Tehran Grocery Store: My Intelligence is Priced Clearly

Zhang Jian reacted extremely quickly, tapping the screen with his thumb to instantly switch the camera back to the front view.

"mom……"

"son!"

My mother's voice instantly became extremely low, with a noticeable tremor.

"You, you mustn't speak!"

"If you're being kidnapped, just blink!"

"Mom will go call the police right now and have them contact the embassy to rescue you!"

Aunt Zhang asked her mother in a trembling voice.

"Old Huang, that bald guy from earlier... was he carrying a knife on his waist?"

"And what's that guy by the door holding? Is it a gun?"

"That's not true!"

Zhang Jian quickly forced a bright smile.

"Mom, Aunt Zhang, you've made a mistake!"

"That's impossible! I saw it clearly with both eyes!"

My mom is getting anxious too.

"Son, that pile of green stuff on your table, is it all US dollars?"

"If you weren't kidnapped, what kind of business are you running?!"

"The people you hired all look like terrorists!"

Xiao hope's voice came out weakly from the off-screen audio.

"Um, Auntie, I... I have some things to do at work, so I'll be going now."

The girl's voice was trembling uncontrollably.

She grabbed her bag, not even bothering to change her shoes properly, and stumbled out the door in her high heels.

"Hey! Xiaoxi! Xiaoxi, let Auntie explain!"

Just as Mom was about to chase after her, Aunt Zhang grabbed her arm.

Aunt Zhang's face was pale, her hands were trembling like leaves, she swallowed hard, and spoke dryly.

"Old Zhang... well, I still have some ribs stewing on the stove at home, the fire's still burning, I need to hurry back!"

"No, Lao Zhang, wait a minute..."

"I'm not waiting anymore! Let's talk another day!"

Aunt Zhang shook off her mother's hand and ran faster than Xiao hope.

With a loud bang, the security door was slammed shut.

Suddenly, only my mother was left in the living room.

Zhang Jian held his phone, staring at the empty sofa on the screen, and his lips twitched slightly.

"Um, Mom..."

"Don't call me Mom!"

My mom suddenly leaned close to the screen, her eyes reddening, her voice trembling with tears.

"Son! Tell me the truth, what exactly are you doing in Tehran?"

"what?"

Zhang Jian was stunned.

"Stop pretending now!"

My mother was so anxious that she kept crying.

"Who are the people you hired?"

"They all looked menacing, and one of them was bald; his eyes looked like he wanted to eat people alive!"

"No, Mom, let me explain. They're the security guards I hired..."

"Why would someone who runs a small grocery store like you hire security guards! And so many of them!"

My mom wouldn't listen at all; tears streamed down her face.

"Son, blink if you're being coerced."

"Mom will go call the police right now and ask the embassy to rescue you! We may not have much money, but we'll sell everything we own to get you back!"

Zhang Jian felt a headache coming on.

This is completely irrelevant.

"Mom, I really wasn't kidnapped."

Zhang Jian rubbed his temples helplessly.

"As you know from the news, the situation in the Middle East is not peaceful."

"My shop's business has been booming lately, with a lot of inventory coming in and going out."

"For safety reasons, we hired a few local security personnel."

"The money on the table is for paying their wages."

My mother stared at the screen, her eyes red and half-believing.

"Paying wages in cash? And in US dollars?"

"What else can we do? We can't just send rials, there are so many of those, I need to be able to carry them all!"

Zhang Jian quickly continued to explain.

"Mom, they just look fierce, but they're actually nice people."

"Don't believe me? Look at them!"

As he spoke, Zhang Jian tilted his phone slightly to the side.

In the lobby, Bakhtiar and the others, though unable to understand Chinese, guessed from the boss's frantic explanation that the person on the other end of the phone was probably his elder.

Only at times like this can you see the boss in such a humble state.

Everyone quickly straightened up, standing ramrod straight, with Bakhtiar even managing to force out what he considered his kindest and most radiant smile.

However, given his height of 1.9 meters and his shiny bald head, that smile looked terrifying no matter how you looked at it.

"Oh my god!"

My mother was so startled that she shuddered and quickly turned her face away.

"Stop letting them laugh at me, it's creepy!"

Zhang Jian quickly turned the camera back.

"Son, listen to your mother's advice."

Mom wiped away her tears, her tone becoming more pleading.

"No matter how much money you're making over there, let's just quit, okay? Buy a plane ticket and go home!"

"Look at the people around you! This isn't a proper business environment!"

"What if something really happens to me one day? How am I supposed to live then!"

My mother became more and more upset as she spoke, and she looked like she was about to wipe away her tears again.

Zhang Jian felt a lump in his throat.

He does want to leave.

The problem is, can we leave now?

Zhang Jian sighed, softened his tone, and gently comforted her.

"Mom, I know you're worried about me."

"But my business has just started and I've signed a lot of contracts. If I breach them now, I'll have to pay a lot of money."

"Moreover, there is a war going on in Tehran right now. Planes are grounded and cars are not allowed to enter or leave. I can't go back even if I want to."

"Don't worry, I promise!"

"Once the war is over, I'll hand over my duties and return home to see you immediately. Isn't that enough?"

His mother sobbed softly a few times with red eyes, which broke Zhang Jian's heart.

Finally, she sighed and wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.

"Then take care of yourself. Be mindful of your surroundings and don't go to dangerous places."

"It doesn't matter if you earn less money, your life is the most important thing."

"I know."

The mother wiped away her tears when she saw that her son had agreed.

After giving a few more reminders to be careful, he reluctantly hung up the video call.

The screen went dark.

Zhang Jian let out a long breath and threw his phone on the table.

He slumped into the chair like a deflated balloon.

Just moments ago, I was excited about making a lot of money and preparing to give everyone bonuses, but now my mom's phone call has completely ruined that mood.

The hall was quiet.

Bakhtiar and his companions exchanged glances, none of them daring to offend their boss at this moment.

"Farhad".

Zhang Jian waved his hand weakly.

"Yes, boss."

Farhad quickly stepped forward.

"As I just said, the base salary is 10,000, plus bonuses. Let's distribute the money among everyone."

Zhang Jian rubbed his temples, clearly not in the mood for any money-sharing ceremony.

"Okay, boss."

Farhad walked to the counter and began counting the money efficiently.

Bakhtiar was the first to come forward, took the wad of half a dollar bill from Fahad, held it in his hands, and kissed it.

Then, he turned around, faced Zhang Jian, and stood straight with his legs together.

"Thank you, boss!"

A sentence of extremely awkward Chinese, even with completely wrong tones, came out of his mouth.

Zhang Jian paused for a moment, then looked up.

Immediately afterwards, Haishan, after receiving her money, went to the same spot.

"Thank you, boss!"

Ali stepped forward, carrying a canvas bag.

"Thank you, boss!"

Ten burly men lined up and took turns receiving their money from Fahad.

Then they walked in unison to Zhang Jian and thanked him earnestly in their newly learned, extremely broken Chinese.

Looking at these men who were ruthless killers on the battlefield, yet now treated him with utmost respect because of ten thousand US dollars, Zhang Jian's frustration suddenly dissipated considerably.

He waved his hand, forced a smile, and cursed.

"Alright, stop showing off your broken Chinese."

"Take the money and get the hell out there preparing the barbecue for lunch, I'm starving!"