Shop opening
Yang Xiu no longer had to run around to collect the mercenaries and could focus on training new recruits. She will go to town in the twelfth lunar month. In the remaining month, she will not only teach skills but also test character. If both of them pass the test by then, she can rest assured and let them take on the responsibility.
Qin Wenli had to get the land certificate, check the decoration, and pick up and drop off Xizi and Huizi. He was busy all day long.
Hu Yufeng ran to the cornfield every day before the ground froze. Fertilizer should be applied to the fields in early spring, but before that the corn branches must be cleaned up. This is a very strenuous job. The corn stubble looks like a small piece, but the roots are actually a huge mass. After digging it out, the soil must be dusted off and dried, and then taken home to burn for heating.
The old lady was not idle either. Isn't this offending her eldest grandson? Every day, she would rush to heat the kang for the couple before Qin Wenli. There were three kangs in the house. She heated two and left one, which didn't look good, so she just heated all three.
As a result, Qin Shengtian became the most comfortable person in the family, and his job was to herd sheep. Every day he drove a flock of sheep out of the mountains, and then he roasted a fire while the sheep ate grass. He was still bored and had nothing to do, so he decided to carry two steamed buns today and two sweet potatoes tomorrow, then roast the sweet potatoes while sitting by a fire. By the afternoon, the sheep were full and so was he.
Time flies in the busy life and more than a month has passed.
…
"Xiu'er, take this hundred yuan. If you see any pots, pans, and utensils missing in the shop, buy some." Hu Yufeng stuffed the money into her daughter-in-law's pocket, stepped back a few steps, and waved to her son and daughter-in-law in the crowd.
Qin Wenzhen completed the renovation of the shop half a month ago, and left it to dry for another half a month. Qin Wenli went to Zhao Yinyang to find out a good day for opening the business, and today he took Yang Xiu and Hui Zixizi to make arrangements.
The Li family moved into a clean house, but they had to buy a lot of things if they wanted to live comfortably.
Old Li's family had left a two-meter-wide doorway next to the shop to facilitate the entry and exit of vehicles buying water. This also makes it convenient for the Qin family, as they no longer have to look for a place to park. Qin Wenli drove the car directly into the backyard and stopped. Yang Xiu was not in a hurry to move things, but went to take a look around the renovated shop first. White walls, mahogany doors, glass counters and silver-gray shelves, and a brand new cement stove. Yang Xiu smiled knowingly, and as he glanced over them, he was already thinking in his mind how to fill them.
"Sister-in-law, can we put the flour and oil directly in?" Huizi also looked around and said when she saw that the shop had been cleaned.
Yang Xiu nodded, and several people began to fill the shop little by little like ants moving house.
It took more than an hour to put everything in place. Qin Wenli took a pen and paper and wrote down the missing items one by one.
Then it’s time to clean up the house where people live. The kitchen was on the east side of the three rooms, and the other two rooms had kangs, which showed that people had lived there before. So Yang Xiu chose the one on the westernmost side.
Qin Wenli found time to clean the house and even put up a new kang fence. The bamboo mat on the kang was left by the previous owner. Yang Xiu did not change it, but just spread all the felt and bedding he brought from home on it.
Between the kang and the partition wall stood an old three-door wardrobe that looked very old, with extremely intricate patterns on the doors. Seeing that his wife was interested, Qin Wenli explained that it was the dowry of Lao Li's wife and he was reluctant to give it away, so he did her a favor.
Yang Xiu opened it and took a look, and couldn't help but admire it. Wow, it’s better than my dowry, no wonder the old man was reluctant to part with it.
In addition to the wardrobe, there is also a three-drawer table and a wooden chair in the room. Yang Xiu was very satisfied, this was more than enough.
After decorating the house, Yang Xiu went to the kitchen for a walk. The kitchen was clean except for some traces of smoke on the ceiling. All the pots, pans, and utensils were moved away, leaving only the stove, the cupboard, and two water vats.
After looking through everything, they locked the door and went straight to the largest grocery store in town. Three iron pots, two large and one small, a stove for heating, a porcelain bowl for making noodles, an iron plate for holding twisted dough sticks, bowls and chopsticks for eating, towels and rags for washing faces and pots, and a cotton curtain hanging on the door...
He spent money like water. A hundred yuan was not enough to stop him, and Qin Wenli invested another twenty yuan.
Put all the pots you bought on the stove and hang up the door curtain. Yang Xiu waved his hand and said, "Come on, I'll treat you to a meal..."
Except Huizi who was a little shy, Xizi was the most lively person. The few of them chatted and laughed before choosing a noodle shop and each had a bowl of fried noodles with meat to fill their stomachs.
After eating and drinking, send Qin Wenli and Huizi back home.
Yang Xiu and Xizi made the dough rise, checked everything they would need for the opening tomorrow, and then went back to the room and lay down.
…
The two of them chatted about this and that for half the night yesterday. When Yang Xiu opened his eyes today, it was dark outside. He jumped up and quickly put on his clothes.
It’s over. If my mother-in-law comes and sees that I overslept as soon as I left home, I wonder what she will think. My life is really too easy!
Fortunately, when she opened the door, the yard was quiet except for the sound of the wind. She breathed a sigh of relief and went to light the stove in the shop.
Soon Xizi came out with a messy hair, and smiled at Huizi when he saw him.
"What are you laughing at? There is hot water on the stove. Come wash up quickly..." Yang Xiu shouted while wiping his face.
The two of them got themselves ready, and seeing that their family members had not arrived yet, they went their separate ways. Xizi cooked breakfast for five people, and Yang Xiu prepared the noodles.
The coal in the stove made a crackling sound, and the kettle on the stove made a hissing sound as the flames leaped. Yang Xiu's heart suddenly felt inexplicably peaceful, just like a traveler who finally welcomed spring after a long winter.
She didn't know if Qin Wenli would feel the same as her if he were here. He needed this peace more than she did.
…
At half past nine in the morning, there was a sound of car rumbling outside the gate. Xizi ran over to open the door and saw Hu Yufeng, Qin Wenli and Huizi.
"It's time to eat, Auntie. I just made it..."
A bowl of pumpkin soup and two steamed buns per person is a simple breakfast. There was no dining table in the shop, so they simply brought their food into the shop and ate around the stove.
After the meal, Xizi cleaned up, and Hu Yufeng and Qin Wenli prepared to open the door.
On the glass counter, the soft fried dough twists, pumpkin fried dough twists that were fresh from the pot in the morning, and the small fried dough twists brought from home are all neatly arranged. Sweet aromas wafted out from the operation room and swirled around the house. Soon the whole shop was filled with sweet fragrance.
There was a framed license hanging on the most conspicuous wall as soon as she entered the door. Hu Yufeng couldn't help but look at it again and again.
The doorhead was made and hung up a few days ago, and there is still red silk hanging on it. The person who unveiled the sign, Lao Fang, and the town's cashier Liu were each holding a cup of tea and chatting.
Qin Wenli looked at his watch. It was eleven o'clock, the auspicious time. Hu Yufeng opened the shop door wide and Qin Wenli lit firecrackers. Amid the sound of firecrackers, Lao Fang and Accountant Liu each quickly unrolled the red silk, and the five big words "Yufeng Mahua Shop" officially appeared!
"Fellow villagers, 'Yufeng Mahua Shop' is officially open today! We have come this far, and it is inseparable from your support and love. Today..." Seeing the crowd gathered, Hu Yufeng cleared her throat and went on stage.
After Qin Wenli saw off the two distinguished guests, he saw that the shop was surrounded by people and his old mother was still giving a passionate speech.
The crowd burst into cheers and some people whispered:
"This old woman is amazing. She was able to open a shop after only two years of setting up a stall!"
"Of course not. Their craftsmanship is top-notch. I've eaten at so many restaurants, and hers is the best!" Qin Wenli couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. Good brother, you are the only one with good taste.
"If you ask me, this is a good time. Before the crackdown, she couldn't keep her business open because of the trouble she had collecting protection fees..."
"Hey, you may not know this, but he dares to fight with a knife. Even the people who collect protection fees are afraid of this kind of people who don't care about their lives."
"Her? She dares to fight for such a small height. Stop bragging..." This person seemed to have heard a huge joke.
Qin Wenli silently took a few steps back and glanced at his short mother in the crowd. He couldn't help but think that if she knew that the people below said that she was a little tall, she would probably jump up in anger!
…
In order to ensure the smooth opening of the new shop, Hu Yufeng also made great concessions. As early as a few days ago, Qin Wenli proposed the "opening to thank old customers" activity, and Hu Yufeng thought about it again and again and finally agreed.
The price of her fried dough twist was 40 cents a piece at the beginning. At the beginning of this year, prices rose, so they also increased the price by 10 cents, and now it is 50 cents a piece. After repeated research, several people finally decided on a promotional price of 45 cents per stick, 3 yuan for seven sticks, and 5 yuan for twelve sticks. The price of small fried dough twist has increased from RMB 1.2 to RMB 1.5 per catty. Today's promotional price is RMB 1.4 per catty. Buy three catties and get a large fried dough twist for free, and the price will increase accordingly.
Hu Yufeng was self-taught, and her expression of sorrow and yet pretending to be unrestrained was so perfect that the people in the audience felt that if they didn't take advantage of this, they would be at a disadvantage. Didn’t you see it? The old woman’s expression was as if her flesh was being cut. She had to buy a lot.
As soon as Hu Yufeng finished speaking, everyone rushed in. If Hu Yufeng hadn't retreated quickly enough, she would have been kicked a few times.
"Give me twelve marijuana flowers, half soft and half pumpkin!"
"I, I, I came here first... I want three pounds of fried dough twist!"
At the counter, Yang Xiu said with a smile, "We have everything. We have plenty of stock today. Don't worry, everyone. Be careful with your steps!"
Hu Yufeng and Yang Xiu were excited when they saw the huge crowd of people. They worked in perfect harmony, one packing the items while the other weighed them.
In the operating room, Xizi and Huizi swung their arms so hard that they were almost leaving afterimages from twisting the dough twists. They just wished they had more hands.
In winter, the nights are long and the days are short. It was only three o'clock in the afternoon, and there were already few pedestrians on the street. The few people who had been trapped in the human wall for a whole afternoon finally saw the light of day.
Xizi and Huizi slumped on the bench, swinging their arms, while Yang Xiu gritted his teeth and pounded his lower back. Hu Yufeng's heels were almost numb. She grimaced and asked Qin Wenli, who was settling the bill:
"Have you figured it out? How much did you sell today?"
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