Free Web NovelChapter 152: Chapter 152: Assistance from the Foundation
It was the third day of business for the Wangyou Milk Tea Shop.
When Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong went to open the shop that morning, they discovered twice as many people waiting outside as there had been the day before.
"So this is the power of trending online?"
Qin Sitong leaned in and whispered in Yun Zijin’s ear.
"Who knows? Just have your bodyguards clear a path for us!"
’With so many people crowded here, aren’t they worried about a stampede!’
Without waiting for Yun Zijin’s command, Zero One and his men, already familiar with the drill, formed a human wall around Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong, forging a path for them through the crowd.
"Everyone, please get in line! We’re about to open!"
Qin Sitong raised her voice, shouting at the pushing and shoving crowd.
The crowd instantly stilled, then obediently formed a single line.
"Ma’am, I’m not here to buy milk tea. I’m here for the job opening..."
Everyone else had gotten into line, leaving only one extremely haggard-looking woman standing off to the side.
A moment later, however, she explained her reason for being there.
Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong both looked at her. "For the job opening? In that case, please wait a moment. I need to take everyone’s order first."
’I can’t believe someone’s already here to apply just one day after we put up the hiring notice.’
"Of course! It’s no problem. Please, you two go on with your work."
After saying that, she stood quietly to the side without another word.
"Um... please, find a seat and wait. I’m not sure how long this will take."
There were obviously many more customers than yesterday, and Yun Zijin worried she would be too busy and keep the woman waiting for a long time.
"I... I’m fine. Please, don’t worry about me."
The woman still didn’t take a seat, instead standing pressed against the wall, trying to make herself as inconspicuous as possible.
Yun Zijin didn’t have time to tend to her at the moment, so she could only let the woman stand there. However, she did speed up the process of taking orders.
Aside from the newcomers who had seen the shop trending online and came to see the commotion, most of today’s crowd were regular customers. They had decided what they wanted long before reaching the counter, so when it was their turn, they ordered immediately. This sped up the process considerably.
Seeing this, the new customers followed suit out of a herd mentality, also choosing their orders in advance.
Half an hour later, Yun Zijin had finally taken all the orders from the first wave of customers.
Seeing that Qin Sitong was so busy she was practically running in circles, Yun Zijin started helping her make the Wangyou Milk Tea.
Qin Sitong had to handle the other drinks, but Yun Zijin could at least help with the Wangyou Milk Tea.
Once they had finished the orders for that wave of customers, Yun Zijin finally had a moment to step out from behind the counter.
The woman who had come to apply for the job was still standing by the wall.
"Um... Ma’am, why don’t we go sit in the back?"
The milk tea shop had a back room, which was meant for employees to rest and change into their uniforms.
However, their custom-made uniforms hadn’t arrived yet, so for the past couple of days, Yun Zijin and Qin Sitong had just been working in their regular clothes.
"Okay!"
Yun Zijin led the woman into the break room, gestured for her to sit down, then pulled up a chair to sit facing her.
"Why don’t you start by telling me a little about yourself?"
Yun Zijin fell silent for a moment. As the atmosphere grew a little awkward, she finally remembered to ask the woman to introduce herself.
"Hello, Ma’am. My name is Liang Fen, and I’m from G Province. I came to Dijing to support my son while he studies.
I’ve worked as a dishwasher, a server, and a cleaner. I’ve done all of it!
Whatever work you can give me, I promise I’ll do my absolute best to get it done!"
’To be honest,’ Yun Zijin thought, ’there wasn’t much useful information in that introduction.’
However, Yun Zijin was a little surprised to hear that the woman was here to support her son’s education.
’From the look of her, even if hard labor has made her look older, she couldn’t possibly be old enough to have a son in college, could she?’
"Your son is..."
"Oh! My son is seven. He’s in his first year of junior high at the middle school affiliated with Dijing University!"
Yun Zijin: ...
"Seven... and he’s in junior high?"
’Is her son some kind of child prodigy?’
"Yes! A teacher from his old school helped us. Otherwise, with our circumstances, there’s no way a middle school in Dijing would have taken an interest in my son."
’That teacher from her son’s old school must have some serious connections, like some kind of hidden master.’
"Are you here with him by yourself? Did no one else from your family come?"
’An uneducated woman, bringing her seven-year-old son to Dijing all by themselves... I can’t imagine how their family could let them go. They must be incredibly irresponsible.’
"His father has to tend the fields, and his grandparents are too old. I was the only one who could come."
"So, do you know how to make milk tea? Like the kind everyone is drinking out front. The position we’re hiring for requires making the drinks."
"I... could I learn on the job? Please don’t worry, Ma’am. I’m a decent cook, so I’m sure I can learn very quickly!"
’It seems like she really needs this job.’
"Alright, please hold out your hands. Let me see."
Liang Fen didn’t understand what Yun Zijin was doing, but she held out both of her hands anyway.
Yun Zijin inspected them carefully, confirming that her hands were clean and that there was no grime or dirt under her fingernails.
’So far, she meets the basic requirements.’
"Alright, I understand your situation. Please fill out your name and contact information here, and we’ll call you once we’ve made a decision."
"Okay, okay! I’ll be sure to keep my phone on 24/7!"
Although she didn’t get a definitive answer, Liang Fen could sense that Yun Zijin had a good impression of her.
’If I can just get this job, I can buy more nutritious food for Little Bao. He’s gotten so thin lately.’
After Liang Fen left, Yun Zijin sent the woman’s information to Mei Lin and asked her to run a background check.
’If Liang Fen’s story is true,’ she thought, ’I don’t mind helping her with her financial troubles.’
’Now that the Qingjin Charity Foundation is established, it’s time for it to do something meaningful.’
Mei Lin replied quickly.
Yun Zijin opened the file Mei Lin had sent. The details were basically consistent with what Liang Fen had said, but it felt different reading the hard facts versus just hearing someone’s story.
Mei Lin was in charge of everything related to the Qingjin Charity Foundation, so Yun Zijin sent her a message, asking her to determine which level of aid Liang Fen’s family qualified for.
Mei Lin, of course, carried out Yun Zijin’s instructions immediately.
Liang Fen had just gotten back to her rented apartment when she received a call from the charity foundation. She was utterly dumbfounded.
’She had never posted any requests for help online. Why would someone suddenly be calling to offer her family financial aid?’
Liang Fen’s first reaction was that it had to be a scam.
So, Liang Fen immediately called the local police.
And so... Mei Lin received a call from the Dijing police and, a short while later, found herself at the station.
Mei Lin looked at the guilty-faced Liang Fen, then turned to the officer handling the case. "I’m the one who made the call," she said. "I’m the director of the Qingjin Charity Foundation.
This is a private foundation established by our Young Miss. We don’t solicit public donations, so we may not be as well-known as the foundations that do.
If Ms. Liang believes we are scammers, we can go through the official process right here in front of the police.
Based on our assessment, the foundation is prepared to offer you and your son an aid package that includes all of his tuition and miscellaneous fees from now until his university graduation, plus a monthly stipend of 50,000 yuan until he comes of age."
