Chapter 42 Sister-in-law's Snack Stand
Yu Gaozhu had not originally thought of selling meat vegetables, either because she did not like them or they were expensive and she was afraid that she would not be able to sell them. But after hearing what Pu Xiang said, she felt that it made sense.
Why not give it a try first? Two pounds of pork only costs a few dollars, so the investment cost is not high.
She thought about it and decided that if the meat was only sold for 30 or 50 cents a piece, it would not be cheap, but if she had the opportunity, she would definitely buy it as long as she had money in her pocket. Even if she didn't eat it herself, she could buy something for her children to satisfy their cravings.
Although people nowadays are poor, they all care about their face. When they go to a butcher's stall to buy meat, they will buy at least half a pound, and they are still embarrassed to ask for it and are very secretive.
I was afraid of being called poor, and that I had to pretend to be rich to buy meat even though I had no money.
But snack stands are different, they sell food one dollar at a time, it’s just a small business with only a few cents, so it’s not shameful to buy food for one dollar.
“Just try it first, and then buy if it tastes good.”
This can be said with confidence.
After being reminded by Pu Xiang, Yu Gaozhu thought more and more that this approach was feasible.
There were also dried tofu and bean curd sheets with gravy and salt. She thought they were so delicious.
Yu Gaozhu was very enthusiastic. She planned to buy a tricycle, a coal stove, some coal briquettes, and two larger pots. The remaining items included bamboo sticks, seasonings, and various other small items.
The total cost is about two to three hundred yuan.
The Pu family's money is all managed by the daughter-in-law Gui Yu Gaozhu. She can take out some money, but once she has taken it out, it will all be gone.
The Chinese New Year is coming up, which is another expense. I also have to prepare some money for red envelopes in case any relative has a wedding, tuition for the children to go back to school after the Chinese New Year, fertilizer for the fields in the spring, and money for pig feed at home. All of these have to be prepared.
Although Yu Gaozhu was confident that she could make money and thought this business was promising, she could never be so sure that it would be foolproof.
Therefore, I made an agreement with Pu Xiang that I would not lend her the money for now, but in case her stall was not set up and she had problems with her future living expenses, I would still be prepared to borrow some from her.
Pu Xiang was not ambiguous at all. He took out three hundred yuan and stuffed it into his sister-in-law's hand: "Sister-in-law, take the money first. With money, you will have confidence."
Here and there, Pu Xiang reminded people of the importance of keeping food clean and hygienic, being willing to use more ingredients when making things, and that when doing business you will inevitably encounter some people who are difficult to get along with, so don't be too calculative, as harmony brings wealth, and as long as you make a profit overall, that's enough.
Pu Xiang laughed as she talked about this. She was always like this, unable to help but worry.
"Sister-in-law, go ahead and do it. If you can't do it, I'm here. After the New Year, I plan to start some other small business. It won't be a problem to leave you a job."
With Pu Xiang's help, Yu Gaozhu felt more confident.
"Third sister, don't worry, I think I can do it!"
If she can't even get up even with help from others, then she should just stop struggling in her life and stay in the village, digging for food in the fields, and try to survive.
Yu Gaozhu also got busy, preparing tools, buying ingredients, and practicing for two days. Pu Xiang and Shi Wenya both tasted the halved vegetables she made.
Yu Gaozhu was not bragging, the food she cooked was indeed delicious, but this was only possible in the countryside.
After trying the cattail incense, I felt that the taste was a bit too salty, but everything else was fine, except that it was a bit not fragrant enough.
But that's how it is these days. People use less oil and water, and when they cook, they aim to make the food go well with rice. Using more oil and salt will make people compliment them on the taste.
Yu Gaozhu adjusted the Puxiang a little bit, and the taste became a little lighter. She also asked her to add spices like star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves. When making the meat stuffed with straw, she added rice wine to remove the fishy smell.
Yu Gaozhu tried it again. She cooked it in the house that Puxiang rented. The aroma was so overbearing that it smoked out several houses next door. She asked what she was making.
Anyway, whether it tastes good or not is another matter, but the fragrance is good enough.
People here generally don't have the habit of adding spices when cooking, so this smell is simply too tempting.
After being knocked on the door and questioned several times, Yu Gaozhu suddenly calmed down.
When it was almost cooked, she took two bites and thought it was a bit bland. However, Pu Xiang said it was just right, so she didn't add any salt. She tasted it and thought that apart from the blandness, she couldn't find any fault with it.
She quickly packed a lunch box and went to find Pu Xiang. She had been trying out brines these past two days and had also helped Pu Xiang solve her lunch problem.
Pu Xiang and Shi Wenya are now eating with the couple who own the noodle shop next door. They gave some money and joined them.
After Pu Xiang and Shi Wenya tasted the food and were satisfied, Yu Gaozhu officially started his own stall life.
Of course, she didn't do it alone, she also called her man Pu Jianguo.
This is also what Pu Xiang said. In this cold winter, the lunch at noon was okay, but by the time she finished her business and closed the stall at night, it would be dark, and it would be unsafe to go back to the village. Pu Jianguo had nothing to do at home anyway, so she asked him to go with her to the stall.
Even a fool is watching.
The Pu family members all have a tall stature, so at least a tall and strong man like him can scare away a lot of troubles just by standing there.
Yu Gaozhu originally didn't want to let her man go with her. It wasn't because she felt sorry for him or anything, but her in-laws didn't really approve of her plan.
That is to say, the old couple of the Pu family still maintained the politeness they thought they should have in front of their daughter-in-law, and did not speak harshly to them as they did to their daughter Pu Xiang.
But there were inevitable sighs and groans, and the father-in-law Pu Youfu stayed in bed for a few more days.
Pu Jianguo, as a husband, has already said several times that he is making trouble.
"We don't have any money at home, and we're still tinkering with these things. What can we achieve? If doing business was that easy, wouldn't everyone be doing it? How can we rural people get a chance?"
Yu Gaozhu was almost mad with anger. If she hadn't seen that Pu Xiang's women's clothing store was now doing very well, she would have been scared back by these words.
Few rural people go out to do business.
However, even though Pu Xiang had already opened a shop, no one in the family was willing to open their eyes to take a look.
People always talk about how rural people are, but in fact they are just afraid and timid.
The cost of two or three hundred yuan was a considerable expense for their family, but it was an opportunity to change their destiny.
They lost all the two or three hundred dollars, and their life would be a little tighter at the end, but if they succeeded, their lives would be easier in the future.
Yu Gaozhu and Pu Jianguo quarreled several times. After the quarrel, Yu Gaozhu didn't want to care about Pu Jianguo anymore. Anyway, no matter how much he said, it would be better to wait until she really made money.
But Pu Xiang advised her that making money is a big deal, but safety is more important.
After being persuaded, Yu Gaozhu thought that this was true. She worked so hard for the sake of their family, so there was no reason not to bring Pu Jianguo along.
She didn't care whether Pu Jianguo was happy or not, she just dragged him in anyway.
Pu Xiang was right again. Pu Jianguo was the same as his parents. He had no opinions of his own and sometimes seemed a bit confused. But if he was really dragged along with the scolding and scolding, he was not a courageous person, nor was he a rude one. If he was asked to do the work of moving things, he would just work hard with a bitter face.
With such a helper, Yu Gaozhu felt a lot more relaxed.
Even though it only sells snacks, it requires stoves, pots, and soups, so it's quite heavy.
All the physical work was done by Pu Jianguo, while selling things and collecting money was all done by Yu Gaozhu.
Yu Gaozhu chose three locations. She did business with students at the school gate at noon and in the evening. After the students left after school, she went to the gates of several factories. The factories got off work later than the schools, so she could catch up in terms of time.
Originally, Yu Gaozhu was prepared. If the goods were not sold out, she would go outside the factory to guard the flow of people who were working overtime and leaving.
But she didn't expect that her business would be so good that she prepared a big pot of halved skewers and halved meat on the first day, which was sold out earlier than expected.
Especially for students, who have the ability to spend money, many of them can afford even a small amount of money like five cents or ten cents.
Some people even spend a few cents to buy meat.
Yu Gaozhu was stunned by what she saw.
But on second thought, she felt it was normal. The school she chose was a middle school, where students were all growing up and at an age most likely to lose weight. Also, it was a school in the county town, where many students came from families with two working spouses, and the children all had some pocket money, which was incomparable to families in the village.
After the success of the first day, Yu Gaozhu gained confidence and went back to buy another big pot, doubling the sales volume.
After she had been doing it for a few days, she had repeat customers and the meat stuffed with straw was sold out every day. The amount she made every day was also increasing.
Not only that, Yu Gaozhu was also inspired. Since her parents-in-law were free at home, she asked them to help her make rice dumplings, which came in two flavors: salty and sweet. The salty one contained pork belly, and the sweet one contained candied dates and red beans.
Zongzi are also easy to prepare. Just heat them up and keep them in the pot. When customers buy them, they can just peel off the leaves and eat them.
Moreover, there is rice and stuffing, so if someone doesn’t want to go home to cook, eating zongzi can fill the bill.
"You don't know, your elder brother started to set up a stall with me with a sullen face, and now he urges me to set up the stall every day. Even when I go to bed at night, I still think about what I can sell at the stall."
Yu Gaozhu would take time out from time to time to report to Pu Xianghui about the situation of her stall. She was both angry and amused when talking about Pu Jianguo.
Pu Xiang also laughed when she heard this, but she didn't forget to remind him at the end: "Don't worry about my brother's attitude now, you have to take care of the money yourself, and you have to manage the stall well, just like when my parents made zongzi. When running a small business, you must avoid cutting corners and ruining your reputation. You are just starting out now, so you can't mess this up. Besides, after the Chinese New Year, if someone sees that your business is good, they will definitely copy you. It doesn't require any technical skills. What matters is the quality of the ingredients. You should put in enough ingredients. Customers are not fools, they can all taste it."
Especially for rice dumplings, you can tell how much meat there is in them once you eat them.
When Yu Gaozhu heard this, she took note of it carefully. When she thought that her parents-in-law might secretly reduce the amount of meat fillings in order to save money, she decided that she would clarify the matter with the two elderly people when she returned home.
If it really doesn't work, she will threaten them with the failure of the business.
In such a busy time, this year finally came to an end.
Pu Xiang gave the two people in the store a holiday starting from the Little New Year. As the year was coming to an end, she had already stocked up on goods before the wholesale market closed for a break.
She was very busy on her own in the last few days.
But New Year celebrations in the countryside are grand and involve a lot of things to do, so she had to let Shi Wenya and Zhao Qing go back.
It was not until the afternoon of the twenty-ninth day of the lunar year that Pu Xiang prepared to close, and the work for the year was officially over.
"Aunt Xiangxiang, we are here to pick you up from get off work. Let's spend the New Year together this year!"