After the lunchtime rush was over, Lin Xiaomeng and the aunties in the kitchen began preparing ingredients for dinner.
Time always flew when they were busy.
Before they knew it, it was five thirty in the afternoon.
A middle-aged woman wearing a short-sleeved business blazer and rose-red glasses entered the inn.
"Oh! Zhang Min, you're here! Please, have a seat. I'll get you some water."
When Hu Ting saw Zhang Min come in, she hurried out from behind the reception desk with a smile and filled a disposable paper cup for her at the water dispenser.
Although she had only been working at the inn for two days, Hu Ting was good at reading people and quick to act appropriately.
At lunchtime, she had heard Lin Zhe repeatedly address Zhang Min with friendly respect and realized that Zhang Min must be someone important.
After Zhang Min left, she asked Lin Zhe about her and learned that she was a section chief on the scenic area's management committee, specifically responsible for business operations within the scenic area.
Her rank might not have been high, but anyone running a business in the scenic area fell under her jurisdiction.
Being polite when they met hardly counted as sucking up. It was simply knowing how to get along with people.
"No, no, I won't sit. I've been sitting in the office all day. I'll stand for a bit and stretch my legs. Hu Ting, when will the eight portions of egg fried rice I ordered be ready?"
Zhang Min was very courteous to Hu Ting, too. She didn't put on airs just because Hu Ting was merely a receptionist at the inn.
Being approachable was her style.
"Have some water first, Zhang Min. I'll check for you. I think they should be almost ready."
"It's only just dinnertime, so aside from your eight portions, no one else has ordered yet."
As she spoke, Hu Ting handed Zhang Min the disposable paper cup, then picked up a walkie-talkie from the reception desk and checked with the kitchen.
The kitchen had already finished Zhang Min's eight portions of egg fried rice and was packing them up.
Less than five minutes later, one of the aunties from the kitchen came to the lobby carrying an insulated bag of the kind cake shops used for cakes.
Inside were the eight portions of egg fried rice Zhang Min had ordered, along with eight sets of utensils.
Zhang Min promptly scanned the payment code and paid 240 yuan, then left carrying the large bag of egg fried rice.
Her family was hosting guests that evening, and this Soul-Stirring Egg Fried Rice was to be the grand finale.
As Zhang Min headed out, a middle-aged man wearing Taoist robes from the Three Pure Ones Palace entered the inn and went straight to the reception desk.
"Hello. I'd like six portions of Soul-Stirring Egg Fried Rice and four portions of Soul-Seducing Fried Rice Noodles, please."
The Taoist priest wore his hair long and had something of an otherworldly air. He spoke courteously, giving the impression of a refined, well-mannered man.
"Certainly. Please wait over there for a moment. I'll send your order to the kitchen right away."
Hu Ting pointed out the wooden rattan chairs in the lobby's seating area, then picked up the walkie-talkie and relayed his order to the kitchen.
"Good afternoon, pretty lady! I'd like one egg fried rice, one fried rice noodles, and a bottle of peach-flavored Mizone, please!"
"I'll have one of each, too. For my drink, I'd like a large bottle of Tea Pi peach oolong!"
The priest had barely walked away when Li Li and Du Huan came downstairs, chatting and laughing. By now, both of them treated the Good Fortune Canteen as their own private dining hall.
There were plenty of places to eat in the scenic area, but ever since trying the Good Fortune Canteen's egg fried rice and fried rice noodles, the two had become devoted fans.
"Certainly, ladies. I'll send your order to the kitchen right away."
After greeting them with a smile, Hu Ting wrote their orders in her little notebook as well.
While waiting for their food, Li Li and Du Huan went out for a stroll. Shortly after they left, several more guests came downstairs one after another to place orders.
Over the past two days, word of mouth had given the Good Fortune Canteen's egg fried rice and fried rice noodles a degree of fame throughout the scenic area.
It wasn't just guests staying at the Fortunate Inn who came to the reception desk to order.
Even tourists staying at other hotels and inns came to the Fortunate Inn specifically to buy its egg fried rice and fried rice noodles.
Lin Zhe welcomed them all. Wherever they were staying, anyone who came was a customer, and he treated them just like his own inn's guests.
Business that evening remained every bit as brisk as it had been at lunchtime.
Before eight o'clock, they had sold out again, using up all ninety-odd attribute-boosting eggs collected in the bamboo grove that day.
Once the aunties had cleaned the kitchen, Lin Zhe told them to head home.
After the Good Fortune Canteen began serving breakfast, the canteen staff's start time had been moved up to six in the morning.
By eight in the evening, they had already worked for more than fourteen hours.
Lin Zhe felt he was practically becoming a heartless boss who exploited his employees.
After the aunties left, only Lin Zhe and Lin Xiaomeng remained in the kitchen.
"Oh, Xiaomeng, I'm planning to hire three more people for the canteen, then introduce morning and evening shifts. Do you know anyone reliable you could recommend?"
Lin Zhe added jokingly, "You're all busy from morning to night now. If you wear yourselves out and something happens, I can't shoulder that responsibility."
By now, the Good Fortune Canteen's daily revenue was approaching the 5,000-yuan mark, and its profit margin was over eighty percent.
In other words, the Good Fortune Canteen was now making close to 4,000 yuan in profit a day.
Lin Xiaomeng's base pay was 150 yuan a day, while each of the three kitchen aunties earned a base wage of 100 yuan a day.
Together, the four of them earned only 450 yuan a day-not even 500. That was clearly too small a share.
Generally speaking, wages in the food service industry accounted for between ten and twenty percent of total revenue, with fifteen percent being fairly typical.
The lower the share spent on wages, the more heartless the owner. The higher the share, the more decent the owner.
Judging by the comparison between Fortunate Appetite Canteen's current revenue and its workers' wages, Lin Zhe was among the most heartless bosses.
Total revenue was heading toward 5,000 yuan, yet wage expenses were still below 500-less than ten percent.
That was why Lin Zhe wanted to use some of the profits to hire more people for the canteen and share Lin Xiaomeng and the others' workload.
"Hehe, Zhe, you're not in the Lin Family Village group chat, so you probably don't know, do you?"
"Jobs at our inn are really popular now!"
"Loads of people want to work here. We can take our pick!"
Lin Xiaomeng could also feel that the workload at the Good Fortune Canteen was a little heavy, so she had no objection to Lin Zhe's plan to hire more staff.
Lin Zhe smiled. "Perfect, then. You're the manager of the Good Fortune Canteen, so I'll leave the hiring to you, too. Pick your own troops."
"Huh? You want me to hire people?" Lin Xiaomeng pointed at her own pert nose, finding it hard to believe.
She had been working at the inn for less than a month. She was still a newbie herself.
And she could already recruit new employees on the boss's behalf?
Lin Zhe nodded encouragingly. "Yes. You'll be managing them anyway, so hire whoever you think is suitable. Consider it a chance to develop your skills."
"Huh? Well... then... all right!"
After hesitating for only a few seconds, Lin Xiaomeng nodded solemnly and agreed.
She could hear how much Lin Zhe valued her in his words, and she didn't want to disappoint him.
It was just hiring a couple of people, not going out to kill someone. How hard could it be?
Before you continue