Chapter 70 - 69: Assistance System
Chapter 70: Chapter 69: Assistance System
On the way to the stone-cutting workshop.
Lin Yonghua began explaining the situation at the gold and silver processing plant to Jiang Miao.
"Boss, the plant currently has 27 employees: six gold and silversmiths, one stone cutter, two Jade Carvers, one equipment maintenance technician, two warehouse managers, one accountant, two purchasers, four logistics staff, four security guards, and two salespeople, plus myself and Manager Jiang."
Then, Lin Yonghua described the factory’s equipment.
This included electric melting furnaces, heating furnaces, various machine tools, and heat treatment equipment.
Lin Yonghua explained everything in meticulous detail.
"With a manager as dedicated and responsible as Vice Manager Lin running the factory, I can rest easy," Jiang Miao said with a smile.
"It’s all part of my job," Lin Yonghua replied, not getting carried away.
「A few minutes later.」
The group arrived at the jade processing area that had just been sectioned off a few days ago.
Inside, several masters were busy at work. Sometime ago, Jiang Xia had gone to Jieyang. She hadn’t just recruited a few masters; she had also purchased a batch of semi-finished materials for bangles, bangle cores, and pendants.
As a result, these masters were now performing the fine processing on these semi-finished pieces.
Seeing Lin Yonghua, Jiang Xia, and the others, the masters stopped what they were doing.
The air conditioning in the partitioned room was set just right. The masters took off their professional noise-canceling earmuffs and safety goggles.
Though they were only in their twenties, they had already been honing their craft in the Jieyang jade processing industry for over five or six years.
"Master Zhang, Master Huang, Master Han, this is the company’s boss, General Manager Jiang."
"Hello, General Manager Jiang!"
"General Manager Jiang!"
"General Manager Jiang!"
Lin Yonghua pointed to a young man missing an index finger. "Boss, this is Master Zhang Ming’en. He started his apprenticeship as a Jade Carver at sixteen and graduated three years ago."
Jiang Miao glanced at this Master Zhang. From the man’s stern, unsmiling expression, he seemed to be someone with a story. However, Jiang Miao wasn’t one for gossip, so he just smiled and said:
"Today, I brought ten stones from the vault. They all need to be cut. If we find any good material, I’ll have to trouble you, Master Zhang."
"No problem. I will definitely carve a piece that will satisfy the boss."
Jiang Miao offered excellent compensation to his technical staff.
For example, a Jade Carver received a one percent commission on the sale price of every piece they carved. If the piece was of exceptional quality, the commission could even reach two to three percent.
Therefore, for the two Jade Carvers, carving each piece well was directly tied to their income.
「After chatting for a bit.」
Master Han, the one in charge of stone cutting, had already adjusted the cutting machine.
Jiang Miao pointed to the first gambling stone he had purchased. He used chalk to draw a line directly along a large crack. "I have a good feeling about this one. Let’s cut it first. Just follow this crack and slice it in two."
"This stone is worth tens of thousands. I hope we get a good start." Jiang Xia was a little nervous, her palms sweating.
Even though she knew her younger brother was worth over a hundred million, Jiang Xia still felt concerned about a few tens of thousands of yuan. After all, she had never gambled in her life.
This kind of stone gambling, wagering tens of thousands at a time, was really getting on her nerves.
"Alright." This Master Han wasn’t someone who knew how to gamble on stones. His eye for them was very average, so naturally, he couldn’t tell if this one was good or bad.
Zhang Ming’en, however, saw something about this stone. ’Did the boss get swindled?’ he wondered. ’For a piece with a ’bean green’ window, if it weren’t so large, it probably wouldn’t even be worth a few thousand.’
But although Zhang Ming’en wore a stern expression, it didn’t mean he lacked social grace. Plus, he didn’t know the boss’s personality yet, so he kept quiet and simply watched.
Soon, Master Han had secured the ten-plus-kilogram stone. He turned on the water drip, closed the cutting machine’s protective cover, and pressed the start button.
SCREEE...
Even with the protective cover, the sound from the cutter was still incredibly shrill.
The group moved to the nearby break room.
From the break room, they could watch the cutting machine through a soundproof glass window, avoiding the noise.
Taking advantage of the moment, Jiang Miao had Master Han draw lines on the remaining stones to prepare them for cutting.
"Boss, is there anything I need to pay attention to?" Master Han had a somewhat timid personality, so he spoke very cautiously.
Jiang Miao shook his head. "No. Just cut them straight down the middle. If the material is valuable, we’ll decide on the next step based on what we find."
"Is that all? That’s easy, then."
Jiang Miao turned to Lin Yonghua. "Vice Manager Lin, why don’t you take me over to the gold and silver processing area?"
"Of course! This way, Boss."
Led by Lin Yonghua, Jiang Miao and his group went to the gold and silver processing area.
The gold and silver processing area was quite large and had a lot of equipment. The six gold and silversmiths were all busy at work.
"Right now, besides processing our own gold and silver pieces, the factory also takes on contract manufacturing jobs. Our 3D gold and rose gold crafting techniques are very mature, and these masters are all top-notch," Lin Yonghua explained with pride, as if listing his family treasures.
Jiang Miao picked up a finished gold necklace, examined it for a moment, and then placed it back in its box.
After a moment, Lin Yonghua called the six masters over.
As he scanned the physical condition of the gold and silversmiths, Jiang Miao’s brow suddenly furrowed. He then called one of the masters over.
"Master Chen, your complexion doesn’t look right. Give me your hand."
Looking completely baffled, Master Chen stiffly extended his hand and asked nervously, "Boss, I’ve just had a bit of a sore back. It shouldn’t be anything serious, right?"
Lin Yonghua seemed to have heard some stories about Jiang Miao and quickly chimed in, "Master Chen, the boss’s medical skills are incredibly sharp! A section chief from the city’s tax bureau had pancreatic cancer, and the boss spotted it with a single glance. You have to trust his skills!"
GULP! Master Chen immediately grew tense.
Jiang Miao took his pulse for a moment, then instructed, "Open your mouth and stick out your tongue."
After a moment, his expression turned serious as he warned, "Master Chen, has your urine been very yellow recently, with a rotten egg smell? And have you had a persistent, dull ache in your lower left back?"
"Yes... yes! Boss, what’s wrong with me?" Master Chen’s face had gone pale, and his body was trembling slightly.
"Your left kidney is nearly necrotic. Your right one is still okay, though. Get to a hospital for surgery as soon as possible. Don’t waste time taking some random Chinese medicine. From now on, you have to quit smoking and drinking, eat less seafood, and stick to a low-salt diet. Otherwise, you won’t be able to save your remaining kidney."
"Haa... haa... Do I really... have to have surgery, Boss?" Master Chen looked as if he was about to collapse.
Quick on his feet, Lin Yonghua rushed to support him.
"Yes! Don’t delay it. Put work aside for now. Vice Manager Lin, grant Master Chen long-term sick leave. During his time off, pay him the minimum wage. Also, help Master Chen write a severe illness assistance application and submit it to the attendance department."
Lin Yonghua nodded. "Leave it to me."
"Thank... thank you, Boss!" Master Chen was so frightened he was slurring his words.
Jiang Miao offered a few words of comfort, "Relax. As long as you manage your lifestyle carefully from now on, it won’t be a major problem."
The so-called "employee severe illness assistance" was a policy the company had specifically established to reduce the burden on its employees. Any employee classified as having a severe illness by Jiang Miao could receive a subsidy. The standard was 50% of the remaining medical expenses after insurance reimbursement.
For example, if an employee still had to pay 50,000 yuan after their insurance reimbursement, the company would subsidize 50% of that amount, which is 25,000 yuan.
The criteria for a "severe illness" was any condition with total treatment costs exceeding 30,000 yuan, and it also required Jiang Miao’s personal signature for confirmation.