Chapter 110 The Noodle Shop is Thriving

When Liu Ye finished her meal and arrived at the shop, she saw a long queue outside, even longer than yesterday. Luckily, she was wise to hire the three Sun brothers, otherwise she would have been exhausted and overwhelmed even if she had cooked the pots until they were smoking.

Liu Ye squeezed through the crowd and entered the noodle shop, where she saw Sun Erdan busy cooking noodles. She didn't recognize the other two, but they were probably Sun Erdan's younger brothers, who looked quite a bit like him.

Sun Erdan greeted Liu Ye with a smile: "Boss Liu, you've arrived. There are even more guests today than yesterday. The three of us are almost overwhelmed."

Liu Ye said happily, "I see. The more people the better. If we don't have enough people, call over any acquaintances you know."

After serving noodles to the guests, Sun Tiedan and Sun Gou Dan quickly ran up to Liu Ye and introduced themselves: "Boss Liu, I am Sun Tiedan, the second oldest in my family."

Sun Gou Dan scratched the back of his head and said shyly, "I am Sun Gou Dan, the third child in my family..."

"Goudanzi, hurry up and serve me the noodles!" a customer who knew Goudan shouted at him.

Liu Ye smiled and nodded: "I understand, you can go ahead and get busy."

Tie Dan and Gou Dan hurriedly went to serve noodles to the guests, serving this person a bowl and that person a bowl, so busy that their feet were practically touching the back of their heads.

Liu Ye collected money behind the counter and helped Sun Erdan tend the fire when she had a spare moment. She was busy all morning, and the shop only quieted down after lunchtime. Sun Erdan then started kneading dough: "Boss Liu, we used a bag of flour this morning. I think there will be a lot of customers at noon, so I'll knead another half bag."

Liu Ye casually said, "You can handle it as you see fit. 12345, 6725 Wen, Erdan, how much profit did you make per day at the restaurant before?"

While kneading the dough, Sun Erdan said, "I remember the most I ever made was over 1,000 coins, earning a little over one tael of silver. Boss Liu, you're selling it for over 6,000 coins and still not making any money, only a little over six taels of silver. A bag of flour weighs 100 jin, that's 200 taels of silver. At this rate, you'll lose your underwear..."

Liu Ye said nonchalantly, "Then I'll just sell myself naked, hahaha, hahaha."

Sun Erdan couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Hahaha, oh, Liu Dongjia, you're a young lady, don't talk like that, hahaha, it doesn't suit your image at all, hahaha, hahaha, selling yourself naked, hahaha, hahaha."

Tie Dan and Gou Dan, who were wiping the table and washing the dishes, were also laughing so hard they were almost falling over. "Hahaha, hee hee hee."

The three Sun brothers spent the morning with Liu Ye and learned that she was a very approachable and easy-going person. As a result, they relaxed and became less reserved in their speech and work.

Before they knew it, it was lunchtime again, and another wave of busyness began. Just as Sun Erdan had predicted, there were even more people at noon than in the morning. Even the well-dressed ladies and gentlemen came in carriages to eat noodles, and maids and servants came to pack noodles to take back to their mansion for their young masters and ladies.

After lunchtime, having sold the last bowl of noodles and seen off the last customer, Sun Erdan and his two brothers were exhausted. Sun Erdan sat down to rest for a while, then quickly went to knead the dough again.

Liu Ye also helped Tie Dan and Gou Dan wash the dishes: "We still don't have enough people, we need to hire more."

Tie Dan thought for a moment and said, "My second uncle has two sons who are staying at home now. They used to work for wealthy families, but they were laid off in the first half of the year and haven't been able to find work since. Why don't I ask them to come? My brother and I are honest and kind, and we can just pay them the same as us."

Liu Ye agreed, "Okay, then you should call both of them to come. Tie Dan, I see you can also make ramen, and your skills are about the same as your brother's. You can make ramen with your brother, and your wages will be the same as his. Otherwise, your brother won't be able to handle it all by himself."

She turned to look at Sun Erdan, who was kneading dough: "Erdan, can Tiedan help you make ramen?"

Sun Erdan was overjoyed: "Great! I taught Tiedan how to make noodles. He used to help me when there were a lot of customers in my shop, but I was too embarrassed to say it yesterday."

Liu Ye thought, "No wonder." She replied, "Tiedan, you can work with your brother this afternoon."

Tie Dan grinned from ear to ear: "Thank you, boss. I'll definitely work hard. Maybe I should call my brother and the others over this afternoon, otherwise Gou Dan won't be able to handle everything by himself."

Liu Ye nodded: "Okay, then go back and call for help."

Before long, Tie Dan brought his two brothers over. One was named Sun Wen and the other Sun Wu. Liu Ye was really worried that they would also be named Dan. The Sun Wen and Sun Wu brothers were both big and strong, with honest and simple appearances. They were neither ugly nor particularly good-looking, and their appearances were very ordinary.

With the addition of the Sun brothers, Sun Wen and Sun Wu, the noodle shop suddenly became busier. Erdan and Tiedan made noodles together, so they weren't so busy anymore. Liu Ye only had to collect money and didn't have to tend the fire anymore.

After dinner, after seeing off the last customer, Sun Wen closed the shop door and sat down to eat with Liu Ye and the others. Sun Erdan made half a pot of dumpling soup, and the group ate to their hearts' content.

Liu Ye drank two bowls of dumpling soup and then put down her chopsticks: "Erdan, I'm going to the backyard. You guys don't go over there while you're eating. The people who deliver my grain have a special background. They don't want to be seen by others. If anyone sees them, the grass on their graves will be so tall by now. I'm going to get the grain."

Upon hearing this, Sun Erdan and his three brothers were so frightened that their tails tightened, and they all nodded obediently, none of them daring to ask another question.

Liu Ye went to the servants' quarters in the backyard and placed 20 bags of flour on the kang (heated brick bed). She knew she wouldn't have enough; she needed six or seven bags a day. But she wasn't losing money. Three meals a day cost her about 20 taels of silver. After deducting the wages for Erdan and the others, the rest was hers. Erdan had told her that noodles used to cost only ten coins a bowl, but now she was selling them for 50 coins a bowl—not cheap at all.

Liu Ye lifted the lid of the lard jar and saw that not much had been put in. It was mainly because Erdan was reluctant to put in that much, only a small spoonful at a time. She told Erdan to put in more, but he wouldn't listen, so she had no choice but to let him be.

She had already put out six bundles of scallions, but Erdan wouldn't put out more. It's really something else. Okay, let's go home.

Liu Ye greeted Erdan and went home under the stars. The first thing she did when she got home was to light the stove. She had been gone all day, so how could the stove not go out? But lighting the stove was not difficult. She just put the firewood in the stove, lit it, and the house was warm immediately.

After feeding the cows in the backyard, she went back to the house to wash her feet, got into bed, took off her clothes, and slept soundly until dawn. Then she heard a noisy commotion outside, which sounded like it was coming from her front door. Who could it be?