Chapter 166: This 1 Million Came Too Suddenly!
Zhang Chao’s current change is huge.
His mother in the village probably wouldn’t recognize him.
From a mediocre, desperate laborer with no hope for the future.
He’s transformed into a rich second-generation individual who doesn’t worry about food or money and no longer needs to rush for a living.
His transformation isn’t just in his clothes and appearance.
It’s his entire spirit, energy, and demeanor that have completely changed.
“You’ve changed so much, kid. If I saw you on the street, I wouldn’t have recognized you.”
Jiang Tao gently punched Zhang Chao’s chest and joked.
Honestly, if not for the Daily Intelligence System, a “wealth-generating assistant” like a bug.
Jiang Tao would definitely have been envious of Zhang Chao.
Now.
There isn’t much envy, only blessings for him.
“Heh heh, Brother Jiang, what are you talking about? You’ll always be my big brother! I’ll greet you from eight zhang away.”
“Brother Jiang, Xiao Bing, please sit, please sit. We’re all brothers, so don’t be formal with me.”
Zhang Chao chuckled and invited Jiang Tao and Jiang Bing in, signaling them to sit.
“Haha, we’ll see if we’re formal with you when we order dishes later.”
Jiang Bing also teased with a smile. Although she had no romantic feelings for Zhang Chao, she considered him a friend.
“Xiao Bing, order whatever you want to eat. Today, you can eat your fill.”
Zhang Chao’s confidence in his words was palpable.
A meal at Sheng Baiwei, eating as much as they want, would cost at most two to three thousand for the three of them.
For the old Zhang Chao, this was almost half his salary, so he naturally wouldn’t spare it.
But things are different now; he has 100,000 yuan in pocket money each month.
A big meal at Sheng Baiwei would only be a day’s worth of his pocket money.
Naturally, he wouldn’t be reluctant.
Jiang Tao laughed, “Third sister, listen to this, listen to this. Your Brother Chao is speaking with such backbone now.”
“Brother Jiang, please stop teasing me. In front of you, I’ll always be your little brother.”
Zhang Chao looked at Jiang Tao with a smile, his respectful expression completely genuine.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Jiang Tao and Zhang Chao handed the task of ordering dishes to Jiang Bing.
As men, they had no dietary restrictions and would eat anything; the main reason was to accommodate the only woman present, the third sister.
Although Jiang Bing verbally stated she wouldn’t be polite with Zhang Chao and would “slaughter” him.
When ordering, she was considerate.
She ordered some signature dishes that were unique but not excessively expensive.
“Let’s have the Salted Egg Yolk Baked Pumpkin, Spicy Craving Frog, and Desert Roasted Lamb Chops. And the Lychee Wood Roast Duck, arrange that.”
“And a Chestnut Old Mother Hen Soup to nourish you both.”
“Finally, a Mao Xue Wang. That should be enough.”
Jiang Bing quickly ordered six dishes and was ready to stop.
Six dishes for three people, with some staples at the end, would be enough.
Zhang Chao waved his hand generously, saying:
“Xiao Bing, add four more. Let’s make it ten dishes today, for perfect harmony.”
Jiang Tao laughed, “Third sister, listen to your Brother Chao and add four more. We’ll take whatever we can’t finish.”
“Alright! Then let’s add four vegetarian dishes to balance the nutrition.”
“Let’s have Scallion Taro and Salt and Pepper Lotus Root, and Garlic Broccoli and Okra Stir-fried with Shrimp. All set~”
Jiang Bing wasn’t one to be shy, so she directly added four more dishes on the ordering device, totaling ten dishes.
Ten dishes, a good balance of meat and vegetables, for less than 1000 yuan in total.
Isn’t this much better than those overpriced dessert restaurants in Shanghai where people spend over 3000 yuan per person?
“Let’s start with these. We can order more if needed.”
After ordering, Jiang Bing selected to submit.
Soon, a waiter in a hotel uniform knocked and entered, placing a 20-minute hourglass on the table.
This restaurant has a rule: no matter how busy, if all dishes aren’t served within 20 minutes, the meal is free.
“Please wait a moment, we will arrange the delivery for you shortly.”
The waiter smiled respectfully at the three of them and turned to rush the order.
“Huh, Chaozi, you got a new car? Is this meal to warm it up?”
After the waiter left, Jiang Tao’s gaze shifted, and he suddenly noticed a BMW car key in front of Zhang Chao, joking with him.
In Jiang Tao’s hometown, when people move into a new house, they invite friends and family for a “housewarming” to symbolize prosperity and smooth sailing.
If someone buys a car, close buddies will jokingly suggest a “car warming” to signify safety for the person and car, and smooth journeys.
Zhang Chao chuckled, “Heh heh, not this time. If it’s a car warming, it’ll be when Zhiyuan and Yufei come to the Capital City. Today, I just wanted to treat Brother Jiang and Sister-in-law to a meal.”
Jiang Bing protested from the side, “Hey, hey, hey, Zhang Chao, did you just not intend to invite me at all! Am I a bit superfluous here!”
Zhang Chao slapped his mouth and laughed, “Oh dear, look at my clumsy mouth. Of course, it includes you, Xiao Bing.”
Jiang Bing smiled with satisfaction, “That’s more like it. I thought you’d gotten arrogant and looked down on this young lady.”
Zhang Chao laughed, “Impossible. You, like Brother Jiang and Sister-in-law, are honored guests to me.”
Jiang Tao smiled from the side, changing the subject and helping Zhang Chao out, asking, “What kind of car did you get?”
“An X5. My mom insisted on buying it yesterday, and I couldn’t dissuade her.”
Zhang Chao smiled subtly, without any pride or showing off, maintaining his usual humility in front of Jiang Tao.
Firstly, he deeply respected Jiang Tao and genuinely considered him an elder brother.
Secondly, he knew his current capabilities and didn’t have the standing to show off in front of Brother Jiang.
His BMW was a gift from his mother.
Brother Jiang’s Mercedes-Benz was earned through his own hard work.
The gap between the two was immense.
Jiang Bing whimpered from the side, “Second Brother! Look at his mom, when will our mom ever buy us an X5 each!”
“Dream on. Giving you an X5? If you say that to our mom, she’ll probably give you five slaps, letting you feel the fiery maternal love.”
Jiang Tao laughed, teasing his third sister, and then looked at Zhang Chao, saying, “You’ve truly come into your own, kid. You’ve saved yourself decades of hard work. I’m a bit envious.”
“I have to thank you, Brother Jiang! Without you, there would be no Zhang Chao today.”
“I’ll say it again, no matter what happens or what I go through in the future, you are still my elder brother, Zhang Chao!”
“If I, Zhang Chao, dare to be ungrateful in the future, may heaven strike me back to my original form! May I continue to suffer hardship and poverty!”
Zhang Chao looked earnestly at Jiang Tao, his eyes filled with sincerity and gratitude, showing he meant it.
Moreover, his oath was quite potent!
It’s easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality. If he were truly forced to revert from a rich second-generation to a poor young man, it would likely be worse than death.
【Ding! Your friendship with Zhang Chao has increased to 90 points, congratulations on becoming close friends! 】
【You have obtained 1 『Friendship Boat』! 】
【You have received a cash reward of 999,999 yuan! 】
A deep blue virtual panel suddenly appeared, displaying three notification messages.
“…”
After seeing the notifications on the panel, Jiang Tao’s pupils constricted, and he excitedly swallowed.
The reward came too suddenly; there was no preparation at all!
Just like that, a million yuan was in his hands?
The speed of this money coming in was faster than the strong winds of the past two days!
“Good, good, good! Chaozi, my good brother! It’s my good fortune to have a brother like you!”
Recovering from his surprise, Jiang Tao patted Zhang Chao’s shoulder, smiling radiantly!
Jiang Tao truly didn’t expect it would be so easy to develop into close friends with Zhang Chao.
He didn’t do anything; he just attended a dinner invitation and earned a million yuan. What’s the difference between this and being hit by a pie falling from the sky?
Jiang Bing watched the brothers’ deep brotherly affection and teased from the side, “Do you two want to take an oath? I’ll be your witness.”
Jiang Tao waved his hand, “Go away, go away. Adults are talking, young lady, go play on your phone, don’t butt in. Why do we need all that formalism?”
“…” Hearing his second brother’s words, Jiang Bing’s eyes brightened. She couldn’t really argue with him, so she changed the subject and asked, “By the way, Zhang Chao, how much did that BMW cost you in total?”
She is now the Vice President of Jiang’s Food Factory and will be working and living in the Capital City. Her small Wuling Hongguang Mini doesn’t quite match her current Vice President status anymore.
Coupled with her recently rapidly increasing deposits, she has also set her sights on her desired BMW!
Zhang Chao looked at Jiang Bing and said, “My mom said the full price plus a Capital City license plate cost around 1 million yuan.”
“1 Million yuan! Wow, forget it, forget it! I was too presumptuous!”
Jiang Bing stuck out her tongue, instantly abandoning the idea of buying an X5.
Although her current savings were also approaching a million.
But to spend it all on a car would feel like cutting off her flesh; she definitely wouldn’t be willing.
Jiang Bing then looked at Jiang Tao and said:
“By the way, Second Brother, can you keep an eye out for a used car for me? Don’t you have a friend who sells used cars?”
Hearing his third sister mention used cars, Jiang Tao’s eyes lit up.
Although he hadn’t known Li Ming for long and had only interacted with him a few times.
The two of them got along very well.
Furthermore, Jiang Tao had previously warned him about the car dealership fire, saving him millions in losses.
The two of them were now considered good friends.
He could even consider adding Li Ming to the list of potential close friends.
“Okay, I’ll have Li Ming keep an eye out for you. If there’s a good car, I’ll reserve it for you.”
Jiang Tao wasn’t particularly averse to used cars.
Strictly speaking, the Mercedes-Benz GLS he was currently driving was also a used car that had changed hands once.
However, he was the first owner and also the second owner.
When economic conditions didn’t allow it.
Buying a used car from a friend whose background he knew well was very cost-effective.
“By the way, Chaozi, where are you living now?”
After discussing cars, Jiang Tao shifted the topic to housing.
It was obvious that Zhang Chao must have moved out of the urban village by now.
“I was just about to tell you today, Brother Jiang. My mom said she’d transfer a house in Huilongguan over to me, and I’ve already moved.”
“The house is in Long Ze Yuan.”
As soon as the topic of housing came up, Zhang Chao’s smile returned.
In just a few days, he had a car and a house.
His parents also said they would help him resolve his household registration.
Soon, he would transform from a poor village boy into a Beijing Master with a car and a house.
Anyone would wake up smiling from their dreams.
“You kid… I shouldn’t have even asked!”
Jiang Tao playfully punched Zhang Chao again, genuinely happy for his brother.
It was evident that his biological parents were treating him very well.
Just days after reuniting, they were gifting him a car and a house, likely to compensate for years of neglect.
With the Wang family’s financial capacity, these gifts to Zhang Chao were not a big deal.
Of course, Jiang Tao wasn’t envious of Zhang Chao. His family of three each owned a property, so if anyone should be envious, it would be Zhang Chao.
After about ten minutes of idle chat, four waiters in hotel uniforms entered the private room with a food cart and began serving the dishes.
As each dish was served, a waiter enthusiastically announced the name and gave a brief introduction.
After all the dishes were served, the waiters left the private room. Jiang Tao, his sister, and Zhang Chao ate the delicious food, chatting and laughing, creating a very harmonious atmosphere.
Their conversation covered everything from the past to the present, from work to life.
It wasn’t just Zhang Chao’s life that had undergone a massive change; Jiang Tao’s had too.
Before the Lunar New Year, Jiang Tao was just a small truck driver at the Hongxing Second-hand Furniture Wholesale Market.
To make a living and support his family, he spent his days with his truck, working from dawn till dusk, braving all weather.
After the Lunar New Year, he started his own company and opened a food factory, embarking on entrepreneurship as a boss.
Although the Eight Treasure Pickles from the food factory were still in the free sampling stage, Jiang Tao had absolute confidence in the optimized recipe analyzed by System Brother and that 【Delicious Pickled Vegetable Jar】!
His Eight Treasure Pickles were like a plane taxiing on the runway; they were destined to soar and become a famous specialty food in the Capital City!
The future pickle market would surely have a place for him!
Liu Zhiyuan and Shan Yufei’s life trajectories had also changed because of Jiang Tao.
Based on previous years, these two brothers would have returned to the Capital City to sell fruit by now. This year, they were still in their hometown helping Jiang Tao sell cattle.
Of course, they weren’t just helping Jiang Tao; the two brothers were also shareholders, helping themselves sell.
In just over a month, besides the 10,000 yuan salary Jiang Tao paid them monthly, their share of the profits from investing in the cattle farm was expected to be around eighty to ninety thousand, almost a hundred thousand.
In the short month after the Lunar New Year, they earned more money than they would have in a whole year of hard work in previous years!
Plus, they had also made a good profit from selling kumquats together before the Lunar New Year.
The two brothers had tasted success through cooperative projects with Jiang Tao, and now, if you asked them to go sell fruit at the wholesale market, they probably wouldn’t be able to stomach it!
Having earned significant wealth, who would still care about small amounts of money?
“Brother Jiang, if you have any suitable projects in the future, call upon us brothers, and we’ll do it together!”
Before, Zhang Chao didn’t have the capital and missed several opportunities to earn money with Jiang Tao. Now that he has capital, he naturally won’t miss out again.
Jiang Tao teased, “Chaozi, do you still need to follow me around now? Didn’t your parents arrange any business for you?”
Zhang Chao replied truthfully, “No, my mom just said she’d give me some pocket money every month and that I don’t need to worry about work.”
Jiang Tao laughed, “Haha, that’s true. As they say, you don’t fear a second generation rich person squandering their wealth, but you do fear them starting a business. You should just stay home and rely on your parents.”
Zhang Chao wasn’t angered by Jiang Tao’s teasing and said with a smile, “Not working for ten days or half a month is quite refreshing, but if it were like this every day, it would be meaningless, a waste of time and life. I still need to find something to do.”
Jiang Tao smiled, “Alright, if there are any suitable projects in the future, I’ll definitely bring you along.”
“Great! Then thank you in advance, Brother Jiang! I’ll toast you again.” Zhang Chao smiled, picked up his wine glass, and toasted Jiang Tao again.
“Cheers.” Jiang Tao raised his glass and clinked it with Zhang Chao’s, and the two directly downed their drinks.
The meal, which started around noon, didn’t conclude until about two in the afternoon.
After Zhang Chao paid the bill, the three of them walked out of the restaurant together.
Zhang Chao called a designated driver to take him home, while Jiang Tao had Third Sister drive him to the food factory in the industrial park.
For the past period, he had handed over the work at the food factory to his parents and had not shown his face at the factory for several days.
“Uncle Tao, Aunt Xiao Bing! Good afternoon!”
Jiang Jiaqi ran up to greet Jiang Tao and Jiang Bing as they walked over together.
After his parents went to the vegetable market stall to continue giving away Eight Treasure Pickles for free, only Jiang Jiaqi remained at the food factory to “guard the house.”
Currently, the business of Jiang Family Food Factory had not officially started, and with Jiang Tao and Jiang Bing as the two managers, there were only 5 people in total.
At present, they didn’t need too many staff, but this number would definitely not be enough in the future.
Jiang Bing jokingly asked, “Xiao Qiqi, have you been slacking off alone in the factory?”
Jiang Jiaqi quickly waved her hands, “No, no, I’m currently following Uncle Tao’s instructions to create the rules and regulations for each department in the factory.”
Jiang Tao laughed, “Third Sister, don’t tease Jiaqi. She’s much more dedicated than you are.”
Jiang Tao was quite fond of this only young employee in the food factory besides his parents and Third Sister.
If nothing else, due to a piece of intelligence triggered by Jiang Jiaqi, Jiang Tao found a salary card with a monthly limit of 100,000.
This 100,000 monthly refresh was like finding free money, independent of the food factory’s profits.
Based on this alone, Jiang Jiaqi had secured an unshakeable position in Jiang Family Food Factory.
In the future, Jiang Tao would not only give her a high salary but also promote her.
“You two chat slowly, I’m going back to Cui Village to work for someone!”
Jiang Bing shot her second brother a look, then spun the car key on her finger and walked towards the Mercedes-Benz GLS parked outside, driving away.
“Let’s go, Xiao Qi, take me to the operation room to have a look.”
Jiang Tao hadn’t been here for a few days and was curious about how the food factory had changed.
“Okay, Uncle Tao, follow me.”
Jiang Jiaqi smiled and beckoned to Jiang Tao, then turned and led him towards the operation room.
Drip, drip, drip—
The sound of Jiang Jiaqi’s high heels hitting the floor was crisp in the somewhat empty operation room.
In the operation room, the renovation masters had carried out upgrades and modifications according to Jiang Tao’s requirements.
The entire operation room was primarily divided into two areas, one large and one small.
The large area was the public operation room, which was further divided into more than a dozen small compartments of varying sizes.
These compartments with transparent glass were used for storing various raw materials.
Some were for processing ingredients, some for storing semi-finished products, and others for storing the final finished products.
The functional divisions of the operation room were clear, and the water and electricity had also been modified.
All the operation tables were brand new and gleaming.
The basins and jars were also very complete.
The operation room, renovated by Jiang Tao for eighty to ninety thousand, had transformed from the simple “bare shell style” it was when first leased into a “decorated style.”
The environmental hygiene of the operation room had also improved significantly, truly achieving cleanliness and sanitation.
Jiang Tao benchmarked the price of Jiang Family Eight Treasures Pickles against the high-end Eight Treasure Pickles of Liu Bi Ju.
Not only in terms of quality but also in food safety and hygiene, they needed to keep up.
The smallest compartment in the innermost area, only about 30 square meters, was accessible only to Jiang Dad and Jiang Mom.
This small compartment had no glass, no windows, and was completely sealed.
Even Jiang Jiaqi did not have permission to enter.
The small compartment was used to make the secret soup base for the Eight Treasure Pickles, and it was the most core area of the food factory.
The 【Delicious Pickled Vegetable Jar】 was also placed inside.
Moreover, the room door of the small compartment was a password-protected anti-theft door.
The security level was significantly higher than that of the public areas outside.
Jiang Tao finally stopped at the finished product area, his gaze falling on dozens of roughly 10L rhombic pickle jars stored inside.
The 【Delicious Pickled Vegetable Jar】 could produce about 500 jin of finished product at a time, requiring about 2 days for each batch.
During this period, his parents had pickled seven or eight times, yielding approximately four thousand jin of finished product.
Piled up in the warehouse, it appeared to be of considerable scale.
If all went smoothly and these could be quickly sold for cash, it would be close to 400,000!
This was only the output from about half a month.
In a full month, they could produce about 800,000 worth of products.
That is, a total sales volume of 800,000.
And, the total cost combined was less than 10% of the total sales volume!
For Jiang Tao, these Eight Treasure Pickles were definitely a highly profitable product!
With a profit of six to seven hundred thousand a month, it would be six to seven million a year.
Slow and steady, accumulating over time.
This Jiang Family Food Factory was a significant source of wealth for Jiang Tao.
“By the way, Xiao Qi, what jobs do your parents do now?”
Jiang Tao shifted his gaze from the Eight Treasure Pickles in the warehouse to Jiang Jiaqi and asked.
The recruitment work for the food factory also needed to be implemented.
Pickling, packaging, and transporting over 500 jin of Eight Treasure Pickles each time was also a physically demanding task.
It was only right to hire a couple more people to share some of the burden with his parents.
Anyway, with the 【salary card】 paying, he wouldn’t be using his own money.
Even if he hired a couple more people and paid a bit more salary, Jiang Tao wouldn’t feel bad about it.
Of course, hiring people couldn’t be done randomly.
First, their character had to be impeccable, and second, they had to be diligent and hardworking.
Jiang Tao’s mind immediately brought up the honest and reliable image of Jiang Jiaqi’s parents.
He and Jiang Jiaqi’s father, Jiang Mingshan, shared a common ancestor going back four generations.
The sudden inquiry about Jiang Jiaqi’s parents this time was actually Jiang Tao’s intention to look out for them.
When Jiang Jiaqi heard Jiang Tao’s question, her heart was filled with joy.
She had a faint feeling about something and said happily:
“Uncle Tao, my dad works at the construction site with my uncle.”
“My mom does odd jobs around with Jiang Qiúsheng’s van from our village.”
Jiang Tao continued to ask, “How much do they earn per month?”
Jiang Jiaqi replied truthfully, “My dad earns about 200 a day, and my mom earns 110 a day.”
“It’s like this, Xiao Qi, I plan to hire two more people to help your grandparents with some of the work.”
“As for the salary, after deducting the Five Insurances and One Fund, the net income will be at least 5,000.”
“Your parents’ character is well-known in our Jiang Family Village, and I trust them very much.”
“If they are willing to come, the factory can arrange a couple’s dormitory for them.”
Jiang Jiaqi was overjoyed upon hearing the salary and benefits Jiang Tao offered, almost agreeing on behalf of her parents!
