At 9:40 p.m., He Wenlin started making fried rice with eggs.
I'll pack it up.
Ten o'clock is the factory's closing time, but since the factory pays by piecework, everyone shuts down their machines and leaves on time.
The peak time for shipments is generally between 10:15 and 10:30.
He Wenlin worked here for a month during her winter break last year, cutting thread for a whole month, so she knows the details very well.
She left home at 10:10 with 25 servings of egg fried rice that she had prepared, and arrived at exactly 10:13.
The workers gradually came out.
Under the dim light, He Wenlin shouted loudly: "Fried rice with egg, fragrant fried rice with egg, delicious and inexpensive, only one yuan and fifty cents, don't miss it when you pass by."
"Aren't you the one who sells boxed lunches at that crossroads during the day?" someone recognized He Wenlin.
"Yes, it's me, big brother. Want a serving of fried rice? It's freshly made and smells amazing."
"I'll have one, I'm really hungry."
I ate dinner before 6 p.m. and have been working ever since, so I'm starving.
"I'll have one too."
"I'll have one too."
...
Five or six portions were sold at once.
They bought it, squatted by the roadside, opened it, and ate it; the aroma immediately spread.
"It smells so good!"
The others, craving more food, had their stomachs rumbling.
"Give me one too."
"I'll have one too."
…
Four more were sold.
By 10:20, there were even more people, and He Wenlin was surrounded by them.
The factory, which employs over a hundred people, sold out its twenty-five servings of fried rice in less than ten minutes.
"Linlin made a midnight snack today? Give me one, I'm really hungry," He Hui said.
"Sorry, Brother Hui, we're sold out."
"It's sold out."
"I was afraid they wouldn't sell well, so I only made about twenty servings," He Wenlin said with an embarrassed smile.
Besides him, many others who wanted to buy it also failed to do so.
He Wenlin plans to prepare ten more servings of fried noodles tomorrow, and she's sure she can sell all thirty-five late-night snacks.
"Tomorrow at noon, the five of us will be having lunch together. We'd like a serving of fish, minced pork with eggplant, hot and sour shredded potatoes, stir-fried eggs with chili peppers, and cucumber salad. Could you give us a complimentary serving?" He Hui asked with a smile.
“I’ll definitely deliver to you, even if others don’t, but you’ll have to cook your own rice,” He Wenlin said. “Potatoes are three yuan a serving, minced meat and eggplant is three yuan and fifty cents, stir-fried eggs with chili peppers is four yuan and fifty cents, and fish is seven yuan, making a total of eighteen yuan.”
He Hui immediately gave He Wenlin ten yuan, saying it was a deposit.
Then, the three fellow villagers who lived with He Wenlin also ordered a fish and minced meat eggplant dish. He Wenlin also agreed to deliver a cucumber salad, and they paid 10.5 yuan in advance.
Back in the dormitory, Mr. and Mrs. He had already gone to take a shower.
He Wenlin began to take stock of the accounts.
Today's expenses, including buying groceries, popsicles, a pot, and my younger brother's wages, totaled 397 yuan.
Today we sold 150 boxed meals and 25 late-night snacks. He Hui and Zhou Libo earned 10 yuan from ordering fish and shredded potatoes separately this afternoon. In addition, we received a deposit of 20.5 yuan today, for a total income of 509 yuan.
Not counting yesterday's income, she should have 117.6 yuan today, but she only has 116.9 yuan. She probably made a mistake when receiving and giving change.
But that's quite normal, and thankfully it's only a difference of 50 cents.
Adding what she earned yesterday, she now has a total of 400.1 yuan in her hands, she's so happy!
We're out of ginger and garlic now, but we still have plenty of eggs, about four pounds of chili peppers, and about five pounds of carrots and potatoes.
When He Wenlin came out after taking a shower, her parents saw her hunched over the table doing accounts and asked, "How much did you earn?"
“I’ve already earned the fare. When you and Dad aren’t working overtime one night, I’ll take you shopping for clothes, and I’ll pay!” He Wenlin said generously.
Upon hearing this, Mr. and Mrs. He were overjoyed. What parent wouldn't be happy to hear such a thing?
"Sis, can you buy me two picture books?" He Wenjun said with a grin as he leaned closer.
My younger brother loves reading extracurricular books. In his past life, he was a well-known online novelist.
If we nurtured them earlier in life, their achievements might be even more outstanding.
“Okay, I’ll buy it for you,” He Wenlin readily agreed.
Several fellow villagers have already ordered food for tomorrow, and He Wenlin also wants to increase production, so she went to find He Qian and her brother.
Ask the siblings to help out every day from 10:40 AM to 12:30 PM and from 4:15 PM to 6:00 PM.
He Wenlin gave each of the siblings five yuan a day as a hardship allowance, plus lunch and dinner for the whole family of four.
"Hey, Mr. He, you're hiring people now? Looks like business is booming," He Xing, He Qian's father, joked. "How much have you made? Have you made fifty yuan a day?"
"It's just a little bit of work to earn some living expenses," He Wenlin said. "Qianqian, Xiaojian, don't think it's too little. At first glance, five yuan seems like a small amount, but you only work for a little over three hours a day. Our parents work more than ten hours a day in the factory and only earn about a thousand yuan a day. That works out to about three yuan an hour. Your family of four needs at least ten yuan a day for food, oil, and salt."
So five yuan a day is actually not low for one person.
"If my business is good and I need you to work longer hours, I will give you a raise."
"Okay, we'll help you."
He Qian and her brother readily agreed. At this time of year, everyone is generally poor and rarely has pocket money. This is their only chance to earn some.
The next morning, He Wenlin got up early and happened to see Zhou Libo outside. He Wenlin gave him the Baisha cigarettes she had prepared the day before.
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