"That's hilarious! Gao Cuihua's nose was practically crooked with anger. Watching her was like drinking ice-cold plum juice on a sweltering summer day—cool from the throat to the belly button! It made my pores relax." Zhao Tieying walked into the restaurant with a smile, her smugness written all over her face.
"I bet she hasn't been able to eat properly for three days since she got back." Zhou Miao chimed in, pushing his bicycle in.
The two, having returned from watching the commotion, were in high spirits, even the tension from work had vanished.
"Fourth Aunt, are they fighting?" Zhao Hong asked, her face full of gossip and anticipation.
Zhou Yan had just finished cooking all the braised meat when he heard the noise and followed her out. He asked curiously, "What did they do with it in the end?"
"Mayor Huang scolded Gao Cuihua and Zhou Liangliang, telling them to immediately rectify their signs, or he would confiscate their business licenses." Zhao Tieying laughed. "Zhou Liangliang and his wife were so scared that one covered his mother's mouth and the other dragged her back, afraid that Gao Cuihua would lose her temper and make a big scene. In all these years, this is the first time I've seen Gao Cuihua suffer such a big setback."
"Mayor Huang is reliable. He strikes at the heart of the matter and knows what individual business owners fear most." Zhou Yan smiled upon hearing this. It is most efficient and effective for Mayor Huang to handle this kind of matter. If they were left to handle it themselves, a verbal battle would be inevitable, and it might even escalate into a fight.
They're all from the same village, such a messy fight would only make them a laughingstock in town.
Furthermore, Huang Chen intends to develop the "Cross-legged Beef" business, but with even the internal strife within Zhou Village, how can anything possibly succeed?
This is also why Zhou Yan doesn't participate directly, it would be too low class.
Cross-legged Beef appeared on a magazine cover and he was interviewed, these are all good things for building the Cross-legged Beef brand.
Zhao Tieying nodded and said, "That's right. Mayor Huang also warned other soup pot vendors not to misuse our signboard, or they would face legal trouble. He is indeed a good official who stands up for the people."
"Alright, you can take care of the soup pot then. I'll go braise the vegetables." Zhou Yan said, turning and heading into the kitchen to get busy.
Being busy is a good thing, it means the restaurant is doing well.
However, the small restaurant is indeed getting busier and busier. Aunt Zhao has to make 140 bowls of cross-legged beef everyday, and she also has to take orders and settle accounts. She is so busy that her feet barely touch the ground.
Sister in law Zhao Hong had to serve dishes, clear tables, wash dishes and vegetables. She was just as busy as a spinning top.
Needless to say, Comrade Old Zhou, a model worker, gets up early to go with him to buy ingredients. When they return to the restaurant, he starts processing pig heads and chickens, and then begins cutting potatoes and lotus roots to be braised that day. At noon and in the evening, he is also responsible for selling braised meat and braised vegetables.
Zhou Yan himself was the same. In the morning, he would buy ingredients, stir-fry the meat stew, make noodles, cook noodles, braise meat and vegetables, cook dishes for hundreds of people at noon, and cook dishes for hundreds of people in the evening.
The entire restaurant is operating at an unreasonable overcapacity, and Zhou Yan has begun to consider hiring another employee.
Even hiring just one more waiter would significantly reduce the workload of Aunt Zhao and Sister in law Zhao Hong, increase the speed of responding to customer needs, and thus improve the customer experience.
The restaurant's table turnover rate [1]is pretty good now, but with his hygiene standards, the tables still need to be wiped clean after clearing them, which is quite labor intensive.
During lunch, Zhou Yan shared his idea with Aunt Zhao.
"We need to hire people…" Aunt Zhao thought seriously. "We need to think this through carefully. They need to be quick and efficient, able to endure hardship, and without any bad intentions. If the people we hire in the village are after the cross-legged beef, we can't stop them."
Zhou Yan nodded upon hearing this, "That makes sense."
It's not easy to recruit someone as well-known as Sister in law Zhao Hong. Both Zhou Jie and Zhou Hai's wives help out at the stall, and Zhou Hao's wife is a teacher.
Zhou Yang is also serving in the army, and Zhou Ming is practicing martial arts on Mount Emei. These two probably haven't broken their virginity yet.
"There's no rush. We can take our time to find the right person. If we hire someone who's a busybody, it's better not to hire anyone at all." Aunt Zhao said. "We can get the work done even if we're a little busy and tired. After a good night's sleep, we'll be back to our old selves."
"That's right, we're still managing to keep up with the workload." Zhao Hong said with a smile.
"Okay, I'll recruit people slowly." Zhou Yan said with a smile. They were so patient, they could handle this workload and even comforted him.
"I can help too!" Zhou Momo looked up from her bowl and said to Zhou Yan with a serious expression, "I know a lot of things."
"Yes, you're the top salesperson." Zhou Yan laughed. As the restaurant's business became increasingly booming, the top salesperson was quite busy everyday. Even the time for playing on the seesaw and observing ants moving house was squeezed out a lot.
However, the top salesperson's hard work didn't come for nothing, her little wallet was already stuffed with five cents and ten cents commissions, making her a veritable little rich woman.
"I can help cut the potatoes too." Zhou Momo said earnestly.
"That's not the job of a top salesperson like you. I'm the one doing the chopping." Comrade Old Zhou said with a smile. "Are you trying to steal my job?"
Zhou Momo thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Forget it, it would be too pitiful if you didn't have a job."
"Speaking of which, Zhou Ming should be coming back to sweep your grandfather's grave, right? He came back for two days last time when Zhou Hao got married." Aunt Zhao changed the subject.
"He will definitely come back. It's not far from Mount Emei, and he has never missed a year's tomb sweeping." Comrade Old Zhou said.
Aunt Zhao looked at Zhou Yan and said, "Zhou Yan, braise two jin of pig's head meat. I'll ask Zhou Ming to take it back to your maternal grandmother so she can try it. She's never eaten your cooking before."
"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile. Aunt Zhao's hometown is at the foot of Mount Emei. Last time, he heard her tell the owner of the Emei tofu pudding stall that Heishui Village in Tianjing Commune is a genuine Emei Xueya tea production area.
While his maternal grandmother is still alive, Aunt Zhao would occasionally ask someone to bring her something as a token of her filial piety.
"Mommy, when are we going to visit maternal grandmother? I've almost forgotten what maternal grandmother looks like." Zhou Momo asked in her childish voice.
Zhou Yan looked at her upon hearing this. Mount Emei wasn't actually that far, but it seemed Aunt Zhao hadn't gone back to her parents' home for the Chinese New Year last year.
Aunt Zhao forced a smile: "Wait until the Chinese New Year. I'll take you to see maternal grandmother then."
"Okay!" Zhou Momo smiled, took a bite of the rib and asked, "When Guo Guo Ming Ming comes back, can I learn martial arts from him? And then…and then I'll become a female knight-errant."
"You even know about female knights-errant?" Zhou Yan laughed. "Didn't you say you wanted to be a policewoman when you grew up?"
"Aren't policewomen just like female knights-errant?" Zhou Momo looked at him and asked earnestly.
Zhou Yan pondered for a moment and felt that the little one's statement made a strange sense.
"Then when your Guo Guo Ming Ming comes back, you can become a female knight-errant under the Emei Sect." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
The martial arts training involves training from childhood (Tong Zi Gong).
Zhou Ming was selected by his school when he was in elementary school. He trained with the school team until he graduated from junior high school, winning many gold medals at the city and provincial levels. After graduating from junior high school, he joined the Emei Sect and practiced martial arts under his master. Now he works as a physical education teacher in Emei, where he is responsible for selecting and training martial arts athletes. He has also mentored several promising talents.
He truly loves martial arts. Two years ago, he even won first place in the Emei boxing category at the National Martial Arts Competition. Master Zhou is quite well-known in the martial arts world.
If Zhou Momo really wanted to learn some self-defense techniques from him, Zhou Yan thought it would be a good idea.
Having more skills is never a bad thing. Girls should learn some real skills so they won't be bullied when they go out.
Besides, if she really decides to become a policewoman in the future, learning some martial arts would be a good way to lay the foundation in advance.
Most families don't even have that kind of means.
As for whether Zhou Ming is willing to teach?
Zhou Yan figured that if Zhou Momo asked, he couldn't possibly refuse.
No man in the Old Zhou family has yet been able to refuse Zhou Momo's request.
"Okay!" Zhou Momo nodded, happily burying her head in her food.
After lunch, the restaurant quickly became busy again.
Zhou Yan has already learned how to make Yu Xiang Shredded Pork. The salty, sweet, sour, and spicy flavors already make him think it's quite delicious even before he's made it.
The restaurant has just launched Mapo Tofu, and the dish is currently in high demand. The impact on the sales of other dishes is still being assessed. Yu Xiang Shredded Pork will not be launched until at least next week.
The menu must not be out of control, this is crucial for a restaurant.
He plans how much ingredients he needs to buy each day the night before.
Aside from cabbage and potatoes, if he buys too much of any other ingredients, the remaining ingredients will result in a loss.
It is unclear how many new customers Mapo Tofu will bring to the restaurant, but the addition of forty servings of Mapo Tofu per day will inevitably affect the existing menu.
Simply put, if a customer orders Mapo Tofu, their original plan to order Twice-Cooked Pork might be cancelled.
Whether the extra twice-cooked pork can be ordered by other customers will affect the profit of twice-cooked pork for the day.
As the get off work bell rang, workers poured out of the gate, many of whom ordered Mapo Tofu as soon as they entered.
This newly launched Rongcheng specialty dish has sold forty portions, and after just one day, it has successfully established a good reputation.
During lunch time, they sold 32 servings.
Only eight servings of tofu were left in the kitchen.
The level of popularity exceeded Zhou Yan's expectations.
"The Mapo Tofu is selling so well. I reckon there will be quite a few people wanting to eat it tonight. Do you want to ask your Great-aunt to bring back two slabs?" Aunt Zhao asked Zhou Yan, who had taken off his apron and was coming out of the kitchen.
"Forty servings are enough. If we take another twenty servings of tofu, we'll have a lot of other ingredients left over today." Zhou Yan shook his head with a smile. It wasn't that he was deliberately teasing the customers, a boss has to have his own pace.
"Okay, I'll listen to you." Aunt Zhao nodded thoughtfully. She always believed whatever Zhou Yan said.
Their restaurant has had very little leftover food lately. The little leftovers are mostly consumed internally, and the extras are taken back by Zhao Hong to share with other families, which makes everyone quite happy.
"When are you free to go to Jiazhou? I heard from Huang Ying that the magazine 'Sichuan Cuisine' is selling quite well. I'm thinking of buying two more copies to keep as souvenirs. I could frame them and put them out in front of the restaurant as an advertisement, wouldn't that be great?" Aunt Zhao asked Zhou Yan.
"I'll go now, I'm free this afternoon." Zhou Yan went upstairs to change his clothes, and when he came down, Zhou Momo was already standing next to his 28-inch bicycle, looking at him expectantly: "Guo Guo, I want to go to the city to play too! Will you take me?"
The little one's voice was so soft, and she even came up to him and tugged at his clothes, acting all cute. Who could resist that?
"Okay, I'll take you out to play." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.
Comrade Old Zhou had already brought her special seat cushion and quickly strapped it to the front bumper, afraid that his precious daughter would suffer any discomfort on the way.
Aunt Zhao placed a military green water bottle in the bicycle basket and instructed Zhou Momo, "Don't wander around in the city, okay? Hold your brother's hand tightly. If you get kidnapped by bad guys, you'll never be able to eat your Guo Guo's cooking again in your life."
Zhou Momo nodded, but her eyes widened when she heard that she wouldn't be able to eat the dishes cooked by her Guo Guo. She quickly grabbed Zhou Yan's hand and said, "Guo Guo! You have to hold on to me tight!"
"Okay, don't worry." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.
"Remember to give her water, and don't buy her snacks, or she won't be able to eat dinner later." Zhao Tieying reminded Zhou Yan.
"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded, bent down and lifted Zhou Momo onto the seat that Comrade Old Zhou had tied for her, and pushed the bicycle out the door.
As soon as Zhou Momo stepped outside, she started chattering non-stop:
"Guo Guo, look at that big boat!"
"Guo Guo, look at that motorcycle, it's so funny."
"Guo Guo, I love it when you take me out to play! Can I buy a popsicle?"
Zhou Yan coldly refused: "No."
The little one has quite a few tricks up her sleeve. She's not even out of Suji yet, and she's already eyeing popsicles.
She wears her little floral jacket morning and night, but she still misses popsicles.
"Sigh." Zhou Momo sighed and said softly, "Although Guo Guo is a bit stingy, but I still forgive you."
"Should I say sorry?" Zhou Yan asked, suppressing a laugh.
"It's okay." The little one tilted her head and leaned gently against his arm like a little gummy bear. "Because I love you."
"Buy! Buy a hundred!" Zhou Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he almost lost his mind.
The little one is so cute and so heartwarming.
Who can resist her?!
Forget popsicles, he'd even pluck the moon off the sky for her.
"You can't eat popsicles, but I'll buy you a little toy when we go into city later." Zhou Yan said gently.
"I don't want a gift, I want to buy Grandma a hat, okay?" Zhou Momo turned to look at Zhou Yan, "It must be a pretty hat."
"Why did you think of buying a hat for Grandma?" Zhou Yan looked at her with some surprise.
The little one looked at him seriously and said, "Grandma has patched her hat so many times but she can't bear to throw it away. I want to buy her a pretty hat so that she'll have a pretty new hat in winter and her ears won't get cold."
Seeing the expectant look on the little one's face, Zhou Yan smiled and nodded, "Okay, then you can choose for Grandma later."
"Mmm-hmm." Zhou Momo nodded, a happy smile spreading across her face.
The little one is so sweet, like a warm little cotton-padded jacket, no wonder the whole family loves her.
When he visited the old lady, he always thought of bringing her a bottle of liquor, some braised meat and braised pig's trotters to go with it.
Even after earning money, he didn't think to buy the old lady any clothes or necessities, he's not even as good as Zhou Momo.
The little one, however, used her own toys to change the old lady's hat.
Zhou Yan rode slowly, carefully avoiding potholes to make the little one more comfortable.
Upon arriving in Jiazhou, they went straight to the Newsstand.
They went through four different Newsstand before they finally managed to collect five copies of "Sichuan Cuisine" magazine.
The newsstand owner took the money from Zhou Yan and muttered with a puzzled look, "That's strange, why are so many people buying this magazine these past two days?"
Zhou Yan put the magazine into the cloth bag he was carrying, took out a water bottle, unscrewed it, handed it to Zhou Momo, and asked, "It's selling so well?"
"Exactly! Before, it would take a month to sell out, but this time I got fifteen copies and they sold out in four days. Yesterday, a very pretty girl bought ten copies in one go. I have no idea what she was going to do with them." the newsstand owner exclaimed in amazement. "I think I should order a few more next month."
"I suggest you stick to the previous amount." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
The pretty girl from yesterday must have been Duan Yuyan.
This market trend isn't sustainable. If the boss rashly increases the order quantity, the next issue might be a dud, wiping out all the profits from this issue.
After buying the magazine, Zhou Yan took Zhou Momo to the department store to pick out hats.
Zhou Momo sat on Zhou Yan's shoulders, carefully examining the hat, and suddenly pointed ahead and said, "Guo Guo, look at that hat with flowers on it, it's so pretty!"
Zhou Yan looked in the direction the little one was pointing and saw a taro purple knitted hat hanging on the shelf. A flower was sewn on the side with velvet. It looked quite pretty. The old lady would look very elegant if she wore it.
On a weekday, the department store wasn't crowded.
Zhou Yan was handsome, and Zhou Momo was very cute. The auntie standing behind the counter looked at her and smiled, saying, "Little darling, who are you choosing a hat for?"
"Auntie, I'm picking out a hat for Grandma." Zhou Momo replied obediently, pointing to the hat she had her eye on. "Can I take a look at that one?"
"Of course." The saleswoman picked up a pole and hooked the hat off, then handed it to Zhou Momo with a smile: "Little darling, you have great taste. This is a new top hat, machine-woven, very dense, so the wind can't get in during winter. There's also a layer of rabbit fur inside, so it's fluffy, comfortable and warm to wear, especially suitable for middle-aged and elderly people."
Zhou Yan put Zhou Momo down from his shoulder and held her in his arms.
The little one held the hat, looking at it from left to right. She even turned it upside down, her eyes lighting up with delight. "Guo Guo, look! It really is rabbit fur!" she exclaimed.
The hat does have a layer of fluff inside, and it feels quite smooth to the touch, it's pure rabbit fur.
The auntie's description was absolutely true, the hat was exceptionally well-made, something you couldn't knit yourself with a knitting needle, and the design was beautiful too.
Wearing this hat, the old lady was definitely the most fashionable old lady in the village.
"Then let's buy this for Grandma?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.
"Yes, yes, buy this!" Zhou Momo nodded.
"Auntie, how much is this hat?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.
"This hat has rabbit fur, it's eight yuan and twenty cents a hat." the saleswoman replied.
"Wow, that's expensive!" Zhou Momo exclaimed, glancing at the hat in her hand, then at Zhou Yan, her expression a little conflicted.
"Okay, I'll take this one." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
Industrial products were the most expensive items in this era because many goods could not be mass-produced, and scarcity made them valuable.
Later, with the large scale cultivation of vegetables and fruits, and the transformation of China into an industrial Cthulhu[2], the prices of unfertilized green vegetables, free range chickens and pigs, and various intangible cultural heritage handicrafts became expensive due to their rarity.
A very interesting cycle.
"Really?" Zhou Momo asked, somewhat uncertainly.
"Of course, it's beautiful and warm. Momo chose it, so Grandma will definitely like it." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile. She wasn't a sales champion for nothing, she already knows what's expensive at such a young age.
"Guo Guo, you're so good!" Zhou Momo felt a little touched. "That's what we gave to Grandma together, okay?"
Okay." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.
After paying, Zhou Yan carefully put the hat into his bag, then took Zhou Momo's hand and bought five more photo frames of different sizes.
One was for a family photo, one was for Zhou Momo to frame a painting to give to Duan Yuyan, and the other two were for framing magazines.
The cover is framed, and the two pages of the interview are cut out separately, also framed, and displayed at the entrance of the restaurant for a while, and later hung on the wall as decorations.
With the endorsement of the Sichuan Cuisine magazine, everything is being put to good use!
Anyway, Zhou Yan wouldn't be embarrassed. With the endorsement of a professional magazine, the story of Cross-legged Beef immediately seemed credible.
Zhou Yan also kept a photo frame, so that if Xia Yao sends another painting next time, it can be framed directly.
Passing by the toy section, Zhou Yan asked with a smile, "Want to buy a toy?"
No, I've already bought Grandma a hat." Zhou Momo shook her head, not even glancing at the toy section, her gaze as determined as if she was about to join the Party.
After leaving the department store, Zhou Yan put the photo frames in the basket, lifted Zhou Momo onto his bicycle, and looked at her with a smile, asking, "If you don't want toys, is there anything you want to eat? It's a rare trip to the city, I'll take you to eat before we go back."
"I want to eat... tofu pudding!" Zhou Momo looked at him with bright eyes and said very confidently, "Sweet!"
"Sweet tofu pudding..." This request wasn't unreasonable, but it put Zhou Yan in a bit of a dilemma.
After all, in Jiazhou, getting a bowl of sweet tofu pudding not only requires money, but also a thick skin.
Seeing the little one's expectant look, how could Zhou Yan refuse? He smiled and nodded, "Come on, I'll take you to eat sweet tofu pudding."
Riding his 28-inch bicycle along Dong Da Street, Zhou Momo saw a dazzling array of snacks. As they passed a stall, she asked curiously, "Guo Guo, what's that golden yellow pancake? Is it an egg pancake?"
Zhou Yan squeezed the brakes, looked at the golden pancakes in the small pan in the vendor's hand, and said with a smile, "These are egg baked pancakes."
"Egg baked pancakes?" Zhou Momo leaned forward, sniffed the air, and exclaimed with delight, "They smell so sweet and delicious~"
"Little girl, would you like an egg baked pancake? It's only twenty cents each." The owner, a middle-aged man, spoke with a gentle voice and a smile, "It tastes sweet and fragrant, and the texture is soft and fluffy. It's delicious."
"Yes." Zhou Momo nodded, holding up two fingers. "Two."
After saying that, she patted her small shoulder bag and said to Zhou Yan, "Guo Guo, I'll treat you! I have money."
Zhou Yan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and nodded, "Okay."
The little one has earned quite a bit of money lately. She works hard everyday to attract customers and earn commissions. Over time, she's probably accumulated three or four yuan in savings.
Eating one of her egg baked pancakes isn't excessive.
The owner chuckled upon hearing this, rolled up the egg baked pancakes he was holding, wrapped them in oil paper, and handed them to the customer next to them, saying with a smile, "You're treating your brother, how generous of you!"
"This is my Guo Guo, what's mine is his." Zhou Momo said matter of factly, then turned to look at Zhou Yan: "Guo Guo, is what's yours mine?"
[1] Table turnover rate refers to the number of times a table is used by different customers within a certain period of time, reflecting the restaurant's utilization efficiency and the frequency of customer consumption.
[2] "Industrial Cthulhu" is a popular internet slang term typically used to describe the extremely large, fully integrated, highly efficient, and explosively productive industrial system of a particular country (especially China). The term borrows the imagery of "huge, indescribable, and terrifying" from the Cthulhu Mythos, metaphorically referring to an industrial scale so immense that it lowers one's sanity (SAN) level, and whose overwhelming cost advantage inspires fear and awe at the unknown extent of its true productivity and technological capabilities.