Chapter 26: Selling buns. A new livelihood.
The stuffing was already cut last night, and I’m just waiting to fry it with lard in the morning.
Zong Xiao opened the courtyard door and went to the next door to wake up Zong Anji. The two brothers, one kneading the dough and the other frying the stuffing, were already in the pot when Qiu Xuan woke up.
They didn't make many steamed buns this time, only twenty-eight. But to make them look good, they didn't even take them out of the steamer, waiting to sell them in steamer after steamer when they got to town.
Zong Anji was extremely nervous and kept asking behind Zong Xiao, "Second brother, do you think we can sell these buns?"
If they sell them all, they can make about 40 cents. Most of these mountain people only earn about 30 cents a day when they work as laborers at the foot of the mountain.
"Yes." Zong Xiao took the dry steamed bun from the top steamer and cut a slit in the middle with a knife.
There was fried meat paste and stir-fried fish hair at home, and Zong Xiao put them into the dry steamed bun.
Baozi is expensive, so he can't bear to eat it. This dry steamed bun is prepared for himself.
In the room, Qiu Xuan rubbed her eyes and climbed out of the quilt.
Looking at the extra quilt on her body, she was slightly stunned. This quilt belonged to Zong Xiao, when did it end up on her?
"Aunt, let's go see grandma today, right?" The little girl Huaixue had woken up a long time ago and was lying in bed, not wanting to move.
"Well, let's go there these days." Qiu Xuan recalled for a long time in her mind, but couldn't remember when the quilt was covered on her. However, she guessed that it was after Zong Xiao got up. If he had covered her with it last night, what would Zong Xiao do? Would he just let it dry out?
Qiu Xuan didn't think about it any further. She quickly put on her clothes and pulled Huaixue out of the quilt. The child didn't want to move at first, but when she heard that she was going to the town to see her grandma, she obediently got off the kang.
As soon as they walked out of the house, they smelled the fragrance of buns.
In the yard, Zong Xiao was moving steamers onto a mule cart. The steamers used at home were large, each holding seven buns. These would take four steamers.
Qiu Xuan came forward, slightly lifted the lid and took a look at the buns they had steamed. They looked okay, and they looked like buns.
"Sister-in-law, try it. Do these buns taste the same as the ones you made?" Zong Anji, like his brother, ate dry steamed buns. He hadn't touched any of the more than 20 buns yet.
Qiu Xuan broke off half a piece and tasted it. The taste was no different from the one she made, still as oily and fragrant.
Qiu Yu: "It tastes almost the same, why didn't you eat it?"
Zong Anji touched his head and laughed, "I've eaten. My second brother steamed some dry buns. They're delicious when stuffed with meat sauce."
Qiu Xuan understood why as soon as she heard it, but she didn't try to persuade him anymore, after all, it was useless to persuade him.
It would be better to sell these buns and make new food for lunch.
The morning mist dissipated and the sky gradually brightened.
Without further delay, they drove the mule cart down the mountain.
I also picked up a few people on the way, and the fare was one cent cheaper than that day.
The old woman in the car smelled the fragrance and couldn't help but look over.
She took her grandson down the mountain to go to the market. She hadn't had any food this morning, and now she felt hungry when she smelled the delicious food.
The old lady asked Qiu Xuan, "Miss, are you eating these buns yourself or selling them?"
When Qiu Xuan heard that this was business, she pointed to the steamer covered with a cloth and said, "Aunt, these were just made this morning. Take them to town to sell."
"Is it fresh from the pot? Is it meat or vegetarian? How much is it?" The old lady asked three questions in a row, and she was ready to buy.
Qiu Xuan: "For meat, there are bean and pork lard buns and radish pork lard buns. The fillings are fried in lard and they are very fragrant. The price is the same as in town, three cents each."
The old lady hesitated when she heard that there was no meat in it.
At this time, the other two men in the car said, "Miss, give us two each."
Qiu Xiu brought some large, clean leaves. You can pick a lot of them on the mountain. They are very clean.
She uses this to wrap the buns without getting her hands dirty.
The strong man was not afraid of the heat and took a bite. The buns were thin in skin, large in filling and soaked in oil, and just looking at them made people hungry.
Seeing this, the old lady also spent three cents to buy one. She was reluctant to eat it herself, so she only took a bite and gave the rest to her grandson.
After eating, several people praised the buns for being delicious, and some even suggested that they open a bun shop in town.
With this skill, you can definitely make money.
However, this matter was too far in the future, so Qiu Yun just smiled when she heard it and didn't take it to heart.
The carriage finally arrived at Yuanxiang Town after a shaky ride. Zong Xiao put those people down and then drove the mule cart to the clinic.
In the small clinic, the girl named Xiaobao has woken up. She has drunk a lot of medicine in the past two days and her fever has subsided.
But he looked listless and lay listlessly in Aunt Feng's arms.
"Mom." Qiu Xuan came into the house with a basket of buns.
The clan mother stood up to make room for her and asked with concern, "Why are you here so early? Are you here alone?"
Qiu Xuan: "How could that be? Everyone's here. Huaixue went with them to park the car. I came in to see you first."
Qiu Xuan opened the lid and saw the big buns inside were still steaming.
She urged, "Mom, Auntie, eat them while they're hot. These buns were just out of the pot this morning and are still warm."
Aunt Feng felt embarrassed. Her eyes were red as she apologized, "I'm sorry for all the trouble you've put in. When Xiaobao gets better, I'll cook for you."
The clan mother continued, "Your Aunt Feng is really good at cooking. You can try her when the time comes."
Xiaobao opened his pair of dark eyes and looked at Qiu Xuan. She raised her little hand and pointed, whispering, "Bride."
The clan mother was happy: "Oh, our little treasure also knows the bride."
Xiaobao nodded. She also went to the day of Zong Xiao's wedding. Although Qiu Xuan was wearing a veil at that time, she saw the scar on her hand and recognized her at a glance today.
As they were talking, the old man on the kang next door stretched his neck and asked, "Girl, are you still selling buns today?"
He has been waiting for a long time, but why is this girl just talking and not selling anything?
"For sale." Qiu Xuan turned sideways and said, "They haven't been brought in yet. If you want a few, I'll get them for you."
"Is it the same filling from yesterday?"
"There's an extra carrot and lard."
"Okay, give me one too."
"I want a carrot one."
"Girl, give me some beans."
Qiu Xuan didn't expect so many people to buy today. She counted them one by one in her mind. Fortunately, she made a lot today, otherwise there would not be enough to sell.
She got up and went outside to meet Zong Xiao. As soon as they arrived, she quickly packed the buns with leaves.
The little girl Huaixue followed behind her, holding her hands to receive the coins one by one. When her hands were full, she ran to Zong Xiao and gave him all the coins.
In a short while, Qiu Xuan sold all the buns.
She and Huaixue ate one in the morning, sold five on the way, left six for her grandmother and the others, and sold the remaining sixteen buns in this room. She estimated that she made twenty-seven or twenty-eight cents!
Seeing that the business was so good, Aunt Feng felt a little guilty. She looked at the buns and whispered to her mother, "Old sister, why don't you sell these buns?"
"What are you selling? The children brought these specially for us." The grandmother held down her hand, picked up a bun and handed it to Xiaobao, "Xiaobao, try it first and see if it tastes good."
"It's delicious." Children don't lie. If it's delicious, it's delicious. Although she was sick, she still ate half of it by herself.
Qiu Xuan and the others didn't stay here for long. After chatting for a while, they drove the mule cart back home.
With the experience of selling buns today, the Zong family members were full of confidence and made twice as many buns the next day.
Qiu Xuan sold them in the clinic, and Zong Anji sold them on the street, and in this way, all the more than fifty buns were sold out.
They took advantage of the momentum and sold them for six consecutive days, until the seventh day when the bun stalls on the street also started selling buns with lard residue, and they stopped.
In the small courtyard, Zong Anji was counting copper coins. Not counting the first day, they had sold a total of 271 buns in the past few days, earning 813 copper coins. After deducting expenses, they made a net profit of 4 cents.
It’s only been less than seven days!!!
"Alas, it's a pity that there are pig fat buns sold everywhere now." Zong Anji sighed slightly.
Hearing this, Zong Xiao slapped him on the head, "What depressing words are you talking about?"
Qiu Xuan was amused by the two brothers. She smiled and said, "What's the big deal? We can just change the food."
"Change it?" Zong Anji was intrigued. Holding the copper coins he had been allocated, he came forward and asked flatteringly, "Sister-in-law, do you have an idea?"
Zong Xiao felt a little unhappy when he saw him getting so close to Qiu Yun.
He raised his hand and took a dozen copper coins from Zong Anji.
"Hey, second brother, second brother, don't take it away." Zong Anji's attention was indeed diverted. He moved closer to Zong Xiao and begged, "Brother, give it back to me. These are all my wife's books."
Qiu Xuan smiled and shook her head. These two brothers really... haven't grown up.
The author has something to say:
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Sorry guys, I was delayed today by something, so I’m sending you a red envelope to apologize.
Sorry! [cat head]
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