It's not that Lin Wei is stingy. The meatballs she makes are as big as a child's fist. If each person tries one, she'll lose a fortune. But if she breaks each meatball into four pieces, they can taste it and keep the customers' appetites in suspense, so she won't lose too much money.

Although Zhang Min's business wasn't doing very well, she understood human nature and its tricks.

"Okay, right away, I'll get the toothpicks out."

Pot after pot, the line grew longer and longer.

When the afternoon arrived, Lin Wei and Zhang Min were both dumbfounded.

"Stop taking pictures, there aren't any left."

"It's sold out."

The customer was not satisfied with this.

"No, didn't we say yesterday that we'd prepare two portions today?"

"I prepared two portions, but I didn't expect so many people. How about we come tomorrow, come earlier tomorrow, and I'll start frying at 10 a.m. and fry until dark before going back, okay?"

Lin Wei couldn't conjure up anything more, and no matter how much the customer protested, it was no use. In the end, she had no choice but to agree.

"I must prepare more tomorrow. If I still can't buy it by tomorrow, I really won't come again."

Yes, definitely.

After calming the customers down and seeing them off, Zhang Min said with a bitter face, "What are we going to do? We only have so many people. I have to ask Mu Lin to order the ingredients when he goes to work and bring them home when he gets off work. But the meatballs need to be mixed in advance, otherwise they won't taste good. But we only have so many people, we just can't keep up with the demand."

Wu Xiaoling said, "Hongye and I can make vegetarian dishes, and we can send them over later, but we can't make the meat filling."

"Let's go back first, and think about it as we walk back."

Back in the alley, Uncle Li was frying meatballs at the alley entrance.

It smells good, but it's somewhat different from the filling Lin Wei made.

This difference can be detected simply by smell.

But Lin Wei had come up with a solution.

"Uncle Li, the fried meatballs smell so good."

"Yes, come on, have a taste."

Uncle Li wasn't stingy; he picked up a meatball and offered it to her to try.

Lin Wei quickly refused, "No need, no need, we'll fry meatballs too. We've been smelling oil all day and can't eat any meat."

But—

"Uncle Li, did you make the filling for these meatballs yourself?"

"yes."

Zhang Min didn't react at first, but upon hearing Lin Wei's words, she immediately said, "Brother Li, do you want to do a part-time job? Just for a few days to earn some extra money, would you like to?"

After Zhang Min's explanation, Uncle Li finally understood.

"So you're too busy to handle everything and want to find someone to mix the filling?"

"Yes, we buy the meat and prepare the seasoning ourselves. You just need to help with the mixing. It's three bowls a day, which costs 5 yuan a day. You don't need to go out. You can mix it at home. The Gao family's children can help me carry it. You can mix it yourself or have your family help you. In short, it's three bowls of meat."

Uncle Li didn't want to agree at first, but he was just sitting at the convenience store all day anyway, so why not do it?

Five yuan may not seem like much, but it's still money.

Furthermore, they are all neighbors, and they mostly buy things from the convenience store.

"Okay, starting tomorrow?" Uncle Li asked.

"It's too late for tomorrow. Starting today, you and my wife will mix three bowls of meat together, and that will be paid for a full day's work."

After the able-bodied men were caught, Zhang Min went on another shopping spree, buying meat and fish to ensure the quantity was sufficient.

Before leaving, Lin Wei said, "Aunt Zhang, buy some more peanuts and broad beans. The fried pork used to fry these things is so fragrant, perfect for having with drinks. Also, buy some oil."

"No problem, but I don't think there's much time left. I'll buy as much as I have."

-

With Uncle Li's help, we managed to gather enough ingredients after a busy day.

But it is precisely because the ingredients are doubled that their turnover can reach an astonishing 2,500 yuan in just one day.

Zhang Min really counted money until her fingers hurt.

"My goodness, my fingers are red and swollen from rubbing money like this. When have I ever received money like this before? In seven days, I must have made at least ten thousand."

Even if Ben and Lin Wei split the profits equally, they could still earn over 4000, which is much better than earning money by working.

Su Mulin massaged Zhang Min's shoulders.

“You’ve only worked for 3 days, there are still 4 days left. How do you know there won’t be any problems along the way? Who calculates all the costs in advance?”

"Pah, pah, pah, what nonsense are you spouting during the New Year? How could there be a problem? There's absolutely no way there could be a problem. We'll definitely make it through the New Year smoothly. 4,000 yuan, more than 4,000 yuan! No wonder Lin Wei was so busy making money that she didn't want to rest for a single day."

Zhang Min whispered, "I heard from Sister Meng that this girl earned tens of thousands of yuan in just over a month and a half. She also bought two apartments for herself and her brother across from Weiwei's school. They just took possession of the apartments a few days ago and are planning to renovate them after the New Year."

“No wonder Weiwei always said that doing business is profitable; it really is,” Zhang Min asked. “Mulin, Weiwei said that if I can’t make money in the food business, she suggested that I switch to selling clothes, rent a stall at the night market to try it out, and if it works out, I can open a shop near the school. Do you think Weiwei’s suggestion is good?”

“Of course.” Su Mulin had actually raised this issue more than once.

“You’re not very good at cooking, and your kids don’t usually like to eat. Vivi’s business is good because she’s a good cook. You could take over, but you’re not good at it. I think you’ll be lucky if you can just break even. Making money is purely a matter of luck.”

Just as Zhang Min was about to lose her temper, Su Mulin said again, "But selling clothes is different. You're good at talking and you dress fashionably, so I think you're quite suitable for selling clothes. Maybe you can really try this direction. I heard that night markets rent space on a quarterly basis. If you want to change, like Weiwei said, you can rent a quarterly space to sell clothes and try it out. Who knows, you might actually be able to make it work."

Su Mulin's words of comfort undoubtedly gave Zhang Min confidence.

"Okay, I'll go to Jiangzheng Street Market after the New Year. I'll rent a stall after the fifteenth of the month. It's only for one quarter anyway. If the clothes don't sell, I'll just wear them myself. I definitely won't waste them."

-

Once she made up her mind, Zhang Min became even more enthusiastic about her work.

In her words, "If I lose money a year from now, I'll have to make up for it in these few days."

Lin Wei laughed and said, "You won't lose money. You're so good at talking. Go shopping a few times and see how others sell their products, and you'll know everything. You're so good at making boxed lunches, which you're not good at. You're definitely good at making clothes, which you're good at."

Lin Wei gave Zhang Min a lot of confidence, which made Zhang Min feel like she had been injected with chicken blood, and she was full of energy every day.

Su Mulin truly admired Lin Wei. "Your mouth is more eloquent than your Aunt Zhang's. With her level of excitement, she'll definitely be able to maintain it until the New Year."

"That's good. You need to have plenty of energy at all times so that you can be full of hope when facing the unknown future."