SWDnovel Chapter 2 Customers, Delivery Drivers, and Credit Invoicing
Chapter 2 Customers, Delivery Drivers, and Credit Invoicing
Lu Sheng touched the pistol in the holster on his waist. Although it was out of bullets, it still gave him a sense of security.
For a remote gas station hundreds of kilometers from the main road, it's rare to have customers, and the chance of encountering robbers is practically zero.
But Lu Sheng felt that approaching zero was not the same as zero, and in case of an accident, he still hoped that this thing could intimidate the other party.
The reinforced wooden door was much thicker and heavier than before, requiring both hands to pry it open. After opening a crack, Lu Sheng tilted his head to look outside.
In front of the gas station, a small van was parked on the dirt road, which looked like it was used for short-distance deliveries.
"Waaah—"
The van horn sounded again, as if checking if anyone was at the gas station.
But soon, the driver noticed the opening gate, so he turned on his turn signal and slowly drove into the open space in front of the gas station.
After the car came to a stop, the window rolled down, and the driver leaned out, revealing a fit young man in a black uniform and a black baseball cap.
"Boss, please fill up the tank."
Just then, Lu Sheng pushed the door open. From the other person's attire, he recognized him as a freight clerk from Chunfeng Logistics.
"It's seven yuan per liter. The equipment here is a bit old and doesn't support online payment. Do you accept cash or gas cards?"
"Some bosses, some."
The deliveryman glanced at the information on the car's infotainment screen to confirm that Lu Sheng was indeed the owner of the gas station before opening the car door and getting out.
Criminals exist in every era. A gas station in a remote location may not be suitable for doing business, but it's a different story when it becomes a den of thieves.
For the safety of its delivery drivers, each gas station manager has been registered online, allowing delivery drivers to quickly identify the manager when they arrive at an unfamiliar gas station.
Once the Lu Sheng's identity was confirmed, the freight clerk relaxed considerably and, adopting his usual approach of following familiar routes, struck up a conversation with him.
"Boss, do you have a mechanic here? This road is a bit rough, and the car's undercarriage pads are a little loose."
"No, you can see this place. No mechanic would want to come here. If you know how to fix things, I'll find you a screwdriver."
"Thank you for your trouble, boss. Oh wow, you had a tough night last night, boss."
Upon approaching, the freight worker saw blood on Lu Sheng's clothes and his first thought was that Lu Sheng must have fought a fierce battle with the creature of the night last night.
Lu Sheng first exclaimed "Ah!" and then realized that the other person was referring to the blood on his clothes, so he simply went along with it.
"Staying here means I can't get a good night's sleep, which is something I can't do as well as you guys do."
"Boss, don't joke around. Forget about those who drive big trucks, even us small truck drivers, if we haven't had a high-speed, high-octane ride of over 100 kilometers with the monster of the night, we can't even say we've ever been on the road."
While Lu Sheng went to find tools, the freight clerk pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, bit one and pulled it out, then pulled out half of the other one.
"Want one?"
When he saw Lu Sheng return, he held out his cigarette case.
"Goodbye, I'm quitting."
Lu Sheng handed over the screwdriver, while he held the gas pump in his other hand.
"This place is remote. If you fill up now, you definitely won't reach the next service area before dark. Why did you decide to take this route?"
After inserting the gas nozzle and taking the gas card from the deliveryman, Lu Sheng asked curiously on his way back to the gas station.
He had a rough map of the surrounding area in his memory. If he left his place and traveled at a speed of 100 miles per hour, the nearest service area would be three hours away.
"I took a shortcut to earn more money; it's an express delivery."
The voice of the freight worker came from under the truck, calm yet tinged with helplessness:
"Most nocturnal creatures don't go over 60 kilometers per hour. I can run all night without rest. I've modified the fuel tank so it can hold 90 liters of gasoline."
"Please fill it up for me, boss."
Lu Sheng said "oh". He originally wanted to ask what to do if there was a problem with the car on the way, but in the end he didn't ask. It was a pointless question.
If something goes wrong, it's death. Even awakened individuals who travel in teams have a hard time surviving in the wilderness during the long night.
But saying nothing makes the atmosphere a little strange.
"Express delivery must be very profitable, right?"
"Hey, it's for my boss. I even have to pay for the gas myself. If I don't give it to him, I won't pass my performance review this month."
The freight worker, in a rather helpless tone, started making small talk:
"My mom is in her sixties and my dad is almost seventy. One runs a food farm and the other runs a bullet farm. They're working themselves to the bone. I also have a mortgage and a car loan to pay off. Otherwise, I would really like to punch that old man in the face."
Okay, it's fixed. Luckily, it was just a slightly loose screw. Thank you, boss. How much?
"I'll lend you a screwdriver, it's free."
Lu Sheng saw the gas pump pop up indicating it was full, pulled the pump out, and then took the screwdriver that the other person handed him from under the car.
Before the deliveryman took the package, he told Lu Sheng some news:
"It seems like a side road nearby is going to be repaired, so I reckon your business will pick up soon."
Upon hearing this, Lu Sheng frowned:
"The nearby side streets? The closest one was renovated about three months ago, right?"
"The leader in charge of that road has been removed, and a new one has taken over."
"Oh, that's not surprising."
Lu Sheng suddenly realized what was going on and waved goodbye to the deliveryman.
After the other car drove away, he ran back to the gas station warehouse. There was a cashier counter near the gate, and the data terminal on the cashier counter was the only device in the entire gas station that could be connected to the internet, apart from the refueling island.
Before Lu Sheng transmigrated here, his entire balance had been deducted because the operating profit for the previous month did not meet the target. At this moment, the terminal screen shows a balance of 530 credit points.
The gas stations under the Lu family will split the profits from each month after deducting costs with the gas station manager. The ratio is 70% for the Lu family and 30% for the gas station manager. At the same time, the level of supplies to be distributed each month will be determined based on the profits submitted by the station manager in the previous month.
The minimum requirement is to hand over 500,000 in profits each month. If the amount is less than 500,000, the entire balance of the data terminal will be deducted, and only supplies sufficient to meet the minimum survival requirements will be distributed.
For example, the predecessor of the company had its entire balance deducted for three consecutive months, leaving it only with the most basic survival supplies. It suffered from poor food and sleep for a long time, and with no hope for the future, it chose to reopen.
However, the station manager can use the balance in advance, even though it violates some rules. Every change in the balance will be recorded, but as long as the difference can be made up at the end of the month, the clan accountants will turn a blind eye.
If the funds cannot be replenished, it constitutes embezzlement of family funds, and armed legal personnel will come to negotiate a solution, which usually results in execution.
Perhaps due to long-term discipline within the clan, the previous incarnation never had the thought of using the money to buy anything for himself, but Lu Sheng couldn't care less about that.
If you use it and can't replenish it, you might not live to see next month. If you don't use it now, it's hard to say whether you'll even live to see tomorrow.
He opened the famous online shopping app of the era, Tokyo Express, and searched for .0.38 caliber revolver bullets.