Will you find Chapter 65, the prelude to a new chapter, boring?
The contract signing process was surprisingly simple and efficient.
Su Qing's salary demands were more reasonable than Shi Wan had imagined, and even quite "practical" in some aspects. She frankly stated that she valued the management authority Shi Wan granted and the farm's development potential more.
Shi Wan was also very generous, offering not only the agreed-upon salary but also a proposal to link quarterly bonuses to the overall farm performance. She also gave Su Qing some say in the future production line, showing her sincerity.
Therefore, Su Qing did not dwell on the terms and readily signed her name.
On Su Qing's first day officially reporting for duty at the farm, a strong cold front passed through, causing a sharp drop in temperature.
The chill of late autumn has already mixed with the biting cold of early winter.
The farm's weekend tours and cat kitchen activities have also been suspended due to the season, making it less lively than usual, but more tranquil and understated, a characteristic of winter.
When Shi Wan arrived at the office building, she was surprised to find that Su Qing was already there.
She changed into a more professional-looking dark-colored fitted knit dress and ankle boots, with a neatly tailored oatmeal-colored trench coat over it, and was standing in front of the information board, busy with something.
It seems that she is posting the planning map of Zone 2, equipment parameter table, and some raw material supplier information that Shi Wan has compiled herself onto the information board.
"Good morning, Mr. Shi." Su Qing turned around when she heard footsteps. She was holding a thick folder in her hand and looked very energetic.
"Good morning, Su Qing. You don't need to be so polite. Please feel free to relax here," Shi Wan replied with a smile, her gaze falling on the folder in Su Qing's hand.
"This is……?"
"This is a preliminary analysis report on the current construction and future production and operation of Zone 2, which I have compiled based on my previous understanding and research over the past few days. It also includes some ideas on optimizing the raw material supply chain."
Su Qing handed the folder to Shi Wan, her tone calm but her eyes focused, "I hope we can discuss this as soon as possible, and ideally finalize the plan before the completion of Zone 2."
Shi Wan took the heavy report and quickly flipped through it. It was well-organized and contained detailed data. It not only pointed out several details that could be optimized in the current construction of Zone 2, including how the layout of the pipelines could be improved to save energy, but also how the lighting of each factory building could be controlled by zone according to the working time.
She also proposed specific plans for the future production line capacity planning and quality control node settings. She even used her previous work experience to conduct a more in-depth comparative analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of the existing raw material suppliers, and attached preliminary evaluations of several other alternative suppliers that she had selected.
The depth and efficiency of this report far exceeded Shi Wan's expectations.
She originally thought Su Qing would need some time to get used to things, but she didn't expect that Su Qing had already started working hard on the job before she officially joined.
"Great, let's discuss this in detail later." Shi Wan was thrilled and carefully put the report away.
Just then, the sound of a car came from outside the courtyard.
Isabella has arrived.
She was wrapped in a well-tailored cashmere coat, her cheeks slightly flushed from the cold wind. As soon as she entered, she smiled and said, "Good morning! It feels like winter has arrived here all of a sudden. Hello, Xiao Wan and Su Qing."
Her arrival brought a touch of liveliness to the quiet little building.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Isabella explained her purpose.
"I came here this time for two reasons. First, to see how my old friend is adapting to the new environment."
She winked at Su Qing, a rare occurrence for her.
"Secondly, we also wanted to take advantage of Su Qing's recent appointment to have a small face-to-face meeting with the three of us to further finalize the details of the cooperative production line and strive to complete the framework before the end of the year."
Thus, the planned discussion between Shi Wan and Su Qing turned into a three-person working meeting.
The crackling firewood in the newly added fireplace dispelled the chill outside.
The three sat around the sofa, with Su Qing's report, Isabella's draft cooperation proposal, and Shi Wan's notes on the farm's core products spread out in front of them.
At the start of the meeting, Su Qing demonstrated her decisive and efficient work style.
She was no longer the gentle listener she was during the interview; instead, she became sharp and direct, raising more pointed and in-depth questions about many things.
Shi Wan always suddenly realized things she hadn't considered before from her words.
After a moment of contemplation, Isabella suggested that the proportion of high-quality cat grass produced by the farm and with higher costs be appropriately reduced in the co-branded cat grass cookies. Su Qing frowned, but did not interrupt her immediately. Instead, she listened to Isabella's reasons before carefully offering her own thoughts.
“Isabella, I understand your thoughts, but according to my analysis, the fiber structure and aroma components of the cat grass produced by Shiwan Farm are one of the core advantages that distinguish this product from similar competing products on the market.”
“Reducing its proportion would blur the product positioning and damage the brand value. We can start by optimizing the production process. There is no need to sacrifice the quality of core raw materials.”
As she spoke, she turned to a page in the report, which clearly listed data on potential changes in taste and predictions of user acceptance that might result from replacing ingredients.
Isabella paused for a moment, then gave a look of sudden realization.
“You’re right, I was getting stuck on the details. My original idea was to consider improving palatability by adjusting the content, but that would indeed lead to homogenization and diminish our advantages.” She immediately marked the draft, indicating that she had adopted Su Qing’s suggestion.
"Instead of reducing the content, how about we develop more different flavors to improve our competitiveness?"
This time, Su Qing did not refute, "I have also considered this, but everything will be finalized later during the research and development phase."
When discussing production line standards, Su Qing raised questions about the equipment parameters provided by Isabella's team. She pointed out that PetJoy had encountered similar issues before and noted a minor, easily overlooked flaw in the original parameters.
"If this detail isn't corrected, it could lead to fluctuations in moisture content between batches in the future, affecting crispness. Ultimately, we'll need to consider quality control," Su Qing said, pointing to the data.
Shi Wan silently gave a thumbs up in her heart.
This is a subtle issue that neither she nor Xinglin might notice.
Isabella immediately picked up the phone and contacted her engineers on the spot to confirm and make modifications.
The atmosphere of the meeting was sometimes enthusiastic and sometimes solemn.
Su Qing's professionalism, meticulousness, and attention to detail clarified many previously ambiguous aspects and eliminated some potential problems.
Although Isabella was questioned from time to time, she was not unhappy at all. She said frankly that with Su Qing around, she was more confident about this collaboration.
Shi Wan mainly listens to their ideas and then makes a decision.
She discovered that with Su Qing as a powerful technical and management filter, she could focus more on grasping the big picture and the farm's overall strategy.
However, the process of getting to know each other was not smooth sailing.
In certain management processes and authority divisions, Su Qing prefers a stricter and more institutionalized Western management model, while Shi Wan hopes to retain some of the farm's unique flexibility and human touch.
For example, in the performance evaluation of employees in Zone 2 and beyond, Su Qing suggested introducing more quantifiable KPIs, while Shi Wan worried that this would stifle employee initiative.
Let's not even mention how much she rolls her eyes when she hears the word "KPI" at work.
The two had their own convictions, and the discussion reached a stalemate at one point.
Ultimately, Isabella suggested that a transitional solution combining quantitative indicators and subjective evaluation could be piloted first, and then gradually optimized in practice.
Shi Wan and Su Qing exchanged a glance, and they tacitly agreed to each take a step back.
This discussion continued intermittently for nearly a week.
During this period, Su Qing not only participated in the negotiations for the cooperative production line, but also quickly became familiar with the daily management of Zone 2, and offered her own suggestions on employee recruitment.
"Mr. Shi, regarding the upcoming recruitment, I think we can add some experienced young people with strong learning abilities and a willingness to develop in the management direction, to reserve talent for the future expansion of the Second District." She submitted a written suggestion to Shi Wan after dinner, and even attached several specific plans that combined internal training and external recruitment.
Shi Wan read her suggestion, which was very straightforward and objective.
She once again remarked that meeting Su Qing was indeed a wonderful thing.
A week later, all the details of the collaborative production line were finally finalized.
Looking at the final version of the agreement, all three breathed a sigh of relief, their faces showing tired but satisfied smiles.
"Finally done!" Isabella breathed a long sigh of relief. "Next, we'll go all out to push it forward. Su Qing, I'll leave things here to you and Xiao Wan. I'll go back and prepare for the relevant research and development work. Call me anytime if you have any questions."
After seeing Isabella off and finishing the urgent work at hand, the streetlights outside the window were already on.
The farm was unusually quiet on the cold winter night.
Shi Wan made herself a steaming cup of hot cocoa with a rich, creamy flavor, and added a little bit of her favorite cinnamon powder.
It's not strong, but you can smell a faint fragrance.
She walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window in the living room, where a recliner covered with a thick wool blanket was placed.
She nestled into the recliner, where a soft blanket immediately enveloped her, dispelling the fatigue of the past few days.
As if telepathically connected, Tangyuan lightly jumped onto the recliner, found the most comfortable spot in her arms, tucked her paws in, and lay down, soft and fluffy like a hand warmer.
Shi Wan gently stroked the warm, soft fur of Tangyuan with one hand, and held a warm mug in the other, gazing at the farm outside through the glass window.
In the distance, a few guard lights illuminated the second zone, outlining a neat silhouette against the dark night.
Everything fell silent, save for the mournful sound of the wind whistling through the bare branches.
She recalled the week's intensive meetings, repeated discussions, and the clashes and fusions of viewpoints.
Shi Wan even felt a sense of unfinished business.
This feeling and experience is amazing and addictive.
She couldn't resist opening Xinglin's chat window.
Agent: This is amazing! Really! I've never felt that work could be so enjoyable!
"Agent: Su Qing is simply the best work partner!"
When Shi Wan recalled the experiences of the past few days, a feeling of exhilarating satisfaction still lingered in her heart.
"Xinglin: I've noticed that you've been very enthusiastic about your work these past few days, and you haven't been listless even though you've been sleeping less."
"Xinglin: If you say that, don't let Ms. Wang Zhizhi hear it. If she hears that she's not your best work partner, she'll come over and question you on the spot. I'm sure you wouldn't be able to handle her..."
He also humorously sent a cat-like, thoughtful emoji.
Shi Wan was shocked, and then felt a little guilty.
"Agent: Shh, shh, shh, if you don't tell and I don't tell, Zhizhi won't know..."
Xinglin readily sent a cat-shutting emoji.
Shi Wan took a sip of hot cocoa, feeling the heat travel down her throat and into her heart.
"Agent: I've been so busy these past few days that I've neglected you. Sorry! How have you been?"
"Star Arrival: Everything is fine. Factory production and greenhouse cultivation are proceeding according to procedure without any errors. The additional orders from Meow Star have also been shipped out, and there are currently no new orders."
Shi Wan scratched her head. She had assigned some of the tasks in District One to Xing Lin, and was about to hand over the tasks in District Two to Su Qing. For a moment, she felt a sense of leisure with nothing to do.
This, in turn, made her even more curious about Xinglin.
"Agent: I'm not asking about the farm; I trust you'll handle that well. I just want to know, how have you been these past few days? Aren't you bored if I ignore you?"
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