Yan Qingqing couldn't come up with a good way to let Li Xiang'an rest for a few days.
Fortunately, with the help of Li Sanniu and his son, Li Xiang'an did much less work.
After finishing his work at the shop that day, Li Xiang'an went home early. Yan Qingqing was puzzled, wondering if her son had changed his ways.
As soon as Li Xiang'an saw Yan Qingqing, he couldn't wait to ask, "Mother, I remember on the day we opened, didn't you say you had a lot of event strategies?"
"So many days have passed, Mom, please teach me! I've thought of several things, but none of them seem as appealing as the 20% discount for the first three days after opening."
Yan Qingqing found it somewhat amusing. She had thought her son had changed his ways, but it turned out he had failed in his grand scheme.
Yan Qingqing asked Li Xiang'an to sit down and talk slowly, and then asked, "What solutions have you thought of that you can tell your mother first?"
Li Xiang'an scratched his head and said, "Some customers say that our food is delicious, but it's too expensive."
I was thinking about whether I could lower the price to attract a large number of customers.
But I also feel that our store has just opened, and if we lower prices now, it won't be so easy to raise them later.
But if we don't lower the prices, I feel like we're getting fewer customers than in the first few days after we opened.
After listening, Yan Qingqing nodded and said, "First of all, you are right not to lower the price. The most foolish thing to do in business is to engage in a price war."
It's normal that we have fewer customers now than in the first few days after opening, since our food isn't exactly cheap. Nobody can eat here every day.
The most important thing in doing business is to keep a calm mindset; it's normal to experience ups and downs.
Your mother often tells you that those who achieve great things are people with broad minds, and that you shouldn't just focus on the petty gains in front of you.
A business that can enjoy success, withstand failure, and stay true to its original aspirations is the one that can last.
Yan Qingqing tried to reason with Li Xiang'an again, but if he still didn't listen, she would truly be disappointed in him.
After a long silence, Li Xiang'an finally spoke: "Mother, I know you're doing this all for my own good."
I'm afraid I'll overwork myself and cause health problems, but I'm really terrified of being poor.
You have no idea how difficult those days were after Dad passed away.
I was also asked to do manual labor with my third brother, but I couldn't do it at all. I could only grit my teeth and persevere. At that time, I really wanted to go home.
But when I got home, all I heard was my grandmother's endless scolding and my aunt's mean-spirited face behind my back.
I know that my mother and younger siblings live a worse life at home than I do.
At that time, I thought that if I ever found a way to make money, I would work hard to earn money so that my mother and family could live a good life.
My mother was pregnant with our seventh child a while ago and got sick from exhaustion. My only thought was to earn more money to help her out so she wouldn't be so tired.
Li Xiang'an is an introverted person who likes to keep his thoughts to himself.
Sometimes even Yan Qingqing doesn't know what he's thinking, so it's not easy for him to open up to her today.
After listening, Yan Qingqing first affirmed that Li Xiang'an was a good boy, and she understood his good intentions.
Secondly, Yan Qingqing expressed that she cared more about her son Li Xiang'an than making money, so she told him to take good care of himself, as she didn't want to outlive her son.
Li Xiang'an also said that he will definitely pay more attention to rest in the future.
The mother and son then began to discuss serious matters. Yan Qingqing said, "You can do an event if you want. I have a plan here for you to refer to. You can consider how to implement it."
For example, our braised chicken is still 500 coins each, but customers can accumulate purchases; if they buy ten chickens, they can get one free.
Our store also offers a points system; you can earn one point for every ten or twenty coins you accumulate. Once you have enough points, you can redeem them for gifts.
This is a bit more complicated, and requires meticulous accounting; otherwise, mistakes are very likely.
Upon hearing this, Li Xiang'an felt as if he had discovered a new world and happily said, "Mother's mind works better than her son's. We can implement the first step first for this troublesome part. We can take it slowly and there's no rush."
Moreover, I already have an idea: I will make some special wooden signs, and give them one for every roast chicken or roast duck purchased.
You can exchange ten wooden plaques for one.
"And I just calculated it, this is much more cost-effective than a 20% discount, since our cost per chicken or duck is much lower."
Yan Qingqing nodded and asked, "Are there any other benefits?"
Li Xiang'an thought about it carefully for a moment, then his eyes lit up and he said, "If a person buys five chickens, he will definitely think that if he buys five more, he can get one for free."
Wouldn't that make him a long-term customer?
This is much better than a 20% discount.
After saying that, Li Xiang'an burst into laughter, once again marveling at how much better his mother's brain worked than most people's.
Yan Qingqing shook her head upon seeing this. This was a very common method in her previous life, but it was a rare and good idea in ancient times.
However, since Yan Qingqing had this conversation with Li Xiang'an, Li Xiang'an's condition has improved a lot. Although he is still obsessed with making money, at least he knows how to balance work and rest.
That day, Yan Qingqing and Yuan Huiniang were reviewing the projects of the past six months when they heard the neighing of horses outside the door.
Yan Qingqing was still a little puzzled, as their horse shouldn't be home right now.
Upon seeing this, Yuan Huiniang got up to go and check, and soon returned to say to Yan Qingqing, "Mother, Manager Xue from Yuelaiju has arrived."
Yan Qingqing asked in confusion, "Why is he here? If there's anything going on with the second brother's business in the county, he should go to the second brother."
Yan Qingqing didn't know when it started, but she changed the way she addressed her children from "Dalang, Erlang, Sanlang" to "Laoda, Laoer, Laosan". When Yan Qingqing realized it, she felt that calling them that way was more casual.
Yuan Huiniang shook her head and said, "I just asked Manager Xue and he said he came to see you."
Yan Qingqing said, "Please invite him to the front hall."
Yuan Huiniang nodded and went to the front hall to serve tea. Now that the Li family had some wealth, they no longer simply served sweet soup to their guests.
Manager Xue sat in the front hall, carefully examining the furnishings of the house. Although he had visited the Li family once before, he had only sat in the courtyard for a banquet and had not looked closely at the decorations inside.
Looking at it today, although it's not opulent, it's novel and unique, a style of decoration he's never seen before, which is refreshing.
Just as Manager Xue was engrossed in reading, Yan Qingqing walked in.
Manager Xue quickly composed himself and bowed to Yan Qingqing with a junior's greeting, saying, "This junior greets Auntie. I apologize for disturbing your peace and quiet."
Yan Qingqing said with a smile, "Manager Xue, what are you saying? I'm so happy that you've come all this way. It's not like you're bothering me at all."
"Manager Xue, please have a seat!"
Upon hearing this, Manager Xue smiled and said, "Auntie, you really treat me like an outsider. I call you Auntie, but you call me Manager Xue. It's clear that you're quite distant from me."
Yan Qingqing: ……
Although their two families have business dealings, they aren't exactly close, yet Yan Qingqing can still say that.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com