Chen Lishu turned to face Zhang Bin, her expression tinged with helplessness as she heard his indignant voice. "Now, which law states they can't learn our marketing methods?"
He had expected Chen Lishu to be as furious as he was upon hearing the news, and that they would work overtime to find a solution. To his surprise, Chen Lishu seemed to be siding with those who were copying their marketing methods.
Zhang Bin, assuming Chen Lishu was succumbing to the pressure from recent events, quickly stepped forward to comfort her. "Manager Chen, whatever the problem is, please speak up. We can solve it together. Don't give up like this. Our family has gone through such a significant change, and yet I remain steadfast in my position, determined to make the company bigger and stronger. You are a crucial figure in our company; if you falter, the company will fall."
Listening to Zhang Bin's continuous chatter, Chen Lishu raised an eyebrow and patiently explained, "That's not what I meant. In fact, when I approached the editor-in-chief of the newspaper about cooperation, I had already anticipated today's events. Besides, didn't our existence pave the way for the newspaper to enter the paid market? Otherwise, why would others come to us for collaboration?"
"That's true, but we can't be the ones planting the trees while others enjoy the shade. We paid a great price for this collaboration," Zhang Bin said, his face flushing red at the memory of Chen Lishu nearly being defiled by that scoundrel. He felt that since it was the newspaper's negligence that nearly led to an irreversible situation, they should at least offer some compensation. Not to the extent of closing the market or preventing other companies from accessing it, but at least to delay it. They should at least allow them to earn some money.
Chen Lishu shook her head with a sigh as she looked at Zhang Bin's indignant expression. Isn't the workplace like this? Everyone is driven by self-interest. Wu Lu had already been removed from the newspaper's roster. Whatever actions he took had no bearing on their company, so why should they fear anything? As long as they distanced themselves from the incident and the news didn't spread, very few people would know, and it wouldn't cause much of a stir.
Chen Lishu said with a hint of coldness, "Let's discuss this in the office. This loud voice... if people don't know, they might think the company is going bankrupt, attracting employees to spectate."
Upon Chen Lishu's words, Zhang Bin, lost in his thoughts, immediately looked up and saw a crowd of employees gathering around, eager to watch. His face darkened, and he gruffly yelled at the employees, "What are all of you doing standing around here? Have you finished all your work? Get back to your posts immediately. Anyone caught doing anything unrelated to work during office hours will have their pay docked from now on!"
At his words, the curious employees scattered like a flock of birds.
Once inside the office, Chen Lishu didn't give Zhang Bin a chance to continue his lament and directly addressed the topic. "Do you remember why I couldn't find a newspaper to cooperate with initially?"
Zhang Bin nodded. "Of course, I remember. It was nothing more than promoting our brand and implementing a home delivery system."
Chen Lishu continued, "And has our brand been promoted?"
Zhang Bin nodded again. "Yes, our products have become well-known brands in Kyoto."
"That's enough. We only need one outstanding advantage among many enterprises to be successful. The plan will continue. Initially, we thought of recruiting in every area of the west district, but I think the expenses would be too high. Drivers' salaries are not cheap these days, especially with the requirements of living in the west district and having a good reputation. This drastically narrows the pool of potential employees, requiring us to spend more funds! However, after some observation, I've discovered a more perfect plan that can help us find the strongest team with the least capital and establish distribution points in various areas of both the west and east districts."
As Chen Lishu spoke about this, her emotions became visibly excited. She had stumbled upon this idea just that morning while taking her children out, feeling as though heaven itself was on her side, guiding her.
Zhang Bin leaned in curiously. "Manager Chen, this team you speak of is..."
Chen Lishu's lips curved upwards slightly. "Find any beggar and ask them if they're willing to do a job. Since ancient times, these individuals have been the primary information network. They know exactly how many people are in this area and where they live. Most importantly, people in this intelligence network are interconnected. This means we don't need to establish small companies at each distribution point and then link everyone up ourselves! They have ways of contacting people in other areas. Giving them a fish is not as good as teaching them to fish. Our company is now a representative of charity. This way, we can help the impoverished people who want to live better lives and also solidify the company's image as a charitable institution!"
After hearing Chen Lishu's words, Zhang Bin was momentarily stunned. "That's right! We just need to consolidate these forces. It saves money and also allows us to expand the home delivery goal we initially planned only for the west district to a much larger scale! But doing this also carries risks, doesn't it, Manager Chen..."
Zhang Bin intended to discuss the follow-up plan in detail with Chen Lishu, but he noticed her glancing at her watch intermittently. She had promised her children that she would pick them up from kindergarten with snacks. Seeing that it was almost time, Chen Lishu stood up and said to Zhang Bin, "Regarding the home delivery plan, make a list of what needs to be considered. We'll discuss it in detail next time I come to the company."
With that, Chen Lishu picked up her bag from the desk and hurried out of the office.
----
Outside the kindergarten gate, Chen Lishu was already waiting. After about ten minutes, Xiao Bai and Yi Cheng appeared before her. Seeing their beaming smiles, she felt a sense of relief that their experience at kindergarten that day must have been good.
"Xiao Bai, Yi Cheng!" Chen Lishu called out their names and waved at them.
Hearing her voice, Yi Cheng and Xiao Bai quickly ran towards her, each hugging one of her legs and affectionately saying, "Mommy!" "Mommy, I missed you so much!"
"Are you missing me, or the snacks in Mom's hand?" Chen Lishu said, shaking the paper bag in front of the two children.
Catching the aroma wafting from the bag, Xiao Bai couldn't help but swallow and asked with wide eyes, "Mommy, what delicious food did you make for me and big brother?"
Chen Lishu opened the paper bag, revealing crispy fried hot dogs.
"Wow! Is that a hot dog?" Xiao Bai snatched the hot dog from Chen Lishu's hand. However, instead of eating it immediately, she turned and ran back with the hot dog.
"Xiao Bai!" Chen Lishu called out worriedly. But Xiao Bai didn't stop running. Seeing that her figure was about to disappear from sight, Chen Lishu picked up Yi Cheng and chased after her.