Dressed as a widow, raising cubs, farming and building infrastructure in Ming Dynasty

Chapter 9 Business is booming
Aunt Ma clapped her hands and said excitedly: "This is a good idea, I'll steam it!"

The next day, Aunt Ma went back an hour early, kneaded the coarse grains and fine grains that had been soaked in advance, and steamed them on the steamer.

She didn't dare to make more. According to Qin Liu's words, she only steamed thirty.

As a result, thirty of them were sold out before it was over in the early morning.

One penny and two cornbreads, this price will tempt everyone.

People passing by, rich or poor, bought two for dry food.

A month has been spent in hard work.

Qin Liu made a careful calculation and found that after excluding the cost of raw materials such as rice, flour, firewood, etc., she made a net profit of three thousand cash in a month, which just included her total investment in buying tables, chairs, benches, pots, bowls, spoons and other items!

She was so excited that she cried with joy!

Finally found another way to make a living!

However, she quickly calmed down.

The reason for the success of this road is the dedication and hard work of several members of the Ma family.

If not, she wouldn't have been able to open the store on her own.

Qin Liu called Aunt Ma, Ma Yue, Sister Ma Feng and others together to discuss the issue of income distribution.

When they first opened the store, they intentionally avoided this problem.

Because no one is sure that this store can make a profit.

If he loses money, Qin Liu will bear all the risk of losing money.

Although Ma Ang has military pay, he only has four silver coins a month, which is 280 Wen, to barely keep his family fed and clothed. If he wants to have money to open a shop, he will probably have to wait until the Year of the Monkey and the Horse.

Qin Liu calculated the investment, income, etc. of the dumpling shop in detail, and concluded: "So far, the total money spent has been as much as the money recovered, so we have no loss or profit. However, after all, we have worked hard. It’s better to divide the silver into one cent.”

Qin Liu divided the three thousand coins into four parts according to the head, with each portion worth 750 coins.

The eyes of Aunt Ma, Ma Yue and Sister Ma Feng all shone brightly.

A neat string of copper coins was placed in front of me. It looked beautiful and gentle, and my heart was so excited that I almost jumped!

Ma Yue stretched out his hand and gently touched the string of copper coins, as if caring for a beautiful little white rabbit. The hemp rope stringing the coins looked particularly cute.

It's not like he's never seen so much money.

But this is the fruit of my own labor, and it’s only for one month. This is so exciting!
At this time last year, he was still a poor boy who couldn't fill his stomach and kept a stone in his mouth to satisfy his hunger. At this time this year, he not only has enough to eat, but also makes money!
so much money!

Getting a wife is no longer a problem!
Ma Yue was so excited that he wanted to jump up, but Madam Ma held him down.

Aunt Ma quickly calmed down. She gathered all the money in front of everyone and piled it in front of Qin Liu. She said with a serious and serious expression: "Girl, don't decide this matter yet. You can discuss it again when Ma Ang comes back."

Qin Liu didn't insist and readily accepted Aunt Ma's proposal.The initial investment is also real money spent.She also pointed to earning the money back as soon as possible.

She shared the money in advance just to show her attitude and sincerity - to share the fruits of labor according to work with the Ma family.It also gives reassurance to the Ma family: I am not a money-minded or profit-seeking person.The next day, Ma Ang made a special trip to ask for leave.

There was a man dressed as a military commander standing aside, and no one dared to cause trouble in the dumpling shop.

Taking advantage of the lack of people, Ma Ang called Qin Liu to the yard behind the shop and expressed his point of view: "First, the money earned in the first month is your capital, and we can't take it. Second, If there is a profit in the future, we can split it half and half, and if there is a loss, we can’t take the majority.”

"But Aunt Ma, Ma Yue and Sister Feng are all working very hard..."

Ma Ang did not give in: "Who doesn't work hard? It's hard for Uncle Li to have two children at home, and it's hard for the children not to see their mother for a day."

Qin Liu was stunned for a moment, but did not insist on his opinion: "Okay then. It's up to you whether it's more or less. Please bear with me."

After Ma Ang finished speaking, he didn't stay long, fetched a few buckets of water from the well, put them into the large wooden basin for washing dishes, and left.

The weather is getting warmer and there are more and more people on the road.Qin Liu repeatedly adjusted the recipe, focusing on an affordable and filling dish.

As the number of guests increases, new problems arise.

Even though she bought several more bowls, she still couldn't hold them and wash the dishes. There were two large pots set up outside the house to cook porridge, but the supply still exceeded the demand.

She deliberately dug a well and a large pool outside the door, so that those who were in a hurry to eat could wash the dishes and pick up the dishes by themselves, in a self-service mode, otherwise they would be too busy.

But the cost of drilling a well is quite high. If the store is not rented to them, the investment will be in vain.

She couldn't make up her mind for a while, so she just complained a few words to Madam Ma and the others.

Aunt Ma made a good suggestion: "Let's put the well digging first. I have a good suggestion for the dishwashing work. Our neighbor next door has a child who is an orphan. Both his parents have passed away. , 11 years old, he has to eat one meal by himself, why not let him help wash the dishes, and let’s make sure he has enough to eat three times a day.”

Qin Liu naturally agreed happily.

The child's name is Shuan Zhu. He is as thin as a monkey and only as tall as an average eight or nine-year-old child. His face is sallow, and it is obvious that he suffers from long-term malnutrition.But the child is hard-working and capable, with nimble hands and feet. He cherishes this hard-won opportunity to make a living. He washes dishes, sweeps the floor and wipes the table, runs errands, buys vegetables, noodles and meat, and rushes to do any kind of work.

The increase in porridge-drinking customers has had a great negative impact on the dumpling business.

However, most of the guests who could afford dumplings could live in the inn, and some ordered dumplings to be delivered to their rooms in the inn.

In the second month, I made a net profit of [-] yuan.Half of it was given to the Ma family, and the other half was kept by herself.

Qin Liu really didn't expect that just doing business for the poor at the lower level could make such a high profit!
A new porridge and bun shop soon appeared in the town, forming direct competition for her business.

Qin Liu didn't mind either.Although those new restaurants followed her example, the porridge bowls were the same size as those in their stores, but the porridge was a lot thinner and there were no peanuts, mung beans and other nuts that add texture to it.

Experienced regular customers are still more willing to spend money in their stores.

On the contrary, because of the diversion of these stores, the reception pressure on their stores has been much reduced.

The next few months will be the peak business season. Not only will there be a lot of merchants coming and going on the road, there will even be some tourists riding horses to the grassland to see the scenery.
There were also some brave soldiers passing through the town, but those people were passing by on horseback and had special personnel to supply food and grass, so they had nothing to do with their dumpling shop.

It had just entered June, and the weather was extremely hot and muggy. Erlang felt lethargic and had a loss of appetite.Old Man Li complained with some regret: "It's all my fault, old man! I saw that the child was eating well a few days ago, so I couldn't help but feed him a few more mouthfuls, for fear of accumulating food..."

Qin Liu said with relief: "It's nothing serious, just a few hungry meals will be fine."

(End of this chapter)