After a quick breakfast, Zhang Liunian first went to the old shop to check on the situation.
Before he even got close, he could see that the outside of the shop was already crowded with people, lining up from the back door to the front, and then circling the shop several times before ending.
Since it was still morning and the braised meat wasn't out yet, Zhang Liunian was certain that all these people were there to sell pickles.
As Zhang Liunian approached, he heard them all talking about how delicious Zhang Family pickles were and how much face they brought when served.
Hearing these words, Zhang Liunian naturally felt a sense of pride and happily walked into the shop, where he saw Zhang Ziping directing the shop assistants to sell pickles.
Upon noticing Zhang Liunian's appearance, he immediately excused himself and followed Zhang Liunian upstairs for a chat.
Zhang Liunian sat down and discussed the shop's situation with Zhang Ziping. Learning that the pickle business had been incredibly booming a week prior, he conveyed the holiday arrangements for the New Year.
When Zhang Ziping heard Zhang Liunian say that working on the second day of the Lunar New Year would earn triple the salary, just like Manager Gu, he expressed his desire to work.
Knowing his circumstances, Zhang Liunian smiled and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "This is voluntary. By the way, I've prepared New Year gifts for a few of you store managers – a television. I'll have Xiao Qian deliver it to you tomorrow. As for the employees downstairs, whether they come to work on the second day of the Lunar New Year or not, they will all receive a New Year's red envelope, ten yuan each. Please help me distribute it tomorrow."
At Zhang Liunian's words, Zhang Ziping became excited. He was an orphan with no one to spend the New Year with. If he had a TV, he wouldn't feel so lonely during the holidays.
Therefore, even though he heard Zhang Liunian wanted to give him a TV and knew it was too valuable to accept, he still intended to take it.
Having worked for Zhang Liunian for less than three months, his salary was still quite a bit short of a television. It was unlikely he could afford to buy one before the year ended.
Now that there was a readily available one, he couldn't refuse.
"Really? Thank you, Liunian-ge." Zhang Ziping suppressed his excitement and expressed his gratitude directly. Then, remembering something, he proactively mentioned it.
"I've handed over the shop's accounts and turnover for this period to Zifeng-ge. He's currently at the department store. You can go there to check the shop's financial records. It details every income and expenditure of our shop."
Since becoming a store manager, Zhang Ziping had been working diligently, fearing any accusation of misappropriating any of the shop's funds.
Therefore, the accounts were recorded meticulously and balanced.
Zhang Liunian naturally trusted him, otherwise, he wouldn't have made him a store manager and cultivated him as one of his own.
"I understand. For your salary, find Zifeng. I've handed over all the account management to him," Zhang Liunian said and then turned to go to the new shop.
This was the braised meat shop managed by Grandpa Tang. As expected, the new shop, like the old one, was doing booming business, with a long queue of people waiting outside the door.
However, what surprised Zhang Liunian was that he hadn't heard any of the Nancheng people talking about the virus. It was as if the previous lockdown had never happened.
With this thought, Zhang Liunian found Grandpa Tang and immediately inquired about it.
"I heard it was a false alarm, that they made a mistake. It wasn't a virus at all, just a common cold. But the news was suppressed, and many people weren't aware. They only knew the virus wasn't scary and not contagious, so they lifted the restrictions."
Grandpa Tang was about to report the recent earnings to Zhang Liunian. Upon hearing Zhang Liunian ask about the reason for Nancheng's lockdown, he began to explain volubly.
Zhang Liunian realized with a start that this was not quite what he remembered, and it seemed he had been mistaken.
"So that's how it is. I came to inform you about the New Year holiday. Tomorrow is the last day before the holiday, and the new shop will be closed. If anyone wants to work on the second day of the Lunar New Year, I'll offer triple the salary, until after the Lantern Festival. If no one wants to work, then everyone will have the entire holiday..."
Zhang Liunian repeated the same words to Grandpa Tang. When Grandpa Tang heard about the television, he immediately refused, "Working for triple the salary, I'm tempted. As for the TV, there's no need to send it. Your salary is already high enough, you really don't need to spend extra."
Zhang Liunian would not agree. What he decided to do could not be easily interrupted. "It's not just for you; only store managers and factory assistants will receive one. Other employees will get a ten yuan red envelope for the New Year. They'll all get one, so there's no reason why you shouldn't have one."
"This..." Grandpa Tang hesitated.
"Take it if I give it to you. Just continue to manage the shop well for me," Zhang Liunian said, not waiting for him to refuse again, and firmly decided.
Seeing his persistence, Grandpa Tang no longer refused. He then explained the shop's situation to Zhang Liunian one by one.
In short, the new shop was doing very well. The braised meat alone could generate six to seven thousand yuan daily, and this month alone had brought in over a hundred thousand yuan in revenue.
Zhang Liunian was very satisfied. He then went to the pig farm to meet with Zhang Qian. Upon returning to Nancheng, Zhang Qian had gone directly to the pig farm. He was the manager of the pig farm, and if it weren't for the Nancheng lockdown, he would have returned much earlier.
However, Nancheng had no Tang family, and the farm's development had been very smooth. The wild boar piglets had also grown considerably.
"Tomorrow, remember to go to Nancheng to pick up the televisions. Ziping, Grandpa Tang, Zifeng, and yourself will each receive one. You'll personally deliver them. Bring ten televisions over in total, and send the rest to my house."
Zhang Liunian instructed Zhang Qian on tomorrow's work. Zhang Qian nodded, as tomorrow was his last day of work. The pig farm didn't have too many matters for him to manage, so it was best for him to go out.
"Liunian-ge, rest assured, I will handle this matter properly," Zhang Qian promised, patting his chest.
"You won't have time to deal with holiday arrangements tomorrow. So, right before closing time today, notify the factory employees about tomorrow's holiday. Tell them to collect their wages from the accounting department tomorrow. Remember to give everyone an extra ten yuan New Year's red envelope. This needs to be communicated clearly. You will all be on holiday until the Lantern Festival. Find a few people to work to maintain the factory's operation. These people will be paid triple the salary per day. You decide how many and who."
There was no need for too many people to be working at the pig farm, so Zhang Liunian could only give clear instructions.
Zhang Qian nodded, indicating he understood. "I know what to do. If it's not necessary, they don't need to come."
Zhang Liunian nodded. The two chatted for a while longer, and then Zhang Liunian went to the newly acquired food factory. This factory was originally the Tang family's, and now it belonged to Zhang Liunian. He had asked Uncle Zhao to help him recruit staff for production, and it had become a formal factory. Entering from the main gate, he saw busy figures everywhere, with thousands of people visible at a glance.
"Liunian, you're here. Come, I'll take you to see the factory," Uncle Zhao said, who was overseeing production inside the factory. Upon seeing Zhang Liunian, he turned in surprise and pulled him towards the workshop.
As soon as they entered the workshop, the sound of machinery and the chatter of employees working filled the air.
However, whenever Zhang Liunian and the others approached, these chatting employees immediately fell silent and focused on their work.
Zhang Liunian was accustomed to this and inspected one workshop after another with Zhao Zhijie, finding that Zhao Zhijie managed the factory very well.