This time, Lin Chuxia also made it clear with Jia Liang that he would be in charge of the Bun Shop in the city.
Not only renting and renovating the shop but also all matters related to hiring staff would be entirely handled by Jia Liang.
Jia Liang had long anticipated Lin Chuxia’s arrangement, but hearing it explicitly still stirred his emotions.
“Mr. Lin, don’t worry, I’ll do my best.”
Lin Chuxia never shortchanges her staff. Working under her, you can really put your mind at ease.
Seeing that it was nearing noon, the two decided to go eat at a nearby local eatery. Then Jia Liang brought up another matter.
“The two brothers from my past came to me, wanting to work together with me again. It’s a bit embarrassing to say, but initially when Houzi and I decided to clean up our act, I tried to get them to join us, but they refused. I thought everyone has their own aspirations and didn’t force them. Now, maybe they have come around, or maybe their line of work really isn’t going well, so they came to me knowing Houzi and I are doing well and wanted to join us. After all, we’ve been through thick and thin together, so I had no choice but to shamelessly ask this favor from Mr. Lin.”
Lin Chuxia was dumbfounded.
Goodness, talk about having aspirations.
If Jia Liang and Houzi managing to reform counts as having aspirations, does insisting on skullduggery also count as having aspirations?
And that bit about “went through thick and thin,” recalling the first time she met Jia Liang and Houzi, when she gave them a good thrashing, that indeed was going through thick and thin.
Lin Chuxia knew Jia Liang valued loyalty, this kind of gang-like loyalty might not always discern right from wrong, but it’s genuinely a rare quality in a person.
Lin Chuxia trusted Jia Liang so much that she handed over the city branch to him, not only because of his abilities but also because he possesses this kind of loyalty.
She was certain, if she was ever betrayed, it definitely wouldn’t be by Jia Liang.
“Alright, we do need more hands at the branch anyway. You handle it as you see fit.”
Jia Liang was somewhat hesitant in saying this, but upon hearing Lin Chuxia agree so readily, he grinned broadly, “They’re in the city, I’ll call them over for you to meet with them, Mr. Lin.”
Soon, Jia Liang contacted those two brothers, and to Lin Chuxia’s surprise, she recognized them.
When she had come to the city to shop, encountering Jia Liang and Houzi, there was another man.
It was Jia Liang and a man with a ruffian look that cornered her in the alley, and she gave them a proper beating.
Among the two was the man with the ruffian look.
Jia Liang introduced them to Lin Chuxia, first pointing to the man with the ruffian look, “This is Tian Jinzhu,” and then to the other, “This is Feng Zhong.”
The two men respectfully greeted, “Mr. Lin.”
Lin Chuxia nodded, addressing both the men and Jia Liang, “Follow Jia Liang and work hard. I don’t have any special requirements. Your salary will be the same as the other regular employees in the shop, which Jia Liang already knows and likely has told you.”
“Yes, Brother Liang has told us.”
Since everything was already discussed, Lin Chuxia didn’t have much more to say. Initially, she entrusted the Bun Shop in the city to Jia Liang, including full responsibility for hiring.
He wanted to employ his two brothers; there was no need to inform Lin Chuxia anyway.
However, Jia Liang was deeply moved by Lin Chuxia’s attitude, unhesitatingly using his brothers, which showed Lin Chuxia’s great trust in him.
After finishing their business, Jia Liang personally saw Lin Chuxia onto the bus back to Ancheng County.
He watched the bus until it was out of sight before he turned away.
Turning his head, he saw the two brothers behind him and reminded them again, “You must do your best. Mr. Lin has given us his utmost trust; we cannot let Mr. Lin down.”
Who would want to use them given the things they’ve done in the past?
Like before, they wanted to turn over a new leaf numerous times but ended up jobless and without options, so they reverted to their old trades.
Tian Jinzhu patted his chest, guaranteeing, “Brother Liang, don’t worry. You know what kind of people we brothers are. By the way, about the renovation I mentioned to you last time, the shopfront has been rented. Should we start the renovations? Leave this matter to us brothers. Now that you’re in a leadership position, you don’t need to be at the forefront of everything.”
“Just like Brother Liang. No matter how others treat Brother Liang outside, in front of us brothers, Brother Liang is still the same Brother Liang.”
Jia Liang smiled and waved his hand, “No need for that, just do your jobs well. Mr. Lin is easy to talk to, as long as we do our work well, Mr. Lin won’t care about our backgrounds.”
Following such a leader, Jia Liang felt content.
Tian Jinzhu chuckled, “I never thought we would end up working for a woman one day.”
“What’s wrong with following a woman? Look at Brother Liang,” Feng Zhong said.
Jia Liang didn’t quite like this comment, “Exactly, what’s wrong with a woman? Don’t underestimate Mr. Lin just because she’s a woman; she’s no ordinary woman.”
Seeing Jia Liang’s stern face, Tian Jinzhu laughed along, “Exactly, a woman who can totally convince Brother Liang is definitely not an ordinary woman.”
………
When Lin Chuxia returned to the Bun Shop in the evening, it was bustling with people, and the servers were busy weaving through the nearly full tables. Lin Chuxia immediately noticed a figure in the corner.
Sun Lanlan saw Lin Chuxia enter and hurried out from behind the counter.
Feeling her gaze, she whispered an explanation, “Your brother has been here since the afternoon. He said he couldn’t find you at the Bun Shop in the city, so he came here looking for you. I told him you went to the city, and he’s been sitting there ever since, waiting. He won’t say what it’s about. Could it be something about your mom or your sister…”
Sun Lanlan knew the Lin Family all too well.
Lin Chuxia handed her the bag, “I’ll go and see him. Can you bring some food over for us?” Seeing that the table in front of Lin Jiadong was empty, she added, “Bring a bit more.”
She then walked straight over.
Lin Jiadong was sitting at the table with his back to the door, lost in thought, looking a bit dazed.
Lin Chuxia directly sat across from him, and after about half a minute, Lin Jiadong’s gaze finally focused on her, his eyes lighting up.
“You’re back, Second Sister?” he said with a bit of grievance, “I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.”
“Did you need something from me?”
Lin Jiadong sighed, his eyes dimming slowly, his shoulders sagging.
“There is something. Mom told me yesterday not to go to school anymore. She said since studying half-day won’t lead to any great prospects, it’s better to find a job and start earning wages early.”
Lin Jiadong was in his third year of junior high school, about to graduate.
Nowadays, having a junior high school diploma in the countryside was quite an accomplishment.
Initially, Lin Chuxia didn’t even finish junior high school; halfway through the second year, Jiayi convinced their mother to make her quit school.
Later, when she made some money and had time from her business, she slowly learned many things herself.
However, seeing Lin Jiadong’s demeanor, it seemed he still had other concerns on his mind.
“What do you think about it?” Lin Chuxia directly asked him.