29: Chapter 29 Jerusalem of the High-End Customization Industry

As the old saying goes, if you have connections, you might as well use them instead of saving them for the New Year. He flipped through his contacts to Cao Ye's number, dialed it, and switched on the speakerphone.

"Hello, Little Su, what's up?"

Cao Ye's voice came through on the other end, faintly audible amidst some background noise, as if he were in the middle of a meeting.

Su Ye smiled and said, "Big Brother, am I interrupting you?"

The noisy background on Cao Ye's end gradually faded; he must have found a quiet place.

"It's fine, I was just holding a quick meeting with the various departments. Just tell me what's up. Oh right, don't forget to come over for dinner tomorrow. If you dare to stand me up, I'll go to your front door and block you in."

Beside him, Marketing Manager Chen Cong seemed to have forgotten that his finger was still being twisted. His face turned pale. How could he not recognize that voice? It was Director Cao, his boss's boss's boss.

Su Ye ignored Marketing Manager Chen Cong's pleading gaze and said straightforwardly, "Big Brother, is there a marketing manager named Marketing Manager Chen Cong in the Marketing Department right now?"

Cao Ye paused on the other end before saying, "There is one who joined in the middle of last month. You know, after I took over, Manager Wang Defa was sent back to the Human Resources Department due to red-line issues, which led to many people being rooted out. This Marketing Manager Chen Cong was hired around that time and is probably still on probation. What's wrong? Is he an acquaintance of yours? If so, I'll go talk to Old Li in HR in a bit and have him made permanent in the next couple of days."

"No need, Big Brother. I don't know Marketing Manager Chen Cong. It's just that I ran into him earlier and he said he had connections and could pull some strings to get me a team leader position. I just wanted to see if he really had that kind of pull."

Upon hearing Su Ye's words, Cao Ye understood immediately. This Marketing Manager Chen Cong must have clashed with his "dear" little brother and was acting arrogant. He laughed heartily, "Haha, Little Su, do you still need connections? If you come back now, I guarantee that within three years, you'll be in charge of the automotive marketing sector."

"As for this Marketing Manager Chen Cong, he seems to be a distant relative of Old Huang, who is currently in charge of the real estate sector. Let me look into it. If he's not suitable, we'll just send him back to the Human Resources Department. We absolutely cannot have such a black sheep tarnishing the company's reputation."

Su Ye glanced at Marketing Manager Chen Cong, whose legs were already trembling. "Alright, Big Brother, you look into it. I have some things to do here, so I'm hanging up."

"Good. Remember tomorrow, okay? If I don't see you tomorrow, you're dead meat."

"Got it, got it, don't worry."

Seeing Su Ye hang up the phone and release his finger, Marketing Manager Chen Cong collapsed onto the floor.

It must be known that jobs are really hard to find these days, especially good management positions, which are few and far between. Chaoyang Group is a massive conglomerate with over ten billion in assets, ranking among the top in all of Sichuan Province. Even just in the lucrative Real Estate Department, a manager position could easily sell for two or three hundred thousand; after all, if managed properly, one could earn that back in a year, with profit to spare.

Marketing Manager Chen Cong, however, had only managed to secure this position by capitalizing on the major reshuffle in the Chaoyang Group marketing center and relying on a well-connected relative. He had spent several days pestering his parents and gifted over a hundred thousand yuan's worth of goods just to get it. He hadn't even been there a month, and he was about to lose it before his probation period had even ended.

If he were truly sent back to the Human Resources Department, he would have no choice but to go back to working at the small company with a few hundred employees where his parents worked. The difference in benefits and pay would be night and day.

Su Ye curled his lips in a disdainful smile. It seemed Marketing Manager Chen Cong was nothing special after all; he couldn't even handle a small blow. But it wasn't over yet.

With that thought, he made a second call. A voice that Marketing Manager Chen Cong was incredibly familiar with came through, tinged with a hint of sycophancy. Wasn't this his father's good brother, and their family's partner in Chagee, Zhang Xundong?

"Oh my, Boss Su, hello!"

Su Ye didn't respond to the pleasantries and instead asked straightforwardly, "Boss Zhang, for this Chagee on Chunxi Road, are you the owner, or is someone else?"

Boss Zhang was puzzled. Although he didn't know why Su Ye would ask this question, he still answered, "Boss Su, this shop actually has two owners. I hold eighty percent of the shares, and the family of my good brother holds twenty percent. However, I have always been the one managing it; they only take dividends."

Su Ye nodded and then said, "Does your other shareholder have a son named Marketing Manager Chen Cong?"

"Yes. Boss Su, do you know Little Cong?"

Little Cong... Little Garlic, more like. Su Ye said straightforwardly, "Then that's correct. Once you finish this year, prepare to move the shop next year."

"Hey, Boss Su..."

Before Zhang Xundong could finish speaking, Su Ye hung up. To be honest, the location of this shop was excellent; he wouldn't have to worry about renting it out at all. Never mind the current rent, even if he raised it by several thousand or ten thousand a month, there would be plenty of people wanting to rent it. The contract for this year had already been signed, so he wouldn't go so far as to pay a penalty to break it; that would be bad for his reputation and might make future tenants wary. Fortunately, the contract was renewed annually, so he could just choose not to renew it when it expired next year.

Glancing at Marketing Manager Chen Cong, who was sitting on the floor with eyes flashing with fear and regret, Su Ye said directly, "Let's go, Sister-in-law. I'll transfer the money to you in a bit; let's not bother with the bill. We've wasted enough time, and I have things to do later."

Li Yi didn't dawdle either, following Su Ye as he stepped over Marketing Manager Chen Cong's feet and headed toward the door.

Once outside, Li Yi laughed and punched Su Ye, saying, "Not bad, Ye-zi. You were really showing off your dominance today. Two phone calls and that Marketing Manager Chen Cong looks like he just ate sh*t."

Su Ye grinned. "Basic operation, don't overreact."

An hour later, Su Ye and Li Yi were standing at the entrance of a small alley, each sucking on an old-fashioned popsicle.

Su Ye turned his head to look at Li Yi, his expression slightly skeptical. "Sister-in-law, are you saying the best high-end custom tailor in all of Chengdu is right here?"

Li Yi rolled his eyes at Su Ye and carefully pinched a short hair on Su Ye's shoulder with his index finger and thumb. "Don't look down on this place. The only reason Old Master Qin is here is because this shop is his ancestral property. Otherwise, hmph, there are plenty of big shops that would invite the old master to preside over them."

"Is he really that good?"

Su Ye looked at the dilapidated alley, which was thick with a sense of history.

"It's not about being 'good,' it's about reputation. You know Savile Row in London, right?"

Su Ye nodded. Over the past month or so, he had absorbed quite a bit of knowledge, and naturally, he had searched for information on high-end custom suits. How could Su Ye not know the most famous street in this industry?

"London's Savile Row is known as the Jerusalem of the suit world, dubbed the holy land of suits. Among the top ten high-end custom suit shops in the world, three originated from Savile Row. Could it be that this Old Master Qin...?"

Li Yi patted the non-existent dust off Su Ye's shoulder and walked into the alley first. "That's right. Old Master Qin spent the first half of his life working at Gieves & Hawkes, the oldest shop on Savile Row in London."