Reborn in the 1980s: Recapture My Devoted Husband-Chapter 724 - 696: The Furious Tao Jia (Additional - )

Liu Erhong touched his chin, and with a slap of both hands, said, "Cuiping, even this can make money... Let me calculate for you. Let’s say there are more than fifty people, with each person spending eighty cents a day, that amounts to forty dollars a day. A month comes to twelve hundred dollars. Subtracting rent and those two hundred meal tickets, along with a deduction of one hundred and fifty for staff and other expenses, and subtracting the monthly cost of rice, flour, and vegetables, let’s budget it at three hundred. Calculating this way, you can still earn three to four hundred dollars a month. Didn’t Xiao Wan mention that you can also do takeout? That would be quite an additional income. How is this not more worthwhile than working a job? Besides, if you control the cost of the meals well, they can have a sixty percent profit margin. The earnings could be substantial. Xiao Wan even said that the number of factory workers will gradually increase. In the future, these will all be fixed customers. There are plenty of opportunities to make money there. Xiao Wan clearly wants to give you all a path to wealth."

Liu Erhong’s words earned admiration from Zhang Cuiping. "Erhong, how do you think so thoroughly? Xiao Wan was worried I might have concerns and even said not to look at her asking for a hundred in rent and two hundred in meal tickets each month; in reality, whoever goes in makes money. She said the canteen in her factory is two floors. It’s really big."

Liu Erhong smiled embarrassingly, "It’s all due to being poor. I used to take care of the kids and a big family; our monthly living expenses depended on the fifteen dollars that Old Qin sent back. I learned to be very frugal."

"Han Yi and his wife certainly wouldn’t deceive us. Since we can do this, let’s do it..." said Huang Guozhong halfway before adding, "Are you sure you can just quit school like this suddenly?"

"Sigh, what school? Today, I was squeezed out by the director’s sister-in-law; the director made it clear not to let me go back. I was asked to leave at about one today, and coincidentally, I ran into Xiao Wan on the road. When she learned I lost my job, she brought this up."

"That director is such a rat," said Huang Guozhong, feeling unhappy upon hearing his wife was dismissed. Nowadays, officials are going too far.

"Nowadays, if you have connections, everything is easier."

"Losing the job was not a bad thing, honestly; if it wasn’t for losing the job, Xiao Wan probably wouldn’t have mentioned this business idea to you," commented Liu Erhong.

"Indeed, Xiao Wan said the same," said Zhang Cuiping.

"Sigh... but contracting a canteen isn’t a small sum. It must be several hundred at least," pondered Huang Guozhong, finding it challenging.

"Exactly, after paying Xiao Wan the rent, we must handle the remaining preparations ourselves. Xiao Wan said we could use the canteen’s tables and chairs, but the cooking equipment needs to be purchased by ourselves."

"With that, it definitely adds up," concluded Qin Hongbing after roughly calculating for them. The upfront costs of rent, rice, noodles, vegetables, pots, pans, and stove are significant. One person alone can’t manage it and hiring several people will likely cost at least three to four hundred dollars.

"Why don’t both of our families do it together? Honestly, my family doesn’t have that kind of money right now," proposed Huang Guozhong, striking a chord with the couple but also feeling a bit embarrassed.

"This... might not be suitable," Liu Erhong modestly suggested.

"Why wouldn’t it be suitable? I think it’s quite fitting. Partnerships depend on temperament, and as of now, who can we rely on?" Zhang Cuiping was keen on partnering with Liu Erhong to share the risks.

"Partnerships can be tricky. The most feared part is arguing over profits or staffing issues," cautioned Qin Hongbing, although interested, he was concerned, knowing that partnerships could turn sour over time.

The main issues often arise over uneven profit distribution and family involvement. Once relatives realize a business is profitable, they want in, but it ultimately turns the venture into a family business.

Qin Hongbing’s words had Huang Guozhong in agreement, leading to a consensus to proceed together. The four started to discuss specific terms of the partnership at home.

Things like investing equal amounts, sharing profits equally, and handling one’s responsibilities were settled. They also agreed that if staff was needed, relatives should not be hired.

Knowing that, the business could proceed more smoothly afterward.

After all, they were good comrades, and their wives were considered good friends too. A little personal interest shouldn’t ruin the friendship between their families.

After the families had reached an agreement, they started raising funds. On the third day, Zhang Cuiping and Liu Erhong visited Lin Wan’s factory.

Regarding Sister-in-law Zhang and Sister-in-law Liu going into partnership, Lin Wan had no objections, as long as the two had no arguments.

Lin Wan drafted a two-year contract, granting them the use of the two-story restaurant without altering its interior layout. The contract had several rigorous conditions, such as maintaining hygiene, submitting a cyclical menu one week in advance for review, and achieving a 90% satisfaction rate from employees on the food; otherwise, deductions would apply.

The contract also included a deposit — a total of three hundred dollars. With the two-year rent due upfront, Lin Wan knew they couldn’t pay this all at once, so she only asked them for one month’s rent initially.

The remaining balance could be paid off gradually.

Although they signed with trepidation, feeling the terms were stringent, Lin Wan offered no further explanation.

Friendship was friendship, especially regarding work, more so with food. There was no room for carelessness.

...

"Xiao Wan, a girl from your shop just came over looking for a stamp; she seemed urgent and is still waiting at my place," said Tao Jia.

"Oh... I forgot about that. Sister Xiao Jia, please help me fetch it for her; the stamp is in the top corner of the wardrobe," Lin Wan recalled the previous incident where Ye Zi approached her for the official stamp for a government initiative supporting orphans. Younger kids were introduced for adoption by the government, while older ones were provided free education, and for those working, if they had an employment certificate, they could get housing aid, though it wasn’t free. They had to pay rent monthly, albeit cheaper than usual, at five dollars per month for one unit, shareable among two to three tenants.

Ye Zi, Lu Lu, and two other sisters rented two units together for mutual safety.

Their wages were decent, including those working in the garment factory. Besides budgeting for themselves, most of their earnings went back to support the orphanage, which struggled with increasing numbers of orphans under the director’s pressure. Those capable felt obligated to help care for younger ones, those who grew up in the orphanage.

Upon hearing Lin Wan’s reasoning, Tao Jia went inside to help Ye Zi find the stamp. On finding a small tin box at the top, she assumed the stamp was inside and took it down. The box opened suddenly due to a loose lid, spilling its contents all over the floor.

Ye Zi, hearing the noise, quickly entered. "Sister Tao, what happened?" Seeing the scattered items, she promptly helped in picking them up.

"I didn’t handle it well," explained Tao Jia, locating the stamp. "Is this what you needed?"

Ye Zi nodded, taking it, "Yes, that’s it," She adeptly stamped it on her prepared document and then joined in cleaning up. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Amidst the scattered items, a few photographs stood out significantly due to their vividness. Tao Jia instantly recognized the man in the photos, but Ye Zi, focused on stamping earlier, hadn’t noticed Tao Jia’s stunned expression upon holding one of the pictures.

Seeing the photo in Tao Jia’s hands, Ye Zi exclaimed, "Oh... It’s that woman! She’s utterly shameless," unaware why Sister Xiao Wan had such pictures.

Tao Jia, realizing Ye Zi recognized the woman, quickly inquired, "You know her?"

"Ah... she’s a troublemaker. Last year, she snatched our clothing business and caused Sister Xiao Wan’s eatery to close, even entangling her brother into a case. This man next to her is likely her paramour, and their child must be about two now." Ye Zi recounted, as she guessed about the man following the past incidents surrounding Sister Xiao Wan, which even Sister Erni discussed with them about Ye Qing and this particular man.

"The child is over two years old?" This revelation surprised Tao Jia, as it had only been slightly over a year since her divorce with Mei Langchi.

"Yeah... I think this guy had a wife before, who divorced and came to find her due to Ye Qing’s seduction," added Ye Zi.

Ye Zi’s words left Tao Jia pale, her grip tightening, her veins protruding... In the afternoon... passing by the roast chicken shop on her way home from work, Lin Wan bought a roast chicken, packed some cold dishes and lobsters from another shop, intending to enjoy a good meal with Sister Xiao Jia since she would be leaving the next day.