Chapter 369 195: The Boss is the Boss

'We have to strive for a table turnover rate of four times today.'

First, the restaurant couldn't just sit there and wait for things to happen.

The foot traffic in Yofang mall was only average at best.

They had to send people to the mall entrances to actively attract customers.

They had to leverage everything: social media, short-form videos...

They would use private traffic to drive up the number of diners in the restaurant.

Yuan Li, who wasn't very confident about the Yofang branch, parked her car and walked into the mall.

She was slightly taken aback to see servers actively trying to attract customers.

Yesterday, Lin Qiu and his team had shown no such initiative.

They would just rigidly wait for customers to come to them.

"Hello, President Yuan!"

Two male servers saw Yuan Li and quickly greeted her.

"Are you out here attracting customers because Manager Lin arranged it?"

Yuan Li asked with great interest.

"Yes. Besides us, other team members are at the other entrances doing the same."

The two servers didn't dare to hide anything and answered truthfully.

'Lin Qiu has gotten smarter.'

Yuan Li nodded in satisfaction. "Well, carry on then."

"Yes, ma'am. After you."

The two of them watched Yuan Li walk toward the elevator before wiping the sweat from their brows.

Yuan Li didn't coddle anyone, not even her own store managers. She criticized them when they deserved it.

After all, Yuan Li was Qi Sheng's trusted confidante and favorite general.

She wasn't just a valuable Master Level talent; she also worked tirelessly for Qi Sheng's business.

In terms of status, she was unique within the entire group.

When she arrived on the seventh floor, she saw a line already forming outside.

A look of pleasant surprise appeared on Yuan Li's face.

'If there's a line, it must mean the restaurant is full.'

"President Yuan!"

Many servers greeted her as they passed by when they saw her enter.

Yuan Li nodded back from time to time.

Some of the minor details she had noticed yesterday had all been corrected.

This surprised Yuan Li, but also left her a little puzzled.

'Could it be that Lin Qiu was just too nervous yesterday?'

The employees at every station in the restaurant were all performing their duties.

Whenever a minor issue arose, Guo Tingting and Zeng Hong would point it out in a timely manner.

Yesterday, Guo Tingting and Zeng Hong had seemed somewhat unworthy of their positions.

Today, however, they were living up to their titles.

Even with her incredibly high standards, Yuan Li had to admit it.

Their performance today was worthy of their roles.

With the three of them managing things in unison, the restaurant's service level had gone up a notch.

Aside from their teamwork not being as seamless as the flagship store in Taikoo Li, the gap in other areas wasn't very large.

"President Yuan?"

Lin Qiu had only just noticed Yuan Li.

With nearly a thousand customers in the restaurant and Yuan Li deliberately keeping a low profile, he hadn't spotted her right away.

"Manager Lin, you've really made me see you in a new light today. My words yesterday were inappropriate. I feel completely at ease leaving the Yofang branch under your management!"

Yuan Li sighed internally. 'No wonder I'm just an employee.'

Lin Qiu was clearly a valuable, elite talent, yet she had mistaken him for someone utterly mediocre.

"You're too kind. I still have much to learn from you."

Lin Qiu didn't dare to be arrogant, instead humbly asking Yuan Li for guidance.

Yuan Li didn't hold back in her advice, and Lin Qiu learned a great deal.

After inspecting the Yofang branch, Yuan Li gave up on the idea of visiting the other stores.

She decided to give the store managers half a month.

If they still couldn't prove themselves competent, it wouldn't be too late to reassign their positions then.

...

「Shengxuan Group, Chairman's Office.」

Qi Sheng smiled and nodded at Liu Shiwen, who obediently left the office.

"Chairman Qi, you really know how to enjoy life!"

He Yu could naturally tell that the relationship between that secretary and Qi Sheng was anything but simple.

"President He, are you here because of Spicy King's revenue yesterday?"

Qi Sheng smiled and blew on his tea, already knowing full well why He Yu was there.

"Hehe, to be honest with you, after we saw the battle report from President Yuan, we were too excited to sleep all night."

He Yu indeed had dark circles under his eyes, but his expression was ecstatic.

"Six million in revenue on the first day, with an estimated net profit of 600,000! For Spicy King to become the next Haidilao... it's just a matter of time!"

"Calm down. Have some tea first."

Qi Sheng smiled and waved his hand, signaling for He Yu not to get too worked up.

"The problem with Spicy King right now is still a lack of management talent. We'll increase our investment in talent development later on."

"When that happens, the stores' revenue and net profit will increase even further."

"So, by then, could we reach a 15% net profit margin?"

He Yu wasn't being greedy; even the current net profit was already very impressive.

"A table turnover rate of four times and a net profit margin of 20%—that's the performance baseline for every future Spicy King branch."

Qi Sheng was full of confidence in his system's buffs.

Once someone ate at Spicy King, it was hard for them not to become a loyal fan of the brand.

"Will that take three years?"

He Yu hadn't expected Qi Sheng's ambitions to be so huge.

He wasn't even satisfied with a 15% net profit margin.

"Three years?"

Qi Sheng smiled and shook his head.

"If things go quickly, maybe by the end of the year. At the latest, one year."

"I'll look forward to that day!"

He Yu, of course, also hoped for Spicy King's performance to be as outstanding as possible, as its valuation would skyrocket.

Right now, many venture capitalists were hounding Yuan Li every day.

The valuations they were offering generally reached 3 billion US Dollars.

A valuation of 1 billion US Dollars?

That was already a thing of the past.

Thanks to its precise investment in Spicy King, Black Ant Capital's second round of fundraising was progressing very smoothly.

It was expected to be completed before the middle of the year for sure.

"Chairman Qi, our Series A collaboration was so pleasant. You have to give us a chance to invest in the Series B round, no matter what."

He Yu hadn't come to visit Qi Sheng just to offer congratulations.

Seeing Spicy King attract attention from more and more VCs, He Yu was worried they wouldn't even get a chance to get on board for the B round.

"Don't worry, President He. As long as Black Ant Capital accepts our valuation, both you and Sequoia will have priority investment rights!"

Qi Sheng, however, wasn't concerned with a VC's background or so-called resources.

With the system providing a constant stream of talent, the only help a VC could offer was, frankly, just money.

"Haha, then let me give you a guarantee right here, Chairman Qi. As soon as Spicy King opens its Series B financing, no matter how high the valuation, we at Black Ant Capital will resolutely get on board!"

Having received Qi Sheng's promise, He Yu instantly felt relieved.

Without much thought, he made a bold promise.

At this moment, how could He Yu have imagined just how huge Qi Sheng's and Yuan Li's ambitions were?

They were already looking down on a valuation of a mere 5 billion US Dollars.

Qi Sheng simply gave a meaningful smile.

He hoped He Yu would raise a larger amount of funds.

Otherwise, their little bit of capital could easily be completely drained by Spicy King's Series B round.

As for whether other VCs would find it too expensive?

Once the 20% net profit margin was announced, there would be plenty of VCs willing to take the gamble!