Zhou Sui took some time to go home over the weekend, and now Li Qiuju has also stepped out of the kitchen and is sitting behind the counter, taking over Zhou Meimei's job.
Taking orders, settling accounts, and greeting customers are much easier than before.
Aside from making the core ingredients herself, she delegated many tasks to the newly hired chef at the restaurant.
I heard that this chef used to work at a state-run restaurant. Later, the state-run restaurant was reorganized, and he couldn't find a suitable job, so he went home to farm. Later, he found Zhou's Snack Shop through a referral.
The work here was much easier than the work in the hotel kitchen. After a few days of trial work, Li Qiuju asked him to stay.
Zhou Sui had met this person once. He was a braggart, but otherwise quite nice, and he was very fast at serving dishes.
Just like when Zhou Sui came back this time, he spoke to her familiarly and even asked her to check if what he made was up to standard.
The food was indeed quite good, and the chef immediately became smug. "Back then, I cooked for government officials in state-run restaurants, so cooking for ordinary people is a piece of cake."
Just as he was about to start recounting his glorious past, Li Qiuju called her daughter over.
"Why do you look so thin? You must not have been eating properly while you were alone in the city." Li Qiuju looked her daughter over from head to toe and came to this conclusion.
"Mom, I really haven't lost weight." There are no signs of my clothes getting too small, and lately she's been researching desserts that aren't officially sold in the shop; they're all eaten by the staff.
She eats four meals a day now, it's a miracle she hasn't gained weight, let alone lost weight.
Li Qiuju didn't believe it. "Let your dad see you tonight. You've definitely lost weight. Mom can't be wrong."
Knowing that her mother was worried about her, Zhou Sui simply hugged her mother's arm and acted coquettishly, "Then make me something delicious tonight so I can have some nourishment."
Even without Zhou Sui saying anything, her family knew she was coming back today. Old Mrs. Zhou came to town early and bought a lot of vegetables to take back, saying she wanted to cook something nice for her eldest granddaughter.
Grandma Zhou isn't good at making fancy dishes, but her stews are especially delicious.
Zhou Sui never tires of braised pork hock and braised chicken with mushrooms.
The pork hock was soft and tender. The pig that Grandma Zhou bought was one of those pigs that were fed with grain at home. This kind of pork is the most fragrant and has no porky smell at all.
With a gentle nudge of the chopsticks, the soft head detaches from the bone, and it disappears in your mouth without needing to be chewed.
Fatty but not greasy, lean but not dry.
The chicken stew with mushrooms was also very flavorful. The essence of this dish lies in the mushrooms. Grandma Zhou used dried shiitake mushrooms, and the mushrooms even had a chicken flavor inside.
Even after eating it several times, the whole family still raved about it.
"If you like it, eat more. This stuff won't reheat well the second time, it'll get mushy." Seeing everyone enjoying their meal, Grandma Zhou was overjoyed.
"Sui'er, don't just eat mushrooms, eat some meat too."
"Mmm." Zhou Sui nodded to Grandma Zhou with food in her mouth.
Then, when no one was looking, he secretly reached out and unbuttoned his pants.
She wore high-waisted jeans today, which hugged her slender and long legs. They looked great, but they were a bit of a hindrance.
Only after unbuttoning her clothes did she realize that she could still fit something in her stomach.
Besides coming back to see her family, there was another thing Zhou Peng had mentioned to her: he wanted to develop a boxed lunch business in the city.
"Several families in the town are now following our example."
"Moreover, there are only a few companies that can order boxed meals, and with so many people vying for them, I feel that business is more difficult than before."
Even without Zhou Peng saying anything, Zhou Sui, being the one who received the money, naturally knew that her current income was less than half of what it used to be.
"I was thinking, there are many factories and companies in the city, and what about white-collar workers?"
“They left early and returned late every day, and ate lunch outside. Even if they didn’t cooperate with those factories like they do now, they could still make money by selling things at a stall.”
Zhou Peng's statement was reasonable and well-founded, clearly indicating that he had actually gone to the city to investigate.
After not seeing him for a while, Zhou Sui felt that her older brother had become more and more composed.
“Your idea is very good.” Zhou Sui nodded affirmatively. There were indeed some limitations in the town. The cake was only so big. It was enough for one person, but if more people came, it wouldn’t be enough to share.
"If you want to develop your business in the city, then you need to make a plan, such as how to price your products, where to sell them, and whether you will do everything yourself or need to hire someone to help you."
Unlike in a town, where you can have family to help you, in the city you'll have to do everything yourself, if not all by yourself.
Unlike Zhou Sui, Zhou Peng was completely lost when he arrived in the city. After failing to achieve good results, he returned to his town disheartened.
"Okay, I'll write a plan, and I'll take it to the city office for you to see later."
Zhou Peng rubbed his hands together, looking very enthusiastic. "You'd better have the money ready by then."
“Not only am I preparing, you should be too.” Zhou Sui looked at him and extended a formal invitation.
"Brother, let's work together."
She's currently focusing on her milk tea shop and snack shop; the boxed lunch business has good prospects, so she can't give it up.
Zhou Peng was surprised, as he felt that his salary was already quite high, but after some discussion, the two finally reached a consensus.
This weekend is destined to be two days of weight gain. Except for sleeping, Zhou Sui's mouth has been constantly moving since she got back. Her tight waistband tells her that she has gained weight!
Finally, on Sunday afternoon, Zhou Sui walked towards the station carrying a half-bag of food.
"Alright, you guys don't need to wait here anymore. The bus will be leaving soon, so you should go back now."
The shuttle buses depart on schedule, and with about ten minutes to go, Zhou Sui didn't want everyone to wait there, so she persuaded them to go back.
"Call home when you get there, and be careful on the road, okay?" After another round of routine concern and instructions, the Zhou family left, turning back to look at each other several times.
Zhou Sui leaned against the window, waving whenever they turned around, until they were far away, at which point she was about to close the car window.
But then they noticed a well-dressed young girl getting out of the car next to them, looking around with curiosity.
Zhou Sui's body seemed to freeze. How did she get here? And all alone?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
