Chapter 36: Joy Shared is Joy Multiplied

To start a processing factory, the first thing you need is talent.

However, at the moment, apart from a secretary who was busy looking for an office, Lin Feng had no subordinates, making him a lone commander. But it was the beginning of the year, and recent graduates, especially from secondary universities like Chu City University, were not all able to find jobs immediately after graduation. With the example of Su Xiaomei and others being heavily relied upon, Lin Feng quickly hired two marketing majors.

However, this time, Lin Feng deliberately avoided hiring recent graduates from Chu City University. The reason was simple: Lin Feng did not want the company to be filled with alumni from the same university, especially from the same department. It wasn't that this would definitely cause problems, but it was Lin Feng's instinct. The company was still in its development stage, and if all the early employees were from the same school, Lin Feng couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't take all the company's secrets with them if another company tried to poach them.

Better safe than sorry!

After hiring the two assistants, Lin Feng began to contact the flower cultivation bases he had previously worked with. However, the previous bases were clearly too small to supply the entire flower tea market in Chu City. After some consideration, Lin Feng ordered the two assistants to find large-scale flower cultivation bases, while he went home to find Old Xu.

"Master, I am still young and inexperienced in this area, and I cannot match your extensive knowledge. I hope you can give me some guidance," Lin Feng explained the current situation.

Old Xu pondered for a moment and then suddenly asked Lin Feng.

"What do you think of money?"

"Money is a quantifiable representation of one's control over the material world," Lin Feng paused, recalling his difficult life before his rebirth, and said without reservation, "In the past, I thought that not having enough money made it impossible to survive, and having too much was troublesome. Just enough was the most pleasant. But now, if I have the chance to earn a dime, I will never settle for nine cents. The more money I have, the more I can make my family happy, my friends joyful, and my enemies fearful."

"Would you rather enjoy happiness alone or share it with others?" Old Xu smiled and remained silent.

"Sharing happiness is better than enjoying it alone," Lin Feng admitted he wasn't a miser like Scrooge.

"If I asked you to hand over the management of the flower tea processing factory to your friends or relatives, would you be willing?" Old Xu pressed.

Hand it over to them? Lin Feng was taken aback, instinctively feeling a bit unwilling. This way, the profit would be significantly less. However, his two months of entrepreneurial experience were not in vain. After a moment's thought, Lin Feng understood.

"I am willing. Master is right, sharing happiness is better than enjoying it alone!" Lin Feng and Old Xu smiled at each other.

"Good, little brat, you must understand that there are many opportunities to make money in this world, and no one can earn all of it. At the right time, sharing some profits with family and friends is the true path to success. As the saying goes, 'Many hands make light work,' and that's the principle," Old Xu enlightened him.

Old Xu's guidance made Lin Feng realize something.

If Lin Feng followed his original plan and opened a flower tea processing factory, there would be a key issue: who would manage the factory? The person managing the flower tea processing factory would inevitably come into contact with the flower tea formula, which was as important to Lin Feng as the formula for Pepsi is to PepsiCo.

Apart from managing it himself, who else could Lin Feng entrust with this task? Liu Yingying, Su Xiaomei, and others were not people he could fully trust. Perhaps Liu Yingying wouldn't care about the formula, but she was leaving at the end of the month, and Lin Feng didn't want to take the risk.

If Lin Feng managed it himself, once he fully cooperated with the flower tea shop owners, the supply of flower tea would tie him down to the processing factory. This would be worse for Lin Feng than not opening the factory at all.

Therefore, the best choice was to entrust the management of the factory to someone he could completely trust. This person would supply the flower tea to Lin Feng, who would act as the middle supplier and earn a profit from the markup.

"Master, I have no experience in managing a flower tea processing factory. I hope you can help me in the initial stages," Lin Feng naturally didn't want to leave empty-handed.

"Alright, I'll help you until your flower tea processing factory is on track," Old Xu agreed without hesitation.

Seeing Old Xu's agreement, Lin Feng was delighted. As the saying goes, "A different field is like a different mountain." Although he had some experience, it couldn't compare to Old Xu's decades of business acumen. With Old Xu's help, Lin Feng could avoid many detours.

"Master, I'll go and get started. I'll come back to pick you up once the initial preparations are done and ask for your guidance," Lin Feng left respectfully.

After returning to the Blue Special Zone, Lin Feng discussed the matter with Liu Yingying, who proposed a more reasonable plan.

Liu Yingying suggested that the flower tea processing factory be set up as a joint-stock company, with Lin Feng providing the capital and entrusting management to someone he trusted. Lin Feng would hold the majority shares, ensuring his absolute control over the factory and preventing any supply chain issues. This would also ensure the manager's profit, motivating them to work hard.

Liu Yingying's suggestion pleased Lin Feng. However, he was genuinely puzzled about who to entrust with management.

Relatives? Absolutely not. Lin Feng had seen enough of their true colors. If they turned against him and stole the formula to start their own factory, how could he deal with them? Sue them in court? Or take covert action against them? — Neither was an option. As long as his parents were alive, he couldn't afford to lose their respect. So relatives were out of the question.

Friends! After much thought, Lin Feng could only entrust this responsibility to his friends. Fortunately, he had a few close friends, though not many. Quality over quantity.

Ghazi and Maozi were Lin Feng's childhood friends, and their relationship was unbreakable. In his previous life, during his difficult times, he could only confide in them. However, after they got married, Lin Feng couldn't visit them every day. After all, they had families to take care of, and it wouldn't be appropriate to trouble them constantly.

"Ghazi, Maozi, are you free? Let's meet up," Lin Feng called them and arranged to meet at a high-end seafood restaurant.

Xiangjiang Seafood Restaurant was a high-end seafood restaurant in Chu City, famous for its giant lobster poster outside. Anyone passing by couldn't help but look. Lin Feng had seen it many times, and he and his friends often said, "If we ever get rich, we'll definitely come here to eat that big lobster."

Although Lin Feng was still in the early stages of his business, he could afford a seafood feast.

At 4 PM, Ghazi and Maozi arrived at the private room in Xiangjiang Seafood Restaurant.

"Damn, it's been so long since we last met. Where have you been?" Ghazi scolded as soon as he arrived.

Ghazi's real name was Yang Guowei, a year older than Lin Feng. He was one of the few who took his mother's surname, while his father's surname was Guo. He worked at the Chu City Towel Factory, working in shifts and earning about 800 yuan a month. He was also a gaming enthusiast, spending all his salary in internet cafes, once setting a record of spending seven days in a row in a cafe during the New Year.

Lin Feng's first adult game, "Afternoon Angel Transferee," was completed under Ghazi's influence, staying up all night.

Maozi's real name was Ding Feng, two years older than Lin Feng. He ran a small shop installing security grilles. Although the business was good, it was funded by his parents, and he wasn't very happy with the work. Installing security grilles was not only tiring but also dirty, leaving him covered in welding particles, which took about an hour to wash off each day.

"You bastard, I thought you'd forgotten about us once you got rich," Maozi punched Lin Feng.

"Hehe, how could I?" Lin Feng smiled with relief.

This is what true friendship is!