How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 311: Someone Brings You a Pillow When You Doze Off

The sun shines brightly in the early morning, signaling a brand new day.

Instead of going to the film set with Bai Lu, Zhang Wen drove to Xingxiang Training Center to wait for the parent who had arranged to come for a consultation the previous night.

It was during the morning rush hour, and the roads were somewhat congested.

Zhang Wen turned on the radio and listened to the broadcast while slowly driving forward.

The radio was playing Sister Li's new song "New Life," and the host even mentioned his name, praising the lyrics and music, which made him a little embarrassed.

"Next time, be more subtle with your compliments, don't be so direct," Zhang Wen said to the radio, then turned to look out the window.

Skyscrapers line both sides of the road, their glass curtain walls reflecting the city's prosperity and hustle and bustle. The city gate tower in the distance complements the surrounding modern buildings, creating a beautiful scene where history and modernity blend perfectly.

Huh?
As Zhang Wen walked, his gaze was suddenly drawn to a sign on the side of the road. The sign read: Yi Mei Art Examination Training Center.

However, what attracted him was not the name on the sign, but the fact that several workers were dismantling it.

At the main entrance of this art exam training center, some people were moving tables and chairs to the open space outside, and a red banner was hanging next to them with four words printed on it: "Clearance at low price".

So, he's quitting?

Zhang Wen immediately became interested and quickly parked his car on the side of the road.

Of course, he wasn't interested in the tables and chairs being disposed of, but rather in the training center itself.

He was worried about finding a new training building, and now a training center has quit. It's like a godsend, exactly what he wanted.

Zhang Wen got out of the car and walked towards the entrance of the art exam training center.

"Hey beautiful, are you closing down here, or are you doing a major renovation?" Zhang Wen asked the pretty young woman standing next to the tables and chairs, who seemed to be looking after them.

"You're quitting? Are you here to get a refund? Please register here. Do you have a receipt?" the pretty girl asked.

"I'm not here to get a refund." Zhang Wen pointed to the sign that was half taken down and asked curiously, "You were doing so well, why did you suddenly stop? Isn't this the time to recruit students?"

The pretty young woman looked the handsome man up and down, frowned, and said, "Who told you that things are going well here? We employees haven't been paid for two months. In addition, the students' art exam results this year were not ideal. The principal told us to sell whatever we wanted, and the money we made was used as our severance pay."

Zhang Wen was delighted to hear this, as it seemed that not only could the training building issue be resolved, but the front desk position could also be filled.

"Handsome guy." The pretty girl pointed to the things around her, "These items are all about 80% new. See if there's anything you need, especially the computer and printer. They're great value for money, and I guarantee you won't regret buying them."

"Does this building belong to your principal?" Zhang Wen asked.

"No, if the building belonged to our principal, the training center wouldn't have closed down." The pretty girl turned to look in the direction of the scaffolding. "See that lady in the pencil skirt with big curly hair? She's the landlord."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wen immediately walked towards the middle-aged woman.

"Slow down, be careful, don't smash the windows," the curly-haired woman shouted at the workers who were taking down the sign.

"Hello, ma'am." Zhang Wen approached the landlady.

The landlady turned around, her eyes lighting up when she saw the handsome young man behind her. She smiled and asked, "Hello, what can I do for you?"

"Sister, I heard you're the landlord here. I wonder if the house is currently rented out? I'd like to rent it," Zhang Wen said directly, getting straight to the point.

The landlady was stunned. She hadn't even posted any rental information yet, and someone had already taken the initiative to rent to her?
"What do you want to use it for?" the landlady asked curiously.

“Art exam training center,” Zhang Wen answered truthfully.

"what?"

Upon hearing this, the landlady froze on the spot, wondering if she had misheard.

The previous tenant was an art exam training center, and the sign hasn't even been completely removed yet, and another tenant wants to run an art exam training center. Did they get their brains caught in a door?

She looked at the half-demolished signboard, then at the handsome young man, and it took her a long time to process this reality. She asked doubtfully, "Are you sure you want to run an arts exam training center? The last tenant ran an arts exam training center. He started with an Audi, and now he drives a Yadea."

"Landlady, I just happened to pass by and saw that this place is an art exam training center, so I wanted to rent it. This way, I can save on renovation costs, and it can be used right away after a simple cleaning," Zhang Wen said.

Renting a house isn't difficult; the challenge lies in finding one that suits your needs.

This place is perfect for him.

It saves time, effort, and money.

If we rent another house as the new building for Xingxiang Art Examination Center, the renovation will be a huge expense; such a large space would cost at least a million.

Moreover, renovations take time, and there is less than a month left until the start date he promised parents. It is difficult to complete the renovations before the start of classes in such a short time.

That's why he immediately stopped his car and came over to check after seeing the sign being removed.

This place is perfect for him.

After hearing this, the landlady was at a loss for words.

She had tried to persuade them, but since they insisted on renting, how could she refuse money that was offered to her?
“Okay, the monthly rent here is 25 yuan, minimum lease of one year. I can give you ten days to renovate,” the landlady said.

As the old saying goes: Good advice is hard to persuade a damned person, and great compassion cannot save someone who has chosen to die.

She tried her best.

"Big sister, can I go in and take a look?" Zhang Wen asked.

Before renting, he needs to check if the interior is in good condition. If it's dilapidated, he'll have to negotiate the price.

“Okay, let’s go, I’ll take you in.” The landlady was also eager to rent out the house as soon as possible, so she actively led the way.

As Zhang Wen walked through the gate, he was greeted by the reception desk. The words "Yimei Art Examination Training Center" had been peeled off, leaving only faint marks on the wall.

The classrooms on the first floor are all art studios. There are many easels and sculptures that have not yet been moved out, and some students' works are scattered on the floor, with footprints on them.

The second floor houses music classrooms, including vocal lessons and instrument lessons. Some former employees of the art exam training center were sorting out instruments, presumably planning to sell them for severance pay.

The third floor houses performance studios and dance studios...

Zhang Wen walked around upstairs and downstairs. Overall, it was still pretty good, except that it was quite dusty, clearly indicating that it hadn't been cleaned for a long time, and there were even cobwebs growing in the corners.

The classrooms don't need to be altered, and the floors don't need to be re-laid. Just repaint the walls and move in all the equipment, and they'll be ready for use. However, the classrooms on each floor will need to be reorganized.

For the time being, he does not plan to open art classes.

Xingxiang Art Examination Training Center currently focuses on performance, dance, and vocal music; other subjects will be discussed later.

"Ma'am, the building is a bit old. If I rent it, I'll definitely have to renovate it. Could you give me a discount? You know how tough business is these days," Zhang Wen said with a bitter face.

Although this amount of money wasn't much for him, he wanted to save where he could. What if he agreed to a price reduction?

"Young man, go ask around the area. 25 is already very low. I'm not lying to you. How about this, I'll give you five more days to renovate, okay?"

Zhang Wen had worked as a real estate agent, so he naturally knew the housing prices and rents here; 25 was indeed not high.

Office buildings in the same location and of the same size typically rent for around 30 yuan.

"Alright, but big sister, if anything comes up here in the future, like water or electricity, you'll have to help me sort it out," Zhang Wen said.

"No problem, I'll go print the contract right away. Please wait here for a moment." The landlady hadn't expected to rent out the house so quickly, so she swayed her hips and, in her high heels, happily went to prepare the contract.

Zhang Wen watched the landlady leave until she disappeared from sight before turning his gaze back to the former training center employees who were moving their belongings.

"Hey buddy, where's the receptionist from your YiMei Art Exam Training Center now? Do you have her contact information?" Zhang Wen asked.

He not only had to take over the classrooms at the former training center, but also the people there.

“There it is.” The male employee pointed to a spot not far away.

Zhang Wen turned his head and saw that it was the pretty young woman who had sold tables and chairs before.

"Hey beautiful, you've lost your job at Yimei Art Exam Training Center. Have you looked for a new one?" Zhang Wen asked as he walked over.

"I've already submitted several resumes and am going for an interview in a few days. Why are you asking this?" The pretty young woman frowned slightly, her eyes filled with wariness.

“I’ve already rented these three floors and plan to open an art exam training center here. We’re short of a receptionist. I heard you used to work as a receptionist at YiMei Art Exam Training Center. Would you like to come work at my art exam training center?” Zhang Wen stated his purpose directly.

"What? You're going to open an art exam training center here too?" The pretty girl's eyes widened, her face full of disbelief, looking at her like she was an idiot. "Are you... are you out of your mind? This place is completely unsuitable for an art exam training center. Didn't you see the sign on the wall that's being taken down?"

"Who's sick? How dare you talk to your future boss like that?" Zhang Wen said irritably. "Just because you guys can't do a good job doesn't mean I can't. Are you coming or not? If not, I'll find someone else."

“Come here!” the pretty girl said immediately.

The job transition is seamless, saving me the trouble of going to interviews.

“Add me on WeChat, and I’ll send you the new art exam training materials. After I sign the contract with the landlord, you can come with me to the temporary office to receive parents who come to inquire and register,” Zhang Wen said.

That way, he won't need to ask for leave anymore.

"Huh? So fast?" the pretty girl asked in surprise. "I haven't even received my severance pay yet."

After speaking, he glanced at the tables, chairs, computers, and printers around him, a hint of hesitation appearing in his eyes.

“These are all secondhand items, how much are they worth? You’re starting today, so I’ll calculate your salary today,” Zhang Wen said.

The pretty girl gritted her teeth, internally struggling with her decision, and finally nodded, "Okay, since you're the boss, I'll listen to you."

"That's right. Don't lose sight of the big picture for small gains. Follow me, and even if you don't become incredibly successful, you'll definitely have a stable income. I will never owe my employees wages," Zhang Wen said, patting his chest.

He had worked many jobs and understood the feeling of being owed wages. Now that he was his own boss, how could he become the person he used to hate the most?
"Boss, don't make empty promises. I'm allergic to them now," the pretty young woman said. "I ate too many empty promises before, and as a result, I was owed two months' salary."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wen felt deep sympathy for the young woman's plight.

The two added each other on WeChat and exchanged names.

The pretty young woman's name is Xu Zining. She is 25 years old and has been working at Yimei Art Exam Training Center for three years. This is her first job.

Zhang Wen chatted with the pretty young woman for a while and learned a bit about Yi Mei.

YiMei Art Exam Training Center once had a glorious past, recruiting hundreds of art students a year at its peak. However, later on, the center's top teachers were poached by other training centers, causing students' art exam results to decline year after year. Until this year, the principal could no longer sustain the business and had to close down.

"Boss, I just looked at the information you sent me. Our students at Xingxiang have achieved such good results in the art exams this year. The teachers must be very capable, right? You must pay extra attention and make sure these teachers aren't poached by other training institutions," Xu Zining earnestly reminded him.

"Don't worry, they can't dig it away," Zhang Wen said.

“Boss, my former boss was just as confident as you back then, and look what happened…” Xu Zining didn’t finish her sentence, but the meaning was already very clear.

“Those outstanding students in the materials are all my personal students. Do you think other art exam training institutions can poach me? As long as I don’t leave, Xingxiang Art Exam Training Center can’t get here,” Zhang Wen reassured him.

He possesses the core technology of art exam training, eliminating negative personality traits, which is unmatched by any other art exam training institution.

As for Sun Chengcheng, Xu Guanchao, and others, he has even less to worry about.

These people not only worked part-time for him, but also worked for Tianxi Media. No matter where they worked, they were his subordinates.

Unless other training institutions offer salaries far exceeding the combined salaries of these individuals working at Xingxiang and Tianxi, it would be a case of penny-wise and pound-foolish, a losing proposition.

Moreover, given the current market value of training teachers, other art exam training institutions are unlikely to offer such high prices to poach talent.

Even if those art exam training institutions are rich and powerful and can just throw money at people, it doesn't matter. They can just find more people from their own training departments; there are plenty of them anyway.

"what?"

Xu Zining was surprised again. She didn't expect her new boss to be so capable and so young. It seemed that she could keep this job for a while.

After chatting for a while, the landlady finally returned with the rental contract.

Zhang Wen carefully examined the entire document from beginning to end, found no problems, and finally signed his name without hesitation.

Payment terms are 1 month's deposit and 3 months' rent in advance.

Looking at the million yuan that had been transferred out, Zhang Wen didn't feel heartache; instead, he felt a sense of anticipation.

Fellow art exam training professionals, tremble! Your ancestor has arrived!

……

(End of this chapter)