Worried that Jiang Che and his friends would be tired from driving long distances and have no time to eat, Wei Xuan even spent a day at home making a lot of food that was convenient to take with them on the road.
That day, Wei Xuan sent Jiang Che out: "Be careful on the road, and come back early."
"I understand. You can go back now."
After watching Jiang Che walk away, Wei Xuan turned back to the house and called her daughter to get up for breakfast. Now that Jiang Che was away, the task of sending her daughter to school fell on her.
The son got up early, and was already dressed and being held by Sister Liu Ying, who was feeding him pumpkin porridge. Wei Xuan walked over and wiped his mouth: "You have a strong mouth, and you will eat as much as you are given."
Liu Ying smiled and said, "Neither of these two children is picky about food."
Yuanyuan came out of the house, and Wei Xuan hurried to comb her hair.
"Okay, go eat quickly, and then mom will take you to school."
It was just past 7:30 when she finally sent her daughter to school. Wei Xuan thought that there should be nothing important in the factory today that required her to make a decision. She had made arrangements with Zheng Yi before leaving get off work yesterday, asking Zheng Yi to take everyone to maintain the machines. She would not be needed for this matter. In this case, she decided not to go to the factory for the time being. She turned her bicycle in another direction and headed towards the clothing store.
...
...
The grain store was the busiest at this time, so Wei Xuan did not disturb Wang Xiaomei from working. The clothing store had not yet opened. Looking in from the outside, she could only vaguely see some shop assistants walking around inside, probably displaying clothes.
Wei Xuan was about to push the door open to take a look when she caught a glimpse of Sister Jiang coming out of the braised meat shop next door with a rag. She turned around and walked over to Sister Jiang: "Sister."
"Xiao Xuan, why are you here? Aren't you busy today?" Although others didn't know that Wei Xuan had opened a factory, the Jiang family knew about it. Sister Jiang hadn't seen Wei Xuan come to inspect the store for several days. She heard from her third sister yesterday that Wei Xuan was so busy with factory affairs that she was almost going crazy. She thought she wouldn't come to the store recently, but she didn't expect to see her today. No wonder she was so surprised.
Wei Xuan smiled and said, "It's okay. Jiang Che was out driving today. I was sending Yuanyuan to school so I stopped by to take a look. Big sister, business in the store has been good recently, right? I see the revenue is increasing every day."
When this was mentioned, Sister Jiang smiled and said, "Yes, it's not bad. Do you want to go in and take a look? Fangfang is in there. She was mumbling a few days ago that the taste of the stewed food seemed a little off."
"Really? Then I'll go in and take a look." Ever since she separated the braised meat shop from the grain store and opened it as an independent shop, Wei Xuan told Lu Fangfang all the recipes of the braised meat. She also increased Lu Fangfang's salary. She and Lu Fangfang had an agreement that no matter how many stores they opened in the future, she would be the master chef, responsible for preparing the marinade for all the stores.
Wei Xuan knew that this was risky. What if Lu Fangfang got the formula and had second thoughts? But she couldn't think of any other solution at the time. She had too many things to do and couldn't handle it. If she just kept the formula in her hands, she would be the one who suffered the loss over time.
Fortunately, Lu Fangfang was an honest person and did not let her down. After getting the formula, she did not do anything inappropriate.
In fact, if you think about it carefully, you can understand that if you really go out and work on your own, you may not earn as much as she does. She pays Lu Fangfang a high salary and also promises that as she opens more stores, her salary will continue to increase. With this prerequisite, plus many people are timid nowadays and have not adapted to the market economy.
Compared with running their own business and having to bear their own profits and losses, they want stability more. Obviously, Lu Fangfang is such a person.
In fact, even if she chose to betray, Wei Xuan was not afraid. Firstly, her store had been open for a long time, and the taste of the old braised food was incomparable to that of a new store.
Even if the braised meat shop is closed, it will not have much impact on her. She has so many profitable businesses now, and she doesn’t need another braised meat shop. At most, she can move the braised meat business to the factory and sell it in a different form. It will be the same.
As soon as Wei Xuan entered the store, she saw Lu Fangfang busying herself with several employees. These employees should be newly recruited, and Wei Xuan felt that they looked familiar.
Lu Fangfang turned around when she heard the noise. Seeing that it was Wei Xuan, her eyes lit up and she straightened up and said, "I was just saying I had something to talk to you about, and you're here."
"I heard from my eldest sister that the taste of the braised meat has changed."
"Yeah," Lu Fangfang frowned when she mentioned this, and led Wei Xuan to the stove and handed her a pair of chopsticks: "Try it, I think there is a little difference, but your eldest sister said she couldn't taste it, and I don't know if there is something wrong with my taste buds."
Wei Xuan took a bite as she was told, smacked her lips, and tilted her head back to feel it carefully. It was indeed a little different, but the difference was very subtle. She didn't expect Lu Fangfang to be able to taste it. Does this mean that she is now very familiar with this marinade?
To be honest, this discovery made Wei Xuan very happy. The more capable the people under her were, the more relaxed she felt!
"What's wrong? Is there something wrong?" Seeing that Wei Xuan didn't speak for a long time, Lu Fangfang became anxious.
"There is something wrong. It should be a problem with the marinade. Where did you buy the ingredients from this time?" Lu Fangfang should be responsible for purchasing in the kitchen.
When asked by Wei Xuan, Lu Fangfang was dumbfounded: "It's still the same one as before, are you sure it's a problem with the big stuff?"
That's strange. Wei Xuan took another bite and said, "It's the spices."
After more than an hour of hard work, they finally got the flavor back.
Wei Xuan put down her chopsticks and reminded, "Next time you buy marinade, you must check it carefully. Fortunately, it is just not fresh and the taste is a bit worse, but it is not spoiled, otherwise this pot of marinade would be considered bad."
Lu Fangfang also knew the importance of this pot of old marinade. She was shocked to find out that the problem was with the marinade. Fortunately, the situation was still salvageable, otherwise she wouldn't be able to afford the compensation even if she sold it!
Wei Xuan did not blame her too much. This time, she could not be blamed entirely on her. With this experience, she would be more careful next time. After washing her hands, Wei Xuan turned to ask the new employees: "How are they learning?"
"It's OK. Anyway, I will prepare the marinade and send it to them. They don't have to learn much. They are all experienced in housework and can get the hang of it quickly."
That’s good. Wei Xuan didn’t stay here for long. After the problem was solved, she left the kitchen.
Outside, Sister Jiang was busy with two new employees. Wei Xuan was about to go up and say a few words to her when she was hurriedly dragged to the clothing store by Sister Jiang San.
"Third sister, what's the matter? Why is it so urgent?"
It wasn't until the two of them sat down behind the counter of the clothing store that Third Sister Jiang spoke up, "It's nothing big, I just wanted to ask you, your grain store and braised meat store have been renovated two days ago, when do you plan to open them?"
Section 116
“So soon?”
"Not any time soon. It's been more than ten days since you said you wanted to renovate the house. Once I finish arranging this, I'll leave for Yangcheng to purchase the goods."
Yes, she has been so busy lately that she has forgotten the time. Wei Xuan thought about it and said, "Then let's not choose a date. I will go and ask later. If the employees have been trained, we can open the store tomorrow."
That's what she said, but it's not that easy to do. It took two days just to stock the stores with everything. When the four stores were finally opened, Wei Xuan realized that she hadn't been to the factory for several days.
That day, she still sent her daughter to school first, but after that she went to the braised meat shop to find Sister Jiang. She had something to talk to her about. She had forgotten what she wanted to talk about last time because she was interrupted by the matter of opening the shop.
The braised meat shop has already opened, it will be too late if you don’t go there now.
As soon as she arrived at the store entrance, Wei Xuan called out, "Big sister."
"Hey," Sister Jiang, who was cleaning at the door, raised her head and responded, "You came so early again today!"
"It's getting late." Wei Xuan parked the car and said, "Big sister, I came here specifically to see you."
"What's the matter with you?"
"Sister, let's go in and talk."
"Okay, let's go." Sister Jiang put the broom against the wall and followed Wei Xuan into the store.
When they got to the store, Wei Xuan bluntly stated her plan: "Big sister, can you help me manage the two braised meat shops over there?"
"Me?" Sister Jiang opened her eyes wide, obviously not expecting Wei Xuan to come to her to talk about this. She hesitated for a long time and asked, "Can I do it?"
Wei Xuan nodded heavily and encouraged her: "Why not? I see that your elder sister manages this store very well and keeps the accounts very clear, which saves me a lot of trouble."
"Oh, that's not the same thing. How can one store be the same as three stores?" She can do things, but she is a little scared to manage people. She is not as impetuous as her third sister. She is afraid that if she fails to manage well, it will cause trouble for her younger brother and sister-in-law.
Wei Xuan said, "How can it be different? Besides, no one is born knowing everything. If you don't know how to do something, you can learn it. I have a lot of things to do right now. My third sister is helping me with the clothing store, and I can only count on you, my eldest sister, for the braised meat shop."
Since Wei Xuan showed weakness like this, Sister Jiang couldn't refuse.
After a while, she decided: "Well, if it really doesn't work, I'll give it a try. Isn't it similar to what Third Sister is doing now?"
"Great," Wei Xuan said happily, "It's similar to my third sister, but not as complicated. I'll hire another employee soon. Big sister, you teach her. She'll be in charge of the store from now on. Big sister, you should patrol the store more often when you have time. You know we're in the food business, so we have to pay close attention to hygiene. Just follow the store's current standards."
Sister Jiang nodded: "I know about that. I will definitely keep a close eye on you." If the food prepared in the store makes people sick, it is no small matter. She has always been very careful in this regard.
Wei Xuan continued, "There are also account books. I'll have to trouble you to sort them out in the future. I probably won't have time to look at them every day like I do now. I'll only take a look at them at the end of the month. And the most important thing is that the purchasing work for the three stores will also be handed over to you. When there was only one braised meat store, these accounts were mixed with the grain store. In the future, for the sake of clear accounts, it's better to keep them separately. But it's not difficult. Most things can be bought at the grain store. You just need to write a separate account book."
Wei Xuan talked a lot, and Sister Jiang even brought out paper and pen to write down what she said.
Wei Xuan smiled and did not stop him: "In short, from now on, Big Sister, imagine yourself as the owner of a braised meat shop. The future development of the braised meat shop, such as opening a store and hiring people, are all things that Big Sister needs to consider. If I forget something because I have so much to do, Big Sister, please remind me more often."
"No problem." Since she has accepted the task, Sister Jiang will try her best to do her best.
After finishing the business, Wei Xuan mentioned Niu Daguo again: "Daguo is going to take the college entrance examination soon, right? How is your review going? Have you thought about what major you want to apply for in the future?"
Speaking of her son, Sister Jiang became worried. Who doesn't want their child to be successful? Although she said in front of Jiang Che that Daguo had no hope of getting into university, before the exam, she still held some hope in her heart, thinking that maybe, maybe he would get lucky and be admitted.
But based on her observations during this period, she has completely given up this unrealistic idea. Perhaps the Niu family just doesn't have the inclination for learning, otherwise how can one explain why none of the three sons are good at studying.
Wei Xuan saw that Sister Jiang looked upset, so she asked, "What's wrong, Sister?"
Sister Jiang came back to her senses and remembered what her younger brother had said before about letting Daguo work in a transportation company. She said to Wei Xuan, "It's okay. It's just that Daguo probably won't be able to get into college. I'm trying to find something he can learn. If he has a skill, at least he won't starve to death."
Wei Xuan deeply agreed that if she failed to get into university, learning a craft was indeed a good way out, but she couldn't say this. She could only comfort Sister Jiang: "The child hasn't taken the exam yet, and it's not certain whether he can pass. Sister, don't define a great country so quickly. I think a great country is quite smart."
Sister Jiang smiled bitterly and said, "He's not stupid, but he just doesn't get the hang of learning. Xiaoxuan, what do you think about asking him to follow me and learn how to drive?"
Wei Xuan was stunned for a moment before she realized that this was what Sister Jiang wanted to tell her.
"That's nothing, it's just that driving is hard, and I'm afraid my elder sister won't be able to let me go."
Sister Jiang waved her hand and said: "Why be afraid of hard work? Everything is hard work." In Sister Jiang's view, some hard work is always better than no hard work.
That's true, but hard work is divided into different levels. According to Wei Xuan, learning to drive is not as good as learning to repair cars, which requires more technical skills. As people's lives get better and better, more and more people will have private cars in the future. If you can repair cars and open a car repair shop, you will definitely make money. But she didn't say this. If she said this, it would be bad if Sister Jiang thought that she didn't want Daguo to work in the transportation company.
There is still some time before the national college entrance examination, so it would be better to let Jiang Che speak then rather than her speaking now.
She could only nod and agree to Sister Jiang's request temporarily. After all, Niu Daguo was a really good kid, and she had no reason not to agree to let him go to work in the company.
But after all, he is our own child, and of course I hope he can have better development.
After coming out of the store, Wei Xuan thought about it and decided to find a public telephone booth to call the Wei family.
Fortunately, Wei Ming's academic performance has always been good. Wei Xuan learned from Wei's mother that everything was fine at home and Wei Ming was very confident that he could be admitted to university. She felt relieved, hung up the phone, and rode her bike to the factory.
I haven't been to the factory for a few days. This time, the atmosphere in the factory has changed a lot. First of all, the workers in the production room have come to work, and the factory has become much more lively. Wei Xuan could hear people talking inside before she even entered.
Just as she was about to ask someone to open the door for her, Wei Xuan was stopped by the security guard.
"Who are you?"
Fortunately, the security guard had seen Wei Xuan before, and after Wei Xuan introduced herself, he quickly remembered her identity. He was so scared that he immediately apologized: "Sorry, boss, it's me..."
Wei Xuan interrupted him: "You did a great job, no need to apologize, keep it up."
"yes."
Wei Xuan smiled at him and pushed her bicycle inside. She had just arrived at the office and hadn't even sat down yet when Zheng Yi, who heard the news, rushed over.
"Boss, you must be really relieved that I haven't come to the factory for so many days."
Wei Xuan stood up and poured herself a glass of water, then slowly replied, "Why else would I invite you here? Tell me, what do you want from me?"
Zheng Yi was choked by her and didn't dare to say any more nonsense. He took out a small notebook and began to talk about their work progress in the past two days: "We can basically use the raw materials left by the original sugar factory, but there are not many. The purchasing department has already purchased them according to the list you gave. There is also the problem of machines. Those machines are barely enough for us now, but if we want to increase production, they will be a bit insufficient."
The machine is not easy to buy. Zheng Yi was reminding her that if she wanted to buy the machine, she could start preparing now.
Alas, this is also the problem that gives Wei Xuan the most headache.
She thought for a long time but couldn't think of a solution, so she said, "Okay, I'll make a note of this. Anything else?"
"And..." Zheng Yi went on to say a lot more. He had already solved most of the problems and just reported them to Wei Xuan so that she would have an idea. There were still a few things that were not serious and were being solved.
Wei Xuan nodded after listening to it, indicating that she understood: "I'll ask the accountant to show me the factory's account books later."
Wei Xuan needs to know how much more she needs to invest in the factory before she can see a return on her investment. The machines are not cheap, and it seems that her savings will be greatly reduced again.
The accountant's surname was Zeng, and she was a woman in her forties. After a while, she came to find Wei Xuan with the account book.
The factory hasn't started operating yet, so the account book basically records the expenses during this period. Wei Xuan flipped through it twice and her heart was already bleeding. It was really too expensive.
"Accountant Zeng, could you please do the math for me and estimate how much money I need to invest in the factory before it opens."
"Okay." This was not a difficult task for Accountant Zeng. Labor and purchasing costs were all known. She just had to calculate the numbers and give them to the boss.
As soon as the accountant left, Jian Xiangliang came again. Wei Xuan was surprised: "You have something to do too?" The factory hasn't started production yet, so nothing should be happening in the sales department now.
"You can also report to your boss if you have nothing to do."
Wei Xuan nodded and asked him to sit down and talk.
Jian Xiangliang didn't hesitate. He sat opposite Wei Xuan and said, "Boss, have you ever thought about where our sales department should start selling our products after the factory opens?"
Wei Xuan really hadn't thought about this question carefully. She crossed her hands on her abdomen, leaned back in her chair, and asked, "Manager Jian, do you have any ideas?"
Jian Xiangliang didn't beat around the bush and said bluntly, "I do have some ideas. I plan to start from the periphery of Beijing and then slowly expand outward. First of all, it's difficult to transport to distant places. Also, as you said, if our sales staff go to places that are too far away, their safety is not guaranteed, so I'm thinking of starting from nearby places first."
Wei Xuan smiled and said, "I thought you would suggest starting with a few big cities to build a reputation."
Jian Xiangliang shook his head: "There are many good things in big cities, and our products may not be popular there." After saying that, seeing that Wei Xuan did not look unhappy, he continued: "Although I am a little bit self-deprecating by saying this, it is indeed for the sake of the factory. Let's not talk about the taste of the product. With your guarantee, I believe it will not be bad, but brand effect and reputation are also very important. The products produced by a small factory like us are not competitive at all in big cities."
Wei Xuan also admitted this. Even she herself inevitably trusts things from big brands more, doesn't she?
"But it will be different if we start from the surrounding areas of Beijing. First of all, for the towns and villages below, the fact that the products are passed down from Beijing will give our products a good start. People are always curious and yearning for things in big cities. In addition, in comparison, the materials in the towns and villages will be more scarce, and no one will compete with us for the market. In addition to the towns and villages below, Beijing is also our main target. As long as we can make a name for ourselves in Beijing, it will be easier for us to open up markets in other places in the future."
I have to say that Jian Xiangliang thought carefully and took every aspect of what he said into consideration. Wei Xuan had nothing to add.
"Okay, then we'll do as you say." Wei Xuan paused and said, "Since we plan to start from the towns, it would be best if we can catch up with the Dragon Boat Festival. During festivals, people are always extra generous and will buy things that they would not normally buy to try. I will talk to Zheng Yi and try to get you a batch of goods before the Dragon Boat Festival."
"Thank you, boss." Jian Xiangliang was happy and stood up and said, "Then I won't bother you, boss. I'll go out and get busy first."
Wei Xuan nodded: "Go ahead."
When he reached the door, he remembered something and turned back: "Boss, when do you think we can get through to the factory by phone?" Without a phone, it would be difficult for the sales staff to contact the factory when they were away from home.
After he reminded her, Wei Xuan finally remembered: "I'll do it this afternoon, and I'll definitely finish it before you go down."
"Okay, then I'll wait for good news from the boss."
The sugar factory’s phone had been taken back by the food factory. If Wei Xuan wanted to reinstall the phone now, she had to go to the food factory.
When signing the contract, the person in charge of the food factory said that he could help with the contact. Wei Xuan looked at the time and it was already past ten o'clock. It was just right for her to pack up and go home to have a meal before going to the food factory.
When Wei Xuan got home, Liu Ying was still cooking. Yuan Lang was placed in her little circle, playing with his sister's doll.
"Ah...ah...ah..." When he saw Wei Xuan, he immediately threw the rag doll in his hand aside and opened his little arms to ask Wei Xuan to hold him.
"Ah, you're drooling." Wei Xuan picked him up with disgust, wiped him with her bib, and then changed his bib for a new one.
When Liu Ying saw it, she said, "Leave it in the yard to soak. I'll wash the clothes together with it in the afternoon."
"It seems there are still a few bibs missing."
"I'll sew a few more for him this afternoon." We had ready-made cotton cloth at home, so it wasn't difficult to make bibs. It would only take a short while.
"Then I'll trouble you, sister-in-law."
After finishing the meal, Liu Ying thought about what happened in the morning and took out a letter from her pocket and handed it to Wei Xuan: "This was delivered this morning."
Wei Xuan took the envelope and took a look at it. It should be written to her by her younger brother Wei. Apart from her younger brother, there was no one else in the family who would write to her.
Wei Xuan didn't open it immediately, but took the rice noodles Liu Ying made for her son: "Sister-in-law, eat it first, I'll feed him."
Liu Ying was not polite: "Okay, I'll take your place later."
Compared to Yuanyuan, she really takes care of her son less, and sometimes she feels guilty when she thinks about it. However, in order to give the children a good future, Wei Xuan thinks it is all worth it. Compared with those who leave their children in their hometown and go out to work, they are already very lucky. At least their family is together!
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