After a male student transmigrated into the body of a widow,

Zheng Hao came to Gu Lin's side. To take care of Yu Ge'er and avoid making him feel uncomfortable or embarrassed, Gu Lin kept talking to him as they walked and talked until the three of them arrived at the lobby.

Sister-in-law Zhao and Brother Zhao are setting out the bowls and chopsticks inside.

Since Zhao Dagen went to the prefectural city, Zhao's sister-in-law asked Zhao's older brother to move to the county town. However, Zhao's older brother was worried about the houses and fields in the village, so he only stayed in the county for a few days each month and returned to Xiahe Village the rest of the time.

However, no matter where he lives, Brother Zhao always eats all three meals in the county.

After Gu Lin sat down, Yu Ge'er sat between him and Sister Zhao.

Looking at the table laden with chicken, duck, fish, and meat, Yu Ge'er appeared outwardly indifferent, but inwardly he was in turmoil.

Such food was something even the small landlords near Xiahe Village wouldn't dare to eat on ordinary days.

Gu Lin picked up his chopsticks and said to Yu Ge'er, "Make yourself at home here, don't be shy and eat as much as you like."

Sister Zhao picked up a piece of stewed chicken from the iron pot and put it into Brother Yu's bowl, saying, "Listen to Brother Lin, don't be shy. You need to eat your fill to have the energy to work."

Looking at the sumptuous dishes on the table, and then at the ordinary expressions and behaviors of the people in front of him, Yu Ge'er's initial shock gradually gave way to a firmer resolve.

He felt that his father-in-law was right, and that following Lin Ge'er would definitely not be a mistake.

After making arrangements for Yu Ge'er, Gu Lin kept his word and began to train him.

First of all, Gu Lin taught Yu Ge'er to read and write and to do arithmetic. He wasn't just saying it; he genuinely wanted to train Yu Ge'er to become a shopkeeper.

If Yu Ge'er wanted to be able to stand on his own and become the manager of a shop, he absolutely could not be illiterate.

Yu Ge'er clearly understood this as well, but he was not averse to learning to read and do arithmetic; in fact, he was quite excited about it.

You have to understand that in the village, even boys might not be able to learn these things. Now that he has the opportunity to learn to read, even if Lin Ge'er doesn't hire him anymore, he can still support himself with these two skills.

I thought teaching a twenty-something adult to read would be a very difficult task, but I didn't expect that although Yu Ge'er learned slowly and with difficulty, he was very persistent.

Every night, after Gu Lin taught the other party the corresponding characters and arithmetic, Yu Ge'er would study during his lunch break and other free time, in addition to studying at the designated time.

Therefore, Yu Ge'er is growing at a speed that can be seen with the naked eye.

A dozen days later, Gu Lin increased the intensity of the teaching, increasing the number of characters taught each day from ten to twenty, and also making the arithmetic more difficult.

A month later, Yu Ge'er had mastered more than 500 characters. At the same time, Gu Lin also discovered that although Yu Ge'er had some difficulty recognizing characters, he grasped arithmetic very quickly.

Therefore, even though Yu Ge'er's current skill level has not yet met Gu Lin's requirements, Gu Lin has gradually become more comfortable entrusting him with some tasks.

Gu Lin handed over the task of purchasing ingredients for Xingfuju and checking the daily accounts to Yu Ge'er.

Yu Ge'er was very nervous when he first accepted the task, but Gu Lin comforted him, saying, "With your current skill level, there shouldn't be any problem."

Yu Ge'er, who was initially a little unsure, gradually calmed down after hearing Gu Lin's words and regained his usual competence, saying, "Brother Lin, don't worry, I will do my best."

Gu Lin smiled encouragingly, and then truly entrusted the two major affairs of Xingfu Residence to Yu Ge'er.

After relinquishing control of Happiness Residence, Gu Lin was no longer as busy as before, and he finally had the energy to prepare for another major event.

Xingfuju had been open in the county town for nearly half a year. Gu Lin saved up a thousand taels of silver by taking the dividends from Fumanlou and the business of Xingfuju.

In fact, logically speaking, Gu Lin couldn't possibly only have this much money, because he had already received six hundred taels of silver in dividends from Fu Man Lou over the past two months.

However, Gu Lin's Happiness Residence was too conspicuous. Even with Fu Man Lou as its backer, no other merchants dared to cause trouble at its door, but this did not include government officials.

Gu Lin had to bribe the county government every month, from the county magistrate down to the constables and yamen runners. In a month, this would cost Gu Lin two hundred taels of silver.

You should know that a small house in the county town would only cost around one hundred taels of silver.

But Gu Lin understood that some expenses couldn't be saved, such as the cost of bribing officials.

If he dares not to give it, I guarantee that the next day, yamen runners will come to search Xingfuju and find some dubious items, giving Xingfuju a negative mark.

Manager Chen of Fumanlou repeatedly reminded Gu Lin about the matter of bribing officials. This shows that Fumanlou paid a considerable amount of money to the government every month.

Getting back to the original topic, Gu Lin planned to invest the thousand taels of silver in a food business he had always wanted to try – hot pot.

Gu Lin initially hesitated to launch hot pot due to concerns about costs and space.

But now the former problem has been solved, and Gu Lin has enough funds to support him in opening a hot pot restaurant in the county.

Gu Lin certainly couldn't make a modern hot pot broth, but he planned to create a simplified version of the broth, just like he would make mala tang (a type of spicy hot pot).

He started thinking about the recipe for the hot pot base while he was at home during the Chinese New Year. After more than two months of careful consideration, Gu Lin finally wrote down the recipe and was just waiting to try it a few times before confirming the final recipe.

However, Gu Lin planned to leave the development of the hot pot base to Zhao's wife.

Gu Lin discovered that Zhao's wife was very talented in cooking. Whenever he suggested a new dish at home, Zhao's wife could replicate it perfectly.

Gu Lin felt very reassured entrusting the hot pot base experiment to Sister Zhao.

This solved another major problem, giving Gu Lin more time to look for a location to open a hot pot restaurant.

Xingfuju is too small to be used as a hot pot restaurant, and hot pot restaurants require a large enough space.

Gu Lin originally planned to buy a plot of land, but the vacant land in the county town is limited, and even if there is land, you can't just build a house like you would in the village.

Therefore, Gu Lin could only buy one shop.

Although there were shops in the county town, none of them were what Gu Lin wanted.

He spent more than ten days visiting brokerage firms and looking at dozens of shops, but they were either too small or too remote. He couldn't find a suitable one and returned home feeling somewhat disappointed.

He returned late; Aunt Zhao and the others had already finished dinner. But Aunt Zhao had left food for him, and as soon as she saw him return, she brought out the food.

Looking at the delicious-looking food on the table, Gu Lin had no appetite.

Seeing that the young man, who usually ate heartily, only ate a few bites of rice before saying he was full, Zhao's wife watched anxiously from the side.

After finishing his meal, Gu Lin went to the courtyard and sat quietly on a stone bench.

Sister-in-law Zhao and Brother Yu stood in the corner of the wall, watching Gu Lin sit in the courtyard for more than an hour without any reaction, and they couldn't help but get anxious.

After a while, Zheng Hao came out of the study and went straight to Gu Lin, saying, "Uncle Gu."

Hearing the voice in front of him, Gu Lin looked up slightly at Zheng Hao and said, "Xiao Hao."

Zheng Hao, who was standing, was a bit taller than Gu Lin, who was sitting. He lowered his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping over the young man who was full of disappointment, and asked, "Uncle Gu, are you hungry? Do you want to have a midnight snack later?"

Gu Lin countered, "Are you hungry?"

Zheng Hao shook his head slightly and said, "I'm not hungry, but I feel like eating something."

Gu Lin, who had been feeling gloomy, felt a sense of familiarity upon hearing the other person's words. Then, he remembered the embarrassing incident when Aunt Zhao discovered that they had been secretly eating. A smile that had not appeared on Gu Lin's face for many days slowly appeared: "I just ate and I don't feel hungry, but if you want to eat, I can eat with you."

"But we need to keep our noise down so as not to disturb my sister-in-law and Brother Yu's sleep."

Zhao's wife and Yu'er, who originally planned to go out and comfort Gu Lin, saw Zheng Hao come out and quickly coaxed him with a few words, and both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

After watching Gu Lin and Zheng Hao enter the kitchen, Zhao Saozi and Yu Ge'er turned around, looked at each other, smiled helplessly, and then tiptoed back to their own bedrooms.

Since it was almost bedtime and to avoid indigestion, Gu Lin cooked two bowls of clear soup noodles and fried two eggs.

Gu Lin and Zheng Hao brought the noodles to the main hall, and the two sat down to eat.

Zheng Hao placed the chili sauce that Gu Lin always added to his noodles in front of him. After Gu Lin opened the earthenware jar containing the chili sauce, Zheng Hao asked, "Uncle Gu, how's the shop search going lately?"

Gu Lin picked out a large piece of chili sauce and placed it on the slightly yellow, thin noodles, saying, "I've looked at several places, but I haven't found the right one yet."

Seeing the chili oil on the noodles in Gu Lin's bowl gradually spread, turning the whole bowl of white noodles red, Zheng Hao reached out and took the chili sauce from in front of him and placed it under the table.

“There will always be a suitable shop, Uncle Gu, don’t worry.” Zheng Hao frowned as he looked at Gu Lin’s face. Due to his recent tireless work day and night, dark circles had appeared under the young man’s once fair eyes.

Zheng Hao's dark eyes darkened, and he instructed, "Uncle Gu, you need to take a rest."

Gu Lin smiled and said, "I know, I'll take good care of myself."

Seeing that the other party had said that, Zheng Hao knew he couldn't say anything more.

Gu Lin lowered his head and ate his noodles. He thought he wouldn't have much of an appetite, but after talking to Zheng Hao, he actually felt a little hungry while eating the spicy noodles.

He ate the noodles in the bowl in big mouthfuls, and finally finished the soup and noodles.

With a full stomach and little sleep, Gu Lin soon felt his eyelids becoming heavy.

Looking at Uncle Gu's tired face and his droopy eyelids, Zheng Hao said softly, "Uncle Gu, go back to sleep."

Rubbing his heavy eyelids, Gu Lin looked down at the soup noodles in front of him. If he hadn't cooked them himself, he would have suspected that someone had put sleeping pills in them.

Finally, unable to overcome his exhaustion, Gu Lin stopped forcing himself, told Zheng Hao to go to bed early, and then returned to his dormitory.

Lying on the freshly sun-dried bedding, inhaling its warm fragrance, Gu Lin buried his head in the soft blankets and drifted into a deep sleep.

The next morning, when Gu Lin woke up, he felt that the depression of the previous day had been swept away.

His mindset changed, and he seemed to become more open-minded.

Regarding the difficulty of finding a shop, Gu Lin thought that life is never smooth sailing, and he should learn to be content.

From having nothing when he transmigrated to opening a cold dish stall and Xingfuju restaurant, his journey has been relatively smooth. It's only natural that he's facing hardships now that he's opening a hot pot restaurant; he can just consider it a form of training.

With this thought in mind, Gu Lin returned empty-handed for the next two weeks, but his mindset was completely different.

However, Gu Lin soon encountered a turning point.

That day, Gu Lin came to Xingfuju to check the accounts and see how well Yu Ge'er was getting used to Xingfuju.

Wang Yue came down from the second floor, walked to the counter, and said to Gu Lin, "Boss Gu, have you been inquiring about shops lately?"

Gu Lin was looking down at the accounts when he heard a voice in front of him and then looked up.

After several months of getting to know each other, Gu Lin had become familiar with Wang Yue and knew that the other party was the young master of Ruyi Tower.

He put down the ledger and asked calmly, "Is there any news from Young Master Wang's family?"

Wang Yue nodded: "I do have a shop here, it's a friend's inn. He's having some cash flow problems lately and wants to sell it. What do you think?"

Unexpectedly, Wang Yue actually brought him useful information, but he didn't know what the inn he mentioned was like. Gu Lin said to Wang Yue, "I'd like to trouble you to take me to see it."

"I can only decide whether to buy it after I've seen it."

Wang Yue nodded and said, "Sure, but I don't know when Mr. Gu will have time."

Gu Lin pondered for a moment and then said, "This afternoon."

"Row!"

In the afternoon, after his lunch break, Gu Lin went out with Wang Yue to see the inn that the other party's friend was selling.

As Wang Yue walked, he said to Gu Lin, "My friend originally wanted to put the inn up for sale through a brokerage firm, but the commission they charged was too high. Luckily, I heard that you wanted to buy a shop, so I told him."

“You are the buyer, and he is my friend. I can’t interfere in your business, so I will just act as an introducer. The rest of the transaction is up to you two.”

Gu Lin naturally had no problem.

Upon meeting Wang Yue's friend, the man surprised her. She had expected him to be haggard and unkempt, having reached the point of selling assets to raise money. Instead, the man had regular features and bright eyes.

Gu Lin understood.

Wang Yue stepped forward and introduced Gu Lin to the man, saying, "Brother Ren, this is Boss Gu whom I told you about."

Then, Wang Yue turned to Gu Lin and said, "Boss Gu, this is my good friend, the owner of this inn. You can call him Boss Ren."

Gu Lin greeted him politely, "Mr. Ren."

Mr. Ren cupped his hands and said, "Mr. Gu."

Wang Yue kept his word. After introducing the two men, he sat down to the side, leaving the spotlight to Gu Lin and Boss Ren.

Without any hesitation, Gu Lin got straight to the point and said to the man, "Boss Ren, I heard from Young Master Wang that you want to sell this inn?"

Although Mr. Ren's brows showed anxiety, his words and actions were measured: "Indeed, I am a merchant traveling, and now there is a problem with the goods. I urgently need funds to turn over, which is why I sold this inn."

Boss Ren said to Gu Lin, "Boss Gu, although the inn has been quiet in recent years, it is because I am not good at managing it after my father passed away, and I am often away on business. If it were in the hands of a capable person, it would not be like this."

Gu Lin nodded in agreement, completely agreeing with what the other person said.

This inn is not only large, but also in a good location with a lot of foot traffic, which Gu Lin is very satisfied with.

I've been inquiring about the inn lately, and they must have heard about it from Wang Yue, so there's no need for me to pretend to be nice and try to bargain with them.

Gu Lin spoke frankly to the man in front of him, "Mr. Ren, what's your price range?"

Mr. Ren glanced at the inn left to him by his father after his death, closed his eyes and said, "Four hundred taels, Mr. Gu, I'll sell this inn to you for four hundred taels."

From the moment he entered the inn, Gu Lin began to assess its value.

Normally, this inn could sell for 450 taels, but the other party clearly needed the money urgently, so they directly lowered the price.

Gu Lin didn't try to haggle, but he still pretended to be deep in thought. Finally, he looked up and readily agreed, "Okay! Then let's go to the government office to transfer the property now?"

Seeing the other party's straightforwardness, Boss Ren was somewhat surprised. He had been prepared for the other party to try to lower the price, but he didn't expect the young man in front of him to agree so readily.

He wasn't one to drag his feet, and seeing that the other party was quick to act, Boss Ren immediately agreed to go to the government office to transfer the property.

The three went to the government office, and under the witness of the officials, Gu Lin and Boss Ren signed and sealed the transfer contract.

After receiving the contract and land deed from the official, Gu Lin took out a bank note and gave it to Boss Ren.

After accepting the banknote, Boss Ren cupped his hands and said to Gu Lin, "I wish Boss Gu a prosperous business in advance!"

Gu Lin returned the greeting, saying, "I also wish Boss Ren a safe journey and all his wishes come true!"

Seeing Boss Ren's anxious appearance, one could tell that he would leave the county town immediately after raising the money.

After buying the shop to open a hot pot restaurant, Gu Lin found a renovation team and asked them to renovate the restaurant according to his requirements. Then, he went to a blacksmith's shop and ordered dozens of hot pot stoves.

With the hot pot stove in hand, Gu Lin still needed to buy charcoal. He went to a shop and ordered a lot of charcoal, and then went to a butcher shop and ordered a lot of meat.

After everything was ready, Gu Lin chose an auspicious day to hang up the signboard and set off firecrackers for the hot pot restaurant, ready to open for business!