1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 92 Ten Thousand Zhou Momos (Bonus Chapter for 500 Monthly Tickets!)
Zhou Yan rode away on his bike, leaving Zhao Minghui standing there bewildered.

Zhao Minghui is not a bad person; he's rather honest.

He was the first person to sell braised food at the entrance of the textile factory. Before the individual economy was liberalized, he would secretly set up a stall selling pig's head meat and sweet-skinned duck by pushing his bicycle. Later, when stalls were allowed, he did quite well in business thanks to the reputation he had built up before.

Two more braised food vendors came along, deliberately placing themselves next to him on either side. The two vendors teamed up to lower the price of braised pig's head meat, quickly robbing Zhao Minghui of all the customers he had accumulated for braised pork products.

Fortunately, he was also skilled at making duck, and he managed to gain a foothold at the entrance of the textile factory by selling sweet-skinned duck.

However, the braised pig's head meat didn't sell as well as before, so naturally, the profits were less.

However, this guy is content with his lot and quite cheerful. He used to love going to the entrance of Zhou Yan's restaurant to chat with him whenever he had free time. Later, it seems that he was grounded by his wife and didn't come for a while, but he would still greet him warmly whenever he ran into him.

Zhou Yan selling braised pig's head and cold chicken probably won't have that much of an impact on him, but the other two businesses might be a different story.

On the way, he also went to Zhang Laosan and Xu Laoer to order two pig heads.

"Zhou Yan is going to sell braised food too?" Zhao Minghui's wife, Zhang Xiuqin, had just woken up and sat up with a worried look on her face.

"Don't worry, he said he won't be a male prostitute." Zhao Minghui said with a smile, "He even taught me how to sell braised peanuts. Zhou Yan is a really good guy."

“You just think everyone in this world is good. Look at Yang Laosan and Zhu Feng when they first came here. They were all smiles at you every day. But then they teamed up to mess with us. Haven’t you learned your lesson yet?” Zhang Xiuqin rolled her eyes at him, her tone tinged with helplessness.

“Oh, Zhou Yan is different from the other two. He doesn’t have that many tricks up his sleeve,” Zhao Minghui said softly. “Besides, the government supports individual vendors setting up stalls. We’re benefiting from this policy. Being early doesn’t mean we can monopolize it. There’s no problem for them to set up stalls.”

Customers like their braised pig's head and duck parts, which means our skills aren't inferior to theirs. If we just make good sweet-skinned duck, we can make money just as well. Now we can also sell braised peanuts.”

Zhang Xiuqin stared at him for a while, then laughed in exasperation.

What can you do? That's just his personality—mild-mannered, never competitive, and likes to stay home and work on recipes. He's good to her and their two daughters, gives all his earnings to her, doesn't gamble, and does housework. In ten years of marriage, they've never even had a serious argument.

Her tone softened, and she nodded, saying, "Okay, we'll do our job well. If you want to sell braised peanuts, then go ahead."

"Xiuqin, you're so kind!" Zhao Minghui said happily. "Then on the way back, buy ten catties of peanuts."

……

The dinner was simple.

Braised pork with potatoes, a platter of sausages and cured meat, stir-fried minced meat with pickled cowpeas, fried pork cracklings with cabbage, a serving of crispy pork soup, two stir-fried vegetable dishes, and two plates of pickled vegetables.

A large pot of sweet potato porridge was cooking next to it, and rice was also served.

Cooking large pot dishes is Xiao Lei's absolute domain. He can manage nearly three thousand employees in the textile factory perfectly, so cooking for a mere three hundred people is naturally no problem for him.

The guests hadn't had high expectations for the dinner, but they couldn't resist eating two extra bowls of sweet potato porridge, and only went home leisurely after their bellies were full.

"Master Xiao, Master Zheng, Zhou Yan, thank you for your hard work today." Second Uncle Zhou Ze, along with Zhou Jie and Zhou Hao, came to express their gratitude to the three who were tidying up the kitchen utensils.

"That's not a problem. As long as everyone is satisfied and happy with their meal, we're relieved," Xiao Lei said with a smile.

"I'm very satisfied. Everyone says they've never had such a delicious outdoor feast before." Zhou Ze said, taking out a stack of ten-yuan bills and handing them to Xiao Lei: "This is ninety yuan for the labor fee, Master Xiao, please count it."

Xiao Lei didn't take it, but looked at him and said, "Brother, why don't you deduct the cost of that country cook's kitchen utensils? I don't even recognize him. It would be more appropriate for you to settle the bill with him."

Zhou Ze pushed the money forward again: "You don't need to worry about this. I'll settle it with him separately. This money is your payment for your work. You can keep it."

Today's banquet was so wonderful that Zhou Ze felt he hadn't given enough money—ninety yuan was too little.

Xiao Lei was still a little hesitant.

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Master, please accept it. This is the host's approval."

Xiao Lei smiled and took the money. "Okay, thanks then."

"No need to thank us, we should be the ones thanking you..."

Zhou Ze offered another round of polite pleasantries and flattery, even giving each person a pack of cigarettes, before turning back to see off the other guests.

"This country cook is actually quite interesting." Zheng Qiang chuckled, holding a cigarette. What kind of cigarette it was didn't matter; the host had shown him plenty of respect.

"Come on, let's split the money." Xiao Lei counted the money, took out three bills from each of them, and handed them to the two men: "Thirty each, split evenly."

"I'm just a helper, and I'm helping my brother. I don't want a single penny of this money. Master, you and your senior brother can split it." Zhou Yan took a half step back and shook his head.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Qiang took a half step back and chuckled, "Uncle-Master, I'm helping my niece, so I don't need the money. You can take care of organizing this banquet yourself."

"Tsk..." Xiao Lei frowned, wanting to say something more.

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "Master, aren't you going to partner up as village cooks to host banquets? There's still a lot to buy. We need to buy a dozen or twenty of those big steamers, a big shovel, a cutting board... everything costs money. Keep this ninety yuan for the tools, it's start-up capital."

“That’s right!” Zheng Qiang immediately chimed in. “We’ve already taken on the banquet, so we need to get these things ready as soon as possible. We can use this money for now, and we’ll add more if it’s not enough.”

Xiao Lei thought for a moment after hearing this and nodded, saying, "Okay, then let's use the money to buy kitchenware."

The two slung their bags over their shoulders, made plans to go shopping for kitchenware together the next morning, said goodbye to Zhou Yan, and rode their bikes back home.

It's clear that both of them are in a state of high excitement.

Neither of them drank alcohol today, and it's not dark yet, so Zhou Yan doesn't need to worry.

Turning around, Zhou Momo was standing behind him at some point, looking up at him with a smile. When she saw him turn around, she immediately raised her hands and said in a childish voice, "Brother! I want to ride a horse!" "Come on." Zhou Yan smiled and picked her up, placing her on his neck.

"Wow! That's so high!" Zhou Momo held his head, overjoyed.

"Hold on tight, the horse's about to run." Zhou Yan pressed down on her short legs and started trotting along.

"Giggle..."

Zhou Momo's laughter echoed like silver bells along the village roads of Zhoucun.

The children on the street cast envious glances.

Zhao Tieying, holding Zhou Miao's hand, followed behind them at a leisurely pace, both with a bright smile on their faces.

"Zhou Yan has really changed a lot. He's so sensible and capable now, and he's so good to Momo. We're so lucky," Zhao Tieying said with a touch of emotion, her smile full of happiness.

Zhou Miao smiled and said, "It's mainly because you, as a mother, have set a good example. You are hardworking, cheerful, optimistic, diligent, and virtuous. Zhou Yan is following your example. The credit goes to you."

"Really?"

"Of course! I never lie to anyone, and I would never lie to my wife."

Zhao Tieying hugged Zhou Miao's arm even tighter; she felt so happy.

Zhou Yan carried Zhou Momo home, and only put her down when they reached the main room.

"So much fun! So much fun!" Zhou Momo clapped her hands. "Brother, can we ride horses again next time?"

"So what benefits are you going to give me?" Zhou Yan looked at her with a smile.

"I..." Zhou Momo thought for a moment, then took out a fruit hard candy from her pocket and stuffed it into Zhou Yan's hand. "Here's my favorite orange candy for you!"

"Okay, then let's play again next time." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.

After returning, Comrade Zhou boiled a pot of water, filled two wooden buckets with the water, and called Zhou Yan to soak his feet together: "You and your mother have been standing all day, too busy to rest your feet. Soaking your feet will help you sleep better."

"Okay." Zhou Yan had already rinsed his feet with well water, but after spinning like a top all day, his feet were indeed a bit sore. Seeing the steaming foot bath tub, he really couldn't walk anymore.

"So comfortable..." Aunt Zhao put her legs into the wooden tub, let out a long sigh, and looked at Comrade Zhou standing to the side and said, "Why don't you sit down and soak with me? Anyway, the tub is big."

Zhou Miao smiled and shook his head: "It's alright, I'll add some hot water after you've soaked. There's still some boiling water in the pot, so you'll have hot water for your shower later."

"Hurry up! It'll get cold." Aunt Zhao's tone rose.

"Okay." Comrade Zhou immediately sat down and put his feet into the foot bath tub.

Zhou Yan watched with amusement, knowing that Old Zhou had always been a reliable and reliable brother in the family.

"I want to soak my feet too!" Zhou Momo moved a small stool over and placed it next to Zhou Yan. She took off her tiger-head shoes, revealing a pair of white little feet. She bent down with some effort, pulled up her trouser legs, and then put her feet into the foot basin.

"Hiss! It's so hot!"

The little guy touched the water, then immediately pulled back, looking at Zhou Yan with a shocked expression: "Brother, aren't you afraid of getting burned?"

"Soaking your feet should be a little hot to feel comfortable. You can put them down later, your skin is too delicate." Zhou Yan smiled and helped her put her feet on the edge of the wooden tub, dipping them in the hot water. Her heels turned red, not exactly a burn, but the temperature was still a bit too high for her.

"Okay." Zhou Momo nodded obediently, resting her elbows on her knees and supporting her chin with both hands. She stared at the wooden bucket for a moment, then exclaimed in shock, "Brother! Your feet are so big! Just like... just like an elephant's!"

"Guoguo, you have so much hair on your legs! It looks like a little monkey's."

"Pot..."

Zhou Yan didn't know what he was like, but Zhou Momo was such a chatterbox; she made the whole family laugh uncontrollably while washing her feet.

She's like a ray of sunshine, making everyone unconsciously smile and chat and laugh with her.

If it were just him, Aunt Zhao, and Comrade Zhou sitting here soaking their feet, it would probably be quite quiet.

"Go to sleep! Your boyfriend must be tired after a long day. Go play with him again tomorrow!" Aunt Zhao grabbed Zhou Momo, who was about to jump into Zhou Yan's room.

Zhou Momo glared helplessly at her short legs and could only look at Zhou Yan as she offered her blessings: "Goodnight, bro, sweet dreams."

"Okay, goodnight." Zhou Yan smiled and nodded, then closed the door.

Taking off his coat and lying on the uncomfortable wooden bed, Zhou Yan looked at the cobweb-covered ceiling and the crack winding downwards on the mottled earthen wall. The room was empty, and he smelled the musty odor coming from the quilt beneath him. Suddenly, a strong desire to make money rose in his heart.

He wants to move his family into a beautiful and clean apartment building, sleep in a soft and comfortable bed, and be covered with a fluffy and fragrant new quilt!

Aunt Zhao, Comrade Lao Zhou, and Zhou Momo all deserve better.

He wants to make money!

Make more money!
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(End of this chapter)