aquarium??"
"I'm only allergic to fish, so I can't slack off during working hours."
Chen Kai said calmly.
"Oh? Oh! Not bad, not bad. You look like a good employee. What do you mean by being allergic to numbers? Even though we're hiring a cleaner, we don't hire illiterate people."
Chen Kai smiled and slowly pulled up a chair from the side and sat down.
Before Chen Kai could explain what his arithmophobia meant, the man who had applied first immediately spoke up. "Manager, I only want 4,000 of the 5,000 salary. I can start working now!"
The manager was overjoyed upon hearing this. Someone volunteering for a pay cut?
You have to know that the cleaning work at their Aquarium is a huge project—cleaning coins from the Wishing Pool, diving into the ocean exhibit to scrub the glass.
And also picking up the trash that guests litter everywhere.
Working eight hours a day, at least six of which are spent on manual labor—5,000 is just the base salary.
"Alright, alright, alright, what a good employee. 4,000 a month, then that'll…"
Before the manager could finish, Chen Kai spoke up again. "I have a phobia of familiarity, so I'd like to request to work without a salary, just doing the labor."
"I just love the atmosphere of our Aquarium and enjoy the feeling of being with the little sea animals."
"!!! You're the one! Start working now!!"
The manager slammed the table with a "bang," stood up immediately, and firmly grasped Chen Kai's hand.
"I can tell you're a good prospect. Um… you, the one who submitted the resume, go back and wait for notification. We don't need anyone else now."
The manager said dismissively to the man on the side. A beast of burden who doesn't want a salary is just too good.
Their Aquarium is in a rather remote location. How could they refuse someone who volunteers to pay for their own transportation and food, essentially paying to work?
Chen Kai was delighted and immediately stood up to shake the manager's hand.
"Then please show me the work process; I'll start working now."
The manager paused. "Alright, how about we sign an employment contract first?"
Chen Kai's brows tightened; he absolutely could not sign that thing.
If he signed it, he would truly become a beast of burden.
"No rush. Let's sign it tomorrow when I officially start work for a sense of ceremony. Today, I'll just familiarize myself with the work process and get some hands-on practice."
"That works too. Come with me; I'll take you for a tour of the venue to familiarize you with the work environment first."
The manager immediately led Chen Kai out of the office, conveniently shooing away the other applicant.
They walked into the Aquarium through the employee-only passage.
As soon as they entered the Aquarium, Chen Kai saw a square Wishing Pool, about half a meter deep, and there was no water inside!
The perimeter of the Wishing Pool was surrounded by traffic cones, and water was being drained through a drain at the bottom. A large expanse of white, gleaming coins lay at the bottom of the pool.
Seeing this scene, Chen Kai felt a bit fortunate. Good thing he hadn't just jumped in; otherwise, it would have been a disaster.
If he had jumped down from that height, he probably would have broken his legs.
If he hadn't earned any money but ended up paying medical bills instead, it would have been a huge loss.
As the manager led Chen Kai into the Aquarium, she pointed at the Wishing Pool and introduced it.
"This Wishing Pool needs to be cleaned right now; it's almost full of coins. You can clean it up in a bit."
"As for the money in the Wishing Pool… considering you're not asking for a salary, I'll tell you this: the leaders don't actually know how much money is in the Wishing Pool, but don't ask if you can secretly take some. If you ask, the answer is no."
Chen Kai immediately understood and flashed a smile.
"I understand, manager."
However, there were no glowing coins in this Wishing Pool. The copper coin was likely in the other Wishing Pool in the very center of the Aquarium.
The two of them soon walked into the Aquarium. What caught their eyes was a huge piece of glass, with various sea fish swimming inside.
"This is also part of your cleaning duties. You need to scrub the glass tank every two days."
"And that Wishing Pool inside is also being drained. After the water is out, you're responsible for cleaning it—shoveling up the coins and cleaning the algae around the Wishing Pool."
"Go to the employee center in a bit to pick up a rubber waterproof suit. You don't have a problem cleaning it today, do you?"
Chen Kai nodded immediately; he was hoping to clean it today!
Since the manager had already said so, he would be a fool not to take it.
He immediately rubbed his hands in excitement, said he understood, and walked toward the employee center.
He picked up a set of sailor suits, two red buckets, and a shovel.
After getting dressed and equipped, he walked toward the Wishing Pool inside the Aquarium.