Alexander? Under a Mountain of Pressure!

On Wednesday afternoon, a little after two, the prep school building gradually quieted down as the students streamed out.

Alexander drank a cup of hot water, rested for a while, then packed up and prepared to leave work.

He struggled to lift the large backpack beneath his desk. It was stuffed full of plastic slippers and padded cotton slippers, all wholesale goods from the Grand Market.

He still had to rush to the metro station to sell shoes. Hopefully, he could sell a few more pairs today...

Just like his name suggested, he was under a mountain of pressure!

Middle-aged, with elderly parents above him and children below him—though he did not need to worry about his parents. They were still in decent health and had pensions.

But he still had to provide for his wife and children...

The family only had his monthly income of a little over three hundred dollars. His wife was a housewife, and they had two children, one in middle school and one in elementary school.

The whole family lived in an old, cramped apartment of just over forty square meters.

It was not easy to get firmly established in Moscow...

Just as he was about to leave, two students appeared at the office door.

"Teacher, do you have a moment? There's something we'd like to talk to you about."

One of the tall male students asked with a smile.

Alexander taught mathematics for several classes, and Wang Ye was one of his students. He assumed the two students had some academic questions they wanted to ask him.

So he replied, "All right, come in. But I'm short on time—I need to leave soon."

After Wang Ye and Little Hu entered, they casually closed the door. There was no one else in the office, only the three of them.

"What problems have you run into with your studies? By the way, Wang, isn't your Russian excellent? How could you be stumped by such simple prep school questions?" Alexander asked curiously.

Wang Ye had left quite an impression on him, because the student's Russian was simply too good!

In all his years teaching prep classes, Wang Ye was the student with the best Russian he had ever encountered!

Wang Ye smiled and said, "It's not about studying. It's something else. Let me introduce him—this is Little Hu. His family is planning to open a company in Moscow."

Alexander was completely baffled. What did that have to do with him?

If they wanted to open a company, then they could open one. There was no need to report it to him...

He knew that many of his students, especially the international students from China, might not have come purely to study. Some might go into business as soon as they graduated from prep school, or even before graduating...

So he was used to such things.

He just did not understand why this student was telling him about his family opening a company.

Wang Ye got straight to the point. "Teacher, would you be interested in working for their company? It's a legitimate company, not one of those stalls at the Grand Market."

He emphasized that point because he was afraid Alexander might misunderstand.

Russians were rather proud at heart, especially intellectuals like Alexander. If he were asked to sell goods at a Grand Market stall, he might not agree even if the salary were several times higher than what he currently earned!

But if it was a proper company with some scale to it, then there was room for discussion.

Sure enough, Alexander paused before asking, "A legitimate company? What does it do, and where is the office?"

"It sells branded athletic shoes. The company is currently being registered, and it has rented office space at Alpha Hotel," Wang Ye said calmly.

Alexander often went to the Grand Market, so naturally he was familiar with Alpha Hotel.

The moment he heard that the company was based there, he became interested. A company that could rent space there had to have at least some financial strength, and it was indeed a legitimate business.

He hesitated, wanting to ask about the pay, but he was too embarrassed to say it.

After all, he was a teacher. Discussing money in front of his students felt somewhat inappropriate...

Wang Ye naturally understood what he was thinking, so without waiting for him to ask, he said directly, "If you join us, your position will be sales department manager. Your guaranteed monthly salary will be fifteen hundred dollars, plus sales commissions. Under normal circumstances, you should make at least two thousand dollars a month."

"Two thousand dollars"!

That number stunned Alexander speechless!

He only made a little over three hundred dollars a month teaching prep school at People's Friendship University. It was nowhere near enough to support his family, which was why he still had to set up a street stall at the metro station after work...

If life had not forced his hand, there was no way an intellectual like him would do that kind of work.

Now that he heard he could earn two thousand dollars a month at Little Hu's family company, his thoughts immediately began to stir.

That much money would be enough for his family to live very comfortably!

In Moscow, that salary counted as high income.

Even department heads at People's Friendship University did not earn that much each month.

Two thousand dollars was almost enough to buy a Lada that was ninety percent new...

In a more remote area, it could buy two square meters in an upscale residential complex!

Wang Ye continued, "Other than the boss being Chinese, nearly every other position in this company will be filled by Russians. There will also be continued investment, with the goal of establishing the brand throughout the Eastern European market!"

He was painting Alexander a rosy picture. After all, an ambitious company was far more appealing.

Sure enough, Alexander no longer hesitated. He asked eagerly, "Will the company sign a proper employment contract?"

Wang Ye looked at Little Hu. After all, this was not his company, but Little Hu's family's company.

Little Hu nodded decisively and answered, "Yes!"

There was nothing more to say. Alexander no longer cared about selling his slippers. He immediately pulled Wang Ye and Little Hu over to sit down and began seriously discussing the company.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wang Ye explained the company's related matters to him, including leasing the office space, registering the company, and of course poaching salespeople from the Grand Market...

Alexander laughed as soon as he heard that. He pulled out an old, battered phone and skillfully opened his contact list.

Pointing at a row of names, he said:

"This won't be a problem at all! I've got the phone numbers of quite a few Russians who work in sales at the Grand Market. Some of them are quite good and have been doing it for years. Once the company space is rented in a couple of days, I'll invite them to the office after work for a chat. As long as the pay isn't lower than what they get at the Grand Market, they'll definitely be willing to come work for the company..."

That was perfectly normal. The working environment at the Grand Market was truly terrible.

After a full day, never mind the leg pain from standing—just the noise alone was enough to make your head buzz...

If they could receive the same or even better pay, who would not want to work for a legitimate company in a bright, clean office?

Alexander also kept his guard up. He would wait until his employment contract was signed and the company space had been rented before helping the company poach people...