Chapter 296: Negotiating in Whispers

"If Boss Chen asks, and if I can do it!" Xu Yong promised fervently.

If you asked Xu Yong a month ago, he would never have imagined that the person to pull him out of a crisis would be Chen Jianhai.

Business matters can indeed be quite subtle.

Chen Jianhai looked at Xu Yong, and Xu Yong looked back at Chen Jianhai. The atmosphere gradually became awkward.

They had said all that needed to be said and discussed all necessary matters.

There was nothing left to chat about.

In their usual back-and-forth pretense, Chen Jianhai should have said, "It's getting late, Brother Xu, stay for a meal?"

But given the other party's current situation, it seemed meaningless.

"Boss Chen, you must be busy. I have some things to handle at my company too. I'll properly thank you with a meal another time," Xu Yong said tactfully.

Chen Jianhai immediately felt relieved, "I also have some matters to attend to. Let's meet again later."

After exchanging pleasantries, Xu Yong turned and left the hotel.

Chen Jianhai slumped back onto the sofa, enjoying the air conditioning while munching on a watermelon.

It was only 2 PM.

Wasting such a great time in a coffee shop felt too idle.

Chen Jianhai sat up, his sharp black eyes scanning the hotel, watching the employees busily working, and wondered what he could do to be productive and benefit the entire hotel.

After a while,

Chen Jianhai snapped his fingers crisply, a gleam flashing in his eyes. He quickly took out his phone and started editing a message...

In the evening,

Chen Jianhai left the hotel and headed straight for the shared bicycles at the main entrance.

Perhaps due to a particularly good fiscal year in Nanjiang, they had recently replaced a batch of shared bicycles.

They were light and fast,

and riding them in the evening breeze was both good exercise and scenic—truly delightful.

After scanning the code and adjusting the seat height, Chen Jianhai was just about to get on when a Teana slowly pulled up beside him.

The passenger-side window rolled down, revealing the electrician's face,

"Boss, where are you going? I can have my wife give you a lift."

Chen Jianhai: ???

He craned his neck to look inside, only to see a girl with short chestnut hair sitting in the driver's seat. Although he couldn't see her face clearly, the diamond ring on her finger sparkled brilliantly, almost blinding him.

The electrician sat obediently in the passenger seat, holding a white purse, looking at him with concern.

Chen Jianhai was dumbfounded.

The electrician… has a girlfriend??

And his girlfriend picks him up after work!

He had thought his employees were all single like him,

but who would have thought even the least talkative electrician had someone!

Chen Jianhai felt like he had taken 10,000 points of critical damage.

"No need, I'm meeting a friend. You go ahead," Chen Jianhai said, unusually despondent.

"Alright, bye Boss, see you tomorrow." The electrician rolled up the window and drove off.

"Ring-ring~"

The bell of a shared bike rang behind him.

Chen Jianhai turned around and realized he was blocking the exit. He smiled apologetically and pedaled away.

At the Dream Sea Amusement Square, Huang Baichuan soon emerged from a tent.

As the main venue for the Nanjiang Beer Festival, the mayor would fill the first beer mug from a large barrel here tomorrow, officially marking the start of the festival.

Huang Baichuan had been nearly driven mad by the preparations, spending the past few days here constantly.

Now that the setup was complete, with restaurants and food stalls calling out to customers on both sides,

the two of them headed straight for a barbecue stall, ordered a beer, and started eating.

"Isn't it a coincidence! After a busy day, I just wanted to find someone to have a drink with tonight, and then Boss Chen shows up," Huang Baichuan said, wiping sweat from his face with a napkin and devouring his skewers hungrily.

Chen Jianhai chuckled, "You've treated me twice before; tonight it's my turn."

After some casual conversation, Chen Jianhai finally got to the point.

Huang Baichuan, who had been enjoying his meal, stopped chewing and looked at Chen Jianhai in shock, "All hotel employees get 3 free beers at my place? Isn't that too much!"

Chen Jianhai quickly explained, "Don't be upset, it's just 3 beers. It won't even fill the bottom of your barrel."

Huang Baichuan's eyes widened, and he took a sharp breath, "Just 3 beers… you might as well rob me!"

Chen Jianhai was surprised by his reaction.

Could the beer in that big barrel really be that expensive?!

Currently, including the island staff, the hotel had about 500 employees.

During the 10-day beer festival, each tent would be open 24 hours, with employees working in three shifts, so each one would have a chance to indulge.

Chen Jianhai didn't know about other beer tents.

But he had personally tasted the Little God of Wealth Happy Beer in that big barrel.

It was really good!

Thinking it over, with his connection to Huang Baichuan, it didn't seem unreasonable to get 3 free beers for his employees.

"To drink at the beer festival, you need a special 1-liter beer mug."

"The beer in my barrel is priced at 80 yuan per mug. With 500 people each getting 3 free beers, that's 120,000 yuan."

"Tell me honestly, if you had to give away 120,000 yuan for free, wouldn't it hurt!" Huang Baichuan said seriously.

Chen Jianhai touched his chest and nodded.

"It hurts! Like being pricked with needles!"

Huang Baichuan was furious, "It hurts, and you still dare to ask!"

Chen Jianhai carefully observed his expression. Huang Baichuan didn't seem like he was outright refusing.

If it were a flat rejection, he would have smoothly changed the topic instead of arguing here.

This meant… it was negotiable!

But how to negotiate… required some skill!

Chen Jianhai, watching Huang Baichuan, suddenly had a bright idea. He remembered some comedic routines he heard recently and decided to try:

"Mr. Huang, don't cry poor, money swims around in there. Beer festival, tent opens wide, customers will surely arrive."

Huang Baichuan's face twitched, looking at Chen Jianhai in confusion.

Despite his years of business experience, he was genuinely stunned.

"Boss Chen, are you reciting tongue twisters with me over a few beers?"

While failed entrepreneurs are alike, successful ones are each unique.

But Chen Jianhai's approach was truly puzzling!

Huang Baichuan had never encountered someone negotiating in whispers.

But… does he think I'm uneducated?

Huang Baichuan, being an academically trained management talent, might struggle with a seven-character poem.

But tongue twisters were no problem!

"Three beers are too much, everyone would hide. Beer tent though open wide, costs are hard to bide."

Chen Jianhai's expression changed.

Whoa… a worthy opponent!