After Wang Xuan finished asking, he waited for the others to give him an answer. He looked around and found that, aside from Shen Leman, who was deep in thought, Ah Wai and the other three wore utterly blank expressions. Either their eyes were wide as they stared into space, or they were grinning foolishly.
Wang Xuan suddenly felt rather foolish himself. If Ah Wai, Ah Ying, and the other two had any business sense, that would be a miracle. These useless idiots were fine when it came to eating and drinking.
Giving them a plan and having them carry it out was no problem either. But asking these uneducated fools to judge whether a business would become popular? Heh, he might as well expect the national soccer team to qualify for the World Cup.
He should have called Zhou Kun over to eat instead. These four were pigs; aside from putting on weight, they served no purpose.
"All right, my mistake. The four of you, tell me—does it taste good?" Wang Xuan was a good comrade. He admitted his mistakes and made use of useless people.
"Delicious!" the four shouted in unison, perfectly synchronized. At last, they could answer their boss's questions. How refreshing!
"Do you like it?"
"We like it!"
"Do you want to eat more?"
"We do!"
"All right, then. Eat properly."
Wang Xuan was very satisfied with their answers. At a restaurant, as long as the food tasted good, that was enough!
He turned around, kissed Shen Leman beside him, and asked, "Darling, what do you think?"
"It's hard to say. It depends on the pricing. This food is delicious, but it definitely won't work if it's too expensive. We're targeting ordinary people, so the price can't be set too high." Shen Leman pondered for a while before solemnly offering her opinion.
That was the answer Wang Xuan wanted. Compared with the four lumps beside him, Shen Leman was a genius who could offer him real help.
"My wife is truly outstanding—the very model of a modern woman blessed with both wisdom and beauty!" Wang Xuan praised her without the slightest restraint. "Go on. Tell me anything else you can think of."
"Honestly, you're too much. It's not that exaggerated." Though she said she disliked it, her heart was bursting with joy, which she couldn't suppress at all. She shot Wang Xuan a flirtatious look, her face practically blooming with laughter. "A normal restaurant meal takes half an hour to an hour, but eating barbecue feels like such a waste of time. We've already been eating and drinking for more than two hours today. In the future, a table of customers will probably occupy their seats even longer, so the table turnover rate will be several times lower than at a normal restaurant. That means we'll need a larger venue, so the rent has to be low enough."
"Beautiful appearances are all alike, but beautiful souls are one in ten thousand. You're the best—unparalleled!"
Wang Xuan's praise might have been the epitome of cheesy in the year 9102, but in Hong Kong in the 1990s, it was novel and refined. It suited the tastes of the upper class while still being easy for ordinary people to understand.
This was evident from Shen Leman's face beside him, which was so beautiful it seemed ready to bloom, and the tender affection in her eyes, as though water might drip from them.
As for the astonished and admiring looks from the four lumps beside him, Wang Xuan ignored them completely. Showing off in front of them could no longer give him any satisfaction.
Wang Xuan felt the atmosphere was about right. Perhaps tonight he could change into two outfits and inspect their quality. A smile of inscrutable meaning appeared on his face.
Suddenly, he felt that the four men beside him were an eyesore. He turned to the four lumps and said, "The place is already open for business. Why are you still here? Hurry up and go keep an eye on things. What if something goes wrong?"
"Ah, oh, oh, we're leaving." The four men struggled to stand, feeling rather uncomfortable from overeating.
Wang Xuan called the chef over again and instructed him, "Quit your old job."
"What?"
The chef was startled. The good mood he had gained from receiving five hundred dollars during the day vanished at once. Without knowing what the big boss meant, he felt his heart rise into his throat.
Wang Xuan couldn't be bothered with his feelings and had no desire to explain. In any case, he wouldn't mistreat the man. He would only make his life better. I'm just that great—a selfless angel who helps others without asking for anything in return!
"I'm going to open a barbecue city. You'll be the head chef and train apprentices. I'll double your salary from what you were making before. Come back tomorrow and continue researching different seasonings and ways to grill various ingredients. Try all kinds of meat, seafood, and vegetables. If you have apprentices, you can bring them along too. I won't shortchange them. All right, that's it for today. You can go home."
After saying this, Wang Xuan put his arm around Shen Leman and headed straight downstairs, completely unconcerned with the chef's gratitude.
The chef blinked before finally understanding what the big boss meant, and he let out a long sigh of relief. Still, he had no idea whether the big boss's arrangement was good or bad. His salary had doubled, but no one knew whether this business would last. If it failed, he wouldn't even be able to return to his old restaurant. For now, he felt as if he were standing on the verge of unemployment at any moment.
His heart wavered with unease, and he had no idea how to express it.
As for refusing?
That was impossible!
The big boss was offering him twice his old salary, and he still refused to work? That would be throwing away his dignity after being shown favor. Even if they beat him to death, no one would think it unjust.
Before you continue