In early July, Xu He's tea stall officially opened for business.
He could not read, and originally thought about looking for someone in the village who could read, or seeking help from a teacher in the city for a signboard. However, before he could open his mouth, Zhang Fangyuan took the signboard and brought it back, teaching him the name of the tea stall.
"There are many big banyan trees beside the tea shed, so I chose the word 'Rong', but it is not a good name with just one word. What other word can I add to the word 'Rong'? Of course I would say 'Yi', easy, easy."
The sign was written vertically on a wooden board and tied with a strong hemp rope. Unlike ordinary shop signs that were hung above the door, theirs was hung vertically at the door. The location of the sign is not limited, as long as it is eye-catching.
Many villagers were illiterate. They only heard the word "easy" and didn't know which banyan it was. Anyway, it sounded smooth and easy to pronounce, so people called it out immediately.
On that day, Zhang Fangyuan specially bought a roll of firecrackers. All the shops in the city were open to make firecrackers, so their tea stall next to the official road was not left behind.
The red paper wrapped around the firecrackers exploded with a crackling sound, and red paper scraps flew in a cloud of white smoke, which looked very festive.
Shops on the side streets are not like those in the city where people come to support them just by opening the door. Shops like theirs only do business with people who are destined to be with them. In addition to their own family members, there were also some children from the villagers who came to watch the fun today. The news that their family had opened a shop here had caused a lot of buzz in the village and the neighboring villages. Even though they were busy working in the fields, it did not stop everyone from coming to see the novelty.
Only a few people like Xiao came to see it, but soon the whole village knew about it.
Zhang Fangyuan and Xu He also let people watch. No matter whether they were from Jijiu Village or Zaojiao Village next door, they were all invited in to drink tea and eat melon seeds. The villagers loved to talk and have fun, so they had to say a few good words when they returned.
Many people in Zaojiao Village also knew Zhang Fangyuan. The butcher often came to the village to slaughter animals, so they became familiar with him after seeing him a few times.
Zhang Fangyuan did not go to the city to set up his stall that day. Instead, he sat at a table outside the tea shed, drinking tea and eating melon seeds with the villagers.
"From now on, you don't have to go to the city to inform me when you want to slaughter pigs. Just pass by here and tell my wife that I will come to see the animals when I am free."
"Great! This way we can save some distance by coming to our Zaojiao Village." The villagers said happily: "Now the tea stalls are open, butcher Zhang, do you want to buy some other livestock?"
Zhang Fangyuan asked, "Anything else?"
"Big pigs and sheep, small chickens, ducks and geese..."
"I'll have to ask my wife about this. Anyway, if you have any, it's always good to come and ask if they'll accept it."
The villagers were very happy to hear this, as it was much more convenient than before.
There were two tables of people sitting outside, which made people feel that the tea stall business was surprisingly good.
"When did a tea stall open here?"
A carriage was approaching slowly on the official road a few meters away. Hearing the noisy voices, the owner of the carriage lifted a corner of the curtain, glanced at what looked like a newly built teahouse in the distance, and said to the servant following the carriage window: "Go and see if you can stop and drink some tea."
The servant took the order and ran over. Xu He did not join the group of men who were bragging and chatting. He and Zhang Shiyue were peeling garlic in the corridor of the tea shed. They noticed the carriage from a distance.
"Brother, do you want to rest and eat something or replenish your dry food and travel expenses?"
"Our master is going to the Guanyin Temple and wants to rest here. Is there any good tea to drink?"
Xu He said: "There is no excellent tea, but there are ordinary ones commonly seen in the market."
The servant didn't say anything else, turned around and went back to report. I don't know what was said in front of the carriage curtain, or what the master said in response, but the servant's face turned slightly pale, and the carriage started moving again.
Xu He thought that this small business was doomed, but he never expected that the carriage actually went out of the official road and stopped in an open space not far from the tea stall. A woman in brocade clothes got out of the carriage, followed by two maids supporting her, and another young woman followed closely behind.
Judging from the posture, they must be a wealthy family. Xu He and Zhang Shiyue quickly got up and went to greet the people when they got closer.
"There are many tables in the house, madam, you can choose any. The trees block out the sun, so it's not hot inside. Of course, there are also seats outside."
"Just inside the house." The woman replied to Xu He and looked at the young woman beside her.
"Listen to my mother-in-law."
Seeing such a family, Xu He didn't even ask how much the tea cost, but asked Zhang Shiyue to make a pot of the best tea available in the shop.
After the tea was served, Xu He went over to ask if he wanted to eat.
It was still early and not time for dinner, so the woman asked the young woman, but both masters said no. Xu He didn't force it, and gave away some melon seeds and peanuts for free since the store opened today.
"Is it a small ball of tea?" Although the woman was a little hesitant about the ceramic teacup, she saw that it was very clean, so she didn't say anything more. After taking a sip of tea, she looked at Xu He who was wiping the table on the side.
"That's right." Xu He did not hide it: "It's the tea from the Longxin Tea Farm at the west end of the official road."
Longxin Tea Farm has a huge tea garden. Although it does not produce any world-famous tea, the quality of the tea is also very good. They don't know much about tea, but they have heard that the tea from the tea garden has a very high plasticity. Many shops in the city buy tea from here.
When he went to get the tea, he was quite familiar with the orchard owner because he had helped the orchard owner pick tea almost every year. He was always faster than ordinary people in picking Maojian tea. He knew that they had opened a tea stall on the official road and that the tea they sold to them was very affordable.
For this reason, he doesn't mind promoting the tea garden.
The woman laughed and said, "The tea in our shop is also obtained from Longxin Tea Farm."
Xu He thought: As expected.
The woman then said to the younger woman, "I should take you to the tea plantation when I have time. The tea plantation over there is vast and has beautiful scenery."
When Xu He saw the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law started chatting, he went outside to solicit customers.
When the guest left, Xu He took twenty cents. It is impossible for ordinary tea to be so expensive, but after all, the tea you drink is the best.
From the woman's tone, she knew that her family was also engaged in business, so she knew whether Xu He had charged too much. After hearing the price, she did not say anything, but smiled slightly and said, "If you don't have vegetarian food in the temple at noon, you can come back here to eat."
Xu He heard from Zhang Fangyuan that many teahouses and small restaurants on the side streets did not have repeat business and often overcharged their customers in order to make a profit. In fact, they could have done so, but Xu He didn't want to do so. He felt that such business was no different from fraud and deception, and it made him uneasy.
It should be how much it is. Today's woman looks rich and easy to take advantage of, but in fact she is also a businesswoman. Rich businessmen are more careful and cautious about the money in their hands than ordinary people, otherwise how can they build their business.
Look, it’s an honest transaction and people are still talking back to us. Even if there is no basis for the talk, it is still much more pleasant than ending the conversation with bad words.
In the morning, the most people come to get tea.
This is how Xu He charged money: if someone came in to rest and have tea, he would charge five cents each. There was no limit on the cups of tea, and if they wanted a pot filled, they would have to pay an extra cent. If you just come to get some tea and don't want to rest, then you can pay two cents for a pot.
The tea is not expensive, and it is not good tea anyway, just ordinary tea leaves picked from the tea farm. You throw a handful into the teapot, boil water and pour it in to make a pot of tea. It is quick and easy.
Not long after, Zhang Fangyuan came in and said, "Brother, I'm going to buy some livestock. If I find one suitable, I'll slaughter it and bring it over directly."
Xu He laughed and said, "After bragging all morning, you're still looking forward to seeing people buying animals?"
"Of course, otherwise who would chat with them?"
Xu He responded and watched the people driving the carriage away. There was nothing for him to do here anyway. He couldn't be asked to serve tea and water to the guests. Although Zhang Fangyuan would definitely do it if he asked, he looked so tall and strong that he didn't look like someone who would greet customers. Instead, people would think that they were a black shop and they would charge high prices. With such a fierce man around, they didn't dare to refute.
It was almost noon and passers-by came in not just to drink tea, but also to get hungry after their long journey, so they asked for food.
"Today we have tofu pudding in the shop, and you can order any seasonal vegetables you like."
"Is there any meat?"
Xu He said: "We have pork and braised pork offal."
The two men were a little greedy after hearing this, but they didn't dare to ask for food rashly, so they asked, "How do you charge?"
Xu He patiently said, "The prices are honest. A plate of stir-fried vegetables costs eight cents, stir-fried meat costs twelve to twenty cents, and braised meat is more expensive, twenty cents or more per plate."
The man was relieved to see that the prices were similar to those in ordinary small restaurants in the city, but he was afraid that these roadside tea stalls would rip him off.
Xu He added, "There is also rice with vegetables. It is a plate of rice with a large spoonful of vegetables and meat on top. It costs fifteen cents. There is also fried rice, the same price. Tofu rice is more affordable, eight cents."
After hearing this introduction, the two men found a place to sit down with confidence and started discussing what to eat. In the end, for cost-effectiveness, the two of them ordered tofu rice.
Xu He didn't complain about the cheap food, he just asked to wait a moment. Zhang Shiyue quickly scooped out a large bowl of tofu pudding that had been warm in the pot in the morning, and filled a small dish of spicy dipping sauce for each of them.
The rice was served in small bowls, probably a little more than one bowl per person. Although they were doing business honestly, there was a fixed amount of rice. If people ate casually, these villagers might have to force themselves to eat half a steamer of rice in one meal, which would result in a huge loss.
Zhang Shiyue was not like Xu He who went to sell things often and had set up a stall several times. He felt a little nervous when greeting customers for the first time. At first, Xu He was there to support everyone. People thought that Xu He was a quiet guy at home and would only say a few words when Zhang Fangyuan teased him. But he turned out to be very skilled in doing business, like a different person. It seemed that doing business was quite simple.
When it was time to entertain the guests, he was at a loss, and unlike Xu He, he was not so confident. He just whispered, "If you don't have enough rice, add two cents per bowl."
The two men were already hungry after seeing the food, so they responded in a hurry and pointed at the tofu pudding and cooed like birds: "Tofu pudding, good. Dipping sauce, delicious!"
Zhang Shiyue heaved a sigh of relief and let the two of them eat well.
With a smile on her face, she called back Xiao'e and Xiaomao who were playing outside. She asked one to help light the fire in the kitchen, and the other to clean up and wipe the table. She mustered up her courage and went outside the tea stall like Xu He did to invite people in for dinner.
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