Chapter 162: Preparing to Open - Second Update
What fists can't solve If someone isn't honest, just beat them up a few more times."But now... He remembered his wife's words, like a curse had been placed on him. Since he couldn't win with brute fo...I heard that Baoling Temple is very popular, and Gu Huan secretly breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as everyone's attention isn't on us, we'll just let them take all the credit."
She wasn't at all tempted. Right now, they were only suited to surviving and growing.
Xu Huaiyi readily agreed. He then explained in detail how much money they had made from selling the velvet flowers, how much they had spent on buying various plants, and that in the end, there was only a little over two taels of silver left.
It's not surprising that Gu Huaxi took it. I thought to myself, "Looks like I have to make another batch. Otherwise, I won't be able to host a banquet when I open my business."
Next, she worked two more days, rushing and hustling, before the tofu workshop was completed. Finally, she finished this batch of velvet flowers and took them to the city to exchange for about twenty taels of silver.
The money for the opening celebration has been settled.
When she was busy, Xu Huaiyi didn't idle either. He used old wood to make several planting boxes for her and put them in the vacant house in the backyard. He sowed seeds inside and even thought about making a small stroller for his daughter. When his daughter could sit steadily, he could push her out to play.
And during this period, amidst Xu Huaiyi's fervent hopes, seedlings finally emerged in the vegetable garden. However, after careful inspection, the couple found nothing unusual and decided to put it aside for the time being.
But Gu Xiaoyu was quite attentive. Seeing the parched earth, she followed Wei An to carry water and irrigate it.
On the day the tofu shop was built, Gu Huan held his daughter and walked around it, looking inside and out. He was very satisfied. The walls, made of rammed earth and stone, looked sturdy and solid. Although the roof was thatched with straw, it was reinforced with yellow mud, so it wouldn't be affected by wind or rain. The windows were large and covered with white paper, making the interior quite bright.
Each room was spacious and, based on their functions, wooden signs hung outside the doors: millhouse, kitchen, warehouse, processing workshop, drying shed. Besides these, there was a reception room for entertaining clients and a rest room for night watchmen. The facilities were complete, resembling a small factory.
Xu Huaiyi also had people find two persimmon trees from the mountains and plant them in the courtyard. Now, branches are laden with bright red persimmons, like small lanterns, very festive, symbolizing everything going well and prosperity.
Everything is ready, just waiting for a good day.
The auspicious day has already been calculated by a fortune teller. It wasn't just anyone; it was a monk from Baoling Temple, who is now known throughout the capital city as Master Zhixin. He's a renowned figure, and ordinary people would find it difficult to see him. However, Xu Huaiyi went to seek him out, and Master Zhixin gave him face. The most suitable auspicious day calculated was three days from then.
There are many things to prepare for the opening, Xu Huaiyi went into town again and bought a lot of things back. He also took the opportunity to send a post to Mr. Liao, inviting him to come for a drink on the day of his opening.
After he got back, he told Gu Huaxi, "Liao Laoye's restaurant is in Nancheng. The location is alright, spacious and airy, with good business. However, Liao Laoye himself said that it was because he sold at low profits and high volume. There were many people eating, but he didn't make much money, just enough to get by. At noon, he kept me for a meal in the shop. The taste was decent. The chef came from Qingzhou and cooked dishes from our region, very authentic, just with fewer varieties..."
“I talked to him about the tofu business. He was very enthusiastic and agreed to open a shop, sending me twenty kilograms every day. By the way, he also introduced me to a buyer, who runs a hot pot restaurant next door. With the cold weather, more people eat hot pot, and they can’t do without tofu. I also mentioned that I would make other products later, but since there are no finished products yet, it's hard to negotiate business. I'll wait a bit longer. As long as our products are delicious and unique, there will be no shortage of buyers.”
“I'm planning to leave the business of delivering goods to the city to Gao Zhuang from now on, including developing new clients in the future. He's good with words and isn't afraid to interact with people. He's the most suitable person for this job. As for his compensation, base salary plus commission, what do you think”
"Gu Huanxi didn't object, "That's right. For others, wages should also be tied to workload. This way, they'll be more motivated and less likely to slack off or shirk their responsibilities. It's not easy managing relatives from the countryside."
Xu Huaiyi nodded. "That's right, let's get the ugly things out of the way first. We don't target people, we just follow the rules once we're in the tofu shop. I'll write a charter later for you to take a look at."
"Okay, the most important thing is to get the village head's support."
"He is very easy to talk to now..."
Having settled all the rules and regulations, as well as manpower, wages and benefits, Xu Huaiyi went to discuss with Village Head Xu. Afterward, Village Head Xu became the manager of the tofu workshop. He needed to be informed about many things.
When Gu Huan was pleased, she took Wei Ci to make clothes. The clothes were for the people who worked at the tofu shop. After all, they were making food, so hygiene was the most important thing. Although there weren't as many strict rules as in later generations, she dared not be careless. If something wasn't done well, it would be a small matter to ruin the reputation, but it could cause big trouble.
Besides wearing a uniform, hair must also be tied up. In short, once you enter the workshop, you must be clean and tidy, leaving no sanitation hazards.
When Xu, the village head, discussed this with Huaiyi Xu, he also emphasized this point.
Village Head Xu did not refuse. Xu Huaiyi offered him a high wage, including a base salary and bonuses. The bonuses were tied to the monthly profits of the tofu shop. The better the tofu shop performed, the more he benefited.
It's just... In the end, not many people were able to get jobs at the tofu workshop. Altogether, there were only a dozen or so. Village Chief Xu knew that this was enough; adding more would be like having the employer support idle workers. He couldn't bring himself to speak up, but with so many villagers' livelihoods depending on him, he couldn't simply ignore it.
"Wai Yi, what do you think the others should do Although our countryside is primarily focused on farming, it's not looking promising at the moment..."
Xu Huaiyi said calmly, "I see that many people in the village have gone to open up wasteland."
"Yes, they're going," said Xu the village head. "They can't just stay at home eating off their ancestors' hard work. Let them open up some wasteland. They might be able to harvest more grain next year."
"Aren't all the families still making embroidered flowers I heard they've sold quite a bit of silver."
“To be honest with you, my daughter-in-law and the maid at home have also made quite a bit, enough for your brother to sell. Altogether, they earned over two ounces of silver. After deducting the costs, they still managed to save about one ounce. While it’s not a small sum, I haven't heard of other households earning so much. Some of the designs they created were too simple and didn’t fetch a good price. Moreover, I heard that people outside the village have also learned how to make them, so I'm afraid they'll earn less and less in the future...”
This matter, Xu Huaiyi had expected it long ago. Learning embroidery wasn't difficult, with nimble hands and a few glances, one would understand. If the women in the village only did simple patterns, they would be too easily copied and there would be no market for them. To make money, they could only challenge those complex and exquisite ones, taking the high-end route, just like his daughter-in-law.
"The village head continued, "So, we still have to rely on the men in the family having a reliable job. Waiyi ah, you're smart and resourceful, help us brainstorm..."
Xu Huaiyi then laid out his plans. For the simplest and most convenient option, those who didn't want to invest could buy tofu from him and sell it elsewhere. Those who were willing to put in more effort and make more money could set up a small food stall specializing in tofu-based snacks.ooked around and estimated that there was plenty of space here to build a gazebo this week. She could even do some landscaping to make it more beautiful. She imagined sitting here reading and drinkin...