Chapter 260 (Extra 4)
After Liu Ailing finished her labor reform, she started a small business, collecting and selling vegetables.
After saving some money, I decided to set up a small stall to sell some food.
As for what kind of food to cook and what cooking skills she has, Liu Ailing really thought about it.
She recalled that many years ago, when she had a good relationship with Zhou Jiani, she often ate at Zhou's house and behaved well and sensibly. Sometimes she would help Yu Huifang with cooking and learned some cooking skills from Yu Huifang.
She remembered the day when Yu Huifang made shredded chicken noodles for Zhou Jiani. She happened to be doing homework at Zhou's house at the time, and Yu Huifang also served her a bowl.
The noodle soup was not an ordinary noodle soup. It was made with chicken soup cooked by Yu Huifang. The chicken was stewed until soft and tasty, and the noodles were chewy, smooth and especially fragrant. It was so fragrant that if she hadn't been concerned about being at Zhou's house, she would have wanted to lick the bowl. The fresh fragrance is still fresh in her memory.
It was also when I saw Yu Huifang stewing chicken that I realized that chicken can be stewed with several kinds of seasonings, instead of just salt like her family stewed chicken during the Chinese New Year.
It turns out that when stewing chicken, you have to skim off the foam on the surface. She remembered that when she stewed the chicken at home, she would just throw it into the pot, add water and salt, cover it with a lid and let it simmer. When it came out of the pot, the fragrance was mixed with the fishy smell, but she still thought it was a rare delicacy in the world.
The chicken stewed by Yu Huifang is fragrant and not fishy.
Yu Huifang uses rich seasonings when cooking. Her mother, Lü Cuilan, is reluctant to add oil to the wok. She always adds water to whatever dish she is cooking because it will easily get stuck if she doesn't add water. Then she sprinkles some salt on it and serves it after it is cooked.
Yu Huifang's cooking skills made her feel that she had broadened her horizons.
For example, stewing meat. After watching Yu Huifang cook, she realized that meat can not only be boiled or stewed, but also fried with sugar color.
After putting oil in the pot, instead of adding onions and garlic to stir-fry, they added rock sugar to the oil. The little girl was greatly shocked at the time.
But although the Zhou family was well-off, they did not eat meat every meal, and sometimes she could not always come across the opportunity to make braised pork. Therefore, based on the few times she remembered it, she could only vaguely remember the general idea and could not guarantee that she could make it.
She didn't plan to make braised pork, which was a bit troublesome, so she decided to make the shredded chicken noodles that she learned from Yu Huifang.
Liu Ailing bought the ingredients and stewed the chicken according to her childhood memories. While stewing the chicken, she started to knead the dough, but she was not very skilled at it.
In the past, the most common staple food at home was steamed corn bread. Occasionally, the family would make a pot of steamed buns made of two-grain flour, and Lu Cuilan would do it herself, for fear that she would make a mess and waste food because it contained flour.
It was not her turn to make white flour buns, as people were afraid that her hands would shake and waste flour. Therefore, Liu Ailing knew the steps, but she only made buns herself a few times when she was on duty cooking at the educated youth site in the Qianjin Brigade.
Lv Cuilan was the one who rolled the noodles at home. Her father was afraid that her hands were not strong enough and the noodles would not be chewy enough. In addition, Lv Cuilan did not work and had to rely on the husband at home to earn a salary, so the few times that Liu Jiefang praised her for her delicious noodles, she made them herself.
But Liu Ailing knew the steps and was able to do it after practicing a few times.
The noodles were ready. Her hands were strong from years of hard work, so the noodles were quite chewy, but for some reason, she felt that they lacked a certain fragrance.
Could it be that too much water was added to stew the chicken, causing the original aroma of the chicken soup to become less fragrant?
Look at the pot, there isn't much water in it.
She remembered the noodles made by Yu Huifang. They left a lingering fragrance in her mouth. It was not only the aroma of the chicken soup, but also the aroma of the noodles themselves!
Liu Ailing drank a sip of chicken soup alone. Hmm, it was very fragrant. As long as she followed the steps she learned from Yu Huifang, the taste would be just fine.
But even when mixed with noodles, it still doesn’t taste like what I remember.
“Maybe it’s the wrong flour.”
Liu Ailing didn't know that Yu Huifang beat two eggs into the dough, which made it taste extra delicious.
But Liu Ailing didn't care. Not everyone had eaten the noodles made by Yu Huifang. Besides, people's stomachs were lacking in oil and water, so they wouldn't find a little bit of meat unpalatable.
After suffering losses several times, Liu Ailing is now much more cautious, especially worried about unstable policies. What if private transactions are allowed today but not tomorrow?
Moreover, she saw people wearing red armbands carrying loads of goods on their shoulders selling things on the street, so she bought cigarettes and snacks very cautiously and took them to the neighborhood committee. Only after getting approval from the neighborhood committee did she set up a stall on the street.
Chicken soup with a few pieces of chicken and a full bowl of noodles, sold for 30 cents a bowl, and business was booming.
Liu Ailing was delighted and secretly relieved. She could make more money from selling vegetables. When selling vegetables, she had to collect the vegetables, and when collecting the vegetables, she had to argue with the farmers over every penny. When selling the vegetables, she had to argue with the customers who bargained for the price. It was tiring, unprofitable, and she had to be wary of the red armbands.
It would be better to set up a stall to sell noodles, go to the village to collect some food every once in a while, buy a few chickens and bring them back to raise, cook the chickens and roll the noodles normally, and cook some noodles when customers come.
It’s tiring, but I think it’s less stressful than selling vegetables.
Liu Ailing rekindled her hope.
Life doesn’t necessarily require going to college.
She no longer plans to go to college, and only she knows how hard it is for her to study.
Unlike back in junior high and high school, when Zhou Jiani would privately tutor her and explain exercises to her, a few years ago, she was so exhausted from studying for the college entrance exam that she almost wanted to crack her head open.
She was not good at studying, but she was very smart. She found a few people who were preparing to take the college entrance examination to review with her and discuss study methods with her. Only after listening to those people discussing the questions did she feel that she could understand what was in the study materials.
Although Liu Ailing was not a bright student, she was tenacious and eager to make a name for herself and escape from her current environment. So after seizing the opportunity, she studied very hard, memorizing lessons until late at night. During the day, she would take out her notebook and look at it while working, reciting silently in her heart.
Hard work pays off, she passed the exam!
But she was defeated by another obsession - she didn't even know why she had to go to the capital to study.
But the school in the capital that she applied to did not accept her, and she was accepted by a university elsewhere.
Disappointed, Liu Ailing racked her brains to think of a remedy.
And before that, she had met Xin Yougang.
Xin Yougang is the son of the captain of the Shibao Brigade. He has a relative who works on the farm and is a small cadre, so he often goes there to play.
Xin Yougang was very generous, often bringing sweet potatoes from home to roast for everyone on the farm. He also loved to brag about his background; you didn't even need to ask to find out—from his own words, you could tell that his father was the captain of the Shibao Brigade, that he had relatives who led the Donghe Commune, and that he had relatives who ran the farm...
Liu Ailing is a scheming person, how could she not be tempted?
Although Xin Yougang likes to brag, he can't beat Liu Ailing in playing tricks, and it didn't take long for them to start dating.
She also acted virtuous. Originally, Xin Yougang had no plans to take the college entrance examination, but Liu Ailing encouraged him to study and read, and even invited the elders of the Xin family to come out.
When the elders in the family heard that this was a good thing, they praised Liu Ailing for being sensible and felt that their son had made the right choice in choosing this partner. They were a little bothered by the fact that Liu Ailing was sentenced to forced labor on a farm, but when they saw that the girl was so virtuous and knew how to persuade their son to make progress, not only did the grudge disappear, but they also chose to support Liu Ailing's plan later.
Liu Ailing actually didn't think that far ahead. She didn't know whether she could eventually get into college. She acted so sensible because she was prepared that even if she failed, the Xin family would truly recognize her and allow her to borrow the Xin family's resources at a critical moment.
Unexpectedly, by chance, she and Xin Yougang both got admitted to university. When filling out their applications, she and Xin Yougang filled out the same application, and she also chose a school in the capital.
But unexpectedly, Xin Yougang was admitted to a school in the capital, but she was not.
If it were the other way around, she would have advised Xin Yougang that even if they didn't study in the same place, it wouldn't affect their relationship. After all, it was only a few years. Couldn't their relationship withstand such a test?
After all, it doesn’t matter whether she can rely on Xin Yougang for her future. As long as she finishes college step by step and waits for assignment, her future will not be too bad.
But what she really wanted was the school in the capital.
At this time, the importance of "burning incense" in Xin's house in advance was realized. She cried with tears in her eyes, nestled in Xin Yougang's arms and expressed her true feelings, saying that she was reluctant to part with him... She would rather not go to college in another place, she would follow him to the capital, and when the time comes, Xin Yougang will study at school, and she will find a way to find a job outside and make money... She said a lot of things, which moved Xin Yougang very much.
Any man who knows that he is more important to a woman than going to college will feel a sense of pride, which greatly satisfies his self-esteem and vanity as a man.
Men tend to act stupidly when they are touched, so of course the next step is to help Liu Ailing with her plans wholeheartedly.
The plan was successful, and seeing Liu Ailing's joy bursting into laughter, he even felt a great sense of accomplishment.
The two of them took the name "Qiu Ailing", which was only one letter different from the name, for themselves without any psychological burden.
Coincidentally, Xin Yougang had pursued Qiu Ailing before, but Qiu Ailing disagreed. This time he took her place, and he felt a sense of secret revenge in his heart.
She got what she wanted and she was able to go to the capital.
Liu Ailing still remembers the moment she got off the train and felt that the air in the capital was particularly sweet.
The clothes worn by people in the capital were also very fashionable. She looked down at her plaid shirt, army green pants, and black cloth shoes. These were clothes that could be worn outside in the countryside, but they made her look extremely rustic.
Also, she found that the people in the capital also styled their hair in a fashionable way, either with perms or short haircuts. She didn't know which hairdresser did the cutting, but she always felt that it was prettier than the short haircuts of rural women.
Looking back at the people around her, she saw that those who still had their hair braided were almost all from other places who came to study. At that moment, she wished she could immediately take off the two braids on her chest.
Liu Ailing carried her luggage and carefully went to get on the bus. Along the way, she observed the clothes of the people in the capital, envying their waist-hugging shirts and the leather sandals with heels on their feet.
Liu Ailing was eager to get rid of her rustic appearance and become a citizen of the capital.
Although there are subsidies after enrollment, you still have to save money by living frugally.
Liu Ailing thought of the hair ornaments she brought with her and started to ponder.
Everything went smoothly at the beginning. Not all students who came to study came from wealthy families, so everyone could earn some pocket money after studying, which was suitable whether they kept it for improving their own meals or to supplement the family income.
She felt that her plan was perfect. It did not affect her schooling, and she had a group of people working for her to earn her money. When she went out to work, she took Xin Yougang with her and taught him step by step. After that, her relatives and friends were responsible for delivering goods and collecting accounts.
Liu Ailing felt that she had regained her original ability to plan and strategize. The resentment she had felt for being punished and ridiculed and looked down upon was completely gone. This was the life she had always wanted.
Liu Ailing was thinking at the time that if she had not been so radical towards Zhou Jiani at the beginning, had not been so cold to her, and had not been so impatient to send the letter back home, causing the relationship to completely break down, she would definitely have made Zhou Jiani serve her like Xin Yougang, running errands for her. She would only need to give orders behind the scenes, and she would still get the lion's share of the money.
At the end of that year, she asked her classmates who made hair ornaments to make a lot of finished products in advance, and she assigned tasks to all the classmates with great enthusiasm, looking forward to returning after the New Year to deliver the goods and make a fortune.
She took advantage of the Chinese New Year to bring the hair ornaments back to Qiyang and sold them for a small profit.
Having tasted the sweetness of making money, she was looking forward to the start of school after the New Year, but she turned against her classmates!
Liu Ailing was extremely angry at the time, but she didn't dare to make a fuss. After all, this was something that could not be made public, so she could only swallow her anger. But she thought coldly in her heart that what the school lacked the least was people, what she lacked the least was brains, and what the capital lacked the least was shopping malls and supply and marketing cooperatives. There was such a huge market waiting for her to develop.
She was also holding back her energy, waiting for those who had betrayed her to regret it.
But they didn't expect that the market would be completely taken over by them.
Zhou Jiani should have known that she had started selling hair accessories and wanted to suppress her.
Once those beautiful hair ornaments came on the market, they made the hairbands she had made look dull.
To make matters worse, those traitors actually reported her.
This is more terrifying than being suppressed by Zhou Jiani.
But that was not the worst. She didn't expect that before she had even finished one year of school, Qiu Ailing would find out that she had replaced her. This really plunged her into the abyss.
Liu Ailing regretted it so much.
She didn't know why she insisted on going to the capital to study.
Maybe if I hadn't gone to the capital, hadn't been so obsessed with wanting to go to where Zhou Jiani was, hadn't been so curious about how many abilities Zhou Jiani had that I didn't know about, and had just gone to study in another place honestly, perhaps I wouldn't have ended up in this situation.
Liu Ailing really regretted it. What she had planned was eventually exposed, and both she and her sister were punished.
But she will get up again.
Liu Ailing boiled water to pluck the chicken, prepared the chicken and put it in the pot to stew, and began to prepare flour for tomorrow.
Liu Ailing's criterion for judging whether a policy is stable is that there are more and more small private shops on the streets, more and more private stall owners, and more and more people selling things on the streets, but the frequency of people wearing red armbands appearing on the streets is getting less and less. Occasionally, when she sees someone pushing a cart selling things, she just shouts at them from a distance to scare them, and no longer runs over to catch them like she did at the beginning.
Liu Ailing closed her stall, pushed the cart back to the rented house, and went to the street to buy things. As a result, she heard two people who were buying things mention Zhou Jiani at the supply and marketing cooperative in Donghe Commune.
She is now a little allergic to this name. Although Zhou Jiani did not punish her in person, she had a stress reaction. When she heard Zhou Jiani, her scalp tingled and her body felt slightly cold.
She heard that the Donghe Commune weaving industry had released a new style, designed by Zhou Jiani, who had gone to the capital to attend university.
Liu Ailing bought some oil, salt, sauce and vinegar and left with a numb face.
The next time I heard about Zhou Jiani was when I heard that she had graduated, did not take the job assigned by the government, and wanted to continue her studies.
"I heard that if I continue to study, I can get a doctorate. What is a doctorate?"
"A PhD is better than a college student..."
Liu Ailing sneered in her heart. There is a master's degree below a doctorate, and Zhou Jiani can get a master's degree if she continues to study.
Then she was shocked. Why did she look down on a master's degree holder? She wasn't even a college student.
He turned and left with a stiff scalp.
That’s right, Liu Ailing did not return to Qi Yang. She stayed in Donghe Commune after the end of her labor reform.
Her parents hated her to the core. When she returned home, not only would she be scolded, but she would also be responsible for washing clothes and cooking for the family. She was even more afraid that her parents would marry her off for the bride price.
She no longer had any reason to refuse, because her family felt that it was her reckless advice that had harmed the family, Aifang, and her father's nearly promoted position.
Liu Jiefang didn't want to protect her anymore and wanted to beat her to death.
She didn't dare go back at that time.
If she wants to go home, she has to wait until she proves her ability again and can be the boss of her family, instead of her family being the boss of her.
As for the letter of introduction? The Xin family wanted to get rid of her, but she had the Xin family's leverage. She and Xin Yougang were already married. She could choose not to marry Xin Yougang, and that wouldn't stop them from finding another virgin daughter-in-law. But she could stay here and develop. The Xin family would have to find a way to help her with the letter of introduction.
If you don’t agree, I will report you for hooliganism.
The Xin family gritted their teeth and nodded.
Although you may want to tear her apart in your heart, just agree to it.
Although the Xin family was dismissed from their jobs, they were locals after all and had some connections, so it was not a problem for them to replace her letters of introduction regularly.
It’s not that Liu Ailing is stupid, but she just doesn’t use her brain in the right way.
In a flash, Xin Yougang also graduated. How valuable is a university degree these days? Holding a university diploma is considered a great achievement.
He was assigned to the Bin County Machinery Factory, where he was assigned a management position and had a stable job, becoming a true city dweller.
Xin Yougang's family had suffered misfortune in the past because he had misunderstood Liu Ailing's words. His relatives also blamed him for finding a troublemaker and bringing trouble to their family. Every year when the relatives got together, there would be a quarrel.
Moreover, Liu Ailing used their relationship to threaten her family to help her get a letter of introduction. Her family hated Liu Ailing to the core, so he didn't dare to mention it at home at all.
He felt that the three words "Liu Ailing" were taboo words in the family.
But when he graduated and came back, he got a good job and became a real city dweller. The house became lively again after a long time, and his father took the initiative to mention Liu Ailing.
Only then did he know about Liu Ailing's situation in the town, and he also knew that every time she came to his house to exchange letters of introduction, she either brought a piece of meat or half a chicken, and sometimes two taels of soybean oil.
His parents, who used to want to chew Liu Ailing alive, now sighed and said, "That girl is indeed as you said, smart and capable, but... well, we were young back then and thought things were too simple, which led to a wrong step. Otherwise, if you two had both graduated by now, both been assigned jobs by the government, and then got married, our family would have been so prosperous..."
With such a smart daughter-in-law to assist and encourage my son, my son will definitely have a bright future.
The family members were relieved, and Xin Yougang himself felt relieved as well. Otherwise, he would feel particularly depressed every time he came back. He took the opportunity to ask what small business Liu Ailing was doing. After asking for the address, he first went to Liu Ailing's stall, but didn't find her there. Then he realized that it was drizzling and Liu Ailing was not at the stall.
Then I went to find where Liu Ailing lived.
This man also had his own little calculations. After a few years, the hatred he had for Liu Ailing because of the misfortunes her family had suffered had long faded.
After Liu Ailing left, there was no one to help him make money. His family had lost their position as village cadres, and it was impossible for them to indulge him in spending money lavishly as before. Besides, he also had subsidies and food coupons from the school, so he would never starve.
But the ration of food in the school was not enough to fill his stomach. He had never suffered from hardship or hunger since he was a child, and he was greedy and always wanted to eat some meat, fish, etc. Therefore, the food coupons and subsidies issued by the school were not enough for his expenses. At the end of every month, he would go around looking for people to borrow food coupons like other boys in the class.
At this time, he missed the days when Liu Ailing helped him make money.
If, he meant if, nothing had changed, their career might have really developed steadily according to Liu Ailing's plan.
Liu Ailing's approach was correct. There was a traitor among her classmates, and she was maliciously suppressed.
If I hadn't been stabbed in the back by my classmates, I wouldn't be afraid even if I was suppressed by my peers. The capital's market is huge. Even if the road here is blocked, there are still roads there.
In the final analysis, it was those classmates who became traitors for the sake of money.
Xin Yougang was extremely upset.
Originally, the Xin family wanted to let their son find another girl in college, but he was narrow-minded and vindictive. In the past few years, apart from attending classes, he had been corrupting all the girls who betrayed them in the past, spreading rumors about them behind their backs and ruining their reputations.
Although someone later reported the incident to the school and the school gave him a disciplinary action, it did not affect his graduation. Of course, it was impossible for him to find a good female classmate as a partner.
This time, he came over to brag about his experience dealing with traitors. Liu Ailing let out a deep breath, feeling that those women deserved it, but frowned with concern as she said, "You're being unwise. If someone is so reckless as to report you for hooliganism, your life will be ruined. Don't you have any brains after going to college?"
"Do you think those people are like me? Although I threatened your family with this matter, I was forced into a corner. I didn't dare go back home because I was afraid my parents would beat me to death. I had to have a letter of introduction to stay here. I had no choice but to do it. But even if your parents really didn't help me, I couldn't really report you. How could someone I cared for so carefully be so reckless and impulsive? You don't know how to cherish your reputation at all. What if you really made a big mistake? What would your uncle and aunt do? You let me..."
She choked and turned her head away.
Liu Ailing scolded him, but Xin Yougang didn't get angry at all. She wasn't scolding him at all, she was clearly caring about him. Only someone as kind as Ailing could think of him like this.
"Ai Ling!" Xin Yougang was deeply moved. He had gained some knowledge during his four years in college, but he had not grown in brains or heart.
The two looked at each other with tears in their eyes. Xin Yougang's heart began to beat again. He couldn't help but go forward and hug her: "Ailing, you are so kind!"
Liu Ailing pushed him away with a wry smile, straightened his collar, and controlled the tears and grievance in her eyes just right. She said, "You, don't be like this in the future. Think more before you do anything."
"Now you have graduated from university and become a real pillar of the country. You are the pride of your Xin family."
She said self-deprecatingly, "I'm just a noodle seller now. Our statuses are not equal, and we're not meant to be together. But we were together after all, and we didn't break up."
Hearing this, Xin Yougang felt a little uneasy and was afraid to look Liu Ailing in the eye.
The reason they didn't fall out at that time was because one was in the capital and the other had returned to accept punishment, and they couldn't fall out because they were thousands of miles apart.
But his own family almost broke up with Liu Ailing, and not only did he know about it, he didn't help to speak up for her, not only didn't he persuade her, he was even a little resentful because he foolishly listened to Liu Ailing's advice and replaced Qiu Ailing's place, which led to the disaster for his family.
However, in the past two years, no matter how her parents scolded her, Ailing never went to get a letter of introduction empty-handed, and she always spoke in a friendly manner, calling uncle "uncle" and aunt "auntie" when necessary.
Her family members no longer have so much resentment towards her.
Liu Ailing said seriously, "Let's just be ordinary friends from now on. You should work hard and marry a wife who is well-matched with you in the future. Don't let your uncle and aunt worry about you anymore. It's not easy for them either."
The more she acted like this, the more Xin Yougang felt he couldn't let go. Just when he was about to hug her again, Liu Ailing pushed him out with red eyes, slammed the door shut, and then suppressed sobs came from the other side of the door.
Xin Yougang was so moved that he knocked on the door while crying: "Ailing, Ailing, open the door..."
The two of them tugged at each other for a few rounds, and then naturally stuck together again.
Liu Ailing also took the opportunity to transfer her small business to the county.
From Xin Yougang, she learned that Zhou Jiani has never given up her work of making hair circles.
Hair ties are always sold in shopping malls in the capital.
But Xin Yougang was not particularly concerned. He just saw the familiar hairband when he was shopping in the mall and judged that Zhou Jiani was still making hairbands. As for Zhou Jiani's later development, this person was not clear.
I thought it was just a small way to earn some pocket money.
"I've been doing this for so many years, I should still be making money." Although Xin Yougang is earning a salary now, it is not that high. If his career had not been ruined back then, he and Liu Ailing could easily share a lot of money every month, which would not be much lower than their current salary. If things had developed smoothly until now, maybe it would be higher than their current salary.
What does this indicate? It indicates that he hasn't made much progress in the past few years. He just got an enviable cadre job and became a real city dweller.
She doesn't earn as much as Eileen.
But the noodle stall was built by Ai Ling with her own hard work, and he felt embarrassed to just take advantage of it, even though Ai Ling had suggested it. But the more Ai Ling was sensible and considerate, the more embarrassed he felt to take advantage of it.
Although his family didn't hate Liu Ailing as much anymore, they did not agree with him dating Liu Ailing, let alone allowing them to get married. On the contrary, their reaction was very strong. His mother even ran to the county town and overturned Liu Ailing's stall.
His parents didn't expect this either. They thought that it had been several years and their son was now a college graduate with a stable job, so he should have forgotten Liu Ailing long ago.
When they mentioned that thing that day, they thought it was just like chatting about their neighbors.
But when his son went there, the two of them rekindled their relationship.
Even after her stall was overturned, Liu Ailing didn't complain. She quietly packed up her things and turned to comfort Xin Yougang: "Don't be angry, I expected this a long time ago. Don't worry, I don't blame my aunt. If I have to blame anyone, it's myself for not being able to let you go..."
"Ai Ling!" Xin Yougang hugged her in pain and distress. Ai Ling was so good, why didn't her family agree?
If they get married, the money Ailing earns will also be his.
He wanted to marry Ailing tomorrow, but Ailing advised him to take it slow, concentrate on his work, and try to get a promotion as soon as possible.
As for developing new projects, Liu Ailing had never thought about it. If she really did that, she would be exhausted to death, and Xin Yougang would have to share half of the hard work.
This is good. She can save some money and either stay here and open a shop or go back to Qiyang... No, she can't go back to Qiyang. If she goes back to Qiyang, won't her mother come to her every day to ask for money?
Then she would stay here for now, and find a way to get some blank letters of introduction, and then she would leave Bin County.
As for marrying Xin Yougang? She really had no such plans.
But with her relationship with Xin Yougang, she can have a shelter when developing in the county, and business in the county is much better than in the town.
Two years later, Liu Ailing rented a store and opened a small restaurant.
As long as you are willing to work hard, as long as you don't cut corners, and as long as the food is not particularly unpalatable, the restaurant business may not be booming, but you will definitely earn more than working a normal job.
Two years have passed, and the Xin family still does not agree to their marriage. Xin Yougang is also stubborn. During this period, in order to protest with his family, he did not go home on weekends, and even felt that he was living a very comfortable life during this period.
He had a stable job and his girlfriend ran a small restaurant. She would buy him clothes and leather shoes from time to time. He didn't want to eat in the factory cafeteria, so he would come to his girlfriend's restaurant to eat without paying. Ailing would always give him a thick layer of shredded chicken.
But his family members were putting more and more pressure on him, and his mother even went to find the leader of his unit and asked him to be a matchmaker for him.
A few days ago, his leader introduced him to his wife's niece.
He was also a university graduate and was assigned to the county garment factory and joined the factory committee.
Xin Yougang went to see him secretly, and to be honest, he has been a little hesitant these two days.
The girl's job would be a source of pride for others, and she's a college student. By then, both of them will be working, and both of them are city dwellers. Her parents would also think that this would bring honor to the family and help them make up for the loss they'd suffered in previous years.
If he really married Liu Ailing, wouldn't the relatives who were implicated hate his family even more and come to tear them apart alive?
So Xin's parents would never agree to their marriage.
But Xin Yougang couldn't bear to give up Liu Ailing's ability to make money.
Oh, it would be perfect if Ailing also graduated from college and became a worker, and then used her spare time to secretly develop her own small business to earn some money.
Xin Yougang was reluctant to let go of either side. He usually came to Liu Ailing's place to eat and drink, and when Liu Ailing was busy, he would go out to date another girl and watch a movie.
And he didn't know how to break up with Liu Ailing, after all, Ailing was so nice...
Liu Ailing knew nothing about all this. She planned to hire someone to help her so that she could have an easier time and earn a lot of money.
As for the salary, what did she pay? In order to make Xin Yougang inseparable from her, the money she spent on him every month exceeded the salary of the hired servants.
If the business is stable this year, I will rent the store next door next year to expand the store, hire a chef, and serve some new dishes.
Develop slowly, maybe in the future I can open a larger restaurant...
When she thought of this, Liu Ailing felt warm in her heart and was full of longing and hope for the future.
But that day, her dream was shattered.
While the customers in the restaurant were eating, her mother, whom she hadn't seen for several years, rushed in from outside with Liu Aifang and her grown-up brother.
"Well, you shameless, money-loser, you bastard! You've caused such a big mess for your family, and now you're hiding out here enjoying the peace and quiet. You've been living away from home for years, and your parents are still alive, yet you don't even bother to come home to see them. You're such a heartless bastard..."
Lu Cuifang rushed in, grabbed Liu Ailing's hair and started beating her.
Her brother punched and kicked the third sister: "It's all your fault, you shameless man! You made me lose my job and my relationship..."
Liu Ailing was completely stunned.
The customers in the store were shocked.
How could we eat in such a situation? All the customers had left, and a few who had just finished eating and hadn't had time to pay when a commotion broke out in the restaurant, quickly got up and ran away.
Liu Ailing and others came to their senses and began to fight back.
She had been kneading dough and doing other work in recent years, so she was strong. She pushed Lu Cuilan out, turned around, picked up a stool and hit her brother's shoulder.
"Ah——" There was a howling in the store.
"Oh, I fell to my death..."
"Third sister, why did you hit mother?"
“That’s enough!”
Liu Ailing slammed a bowl and yelled, "What are you making a fuss about? What are you making a fuss about? Can you please speak human language?"
Lu Cuilan stood up and pointed at her nose, cursing, "What are you talking about? You slut, you're shameless and you blame us for not telling anyone. You've wreaked havoc on the family and you've gone out into the world, and you're shameless enough to hook up with a man. His family doesn't want you, but you're still clinging on to them. I've written a letter to the factory to report you."
"You've ruined your brother's new job and girlfriend. I won't live any longer..."
Lu Cuilan sat on the ground and began to cry, slapping her thighs.
Liu Aifang complained, "Third sister, your boyfriend's family found our dormitory and called you shameless to everyone they met. They even wrote a letter to our father's boss at the factory to report you. I don't know how they found out that my younger brother just found a girlfriend and a job, so they went to cause trouble too. I can't even hold my head up in my in-laws' house anymore..."
Liu Aifang got married after working for a few years, but because she was expelled from the university, her elder and younger sisters-in-law looked down on her and she suffered a lot.
Liu Ailing only felt a buzzing in her ears, her mind went blank, and her face, scalp, and body where she was hit were all burning with pain.
In Xin Yougang's house, there are those two old guys in Xin Yougang's family!
Liu Ailing's eyes turned red with hatred.
She had no intention of marrying Xin Yougang, but she was attracted by the convenience that Xin Yougang's current status could bring her.
The original plan was to delay it for another two years, until she had established herself and had her own network of contacts, and then separate from Xin Yougang.
Unexpectedly, the Xin family couldn't wait any longer. Not only did they find out where she was, they also went there and made a fuss, attracting the vampires in her house.
It was indeed a vampire. Soon her brother asked her with a smile how much money she had earned. Her mother asked her to compensate her brother for his losses, and when he found a new partner and they talked about marriage, she would have to give a betrothal gift to her brother.
Liu Aifang also hesitantly wanted her sister to help her: "Sister, please take care of your niece. Because she is a girl, my mother-in-law usually doesn't let me eat with your niece. Haven't you seen the child? She is pale and thin..."
Lu Cuilan said from the side: "A little girl is not worthy of her third aunt's love. I told you to send her away earlier, but you didn't listen. You might as well give me the money to honor your father. Ai Ling, you have already made your father lose face at work, and now you have brought shame to us. You have to compensate us..."
Liu Ailing's brother said, "Sis, your boyfriend's family doesn't agree, so don't be so shameless and cling to them. If you have such skills, why don't you go back to the provincial capital and open a shop? If you go back to the provincial capital, I will let your sister-in-law go to the shop to help you, so you don't have to work too hard."
Lu Cuilan also said: "Yes, yes, let's go back to the provincial capital. Then our whole family will work together to open a shop. You will be responsible for cooking, I will be responsible for collecting money, and your sister-in-law will be responsible for cleaning..."
In short, the vampires stayed and relied on her.
She came to the store every day and stared at the customers who came in to eat. When they were paying the bill, before Liu Ailing even reached out her hand, her mother would snatch it away.
She also complained that she put too much chicken in the soup for the customers, or asked her to make the chicken soup saltier and add half a bowl of water when scooping it for the customers, so that she could sell a pot of chicken soup for a lot more money.
When she returned to her place, she had been simmering a chicken all day, intending to take it to the store the next day. However, when she turned around, her brother had already torn off a chicken leg and started gnawing on it.
Her mother also found a bowl and scooped up a large bowl of chicken soup, and tore off another chicken leg.
Liu Aifang simply fished out the remaining chicken...
Liu Ailing felt cold all over.
She ran to Xin Yougang's workplace and slapped him in the face in public.
Xin Yougang wanted to say a few soft words, but Liu Ailing didn't give him a chance and turned away.
Xin Yougang didn't take it seriously, thinking that he would just break up. After much thought, he decided that the boss's wife and niece were better, and he could also get access to the boss's relationship...
Liu Ailing closed her restaurant and packed up all her things and took them back to the provincial capital.
Before leaving, he wrote several letters of denunciation and sent them to the leaders of Donghe Commune and Xin Yougang's unit respectively.
One letter was reporting several cases of corruption in the Xin family that had not been discovered that year, and the other was reporting Xin Yougang for being a hooligan.
If she doesn't have a good life, Xin Yougang won't have an easy life either.
The Xin family was investigated again, and Xin Yougang was also investigated. The leader's wife's niece also kicked him out and was invited to the police station for questioning.
After all this trouble, even if he insists that it was consensual between the two of them, it still has a big impact on him. He can forget about achieving success in his career, and it will be good enough if he can keep his job.
On his own side, things were also thrown into chaos because of Liu Ailing's report.
Although it ultimately failed due to insufficient evidence, it also suffered a heavy blow.
In the early 1990s, Qiyang’s first Qianhui Department Store began to recruit investors.
There are two floors, covering an area of more than 2,600 square meters.
The entrance on the first floor attracts specialty restaurants and brand stores.
Liu Ailing was riding her bike past here and saw the investment promotion agency. She parked her bike nearby and went in to find the relevant person in charge to ask about the cost of renting a store.
She was severely injured by the torture at home a few years ago. After returning to Qi Yang, her parents forced her to use money to reopen the store, but it ended up being taken away by her younger brother.
She lost everything.
But he also used that incident to officially break up with his family and found a partner, a former classmate who was divorced and had a daughter with his ex-wife.
Liu Ailing was not satisfied with this condition, but she didn't want to wait any longer, nor did she dare to wait. She was worried that her parents would exchange her for a betrothal gift tomorrow, and she didn't know what kind of man they would find for her.
I simply gritted my teeth and took my household registration booklet to register with my male classmate in private.
When her mother found out, she was furious, but Liu Ailing would never compromise. She hated the vampire in her family.
After getting married, she is no longer a member of the Liu family, and her parents' family will have to be more cautious if they want to get involved.
She invested all her money in the store she reopened before marriage, so she had to start over after marriage, and she had to start over despite her mother-in-law's displeasure.
Her husband's family thought it was shameful to run a small business and wanted her to take care of the housework at home and give birth to a boy as soon as possible.
The first one gave birth to a daughter, but because of the family planning policy, they couldn't have a second child. The daughter-in-law was asked to send her away, but she refused to do so. So the family instigated their son to divorce her. Now with a new daughter-in-law, they can have another child, and the family is looking forward to having a grandson.
Fortunately, Liu Ailing was independent-minded and had her own way of speaking, which made the man listen to her in everything. So she started to save capital by setting up a stall again.
The store my younger brother occupied barely lasted a year because he cut corners and didn't pay attention to restaurant hygiene. In the summer, the chicken soup didn't taste good because it wasn't stored properly, causing customers to get sick and causing a big fuss. He was even taken to the police station.
Finally had to close down.
I saved up capital for a few years and was thinking about renting a store to open a restaurant. Then I saw the information about Qianhui Department Store's investment promotion.
It’s good to work in a department store. In recent years, state-owned department stores have been getting worse and worse. This Qianhui Department Store is obviously opened by a private owner, and the location is also good. It will definitely do good business in the future. Opening a store in a shopping mall, isn’t that picking up ready-made customers?
Liu Ailing went in to ask someone, and the person came out with a bad look on his face.
The rent was too expensive, five or six times higher than other shops she had asked about, and there were many harsh additional conditions.
But I couldn't sleep that night. I tossed and turned in my thoughts. No matter how I thought about it, I felt that the shop was cost-effective. The rent was high, but if the shop was really opened in a shopping mall, the grade would also increase. The price of a bowl of noodles would definitely double, and the profit would definitely be high.
In the middle of the night, she sat up with a flutter. She heard a baby crying softly beside her. She hurriedly patted the baby and comforted him softly.
This is Liu Ailing's second pregnancy. She is not as pedantic as her husband's ex-wife. She needs her son's support, and she is certain that if she gives birth to a daughter, her mother-in-law will definitely not be willing to let her take care of the child while she is busy outside.
So when she was pregnant with her first child, her in-laws asked someone to take a scan of her. When they found out it was a girl, she didn't want the child without saying a word.
For this, her mother-in-law praised her for being sensible and even stopped objecting to her doing business.
The second baby was kept only after it was confirmed to be a boy.
In fact, this also gave her more say in her husband's family, and now both her mother-in-law and husband listen to her.
Liu Ailing figured out the value of the shop and couldn't sleep.
She could definitely make money, but the initial investment was too high and she couldn't afford that much money.
Even if the family sold everything they had, they couldn't come up with half the cost.
In addition to the rent, the store decoration requirements are also high. When the restaurant opens, Qianhui Department Store will also have requirements in terms of configuration.
Everything has to be up to standard.
Thinking that it was not enough to just raise the rent and that there would be huge investments in the later stages, Liu Ailing's heart gradually cooled.
But she was always jealous. No matter how she analyzed it, she knew that she would make money, and a lot of money, but she was powerless to do anything.
Half a month later, she passed by there again and went in to ask, only to be told that there were no vacancies...
Liu Ailing was shocked: "No more spots?"
"It disappeared a week ago."
With such high rent, such stringent requirements, and such a high investment, how could it be rented out so quickly?
Six months later, Qianhui Department Store opened. GG was everywhere on TV, radio, and in newspapers. There was a lottery draw, a three-day promotion, and a promotion where eggs were 10 cents cheaper per pound than at the market...
On the opening day, there were so many people that they had to limit the number of people entering for fear of any accidents.
Liu Ailing went there once but couldn't squeeze in.
After three days, the fever gradually subsided a little, and when I went there again, my eyes were immediately red.
The restaurant inside was doing very well and was always full, but the decoration of the restaurant was also too nice. Fortunately, she gave up at that time, otherwise she would not be able to afford the decoration even if she sold everything she had to rent it.
Business in the mall is also booming. Although not as exaggerated as when it opened, it is still crowded.
There was such a wide variety of things. On the first floor, there were clothes, home appliances, bedding, kitchen utensils, etc. On the second floor, there were all kinds of snacks, cooked snacks, fish, meat, eggs, milk, etc. There were a few familiar items, and the prices seemed to be cheaper than what she bought from the convenience store near her home... one cent?
Things that cost two dollars over there are only 1.99 here.
Many things are a penny cheaper than what she bought outside.
Liu Ailing couldn't help but pick up the self-service shopping basket.
Well, their format is different too, with uniform portable woven baskets that you can choose yourself.
Whenever she saw the woven products, she thought of the Qianjin Brigade and Zhou Jiani, which made her feel a little uncomfortable.
As if possessed by a mysterious force, she picked up the basket and took a closer look, and actually saw an inconspicuous little label in the corner: Bin County Weaving Factory!
"Why hasn't that crappy factory closed down yet?"
She saw someone pushing a small cart that she had never seen before. It seemed to be provided by the shopping mall. She threw the basket back and asked someone, then got a cart and walked into the merchandise area.
There were so many things, and there were many products she had never seen before, including imported products. Moreover, many things were a penny cheaper than outside. She couldn't control her urge to buy more.
Before I knew it, I had spent seventy or eighty yuan when I checked out.
It was just that Liu Ailing was well-off now—of course, she couldn't afford to rent a shop here, but she was already more generous than the people around her in her daily spending.
But she still felt bad, but the teller quietly reminded her that ten yuan would be deducted for purchases over a hundred yuan.
In other words, if she chooses something worth twenty dollars, she will only be charged ten dollars!
Liu Ailing couldn't help but return the item, picked out something worth twenty yuan, came back to pay and spent ninety yuan, leaving satisfied.
After that, she often brought her children here to shop, especially since the mall had weekly promotions and egg sales. Her mother-in-law would line up at 4 a.m. every week to buy eggs from here...
It's strange that while state-owned shopping malls officially closed down one after another, Qianhui Department Store's business became more and more prosperous. Later, it launched a recharge card activity, such as recharge 100 and get 20, recharge 200 and get 50, and recharge 300 and get an even bigger discount, directly get 100.
The unit Liu Ailing worked for happened to be quite profitable, and many people were secretly using their connections to transfer there.
Her husband's family didn't want their son to give up this iron rice bowl. Although Liu Ailing made more money selling food, it was still not as good as having an iron rice bowl.
Liu Ailing also supports this. Different positions and units bring different connections. If her husband does well, the units he will be transferred to in the future will become better and better. Maybe he can even work in a government unit. Wouldn't it be more convenient for her to do business then?
But it was not easy to give gifts openly when using connections, so Liu Ailing thought of shopping cards from Qianhui Department Store. She discussed it with her in-laws and bought several shopping cards worth 200 yuan each and gave them out.
The job was transferred, but the couple did not make good judgment and did not choose the right company, so they were laid off less than a year after the transfer.
Now the whole family eats at Liu Ailing's small restaurant.
After the restaurant closed that day, Liu Ailing took her husband and children to Qianhui Department Store.
She bought two sets of clothes for her son and a pair of shoes for herself and her husband. She also took a fancy to a waist bag in the "Feitu" store in the mall. Although the price was a bit expensive, the more she looked at it, the more she liked it, and finally she gritted her teeth and bought it.
Her boyfriend said, "Our eldest sister's son Xiaozhong has a birthday next month. Let's buy him a bag. I see a lot of boys carrying this kind of bag."
She was talking about the son of her eldest sister-in-law. Liu Ailing didn't get along well with her eldest sister-in-law and was very unhappy about it. She was reluctant to buy such an expensive bag for her eldest sister-in-law's son.
After suppressing his anger, he picked the cheapest one and paid the bill together, complaining: "You are so good at pretending to be a good person. Is it easy for me to earn a few dollars?"
There are countless restaurants on the streets now, and her noodle shop is not as busy as it was in the past two years, so she can be considered to earn a high salary.
Her husband also works in the store, and the amount of money he earns is equivalent to what she earned before. Now there are two of them earning it, but sometimes it's not as much as she earned before, and he also has to be responsible for the expenses of the whole family.
The man next to her didn't say anything and just listened silently. After all, the whole family was relying on Liu Ailing for food.
The two walked out of the luggage store and turned around to see a group of people surrounding a person walking towards them.
The woman in the middle is tall and well-proportioned. She is wearing a black business suit with a waistline. There is a belt of the same color in the middle of the top, decorated with a silver metal buckle, and a white shirt with a bow tie inside.
She was wearing high heels, had short hair that was neat and tidy but had an indescribable temperament, and had light makeup on her face.
Strong aura.
"Mr. Zhou, will we stay in Qiyang for a while this time?"
Qianhui Trading has already started construction, but not in Qiyang, but in the next city. It is a five-story building and will be equipped with a cinema, a small amusement park, etc.
It’s a big project.
Mr. Zhou must be keeping an eye on Qi Yang.
Zhou Jiani: "Stay for half a month. During this time, you can go directly to Qiyang Hotel to report to me on your work."
"Okay, Mr. Zhou."
Zhou Jiani felt as if someone was staring at her. She looked up and her gaze met Liu Ailing's.
Liu Ailing withdrew her gaze as if she was burned and turned her head away.
Zhou Jiani glanced behind her and raised her eyebrows slightly, "Feitu" store.
He looked at the two bags in her hands with the labels still on, then withdrew his gaze and left while listening to his subordinates' work reports, leaving behind a faint fragrance.
"Ailing? Ailing? What's wrong with you?"
Liu Ailing came back to her senses, and there was still a faint scent of perfume lingering at the tip of her nose, dispelling the complex smell unique to the restaurant on her body.
Her face turned pale, she bit her lip tightly and said, "Let's go."
Mr. Zhou? After graduating with a Ph.D., Zhou Jiani didn't join the government. Did she work for a private employer?
Liu Ailing smiled.
Haha, it’s just like this after graduating with a PhD. You still have to work for others. But she opened her own restaurant and is a boss.
Liu Ailing led the man and child away with an inexplicable confidence.
This article ends here. Thank you all for your company and support. Bow~ (See you in the new book)
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