Chapter 518 Opening a Store
Just after the third day of the Lunar New Year, Xiao Qianshi and Zhou Dalang went to the county town together. They ate at all the restaurants in the streets and alleys of the county town, asked around, and then decided on the prices of their dishes.
On the afternoon of the fourth day of the New Year, Zhou Erlang and his family gathered some rice, flour and beans from their home, and in the evening took them to the county town for them.
Because it was the first time to open a store, everyone was very nervous. Most of the family members went to the county town to help, and the beds could not accommodate so many people. So everyone braved the cold, put the tables and stools that had just been bought from the restaurant on the first floor together, took the bedding they brought from home and simply lay down on them to sleep.
Manbao and several younger children stayed at home and would not be able to join in the fun until the next day.
Everyone thought that since the store had just opened, there wouldn't be many people coming, and they didn't know many people in the county.
Who would have known that early in the morning, not long after the store opened and the first round of firecrackers was set off, County Magistrate Yang stood at the door with his hands behind his back, watching, and then led Wantian into the store.
Some hangers-on in the county town had come to investigate, but when they saw County Magistrate Yang, they hid aside. Seeing him and his servants delivering a gift, they began to wonder, "Didn't they say the shop was bought by an ordinary family from Qili Village? Why did County Magistrate Yang come in person to congratulate them?"
"Who knows? Anyway, we know each other. Tell our people to stay away. Our county magistrate may look smiling, but he has a bad temper."
"It's really unlucky. I finally opened a new shop, but it turns out he has a background."
The people who gathered outside the store to watch the excitement gradually dispersed, and some followed County Magistrate Yang into the store to have breakfast.
This is almost a custom, especially for neighbors who also have shops nearby. In order to get along better in the future, when someone opens a new shop, as long as the owner is kind, most people will go to congratulate them.
They prefer restaurants like the Zhou family because they don't have to spend too much money to find out the inside story.
Not only will non-competitors nearby come to the store, but competitors will also secretly send people to have a meal at the store to find out the truth.
People who had just gone out saw so many people in the shop and realized that it was a new store opening, so they couldn't help but come in out of curiosity to buy something to eat.
Yes, people from Luojiang County love to join in the fun.
It doesn’t matter whose breakfast you eat, right?
Because of this, the first day of opening was unexpectedly busy. There were already quite a few people in their family, but it was their first time doing business, so even though there were many people, they were still busy and flustered, until Old Zhou and Qian arrived with their children.
They had started going out before daybreak, so they arrived so early. They saw that the store was in a mess, and the food ordered by one table was served to another. Datou and Ertou were standing behind the counter collecting money, sweating profusely. They didn't make any mistakes in the calculation, but they just couldn't remember how much people had eaten.
Seeing that this was outrageous, Qian frowned and said to Zhou Xi, who was running around, "You and your second sister-in-law go back to the kitchen and focus on the kitchen affairs. You don't need to worry about anything outside."
Then he said to Zhou Silang and Zhou Erlang, who were serving dishes, "You two go to the counter. Second brother will collect the money. If you can't remember the people and the things, let them pay first. Fourth brother will take everyone to sit down. Big head, you help your second uncle. Second head, you go clear the table. Together with your eldest uncle, third uncle, fifth uncle, and sixth uncle, bring out the food from the kitchen and greet the guests."
After Qian's distribution, everyone became much more organized, although it was still busy.
Qian walked back and forth and said to Manbao, "Go to the counter and help your second brother and the others. They have a bad memory, so you have to remember them so that your fourth brother and the others don't send breakfast to the wrong place."
Manbao agreed.
Santou, Sanya and Sitou were also sent out to clean the table.
This is not a difficult thing to do, and they often do it at home.
Manbao has always had a good memory, and it has become even better in the past two years. She is also good at mental arithmetic. As soon as the customer finished placing the order, she calculated the money and told Zhou Erlang.
Zhou Erlang, who was still sweating and counting on his fingers, breathed a sigh of relief, immediately told the customer, and then collected the money.
This way, the speed will be much faster.
Manbao watched the paying customer being led to a table by Datou and sat down. She noted his seat and when her eldest brother and the others called out the names of the dishes, she pointed out the seat to them.
In this way, within a quarter of an hour, the store became orderly and no longer as noisy as it was at the beginning.
The customers who were eating in the restaurant also felt much better.
Yang Heshu, who was sitting on the second floor, saw all of this. His gaze finally fell on Qian Shi, who was standing at the entrance to the backyard, and Man Bao, who was standing behind the counter. He couldn't help but smile slightly, turned around, picked up a bun with chopsticks and took a bite.
Wantian, who was standing by, glanced at his young master and decisively looked away.
But Yang Heshu still looked at him and smiled, "I finally know who Zhou Man looks like. I was saying that Zhou Jin didn't look very smart. Although some of her brothers are smart, they are still a little bit behind. Now I see that it's my daughter's mother."
Wan Tian could only nod, "Mrs. Zhou seems very decisive and powerful."
Breakfast time passed slowly, and the Zhou family sent away group of guests. Many people bought things and took them away directly, so the process was very fast.
Except for the table of distinguished guests on the second floor, the guests in the lobby on the first floor gradually left.
The people in Old Zhou's family were almost exhausted and collapsed on the stools, so everyone successfully forgot about the distinguished guests on the second floor.
Manbao had no idea there were still people on the second floor. Seeing that all the guests had left, he breathed a sigh of relief, wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "I'm so tired."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Zhou Dalang said, "It's even more tiring than plowing the fields. This business isn't something that just anyone can do."
Just as they were talking, two people rushed into the shop. Before anyone could see the figures clearly, they wailed. Zhou Liulang couldn't help but shout, "We don't want any customers anymore."
Old Zhou slapped him on the head.
"What's wrong with you?" Bai Shanbao rushed in and saw them all slumped on the stools. He couldn't help but glare. "Is someone here to make trouble? Who is it? I'll ask Daji to help you."
Seeing that it was the two young masters of the Bai family, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and said, "No, no, everything went well today."
Xiao Qian rubbed her arm and asked, "Young Master, have you had breakfast?"
"I've already eaten," Bai Shanbao said with a smile as he asked Daji to bring over two gifts. "These are gifts prepared by my grandmother and uncle. I wish you a prosperous business."
Xiao Qian smiled until her eyes narrowed. She accepted the gift and said, "Thank you, young master, thank you, old lady, and Mr. Bai. You can have lunch in the store. Now you and Manbao go play for a while. If you feel hungry, tell me."
Bai Shanbao responded with a smile, walked over to the wilted Manbao, and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Manbao: "Tired, so tired."
Bai Shanbao scratched his head and asked, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Yes, please help me count the money so I can keep a record of how much the breakfast was sold for."
The next chapter will be around 1:00 PM
(End of this chapter)
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