The next day, Grandpa Zhen asked Grandma Li to get some money and instructed Zhenfu to call someone to help.
Zhenfu accepted the money and left with a grin. A short while later, he returned to the courtyard with his men.
Seeing these obviously troublesome thugs, Zhen Fugui felt unusually at ease.
He took the lead and drove his family's horse-drawn carriage to Dahe Village.
Because the weather was getting cold, and there was still some cotton left from what she had bought in Songjiang Prefecture, Old Lady Li thought of making another quilt for each of her children.
Wang Cuihua happily assisted her, her face beaming with joy for many days.
Taking advantage of the fine weather, Granny Zhang, along with Rou'er and Xiaomei, washed the three children's winter clothes.
They also took all the quilts out of Zhenwanwan's room to air them out and get rid of the musty smell.
Zhen Wanwan wasn't idle either. After playing with the child for a while, she took out the shop that Zhu Yuan had given her earlier.
They specifically selected shop deeds in Guangling County, intending to open a department store there first.
Now her task is to first choose a good location for the shop, then conduct an on-site inspection, and completely renovate the interior furnishings.
The shops come in all sizes, and they're all in great locations, right in the city center.
After careful selection, Zhen Wanwan chose three houses.
One was a clothing shop located in the east of the city, which made a living by selling fabrics and custom-made clothes. The three rooms were connected together.
The length is more than enough, but there's no place to sleep.
It's a street intersection located in the west of the city. People pass through this place when they enter the city, so there's no problem with the flow of people, but it's a bit small.
The other one is a bit more remote, located in the south of the city. That area is mostly inhabited by students of the academy, as well as wealthy families who also live along this street.
The house is a three-story building, and the business it runs is a restaurant, but it's not doing well because of competitors.
In her heart, she preferred the south of the city, since she was selling consumables. Ordinary people would use an item for many years and would be reluctant to replace it even if it broke.
This southern part of the city is considered a gathering place for wealthy people in the county, which just meets her expectations.
However, she still needs to personally check out the other two shops. Even if they don't become general stores, she still needs to make plans for them first.
Taking advantage of the fact that there weren't many people around at noon, Zhen Wanwan told Zhang Mama and the others a few words, and then went out alone.
They currently live in the northern part of the east side of the city, so her first stop was the clothing store in the east of the city.
After walking for about ten minutes, she realized that the clothing store was only half a street away from her aunt's house, very close by.
She quickened her pace, passed the Han family's house, and headed straight for the clothing shop.
Because it was noon, there weren't many customers in the shop, so the shopkeeper propped his head up and sat in front of the counter, dozing off.
Zhen Wanwan observed carefully and found that most of the shops around her were also selling fabrics, but their shops were not as big as hers.
With just one glance, Zhen Wanwan knew in her heart that this shop should be doing well. She would take over the business once she had settled down.
So she just took a stroll around and glanced at the layout of the house, finding it to be no different from the others.
Without disturbing the shopkeeper, they went out again and headed west of the city.
Getting to the west side of the city from here is like going around most of the county, taking at least half an hour.
Zhen Wanwan was exhausted, but women usually stroll around and stop frequently when shopping, and she managed to explore the county town thoroughly.
This store sells this and that store makes that; in the future, if you want to buy something, you won't have to wander around aimlessly, you can just come directly here.
The closer Zhen Wanwan got to the west gate, the more densely packed the houses became, one after another, with hardly any gaps between them.
The flow of people also increased, and she carefully avoided the bustling crowds.
After much difficulty, I finally arrived at the shop in the west of the city. Inside, I saw many women picking and choosing, and the waiter was also smiling and welcoming customers.
This room is actually quite small, but at first glance, it seems exceptionally spacious in comparison.
This is a pastry shop, so it's very popular with women and children. The prices are reasonable, so ordinary families can buy it every now and then.
Business was booming and there were many regular customers, so Zhen Wanwan gave up the shop without the slightest hesitation.
She turned and headed south of the city. At this point, she was a little worried, hoping that the last restaurant would do well, but also hoping that it wouldn't.
She couldn't help but mutter to herself, "Why think so much! I should just go and see for myself!"
As she spoke, Zhen Wanwan quickened her pace and ran swiftly towards the south of the city.
It took about ten minutes to turn a corner and arrive at the south side of the city. Compared to the bustling west side, the south side was much quieter.
Most of the houses are independent courtyards, and occasionally you might encounter scholars dressed in uniform and wearing square headscarves.
Two or three people would invite each other to go to the bookstore to buy books, or to a restaurant for a meal.
There were also women like Zhen Wanwan, dressed in decent clothes, shaking their heads and eagerly awaiting their husbands to come home from school. After picking them up, they would go home together.
Among them, two restaurants stand out the most. Both are three stories high and their exteriors are decorated in a rather exquisite and beautiful manner.
The only difference was that one restaurant had a long queue of customers, while the other only had a few people in twos and threes.
Even though it was mealtime, customers preferred to stay at one particular restaurant rather than go to a less crowded one.
Zhen Wanwan recognized at a glance that the sparsely populated restaurant was her destination!
She concealed the emotions in her eyes and stepped inside.
At first glance, in the spacious and bright lobby, there were only two or three tables occupied, and the waiter was diligently introducing the menu to the guests.
The shopkeeper was fiddling with his abacus on the counter, making rapid, clattering sounds.
Zhen Wanwan walked over, knocked on the counter, and said, "Shopkeeper."
The restaurant owner glanced at her and, in a few moments, seemed to categorize her as a poor person.
He then lowered his head and fiddled with the abacus, seemingly calculating something, and said casually, "If you want to eat, go find a seat yourself."
With a hint of impatience in her voice, Zhen Wanwan frowned and gave the shopkeeper a deep look.
Judging from the shopkeeper's attitude, anyone who didn't know better would think she was forcing him to do business!
With the owner's face like that, it's no wonder people come to eat here.
Zhen Wanwan suppressed her displeasure and found a corner to sit down. A moment later, the waiter who had taken the order for the customer came over with a smile.
The waiter, standing at attention, said with great enthusiasm, "Miss, this is our menu. Please take a look and tell me what you'd like to eat."
Zhen Wanwan took the menu from him and flipped through it little by little. She noticed that the names of the dishes were all very elegant, and they should have been very popular with scholars.
Could it be that the food is just too bad?
Thinking of this, Zhen Wanwan casually ordered a few dishes, and the waiter said with a smile, "Okay, miss, please wait a moment, I'll prepare your meal right away!"
As he spoke, he quickly took the menu back to the kitchen and called out the menu.
While waiting for the food, Zhen Wanwan carefully examined the layout of the restaurant.
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