The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

Everyone thought Gu’er had a point.

"But it’s impossible to smile all day. Besides, everyone has things going on at home. If something’s wrong, you can’t just force a smile."

Someone raised an objection.

"It isn’t easy to keep a smile on your face all day, and that’s precisely why you need to practice. Yes, everyone has things going on at home. When something happens, it might be hard to smile. But those aren’t excuses. The most basic requirement for any employee is to not bring personal emotions into the workplace. If you’re trying to sell something with a sour expression, it will affect the atmosphere. The biggest taboo at work is letting your emotions take over. If you’re in a bad mood, you might get distracted and even cause an accident. That’s why I’m asking you not to bring your emotions to work. No matter what you’re facing, once you’re here, on the job, I expect you to smile happily and work diligently. If you truly can’t bring yourself to smile, you can request a leave of absence. However, I don’t want this to become an excuse for providing subpar service."

Gu’er was very serious. For a department store, the physical infrastructure was important, but the service—the "software"—was just as crucial. Only when both were in place could it succeed.

"That’s completely unreasonable. You expect us to smile even when we have personal problems? And if we can’t, we have to take a day off? But if we take leave, we lose our perfect attendance bonus, and maybe other bonuses too. Who would want to do that?"

A woman in her thirties spoke up, her face tinged with dissatisfaction.

"You think my request is unreasonable? That I’m being heartless? Then why didn’t you think I was heartless when I announced the attendance and performance bonuses? You won’t find another company willing to spend this much on its staff right now. Why do you think we have these bonuses? They exist to motivate you to work hard. You want to earn more money without putting in the effort? Doesn’t taking that money make you blush? If you can’t meet this requirement, then you can transfer to another department. But even if you’re on the cleaning staff, you’re still expected to smile politely at customers. If you can’t even do that, then I’m sorry, but you can leave. Pay is proportional to effort. I will not employ anyone who’s just here to slack off for a paycheck. I’m certain no workplace has a need for people like that."

Gu’er spoke very bluntly. It wasn’t that she was being unreasonable; if she was offering such good terms for a job, what use was an employee who still complained that this was unacceptable and that was impossible? 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Though Gu’er’s words were blunt, she had a point. So when she finished, no one else seemed to mind, apart from the woman who had spoken up earlier, who now looked rather sullen.

"Yeah, she’s paying us so much. We should do a good job."

Someone agreed with Gu’er.

"Exactly. If you take their money, you have to do a good job for them. That’s basic. She’s right. If you can’t do it, you shouldn’t be here."

Another person added.

Gu’er nodded. It was good that they understood this principle.

"I’m very happy that everyone understands, so I won’t say any more. Let’s begin. Everyone, start practicing your smiles. I want to see how you all smile."

The first thing Gu’er had them do was smile. She went from person to person, checking the smiles of the assigned staff. As for those who were in poor health, Gu’er had sent them to get a doctor’s certificate; she planned to place them on paid medical leave and then hire more people herself.

Upon checking their smiles, Gu’er realized that smiling wasn’t a simple matter. Some people’s smiles were downright cringe-worthy; they gave her goosebumps. If they smiled at customers like that in the store, they’d probably scare them away.

"Everyone, watch me. I hope you can all smile like this."

Gu’er stood at the front to set an example. She slightly raised the corners of her mouth without showing her teeth. Her smile wasn’t a hearty laugh, but a gentle one. Her eyes were bright and her smile was sweet, making people feel exceptionally comfortable looking at her.

"Did everyone get that? Now, start practicing. I expect every one of you to be able to do it."

Gu’er had everyone practice smiling again.

This time, a few met the requirements. Gu’er picked a girl with a sweet face and a pretty smile and had her stand at the front to demonstrate for everyone.

Gu’er spent the entire day teaching fifty employees how to smile. It was just a simple smile, yet she was completely exhausted. She now understood that smiling was truly no easy task. Knowing how to do it was one thing, but actually doing it was another.

"Let’s go. My treat today. Let’s go get something to eat."

Sun Jiaming looked at the sky. Everyone was hungry, and he couldn’t bear to let the exhausted Gu’er go home and cook.

"Alright, let’s go to a nicer restaurant. We can consider this a welcome dinner for Qu Feng."

Li Zhi nodded and pulled Qu Feng along.

"I’m so sorry about today. I got so busy I forgot all about you, and you had to watch that whole spectacle."

Gu’er said to Qu Feng. She could tell that Qu Feng wasn’t very interested in their department store, and she didn’t want to force anyone. ’If he doesn’t want to be here and just goes through the motions, it would be better not to hire him at all,’ she thought.

"Not at all, not at all. I actually learned a lot from listening to your training today."

Qu Feng was completely different from when he had first arrived that morning. His attitude had changed significantly; his earlier arrogance was gone.

Gu’er smiled. She was using management concepts from the future, which were still very advanced for the current time, so she wasn’t surprised by Qu Feng’s reaction. She didn’t like to force people and had no intention of being overly enthusiastic to win him over. She would simply let him observe everything. If he was interested and decided to stay, she would be happy. If he was still unwilling, then she would just have Li Zhi send him on his way.

The group chatted as they found a decent restaurant and had a meal together. In the end, Qu Feng didn’t clearly state whether he would stay or leave, but he did say he would come again tomorrow, which indicated he still had some interest.

Li Zhi was the driver. He grinned at Sun Jiaming and Gu’er and said, "So, should I be dropping the two of you off at Gu’er’s place again today?"

Li Zhi’s teasing made Gu’er blush. ’That jerk is making fun of me.’ But Sun Jiaming really had kissed her yesterday. Gu’er couldn’t refute Li Zhi’s words, so she could only glare at him before lowering her head, her face crimson.

"You take the others back. I’ll take Gu’er home. We won’t need you."

Sun Jiaming patted his motorcycle and said calmly.

Li Zhi chuckled, then he and the others got in the car and left.

"That damn Li Zhi," Gu’er muttered under her breath, trying to dispel her embarrassment. "Just wait until he finds a wife. I’ll definitely tell on him."

"Okay. When he gets married, we’ll make fun of him too and tell on him to his wife."

Sun Jiaming smiled, his gaze gentle. ’She’s so shy.’ The memory of yesterday’s kiss made his heart race. He desperately wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her again, but they were on the side of the road. ’If I do that, she’ll die of embarrassment.’

"Come on, let’s head back."

Sun Jiaming patted the seat of his motorcycle. The engine started, and Gu’er gently rested her cheek against Sun Jiaming’s back. The two of them drove back, just as they had come.

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Thank you to Mi’er~ and Chunteng 1 for the monthly tickets. Thank you all for your support. I’ve finished all the bonus Chapters, but there will be a 5th update today. Back to writing.