Led by Haitang, five girls stepped forward from the crowd. Like Haitang, they were willing to change their means of making a living and their way of life.
However, apart from the six of them, everyone else turned their heads away when they met Shen Yuan's gaze, silently rejecting her invitation.
They didn't want to be helpers. Their delicate hands were meant for playing the piano, not for washing dishes, cooking, or wiping tables.
They couldn't accept such a job that would degrade their delicate hands, so they rejected Shen Yuan's suggestion without hesitation.
Shen Yuan wasn't annoyed; everyone has their own choices.
She respects them.
After helping Haitang and the others find accommodation, Shen Yuan left Zuichunlou.
She returned to the pharmacy and told Granny Liu about her plans.
"Grandma, I'm planning to open a food stall across the street so that Haitang and the other girls can have a place to earn money and support themselves!"
"A food stall? What does it sell?" Granny Liu asked.
“It’s very simple, it’s just a food stall!” Shen Yuan smiled, then took Liu Mama’s hand and asked her very seriously, “Grandma, if you only have twenty coins in your hand right now, and you want to have lunch, and there’s a bowl of noodles, a bowl of wontons, a steamer of steamed buns, a sesame seed cake, and a rice set meal with three dishes and a soup in front of you, and you can only choose one of them, what would you choose?”
Without hesitation, Granny Liu replied, "Of course, it's the rice set meal! At midday, only rice can fill our stomachs! No matter how much noodles we eat, we won't feel full without rice! Noodles and rice make us hungry faster!"
Shen Yuan said, "But there are noodle shops, wonton shops, steamed bun shops, and sesame seed cake stalls in Jian'an City, but there are no small shops that sell vegetables, rice, and soup."
Granny Liu said, "Because we eat rice at restaurants like Tianxianglou now!"
"But ordering a few dishes at a restaurant would cost at least five or six hundred coins. If you wanted some hearty dishes or signature dishes, you'd have to spend three or five taels of silver. Only people who were entertaining guests or who were extremely wealthy would go to a restaurant! Ordinary people could only go to a noodle shop and get a bowl of noodles to tide them over!"
As Shen Yuan spoke, a bright and cheerful smile appeared in her eyes. "But if a restaurant appeared now where you could get meat and vegetables for only twenty or thirty coins, would those who were originally going to eat at noodle shops continue to go to noodle shops, or would they come to my restaurant?"
Xiao Ling stood behind Granny Liu, and from his angle, he could see all the smiles in Shen Yuan's eyes.
Xiao Ling suddenly felt that Shen Yuan's eyes were particularly beautiful, not only because her eyes were bigger and her eyelashes were longer than others, but because her eyes were always bright and sparkling, like a pool of shimmering spring water, full of vitality.
Yes, it's vitality!
This vitality is like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, like green bamboo among rocks, lush and green, unyielding and unyielding.
This was the first time Xiao Ling had ever witnessed such strong vitality in someone. The girl in front of him seemed to be born with plenty of energy and was always radiant. When she talked about her new plan, her eyes and brows were full of smiles.
That smile was so infectious that Xiao Ling felt that Shen Yuan would definitely succeed!
After a moment's thought, Granny Liu replied, "Of course, it's your food stall! For just twenty or thirty coins, you can get vegetables, meat, and soup. It's such a great deal! I'm sure a lot of people will come to eat here! Cooking at home takes a lot of firewood. For just twenty or thirty coins, you can skip cooking a meal. It's such a bargain!"
Xiao Ling, standing behind Granny Liu, nodded upon hearing this.
He silently accepted Shen Yuan's suggestion.
Shen Yuan was very happy and rolled up her sleeves to start writing the project plan for the food stall.
First, she needed to rent a shop. Now that she had money, renting a shop was a piece of cake for her. Second, she needed help. There were six girls at Zuichunlou willing to work for her, so she only needed to hire a cook.
Finally, and most importantly, she needed Liu Mama's assistance with customizing the dishes and menu.
Once she got busy, Shen Yuan would work until midnight.
When Granny Liu got up in the middle of the night, she saw that Shen Yuan was still awake. She sat on a small stool in the kitchen, using the residual warmth of the charcoal fire beside the stove, and calculated the money needed to build the food shop while tapping on her abacus.
Granny Liu, wearing an outer robe, walked behind Shen Yuan and covered her with her own robe.
Shen Yuan was startled, turned around and saw it was Granny Liu, and couldn't help but smile: "Granny, why are you awake? Did we disturb you?"
Granny Liu gently shook her head and asked Shen Yuan, "Why aren't you asleep yet?"
"I'm going to look at shops and decide on a location tomorrow. There are still some details I haven't figured out yet, so I need to think them through carefully. Doing business always involves risks, and you need to think through all the possible scenarios before you start. Yuanyuan can't go into battle unprepared!"
When Granny Liu heard Shen Yuan say this, she sighed silently in her heart.
She felt that ever since Yuan Yuan returned to Chu Family Village from Jian'an City, she had become a different person. Not only did she break away from Chu Yuning, but she was also particularly keen on doing business and making money.
It should be noted that Shen Yuan's attitude towards money was not particularly good before.
She dug up and collected medicinal herbs just to sell them and support Chu Yuning's education. As long as it was enough for Chu Yuning, she wouldn't try to earn any more money.
But now that no one needs Shen Yuan's support, she is desperately trying to make money, and she wants to make even more money than she does now.
This struck Liu Mama as odd.
It's no wonder Liu Mama was puzzled; Shen Yuan's body was indeed inhabited by a different soul—a soul that had already died once. Having experienced life and death, Shen Yuan knew very well how precious her current life was.
She wants to cherish her life, earn lots and lots of money, enjoy herself, and live a wealthy and comfortable life.
Moreover, with money, she could do more of what she wanted, such as helping those in need and getting rid of those who hurt or harmed her.
"Even if you have inexhaustible energy and can stay up all night, you should at least let Xiao Ling go back to her room for a nap. She's been helping you copy recipes all this time, and her eyes look like they've been smoked by charcoal!" Granny Liu frowned. Xiao Ling was such a good talker, like a hardworking ox that never mooed once.
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