Chapter 787
The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Chen Xiao smiled but didn't explain.
This bottle alone is worth over a thousand yuan. She probably doesn't earn much money working here all day.
Perhaps out of curiosity, Chen Xiao asked directly, "Hey, how much money do you earn in a month?"
How much money do I earn?
Technician #8 rolled her eyes at him. "Brother, we're not that close, are we? Salary and age are women's secrets, don't you know that?"
Chen Xiao smiled calmly and remained silent.
Number 8 was washing his feet when she noticed he suddenly became quiet. She looked up and thought he was angry.
"Just kidding, there's no real secret. I'm pretty lazy and often take time off, so my income isn't high, but it's enough for me."
Speaking of enough, she immediately broke into a bright smile and joked, "It's not just enough, it's more like I can't possibly spend it all. Right now, I can easily buy two bowls of soy milk for breakfast, drink one, and throw the other away—"
"You call this inexhaustible?" Chen Xiao laughed and casually said, "Having some ambition is enough? As for soy milk, I can buy you some!"
After saying that, he sensed something was off about technician number 8's expression. Looking down at her, he found her glaring at him with some anger. "Hmph, you look so polite, but you're not a good person after all!"
"What did I do?" Chen Xiao looked completely bewildered. Then he remembered what he had just said about soy milk; he realized he'd been misunderstood!
"Um, I meant real soy milk—"
"Alright, alright, let's change the subject." Number 8 didn't want to discuss soy milk with him; Chen Xiao could even see her face turn red. This puzzled him. In this kind of setting, even the most self-disciplined person would have heard plenty of jokes. To blush at the slightest thing—that was something else!
"Hmm, how much do you earn in a month?" Number 8 asked rhetorically, or perhaps in a panicked and careless manner.
As for Chen Xiao's income, people will either not believe it or be terrified if you tell them!
He thought for a moment and said, "It's alright, more than ten thousand!" This was a salary that was neither high nor low for an office worker in Jiangzhou.
Number 8 froze, looking up at him. "Brother, you call this 'okay'?"
Chen Xiao asked in confusion, "More than 1 yuan is enough to live on in Jiangzhou. Isn't that enough?"
"When did I say it was impossible?" Number 8 rolled his eyes again, then said, "That's amazing! I work myself to the bone and only make ten thousand a month. You come here every day to play cards, lying around like a big shot, and you earn way more than me. What right do I have to think you earn less!"
It turned out she wasn't complaining about earning too little, but rather that she was earning too much. Chen Xiao glanced at her account balance, feeling a little uneasy. If she knew that her income every second far exceeded 1 yuan, would her gaze turn into sharp swords, piercing her heart with a thousand arrows?
He recalled what he had heard: people in this industry earn a lot of money. She only made a little over ten thousand yuan? Could she be lying to him?
"I heard that the income here is very high, some people earn enough to buy a sports car. You're a big celebrity, how come you earn so little?"
Hearing Chen Xiao's question, Number 8 looked at him with disdain: "Are you really not aware, or are you pretending not to know?"
"Isn't that obvious? If I knew that, why would I be asking you? Don't you think it's stupid of you to ask that?"
Number 8's mouth gaped slightly, and after a long pause, she said angrily, "I'm stupid? Even if I'm stupid, I'm not so stupid that I can't understand. I only get a little over a hundred yuan for picking one foot. If I pick five feet a day, I'll be exhausted. How am I supposed to earn money to buy a sports car? Besides, if I had that kind of money, would I be picking feet here? You don't think I like smelling stinky feet, do you?"
Chen Xiao interrupted her impatiently: "You're stupid, and you still won't admit it. I asked you why, and you just gave me the reason. Why did you have to give me this whole analysis? My eardrums are getting calluses from listening to it."
"I"
Number 8's cheeks puffed out. "If it weren't for the fact that you paid to come here, I'd bite you to death."
"Those who earn more money have many customers who ask them to extend their hours, sometimes by several. The most outrageous one night was 20 extra hours."
Chen Xiao interrupted her: "Did your elementary school math teacher teach you PE?"
Number 8 didn't know what she had said wrong, but after being hit like that, she retorted angrily, "It's not just math, my Chinese was also taught by the PE teacher."
"You said you added 20 hours to one night. If one hour is 100 minutes, that's less than 20 hours in a day, let alone one night."
So that's what happened. Number 8 stared at him for a while as if he were an idiot: "You're hilarious. You think that if someone adds 20 hours, they'll just stay here for 20 100-minute intervals and pick their feet 20 times? Their feet would probably be raw from picking at them!"
Actually, Chen Xiao knew immediately after asking the question that he had made a mistake. He quickly changed the subject: "So how do you manage to get so little extra time?"
Number 8 seemed speechless. "I'm not adding extra time. Of those who want to add extra time, which one of them is genuinely thinking about a proper two-hour session?"
Chen Xiao looked at her differently; she seemed quite insightful. He joked, "No wonder you don't make money—"
“Who says I can’t earn it? I make over ten thousand yuan a month, and I can’t even spend it all,” she said half-jokingly, yet with a hint of seriousness.
I glanced at the bottle of drink on the table. "You can't even finish it?" There wasn't even enough to buy another bottle of that.
Perhaps noticing Chen Xiao's gaze, Number 8, as if seeking revenge, complained, "This drink you're holding is awful. I'll ask the company if they're buying such cheap drinks to save costs."
Sigh, this is probably the worst attack ever done to Antique Lemonade.
"Doesn't it taste good?"
"You don't actually think this tastes good, do you?" she asked, looking at Chen Xiao as if he were an alien.
Chen Xiao pointed and said, "I think it's just okay, but it tastes better than cola, right?"
He shook his head. "How could that be? It tastes awful!"
This is truly—
Chen Xiao glared at her: "You're like a wild boar that can't eat fine chaff!"
Number 8 was furious. Without thinking, she pounced on his calf and bit him.
Ouch--
Chen Xiao was startled by the sudden attack. "Are you a dog?"
"Yeah, I was born in the Year of the Dog!" Number 8 was extremely proud, looking at the teeth marks on Chen Xiao's calf. He had finally gotten his revenge.
Chen Xiao glared at her, then narrowed his eyes and began to ponder the problem with this shop. Adding dozens of hours—only to find out there was nothing else going on? He wondered if he should inquire about that customer and report him next time he came. To be a helpful bystander.
If people knew that the big boss of the prestigious Junxiao Group was actually planning to do this, they would probably be shocked.
buzz-
The vibration of his phone interrupted Chen Xiao's thoughts. It was a message from Xiao Wu, saying that General Manager Yang had arrived and that he should hurry up so as not to keep such a big boss waiting.
Chen Xiao couldn't figure out whether he was respecting President Yang or afraid that this fat sheep would get away.
He put his phone aside and replied to Xiao Wu, "I'll be there in half an hour—", then closed his eyes to rest again. "By the way, what's your name?" Chen Xiao felt that calling him number 8 sounded a bit awkward.
Technician #8 looked at him speechlessly, "Dude, you're really not being polite at all. Do you think anyone will actually tell you their name when you ask them for it in a situation like this?"
Oh--
Chen Xiao scratched his head, seemingly agreeing.
"My name is Diao Chan."
"This is so fake!" Chen Xiao was speechless. She had just said that no one used their real name in this setting, and now she was being so perfunctory, calling herself Diao Chan? Why don't you just say you're Wang Zhaojun?
Number 8 was furious and pinched his calf hard.
"Damn it, I'm going to complain about you!" Chen Xiao had been ambushed by her twice already, and she hadn't pinched his leg hard enough. Honestly, apart from Xiang Jun, no one had ever dared to pinch him. But this woman had actually pinched him twice at once.
Number 8 retorted angrily, "What did you complain about me for? I kindly told you my name, and you still doubt me?"
Chen Xiao could tell from her expression that she wasn't faking it. Seriously? She really is calling me that?
“My surname is Diao and my given name is Chan.” She sighed helplessly after saying that. “My parents gave me this name, and I can’t change it.”
Chen Xiao then realized that it wasn't Diao Chan, but Diao Chan. But to have the surname Diao and the name "Chan" in it—these parents are really something else.
"Hey, go ahead and complain about me," Number 8 snorted angrily.
“Okay, I’ll file a complaint against you in a bit,” Chen Xiao said, his expression turning serious.
"I want to complain about your diligent work ethic and your politeness towards guests. Oh, and let me search for a hundred compliments on Baidu."
*Pfft*
Diao Chan was amused: "You're so boring!"
This put an end to that matter. Seeing that she wasn't angry anymore, Chen Xiao casually asked, "What did you do before?"
He asked this question because he felt that Diao Chan's personality was really not suitable for this class.
In addition, nine out of ten people who work here have a story, such as a father who loves to gamble, a mother who is divorced, and a half-stupid younger brother who needs money!
Whether it's true or not, they all basically have this story behind them.
"Before? Last year I was running a clothing store with my sister. We used all the money in the family to become an agent for a women's clothing brand."
"Oh, are you the boss?"
Realizing Chen Xiao was teasing her, Diao Chan made a gesture as if she was about to pinch him again, but ultimately didn't.
“If you pinch me again, the next second, I’ll definitely kick you in the face—” Chen Xiao threatened her.
Diao Chan immediately deflated, huffing and puffing. "Go ahead and mock me all you want! We've lost all our savings!"
I think I went a bit too far. For me, losing money on one store is no big deal. It's like losing once in a game. But it's different for Diao Chan, or rather, for most families. Losing money on one store can send a middle-class family back into poverty.
Sure enough, Diao Chan said with a hint of self-deprecation, "We just don't have the life of the rich, but we have the disease of the rich. This loss has woken us up from our dream."
"So, I'm working hard to earn money now. I want to pay my parents back as soon as possible!"
Chen Xiao understood. For a young and beautiful girl like her, this industry was indeed a faster way to make money. If she worked a regular job, she would only earn a few thousand yuan a month, barely enough to make ends meet, let alone pay off her debts.
However, despite being short of money, Diao Chan still adhered to her principles. This is evident from the fact that she never extended her time.
Adding time doesn't necessarily mean sacrificing something, but she just doesn't want to give others a chance, and she doesn't want to even think about it herself.
"Business is indeed tough right now, the overall economic climate is bad, but it's not your fault."
"Oh, it's rare for you to say something sensible," Diao Chan felt a little uncomfortable hearing Chen Xiao comfort her.
Perhaps afraid of upsetting Chen Xiao, she continued explaining her situation: "Actually, the brand we represent—【Elsa】—was doing quite well at first. Alas, unfortunately, then the wolf came—"
The wolf is coming? What wolf? This caught Chen Xiao's attention.
"Aren't you curious about what kind of wolf it is?" Diao Chan blinked.
Chen Xiao retorted irritably, "Tell me, what kind of wolf? It can't be a big pervert!"
Seeing that she had successfully piqued his interest, Diao Chan smiled happily. "That wolf, huh? It's Junxiao Group."
Junxiao Group?
Chen Xiao sat up abruptly, startling Diao Chan, who jumped to her feet: "What are you doing?"
He waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. I was just a little surprised to hear about Junxiao Group. You said your business losses are related to Junxiao Group?"
Diao Chan sat down again and massaged his feet, saying, "You're so easily startled. How can someone who seems so composed be so reckless?"
Too lazy to argue with her, he was eager to know what was going on.
"The 'Elsa' brand that I represent entered Wansheng Plaza in the Economic Development Zone early last year."
She had barely begun speaking when Chen Xiao knew why she had lost money. The Wansheng Plaza in the Economic Development Zone was, in fact, Wansheng Plaza's worst project in Jiangzhou.
When Diao Chan first opened her shop, it was barely above the break-even point. She planned to nurture the business and wait for it to grow. However, less than a year later, just as business was starting to improve, Junxiao Commercial Management entered the Jiangzhou market. With the opening of three Junxiao Plaza stores simultaneously, foot traffic at Wansheng Plaza in the Economic Development Zone dropped by at least 60%.
With things like this, it's no wonder Diao Chan's Elsa is losing money.
"Forget about recouping the renovation costs, our monthly sales aren't even enough to cover the rent. Sigh—"
Chen Xiao, always eager for drama, chimed in, "Junxiao Commercial Management is so powerful, yet you still went into Wansheng Plaza. You're practically joining the Nationalists in 49!"
"Hmph—, when we opened, Junxiao Commercial Management didn't even exist yet."
That's true.
"That Junxiao Commercial Management is outrageous! It's bad enough that they're stealing customers from Wansheng Plaza, but they also issue tons of consumer subsidy vouchers every month. Tell me, how am I supposed to do business?"
"My customers all know that buying the 'Elsa' brand at Junxiao Plaza's multi-level shopping mall is much cheaper than buying it here after using their shopping vouchers. Isn't that cheating them? Many of my regular customers are now going to the 'Elsa' store at Junxiao Plaza."
So that's what happened. The mall's customer traffic was being stolen. She lost her regular customers too; no wonder her business was losing money!
Her small shop is a microcosm of the current situation of many brands in Wansheng Plaza.
I didn't kill Bo Ren, but Bo Ren died because of me!
But Chen Xiao felt no guilt; in business competition, collateral damage is inevitable. (End of Chapter)