Restaurant hiring
After Xie Zhuo left, Fu Zhi Qiao focused all her attention on the restaurant. She planned to name it Tai Bai Lou, following the style of Tai Bai Wine Shop.
The renovation of Taibai Tower is progressing rapidly. Fu Zhiqiao has inspected it several times. The basic layout of each floor has been completed, and the next step is to finish the carving and painting.
Halfway through the project, she glanced at the bill, and despite being mentally prepared, she was still shocked when she saw the numbers.
The initial investment has already cost nearly 30,000 taels!
Fu Zhi Qiao has very high standards; she insists on using only the best ingredients in the restaurant, which directly resulted in a surge in renovation costs.
Not only does the renovation cost money, but hiring staff also costs money, as does purchasing kitchen utensils, staffing, and the food supply chain... Every expense is considerable. Fu Zhi Qiao comforted herself, saying that once Tai Bai Lou opens, all this money can be earned back!
Cheng Yexuan was left at the restaurant by Fu Zhiqiao to work as a supervisor. It was a waste of his martial arts skills to be a supervisor at a restaurant.
Seeing his pale face, Fu Zhiqiao gave Cheng Yexuan some money and asked him to recruit some martial arts practitioners to work as guards at Taibai Tower. Based on her experience running a wine shop in Qingzhou, the positions of thugs and bodyguards were essential in the restaurant. In case someone caused trouble in the restaurant, it would be impossible to do without security.
"After the Taibai Tower opens, guards will be indispensable."
Cheng Yexuan's eyes lit up upon hearing this, feeling a great sense of relief at being freed from the title of supervisor.
Fu Zhiqiao was speechless at his self-satisfied expression and handed over the recruitment of guards to Cheng Yexuan. "Based on their martial arts skills, each person will receive three to five taels of silver per month, with food and lodging provided. Anyone who can last three to five moves against you will be considered qualified!"
Cheng Yexuan accepted the order and went down. It wasn't too low a requirement to be able to withstand three or five moves from him, but the capital was not lacking in talented people. He had been in the martial arts world for many years and had his own information channels.
Defu was given a new job as a shop assistant. Defu had been the manager of Taibai Wine Shop for a long time and had his own experience in recognizing and judging people.
Defu posted recruitment notices on the notice walls of Taibai Tower and the city gate, and then waited in the restaurant for applicants to come.
There are no special requirements for hiring people; as long as they have decent features and are efficient at their work, that's fine.
Because Taibai Tower charges high prices, people gradually came to inquire about the situation after seeing the notice.
"Manager, what kind of people are you looking to hire?" A young man in faded clothes stood at the door and peered into the restaurant.
"Looking for workers? Come in and have a seat."
The young man breathed a sigh of relief when he saw someone calling him, and quickly replied, "Yes, I'm here to answer the call."
Defu looked him up and down. He was young, strong, and had a decent appearance, which basically met the restaurant's requirements for selecting people. However, he was a bit shy.
"We are hiring waiters in our restaurant. We only require that they be clean, and it would be even better if they could read a few words."
Upon hearing that the selection was for literate people, the young man eagerly asked, "Then, sir, what do you think of me? My name is Gong Anyang, I am twenty-one years old, I have already passed the preliminary examination, and I am quite strong, I can easily carry firewood and water."
Having passed the preliminary examination, he could be considered half a scholar. Presumably, his family was too poor to afford to continue his studies. Defu thought for a moment and said, "That's fine, but you'll have to sign a two-year contract to work at our restaurant. Are you willing to do that?"
"Two years?" Gong Anyang hesitated. His family supported his studies in the hope that he could pass the imperial examination and lead the family to a better life. If he signed a two-year contract at Taibai Tower, it would mean giving up next year's exam. If he couldn't take the exam next year, he would have to wait for several more years...
Seeing this, Defu didn't rush him and went to answer other people's questions instead.
Gong Anyang stood at the door for a while, thinking about his family's situation. His mother worked day and night doing embroidery to save money for his tuition, and her eyes were almost blind from exhaustion. His younger sister was also approaching marriageable age, but the family couldn't afford a dowry. He couldn't be a burden on his family any longer. Looking at the notice that offered at least half a string of cash a month, he clenched his fists and made up his mind.
"Shopkeeper, I'm willing!"
"Alright, come to the back door of the restaurant for training in five days." Defu wrote down his name, age, address and other basic information in the employee register. Considering that he was educated, he also selected him to work as the accountant's assistant in Taibai Tower.
The job posting was posted for four or five days, and more than a hundred people came to apply.
De Fu selects people who are of suitable age, have regular facial features, and look clean and tidy. The selection criteria are even stricter for waiters, who must have no obvious blemishes on their face, hands, or other exposed skin.
After a selection process, more than fifty people were chosen, including ten male and female waiters for the private rooms, more than twenty waiters, and twenty people to do odd jobs.
After signing a two-year employment agreement, they officially became employees of Taibailou.
The task of training the restaurant staff was handled by Granny Cui and Defu. Granny Cui taught them etiquette for receiving guests, while Defu taught them various tasks related to working in the restaurant.
The empty rooms in the backyard of the restaurant were cleared out as temporary accommodations. For the next two weeks, these employees stayed there to learn the restaurant's rules, how to politely serve guests, how to walk quietly, how to serve dishes quickly, and how to pour wine without spilling...
It goes without saying that Defu and Cheng Yexuan are her capable assistants. In addition to the two of them, Fu Zhiqiao also has a very capable person by her side, named Sheng An.
Sheng An was someone Xie Zhuo left for her before he went to war. He was of ordinary appearance but very strong in martial arts. He was a secret guard trained by the old prince Xie Heshan for Xie Zhuo, and now he only obeys Xie Zhuo's orders.
Previously, his mother had come to see Fu Zhi Qiao behind his back. Now that he had left the capital, Xie Zhuo was worried about leaving her alone in the capital, so he arranged for Sheng An to protect her. Fu Zhi Qiao gladly accepted his kindness.
Sheng An was originally a top-notch bodyguard, but she ended up using him as a gofer.
Unlike Qingzhou, the farms in the capital were mostly private properties owned by local families, not something she could buy at will. Sheng An found some nearby farms for her, and she eventually chose Guojia Village to supply the restaurant with vegetables and poultry such as chickens and ducks.
"The ingredients delivered to the restaurant must be fresh. You only need to deliver the ingredients to the back door of the restaurant." Fu Zhiqiao explained everything, agreed on the date to start delivery, and signed a supply contract with Guojia Village.
The restaurant renovation, staffing, and ingredient sourcing have all been resolved, and everything is moving in a positive direction.
*
In mid-November, Beijing welcomed its first snowfall of the winter.
Snowflakes fell in a flurry, covering the rooftops and streets with a thick layer of snow, creating a vast expanse of white as far as the eye could see. Fu Zhi Qiao stood in the courtyard, suddenly seized by a sudden urge to brew tea with snow. She and several maids began collecting snow from the leaves in the courtyard.
When Granny Cui saw her hands, which were red from the cold, she said, "Miss, you're in such high spirits! But it's so cold today, don't catch a chill!"
"Okay, almost done." Fu Zhi Qiao's nose was red from the cold, but her smile was radiant.
The snow, freshly collected from the leaves, had not yet melted. Granny Cui set the collected snow aside, had a servant help her set up the stove, and then threw a few pieces of silver charcoal into the stove to boil the snow water.
After walking in the snow, Fu Zhi Qiao's clothes were a little wet. She went back to her room to change into clean clothes. When she came out, the snow water in the kettle had just boiled and was making a "gurgling" sound.
Granny Cui knelt on the ground, her posture dignified, and her tea-making technique was fluid and graceful.
Steam rose from the cup, carrying the aroma of tea. Even before tasting it, the warmth was already palpable. Granny Cui placed the brewed tea before her. Fu Zhi Qiao picked up the cup, took a careful sniff, and then sipped it. The tea was fragrant and the taste sweet.
Fu Zhi Qiao revealed a satisfied expression, "Granny, your cooking is excellent!"
Boiling snow to make tea is an elegant pastime.
While drinking tea, Granny Cui reported to her on the recent situation of Taibai Tower. Currently, the training of Taibai Tower's employees is almost complete.
Fu Zhi Qiao nodded to indicate that she understood. The progress of Tai Bai Lou was even faster than she had expected. In this way, the restaurant might be able to open before the end of the year, instead of waiting until after the new year.
After finishing their tea, Fu Zhiqiao took Sheng An and Yin Xing out to find a blacksmith.
Zhu the blacksmith was quite famous in the western part of the city for his blacksmithing skills. Sheng An led Fu Zhiqiao to the door of his shop.
Snowflakes were falling outside, but inside the shop it was bustling with activity, with red-hot irons everywhere.
Zhu the blacksmith, with a full beard and a burly build, was swinging a large iron hammer at a red-hot piece of iron.
Gradually, the iron sheet turned from red to dark. He put the iron sheet back into the furnace, heated it until it was red-hot, and then took it out and hammered it again. With each hammer blow, sparks flew everywhere. In no time, the basic shape of a hoe was formed.
Zhu the blacksmith placed the forged ironware into the water tank. With a "sizzle," a wisp of white smoke rose from the water, indicating that the quenching was complete.
Sheng An stepped forward and explained his purpose.
Fu Zhiqiao said, "What I need is a bit special. I wonder if Master Zhu can make it."
Zhu the blacksmith laughed heartily, "I'm not bragging, but you won't find anyone in the entire capital with better skills than me. There's nothing I can't forge except weapons!"
Because of the war, iron products were extremely precious resources. The production of iron weapons was entirely controlled by the imperial court. Ordinary people were not qualified to make weapons, and if they were found to be making weapons on their own, they would be beheaded. That's why Zhu the blacksmith said that he could make everything except weapons.
Fu Zhiqiao handed the blueprints to the blacksmith. There were about twenty kitchen utensils of all sizes, including a kitchen knife, an iron pot, an iron plate, an iron shovel, and an iron rack.
I paid a deposit of thirty taels and agreed to pick up the goods in five days.
With Sheng An overseeing things, the custom kitchenware project went exceptionally smoothly.
After leaving the blacksmith shop, Fu Zhiqiao told Sheng An to go back first, while she and Yinxing went for a stroll.
Sheng An did not follow her instructions in this matter. Instead, he hid himself and followed her from a distance. The young master had given him the task of protecting Miss Fu, and he dared not be careless in the slightest.
Fu Zhiqiao knew he hadn't left and didn't care, so she took Yinxing for a stroll on the street.
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