Male superiority and female superiority: forced love

The old woman hesitated for a while, then took out forty cents and bought half a pound of braised pork.

"Boss, give me a bowl with more soup. I'll return it to you tomorrow morning," she urged, pointing to the large pot. With the soup base, she could add other dishes when she got home, ensuring both lunch and dinner.

"Okay, Auntie, I'm not... the boss." Ruan Chuyin paused and replied with a red face.

"What? You're not the proprietress here?" The old woman was stunned. How could such a small restaurant hire such a young woman? Her curvaceous figure, and her tall, willow-like figure, made her a real eye-catcher wherever she went. She glanced at Qin Guanzhi again, realizing that she had probably taken a fancy to the owner and had come to pursue him.

Ruan Chuyin secretly glanced at Qin Guanzhi, who was keeping his head down and silent, then wrapped the bowl and handed it to the old woman.

The old woman took a closer look at the bowl filled with soup and smiled from ear to ear, praising her repeatedly: "Girl, you are such a good businessman. I will come again next time."

After sending the grandparents off, Yu Yu snorted softly, "That old woman is so shameless at her age, and she doesn't even worry about teaching her grandson bad things."

Qin Guanzhi patted his head gently: "What are you mumbling about? This is how business works. Come and help."

Ruan Chuyin prepared not only braised meat today, but also other dishes. Since their cooking skills still needed to be improved, they could only help with the preparation.

"Sir, I'm not wrong. What if that old woman comes back and asks for soup or takes advantage of you in some other way?" Yu Yu replied with a suppressed voice.

There were only three of them in the shop now. Sister Ruan, a young woman, was already vulnerable, while the young master was gentle and kind, rarely getting into arguments. And she was only fifteen, not yet twenty. What if she encountered a vicious customer? They had no relatives, no friends, and no foundation in Wushui Town. Just thinking about it gave her a headache.

"That grandparents and grandchildren are the first business of the day. It's normal to give them a little discount for a good start. Miss Ruan knows her limits. Don't say anything more, remember that." Qin Guanzhi's eyes flashed with rare severity. Yu Yu knew the young master was angry, so he quickly covered his mouth and ran to the kitchen to help.

It is still an hour before noon. Today, Ruan Chuyin ordered five quick dishes to test the waters. If the customers’ feedback is good, she will purchase more ingredients.

Qin Guanzhi had never imagined that he would one day end up opening a small restaurant in this remote place. Now that Ruan Chuyin was by his side, he felt incredibly motivated, and all his resentment towards his family had vanished. He was now especially grateful to his parents; if they hadn't kicked him out, he wouldn't have met such a beautiful girl.

After that, many more diners came one after another, all attracted by the rich aroma of meat.

When Ruan Chuyin prepared all the dishes for today, half of the big pot of braised meat had been sold.

Qin Guanzhi excitedly ran to the kitchen with the account book he had just made to tell Ruan Chuyin the good news.

"Half of the pot of meat is sold out?" Ruan Chuyin looked at him in surprise, as if she couldn't believe her ears, and hurried to the stove to check.

Sure enough, the big pot that was originally filled with braised meat was no longer half full.

A full ten kilograms of meat were sold out in just one hour; the supply was too small!

"Yes, more than 20 customers came just now. I saw that the braised meat was not enough, so I sold it by two. I made a total of 800 coins." Qin Guanzhi excitedly gestured at the "grand occasion" just now, which aroused the enthusiasm of Ruan Chuyin and Yu Yu.

Twice-cooked pork, Kung Pao chicken, scrambled eggs with green onions, dry-pot cauliflower, stir-fried vegetables with garlic, purple egg drop soup, and corn and pork ribs soup.

Five hot dishes and two hot soups were neatly placed on the long table.

Just as everything was ready, two diners dressed as porters walked in.

They were slightly stunned and looked at the new store layout in surprise.

When his eyes fell on Ruan Chuyin, his whole body trembled and his eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Miss, do you own this shop?" Da Niu walked up to her stiffly and tried to strike up a conversation with her, completely ignoring the presence of Qin Guanzhi and Yu Yu.

Erniu leaned his head over to the five large pots and sniffed gently. The dishes were colorful and fragrant, but they were not the kind of smell that made him salivate.

He took two more deep breaths and looked at the big pot behind Ruan Chuyin.

"Girl, what's in that?" he asked immediately after Da Niu's words.

Qin Guanzhi's eyes darkened slightly, and he stood in front of Ruan Chuyin and introduced the dishes one by one.

At this time, Da Niu and Er Niu noticed the other two people and scratched their heads embarrassedly.

"Boss, how much is the set meal you just mentioned?" Da Niu felt that the saliva he swallowed was sweet, and he couldn't wait to take a few bites with the rice, especially the twice-cooked pork, which had a spicy taste and awakened all the gluttons in his stomach.

"One meat dish and two vegetable dishes are eight cents, two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes are ten cents, and three meat dishes and two vegetable dishes are twelve cents. Hot soup is free, and refills on rice are free. The pot contains braised meat." Qin Guanzhi quoted the price clearly.

"What does it mean to get a free refill?" Erniu had never heard of this term before and asked curiously.

"It means that up to two bowls of rice are provided for free. Any more than that will cost two cents per bowl." Qin Guanzhi answered while pointing to the price tag hanging above his head.

Da Niu and Er Niu looked up following his gesture and saw a large wooden sign with today's dishes and all combination prices written in large fonts with lead chalk.

When they saw the words "braised pork", they instantly became excited.

"A portion of braised pork rice is fifteen cents, and if you buy it separately it's eight cents per two pieces." The two of them murmured in a low voice.

"Give me a plate of braised pork rice, with plenty of rice." Da Niu, bewildered by the deadly aroma of the meat, didn't care about the price and readily took out fifteen coins. He wanted to have a bite right away.

Erniu felt sorry for the money and after a lot of inner struggle, he chose the cheapest set meal for eight cents, which included twice-cooked pork and two bowls of white rice.

What they didn't expect was that the hot soup here actually included meat broth, and two bowls were served on the table.

Da Niu eagerly shoveled a large mouthful of braised pork rice, his eyes widening. It was delicious! Even better than he'd imagined! He'd never tasted braised pork so good before. There wasn't even a hint of porky tang, and it was salty yet sweet, sweet yet fresh, with a subtle medicinal aroma. Before he knew it, the whole bowl of rice was gone, not even a grain left.

Niu Er was shocked at how quickly Niu Da finished his meal. He regretted not ordering the braised pork rice; he should have gotten one just for the amount of meat.

Niu Da's eating habits made him salivate over the braised meat even more. He made up his mind and spent another eight cents to buy another ounce of braised meat to satisfy his hunger. He couldn't stop eating it once he started. Finally, before leaving, he bought another two ounces to take back to improve his family's meals in the evening.

The two returned to the dock and gave their fellow workers a thorough introduction to the newly opened Mingyue Restaurant. When the porters who hadn't eaten yet and the fishermen who had listened closely heard that there was a beautiful young woman in the restaurant, they didn't hesitate and rushed over.

Soon, the 900-square-foot restaurant was packed with people.

At first, they all rushed to pay and tried to chat with Ruan Chuyin. Later, when they started eating, the noise became smaller and smaller, and in the end, there was only the sound of slurping rice and shouting for more rice and dishes.

The restaurant had limited space, and passersby, seeing the shop full of people, began to look in. Soon, a long line formed at the door.

Qin Guanzhi and Yu Yu were caught off guard by this sudden "hot" scene. They kept shuttling in and out of the store, so busy that they didn't know what to do first.

"Girl, do you have any braised meat left?" The old woman who came in the morning rushed into the store and asked.

"Auntie, it's you. The braised meat is sold out, so we have to wait until tomorrow. Why don't you look for something else?" Ruan Chuyin said, looking down at the five nearly empty pots. Her expression froze, and she quickly changed the subject, "Auntie, there's still one portion of each of these dishes left. We won't be able to eat the fresh ones until sunset."

"Can the braised meat be served later?" the old woman took out the clean bowl and returned it to Ruan Chuyin and asked.

The half pound of braised pork she'd bought that morning was completely snatched up by the whole family at lunchtime. Her grandson only managed two bites and burst into tears, no matter how she tried to soothe him. So, she rushed over anxiously to buy another two pounds, but they were sold out so quickly. She'd clearly already had a full pot when she came that morning! How could it have sold out so quickly?

"Girl, could you please help me make a little more? My little grandson loves your braised meat. I'm afraid he'll make a scene if I go back empty-handed." The old woman's face flushed with anxiety. It was so embarrassing to tell others about it. The old man and his son almost came to blows over half a pound of braised meat.

"This... Auntie, it's not that I don't want to make it, but the store is short of ingredients. You can order the quantity you want and pick it up tomorrow morning. Is that okay with you?"

Before the old lady could reply, one of the diners at the table suddenly looked up and shouted, "Girl, give me half a catty too. I'll come get it tomorrow morning."

Seeing this, other diners followed suit. The old woman became anxious and quickly took out eighty coins to order a pound of meat.

"Girl, I've already given you the money, but you must save the braised meat for me!"

Ruan Chuyin quickly glanced around at the diners present, smiled, took the money, and replied in a raised voice, "Auntie, don't worry, you're the first one to pay, and I'll definitely let you get it tomorrow morning."

Everyone understood what he meant, and their hands quickly reached into their collars, rushing to pay.

Qin Guanzhi and Yu Yu hurriedly picked up paper and pen to write down the information one by one and gave them the receipt, telling them that they would need the receipt to pick up the braised meat tomorrow and to be sure to keep it well and not lose it.

It was not until noon that they sent the last diner away.

Qin Guanzhi hung up a wooden sign indicating the shop was closed and closed the door.

The three of them were so tired that their bodies ached as if they had been run over by wheels, and their mouths were as dry as green leaves withered in winter.

All the ingredients for today are sold out, and there is nothing left in the six large pots and two soup pots.

Ruan Chuyin brought out three servings of braised pork rice that had been kept warm in the morning from the kitchen, which made Qin Guanzhi and Yu Yu so excited that they almost jumped up.

"Sister Ruan, is there any braised meat? I thought we wouldn't be able to eat today." Yu Yu shrugged his delicate nose twice and said with surprise in his eyes.

Qin Guanzhi quietly looked at the braised meat covered with rice in front of him, and his sense of happiness instantly reached its peak.

"Everyone is tired, let's eat it while it's hot." Ruan Chuyin took off the veil with a smile. Her vision suddenly broadened. She said no more and put the delicious food into her mouth one bite after another.

She decided to wear a veil tomorrow. If she continued like this, her eyes would be damaged.

After dinner, the three of them began to take stock of today’s “harvest”.

Wow, the revenue from just one meal reached 2,100 coins. Add to that the 4,000 coins the customer had reserved for tomorrow's braised pork, and the total profit was 6,100 coins, or 6 taels of silver. After deducting various costs, the gross profit reached 50%.

This amount was not even a drop in the bucket for Qin Guanzhi's life in Liangcheng. But for him now, it was an income that could not be ignored, especially since it was earned through hard work with his own hands, and it was of great significance.

"Mr. Qin, how are taxes collected when doing business in Wushui Town?" Ruan Chuyin asked. She wanted to calculate the net profit again.

"Da Yong is now implementing a policy of benefiting the people and reducing taxes. No taxes will be collected on monthly revenue below 100 taels." Qin Guanzhi replied with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Chuyin suddenly remembered the company that had contacted her for an interview before. The salary offered did not reach the threshold for tax payment, and a bitter feeling suddenly arose in her heart.

Alas, she really is not eligible to pay taxes wherever she goes!

The thought that she was still far from her ideal life aroused her supreme fighting spirit.

First set a small goal for yourself - paying taxes.

"Mr. Qin, do you know what conditions are required to register your household in Wushui Town?" Ruan Chuyin wanted to get a legal identity for herself to avoid unnecessary complications.

Qin Guanzhi and Yu Yu were shocked. Unlike men, women's household registration required not only registration at the local government office where they were born, but also filing a record with the imperial court. Only those without household registration or those not from Dayong could not access this information.

"Miss Ruan, have your parents never registered your household registration?" he asked cautiously.

Ruan Chuyin suddenly became nervous, rubbing her hands behind her back gently as she considered her words.

Qin Guanzhi understood the expression on her face, thought for a moment and said, "Miss Ruan, leave this matter to me."

So it can be done? Great! Ruan Chuyin was so excited when she heard this, her heartbeat quickened a bit, and she quickly said, "Master Qin, will this be too much trouble for you? How about you tell me how to do it, and I'll go myself?"

"Registering in town might be a bit difficult, as it requires a lot of paperwork. I'm thinking of going to Xiaohe Village and asking the village chief and the head of the village." Qin Guanzhi weighed the pros and cons in his mind. After much deliberation, he decided that place was the most suitable. He figured the village chief and his men wouldn't refuse a young woman.

"Mr. Qin, thank you so much! I'm a stranger here. If it weren't for you, I don't know where I'd end up." Ruan Chuyin said with emotion. It seemed like she owed Qin Guanzhi more and more favors.

The afternoon sunshine is always short-lived.

By evening, Yu Yu had already cleaned the restaurant spotlessly. All the newly purchased ingredients were put into the pot, and five pots of hot and quick meals were ready.

"Sister Ruan, are we just going to soak these herbs like this?" Yu Yu asked.

"Yes, after soaking for a while longer, you can take it out and use it to make the soup base for the braised meat." Ruan Chuyin replied seriously while checking the soaking condition.

"Ayu, is there any problem with Young Master Qin?" Ruan Chuyin asked worriedly, glancing at the sky. Qin Guanzhi had returned to Xiaohe Village to discuss her household registration, and she didn't know if the village chief and the head of the village had approved it.

"Don't worry, Sister Ruan, the young master can definitely take care of this matter for you." Yu Yu said, patting his chest.

To settle down in Xiaohe Village, one must first have a house. There are already many vacant small houses in the village, so it would be fine to just buy one. The young master can still afford this amount of money.