Chapter 57
The person who came was also a servant, riding in an ox cart, and he seemed to be a porter.
While waiting for the braised meat, he did not forget to greet Su Guoer: "Madam Su's cooking skills are really good. Now all the porters along the Bian River know that there is a braised meat restaurant near Zhouqiao."
"The braised meat inside is so delicious! You can smell the aroma from a long way off. We're all talking about it! It's truly the best braised meat in Bianjing City! It's even better than the ones in Qianweilou and Liujia Braised Meat Shop!"
Su Guoer smiled and said, "You're too kind, it's really too kind."
The peddler said: "Alas, Madam Su, don't be so modest. I'm telling you the truth, your craftsmanship is truly this good."
He gave a thumbs up and praised Su Guoer, saying that her cooking skills were very good.
Su Guoer hadn't expected her braised pork to spread so quickly and receive such high praise, which gave Su Guoer a lot of motivation.
I felt like her house was beckoning me. And there were the fine paddy fields and crops outside the city, and a shop that belonged entirely to me...
These things made Su Guoer very excited.
Okay, get on with it. There's no point just thinking about it.
The guests came in shortly after lunch.
Unexpectedly, there were more people coming today, and by dinner time even the second floor was full of people.
This made Su Guoer busy in the kitchen. Although there were two apprentices and Pang Ya to help, the apprentices didn't know how to cook yet, so most of the work had to be done by Su Guoer, or Chun Niang and Cui Niangzi came in to help.
They also cook at home on weekdays. They are good at knife skills and are familiar with her cooking methods.
Later, they simply had two apprentices serve the guests outside.
Yunniang is responsible for collecting the cashier, and Li Si is responsible for the customers on the second floor.
After three hours of hard work, it was time for dinner.
Although Su Guoer was a little tired, she still stood at the table and counted the accounts with great interest.
In the morning, I sold mutton soup, sesame seed buns and pot stickers for a total of 18 taels of silver. There were many orders for lunch, so I sold a total of 50 taels of silver at noon.
This does not include the braised meat in the evening. Su Guoer calculated that the braised meat stewing in the pot could at least provide her with a profit of 200 taels of silver.
There will be another wave of diners in the evening, so we can sell some more pot stickers, so let’s just count them at 50 taels.
By this calculation, she definitely made some money.
She didn't even feel a bit tired? It was amazing.
On the other hand, the people over there were all exhausted, so Su Guoer asked them to go back and rest. If they didn't want to go back to rest, there was a room in the backyard that could be cleaned up and lived in.
However, they all wanted to go home and rest, except for Yunniang and Lian Yuaner, who chose to rest in the store because their homes were far away. Su Guoer also rested for a while, and then got up at the appointed time to mix the dough and chop the mutton filling for the pot stickers in the evening.
The braised meat is ready and ready to be sold, but the pot stickers are not yet ready, but there is still time to make them in one afternoon.
Su Guoer was busy in the kitchen alone when she heard someone calling from the front.
"Is the boss here?" The voice sounded familiar, so she put down her work and went to the shop in front.
At first glance, it was Mother Liu from the Duke's Mansion, standing in the corridor with someone, without entering the house.
"Why doesn't mom come in?" Su Guoer asked.
Mother Liu: "Seeing that there was no one in your store, I didn't go in. I thought I'd call you a few times to try. If you weren't there, we'd come back another day."
She spoke politely, but Su Guoer turned to look at the person behind her.
Their eyes met at first sight.
Lu Ping'an was surprised and said, "It's you?" It turned out that he was right last time.
Su Guoer was actually a little surprised. It turned out that when Madam Liu pulled her aside to introduce a man to her at the Duke's Mansion, she didn't take it seriously and forgot the man's name the moment she turned around.
She only remembered this when she saw Mother Liu coming today.
Who is this person?
"Lu Ping'an, my cousin, the one I told you about before?"
Su Guoer suddenly realized: "Please come in quickly"
He hurriedly welcomed the two of them in.
Mother Liu: "I wanted to come this morning, but I didn't come because I was afraid of affecting your business. I brought him here when there were fewer people around so you two can get to know each other."
"Come, sit down." Su Guoer took out some melon seeds and placed them on the table.
Seeing her busy about to cut beef, Mother Liu grabbed her hand and said, "Sister, stop busying yourself. We all came here after lunch and are not hungry now. Don't be so polite."
After saying that, he grabbed a pair of claws and knocked them in his hands, saying, "This is my cousin Lu Ping'an. I told you the conditions before. There can be no falsehood. You can also ask around. He does work in the Dali Temple."
"Although the monthly silver isn't much..."
At this point, Mother Liu also hesitated.
She originally introduced Su Guoer to Lu Ping'an because their conditions were similar at the time, and she didn't expect that Su Guoer's shop would actually be able to succeed.
It’s still blooming so well.
What she was thinking at the time was, if the car couldn't be opened, wouldn't Su Guoer have to get married? If she got married, her cousin would be first-class in both status and appearance.
He was not even close to Su Guoer at that time.
But now, she looked at the decoration of the shop and thought about the rumors she had heard recently. Many grooms in the mansion knew that a restaurant had opened on the bank of the Bian River. The braised meat sold there was very delicious, and everyone loved to eat her braised meat.
Under such circumstances, if she were to introduce someone to someone else... it would be like her family is marrying above her station.
Mother Liu sighed and said, "I didn't expect you to be so capable and actually be able to open this shop. Now I feel embarrassed to matchmake for you again, for fear of neglecting you."
"But I have no other intention in coming here today, so how about this?" She turned to look at her cousin, then back at Su Guoer: "Why don't you two be friends and see how things go?"
Then he said generously:
"It doesn't matter whether it succeeds or not. Anyway, no one in our Bianjing City will punish a young lady just because she is close to a man. You are free to fall in love and marry. It all depends on your choice. It doesn't matter whether it succeeds or not. Make friends, more friends, more paths."
She said so, and she felt that Su Guoer would not refuse. As a young lady without parents and relatives, living alone outside, she should find a husband and settle down.
Seeing this, Lu Pingan immediately said: "I am on duty at the Dali Temple now. If you have any questions, you can come to me. I also have brothers in the government office. If you have any questions, just say a word."
He really likes Su Guoer. Even if they can't become friends, it doesn't matter.
Su Guoer smiled and said, "Since you've said that, I won't be polite. If there's anything I need in the future, please take care of me, Brother Lu!"
She was running a shop alone and was worried about having no one behind her. Now someone came to her, even though he was just a yamen runner, it was still a relationship no matter how big the relationship was.
It's better than her being a white person.
What if it comes in handy in the future?
Su Guoer also had her own considerations, and secretly looked at Lu Ping'an. He had a square face, a broad forehead, and sword-like eyebrows. He looked very upright and tough, and seemed to be a loyal and honest person.
Such people have good character, whether as spouses or friends.
Lu Pingan nodded: "You're welcome"
He added, "The decoration in this shop looks a bit old, and the wooden windows on the east side should be repaired, otherwise it will be bad if they hit the customers."
Afterwards, they chatted again. Mother Liu asked Su Guoer some questions about the restaurant, and Su Guoer also asked her some things about the Duke's Mansion.
Lu Ping'an also told some interesting stories about the Dali Temple. After the chat, the two of them said goodbye and Su Guoer returned to her normal life.
Don’t think that this kind of life is dull. In fact, Su Guoer secretly feels that this is the life she wants.
A simple life without any major setbacks, having someone to support her until old age, with children and grandchildren around her and enjoying her company. Her restaurant could also occupy a place in the huge city of Bianjing, and she would have no regrets in her life.
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