Chapter 23 Please Show Me the Way
"Ning girl, Sui girl."
From a distance, Liu stretched out her hand and beckoned, "Come here quickly, I've saved a place for you."
Seeing this, Zhuang Qingning hurriedly led Zhuang Qingsui over and put down the bamboo basket on her body: "Thank you, Auntie."
"You're welcome." Liu laughed and took out a small stool from her side. "My bamboo basket can't hold so many things, so I brought an extra stool. You two can take turns sitting on it. It's tiring to stand all the time."
"Thank you, Auntie." Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Qingsui expressed their gratitude again.
"Mr. Ge didn't come today?" Zhuang Qingning asked, looking at the empty space next to him.
"He's not here right now, but you don't have to worry about him. He's been absent-minded all day, and there's no peace at home. I don't know what's happened to him today."
Liu curled her lips and said, "His family doesn't need the money he earns, but he's idle all day long, and his wife can't stand it, so she keeps chasing him out to work..."
While they were talking, someone came to ask about the donkey rolling, but Liu was busy greeting the person and stopped talking about it.
Zhuang Qingning naturally had no intention of asking about other people's gossip preferences, and hurriedly set up his tofu stall with Zhuang Qingsui.
"Tofu, tofu for sale, one cent a pound, two cents for two and a half pounds..."
"Free tasting, try before you buy, don't miss it if you pass by, come and try the delicious tofu."
The method used is still tasting, try before you buy, to attract popularity.
There is no market in the town today, so there are not as many people coming and going as yesterday. However, this method of tasting before buying, which ensures that people who buy tofu do not suffer a loss, still attracted some people.
Basically 60 to 70 percent of the people buy the tofu after tasting it and thinking it’s good.
Zhuang Qingning carefully observed the people coming and going, and could also see one or two returning customers from yesterday.
Soon, half of the tofu was cooked.
The sun gradually rose. The spring weather was dry, and shouting and calling out to others was very tiring for the throat. Zhuang Qingning went to buy a few bowls of tea to quench Zhuang Qingsui's thirst, and also gave a bowl to Liu.
Seeing that it was almost time, Zhuang Qingsui was also very familiar with the business of selling tofu. Zhuang Qingning glanced over there and said to Liu: "Madam, please help take care of Qingsui and run the stall. I'll go over there."
"Okay, go ahead." Liu agreed readily, "Girl Sui is here with me, don't worry."
"Thank you, Auntie." Zhuang Qingning grinned and told Zhuang Qingsui to watch the stall here for a while. He cut a piece of tofu weighing about one pound, wrapped it in a cage cloth, and walked diagonally across.
Diagonally opposite is a restaurant, which is also the largest and oldest restaurant in town, Fu Shun Lou.
It's not dinner time yet, so there aren't many customers coming and going in Fushunlou. Some people inside the store are sweeping the floor at the entrance and wiping the doors and windows.
Seeing Zhuang Qingning walking towards this place, the waiter Li Fang hurriedly put the rag on his shoulder and walked over quickly: "Sir, please come in? What would you like to eat?"
"No, I don't want to eat." Zhuang Qingning shook his head.
"Then you, young lady..." Li Fang straightened up slightly and looked Zhuang Qingning up and down.
She was wearing ordinary, half-worn coarse cloth clothes, and looked like a girl from an ordinary family, or even from a poor family. However, she exuded a graceful and elegant temperament, and she didn't seem like an ordinary girl who had never seen the world.
Twenty or thirty miles west of the town, there is Cuiwei Lake, which is nestled against Cuiwei Mountain. The terrain there is flat and the scenery is beautiful. Many wealthy merchants and powerful people have built many farms there, where they come for an outing in spring and to admire the moon in summer.
Some households would send a maid to buy things and do chores.
Li Fang adhered to the principle of welcoming guests with a smile and never offending anyone, so he smiled and said, "What can I do for you, young lady?"
"My family has just opened a tofu shop. We usually set up a stall there to sell tofu. The tofu tastes very good. I wanted to ask if you would like to buy the tofu your restaurant needs from me. I can deliver it to your door every morning, and the price is negotiable."
Zhuang Qingning smiled and handed over the piece of tofu in his hand: "This is our tofu. You can take it back and have a taste. It definitely tastes good."
It turns out he was selling tofu.
Li Fang stood up straight, and the smile on his face faded a little: "I'm sorry, but buying food for the kitchen is not my responsibility..."
"Could you please show me the way?" Zhuang Qingning stuffed two copper coins into Li Fang's hand.
Li Fang could only earn five or six copper coins a day, so seeing that there was something good, he quickly grabbed it in his hands and smiled again: "Okay, okay."
"The kitchen is not my responsibility. The chef in the restaurant decides how many dishes to buy every day. Besides, the tofu we use is from Changji Tofu Shop, and the customers are used to eating this. The tofu in your shop..."
It may not necessarily catch the chef's eye.
But since they had received the money, they had to do it. Li Fang was also a lively man, so he quickly changed his tone and said, "But since you said that your tofu tastes good and you want us to take it back to taste it, I can take the effort to bring it to the kitchen and let everyone taste it."
"If your tofu tastes really good, maybe the chef will think it's good and buy tofu from you."
"Thank you, bro."
Seeing that the other party agreed, Zhuang Qingning smiled and stretched out his hand to show the waiter: "I usually sell tofu over there in the first half of the day. If you have any news, please give me a reply."
"Sure, sure." Li Fang still had a smile on his face. He found a plate, put the tofu on it, and returned the cage cloth to Zhuang Qingning.
"Then I won't bother you anymore, brother. See you later." Zhuang Qingning said goodbye and left.
Li Fang put away the two copper coins, picked up the tofu and prepared to go to the back.
"Hey, you really dare to send it to the kitchen?" Another waiter named Ma Tong grabbed his sleeve and curled his lips: "This Uncle Zhang is the brother-in-law of Uncle Chang of Changji Tofu Shop. How dare you persuade Uncle Zhang not to use Changji's tofu but this little girl's?"
"How could I have the courage?" Li Fang shrank his neck.
"Then what are you doing..."
"I have taken money from others, so I have to do it." Li Fang looked outside and saw that there was no one around, so he lowered his voice and said, "I just put the tofu in the kitchen. It's just a small piece of tofu. No one can tell where it comes from. The kitchen can use it and eat it."
"If that girl asks, I sent the tofu to the kitchen. As for why the kitchen didn't use her tofu, it's just that her tofu was not made well. Tell me, is that right?"
(End of this chapter)
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