Chapter 007 Chapter 7

Yuan Ming and the shopkeeper already knew each other, and the waiter took him to the second floor without much hesitation.

There were many private rooms on the second floor where one could drink tea and read books. The air was filled with a faint scent of tea. The private rooms were all closed, and they were all places for those rich young men to have fun.

Yuan Ming looked straight ahead and followed the waiter into a room without a house number in the corner. On the soft chair, the shopkeeper Zhao Yu was sitting and fiddling with an abacus, and the mahogany round table was covered with account books.

When he heard the knock on the door, he raised his head and took a look, and then neatly picked up the scattered account books at hand.

"Isn't this Mr. Yuan? I heard that he got married recently. Congratulations!" Zhao Yu stood up and asked him to sit down at the small tea table. After a few pleasantries, he got down to business: "I'm still on vacation. I wonder what Mr. Yuan wants to talk to me about?"

Yuan Ming didn't hesitate and put the manuscript in his hand on the table: "This is a storybook written by my friend. For some reason, it's inconvenient for him to come in person, so he asked me to ask the shopkeeper Zhao. I wonder how much it is worth?"

The storybook business has always been the bulk of the bookstore, so it has always been charging high prices for manuscripts. This is because scholars these days are noble. They don't want to associate their knowledge with entertainment and drama, and they don't want to be tainted by copper, so few people are willing to lower their status.

Yuan Ming said it was written by a friend. Zhao Yu tacitly understood, but said nothing. He nodded and picked up the manuscript to read it one by one. Yuan Ming was quite talented in reading, but the imperial examination was different from writing a storybook, and Zhao Yu was still reserved about the storybook he wrote.

However, after reading a few pages, Zhao Yu's expression changed abruptly, and the speed of turning the pages became much slower.

Yuan Ming only brought ten sheets of paper, and no matter how slowly he read, he finished reading them all in less than a quarter of an hour.

He raised his head with a complicated expression, but did not speak directly. Yuan Ming knew from his reaction just now that his manuscript had been noticed, and he drank a sip of tea leisurely, and did not speak.

After a while, Zhao Yu sighed softly, lowered his eyes slightly, and carefully examined the thin layers of paper.

"Although it is just a beginning, the characters are vividly portrayed and very distinctive, making people unforgettable. The plot has ups and downs and suspense, and the detailed design is very reasonable. It is a very interesting storybook, but..." Zhao Yu changed the subject and said hesitantly: "Is this friend of Mr. Yuan a boy?"

Before seeing the content of the book, he thought that this book was written by Yuan Ming, but he couldn't get down from it, so he lied that he wrote it for his friend.

Yuan Ming was slightly startled, and then he realized that Zhao Yu had misunderstood. His original intention of writing this book was for Ji Qingyue, so he changed the usual habit of unfolding from a male perspective and put the main perspective on the boy. In this way, he can spend more time and effort to portray the boy's inner thoughts, so that readers can better understand the boy's mental journey and growth changes.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Yu thought that the author of this book was Ge'er.

Yuan Ming had never intended to take off his vest, so this was a beautiful misunderstanding.

So, facing Zhao Yu's question, he neither nodded nor shook his head, looking back at him: "Manager Zhao, no one has ever said that Ge'er can't write a book, let alone a storybook for people's entertainment."

Zhao Yu just thought he had tacitly agreed, but if it weren't for the manuscript, he would still be hesitant. Not only because the author, but also the outline of the whole book was given to him together with the manuscript, many of the plots later were really shocking and unconventional, which inevitably caused discussion.

"Manager Zhao is knowledgeable and has a broader vision than me." Yuan Ming smiled calmly: "It's just a storybook. It doesn't talk about politics and has nothing to do with nobility. It's a good thing that it has a topic. The effect of word of mouth is more effective than the sales of the waiter in the store."

Zhao Yu looked at him with admiration: "Not bad."

He rubbed his fingers on the teacup for a while, and decided: "I'll take your manuscript!"

Hearing this, Yuan Ming breathed a sigh of relief. He was very confident in his work, but if Zhao Yu didn't know the goods, he couldn't do anything.

After leaving Qingshan Bookstore, Yuan Ming's empty wallet suddenly became heavy. Five taels of silver, not much. Firstly, what he gave was just the beginning, and no one knew how it would develop in the future. The shopkeeper would not be generous just because of his verbal guarantee. Secondly, it was the first time that a story from the perspective of a young man appeared, and no one knew whether readers would accept it.

Yuan Ming knew Zhao Yu's concerns, and quickly agreed to the purchase plus profit-sharing model. The five taels of silver he received now was only the money for Qingshan Bookstore to purchase his book title, and as for how many books were sold later, he would get a corresponding 20% ​​share.

In other words, if each book was priced at fifty coins, he would get ten coins for each book sold. It sounded like he was losing money, but in fact, as long as the content of the story was attractive enough, he would make money.

He left the manuscript to the shopkeeper and agreed to hand in all the manuscripts in half a month. Yuan Ming was relaxed. Although five taels of silver was not much, it was enough to solve his urgent problem.

The county magistrate had seen everything, so Yuan Ming did not plan to buy anything in the town. Besides, five taels of silver could not buy anything good, so it was better to find another way.

After thinking this through, Yuan Ming did not plan to stay in the town for long. He found a bun shop and bought ten meat buns, and then went to the place where he and Yang Tao had agreed to take a car.

After sitting under the big banyan tree and waiting for about half an hour, Yang Tao came over in a bullock cart.

The ox cart slowly stopped in front of Yuan Ming. A man jumped off the cart, looked at Yuan Ming and said, "Long time no see."

The man in front of him was half a head taller than Yang Tao, and his face was 70% similar. When he smiled, his eyes narrowed into a slit, and he looked more easygoing and casual.

"It turns out to be Second Brother Yang, long time no see." Yuan Ming replied politely, "I heard that Second Brother Yang's noodle stall business is very good, which is really enviable."

Yang Chao, Yang Tao's younger brother, smiled bitterly and said, "Business can only be said to be barely passable. Don't be afraid of you laughing at me. For so many years, I don't even have the money to rent a shop. I had seen a shop some time ago, but when I asked the price, I had to give up."

Yuan Ming's eyes moved slightly.

Although they were neighbors, he was usually arrogant and had a mediocre relationship with the Yang family. It was impossible that Yang Chao told him so much just to chat with him. Sure enough

, the next moment, Yang Chao said, "I rented a house in town. If you are not busy, why don't you go to my house for a meal?"

"Brother Yang, you can just say what you want to say. Uncle Yang and Aunt Yang usually take good care of my mother. If there is anything I can help with, I will definitely not refuse." Yuan Ming said.

Yang Chao was a little surprised. He

learned from his brother that Yuan Ming's personality changed a lot after getting married. He seemed not as arrogant as before. He was still uneasy on the way here just now. He didn't expect that he was really different from before.

Seeing this, he stopped beating around the bush and said seriously: "I tasted the pork head you cooked yesterday and it tasted very good."

Yuan Ming's heart moved, so that's the reason.

Yang Chao glanced at his brother and continued, "The customers who eat noodles at the stall liked it after trying it a little, and they repeatedly asked me to write it on the menu. So I came to ask you today, do you have any plans to sell food?"

Yuan Ming understood, and without pretending, he replied, "If Brother Yang wants this recipe, I can give it to you."

Yang Chao was overjoyed. He didn't expect Yuan Ming to be so easy to talk to. He had written a whole page of mental notes all the way here, but he didn't use a single word.

Afterwards, the two brothers of the Yang family half-dragged and half-tugged Yuan Ming to the house rented by Yang Chao.

It was a small bungalow on a remote street. The room was not big but it had a yard. There were many bamboo mats in the yard for drying vegetables, and the air was filled with a faint plant fragrance.

Yuan Ming stood in the yard and looked around. A cheerful woman wearing an apron came out of the kitchen: "Yuan Ming is here. Yang Chao is quite capable. He invited people back. You go to the main room and sit down. The meal

will be ready soon." Yuan Ming thanked him and followed Yang Chao into the main room. Soon the meal was served.

Thinking about her husband and mother at home, she ate the meal very quickly. After the meal, Yuan Ming memorized the recipe.

Although he acted very generous, Yang Chao did not really treat him as a fool. He paid every penny he should pay. The recipe for salted pork is not difficult, but there are a few spices that no one has used to cook at the moment. They are the benefits he got from his memory of his previous life.

When he left Yang Chao's house, Yuan Ming's wallet was even fatter and he felt more confident