575: Am I about to lose my job?

With the first Joyful Gathering store opening and continuing to be wildly popular, receiving excellent reviews from diners,

Meng Feiyu was confident that any other hot pot restaurants they opened would also have booming business and great reputations, as long as they ensured food quality, service attitude, and hygiene.

If they could really do as Ye Su said, opening hot pot restaurants all over the country and becoming a well-known catering brand like Haidilao or Dongbei, then as the first employee, he would be bringing honor to his ancestors and giving his parents back home a lot of face!

Meng Feiyu increasingly felt that working for Ye Su was the most correct decision he had ever made in his life.

After finishing their business discussion, as more customers started arriving at the hot pot restaurant, Ye Su and the other two got up to leave.

Before leaving, Ye Su placed the "welcoming guest golden toad" he had obtained in Yang County on the counter in front of the cash register.

At the same time, he earnestly instructed Meng Feiyu that this golden toad ornament was a feng shui item he had specially requested from a master, and he must keep a close eye on it. If it were stolen or damaged, he should notify Ye Su immediately.

As a youth of the new era, Meng Feiyu naturally did not believe in such feng shui metaphysics.

But he also knew that in business, especially in places like Guangdong Province, these things were highly valued.

Seeing Ye Su's serious demeanor, Meng Feiyu silently nodded in agreement and kept the matter in mind.

Afterwards, Ye Su also made a show of packing up a jar of shacha sauce, planning for the four of them to have hot pot together back at the Apartment Complex in the evening.

"It seems that for future stores, we'll still need to divide them into public dining areas and private dining rooms to meet the needs of customers who require privacy."

After leaving the hot pot restaurant, Ye Su called Yan Ran, and the four of them had lunch together outside.

After lunch, the three women discussed going shopping again.

"I just remembered, there are other matters at the company that need handling, so I won't accompany you shopping."

Having witnessed the formidable shopping stamina of the three last night, Ye Su immediately found an excuse to slip away.

Yan Ran and the other saw right through his little scheme and rolled their eyes at him simultaneously, but they still let him go:

"Fine, fine, go find somewhere cool to hang out."

Not having time to address Chen Xinyi's such rebellious attitude and worried he might not be able to escape later, Ye Su turned and ran.

"Where should I go at this time?"

Buzz—

Just as Ye Su was sitting in his car pondering this question, his phone unexpectedly received a message from someone.

[Feng Zhiquan: Boss Ye, I've collected another batch of things. What price can you offer?]

"Thank goodness for Old Feng, otherwise I wouldn't know how to keep this Secondhand Shop running."

When Ye Su took over this Secondhand Shop, it was firstly for the gold bars hidden in the ceiling, and secondly to have a place to handle some small items obtained from intel refreshes that weren't suitable to take to Wan Yuanliang's place.

But so far, apart from disposing of that batch of winning Lego bricks and a few old items, there hasn't been anything else that required this Secondhand Shop for handling.

Currently, after deducting rent, utilities, and Yu Jinle's salary each month, the shop's profit is just over ten thousand yuan.

For the salaried class, this income would definitely be considered very good, viable as a side business or even a main job.

But for Ye Su, this profit figure seemed somewhat of a dilemma—not worth keeping, but a pity to discard.

Additionally, he had to keep an eye on his phone messages, occasionally dealing with items brought for sale by Feng Zhiquan and some customers.

"Maybe I should just stop bothering with this shop?"

Thinking about simply closing it down for good, Ye Su worried that he might need the shop someday to dispose of some trivial items obtained from intel refreshes.

"Besides this issue, I also need to think about how to place the shop's only employee..."

Having actively called Yu Jinle to come work as the shop manager, and now, less than two months later, telling her the shop might close and she should find another job—Ye Su himself felt that doing so would be a bit unscrupulous.

"Ah, right."

Ye Su suddenly remembered that during the previous investment in Yu Mingjun's family's Medicinal Materials Company, he had told Ye Su he could arrange for someone to be stationed at his company.

After signing the equity agreement, he had initially planned to set this matter aside for a while, but then he completely forgot about it.

"The Medicinal Materials Company is also in Li District, not far from where Jin Le currently lives, so it would be convenient for her to commute."

"Moreover, being stationed there, she'd have colleagues around, wouldn't be stuck alone in the shop, could have normal working hours, weekends off, and holidays according to legal regulations."

"The schedule would be similar to Jiang Lingling's two roommates, which would also be convenient for them to hang out together during their time off."

The more Ye Su thought about it, the more he felt that having Yu Jinle stationed at the Medicinal Materials Company was a good decision for both of them.

"As for the Secondhand Shop, there's no need to rush to close it. Perhaps I can ask Feng Zhiquan if he's interested in a partnership. I provide the capital, he handles the management, and we split the profits fifty-fifty."

Feng Zhiquan currently basically made a living by dealing in old items for the shop. Ye Su believed he had no reason to refuse such a partnership offer.

"That's decided then. Since I have nothing to do right now, I can go to the shop and also visit Wan Yuanliang to see if he has channels to dispose of the meteorite."

Having found something to do, Ye Su first replied to Feng Zhiquan's message, telling him to bring the items to the Secondhand Shop. Then he started his car and drove towards the shop.

When Ye Su drove to the front of the Secondhand Shop, parked, and pushed the door open, Feng Zhiquan had already arrived first and was resting on the sofa.

Having come to sell things so many times, he was considered a regular customer. Yu Jinle didn't attend to him, engrossed in her phone at the counter.

Seeing Ye Su enter, Yu Jinle immediately straightened up like a model employee and greeted him: "Hello, boss!"

"Mm."

Ye Su nodded with an air of seniority, then merely lifted his chin as a greeting to Feng Zhiquan.

"Boss Ye, the things I brought are all here. If anything is useful, just name a price."

"Alright."

What Feng Zhiquan brought were mostly old ornaments, art paintings, and the like, plus a mechanical pocket watch.

Ye Su activated the "Item Appraisal" function, scanned all the items, and then quoted a price to Feng Zhiquan:

"We're familiar with each other now. I won't be picky about the items, I'll take the whole lot. A total of 3200, is that okay?"

Feng Zhiquan was already accustomed to the accuracy of Ye Su's quotes. Hearing the price, he nodded: "Sure, 3200 it is."

"Mm. I'll transfer the money to you."

After receiving Ye Su's transfer, Feng Zhiquan was about to leave when Ye Su suddenly called out to him:

"Boss Feng, since I took over this shop, it's basically been kept running thanks to the items you bring. Would you be interested in running this Secondhand Shop again?"

Before Feng Zhiquan could speak, Yu Jinle, sitting at the counter, had already widened her eyes.

What did that mean?

Let Feng Zhiquan run the Secondhand Shop again?

Then am I going to lose my job!