The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

After explaining all this, Min Xi and Yun Ji left Yunxiang Restaurant without staying for long and went to Yunxiang Silk Shop on Qianmen Street.

Min Xi and Yun Ji had been to the silk shop before, so he did not visit the shop secretly. Instead, he came there openly and stayed for half a day, saying that he wanted to learn about silk.

The shopkeeper enthusiastically taught him a lot of relevant knowledge, such as how to distinguish different silk fabrics such as silk, satin, and satin, the differences in the craftsmanship of various silk fabrics, and the origins and prices of different silks, etc. He even told him some secrets and rumors in the industry.

He stayed in Yunxiang Silk Shop for most of the day, and then went to the most popular silk shop in the capital and stayed there for half a day, comparing the differences between the two shops.

Yunxiang Silk Shop has a longer history than Yunxiang Restaurant and can be said to be a time-honored brand in Beijing. It has a fixed silk supplier and a group of old customers, so this shop is one of the more profitable stores under the Yunxiang brand.

But old shops have a common problem, which is sticking to the old ways. I came here today to give you some suggestions.

The silk shop owner saw him and Yun Ji coming over and came up to greet them personally: "Boss, are you going to get fabric to make clothes today?"

Yun Ji took a look at the store. The customer flow was normal. Several shop assistants were busy. A young female customer was leaning against the counter waiting to be served by the shop assistant.

Yun Ji said, "No, you should go and greet the guests first."

The shopkeeper said hurriedly, "That's a regular customer. Her husband is talking to the clerk. She just came here to pick out some fabrics."

Min Xi said: "Boss, there are always customers waiting in the store. Why not arrange a few stools for the waiting customers to rest."

The shopkeeper looked embarrassed: "The shop is a little small. If we put stools, it will be inconvenient for customers to see the fabrics."

Min Xi said, "I have an idea. We can make those high stools that take up very little space and put them next to the counter, one stool for each customer. This way, customers can sit down and slowly choose fabrics, and it will also make waiting customers less tired." The female customer also had a pair of three-inch golden lotus feet, and it was really painful for her to stand like that.

Yun Ji obviously understood what he meant and said, "Ninth brother, this is a good suggestion. I will design a stool and ask the carpenter to make it and send it to you for you to try."

"Thank you, boss!" the shopkeeper thanked him respectfully.

Yun Ji said to the shopkeeper solemnly: "Shopkeeper Li, you already know that Min Xi is my sworn brother. From now on, he will be the general manager of our Yunxiang Shop and my right-hand man. The purpose of his coming here today is actually to give suggestions to the silk shop."

Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Li hurriedly said respectfully, "Please enlighten me, Manager Min."

Min Xi said: "It's not that I'm giving you advice. I'm just giving you some suggestions from my perspective. My starting point is to do good for Yunxianghao. If Yunxianghao does well, the owner can make money. If the owner makes money, you can get a raise and more dividends. Right?"

Shopkeeper Li nodded vigorously: "Yes, yes, yes! We are all working to make the store's business more prosperous. If Manager Min has any ideas, just let him know."

Min Xi said, "I suggest that the store hire a few ladies to sell the cloth."

Shopkeeper Li was stunned: "Why?"

"You see, most of the people who cut cloth and make clothes are women. Those who come to buy cloth are actually wives from various families, but they often need to be accompanied by men from various families. If the store arranges a few female assistants, they can directly receive female customers. The fabrics that you deliver to wealthy families can also be delivered by female assistants, as it is more convenient for them to enter and leave the inner house." Min Xi said.

Shopkeeper Li looked at Yun Ji and said, "Is it appropriate to have a girl in the store?"

Yun Ji looked at Min Xi and knew that his starting point was good, but during the Ming Dynasty, the separation between men and women was very strict. Apart from working as gossip girls, women were rarely involved in other professions that allowed them to be seen in public, and most of them were trapped in the backyards of inner houses.

Min Xi also asked Yun Ji: "Is it not possible?"

Yun Ji thought for a moment and said, "It's not impossible. We can find two good talkers."

Shopkeeper Li nodded: "That's fine."

"I'll leave this matter to you, Shopkeeper Li."

"it is good!"

Shopkeeper Li asked again, "Does Manager Min have any other advice for you?"

Min Xi brought up the issue of closing the store again, but Shopkeeper Li felt that was inappropriate. Doing business requires perseverance, and closing the store would be like fishing for three days and drying the net for two days.

Min Xi suggested: "Then everyone can have two days off per month, and they will still be paid. As for how to arrange the time, it's up to you, Manager Li. They can't all rest at the same time."

Shopkeeper Li was overjoyed and bowed to Yunji: "Thank you, boss! You really have a kind heart!" Two extra days of rest every month, it was such a good thing.

Yun Ji pointed at Min Xi and said, "No need to thank me, thank Min the manager instead. This was his idea."

Manager Li bowed to Min Xi and said, "Thank you, Manager Min!"

Min Xi smiled and said, "You don't have to thank me. Although the idea was mine, it still needs the boss's approval."

Min Xi said, "Manager Li, please write me a plan and set a target profit amount for the silk shop this year. If I think the target is feasible, I will adopt yours. If not, I will use my target as the standard. If you can achieve this target, I will increase everyone's salary and your dividend at the end of the year."

When Shopkeeper Li heard about the salary increase and bonus, he stammered, "Are you serious?"

Yun Ji smiled and said, "It's absolutely true, provided that the proposed target is achieved. If it is not achieved, then the price may not increase."

"Okay, okay!" Shopkeeper Li nodded hurriedly. Not only did he give everyone a holiday, but he also wanted to raise their wages. What a good thing there is in the world! If he didn't know that Manager Min was the boss's brother, he would really think that Manager Min came here to specifically destroy the boss's platform.

Min Xi continued to raise some small suggestions, all about service. After all, the goods sold by Yunxiang Silk Shop are already top-notch goods, and they are not worse than their peers in this respect. The only reason they lose is in service. Min Xi thinks that strengthening the service awareness of the shop assistants should be able to make up for these shortcomings and narrow the gap with their peers. Giving the shop assistants holiday and processing money is a way to improve work enthusiasm.

Shopkeeper Li agreed to all the requests. No matter how strict Min Xi's requests were, Min Xi was indeed doing it for everyone's good.

Coming out of the silk shop, Min Xi said to Yun Ji, "Seventh Brother, I gave the clerks a holiday and increased their wages. You won't blame me for interfering in other people's business, right?"

Yun Ji smiled: "Of course not. I said, your meaning is my meaning."

Min Xi laughed: "Do you know why I gave my guys a holiday?"

"Why?"

"In addition to improving their work enthusiasm, I also really consider things from their perspective. I oppose any behavior of exploiting employees without bottom line!" Min Xi said righteously.

Yun Ji smiled and said, "Is it because of the ideology you were taught?"

"Yes, the socialist education I received does not allow me to be an inhumane oppressor," said Min Xi.

Yun Ji smiled and shook his head slightly: "I am firmly on your side."

Min Xi patted his shoulder with satisfaction: "That's almost right."

Yun Ji asked: "Where else are we going?"

"Let's go to the carpenter's shop again and order some high stools from them. We also need to ask them to prepare some materials, as the tables, chairs and benches in the restaurant need to be replaced with new ones." Min Xi said.

"it is good."

The next day, Min Xi and Yun Ji went out early. Before going to Yunxiang Restaurant, they went to the vegetable market to buy some ingredients. When they arrived at the restaurant, there was indeed a sign at the door saying "Closed for Today". This was the first time that Yunxiang Restaurant had been closed since it opened, except for the New Year and renovation.

From the owner to the apprentices, everyone was curious about how Min Xi and Yun Ji were going to renovate the restaurant.

Yun Ji pushed the door open and walked in. Shopkeeper Fang came up to greet him and said respectfully, "Boss, Manager Min, you are here."

"Have you had breakfast?" Min Xi asked.

“It has already been used.”

Yun Ji handed him the basket of ingredients and said, "Take these to the kitchen."

Shopkeeper Fang quickly took it and looked at the vegetables in the basket, wondering, "Boss, why did you buy more vegetables? We still have some vegetables in the store."

"It's okay. We should eat in the store at noon. Since everyone is here, let's share a table and sit down to chat slowly." Yun Ji said.

Everyone worked together and quickly put the four eight-person tables together, and sat around the tables as instructed.

Min Xi also asked someone to make tea. When everyone saw that they could sit down and have tea to drink, they finally let go of their worries. It seemed that he was not here to cause trouble on purpose.

After everyone was seated, Yun Ji said, "Manager Min has some ideas that he wants to share with everyone."

Min Xi coughed lightly and then spoke: "I have opened a restaurant myself, so everyone here can be considered my peers. But because of this, I have high expectations for Yunxiang Restaurant, but the current situation is indeed a bit unsatisfactory. Of course, I also know that this is not entirely your fault. We are an old restaurant and we were once glorious. Before Zuixiang Restaurant and Heming Restaurant, our Yunxiang Restaurant was also the leading restaurant in Beijing. And I believe that everyone will not be willing to lag behind, right?"

Manager Fang nodded vigorously: "Of course, who doesn't want to make the restaurant the best restaurant in the whole capital!" He had seen the glory of Yunxiang Restaurant, but at that time he was not the manager, but just a waiter in the store.

After Manager Fang spoke, the others naturally followed suit.

Seeing this, Min Xi said, "Very good, everyone is determined to make Yunxiang Restaurant the best in Beijing. I believe we can do the best, too."

But no one present believed it except Yun Ji. It's okay to say it to show determination, but to really do it, it's not something that can be done just by talking.