Upon hearing Jiang Yuwei's words, Manager Li couldn't help but look at her with a hint of admiration:
"Okay, then I'll order five hundred dollars, for a month. You have to deliver it to me in full, and the quality has to be this good. Otherwise, I won't accept it."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuwei nodded happily:
"Alright, but our paper mill has a rule that a quarter of the paper must be paid as a deposit before ordering. If Manager Li refuses to accept the paper we deliver due to his fault, the deposit will not be refunded. I wonder if Manager Li agrees?"
After pondering for a moment, Manager Li picked up paper and pen, drafted the document, and then went to get the deposit and handed it to Jiang Yuwei.
Jiang Yuwei carefully checked the document and, finding no problems, the two signed and sealed it.
Jiang Yuwei was overjoyed to receive this large order, and then took the remaining paper to the stationery store:
"Shopkeeper, I have some Yuwei paper here. Can I consign it to you? You can sell it for 28 coins a ream. You don't need to pay me upfront. I'll collect the money after you sell it all. Just give me 25 coins a ream. Right now, I only have three reams of paper left. Try selling them first. If they sell well, I'll bring you more next time."
The stationery shop owner, hearing that he could sell paper and make money without paying upfront, was naturally delighted and accepted the offer. He said to Jiang Yuwei:
"Okay, don't worry about leaving it to me. Your paper is of good quality, so you won't have to worry about selling it. Once I've sold it all, please send me more next time!"
Jiang Yuwei thought that this would open up sales channels. She didn't expect the stationery store to sell a lot, but having her own Yuwei paper in the stationery store would be a form of advertising. The main sales would still depend on the bookstore and Ning Zhao.
After finishing her business here, Jiang Yuwei asked Ning Huaizhi to drive the oxcart to Lianxianglou on East Street. She still had to write a new prescription for Manager Xu today.
Soon the two arrived at the entrance of Lianxiang Restaurant. As soon as Jiang Yuwei entered, she could clearly feel that there were far fewer customers. Manager Xu saw Jiang Yuwei from afar and hurried over to greet her.
"Oh, Yuwei, my savior! You've finally come!"
Jiang Yuwei smiled and said:
"I've been a bit busy at home these past few days, so I've been delayed a bit. I brought you some bean sprouts and chili sauce, so have someone take them to the backyard first. I'll write down a recipe for you, and we'll go to the kitchen to make it for you to try later."
Manager Xu hurriedly waved to the shop assistants behind him to move the things, then took Jiang Yuwei to the accounting room, took out paper and pen, and handed them to Jiang Yuwei:
"Yuwei, hurry up, write this down first. I've had far fewer customers these past few days. Those two dishes have been almost completely copied. If you don't come soon, I'm going to come looking for you in your village!"
Jiang Yuwei took the paper and pen and first wrote down a recipe for shredded pork with garlic sauce, then a recipe for boiled sliced pork, before handing it to Manager Xu with a smile:
"I have prepared two recipes for you today, each costing ten taels of silver. I'll take you to the kitchen first to make them for you to try, and then I'll share with you how to keep your guests."
Manager Xu nodded repeatedly, took the silver from the accounting office and handed it to Jiang Yuwei, then led her to the kitchen.
Jiang Yuwei had the head chef oversee things while she asked the kitchen staff to help wash the vegetables and prepare the side dishes. After chopping the green peppers, shredded pork, shredded carrots, and shredded wood ear mushrooms, she added ginger slices, cooking wine, soy sauce, oil, cornstarch, and a spoonful each of salt to the shredded pork, mixed well, and marinated it. She also prepared a sauce for the fish-fragrant shredded pork, using 4 spoons of balsamic vinegar, 2 spoons of light soy sauce, and 1 spoonful of cornstarch, mixing well.
Jiang Yuwei first stir-fried the shredded pork in the wok until it changed color, then added other side dishes and continued to stir-fry for a while before pouring in the sauce for the shredded pork with fish-fragrant sauce and stir-frying until evenly mixed before serving.
Manager Xu scratched his head and said:
"Why didn't you put in any fish strips? Is this done? It smells pretty good!"
Jiang Yuwei smiled and said:
"Although this dish is called Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork), it doesn't contain any fish."
After saying that, Jiang Yuwei turned to the head chef and said:
"The method for making boiled pork slices is similar to that for boiled fish. I'll demonstrate it once and you'll be able to do it."
Soon, Jiang Yuwei made another pot of boiled pork slices. By this time, the kitchen was already filled with a wonderful aroma. Everyone couldn't help but swallow their saliva just from smelling the food. By the time Jiang Yuwei looked at the fish-flavored shredded pork again, it had already been completely devoured by everyone.
When Manager Xu saw that all the dishes were ready, he was very satisfied. He felt that his restaurant was about to become popular again, so he called Jiang Yuwei to the private room upstairs to ask her for advice on how to retain customers.
Seeing Manager Xu's anxious look, Jiang Yuwei could only smile helplessly:
"In my opinion, Lianxianglou should offer a membership program in the future. We can encourage customers to prepay for their meals and give them a membership card. When they come to eat in the future, they can use the membership card to deduct the cost from the card. Members can get a 5% discount on the 1st and 15th of each month. Also, the shredded pork with garlic sauce that I made today should be a member-only dish that can be ordered by members."
After listening to Jiang Yuwei's remarks, Manager Xu pondered for a long time before standing up in surprise, slamming his hand on the table and laughing loudly:
"Hahaha, good, good, good! This is a great idea! Yuwei, you are truly our Lianxianglou's savior! Look, I'll make Double Peppered Crucian Carp, Spicy Boiled Fish, Spicy Boiled Pork, and Cold Bean Sprouts our signature dishes, and then make Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork our members' dish, along with member discounts on the 1st and 15th of each month. This will definitely keep our customers coming back to Lianxianglou!"
Manager Xu hurriedly poured Jiang Yuwei a cup of tea and smiled apologetically:
"Look, I was so busy asking you questions that I forgot to pour you some tea!"
Jiang Yuwei smiled, took the teacup, sipped the tea, and said:
"No problem. We'll add a few more dishes to the members-only menu in the future. Once the guests get tired of the Yu Xiang Rou Si (shredded pork with garlic sauce), I'll send you a new recipe. We must promote the members-only program more. A few days ago, we made Yu Xiang Rou Si and put it out at the entrance for free tasting. If you like it and want to eat it again, you'll have to become a member."
Manager Xu nodded repeatedly:
"Alright, alright, I'll do as you say today. Go back and think of a few more new prescriptions for me."
Jiang Yuwei smiled and bid farewell to Manager Xu before leaving Lianxianglou. She boarded Ning Huaizhi's oxcart, and the two headed towards Ningjia Village together.
Before she even left Ping'an Town, Jiang Yuwei ran into two acquaintances. She had intended to tell Ning Huaizhi to hurry up and avoid them, but these two were also sharp-eyed. They spotted Jiang Yuwei sitting on the oxcart from afar and rushed towards her without saying a word.
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