"Hopefully, these costs aren't high."
Zhang Xuemei thought for a moment and then offered another idea, "Second sister, you see, brother-in-law has some talent for cooking. Once your braised food business stabilizes, you can develop other products, which will help retain more customers."
Actually, there are quite a few braised food vendors in Tianshui now, but business is definitely not as good as it was when they first came here.
Moreover, there's no shortage of discerning palates these days. After eating it a few times and trying it a few more times, they can basically replicate the braised dishes pretty much perfectly. So, relying solely on one type of braised dish is indeed not a sustainable business.
Of course, I can't say that to my second sister now, lest it put too much pressure on her.
“As for other products, I wish your brother-in-law had that ability.” Zhang Xuelian didn’t think her husband could develop any new products; it would be good enough if he could just keep the braised food business going.
"Oh, sister, don't underestimate your brother-in-law. He really has a talent for this. Look, last time we went to Ah Wei's food stall, he could tell you how to make a few dishes and what ingredients were in them. That's talent. None of us have his ability."
"Who knows if he's right or wrong."
"Sister, look at you, you're already belittling your husband before you've even started. How can he be willing to do anything if you keep doing this?"
In her past life, Zhang Xuemei only felt that her brother-in-law was unambitious and irresponsible, but now she thinks that her second sister also had some faults. People like her brother-in-law should be praised and complimented so that they will be willing to do things.
"What? Do you expect me to fawn over him? Every day, I have to urge him to do even the smallest things. I'm so tired." Zhang Xuelian felt she was already exhausted enough; she wouldn't want to fawn over him anymore.
Zhang Xuemei got anxious. "Sister, why don't you understand? Look, do you listen to your husband every day? No, he doesn't. You still have to do things yourself. Aren't you tired?"
If we change our approach, and you praise him, making me feel great, wouldn't he be more willing to do it? Wouldn't that save you effort?
Zhang Xuelian nodded thoughtfully. "You mean you want to coax him like a child?"
"Yeah, pretty much. Anyway, my brother-in-law's personality isn't much different from a child's."
"Can it really work?" Zhang Xuelian was still somewhat skeptical.
"You'll know if it works or not once you try it. You won't lose anything anyway." Zhang Xuemei hadn't tried it before, so how would she know if it would work? What if her second brother-in-law fell for it?
Zhang Xuelian nodded solemnly, "Okay, I'll try my best to praise him."
That evening, Xu Minghan looked at his wife with curiosity and asked, "What did you and your second sister talk about in the room this morning? Why did she look at her brother-in-law with such a strange expression when we came out?"
Zhang Xuemei smiled smugly and said, "I can't tell you that, you'll find out later."
"Why all the secrecy? Forget it, I don't want to know. Time to sleep."
...
June has arrived in the blink of an eye, and the weather is getting hotter and hotter. The fan in the house has been running non-stop from morning to night.
Granny Liu ate a slice of watermelon in small bites, occasionally feeding Linlin a few bites, and asked with a smile, "Linlin, is the watermelon delicious?"
Little Linlin nodded with a smile, "It's delicious, Grandma wants more."
"Oh my, my little treasure! Look how clearly she speaks! She's so clever!" Granny Liu said with a proud smile. She thought her granddaughter was exceptionally smart, just like her.
"Mom, give Linlin less food, I'm afraid her stomach can't handle it."
"She didn't eat much, so I just gave her a few sips." Granny Liu smiled as she stuffed the rest of the watermelon into her own mouth, then spread her hands in front of the child, "Linlin, look, you've finished it all."
"I want to eat, I want to eat!" Little Linlin kept reaching out her hands and lunging at Granny Liu.
Zhang Xuemei reached out and picked the child up from the chair, coaxing, "That's enough, just taste it, now go to sleep with Mommy."
Xu Linlin was easy to coax; she fell asleep in my arms after a short while. Zhang Xuemei covered her with a small gauze blanket and slowly withdrew from the house.
"Is Linlin asleep?"
"Yes, it's long past the appointed time. By the way, Mom, Xiaowan is bringing Lu Baichuan over tomorrow. What dishes should we prepare? Should we prepare a red envelope for the first visit?" Zhang Xuemei didn't give red envelopes when she visited, but she didn't know if such etiquette existed in the city.
"Do we still need to give a red envelope? You didn't give one back then, so it's not necessary, right?" Granny Liu hesitated a bit. She had never heard of giving a red envelope on the first visit, and there was no such custom in her village.
"Mom, the situation is different now. I think we should give it. You don't need to give too much, just give eighty-eight or one hundred and eighty-eight."
Zhang Xuemei thought back to her past life when Panpan first brought her son-in-law to her home, she had given him a red envelope. Although the time difference was quite large, the customs should have been passed down and were basically the same.
“Right? If there really is such a custom, we should give it. It would be so embarrassing if people went home and said they didn’t have it.” Granny Liu was also very concerned about her reputation and didn’t want people to say that her family didn’t know etiquette.
Zhang Xuemei said with a smile, "Mom, you were worried about them before, but now they've all found partners. I think Xiaowan is the fastest. We'll be able to have her wedding soon."
Xu Mingwan and Lu Baichuan have been dating for almost half a year, and their relationship has stabilized. Just a couple of days ago, Xiaowan said she would bring Lu Baichuan to visit her.
Xu Minghe and Xu Yanhong have also started dating without saying a word, so their happy days are probably not far off.
As for Xu Mingjiang and Chu Xiaoxiao, she was the one who introduced them, and the two are getting along very well now. She was a very successful matchmaker.
Grandma Liu laughed along, sighing, "Yes, now that they all have partners, I'm afraid I won't be able to manage. I won't even be able to take care of the kids."
"Mom, you're thinking too far ahead. It's still a matter of next year or the year after. Will you be able to handle everything by then? You don't need to worry about Xiaowan. Her future mother-in-law is waiting to take care of her. As for Minghe and the others, Linlin will be starting kindergarten soon by then, and we can take care of her ourselves."
Zhang Xuemei wasn't so happy about the idea of having many children, but she and her husband definitely had an advantage when it came to raising children and handling other matters.
For the past two years, my mother-in-law has been taking care of their children. When the children of my fourth and fifth children arrive, she will have to start a new round of childcare. Just thinking about it makes me feel tired.
"Oh dear, that's why I'm urging them to get married and have children as soon as possible, while I can still help take care of the kids. If I get too old and my hands and feet aren't as nimble anymore, they won't feel comfortable letting me take care of them."
"Yes, Mom, don't worry. If it really doesn't work, we'll pay someone to take care of it."
Zhang Xuemei comforted her, saying that with five sons in the family, they couldn't just not help the two youngest children. She was willing to pay for it if her mother-in-law continued to help take care of the children.
Granny Liu glared and complained, "Why waste that money? It's not like I can't move. I'll help them raise the child until he's three years old, even if it costs me my old bones. Nobody can say I'm being biased."
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