Reborn in the 90s, I traded my ex-husband for eight apartments.

When a pot of maocai (a type of Sichuan hot pot) was served, everyone's noses twitched.

Xu Yin's mouth watered immediately:

"Pearl, this looks all red, is it spicy?"

Bai Zhenzhu brought over a pair of chopsticks:

"You guys try it."

Then he asked Shuo Shuo to go next door and call Zhang Hongying's two sons over to eat together.

The two boys didn't stand on ceremony; they had smelled the aroma at home and their mouths were watering.

After taking a bite, the eldest son immediately praised it:

"Aunt Bai, your cooking is so delicious."

Bai Zhenzhu asked him, "Do you think it's spicy?"

The eldest son waved his hand:

"It's not spicy at all, but it's incredibly fragrant. Even the bok choy, which I don't usually like, tastes delicious now."

His brother was so engrossed in eating that he couldn't even speak.

The hot pot near No. 1 Middle School mainly targets students, so the white pearl sauce has less chili and a higher proportion of non-spicy fermented bean paste.

This fermented soybean paste was made by Liu Fang herself, and it smells especially good.

Li Yueshu was also surprised:

"I never expected that ordinary vegetables could taste so good when cooked with the same seasoning as pearls."

Liu Fang: "Pearl, will this maocai (a type of Sichuan hot pot) be sold at the restaurant first tomorrow?"

Bai Zhenzhu smiled and said:

"Okay, the bamboo baskets and vegetable crates I ordered will arrive tomorrow, and the vegetable rack will also be delivered tomorrow. My eldest and second brothers should already know how to cook it; this dish is very simple."

Bai Chengxiang: "Pearls, what's the price?"

Bai Zhenzhu thought for a moment and realized that since anything could be braised in Maocai, the pricing wouldn't be too complicated.

"It's one yuan a bowl over at No. 1 Middle School," Bai Zhenzhu said. "Restaurants make larger portions, two yuan a serving."

Then everyone discussed the ingredients for making Maocai (a type of Sichuan hot pot).

The next morning, when Mei Xiulian delivered the vegetables, Bai Zhenzhu mentioned to her about opening a hot pot restaurant and asked her to deliver vegetables to the No. 1 Middle School area as well.

Mei Xiulian was so grateful she didn't know what to do.

Since they started supplying vegetables to Bai Zhenzhu's restaurant, her business has improved significantly, and her family has a brighter future.

The hot pot restaurant spent another day cleaning up before reopening.

Bai Chengxiang got up early in the morning to braise meat. Once it was done, he filled two pots and took them directly to the Maocai restaurant.

The base sauce is stir-fried at the restaurant and then transported there. Bai Chenglei and Bai Chengxiang stir-fry one batch at a time, which can be used several times.

Xu Yin's younger brother and sister-in-law wash and chop vegetables, soak vermicelli and wood ear mushrooms, etc. in the shop.

It was almost eleven o'clock when Bai Zhenzhu arrived.

Today is the first day, and she's still worried about the soup base at the hot pot restaurant, so she came over personally to oversee the preparation.

The broth is made by simmering pork bones, and the aroma fills the whole street.

The tall, burly man next door was the shop's first customer. He ordered half a pound of braised pig's head, half a braised chicken, and two bowls of spicy stew.

School hadn't let out yet, so the couple took the hot pot back to their own shop to eat.

The man chuckled.

"Finally, I can change things up."

He's tired of the food at his own restaurant; other restaurants just don't taste as good as his.

Now look what's happened! A spicy hot pot restaurant opened next door, and the numbing and spicy smell keeps getting into his nose.

His wife nodded repeatedly:

"This pig's head meat dipped in chili powder, what a genius idea that came up with this, it's so delicious."

The Maocai restaurant was packed at lunchtime. A bowl of Maocai for one yuan contained vermicelli and was enough for an adult to eat, including the soup.

And that fragrance is absolutely irresistible.

Not to mention the students, several teachers from the school also came.

There wasn't enough room to sit inside, so some boys squatted outside to eat with their bowls.

Later, the owner of the wonton shop next door brought over two tables and a few chairs, which eased the situation a little.

Bai Zhenzhu watched as the big man put down the table and left, thinking to herself that this man was clearly not fierce at all.

On the first day at noon, Bai Zhenzhu did a rough calculation.

There were eight tables, four people per table, and the tables were turned over almost three times, selling nearly ninety bowls in total.

She was very glad that she had bought more bowls and chopsticks, otherwise they would not have been enough.

All the vegetables were sold out, so Bai Zhenzhu called Mei Xiulian and asked her to deliver vegetables again.

He then called Guo Yongliang and asked him to send over two sets of tables and chairs.

There's no room in the shop, so we'll just pile them up in the corner for now.

Bai Zhenzhu went to return the tables and chairs from the shop next door.

"Thank you, big brother and sister. From now on, you can get a 20% discount on all braised meats."

The burly man had a fierce and imposing voice.

"What a big deal."

His wife smiled at Bai Zhenzhu and said:

"Hey girl, business is booming!"

Looking at the couple's expressions, Bai Zhenzhu couldn't detect a trace of jealousy.

The hot pot restaurant was incredibly busy at noon today, which must have affected other restaurants.

The wonton shop next door, in particular, is clearly not doing well.

Bai Zhenzhu was puzzled, so she asked:

"Sister, don't you think my family's business is affecting yours?"

The eldest sister laughed heartily:

"So what? It's just that fortune changes."

"Just like your previous place, which was inferior and was outdone by my place, now your place is superior and has surpassed us. Isn't that normal?"

He then began to impart his business acumen to Bai Zhenzhu:

"Girl, we're not afraid of your family opening a hot pot restaurant. Your hot pot is delicious, but those students can't eat it every day."

“I’d only be worried if your family opened a wonton shop or noodle shop.”

"Your business is good, and your braised meat is delicious. Maybe it will attract people from the neighborhood to come and eat. Wouldn't we benefit from that too?"

Bai Zhenzhu felt a surge of warmth in her heart upon hearing this.

People like to join in the fun, such as at the train station's general market or department store, because they are of a certain size, so people will go to these two places to buy whatever they want.

If there were a street full of delicious food, wouldn't this be the first place people think of when they want to eat out?

This thought gently settled in Bai Zhenzhu's mind.

She dared not think too deeply about it, because she currently possessed absolutely no strength.

"Sister, you're absolutely right. Then I wish us all booming businesses."

"Haha, may everyone get rich!"

Business is good in the evening too; they cook vegetables in two big pots at the same time, and the food is served quickly.

After the students finished eating, Bai Chengxiang cooked four servings and cut some braised meat, and everyone ate dinner together.

After dinner, Bai Chengxiang wanted to settle accounts with Bai Zhenzhu, but Bai Zhenzhu wouldn't let him.

"Second Brother, let's do the same as the braised meat shop, with monthly payments. Dong Ge and his wife's wages will be deducted from the profits."

Bai Chengxiang didn't say anything more. Monthly settlement was fine; at least the accounts were easier to calculate.

He didn't calculate the total revenue of the Maocai restaurant that day, including the braised meat he sold, but he estimated it to be around two hundred yuan.

Xu Dong and Wang Juan were left to clean up, while Bai Zhenzhu and Bai Chengxiang returned to the train station.

After Xu Dong and Wang Juan finished cleaning, they went straight back to Furong Community.

It takes about 20 minutes to walk from Furong Residential Area to No. 1 Middle School.

Bai Zhenzhu then told Bai Chengxiang to buy another second-hand bicycle for Xu Dong and the others to ride, so that it would be convenient for them to go anywhere.

Bai Chengxiang said he would handle such a small matter and told Bai Zhenzhu not to worry about it.

Bai Zhenzhu has been really busy lately and hasn't been to the clothing store much.

Fortunately, Li Yueshu was very enthusiastic after taking over, and business has been good recently.