Yao climbed up the long set of stairs, ready to wind down after a surprisingly busy day in the cafe. He had been on his feet and helping Carlos run the kitchen since the noon hour rush, and they had finally closed up for the night a little while ago. As he reached the top of the stairs, he smiled fondly as he followed the smell of the Russian and Ukranian dishes towards the apartment he shared with the girls.
He walked through the open door to the apartment and stopped at the kitchen. Natalya was busy pulling a dish out of the oven, while something else was simmering on the stove. Other dishes were already placed across the counter.
"That smells fantastic, Natalya," Yao complimented as he opened the fridge and grabbed a beer, "Is a holiday feast like this common in Russia?"
"Some of these are Ukrainian and Belarussian, not necessarily Russian," Natalya answered as she placed another hot dish on the stove and shut the oven, "Our countries did not celebrate Christmas for a few decades, so New Years is when we enjoyed ourselves instead."
"That makes complete sense," Yao said as he nonchalantly slipped his hand towards one of the eggplant rolls already displayed on the open counter, only for Natalya to slap his hand away with the spatula.
"Screw off, we're waiting for Katya and Carlos," Natalya scolded, "While you're waiting, check your email. You guys left it open earlier, and I saw a message arrive from Yong Soo."
Yao chuckled as he circled round the counter into the living area, and sat down in the computer chair. He leaned back for a moment, allowing his legs to finally get a break, before leaning forward and looking at the screen. His email account was open to its inbox, and an unread message was sitting there from Im Yong Soo. Yao took a sip of his beer as he clicked the message open to read it.
Hey Yao-Yao,
Happy New Year!
I know you're yet to celebrate, but it's already past midnight in Seoul, so it's already a new year here. The future isn't much different yet, unfortunately.
Wai Hou returned to Macau, he's planning to get himself set up out there. Xiao Mei is deciding whether she wants to return to Taiwan long-term or stay with me here in Korea.
How are you and the girls doing? Is that greasy-spoon cafe treating you well? When are you and Katya planning to tie the knot?
Write to me soon!
Im Yong Soo
PS: Do you have a new phone number yet? I want to call you about something when we have the chance.
Yao smiled fondly at the message. When the Kohler and Vargas mobs were busted during that one October night, the Dragon Triad members feared they would be next, so they immediately shut down the Golden Dragon and ran for the airport. Im Yong Soo, Xiao Mei and Wai Hou easily got on a flight to Korea, but Natalya and Katerina had restrictions on their records that prohibited them from leaving the country. Instead of heading out to China alone, Yao chose to stay behind with his future wife and sister-in-law.
Yao hit the reply button, and started composing the message.
Hello Yong Soo,
Happy New Year to you as well!
We're doing quite well at the cafe. I've convinced Carlos to offer some healthier items on his menu over the last month, so it's not quite as greasy as it once was. It truly was a stroke of luck for all four of us that we found this cafe. It has still been difficult, as having a kitchen hand and two waitresses has improved things, but Carlos is still very stressed over keeping everything afloat. It's only the four of us working here, and the other two apartments are still empty.
Yes, Katya and I are still planning to marry at some point. We've decided that we want to save up some money first towards a suit for myself, a lovely dress for her, and a nice honeymoon somewhere. With the way things are going, though, this might be a long way off. Hopefully we can arrange for you to return and visit us when it finally does happen.
My phone has been replaced, the new number is 347-298-8473. PLEASE remember the time difference when and if you call, this is the only night of the year where I might approve a late-night call.
Yao
After clicking to send the message, Yao took a swig of his beer, and leaned back in the chair again. He rubbed his hand against his leg gently, grimacing as he felt the grease on his pants. He groaned as he stood back up, and walked over to the bedroom he shared with Katerina. He was happy to see that at least their room was somewhat organized, and he shut the door behind himself. He placed his beer on the dresser, before opening the drawers and pulling out a clean t-shirt and jeans. He removed his greasy work clothes, and tossed them into the laundry bin, aiming a little higher than normal, but not enough to knock the framed Golden Dragon emblem hanging on the wall. As he continued changing, he kept glancing at the emblem, and thinking about what had happened over the last two months.
When the others had flown out to Asia, Yao and the girls first stayed in a small apartment that Yong Soo had kept secure as a hideaway in case anyone ever had to lie low for a while. It was only a temporary solution however, so the three of them had to find a new job and apartment as quickly as possible. It only took a week for Natalya to strike a patch of luck in her job search, walking into this cafe within moments of Carlos having his last employee walk out on him.
The Cuban was the sole proprietor of the business that owned the building. The main floor was the cafe, which was in dire need of an improved menu, dedicated staff, and better cash flows. The upper two floors each had a 1-bedroom suite and a 2-bedroom suite, for which Carlos occupied one apartment and all the others needed tenants. Natalya quickly arranged for all three of them to work for Carlos, with Yao in the kitchen and the girls as waitresses. They were also easily able to negotiate tenancy of one of the 2-bedroom suites, with the rental fee being deducted from their pay for working in the restaurant.
Having finished changing, Yao grabbed his beer and left the room, entering the living room again just as Katerina strolled in. She approached him and quickly pecked him on the lips, before entering their bedroom to also change out of her work clothes. Yao sat down on one of the barstools at the counter, and watched as Natalya brought the last of the dishes over.
"Thanks for the help setting up here, Yao," Natalya remarked with heavy sarcasm.
"Not a problem, Natalya," Yao quipped back with a smirk, "Glad to help the sweet flower that is my future sister-in-law."
Natalya was facing away from him to pull out some plates, but that did not stop her from flipping the bird over her shoulder in his direction. Yao chuckled before sipping at his beer again. The door opened behind him, and Yao turned to see Katerina emerge from the bedroom in a nice white blouse and flowy red skirt that went to her knees.
"You look lovely, Katya," Yao complimented as she came to his side.
"Thank you, Yao-yao," Katerina said before giving him another quick kiss. As the kiss ended, they saw the last member of their party stroll into the room.
"Damn, this spread is amazing," Carlos commented as he saw the food on the counter before turning to Natalya and raising his case of beer, "In the fridge?"
"Yes, please, and pull out the wine while you're at it," Natalya said as she put the plates on the counter, "It's a Pinot Grigio, Katya."
"That sounds lovely, Nat, I'll have some too," Katerina replied as she sat on the stool next to Yao's.
Yao and Katerina watched as Carlos pulled the wine and a beer from the fridge while Natalya pulled out some wine glasses and a corkscrew. As they joined at the counter, Carlos passed the wine to Natalya before cracking open his beer and taking a gulp.
"Ah, that hits the spot," Carlos said after finishing his drink, placing the bottle on the counter, "And this food looks like it will too. Thanks for making this, girls."
"You're welcome," the girls muttered at the same time, just as Natalya removed the cork from the wine bottle.
"Before we dig in here, I do have a few things to say on this occasion," Carlos revealed.
"You planned a pre-dinner speech?" Yao remarked as Natalya passed Katerina a glass of wine.
"Shush it, I want to be serious here for a second," Carlos dismissed before continuing, "I really want to thank you all for the tremendous work you've done over the last few months. You really pulled me and the restaurant out of a very deep hole, and I greatly appreciate all your help."
"Well, thank you for helping us in return," Yao replied, "We'd have been screwed ourselves if Natalya hadn't found this place."
"Seriously, you three are amazing, and I could've never asked for better staff," Carlos said, "That's why it's hard for me to reveal some possibly bad news."
"Bad news?" Katerina asked, "What's going on?"
"As much as you guys have helped, the business is running out of money," Carlos explained, "I visited the bank the other day to ask for more financing, and they want an audit engagement by a chartered accountant on the year-end financials."
"That's definitely a lot more work," Katerina remarked, "Not to mention more expensive."
"Raj Kasem has been the business's CA for a while, he can definitely do it," Carlos said, "The problem is the potential result. My accounting management is poor as piss, and the payables are getting out of control. It's very possible that Raj would conclude on a threat to going concern."
"Going concern?" Natalya repeated in confusion.
"When CAs perform audits, they're supposed to do it under the assumption that the business will remain operational for the foreseeable future," Katerina elaborated, "If there are reasons to believe this is not the case, the auditors have to disclose it."
"The moment banks and other investors see a going concern issue, they do not stick around," Carlos said, "If this audit goes bad, my business might even lose our existing financing and go bankrupt."
"Sorry to hear that," Yao said, "Any way to keep that from happening?"
"The best way at this point is to find another investor before the audit is complete," Carlos continued, "If someone buys the business from me and quickly invests some cash, the subsequent events would help appease the auditors and bank. And although it may take me out of the picture entirely, that new investor may choose to keep the business running as it is. If so, I believe you three will be able to keep your jobs and apartment."
Carlos paused to take another gulp of his beer, and neither Yao or the girls had anything to say. Finishing his drink, Carlos shook his head as he placed his beer on the counter.
"I'm sorry I had to ruin the mood with the bad news, but at least it's in the open now," Carlos said, "I suggest we leave worrying about the future until tomorrow, and enjoy ourselves now. It's New Years Eve, and this food is going cold!"
They chuckled as Carlos raised his beer in the air.
"To a happy new year!"
"To a happy new year!" Yao and the girls replied, raising their own drinks to clink with Carlos before taking sips. Once the toast was complete, Natalya started handing out plates while Yao's cellphone started ringing by the computer.
"I better go answer that," Yao groaned as he stood from his stool. Hearing the others serving the food behind him, Yao walked back over to the computer and grabbed his phone, immediately noting the caller ID.
The number was from somewhere in Korea.
Yao accepted the call, and brought the phone to his ear before answering.
"Hello?"
"Is that you, Yao-yao?"
"It sure is, Yong Soo, good to hear your voice again."
"You as well, happy new year!"
"Happy new year to you too!" Yao replied, turning back to see that the others were clearly listening in on his end of the conversation, "What time is it out there now, about lunchtime? You didn't get yourself hungover, did you?"
"Ah yes, Mei is making us a light lunch right now. Seoul has become quite the party town while I've been away, she's tempted to stick around for that."
"You said you wanted to talk to me over the phone about something?"
"Ah yes, I have terrific news to send you into the new year! The transfer came through the banks, the Triad money is clean! All I need is a bank account number on your end, and I can send some of it to you and the girls!"
"That's wonderful, Yong Soo! Are you sure you want to do that, though? What if it flagged by our bank as being suspicious?"
"It won't, I promise! I'll go into my bank to arrange it, and make it a clean transaction from start to end. They'll be flagging the five million anyways, but I'll make it absolutely clear that it is a simply a gift from a foreign friend."
"Well, I suppose that - wait, how much?"
"Five million dollars."
"You mean in Korean Won, don't you?"
"Of course not, five million Won won't get you anything out there! Nope, I'm sending five million dollars."
Yao's face dropped in shock before he could reply.
"Yong Soo, you are out of your fucking mind!"
"Don't be silly, Yao-Yao. You can get out of that greasy spoon cafe, give Katya a lovely wedding and honeymoon, and even buy a house!"
Yao tried to search for his words as he sat back down at the counter
"I don't know what to say, Yong Soo!"
"You don't have to say anything! Well, actually you do, I need a bank account number."
Yao finally managed to snap out of his stupor.
"Okay, talk to Katerina, she's better with the numbers."
Yao handed the phone to Katya, grabbed his beer from the counter, and chugged a bit back to help relieve the shock. Once he had collected himself, he realized that Natalya and Carlos were staring at him.
"Well?" Natalya asked.
"Five million," Yao blankly said.
"Five million dollars?" Carlos asked.
"Holy fuck," Natalya muttered, before they also heard Katya screech into the phone.
"Oh my fucking god! Im Yong Soo, you are being way too generous!"
The three of them continued watching Katya talk to Yong Soo on the phone for a moment. When she turned away to get the banking information from the computer, Yao turned back to the counter.
"So, you lucky folks get to start the year five million dollars richer," Carlos pointed out, "What will you do with the money?"
"They'll probably pay for their wedding and find a small house somewhere," Natalya answered, "I'll probably go off on my own again, maybe return to school."
As Natalya and Carlos continued chattering, Yao looked back at Katerina in thought. His fiancé has been a waitress for several years now, with no chance to put her accounting skills to good practice. She had always wanted to run her own business, and the type of business she understood best was running a restaurant.
And Carlos would likely sell off his business to the first investor who came along.
"Hey Carlos, what would be the selling price on the business right now?"
"Well, the business does own the building and equipment, so that's worth a decent amount," Carlos explained, "There's still the mortgage and loans as well though, so net worth is probably about $250,000. Why do you ask?"
"I ask because Katerina has always wanted to run her own business," Yao said, turning back to see that Katerina had ended the call with Yong Soo and was now listening, "And given the pending bank transfer from Korea, we can afford to save this cafe from bankruptcy."
"Are you suggesting we buy the cafe and apartments?" Natalya put together.
"You can still do whatever you want with your share of the five million, Nat," Yao informed, "I'm suggesting that Katya and I could buy out Carlos's shares and invest in the business. I will control the kitchen and improve the food, while Katya can handle the books and resolve the debt concerns. That is, if she wants to go through with it."
"Are you serious, Yao?" Katerina asked, "I know I'd love to, but do you really want to work in a kitchen as your career?"
"I've already been on this track for a while, and this gives me the chance to run my own kitchen," Yao explained, "Plus, as long as the love of my life is helping run the restaurant, I could not be happier."
"Oh Yao, you're the best!" Katerina squealed as she enveloped him in a tight hug and started kissing him all over his cheeks. Once the hug was loosened, Yao turned to Carlos.
"So, do we have a tentative deal here?" he asked, "We can't really buy the business if the current owner won't sell it."
"I want to see that money hit your bank first, before we start negotiating price," Carlos replied, "Once it does go through, I'll tell Raj we have a sale to figure out."