June 2nd, Thursday.

Liang Qianfan had been in seclusion for two days.

He had obtained the blueprints for both buildings. The commercial-residential building was relatively easier to handle since it was new, but the lakeside district apartments were quite old, and it took a lot of effort to find the original construction drawings after contacting the property management.

After that, Liang Qianfan went into seclusion and simultaneously into self-doubt.

This time, he truly didn’t understand Mr. Pei’s intentions.

For the previous large flat, when Mr. Pei wanted to do a minimalist style, Liang Qianfan could still understand. After all, those who could afford to rent those apartments were wealthy, and among the wealthy, there should be some who liked this minimalist style.

But doing a minimalist style for these forty-something square meter duplex lofts and sixty-something square meter two-bedroom apartments?

What would be left in those apartments?

Some aesthetic issues, Liang Qianfan felt he could solve, it was just a matter of putting in more thought.

But how did Mr. Pei intend to solve the problem of the apartments having such poor practicality?

It was very confusing, but he didn’t feel comfortable asking too many questions.

The commercial-residential duplex lofts were relatively easier to handle. After all, the area was smaller, and what space could be used for what purpose was very clear, so the plan could be decided quickly.

On the contrary, the “magical” lakeside view rooms in the lakeside district would require major changes.

The semicircular 180-degree arc-shaped living room needed a re-examination of functional zones to improve utilization, the kitchen and bathroom had to be expanded, and the entrance door and corridor had to be widened.

These would directly affect the living experience. If they weren’t done well, no matter how fancy the decoration was, it would still be a failure.

Fortunately, after getting the structural diagrams, Liang Qianfan found that some parts that seemed to be load-bearing walls were actually non-load-bearing and could be modified.

But even so, creating this plan would require a lot of effort.

“Come on!”

“Mr. Pei said that these difficult layouts are what test a designer’s level. I must improve these layouts no matter what and not disappoint Mr. Pei’s expectations!”

Liang Qianfan temporarily put aside the doubts in his mind and continued to focus on perfecting his design plan.

……

……

June 3rd, Friday.

Slackin’ Takeout Store No. 1, Food Laboratory.

Rui Yuchen was alone in the store, tasting the newly launched fitness meal set.

Although he was the head of Slackin’ Internet Café, Rui Yuchen always felt that he shouldn’t be disconnected from the customers. He needed to frequently visit the stores, chat with customers, and even occasionally act as a waiter himself.

Today he had a whim, sent the waiter away, and decided to be a waiter himself.

Since there were no customers at the moment, he decided to try the newly launched fitness meal set.

In the transparent glass container, on one side were stir-fried beef slices garnished with onions, carrots, and green peppers, and on the other side were banana oatmeal cakes and pan-fried cod.

With fish, meat, and vegetables, it was both healthy and in line with Chinese dining habits.

Previously, the fitness meals developed by Slackin’ Takeout had already been promoted in various Tuoguan Fitness locations with very good feedback.

But Rui Yuchen didn’t stop there and continued to develop new fitness meals.

Because he knew very clearly that even if Chinese-style fitness meals satisfied customers’ tastes and could be eaten for a long time, people would still get tired of eating the same dishes repeatedly.

Therefore, it was essential to ensure a wide variety of meals that could be regularly changed to keep customers interested.

When eating fitness meals no longer felt like completing a task for customers but was something they looked forward to, that would mean the fitness meal initiative had succeeded.

Now, it could only be considered an initial success, and they still needed to continue enriching the menu.

Just as he was about to pick up his chopsticks, Rui Yuchen saw a familiar figure.

“Brother Lin, you’re here, have a seat.” Rui Yuchen stood up to welcome him.

Lin Canrong casually found a chair and sat down, looking around. This was his first time visiting the Food Laboratory of Slackin’ Takeout.

Rui Yuchen said to the kitchen: “Another fitness meal, please.”

Lin Canrong remarked with emotion: “The Food Laboratory of Slackin’ Takeout is quite impressive.”

Rui Yuchen got up to pour a drink for Lin Canrong, saying with a smile: “It’s all done according to Mr. Pei’s instructions. By the way, Brother Lin, didn’t you say before that Mingyun Private Kitchen also wanted to set up a food laboratory? How’s that going?”

Lin Canrong shook his head: “Mr. Pei didn’t approve.”

“Didn’t approve?” Rui Yuchen was stunned. “Why? Mingyun Private Kitchen should be more focused on researching food to provide a better dining experience for high-end diners, right?”

Lin Canrong took the juice from Rui Yuchen’s hand and said while drinking: “That’s what I thought at first, but after thinking about it for a long time, I finally understood Mr. Pei’s deeper meaning.”

“I was also puzzled before. Mr. Pei said he wouldn’t let me open branch stores or set up a food laboratory, but he allowed me to spend money.”

“Where else could this money be spent?”

“After thinking for a long time, I finally decided to spend money on employee training!”

Rui Yuchen was surprised: “Employee training?”

Lin Canrong nodded: “Yes, directly recruiting people from Handong University with high salaries who can fluently speak multiple languages to be waiters, while also conducting unified training for all waiters, making them memorize the ingredients, cooking methods, heat control, taste, and other characteristics of each dish, so they can answer fluently when guests ask.”

“And I also enrolled the previous waiters in classes. With more staff, there’s more free time in the schedule, so I can arrange for them to learn foreign languages during their working hours.”

Rui Yuchen: “Huh?”

Lin Canrong explained: “I carefully considered the hints Mr. Pei gave me before deciding to do this. The reason Mr. Pei wouldn’t let me open branch stores is because Mingyun Private Kitchen is a high-end restaurant with limited ingredients, and the chefs are all highly paid talents recruited from all over, which are scarce resources. Opening branch stores wouldn’t guarantee consistent taste, which would damage our own reputation.”

“So, Mr. Pei cares about this reputation!”

“Then if we continue to spend money, where should it go? It must be on enhancing the influence of this gold-standard reputation!”

“After thinking it over, the chefs’ skills are already very high and can only improve slowly, and spending more money might not be effective. As for ingredients, we’ve basically obtained the top-quality ones. So the only thing that can be further improved is the service details.”

“Therefore, we need to put more effort into these waiters!”

“Who knows, there might be foreign friends coming to Mingyun Private Kitchen for meals in the future. If the waiters can speak multiple languages, it can greatly improve their satisfaction. Spending money on this aspect is actually very meaningful.”

Rui Yuchen suddenly realized: “I see, Mr. Pei has such an international vision? Indeed, Mingyun Private Kitchen already has a high reputation domestically, so we should prepare in advance to receive foreign friends.”

Lin Canrong continued: “In addition, I’ve also arranged for all the waiters at Mingyun Private Kitchen to join Tuoguan Fitness.”

“I think, when Mr. Pei opened Tuoguan Fitness near Mingyun Manor knowing it would lose money, it was mainly for employees to use!”

“Later, I observed that sure enough, people from DGE Esports Club had already been arranged to go there, so I felt that Mingyun Private Kitchen shouldn’t fall behind, and arranged for the waiters to exercise.”

“Several waiters indeed have some issues with body management, which might leave a bad impression on customers, so this is also an area that can be improved.”

Rui Yuchen nodded: “I see… but I still think it wouldn’t hurt for Mingyun Private Kitchen to set up a food laboratory to improve the taste?”

As they were chatting, the fitness meal was ready.

“Here, Brother Lin, try this new fitness meal researched by the Food Laboratory.” Rui Yuchen got up and went to the kitchen to bring the fitness meal, placing it in front of Lin Canrong.

Lin Canrong tasted a few bites: “Hmm, not bad.”

Rui Yuchen smiled: “Brother Lin, you taste dishes from Mingyun Private Kitchen every day, so I’m already very satisfied that you can praise it as ‘not bad’.”

Lin Canrong continued eating: “I think it’s not bad. For a fitness meal, it’s simply too delicious, okay?”

“Where were we in our conversation?”

Rui Yuchen: “I was just saying, it wouldn’t hurt for Mingyun Private Kitchen to set up a food laboratory to improve the taste.”

Lin Canrong nodded: “Right, actually, Mr. Pei has considered this point as well.”

“He won’t let Mingyun Private Kitchen set up a food laboratory, saying, ‘At most, I’ll allow you to utilize the research results from Slackin’ Takeout’s Food Laboratory.'”

Rui Yuchen was surprised: “Utilize our research results? But our research results aren’t useful. They’re all affordable meals that can’t possibly be sold at Mingyun Private Kitchen.”

Lin Canrong smiled and shook his head: “That’s what I thought at first.”

“But later I realized, Mr. Pei’s words had a deeper meaning!”

“Both of our departments are in the food industry. On the surface, one does high-end dining and one does affordable dining, but they’re both brands under Tenda!”

“If we each set up a food laboratory, it would definitely be you doing yours and me doing mine, and we couldn’t integrate our resources, which would also create waste.”

“Moreover, it makes sense for Slackin’ Takeout, with its size, to have a food laboratory. Mingyun Private Kitchen is too small; no matter how popular it is, it’s still just one restaurant. Setting up a food laboratory would be like a small horse pulling a big cart, very strenuous.”

“But what if we integrate our resources?”

“When Mr. Pei said he would allow Mingyun Private Kitchen to utilize Slackin’ Takeout’s research success, he was hinting that we shouldn’t be so separate. We should research together, use the results together—one food laboratory is completely enough!”

Rui Yuchen suddenly realized: “Oh, I see!”

Lin Canrong continued: “So I plan to regularly arrange for our chefs to come to the Food Laboratory to experiment with new methods and new dishes. At that time, I’ll ask your nutritionists and professionals for help and advice.”

Rui Yuchen nodded decisively: “Of course, we’d be delighted! When new dishes are developed, we can also use them, and maybe it will inspire new ideas for the people in the laboratory!”

Lin Canrong couldn’t help but sigh. Mr. Pei sees things!

Previously, Lin Canrong had some minor resentment, wondering why Slackin’ Takeout kept expanding despite continuously losing money, while Mingyun Private Kitchen, which was consistently profitable, saw no movement.

Was Mr. Pei showing favoritism?

Now it appears he had misunderstood Mr. Pei.

Mr. Pei was emphasizing that both Mingyun Private Kitchen and Slackin’ Takeout were important parts of Tenda’s food industry layout, and they should work together without distinction!