Zhao Tieying rode on the back of the bicycle, humming a little tune all the way back to Zhou Village.
Under a large tree at the village entrance, a group of women were cracking melon seeds and chatting.
"Slow down." Zhao Tieying tugged at Zhou Miao's clothes, and the bicycle slowed down immediately.
"Iron Lady, are you in a good mood today? You're humming a little tune back home." an elderly woman said with a smile. Everyone's eyes fell on Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao.
Zhou Lao Si was a skilled butcher and was one of the first people in Zhou Village to obtain a cattle slaughter license after the practice was officially opened. Zhao Tieying was also efficient and lived a prosperous life, which inevitably made people envious.
But they had a prodigal son, Zhou Yan, who, after two and a half years as an apprentice in the factory cafeteria, dared to open a restaurant and become a self-employed business owner.
Not only did he drain his parent's money, but he also ran up a mountain of debt. During this time, his family became the gossip of the people of Zhou Village.
It was because Zhou Miao had many brothers, all skilled at butchering cattle, and Zhao Tieying was a sharp-tongued, crooked woman that most people didn't dare to say anything in front them.
Zhao Tieying was such a proud person that, whenever she passed the village entrance, she would bow her head and ask Zhou Miao to ride faster, refusing to listen to the gossip of those old women.
"Auntie Wang also heard that my Zhou Yan saved the niece of Deputy Director Lin of the Textile Factory?" Zhao Tieying tugged at Zhou Miao's skirt, bringing the bicycle to a screeching halt. Her voice rose several degrees. "Deputy Director Lin came to thank Zhou Yan today and gift him a new 28-inch bicycle. He insisted he take it and even said he'd nominate him for a Model of Spiritual Civilization award. Also, the restaurant was incredibly busy today, so busy we couldn't keep up."
The village entrance was completely silent, echoed only by Zhao Tieying's hearty laughter and the crackling of the fire.
The 28-inch bicycle was a massive item. Textile factory workers had to save up half a year's salary and even get a bicycle ticket to buy one.
There weren't many bicycles in Zhou Village; only butchers could afford one.
Zhao Tieying looked at the surprised, envious, and jealous faces, her smile growing ever brighter, her chin raised like a victorious general. "I'm done with you all. Go back home, take shower, and sleep. I have to help out at the shop early tomorrow morning."
Zhou Miao immediately pedaled away.
"A 28-inch bicycle! Zhou Yan's lucky!"
"Deputy Director of the Textile Factory, Zhou Erwa has hooked up with a high-ranking official!"
"The restaurant business is picking up, too. No wonder Zhao Tieying is so proud..."
Zhao Tieying pricked up her ears to listen to the chatter behind her, her body shaking with laughter. All the resentment that had been pent up in her heart was suddenly released.
"Mom, what are you laughing at?" Zhou Momo looked back at her curiously.
"I just thought of something happy," Zhao Tieying replied with a smile.
"Hehehe, then I'm happy too..."
...
Zhou Yan fell asleep.
Wang Laowu and his wife, however, tossed and turned on bed.
"We sold ten fewer bowls today than yesterday. Zhou Erwa has snatched all the customers away. What should we do?" Wang Laowu's wife said with a worried look on her face.
Wang Laowu puffed out his pipe and waved his hand, saying, "It's okay. Lin Zhiqiang and Zhao Dong are giving him a face today. Those who come to eat noodles are just giving them face and joining in the fun.
"He sells a bowl of noodles for sixty cents. Even if the workers were paid more, they can't eat like this everyday. They'll have to come back to eat here in a couple of days."
"Really?"
"Don't worry. Zhou Erwa's restaurant was only brisk for two days when it opened. What's the point? Zhou Erwa isn't cut out to be a chef and run a restaurant."
…
Zhou Yan woke up early again, first changing the water in the dried bamboo shoots and then washing up with cold water.
A body that works regularly is different. After a good night's sleep, he felt refreshed and full of energy, not at all like a brittle college student.
Strapping his backpack to the back seat of his 28-inch bicycle, Zhou Yan rode out to buy groceries.
Arriving at the market, he turned on the [Food Identification] function, revealing the quality of each ingredient at a glance. He even picked only the peppers marked as excellent.
"Zhou Erwa, the pork belly and ribs are very good today. If you want them, I'll give them a discount." Zhou Yan passed by a butcher's stall when the butcher stopped him and said mysteriously, "One yuan and sixty cents a pound. I'll give you a ten cent discount if you order all of them."
One yuan and sixty cents a pound—that's a really good price.
Zhou Yan took a quick look and saw that the pork on the butcher's stall was pale, with a bright red label: [A pile of stale, diseased pork].
Zhou Yan used a lot of meat for his restaurant, and the butchers in town all knew him.
"Why is the meat a little pale?" Zhou Yan asked nonchalantly.
"This is a pig raised by my second uncle himself. The meat is excellent. Don't worry. I, Wang Qi, have been selling meat for years. How could I possibly cheat you, kid?" the knife maker said, patting his chest.
"Too bad I've switched to selling noodles. I won't be using this meat." Zhou Yan looked regretful and turned to leave.
"Selling noodles?" Wang Qi scratched his head, turning his attention to the next victim.
In these days of scarcity, selling sick pigs and cattle was not uncommon, but bullying a young man like Zhou Yan, who didn't know the goods, was excessive. Perhaps Zhou Yan had suffered this kind of loss before.
Zhou Yan had originally disregarded the issue, but as he finished buying groceries and was about to leave, he saw Wang Qi pulling an old lady to sell meat. He went to a quiet spot, retrieved his account book and pen, quickly wrote a few lines, tore off the sheet of paper, folded it, and casually tossed it inside as he passed the market management office on his bicycle, where it landed on the table.
Whether the management would intervene, or whether Wang Qi would be punished, was beyond his control.
Zhou Yan went to Zhang Laosan to pick up the three pounds of spare ribs he had ordered, still priced at 1.9 yuan. The appraiser's evaluation read: "A fresh, high quality spare rib."
At just over 30 cents per pound, Zhou Yan felt more at ease with the money he earned, as his customers enjoyed high quality spare ribs.
"Your kid is pretty good, you become a hero saving lives. After I sell the meat at noon, I'll come to your shop for noodles." Zhang Laosan looked at Zhou Yan with admiration. Today, he wasn't being polite.
"That's fine." Zhou Yan replied with a smile, and rode off. The big red flower on the front of his bicycle seemed even brighter.
First, he simmered the bone broth, then stewed the beef brisket and spare ribs, and then began kneading the dough. With yesterday's experience, Zhou Yan had learned to manage his time well.
For now, with his mother's help, he could manage the noodles. If he planned to add new dish later, such as starting to sell Chinese food again, he would have to seriously consider how to make the restaurant run more efficiently.
Of course, Zhou Yan wouldn't be content with just opening a noodle shop.
Zhao Tieying arrived early today as well. Zhou Momo was still asleep, having been carried in a backpack wrapped in a small blanket.
"Mom, please come a bit late next time. It's dark and the roads are hard to navigate." Zhou Yan carefully carried Zhou Momo out and put her on his bed to continue sleeping.
"You know the roads are hard to navigate? Can't you just go back shop from the slaughterhouse and pick us up? You pedal your bike like crazy!" Zhao Tieying rolled her eyes at him.
"Sure, next time for sure." Zhou Yan scratched his head awkwardly. He'd been so preoccupied with buying groceries that he hadn't even considered this.
Zhou Yan kneaded the dough while Zhao Tieying helped watch the fire, watching closely from the side as he cooked and stir-fried the food.
"Mom, do you want to be a chef too?" Zhou Yan casually asked.
"One chef is enough at home. I just want to see how chef cooks, so I can cook better." Zhao Tieying looked at the meat in the pot and asked worriedly, "You've prepared so much meat today, can you sell it all?"
"Not much. As long as business is good in the morning, it'll be fine." Zhou Yan said confidently.
Today, he prepared ingredients for ninety bowls of noodles, only thirty more than yesterday, not too radical.
The stew and base were ready, and two large pots were already boiling. In the middle pot, bone broth simmered over a low heat, bubbling and fragrant.
Having worked all morning, Zhou Yan couldn't afford to work on an empty stomach, so he made two bowls of noodles.
"I'll just add some greens. A light breakfast." Zhao Tieying brought over two large bowls.
"Then why did you scoop out so much chili oil?" Zhou Yan scoffed. After scooping up the noodles, he immediately scooped her a spoonful of beef and bamboo shoots.
"Less a bit. Can I eat that much?" Zhao Tieying lifted the bowl, fearing Zhou Yan would add more, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up.
This son is indeed sensible and filial. Raising him wasn't in vain.
Zhou Yan was just about to scoop the remaining noodles from the pot when Zhou Momo, having smelled the food, arrived. She stood at the door, rubbing her sleepy eyes, a cheerful expression on her face. "Is breakfast ready?"
"Yes, it's ready." Zhou Yan brought her a small bowl and scooped her a portion first.
"Momo so hungry! I'm going to have three bowls today!" Zhou Momo came forward, raising her little hand high in a "yeah" sign.
Zhou Yan helped her by counting on her fingers: "That's how three is."
The little girl wasn't exaggerating. She finished three bowls of noodles, her face gleaming with joy. She even gave Zhou Yan a thumbs-up after leaving the table: "Great! I'll have three bowls next time!"
After breakfast, Zhou Yan opened the restaurant door. It was already bright outside.
Across the street, Wang Laowu's noodle stall had a steaming pot of noodles, and they were setting up the tables and chairs.
At the sound of the door opening, Wang Laowu looked up, met Zhou Yan's eyes, and immediately turned away with a snort.
People in the same industry are enemies, and even more so those who live next door to each other.
Zhou Yan smiled, not taking Wang Laowu's reaction seriously.
When running a restaurant, performance speaks for itself. The customers will tell you which restaurant's food is better.
After 6:30, workers began arriving.
Wang Laowu and his wife, Liu Fang, had specially changed into new aprons today and stood in front of the noodle stall, putting on a smile, ready to greet customers with a fresh look.
But their smiles soon faded.
Bicycles were parked in front of Zhou Erwa Restaurant; soon there were six or seven of them.
Two regular customers of their noodle stall had somehow slipped into Zhou Erwa Restaurant today, wearing hats and walking with their heads tilted to one side, as if afraid of being recognized.
"What's going on? They've all gone across the street! Wang Jianming and Liu Laoba even wore hats on purpose, and I recognized them instantly! Don't they only eat our noodles?" Liu Fang stamped her feet anxiously.
Usually, the stall would be open by this time, but today, there were no customers at all. They could only watch the bustle across the street.
"They're all just joining in the fun. Don't panic, don't panic," Wang Laowu said in a deep voice.
But his hanging hands were trembling slightly, and he felt a pang of pain, as if his wife had run off with someone right in front of him.
He was so flattered.
Whether they were just there to join in the fun or not, business was definitely down today, and all the noodles and stew he'd prepared were ruined.
"Why do we have to hide and skulk just to eat noodles? It's like we're having an affair?"
"Did you see the expressions on Wang Laowu and his wife's faces? Three parts shock, three parts confusion, and four parts anger. They were just about to come and grab us and ask, 'Didn't I give you a discount?' Who could stand that?"
"Huh? Hurry up!"
Wang Jianming and Liu Laoba hurried into Zhou Erwa Restaurant, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
In one morning, Wang Laowu had sold three bowls of noodles, all of them related to him. After being targeted by him, they felt embarrassed to go across the street.
Zhou Yan, on the other hand, worked non-stop, churning out pot after pot of noodles, until the bowls brought back to the kitchen filled four wooden barrels.
Even Zhou Momo, the child laborer, was assigned to greet guests at the door.
"Welcome to eat the noodles."
"Sister, you're so beautiful."
"Sister, your skin is so fair."
"Come back for noodles next time."
"Bye bye."
...
Zhou Momo was a chatty little girl, friendly and easy going, ready to strike up a conversation with anyone. She was cute, good at complimenting people, and generous with her emotional value, making the female workers happy and even giving her candy.
With candy in her pocket, Zhou Momo's chatterbox became even more frequent.
Zhou Yan had come out a few times and figured this little girl was just trying to get free food and drinks. Thanks to her cute looks, the success rate was high.
As eight o'clock approached, the workers rushed to clock in, and the shop gradually dwindled.
Just then, a ruby red Phoenix bicycle stopped in front of the restaurant, and a young woman jumped off the back.
Zhou Momo, who was sitting on a small bench at the door eating candy, looked up, her eyes widening slightly, her mouth slightly open. "Sister, you look so cute oh..."