The service quality of salesclerks at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative these days is abysmal—it can hardly even be called service. Selling goods feels more like doling out charity or bestowing favors.
Buying something practically requires getting down on your knees to beg.
Cui Degui, well-traveled and having even been on overseas inspection trips before, found this phenomenon utterly detestable. Yet, he couldn’t change it.
Salesclerks held iron rice bowl jobs—firing someone was nearly impossible. With such job security, they had nothing to fear, and even his authority as manager was ineffective!
His only recourse was to tighten control through various benefits and regulations, which had marginally improved the service quality at the Department Store. At least now, they rarely got into physical altercations with customers…
Now, in Cheng Hui, Cui Degui saw his ideal salesclerk—exactly what one should be.
If he could transfer her to his side and use her as a model to train all the salesclerks, that would be even better!
In less than an hour, Cheng Hui sold out all the small-packaged Weifeng Cakes.
Just then, Wang Hui and Li Yan returned. Seeing the empty table and the smug Tao Juan, they were dumbfounded.
“Where are the goods? Were they snatched away?” Li Yan asked.
Tao Juan immediately shot him a disdainful look, too lazy to even explain.
Wang Hui, eyes sparkling, scanned the area: “Where’s the deputy factory director?”
“She went to get a drink,” Tao Juan replied.
After talking for nearly two hours straight, Cheng Hui was parched. Carrying her own enamel mug, she headed back to the manager’s office.
During those two hours, she hadn’t just been selling—she’d also chatted occasionally with the salesclerks, picking up a lot of information.
For instance, she learned that Manager Cui of the Department Store had only been there for a year, was highly motivated, and had a good reputation.
While passing several offices, she deliberately peeked inside and spotted a few sliced, unfinished Weifeng Cakes.
It wasn’t that they weren’t delicious—sometimes when only one or two pieces remained, no one dared to eat more, fearing they’d be labeled as gluttonous.
Cheng Hui was pleased. That package of cakes had actually been her test—to see if the manager was the type to take petty advantages.
It seemed he passed.
“Manager Cui, may I get some hot water?” Cheng Hui knocked and asked with a smile.
Cui Degui warmly approached her, taking the mug from her hands: “Come, come, let me pour it for you!”
Cheng Hui was taken aback, hesitating to step inside.
Cui Degui realized his enthusiasm had been excessive—it had startled her.
As he poured the water, he got straight to the point: “Xiao Cheng, have you ever considered changing jobs? I saw your performance earlier—staying at a small place like the Xian Food Factory is a waste of your talent!
“How about our Department Store? There happens to be an opening in the office!”
Of course, there wasn’t originally, but he could make room for one!
Cheng Hui smiled, stepped inside, took the cup from him, and sat down in the spacious chair with a long sigh.
Having been on her feet all that time, she was genuinely tired.
She took a sip of hot water and said with a laugh, “Manager Cui, you truly have an eye for talent!”
Cui Degui was momentarily stunned, then burst into hearty laughter.
This young lady really knew how to talk—praising both him and herself in one breath!
Unlike others, he adored people who weren’t overly modest!
“The current office director will retire in a few years… If you perform well, I can push through any opposition and have you take his position!” Cui Degui declared.
Cheng Hui glanced back at the wide-open door, then turned to him with a smile: “In the future, you really shouldn’t say such things with the door open. Are you poaching me or digging a pit for me? You’re practically burying both of us in that pit!”
Right outside the door were various offices!
Which office director was he referring to? Whose position did he want her to take? How many people had already set their sights on that position before she even arrived?
She hadn’t even started yet, and she’d already made enemies of everyone!
And Cui Degui had also offended all the office directors.
Cheng Hui smiled inwardly—no one was perfect, and she preferred dealing with imperfect people.
Cui Degui was taken aback, feeling deep regret. He had been impulsive; he hadn’t closed the door earlier!
But speaking alone with a young female comrade in a room, he couldn’t close the door either.
Still, he regarded Cheng Hui even more highly. Despite her youth, her understanding of human affairs was astute!
Unfortunately, judging by her expression, she didn’t seem interested in his job at the Department Store.
Well, she was from Jingcheng—what prestigious workplace hadn’t she seen? With her abilities, what good unit couldn’t she get into? Who knew why she had ended up in their humble place?
While Cui Degui was wildly speculating, Cheng Hui took a few sips of water and finally recovered, getting down to business:
“Manager, how many bottles of Feitian Maotai does the Department Store have in stock now?”
Cui Degui was startled: “Why do you ask? For gifting? Aren’t the leaders in Jingcheng already tired of it?”
Cheng Hui smiled: “The employees at our factory have never tasted it. I want to buy some as welfare for them.”
Cui Degui was taken aback. Eight yuan was no small amount—Maotai was usually circulated among leaders, exchanged as gifts.
This was the first time he’d heard of giving Feitian Maotai as employee welfare… He didn’t even have it in his own benefits!
And for a small Xian Food Factory, no less.
The key point was… Cui Degui asked: “Can you make that decision?”
He assumed she was just a capable employee, at most a team leader, given her age. If not for her pregnancy, he would have thought she was underage!
Cheng Hui didn’t mention her identity as deputy factory director, as it hadn’t been officially confirmed yet. She smiled mysteriously and said, “I can.”
“Alright then,” Cui Degui said. “I’ll go ask for you.”
As the general manager, he couldn’t possibly know the exact inventory of every product.
He went to the neighboring office and, sure enough, keenly noticed that everyone was looking at him a bit strangely, especially the office director.
Cui Degui… Well, he’d been taught another lesson by the young lady! If she hadn’t pointed it out, it would have taken him a while to realize how he had offended these people.
“Xiao Wang, go check how many bottles of Feitian Maotai are left,” he said.
The young man sitting by the door glanced furtively at the office director. Seeing the other’s stern face and receiving no signal, he stood up and said, “I’ll go right away!”
Cui Degui sighed inwardly. A year had passed, and he still hadn’t won these people over! And today, he had inadvertently offended them…
Xiao Wang returned quickly: “Manager, there are only 10 bottles of Feitian Maotai left, and four cases of regular Maotai.”
There was only one authentic Maotai distillery, and its current production was limited, with even fewer bottles available for public sale. Many were reserved as special supplies or for internal distribution.
Although they were in a provincial capital city, their Department Store was perpetually second-best. Whenever any Maotai arrived, it had to go to Qiulin Shopping Mall first! Only then would they get their share.
Moreover, the provincial capital had more than one Department Store—each district had its own.
Cui Degui returned to his office and reported the numbers.
Cheng Hui immediately said, “I’ll take all 10 bottles. But I don’t have any liquor coupons. Manager Cui, do you have any? Could you lend me a few?”
Currently, each worker is issued a few liquor coupons every month, with the quantity varying, generally between 6 to 10 coupons.
Given Cui Degui’s status, he certainly didn’t lack such things. Even if he used up his own, a shout down the hallway would immediately bring someone offering more.
He did have some capability—the office manager earlier had pulled a long face but still didn’t dare confront him directly.
As expected, this was a trivial matter. Cui Degui opened the cabinet, took out his briefcase, and rummaged through a pile of coupons inside.
He counted out a few liquor coupons but then had a sudden idea and pushed all the coupons toward Cheng Hui.
“I have no use for these coupons anyway. They’ve been sitting here for months and will expire if not used soon. Take them all… for your unit.”