Chapter 26: Chapter 26: I’m Not Opening a Restaurant, It’s Delicious Customization

Meanwhile, at Meiweilai Company.

"*BURP~* So that’s what I mean. Everyone can state their choice or bring up any new ideas they have. Hey, Bai Xiaobo, can you not smack your lips when you eat?"

Su Chen put down his chopsticks.

Liu Shengnan: "I’m in. We made over a thousand from one small job yesterday. If we land a few more, won’t earning that 150,000 be a piece of cake?"

"I’m in too, just keep feeding me!" Bai Xiaobo said, still smacking his lips.

Aunt Fang: "I just came here because it’s close to home, and I don’t have anything better to do anyway. I’m fine with it."

"Boss, I think I might..."

Su Chen nodded. "It’s okay. Everyone has their own circumstances. What I said before still stands."

"No matter what you choose, we’ll still be friends afterward. I’ll find a way to pay everyone back for this. And of course, you’re always welcome to come by and eat."

Work had just started for the day.

Su Chen had already single-handedly prepared two steamers of buns. With a few leftover pork knuckles from the previous night, the two steamers of buns didn’t take much effort.

Work started promptly at eight. At Meiweilai, start time equaled mealtime.

There, at a round table in the cafeteria, Meiweilai held its first roundtable meeting before its impending bankruptcy.

The first item on the agenda Su Chen proposed was: to earn enough money for rent in the remaining 19 days and bring the company back from the dead!

When he said it, Bai Xiaobo nearly choked to death on a mouthful of bun.

Liu Shengnan, on the other hand, had eyes shining with excitement.

The second topic was a bit more somber.

At the beginning of the month, Su Chen had already pre-paid everyone’s salary for the entire month.

In other words, everyone still at the company was staying purely out of conscience. People in difficult situations, like Li Mingtao, couldn’t afford to be so conscientious.

But since the company had decided to make a last stand, the people who stayed had to be people who could contribute!

If everyone was busy, or if everyone was idle, that would be fine.

The fear was that some people would be worked to death while others had nothing to do. That would be very unfair.

So, Su Chen frankly explained his thoughts.

For those willing to take a gamble with him, they would all pool their wisdom and efforts for one final push.

If anyone was truly facing hardship, then starting tomorrow, they were welcome to eat, but not to work.

It was as simple as that.

They were all adults, and it was much better to say things openly than to hide them. By the time Su Chen had finished speaking, four employees expressed that they were indeed in a difficult spot.

While slacking off at the company for the past few days, they had all been looking for other jobs.

Su Chen was very understanding. After all, everyone was out here to make money.

And as Su Chen recalled, these four employees all had special circumstances. The two men were about to get married, so they were probably tight on cash.

The two women were from out of town. If they couldn’t line up a new job immediately, they would face a huge risk to their livelihood.

By eight-thirty, those who were leaving had left, and those who were staying had stayed.

After yet another major downsizing, the staff of Meiweilai Food Company had stabilized, at least temporarily, before its collapse.

Boss: Su Chen

Product Manager (personally appointed): Bai Xiaobo

CFO (self-appointed): Liu Shengnan

Brand Ambassador (self-proclaimed): He Shuting

Company Beautician (appointed by He Shuting): Aunt Fang

Summer Intern (3 days remaining): Xiaobin

With the new office lineup finalized, everyone seemed to be brimming with motivation. This was especially true for Liu Shengnan, a college graduate only a year out of school. The thought of saving the company from the brink of disaster was making her practically buzz with excitement!

At such a thrilling moment, everyone was waiting for Su Chen’s final, concluding speech.

Suddenly.

"One word: Hustle!!!" Bai Xiaobo shot to his feet, one fist held to his chest, the other clutching half a bun.

He Shuting, caught off guard by this sudden burst of bravado, also stood up with half a bun in her hand and bumped it against Bai Xiaobo’s. "Hustle?"

"Hustle!!!" Liu Shengnan joined in too.

Although Aunt Fang was a little embarrassed, she still chuckled and bumped her bun against everyone else’s. "Let’s work hard."

Su Chen pinched the bridge of his nose.

’If I join in, it’s a bit dorky.’

’But if I don’t, it’ll be too discouraging. Can’t you guys just be normal for a second?’

’Well then...’

Su Chen stood up too, bumping his bun against theirs. "With buns instead of wine, let’s do it!"

At the cafeteria entrance, Wang Rui, who had just arrived, watched this scene in utter shock.

’Holy crap, is this that "wolf culture" thing?’

’A fast-food joint is also doing the "wolf culture" thing?’

"Um... is there any breakfast left?" Wang Rui asked cautiously, shattering the passionate fervor in the cafeteria.

The six buns, held aloft and bumping against each other, hung in the air a bit awkwardly.

"Yes!" Su Chen said decisively when he saw it was the guest from last night. "But we only have buns."

Wang Rui strode in. "Great! Pack some buns for me. I need..."

He held up his hand and counted.

There were ten people in the General Affairs Office, plus three from Human Resources, and then subtract Liu Xia.

Okay, that’s twelve people.

"Pack fifteen buns for me!"

He wasn’t doing it for any other reason than to piss off Liu Xia.

"We don’t have fifteen left." Aunt Fang knew the bun count clearly. "There are only ten."

After all, there had only been two steamers of buns, and the Meiweilai employees had already eaten most of them.

"Ten is fine," Wang Rui said readily. He’d just eat three himself and let the others split the rest.

"Um... can I pay with a QR code? I don’t have any cash."

Su Chen rubbed his head. It wasn’t really his fault; he’d only decided to revive the company last night. Where would he have found the time to set up a QR code?

"Liu Shengnan, have him scan your personal WeChat code for now. He Shuting, I’m sending you the QR code. Go print a color copy right now and stick it on the cafeteria door."

The two young women stuffed the rest of their buns into their mouths and immediately got to work.

Watching Liu Shengnan’s cheeks puff out as she presented her QR code to him, Wang Rui gulped and quickly scanned it, sending fifty yuan.

’This "wolf culture" is no joke. The employees’ execution is way too efficient! If this were at Xinghui, it would take at least three rounds of approval...’

Aunt Fang handed the packaged buns to Wang Rui.

The first transaction of the morning had come out of nowhere, but it left everyone full of confidence!

Now that the staff was finally settled, Su Chen had a new plan he was ready to implement.

He called everyone together to continue their short meeting.

"Um..."

He Shuting saw Wang Rui, who had left and come back, and recalling how this guy had tried to steal buns the day before, she looked at him with some annoyance. "What is it now?"

"I wanted to ask something." For some reason, Wang Rui always felt that this restaurant was different from others.

Usually, when he went to other restaurants, he was the customer, and he could act as entitled as he wanted.

But coming here, he always felt like he was intruding.

"I’d like to ask, is your company’s cafeteria open for lunch?"

"Lunch?" Su Chen walked to the door. "Of course, we’re open. It’s just that our business model might be a little different from a normal restaurant’s."

"Oh?" Wang Rui’s interest was piqued. "What do you mean?"

Su Chen smiled faintly. "Bai Xiaobo, add this client on WeChat."

Client?

Wang Rui was so surprised he let out a laugh. Being called a client just for coming to eat—this place really was different.

Bai Xiaobo was a little confused by Su Chen’s order, but he did it anyway. Who could argue? Su Chen was the boss.

"Alright, you can go for now. As for our business operations, our Product Manager will explain the details to you on WeChat."

Hearing the two words "Product Manager," Bai Xiaobo straightened his shirt and puffed out his chest. "I will contact you again regarding the specific details."

"Oh..." Wang Rui said weakly.

He left Meiweilai with his buns in hand. It wasn’t until he was in the elevator that he was still trying to figure it out. ’Why am I, a customer, so lacking in confidence...?’

After the customer left, Bai Xiaobo looked at Su Chen excitedly. "Boss, what’s our business model really going to be? Isn’t it the same as a restaurant?"

Su Chen gave a wry smile. "Of course not! You’re a 211 graduate, Shengnan is from a 985, and Shuting... is a big-name streamer. Could I really make you guys work as kitchen staff, waiters, and cashiers?"

His words made a few of them blush with embarrassment.

But Su Chen wasn’t just talking nonsense. The primary requirement for a regular restaurant is a storefront property. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

You can only make money with high foot traffic. Most restaurants rely on customers walking in on their own to spend money. If you do a good job, you might get repeat customers. This is an almost immutable principle.

His company was located in a deserted Development Zone, and in an office building at that. Just getting customers to walk in on their own was a pipe dream!

Even if they got a few customers, could they really rely on their food being more delicious than other restaurants’ to make people travel over ten kilometers just to eat there again?

Su Chen didn’t believe it was possible.

Unless he drugged the food.

So...

Going on the offensive was the best method!

Combining this with the company’s current situation—tens of thousands of yuan worth of ingredients in the warehouse with no use for them, a location completely unsuitable for a restaurant, a group of employees with no kitchen experience, and finally, a boss with a [Cheat].

Su Chen came up with a business model that didn’t yet exist on the market.

"So... what we’re going to be is not some restaurant or diner."

Everyone looked at Su Chen with eager anticipation.

"What we’re going to create is Delicious Customization!"