The owner of the grain and oil shop seemed to be deep in thought.
The old lady was also somewhat tempted by Liu Zi's words. Her grandsons were at the age when they were growing, so it would be great to make more variety in their meals to encourage them to eat more!
"Boss, please weigh out some candied dates for me too."
"I'll have some too."
"Me too!"
...
Liu Zi was dumbfounded. When did these people suddenly appear?
They've sold out of the jujubes, what will she buy?
Lingzi was almost in tears from anger; they were the ones who came to buy it first.
Her red bean paste is nowhere to be seen, and the candied dates are almost gone too.
Seeing the child's expression, Liu Zi almost reached out to snatch the child away. If she had known this would happen, she wouldn't have said anything.
The boss was also dumbfounded and quickly appeared to control the situation.
"Don't worry, everyone, there are still a few days until the Dragon Boat Festival! Tomorrow I'll get more candied dates, red bean paste, and purple sweet potatoes, so everyone can buy them."
"If you have chestnuts, bring some more." Liu Zi suddenly thought of something else.
"Okay, no problem, everything will be ready by tomorrow." The boss nodded in agreement.
The crowd then calmed down and dispersed as if nothing had happened.
Liu Zi breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her youngest daughter, Qiqi, to her side. Those people had almost pushed her out of the store; it was too dangerous. They should leave as soon as possible!
Aunt Zhang's things were all set up, and the group went to the front desk to pay the bill.
The boss rubbed his head sheepishly and stood there for a long time without saying a word, refusing to take their money.
Just as Liu Zi was wondering what was going on, the proprietress pushed her aside.
"Get out of the way!" The proprietress spat out a mouthful of food with a look of disgust.
He turned and smiled at Liu Zi.
"Young lady, do you run a food business?" the proprietress asked cautiously, mainly because Liu Zi's demeanor didn't seem quite right.
Liu Zi was taken aback. How did the other party know?
"Yes, there is a restaurant."
"No wonder you know so many ways to make zongzi!" the proprietress complimented.
Liu Zi was puzzled and waited for the landlady to continue.
Seeing this, the proprietress bluntly said, "You saw it yourself, so many people wanted to buy those dishes you mentioned, but my husband and I are just average cooks, we really don't know how to make them. If people ask us how to cook them and we don't know anything, that wouldn't be right!"
"Of course, we won't take your recipes for free. We'll waive the cost of what you buy today, and we'll provide you with backup materials tomorrow. Is that alright?"
The proprietress was also unsure whether Liu Zi would be willing.
Liu Zi didn’t care much about these things, but she had just noticed that the store was really crowded!
"Boss lady, we can tell you how to make it." The couple immediately beamed with joy.
"But perhaps we can cooperate in a different way," Liu Zi added.
This time, the boss and his wife looked at Liu Zi with puzzlement.
Liu Zi took out a business card from her bag and began to introduce her shop.
"Our shop has its own preparation area, and all our workers are certified. We offer you various types of finished zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). How about you sell them as a distributor?"
"This..." This was the first time the couple had ever heard of such a thing.
"You don't need to rush to agree to my terms. Regardless of whether we cooperate or not, I can tell you the method. I'll bring some finished products over tomorrow morning so you can try them first. If you think they're good, then we can sign a contract. We can guarantee that the zongzi we deliver every day are freshly wrapped that day," Liu Zi said sincerely.
The owners thought about it and decided it was a feasible idea.
Many people nowadays are afraid of trouble, so if the taste is really good, they won't have trouble finding a seller.
As soon as Liu Zi left the grain and oil store, she took out her phone and called Mei Hong, asking her to go to the market immediately to buy some ingredients.
The fruit drink shop is launching special zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) for the Dragon Boat Festival. We're preparing them today and will pack a batch of samples tomorrow to test the waters and accept pre-orders.
Upon hearing this, Mei Hong immediately got on her tricycle, which she usually used for delivering goods, and set off.
As for Liu Zi, she first took Aunt Zhang and the others home before heading to the fruit drink shop.
Zongzi is a fast-moving consumer good. In this day and age, no one will buy it unless it has something special. It's so much cheaper to make it at home!
Therefore, Liu Zi plans to put more effort into the ingredients. They will make regular jujube zongzi, but they will also make more special ones with their own purple sweet potato puree, red bean paste, candied dates and red beans. Of course, she does not object to making fewer zongzi if there are ingredients such as salted egg yolk or salted meat.
Mei Hong is from Beijing and has a better understanding of the market. She found a store she often works with and bought most of her goods there. With the store owner's introduction, she found other stores to fill the gaps.
Two hours later, Mei Hong returned on her tricycle.
Liu Zi is already in the ingredient preparation room.
Because some of the secret recipes and ingredients needed to be kept secret, Liu Zi specifically asked Foreman Wang to partition off a small room for her when she was renovating her house.
She first prepared a base sauce, which was taught to her by a master baker when she was learning to make bread.
With this base, adding suitable ingredients, such as taro or purple sweet potato, will make it taste exceptionally good and full of milky flavor.
Liu Zi also gave it a name: All-Purpose Bread Topping.
Now that everything had been returned, Liu Zi directed the older women to soak rice, steam taro and purple sweet potatoes, and cook the red beans until they were soft.
"Boss, are these zongzi delicious?" Mei Hong asked hesitantly.
It's not that she's trying to be pessimistic, but there are many people selling zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) outside during the Dragon Boat Festival, and they might not be able to compete with those who set up small stalls.
"Of course, we're going to sell the kind of stuff that's hard for most people to make. You'll see when you try the filling I made." Liu Zi was still very confident.
"Okay, I'll go ahead and prepare the notices. As soon as the zongzi come out of the oven, I'll arrange a tasting." Mei Hong said.
"Okay!" Liu Zi raised her hand to check the time.
"The first batch of tastings should be ready around 4:30. Please make the arrangements."
"good!"
Liu Zi also told the older women that she might have to work overtime during the Dragon Boat Festival, but she would pay them overtime pay according to the hours worked. The older women all agreed, as they were all happy to earn more money to take home.
In Liu Zi's opinion, the auntie's skill in making zongzi was really good. Each person had a small bowl of rice and a small bowl of ingredients, and she finished in no time.
After getting a general idea of when everyone would be wrapping the zongzi, Liu Zi felt more confident.
After 4:30 pm, fruit drink shops become crowded. After getting off work, people often stroll along the overpass, grabbing a milk tea and a small cake to relieve the day's fatigue.
So today, many of the Gu family members saw the promotional posters at the store entrance as soon as they arrived.
"Is this a new style?" a customer asked Mei Hong.
"Limited-edition Dragon Boat Festival items, available only for these few days. If you're interested, you can try them before ordering."
Mei Hong pointed to the small tray next to her, on which were already placed small pieces of zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), with descriptions next to them. It looked like there were at least seven or eight kinds.
"Then I'll try it first!"
Of course, one can't pass up a free sample, so this customer happily approached and stuck a few pieces in with a toothpick.
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