There was a moment of chaos, and Gao Bo didn’t get a clear look at who had bumped into him.
It turned out to be Chen Bing and Xiao Liu, along with a few other security guards.
Seeing Gao Bo’s crooked nose, everyone was startled, but no one dared to help him up.
Gao Bo stood up holding his nose, pointed a finger at Chen Bing and the others, and hurried into the elevator to go downstairs and rush to the hospital.
“Damn! No wonder the old guy’s nose looked so perfect—it must be fake!” After the elevator doors closed, Chen Bing suddenly thought of cosmetic surgery.
“Chen Bing, do you think Gao Bo will let us off the hook for this?” The one who had actually bumped into Gao Bo was none other than the anxious Xiao Liu.
“What’s there to worry about? He doesn’t even know exactly who hit him. You guys go back and destroy the surveillance footage—he won’t have any evidence to blame us,” Chen Bing was unconcerned. With Chairman Lin’s backing, this was just a minor issue.
“How did you all end up coming up here anyway?”
Shui Miao approached, glanced around, and casually opened the door to a nearby room, stepping inside without turning on the lights, motioning for everyone to follow.
“I saw that kid Wei Qi had blood at the corner of his mouth and thought you guys had gotten into a fight, so I rushed up here. I never expected we’d end up knocking Gao Bo’s fake nose out of shape,” Chen Bing said “we” instead of directly blaming Xiao Liu, a small gesture of loyalty meant to win Xiao Liu’s loyalty. “By the way, Shui Ge, why did you call us in here?”
Shui Miao closed the door, kept the lights off, and whispered, “Someone tipped off Gao Bo—I suspect it was Lao Shao from maintenance. After you go downstairs, keep an eye on the maintenance department staff. See if they’ve set up an additional terminal for the surveillance system. If they have, don’t say anything—just come find me immediately.” Shui Miao wasn’t someone to be trifled with and naturally suspected Lao Shao.
“Got it,” Xiao Liu replied, then immediately led the others downstairs.
“Shui Ge, are you okay? They didn’t do anything to you, did they?” Chen Bing was curious—just how had Wei Qi gotten injured?
Shui Miao opened the door and headed downstairs, speaking as he walked, “I’m fine. By the way, how’s Yin Yangyang doing?”
“She had a little breakdown, ran out of energy, and went home by herself.” Chen Bing scratched his head. “Shui Ge, the whole hotel’s turned upside down because of us. Management’s either injured or gone. Do you think the hotel might shut down? Maybe you should tell Chairman Lin about this and let her think of a solution?”
“It won’t come to closure, but I’ll definitely report today’s events to her. For now, let’s just get the food and beverage department under control.”
Shui Miao had his own plans. He knew that even if these people had suffered some setbacks, they wouldn’t dare to shut down the hotel—they didn’t have the guts or the capability.
“I understand. Don’t worry about it,” Chen Bing licked his lips. “Xiao Tang’s really enthusiastic. She’s got the restaurant completely under control. You should promote her to supervisor, and she’ll be even more motivated. And the kitchen side is also—”
“I’ll handle the kitchen myself. You and Xiao Liu should communicate more and keep the restaurant stable. I’ll announce Xiao Tang’s promotion to supervisor shortly.”
Shui Miao quickened his pace, heading straight for the A-area dining hall after reaching the lower floor.
At ten o’clock, it was time for the pre-shift meeting for the waitstaff.
Xiao Tang was giving a speech to over thirty servers when she saw Shui Miao and Chen Bing walk in. She immediately had everyone clap to welcome the newly appointed manager, Shui Miao. Having worked together for two years, everyone was close friends. Upon hearing that Shui Miao had become manager, they were all delighted and clapped enthusiastically.
Shui Miao raised his hand for silence, and once the applause died down, he spoke, “We’re all old friends here, so I won’t waste words. Starting today, Xiao Tang will be the supervisor of both A and B dining areas. From the previous team of head waiters, Sun Yan will be promoted to head of B-area dining, and Wang Fang to head of A-area dining. The previous deputy head waiters will now be full head waiters. Male waiters and runners will now report directly to Chen Bing. That’s all—everyone get back to work. Oh, one more thing—we’ll be hiring new staff soon, so I hope everyone gives their best effort. I don’t want anyone to be replaced. Of course, I’m different from Huang Fei—I’ll make sure you get everything you deserve. Starting today, everyone’s monthly salary will be increased by 300 yuan.”
After Shui Miao finished speaking, another thunderous round of applause erupted in the dining hall.
For regular workers, an increase of 300 yuan a month was enough to keep them excited for months. With this raise, they would now be among the highest-paid waitstaff in the industry. Combined with tips, their monthly income could reach over 4,000 yuan—quite impressive.
Shui Miao left the dining hall and hurried toward the security office.
Chen Bing followed closely behind, “Shui Ge, why did you appoint two head waiters? And those two don’t seem to get along well with Xiao Tang either!”
“Why should I appoint people Xiao Tang likes as head waiters? My intention is to create competition between them. If they unite, it’ll be a real headache for us,” Shui Miao smiled faintly at Chen Bing. “Whether they get along or not isn’t my concern. The real reason I appointed two head waiters is to train future managers for Chairman Lin’s branch locations. It’s much cheaper to promote from within than to hire arrogant outside managers.”
“Then why did you put all the male waiters under my supervision?” Chen Bing was puzzled. Was Shui Miao making him the male head waiter?
Shui Miao shook his head, “We both started as waiters—you must know the problems of mixing male and female staff.”
“You mean they’ll date, mess around, and neglect their work?” Chen Bing understood perfectly. Many young men joined hotels just to flirt, not to work.
Shui Miao nodded, “Here’s the plan—divide the male staff into two groups for A and B areas. Then eliminate the unnecessary ones and keep the best runners. Increase their salary by 500 yuan a month. That way, we get rid of slackers, reduce inappropriate behavior, and boost efficiency—all in one move.”
“That’s a great idea—I’ll get on it right away.”
Chen Bing’s mind raced with ideas and quickly turned to take action.
Watching Chen Bing rush off, Shui Miao felt a sense of comfort. Good friends—let’s work hard together! If we want to get rich, we must first build our strength!
※※※
In the security office, Xiao Liu and Xiao Dong were reviewing surveillance footage.
“Any leads yet?”
Shui Miao walked in and saw on the monitors that seven or eight security guards were scattered around the maintenance department. Xiao Liu had already started moving.
“Not yet,” Xiao Liu said, frustrated. He couldn’t think of a good way to deal with Lao Shao.
Shui Miao glanced at the monitors and smiled faintly, “Call them back to regular duty. I’ll handle this. Oh, and have your younger brother Xiao Hu follow me. Also, Xiao Liu, if you know any capable people who are looking for security work, refer them to me.”
“Shui Ge, you mean anyone?” Xiao Liu’s eyes lit up.
Shui Miao grinned, “You have a lot of capable friends who want to be security guards?”
“Not a lot, but at least five or six. They’re real Shaolin monks, looking for jobs recently. If you need them, I’ll bring them over.” Getting his friends hired here would be a point of pride for Xiao Liu.
“How do their skills compare to yours?” Shui Miao asked curiously.
Xiao Liu held up one hand with five fingers spread wide, “Each of them can beat me five times over.”
“Really that good? I don’t like it when people exaggerate,” Shui Miao frowned slightly, looking at Xiao Liu seriously.
Xiao Liu, straightforward as ever, immediately raised his hand, “I swear on my life—”
“Alright, alright. We’re good friends—you don’t need to swear. Let them come. Even if they’re not as good as you say, I’ll still hire them,” Shui Miao patted Xiao Liu’s arm and turned toward the maintenance department.
Xiao Liu was thrilled and immediately sent his younger brother Xiao Hu to serve as Shui Miao’s bodyguard.
Xiao Hu’s real name was Liu Jianhu. He was a very honest guy, about 1.65 meters tall, with a rugged, muscular build. Though his martial arts skills weren’t exceptional, they were better than average. What he lacked in technique he made up for in brute strength. As a child, he had practiced iron head kung fu. When he couldn’t win through skill, he’d use sheer force—once he grabbed someone, he usually won.
Xiao Hu wasn’t much of a talker and rarely spoke. He was the classic strong, silent type.
Shui Miao went to the kitchen, prepared a meal, and had Xiao Hu carry a case of beer. Together, they went to the maintenance department’s dormitory.
The staff dormitory was in a residential building behind the hotel, except for the maintenance department, which was located on the first floor of the hotel.
The maintenance department was special—they needed to be easily accessible in case of emergencies.
There were only five people in the entire maintenance department.
Lao Shao was the leader. He had two apprentices, Da Hua and Er Hua, and two hired workers from a job agency, Guo Ming and Guo Liang—brothers.
“What do you want?”
Upon seeing Shui Miao and Xiao Hu approach, Er Hua immediately stood up, holding a heavy wrench.
Hearing the commotion, Da Hua opened the door, holding an iron rod, and said with a laugh, “Oh, it’s Manager Shui. What brings you here?”
“Your master didn’t go to the restaurant for dinner, so I brought him some food and a bit of beer to share,” Shui Miao smiled. In Shui Miao’s mind, the maintenance department had always been mysterious. Lao Shao had a strange temper and never allowed anyone inside. Judging by the current situation, it seemed unlikely he’d be allowed in today either.
“No need. My master said he’s going to sleep. Even if the chairman came, we’re not allowed to disturb him. Sorry, you can just leave the food here, and I’ll give it to him,” Da Hua also had a muscular build and a menacing look. Rumor had it he’d been in prison before and was a ruthless fighter—ten times scarier than Er Hua.
“In that case, forget it.”
Shui Miao turned to leave, already planning to wait for Xiao Liu’s group of skilled friends to arrive so he could deal with Da Hua and Er Hua and uncover whatever secrets the maintenance department was hiding.
“Thanks!”
Er Hua put down the wrench, smiled, and eagerly took the beer from Xiao Hu, ready to pop open a bottle.
※※※
Shui Miao left the maintenance department feeling frustrated.
As they reached the restroom, Xiao Hu suddenly grabbed Shui Miao’s hand. Clenching his fist, he said, “I can beat them!”
“Xiao Hu, don’t be impulsive. This isn’t about fighting,” Shui Miao gently patted Xiao Hu’s fist. “Don’t worry, I have a plan. At worst, I’ll have Chairman Lin call in the police to investigate. I don’t believe they’d dare attack the police.”
“Hehe, do you really need to go through all that trouble?”
Suddenly, the restroom door opened, and Guo Ming walked out, zipping up his pants, “Manager Shui, you can handle this with me. Just promise to fire them and give the maintenance department to me and my brother. The monthly salary of 20,000 yuan for the whole department remains the same. I guarantee I’ll take care of them for you.”
“Money isn’t the issue. I’d like to hear your plan first. If we scare them off too early, it’ll be hard to deal with later,” Shui Miao’s mind raced. He hadn’t expected to find an opportunity even in this toilet.
“No problem!”
Guo Ming snapped his fingers confidently.
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