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Chapter 228: Chapter 228: Overestimating Oneself
Back at home, Si Chen was unpacking the parcels he had brought back from Wen Yun. Besides Tong Yao’s garments, there were also some dried fruits and snacks that Tong Yao liked. Si Chen separated the clothes from the food and reminded her which items could cause inflammation if eaten in excess.
Tong Yao, behaving like a child, kept imitating Deng Wenwen’s sweet tone, continually calling out, "Doctor Si... Doctor Si..."
After goofing around for a while, they cleaned up and headed to bed. Just as they lay down, Tong Yao suddenly called out in a soft voice, "Doctor Si."
No sooner had she finished speaking, Si Chen’s tall figure pinned her down as if to punish her. He tormented her until she was panting with repeated pleas for mercy.
Sometimes, Tong Yao felt that Si Chen at night was an entirely different person from his daytime self. During the day, he was solemn and indifferent to everything. But at night, he turned into a king of the wilderness, charging through his domain with every movement stirring desire inside her.
*
In the blink of an eye, they had already been in Kyoto for a week, and Tong Yao had hired workers to renovate a shop she planned to open at the beginning of the following month.
Having the money Wen Yun had given her, Tong Yao was not worried about funding. She knew that once she opened the shop, she would not be able to handle everything alone. Therefore, she wrote a job advertisement in advance and put it up at the door. The shop was located near the university, and since students had more leisure time, Tong Yao specifically stated that she wanted to hire three energetic students.
By doing this, not only would she be able to help some financially disadvantaged students, but she could also increase the shop’s reputation.
The day after the ad went up, several students were already waiting outside the shop early in the morning. There were three young men and two young women, the women were freshmen, and the men were second and third-year students.
The shop was relatively small and didn’t require that many employees, so Tong Yao planned to hire four people and then adjust their shifts according to their break times. She was more inclined towards the female students, especially upon learning they were freshmen who could work longer; hence, she spoke to them first.
"It takes a few days to completely master this job, so I’m hiring long-term employees who can ideally work here until you graduate. Do you have any issues with the timings?"
The girls were amazed at how young and attractive the owner was. Upon hearing Tong Yao’s question, one of them nervously replied, "No problem."
But the other girl didn’t answer and instead asked haughtily, "How do you calculate wages here?"
Tong Yao’s gaze shifted to the girl who had spoken, "It’s clearly written in the job advertisement that you would be paid per day, one yuan a day."
Upon hearing this, the girl seemed dissatisfied with the wage and frowned, "We are university students." The wages for university students must be higher than those for ordinary people, right? Otherwise, why would they put so much money and effort into studying?
Understanding the girl’s sentiment, Tong Yao raised her eyebrows and asked, "Are you dissatisfied with the salary?"
The girl answered candidly: "Ordinary people earn one yuan, but we are university students, our wages should definitely be higher, right?"
Tong Yao, unperturbed, responded with a smile, "Has your status as a university student brought any additional benefits to the job?"
"..."
The girl was taken aback, unable to answer. However, she still felt in her heart that university students should earn more than others. What was the point of their education?
Wasn’t it to earn higher wages than ordinary people?
Otherwise, why bother studying?
Seeing her defiant attitude, Tong Yao said indifferently, "This job is not for you. If you think your wages should be higher, you should look for a higher-paying job."
With her attitude of superiority due to being a university student, she was not suited for the service industry whatsoever. Keeping her on would only result in unnecessary trouble. Thus, Tong Yao decisively decided not to hire her.
Being a stubborn one, the woman’s face fell upon hearing Tong Yao’s words. "Well, I don’t want to do it. Who cares!" she huffed and stormed off.
The other girl seemed to be her friend as she nervously called out her name, torn between following her or staying back. Tong Yao watched her calmly, giving her time to make up her mind while making no attempt to rush her.
After considering for a while, the girl gritted her teeth and decided to follow her friend, giving up the job opportunity.
Tong Yao wasn’t too surprised. She turned her attention to the three young men who were wearing simple clothes and handmade cloth shoes, which indicated that their family situation wasn’t very good. She just hoped that they weren’t also looking down on the job because of the low wages.
As Tong Yao looked at them, they quickly indicated their acceptance of the low wages before she could even speak, "We don’t mind the low pay. Could we start working as a trial?"
The third-year student wasn’t very confident when he heard that Tong Yao was hiring long-term workers, but he didn’t give up.
Tong Yao asked them some basic questions and found them to be well-mannered and pleasant, moreover, they looked neat and athletic. She decided to give them a trial period. Although it was a trial period, their salary would be the same as regular employees.
"I also plan to hire one more employee. If you have suitable friends willing to work here, you can recommend them to me. It would be better if it’s a boy."
She had initially preferred hiring a woman, but since all her current staff were men, hiring a woman might raise complications, so she decided to hire another man instead.
Upon hearing her, the second-year student, Zhou Lei suggested, "I have a roommate. He is very hardworking and neat. His family is also not well off; the village provides his tuition. Can I introduce him?"
Knowing that the candidate was a financially disadvantaged student, Tong Yao didn’t think much and agreed, "If you have time now, can you bring him over for an interview?"
"I can, I will go and get him now." Zhou Lei replied enthusiastically, disappearing from sight quickly. 𝚗ovp𝚞b.𝚌om
The other two men also returned to school after discussing their work schedule. They seemed delighted to have found a job, walking with a spring in their step.
There were many financially disadvantaged students in the university, and jobs were hard to find, let alone jobs near the school. A salary of one yuan per day may not seem high in Kyoto, but considering they were students, most employers would exploit these conscientious and frugal students. It was indeed rare to get such wages.
The two girls clearly hadn’t understood their current situation. Probably, they hadn’t yet come to terms with the glory of being admitted to a university, assuming that being a university student was superior. Even though they had the chance of a rare job right in front of them, they were too picky.
However, they should thank these two girls. If Tong Yao had hired them, they wouldn’t have landed such a wonderful job. After all, the shop only needed four employees.
As the three of them knew each other, if two were hired and the other failed to secure a job, they would feel uncomfortable. Now that everyone had a job, it turned out to be a win-win situation. They could even afford an extra meal at lunchtime.
