"Who is it?" He Zhilan asked warily.
They had worked hard for three days to prepare without any problems, but on the opening day, someone came out to obstruct them, which must mean something bad was going to happen.
The crowd that had been watching the commotion all looked in the direction from which the voice came, and saw several people dressed in uniform yamen runners pushing through the crowd and coming over.
"Do you have the proper seals and credentials for opening this shop?" the leader of the constables asked them.
Lin Qixia: "I've already processed the certificate, and it's been approved, but the official document hasn't been issued yet."
She had asked before, but for some reason, even after several days, they kept making excuses and wouldn't give her the documents.
Not wanting to delay the opening date of their shop, they decided to hold the ceremony first.
Since I've already passed the application and the product hasn't officially started selling yet, there won't be any problems.
At least that's what Lin Qixia thought, but unexpectedly, the officials still came to her door today.
"No permits? What kind of shop are you running?" the constable sneered.
Lin Qixia: "..."
This person seems to be unable to understand human speech.
She said the documents hadn't been issued yet, but the application had already been approved, so how could she say it hadn't been issued?
"It has already passed your government's review, sir," Lin Qixia patiently explained to him repeatedly.
The constable stepped forward, glanced at the plaque above, and ordered her, "Enough talk, open the door and check!"
"You—" Seeing the group of people being aggressive, He Zhilan looked at Lin Qixia without thinking.
Lin Qixia said calmly, "It's okay, just open the door and let them see."
He Zhilan responded, and then she and Lin Jiudong pushed open the shop door together.
After the large shop door opened, there were several neat wooden shelves inside, filled with grains.
Several wooden crates on the ground were also filled with rice and flour.
"hiss--"
Upon seeing the scene inside the store, many people outside gasped in shock.
"There's so much grain?"
"No wonder it's named 'Xiahe Village,' it must have some connections, otherwise how could it have obtained so much grain?"
"That's right, someone with such extraordinary abilities in these times must be no ordinary person..."
"So these constables are really bold to dare to be so disrespectful."
The murmurs of discussion drifted from the street outside, as people eagerly peered into the shop, expressing their disapproval of the yamen runners' behavior.
"Gentlemen?" Lin Qixia called out to them from the doorway, "Would you like to go in and take a look?"
As she spoke, she generously gestured for them to enter.
The constables exchanged glances, perhaps instilled a sense of apprehension in them by the words of the common people.
The leader stared at her for a while, then snorted and said, "Fine, you have three days to get your documents sorted out, or you'll be forced to close down!"
"Let's go!" he said, and left with his men.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the yamen runners quickly fled the shop entrance.
Lin Qixia and He Zhilan breathed a sigh of relief.
The people could no longer contain their curiosity about the grain shop and crowded around, asking, "Young lady, is your shop still open?"
"That's right, the constables have all left, it's time to open the gate, isn't it?"
Faced with everyone's urging, He Zhilan and Lin Qixia exchanged a glance.
Lin Qixia then smiled at them and said, "Sorry to keep you all waiting. Our shop is officially open. Please come in!"
"Please come in, please come in!" Lin Jiudong called out from the side.
Soon, the grain shop became lively.
Not only outside the store, but also inside, a large crowd had gathered in front of the counter, shouting and asking questions in varying degrees of confusion.
Do you have millet at home?
"I see you sell rice. How much is it per dou (a unit of dry measure)?"
"Where's the boss? Why isn't the boss responding?"
Amidst the clamor of voices, Lin Jiudong, who had been appointed as a temporary clerk by Lin Qixia at the counter, was flustered and asked, "Wait a minute?"
"You want rice? How much does it cost? Let me check first—"
She wasn't even familiar with the prices.
Lin Qixia, who was busy moving grain, kept an eye on her while remaining calm.
He Zhilan was even more anxious than her, "Xia'er, look, Dong'er isn't handling this well either, why don't we replace her and let me..."
"No rush," Lin Qixia said slowly. "She was so confident that she could do it, so I wanted to test her."
Actually, she didn't expect Lin Jiudong to be able to handle this kind of situation.
Moreover, this level of trouble is not yet considered a problem; everything is still under Lin Qixia's control.
As the two were talking, they watched as Lin Jiudong frantically tried to do things at the counter.
"Hey! You guys, take your time, one at a time!" Lin Jiudong finally broke down. "How am I supposed to sell to you all if you keep pushing and shoving like this?"
She shouted, while glancing at Lin Qixia not far away with some resentment.
Even so, Lin Qixia did not come over.
He didn't seem to have any intention of helping her; he was busy with other things with He Zhilan on the side.
Lin Jiudong had reason to suspect that they deliberately left her hanging, putting her in this predicament so they could see her make a fool of herself!
"Hey! What's wrong with you?" someone finally yelled impatiently.
A woman chimed in, "That's right! The people this shop owner hired are no good; they're so slow!"
"Little girl, you didn't secretly come out to work without your parents' knowledge, did you? I don't think you're qualified, you'd better go back quickly!"
"You—" Lin Jiudong's face turned ugly at their words.
Near the right-hand shelf in the store, someone took advantage of the chaos to grab a bag of rice and ran away.
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