Curious, the group strolled over and discovered that in addition to a large snack stall, there was also a strange furniture shop, a local specialty shop, a tavern, and a teahouse.
"Dear customers, would you like a bowl of spicy hot pot from Cheng Family Snack Shop? It's the most famous food in Huaishan County right now. It's delicious and cheap. Have a bowl on this cold day, and I guarantee you'll feel warm all over after you finish it!"
Now, as the owner of a snack shop in Lishan, Ms. Wen has become very skilled at greeting customers.
Recently, the snack shops in Lishan have been doing better and better. In addition to passing travelers and caravans, there are also many customers from the county town who drive here to eat because they don't want to wait in line.
That's right. Because the snack stalls in the county town are small, with less than ten tables, you often have to wait in line for a long time to get a bite.
Standing in line outdoors for an hour or two in temperatures of minus seven or eight degrees Celsius is unbearable. So when people learn that there is a branch of this restaurant by the official road in Lishan, many people with cars choose to come here to eat.
This situation was indeed beyond Cheng Ruyi's expectations, so she knocked down the wall next door overnight and connected the two shops to use them together. After doubling the size, the shops could accommodate at least thirty tables, which finally met the needs.
Therefore, almost all of these ten shops are now in use.
The two snack stalls have the highest foot traffic; next to them are a carpentry shop and a specialty agricultural products shop. Although their business is average, they occasionally get a few big orders thanks to the foot traffic from the snack stalls.
Zhou Yin rented two of the remaining shops and converted them into a tavern and a teahouse, respectively, to sell products from his brewing and tea-making workshops in the north of the city. Wine and tea never lacked sales, so the two shops always did quite well.
One of the last four courtyards was allocated to the Ding family. It wasn't ideal for the entire family of twenty to live separately, so Ruyi gave them this option. After all, while independent courtyards offer excellent privacy, it would be quite crowded for twenty people to live together. After discussing it, the Ding family decided that they still needed to live together, so they moved out a few days ago. Anyway, it's only a few hundred meters away from the other courtyard, so it won't affect their daily work at all.
The other three courtyards are currently being used as staff dormitories, and they are almost full.
This was because Cheng Ruyi had hired several families during this period. Most of them were refugees who had previously participated in the construction of the villa or people with several relatives working in Ruyi's shop. After assessing their character and skills, she asked about their willingness, and they signed a three-year contract only after they all felt it was suitable.
Most of the newly hired staff are responsible for the daily work at the hillside villas, including daily patrols, tending to the flowers, trees, and shrubs, cleaning the villas, and moving items.
Since most of these people are ordinary citizens, Tao Fei had them familiarize themselves with the specific job requirements before they officially started working, and they also needed to pass an assessment.
After seeing how crowded the courtyards were, Ruyi felt that another row of houses needed to be built on the open space near the foot of the mountain. However, the weather was not suitable for building houses at the moment, so she decided to wait until the weather was better.
Qiu Yong and his group are medicinal herb merchants. Every year, they form a team to go to the town at the foot of Baiyan Mountain on the northern border to purchase medicinal herbs. Baiyan Mountain is located at the border of Da Yue and Da Qi. It is also the highest mountain in Da Yue. The mountaintop is covered with snow all year round. The environment is unique and many precious plants grow there, including some top-grade medicinal herbs.
They had traveled this road through Huaishan County for many years. This year, rumors circulated that the entire Northwest was suffering from drought. They were initially worried that Chongzhou would descend into chaos, but now it seems that the people here are doing alright.
Everyone here is someone who deals with medicinal herbs year-round. After a bowl of spicy hot pot, we could all tell something from it. It's unbelievable that it can have such a warming effect without using any precious medicinal herbs, just ginger, dogwood, and other spicy spices. I guess the restaurant has some secret recipe.
But at the time, everyone was focused on getting to their destination and didn't think too much about it. After resting for a while and warming up, they set off to continue northward. At most, they would only miss this magical food when it was particularly cold on the road.
After leaving Chongzhou, they realized that the Northwest was in chaos. They encountered countless robberies along the way, and several of their companions were injured. It seemed impossible for them to cross Qizhou and reach Baiyan Mountain safely.
Seeing the chaos and turmoil ahead, Qiu Yong, being timid and burdened with elderly parents and young children who depended on him for survival, chose to leave the ranks and return to a safe place to find other business in order to save his life.
At that time, he naturally did not expect that when he passed through Lishan again half a year later, after experiencing many hardships and feeling destitute, he would encounter a new turning point in his career. Of course, these are all stories for later.
As more and more people passed by Lishan, many noticed the several very special houses on the mountainside. Ruyi had already prepared a description and had all the workers memorize it so that they could answer any question fluently and do a good job of the preliminary publicity.
These four hillside villas took Cheng Ruyi and the old craftsman nearly half a year to complete, and were not officially finished until the beginning of November. Just a few days ago, all the landscaping and furniture were finally finished.
The four villas are named after the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter.
Chunhua Courtyard is located halfway up the main mountain of Lishan, at the lowest point of the four villas. The entire villa is themed around flowers, with different varieties of flowers planted both inside and outside the courtyard, aiming to provide flowers for viewing all year round. For example, the plum blossom forest covering the hillside in the front yard has just begun to show scattered red blossoms. With the blessing of the spiritual spring water, it is believed that they will soon be in full bloom, which will surely attract many tourists. In addition to the landscaping, the decorations in the courtyard are very elegant and exquisite, and all the doors, windows and furniture are decorated with floral patterns. Even the indoor fabrics are all embroidered with flowers, giving people the illusion of a hundred flowers blooming.
Xiazhuyuan is located halfway up the southern mountain of Lishan, slightly higher than Chunhuayuan. The villa is themed around bamboo, surrounded by a large bamboo forest that Ruyi had planted a year ago. Moreover, the location here is the most secluded and tranquil. The interior decoration and furniture follow a simple and elegant artistic style, and also incorporate many bamboo elements, making it most suitable for those literati and scholars who would rather eat no meat than live without bamboo.
Qiushiyuan is located at the foot of the main mountain. Unlike other villas, it is themed around parent-child entertainment, so there are facilities everywhere that are convenient for children. There is even a small playground built in the yard, with rocking horses, swings, slides, seesaws and more. Moreover, if you come here in autumn, you can also enjoy a large expanse of fiery red maple forest.
Winter Snow Garden boasts a unique location atop the northern peak of Lishan Mountain, the highest point in the area, offering panoramic views. On clear days, one can even see the entire Huaishan County. Even in this weather, the sight of the snow-covered landscape below is quite enchanting. The garden's decor is simple yet elegant, featuring abundant wood and fur, giving it a modern, luxurious feel. It also includes a semi-outdoor hot spring bath. Imagine soaking in the hot spring while enjoying the view on a snowy mountaintop – a truly unique and unforgettable experience.
Each of these four villas has its own unique selling point, which can attract different types of guests. In addition, she has also made many scenic spot plans for the entire Lishan area, which will be gradually improved in the future.
Before officially opening for business, Cheng Ruyi took her family to experience all four villas with different styles. Under her guidance, everyone had a very novel and unique experience.
Since their last trip to the prefectural city, the Cheng family members have discovered that there are many things in the world they have never seen before, and they have gradually become curious about the unknown. Therefore, they did not feel uncomfortable with the vacation villa that Ruyi mentioned. On the contrary, they had a great time and were even able to give a lot of feedback and suggestions.
After her family experienced it, she invited all her relatives and friends to come and host her, letting everyone act as "sleep testers." This ingenious design undoubtedly received unanimous praise from everyone.
Of course, in addition to the praise, many problems were also discovered. Ruyi made corresponding adjustments in a timely manner before officially starting business.
Currently, all villas operate on a reservation system. Each villa has a five-bay main house and two large east and west wing rooms. Guests can choose to book the entire villa or just stay in the main house or the wing rooms, with different prices to suit different budgets.
The accommodation fee includes three meals and afternoon tea, and there is a 20% discount during the trial operation period.
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