After my divorce, I started to have good luck
Chapter 290 - 177: Uncle Displays His Power

Chapter 290: Chapter 177: Uncle Displays His Power

The new car beauty shop’s location was quickly determined, and Zhao Guozhong negotiated the specific price with the relevant departments of the town. He indeed knew quite a few people in his town, and with some good cigarettes and a dinner, he settled the matter.

The price was quite favorable, and as per Chen Feng’s requirements, the lease was for ten years, with an annual rent of just over eight thousand, payable for five years upfront, and then yearly thereafter, which was quite a bargain.

Such terms were agreed upon thanks to Zhao Guozhong’s skills, and certainly, some small additional tokens of appreciation would be necessary afterward, as is customary.

After signing the contract, Chen Feng gave him twelve thousand as a token appreciation fee.

Thus, the initial expenditure was about fifty to sixty thousand, but these are all necessary costs.

Next, the parent company of the beauty car shop will send a professional team for decoration and training.

The main focus is decoration; training can be completed in just a few days.

Another issue is the selection of the shop manager.

After mobilizing their circle of relatives and friends, they found two candidates the next day.

One candidate is the nephew of the eldest aunt’s eldest son-in-law, who graduated from college three or four years ago, aged twenty-six, having struggled for years in a big city without success, and returned to his hometown in defeat, looking for work.

The other candidate is the cousin of sister-in-law Li Guihong, a vocational high school graduate, aged twenty-four, who has previously worked in factories and sales jobs.

These two candidates indirectly represent the two parties contributing funds, one side being Zhao Xiaolan, the other being the eldest aunt Zhao Xiaomei.

From the perspective of Chen Feng and his brother, they would undoubtedly choose their mother’s side, or rather, their sister-in-law’s side.

However, speaking only for Chen Feng personally, in terms of relatives both candidates were about the same, neither having a particularly close relationship with him.

Because Chen Feng is the major shareholder, contributing thirty thousand, the decision on the shop manager candidate is naturally Chen Feng’s to make.

It can only be Chen Feng’s choice. Otherwise, regardless of whether his elder brother Chen Rui, his mother Zhao Xiaolan, or his uncle Zhao Guozhong chose, it would offend the other side.

So, the day after negotiating the land lease agreement, Chen Feng had these two candidates come to Qingpu Town.

Chen Feng arranged for them to meet at his home since, with relatives connected to relatives, he specially prepared a table with drinks to host them.

The three of them, while drinking and chatting, without any particular restraint, chatted; their ages weren’t far apart.

The eldest nephew of the eldest aunt’s son-in-law, surname Li, despite being only a few years younger than Chen Feng, was a generation apart in terms of seniority, wore glasses, and was relatively slender.

Li Guihong’s cousin, surname Wang, was somewhat chubby, reportedly learning cooking, having studied for almost two years, so he wasn’t lacking in food, and unknowingly gained weight.

A few drinks in, the two gradually relaxed. Under Chen Feng’s guidance, they each talked about their experiences in recent years.

Li, graduating from a third-tier college, was once ambitious to make a name in the big city, but after struggling for three to four years, the pressure grew, and after his girlfriend, who lived with him for over two years and saw no hope, left him, he returned to his hometown somewhat dispirited.

Initially, in the big city, he worked in sales, then entered an electronics factory, both exhausting jobs, eventually becoming a freelancer, working as a tutor, tour guide, delivery driver, and chauffeur, among other things. Though tiring, he found it somewhat freeing. During his best month, he got close to ten thousand in earnings, but averaged about six to seven thousand a month.

His girlfriend only earned a stagnant salary of over five thousand a month.

Even so, the pressure of living in the big city remained huge; their shared apartment cost over three thousand per month, with property fees, utilities, gas, broadband, etc., totaling close to four thousand.

Their combined income exceeded ten thousand, which seemed not small, but in the big city, life felt hard; they could never afford their own house, and his girlfriend didn’t want to return to rural life in his hometown, eventually leaving for a better opportunity.

Thus, if Li wasn’t lying, he actually had quite capable skills. After all, having struggled for several years in the big city, he remained diligent and hardworking.

If his girlfriend hadn’t left him, he probably wouldn’t have returned to his hometown.

Wang, graduating from vocational high school, started factory work at nineteen, then did sales and insurance before being persuaded by family to learn cooking from a master, having studied for nearly two years now.

Chen Feng then asked him, having already studied cooking for two years, wouldn’t it be a shame to abandon it?

The chubby Wang, with a helpless expression, said: "Learning cooking is hard, and I don’t have the talent. The master is extremely strict, and most importantly, I only get a few hundred yuan a month, and I haven’t learned much useful in two years. Graduating seems a long way off."

Hearing their stories, Chen Feng had some idea. Subsequently, he didn’t ask them much more. They ate for over an hour and then left to wait for news.

That evening, while the family was having dinner together, Chen Rui asked which one from the two would Chen Feng choose?

Without hiding, Chen Feng directly said: "The one from the eldest aunt’s side seems more reliable. After all, he has a college degree, so his learning ability is stronger."

Li Guihong was somewhat unhappy upon hearing this, saying: "My cousin may only be a vocational high school graduate, but he’s talented in learning quickly no matter what, and washing cars doesn’t require much skill or a college degree?"

Chen Feng smiled and replied: "Sis, I’m focused on the issue, not the person. I believe you want our second shop to do better and earn more money, right? If we ignore Wang being your cousin, and have two candidates with the same ability, one a vocational high school graduate, the other a college graduate, which would you choose to work for you?"

Li Guihong couldn’t speak immediately, though leaning toward her cousin, she couldn’t deny the truth.

Chen Rui said reasonably: "Your cousin is good too, but since the one from the eldest aunt’s side is more suitable, let’s choose him. Plus, the eldest aunt’s side contributed funds, so it can’t be only our side."

Chen Feng added: "The nephew of the eldest aunt’s son-in-law struggled for years in the big city, doing various jobs; his insight is at least decent. Moreover, a college graduate should be better than someone who hasn’t graduated. But that isn’t the main point; the main thing is his diligence and endurance. Sis, I’m not criticizing your cousin; if he’s determined to learn cooking and has been with a master for two years, giving up now wastes all that time. I suggest you advise him to persevere in cooking."