Chapter 194 Mr. He, are you asleep? Already asleep, do not disturb.

Spring brings forth life, summer fosters growth. The abundance stored up throughout autumn and winter is awakened by a few spring rains, and all living things revive and grow. Nature's gifts are generous and plentiful, and Little Star Canteen serves up one delicious mountain dish after another for its guests.

Eager to try something new, diners flocked to Little Star. From opening to closing, Little Star was almost always packed. The front hall was bustling with noise, and waiters were constantly running between customers and tables. In the kitchen, flames roared high, and the clanging of spatulas against woks filled the air as chefs tirelessly tossed, seasoned, and cooked.

Since Wen Yue left, the kitchen has been operating at full speed. Now, there is no time to even catch a breath. However, in this busy state, Meng Cuie came to An Fusheng to resign.

This was something An Fusheng had never even dreamed of. "Can you tell me why?"

Meng Cuie kept saying "I'm sorry".

Resignation is an employee's right, but the restaurant has been too busy lately, and hiring a chef is not easy. An Fusheng could only say, "Is there an emergency at home? If it's not urgent, could you hold on for a little longer? The kitchen is already operating at full capacity, and we really can't handle it if you leave."

Meng Cuie insisted, "I'm sorry, I've already made up my mind."

An Fusheng was still persistent: "Is there a problem with your treatment? You can speak frankly about any needs or ideas you may have."

Meng Cuie quickly shook her head: "No, the treatment you offer is very good. I never thought that I could find such a well-paid job here when I was unfamiliar with the place. But I... I really have my reasons."

Meng Cuie's troubles must be related to Xiao Hui, right? An Fusheng asked, "Is it related to Xiao Hui? Didn't you say that Xiao Hui's central vision has improved to 0.5 and that she can start school next semester as long as a good school is found? Are you having trouble finding a school?"

Meng Cuie paused noticeably, then said, "No."

An Fusheng was at his wit's end. "Could you stay for two more weeks and give me some time to hire another chef?"

Meng Cuie lowered her head and remained silent.

That means it won't work.

"Fine," An Fusheng said weakly, "Go and go to Manager Xu to process your resignation."

After a long silence, Meng Cuie said, "Boss An, thank you so much."

An Fusheng waved his hand. "Go ahead."

With Meng Cuie gone, An Fusheng had to take her place.

Normally, when it's not peak time, he can handle other things, but once Meng Cuie left, he had to stay in the kitchen from opening to closing time, cooking.

After closing time, I still had other things to take care of, and by the time I got home it was already past midnight.

After several busy days, Wen Min was still waiting for him when he got home one evening.

"Mrs. Wen? Why aren't you asleep yet so late?" An Fusheng asked.

Wen Min: "Is the restaurant very busy lately?"

An Fusheng nodded. "Recently, the restaurant has been serving a lot of wild game and delicacies, and many customers come to try them."

Wen Min: "Is it also because Meng Cuie resigned?"

An Fusheng was taken aback: "How did you know?"

Wen Min: "I don't know if you'll ever tell me."

An Fusheng: "Chefs resigning is a very common thing in restaurant operations, there's nothing to say about it."

They're not little kids who have to tell their parents everything.

Wen Min: "Is Meng Cuie an ordinary employee? Can leaving an ordinary employee really keep you so busy that you get less than five hours of sleep a day?"

“…” An Fusheng: “We have already posted a chef recruitment advertisement. Now that the restaurant has grown in size and gained some reputation, several chefs have already submitted their resumes, and some chefs will come for interviews tomorrow.”

Wen Min: "Your Aunt Lou said the day before yesterday that Xiao Hui didn't come to play. We all thought her eyes had recovered well and she could stay home, so we didn't expect..."

An Fusheng: "How did you know that Meng Cuie resigned?"

Wen Min: "Your mother Lou said that she took Wen Xingrui to class today and saw another restaurant with photos of celebrity chefs posted on it, including Meng Cuie's photo."

"Huh?" An Fusheng didn't react for a moment.

Wen Min: "You mean she was poached by another restaurant, and you didn't even know?"

An Fusheng: "She didn't tell me."

Wen Min: "Your mother Lou was so angry that she went to ask her. She said it was about Xiao Hui's schooling. The shop owner has connections and can help get Xiao Hui into Nancheng No. 3 Primary School. It's difficult for Xiao Hui to get into a public primary school without a Nancheng household registration, let alone No. 3 Primary School, which is a key municipal primary school."

“Oh…no wonder she wouldn’t tell me the reason no matter how I asked her, so she went to work as a cook at someone else’s house…” An Fusheng couldn’t describe his feelings; he felt a little sad, but more than that, he felt powerless.

An Fusheng, looking dejected, resembled a bullied dog. He looked pitiful yet somewhat adorable. Wen Min patted his fluffy head and comforted him, "Actually, if Xiao Hui were to come to me about her schooling, I wouldn't be completely helpless."

An Fusheng: "Forget it, I'm an adult now. I can't ask my mom for help when I encounter difficulties at work."

Wen Min was amused by him, patted his head again, and then said, "By the way, are you free to attend the family meeting tomorrow night at eight o'clock?"

An Fusheng: "Is there something you need?"

Wen Min: "Xiao Ba's adoption procedures are complete."

"So fast!" An Fusheng asked knowingly. "Once the adoption procedures are completed, his parents can take him away, right?"

Wen Min: "Well, Mr. and Mrs. He Chen said they'll come to pick us up the day after tomorrow, so we plan to hold a family meeting tomorrow to announce the news, so that everyone can be mentally prepared."

An Fusheng: "I understand."

Wen Min: "Alright, I waited for you just to inform you about the meeting. Go take a shower and go to bed. You've had a long day, so get some rest."

An Fusheng: "Mm."

...

It was impossible to be early; An Fusheng returned to his room after taking a shower, drying his hair, and it was already past one o'clock.

In the room, An Shisi lay across the bed, while Wen Xinglan slept obediently on the seashell-shaped mattress placed on the floor.

The seashell bed was bought for him by Wen Yusheng. Ever since he got it, Wen Xinglan has refused to sleep on the bed anymore. At first, he wanted to drag An Fusheng to sleep in the seashell with him, but later he found that An Fusheng was too big and the seashell lid could not be closed after he was put in. After weighing the options, he decided to sleep alone.

For the first few days, An Fusheng was worried that he would get cold, so he secretly carried him to bed after he fell asleep. But when he woke up the next day and found that he was no longer in the seashell, he crawled back in after a few scrambling movements. An Fusheng was startled awake several times when he was half asleep and found that the space next to him was empty. After searching for a while, he found that he was sleeping well in the seashell. So An Fusheng simply let him sleep in the seashell to avoid him getting cold from climbing up and down.

Lou's mother said that all the children in the welfare home started sleeping independently at the age of three, and it seems that Wen Xinglan is no exception.

An Fusheng straightened An Shisi, who was lying across the bed, and then got into bed himself.

Completely unable to fall asleep, he tossed and turned for a while, seemingly even more awake. The image of Wen Xinglan being taken away kept replaying in his mind, making it difficult for An Fusheng to breathe.

"He Chen and his wife are very good people, and their family is well-off. He's going there to live a good life, not to suffer. Don't think about it anymore, don't think about it anymore."

An Fusheng forcibly cut off his thoughts, but because he couldn't sleep, he had to think about something, so he forced his thoughts back to work, "How can we retain our core employees?"

Compared to other restaurants, he offered higher wages, and all the necessary benefits such as social security were provided. He also ensured that employees had at least two days off per week. The ordinary employees were very satisfied, and there had been no complaints since the restaurant opened. However, what he wanted to retain most was core talent. Did he really need people with power, influence, and connections? Was it not enough to just pay them enough wages and benefits, but he also had to help them solve their living problems?

That might be true, but I don't have it!

Xu Sannian said, "Everyone in the world is driven by profit." So what profit can he offer besides power? He's in business, and he has to ensure the restaurant's profits. If he loses money, what's the point of keeping the restaurant open?

An Fusheng wailed inwardly.

After thinking for a moment, An Fusheng picked up his phone and sent a message to He Zhi: Boss He, are you asleep?

Two minutes later, He Zhi replied: "I'm asleep, do not disturb."

Having run so many restaurants and dealt with all sorts of messy things every day, An Fusheng is no longer the same An Fusheng. The current An Fusheng is very thick-skinned. He was unmoved by being mocked and continued to ask: "How do you retain your employees?"

More than that: you didn't stay, didn't you run away?

An Fusheng: ...other employees.

Even though he replied instantly, He Zhi hadn't replied for over ten minutes. An Fusheng knew without a doubt that He Zhi was playing games. He Zhi was rather irritable when playing games, so An Fusheng wisely refrained from sending any more messages to bother him.

Sure enough, about ten minutes later, He did more than just come looking for him: ? ? ?

An Fusheng: Recently, one of our employees resigned.

More than that: Isn't it normal for employees to resign? They signed a labor contract with you, not a contract to sell themselves into servitude. Do you think they'll work for you forever?

An Fusheng: You're not an ordinary employee, you're the head chef of the restaurant. You should understand how important the head chef is to the restaurant. So I'd like to ask you how to retain core employees as much as possible.

More than that: What else can we do but offer enough benefits?

An Fusheng: But the salary I paid was already very high. Any higher and it would affect the restaurant's profits. Moreover, the main reason this head chef resigned was not because of the salary, but because someone else could help her solve her daughter's school enrollment problem.

More than that: Isn't it a matter of interests? If you can't offer the same benefits as others, of course they'll leave.

An Fusheng: But these benefits are not something ordinary people can provide. Does that mean ordinary people can't do business?

More than that: Yes, otherwise how could someone so easily steal your person away?

An Fusheng sent a slightly dead emoji.

She did more than just roll her eyes in response.

Before An Fusheng could send another message, He Zhi asked: How did you manage to get Xu Sannian to willingly stay with you?

An Fusheng's alarm bells rang loudly. Was he going to try and steal her away from him? But he was asking her for advice and couldn't just ignore her. After thinking for a long time, An Fusheng replied: "We have a deep bond as master and disciple, and she volunteered to stay and help me."

More than that: Ha!

Chat ended.

An Fusheng suddenly had an inspiration. At Xu Sannian's strong request, An Fusheng gave Xu Sannian one percent of the shares this year. When Zhaolin found out, he also clamored for one, saying that just receiving a fixed salary was boring and hopeless. So... shares can retain people?

An Fusheng jumped out of bed and ran to his desk to turn on his computer.

...