Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 106 Director Wang made room for my daughter's dad +1

About half an hour later, when Xiao Wei was almost asleep, Xia Maosheng finally pushed the door open and came in.

"I've clarified the details. They'll provide the teachers, and we'll cover the food and accommodation. They won't take a cut, but we'll have to sign a contract. Our students, and even those of us who want to open our own shops, will have to source their equipment and materials from them. They'll hold a intensive training session every May, inviting masters from eastern Guangdong to give lectures, which will be free. They can also send people to help with the setup if we open a shop. It all sounds pretty good."

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said, "How can he restrict them? We can't be sure that students will definitely open a shop after they finish their studies. Besides, students can't possibly report to us if they open a shop. Who knows where they'll buy equipment and materials later?"

Xia Maosheng said, "They said that when new students open their shops, they definitely hope to have someone to help them, and they will send their instructors over."

Xiao Wei scratched his head and said, "Their boss is something else. He's going to all this trouble just to sell equipment and materials. It seems like this stuff is very profitable, and he's invested quite a bit. Okay, let's go with this. We can learn from him. These days, big hotels all have Western food sections, right? They even have a hundred different ways of making a fried egg, all high and mighty. Let's go straight for Western-style cakes and pastries and see who's the best."

Xia Maosheng thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay."

……

The next morning, Xiaowei and Xia Maosheng had breakfast and then went to the Labor Bureau.

It was the same old man who glanced at the two people from behind his reading glasses without saying a word. The two people went straight upstairs.

Upon arriving at Director Wang's office, the door was open. Director Wang was sitting behind his desk, and a young man and woman were standing in front of him, holding a thick stack of documents and listening to him say something.

Director Wang nodded when he saw them arrive and said, "You're here. Have a seat for a while, and I'll take you there in a bit."

The two men sat down on the chairs and waited for Director Wang to handle official business.

About half an hour later, Director Wang received three groups of people and took a phone call. Only then did he put the lid on his teacup and walk out from behind his desk with a smile: "Are you in a hurry? There are so many things going on all day, there's nothing I can do. Come on, I'll take you to see these places. These used to be the offices downstairs, they were old buildings. They were abandoned after the new building was built. Yesterday I said I was looking for a place to set up some vocational training classes, and they said these buildings were still vacant, and they're not far from here."

The two men stood up and followed Director Wang out of the house. Director Wang hadn't locked the door. He greeted someone in the office and went downstairs with the two men: "The house isn't big, it's an old building, but it'll do. It's enough for a training class. The heating has always been there. Just sweep it up, tidy it up, and put up a sign. You don't have a place to stay yet, right? You can stay there. I'll get everything you need from the guesthouse."

Xia Maosheng said, "We're staying at the guesthouse."

Director Wang smiled and said, "Oh, right, it'll be more comfortable for you to stay over there. Okay, then I won't interfere."

I went downstairs without driving, and walked directly from this building toward the city government. It turned out that the building was right behind the city government, just across a small street.

It is indeed an old building, and there is a courtyard. Back then, all the houses built by work units had a large courtyard.

It really wasn't very big, just three floors, each floor about three hundred square meters. Xiao Wei quietly asked Xia Maosheng, "If this isn't big, then how big is big?"

Xia Maosheng chuckled and whispered, "They have a broad vision, we can't compare. If they say it shouldn't be big, then it shouldn't be. Is it bad if it's big? We can use it however we want. What would we do if we were really given three classrooms?"

Xiao Wei said, "Shall we move in? There's enough space."

Xia Maosheng shook his head and said, "Why move here? It's more comfortable than a guesthouse, and it doesn't cost you any money."

Xiao Wei didn't understand, so Xia Maosheng said, "We can use my aunt's hospitality expenses over there, and we can reimburse them later."

There's a lot of clutter in the building, it's dusty everywhere, and a few doors and windows are broken and need repair. The water, electricity, and heating are all working fine. It's big enough to run not just three classes, but ten classes as well.

After walking around the building, Director Wang handed the keys to Xia Maosheng and said, "You guys get ready. Plan out which areas are needed, and I'll have someone come and make signs for you all. Oh, by the way, if you're free tomorrow or the day after, come over to my place to sign a contract to manage the vocational training center, and then I'll post a notice."

Xia Maosheng agreed, and Director Wang dusted off his hands and went back. Xiao Wei and Xia Maosheng looked around the building.

"We need to set up a guard room on the first floor. We can ask Uncle Wang to find an old man to watch over the place. Let's just put all the offices on the first floor, and we need some equipment too. We can put them all on the first floor. We can put the dormitories on the third floor, okay?" Xia Maosheng discussed with Xiao Wei as he looked around.

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Let's get someone to clean up first. What should we do?"

Xia Maosheng turned his head and looked around, scratched his head and said, "I forgot to tell Uncle Wang earlier."

Xiao Wei said, "Blackboard, desks and chairs, we're buying all of these? And a bed too."

Xia Maosheng said, "We need to set up some dormitories for the teachers. All our teachers are from Fengtian, so we need to make sure they have good accommodations. What about their meals?"

Xiao Wei said, "We can ignore the students, but what about the teachers? Why don't you ask your Uncle Wang if they have a cafeteria?"

Xia Maosheng shook his head and said, "Nonsense, they all eat at home or bring their own lunchboxes. Where are we going to find a cafeteria for us?"

Xiao Wei said, "It would be great if we had our own restaurant. We have to contact all the places where we're interning; there's just too much to do."

Xia Maosheng's eyes lit up, and he nudged Xiao Wei, saying, "How about we open one here? It's close to the government. I'm sure it'll work."

Xiao Wei asked, "Where will the chef come from? Can we manage?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Let's find someone. We definitely can't do it ourselves. I have to go to work. If I don't go to work, my dad will break my legs. Let's find someone. I'll ask Lao Lan, or I'll ask Uncle Wang and the others to find someone around here. They eat out every day, so they must know someone."

Xiao Wei said, "How much money would that cost? I'm afraid I don't have enough. I don't even have 20,000 yuan on me."

Xia Maosheng sighed and paced back and forth, trying to come up with a solution.

Just as they were pondering this, the door opened, and they heard a lot of people coming in. The two of them went out of the room and into the corridor to look at the front door. A group of women carrying brooms, mops and other items walked in, laughing and talking.

Upon seeing Xia Maosheng, a woman asked, "Who is Xia?"

Xia Maosheng said, "What am I doing here?"

The woman said, "Director Wang sent us to clean up. What's going on with this building? I remember it's been vacant for years. Look at all this dust, you could grow corn in it."

Xia Maosheng said, "This will be a vocational training center from now on, and we'll be in charge of this area. It's just the beginning, so we'll have to trouble you all."

The woman stood there assigning tasks, and the group of women dispersed to work. She then approached Xia Maosheng and Xiao Wei, saying, "I'm from the office, my surname is Li, just call me Sister Li. Where are you from? I haven't seen you before. Are you newly transferred?"

Xia Maosheng said, "I used to work for the Beipiao government. This is a joint project between your bureau and our city, so they sent me here."