"You mean you want to open a branch in the prefectural city?" Xia Qingqing asked Fan Sheng with some surprise.
Fan Sheng nodded seriously: "That's right. I had considered opening a branch in the county town before, but the consumption level in the county town is not as good as in the prefectural city."
Although a cup of drink only costs about 10 coins, it doesn't actually have a very wide audience.
For many families of modest means, spending 10 coins on a cup of drink was a luxury. They would only indulge in it occasionally, and wouldn't it be better to use that money to buy half a pound of pork?
After careful consideration, Fan Sheng and Luo Suyue decided to open a branch store in Fucheng.
Of course, this matter still needs to be approved by Xia Qingqing, her partner, since she is the one who has to provide the ingredients for the milk tea.
If they were to open a branch, the demand for milk tea ingredients would definitely increase exponentially, and Fan Sheng was unsure whether Xia Qingqing could guarantee the supply of so many ingredients.
Xia Qingqing didn't think about it for long and nodded in agreement: "Let's do it your way. Just tell me what you need."
Fan Sheng's willingness to expand his business is only beneficial to Xia Qingqing, since all she has to do is provide raw materials and wait to receive money. Who would complain about having too much money?
"No problem, Miss Xia, please don't worry," Fan Sheng said with a hearty laugh.
Although he knew that Xia Qingqing would most likely not object to opening a branch in the prefectural city, he was still somewhat worried. Now he finally put what he was carrying back in its original place.
Fan Sheng felt that life was truly wondrous. At one time, his greatest wish was simply to send his son to an academy to learn martial arts, hoping that his two children could escape a life of poverty.
Now, thanks to a miraculous opportunity, he seems to have developed ambitions.
Fan Sheng acted quickly. He first recruited two more employees and trained them for a few days. Once they were able to get the hang of things, he took Wang Fengshou directly to the prefectural city to prepare for opening the shop.
To make traveling between the prefectural city and the county town more convenient, Fan even bought a horse-drawn carriage, so he no longer needs to rent one when going to the prefectural city.
After inspecting the city, Fan Sheng bought a shop directly.
Prices in the prefectural city are incomparable to those in Ping'an County. A shop of roughly the same size that could be bought for 300 taels in Ping'an County would cost more than double in the prefectural city.
Wang Fengshou followed behind Fan Sheng, watching him spend several hundred taels of silver without batting an eye, and couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.
Although he knew the store made a lot of money every month, as a shop assistant he hadn't thought about it much before. Now he realized more clearly that Fan Sheng was no longer the same person he used to be.
Wang Fengshou felt no jealousy whatsoever, not even envy, because the gap between them was too vast; they were no longer from the same world.
After purchasing the shop, Fan Sheng personally guided Wang Fengshou through the renovation process, ordering custom-made tables, chairs, pots, pans, and other necessary items.
Wang Fengshou had a vague guess in his mind, but he didn't think it was very real.
It wasn't until Fan Sheng mentioned wanting him to stay in the prefectural city to manage the branch that he was certain he wasn't mistaken.
"Brother Sheng, I...I can't do it," Wang Fengshou stammered. He was a country man who could barely read, so how could he possibly manage a shop?
Fan Sheng patted him on the shoulder and encouraged him, "I've seen your performance these past few days. If you really weren't capable, I wouldn't have entrusted you with such an important task."
Although the two have been brothers for over twenty years, managing a shop is no small matter, and Fan Sheng would not use such a thing as a favor.
He wanted Wang Fengshou to be the manager of the branch store, partly because he had worked there for so long and knew a lot about both the making and selling of the drinks.
On the other hand, Fan Sheng himself couldn't get away. Luo Suyue had clearly told him that she didn't want to come to the prefectural city, and he wanted to stay with his wife and child.
Compared to hiring a complete stranger to help manage the store, Wang Fengshou, who has experience and whom they have known for many years, is clearly more trustworthy.
Fan Sheng noticed the hesitation in Wang Fengshou's eyes and said with a smile, "If you are willing to come to the prefectural city to manage the branch, your wages will be increased to 3 taels of silver per month."
Wang Fengshou's eyes widened suddenly: "Really...it's gone up to 3 taels of silver?"
Fan Sheng nodded firmly: "Would I lie to you? After all, the wages of a shop assistant and the wages of a manager are different. Of course, if the sales of a branch are good, there will be bonuses as well."
Wang Fengshou swallowed hard. He and his wife were currently paid one tael of silver a month. Of course, Fan Sheng would also give them a bonus each month based on the store's sales, ranging from 100 to 300 coins.
In other words, the couple could earn more than 2 taels of silver a month together, something they never dared to dream of before.
Because of a stable monthly income, my parents and children are eating and dressing well, and their health and energy have improved a lot.
However, if he came to the prefectural city, it would be even more difficult to see his family in the future, which was one of the reasons why he hesitated so much.
In the end, Wang Fengshou couldn't resist the temptation of triple pay and gritted his teeth, saying, "Okay, since you're willing to trust me, Brother Sheng, I'll definitely work hard."
“That’s right, I can entrust the branch to you with peace of mind,” Fan Sheng said with a smile.
The first task Fan Sheng gave Wang Fengshou was to recruit two employees for the new store. Of course, the final decision was in Fan Sheng's hands, and the main purpose was to cultivate Wang Fengshou's management skills.
Soon, dessert shops opened in the prefectural city, and the novel drinks quickly became popular throughout the city. Even the young masters and ladies of wealthy families sent their servants to queue up at the shops to buy them.
For the first month, Fan Sheng stayed at the branch store to oversee things. Once Wang Fengshou was able to handle all the store's affairs with ease, he couldn't wait to go home. Heaven knows how much he missed his wife that month; this was the longest he had ever been away from her since they got married.
"Whoa~ whoa," Fan Sheng suddenly pulled hard on the reins, forcing the horse to stop.
Fan Chang breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the man lying in the middle of the road, his life hanging in the balance. Luckily, he reacted quickly; otherwise, the man would have been trampled to death by the horse even if he hadn't died.
Fan Sheng got off the carriage and carefully examined the scene. Lying on the ground was an old man with half-gray hair, his clothes were mostly stained red with blood, his eyes were closed and his breathing was weak, as if he was about to die.
Seeing this, Fan Sheng turned to leave. The old man's injuries looked unusual, and he didn't want to cause trouble for himself and his family.
No sooner had Fan Sheng taken a step than the old man on the ground grabbed his trouser leg: "Help...help me."
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