After his failed attempt to sell noodles at the textile factory gate a few days ago, Zhou Liangliang hastily retreated to the dock.
That evening, he brought noodles and meat stew to the dock and sold them for twenty cents a bowl, managing to sell them all and recoup some losses.
At the dock, people were quite receptive to cheap and good quality noodles, which gave him a glimpse of a business opportunity.
The next day, he set up his noodle stall as well, selling only two kinds of meat stew. A bowl of noodles cost thirty cents, and he could sell about twenty bowls a day, earning an extra two yuan.
This delighted the couple. Although they had lost several tens of yuan, it wasn't a complete loss.
What he didn't expect was that Zhou Jie, after working at Zhou Yan's shop for three days, returned with a completely different sign: the soup pot was now called Qiao Jiao Niu Rou and the price had increased from forty cents to sixty cents a bowl!
You should know that at the dock, Zhou Jie's forty cents bowl of soup pot was already the most expensive.
"Zhou Yan sells for sixty cents, and he sells for sixty cents too, so aren't those two brothers earning more than before?" Wu Guihua said with a hint of envy.
They sell a bowl for thirty cents, only twenty or thirty a day, earning one or two yuan.
Zhou Jie and his group, on the other hand, sell a hundred bowls for forty cents, earning ten or twenty a day.
"Hmph, I don't think so. From this failure, I've learned a lesson: sell the right thing at the right place." Zhou Liangliang scoffed confidently.
"Zhou Yan can command high prices at the textile factory because the workers there are indeed wealthy. But here at the docks, most are manual laborers. Forty cents is already their limit. Those extra twenty cents could buy another bowl of soup at other places. Nobody's going to be that gullible."
"That makes sense." Wu Guihua's eyes lit up. "If they think it's too expensive, will they come to our place to eat?"
"May be, since it's right next to our stall." Zhou Liangliang nodded, also looking forward to it.
As noon approached, more and more customers started arriving at the docks for lunch.
Many people had a clear goal and headed straight for Zhou Jie's stall.
"Zhou Jie, I haven't seen you for two or three days. What have you been up to?"
"That's right, they weren't even setting up their stall the day before yesterday. I came for soup pot but it was empty."
A customer greeted Zhou Jie with a familiar smile.
As they spoke, six or seven customers had already arrived.
Zhou Jie smiled and said, "I've been learning the skill from a master chef these past few days. From now on, our soup pot won't be called 'Soup Pot,' it'll be called 'Zhou Ji Qiao Jiao Niu Rou.'"
Hearing this, the customers noticed the changed signboard and price list.
"Sixty cents a bowl? You...you've raised the price too much!"
"Absolutely! It was originally forty cents a bowl. Your kid's cooking is good, and we were happy to patronize you, but now that it's sixty cents a bowl, who can afford it!"
The customers were annoyed to see the price increase of twenty cents.
Zhou Liangliang and his wife, who had been listening intently, couldn't help but laugh.
Zhou Hai looked at Zhou Jie, a little flustered.
Zhou Jie, however, remained calm, smiling broadly as he said, "Don't worry, everyone. You all know my brother and I sell soup pot; we're dedicated to making good soup, we have no ulterior motives. This time, I really did go to my brother Zhou Yan to learn the traditional method of making soup pot, specifically this Cross-legged Beef.
Why does our Cross-legged Beef cost sixty cents? Because we add various spices and Chinese herbs to this soup, which have the effects of dispelling dampness, dispelling cold, nourishing the stomach, and tonifying yin and yang. This is more than just a delicious soup pot; it's a medicinal dish passed down from the old traditional Chinese medicine doctor in Zhou Village."
Zhou Jie's words left the customers stunned.
"What Cross-legged Beef? Never heard of it. These effects you're talking about are probably just hype."
"Exactly! If it was that effective, what would be the point of hospitals? They'd cure everything."
But the customers weren't so easily fooled; they were masters of argument.
Zhou Jie raised his hand, and Zhou Hai, standing beside him, lifted the pot lid.
Steam rose up, carrying a rich aroma of meat that wafted towards the guests.
"Hmm? It smells good!"
"This tastes a bit different from before."
The customers' eyes lit up, drawn by the aroma of the broth.
Looking at the large pot, it was full of clear, bright soup, without a single impurity—a truly comforting sight.
"Words are no proof. You're all regular customers. You should try the soup first. If you don't like it, I'll accept it even if you throw the bowl at me." Zhou Jie took an earthenware bowl, ladled out a small half-bowl of soup for each of them, and handed it directly to the regular customers.
With the bowls in their hands, the aroma of the hot soup filling the air, and Zhou Jie smiling, the customers couldn't refuse. They picked up their bowls, blew on them to cool them, and began to drink.
The commotion attracted a crowd of onlookers.
There were vendors and customers.
A soup pot for sixty cents a bowl—quite a novelty! If regular customers can't accept it, Zhou Jie's reputation, built up over the past two years, might be ruined.
"Mmm! This soup is really delicious! Much better than before!"
"It's so fresh it'll make your eyebrows fly! What did they add? There's absolutely no gamey smell from the offal, it's absolutely amazing!"
"There's a slight herbal flavor, but it enhances the freshness and aroma. Drinking it really makes you feel warm all over."
Several regular customers finished their bowls, each one beaming with delight and full of praise.
The Zhou brothers' soup pot is absolutely top notch at this dock. The offal is cleaned meticulously, and the broth is delicious, so customers are willing to pay an extra ten cents to support them.
But today's soup tastes so much better than before!
They were all regular customers, coming two or three times a week, and could tell the difference in taste with just one sip.
These customers' reactions surprised and intrigued the onlookers.
Was the soup really that delicious? Really that good?
"The soup is good, but the price has gone up too much." a middle-aged man said, his tone softening as he held his bowl.
The other customers nodded in agreement; twenty cents more per bowl was too much.
"Actually, it's only ten cents more per bowl than before. Look, this is fifty cents a bowl, with beef intestines, beef tendon, tripe, and beef heart. The portion is the same, but the ingredients are better. And the Chinese herbs I added are all top quality; the cost is much higher than before." Zhou Jie immediately cooked a regular serving of cross-legged beef and showed it to the customers.
As he spoke, he picked up four more slices of beef and dipped them into the pot to blanch them briefly. The beef was still slightly pink when he immediately took them out and placed them on top of the soup pot. "This serving of cross-legged beef with extra beef is only sixty cents. To be honest, I didn't earn a single cent from this extra ten cents. It's all fresh sirloin, and I cut it into four large slices so that you can enjoy fresh cross-legged beef for just ten cents more."
"You all know how much beef costs per jin, right? Even if you have money, you can't necessarily buy sirloin. The supply and marketing cooperative has never put it out; it's all pre-ordered by people with connections."
"Now tell me, is sixty cents a bowl of cross-legged beef expensive?"
The air fell silent.
Everyone was calculating in their minds, their thoughts racing.
"I admit, I was a little loud just now. Give me this bowl of cross-legged beef first; I need to go to Jiazhou for business." The uncle who had spoken earlier handed over his earthenware bowl. "You can pour it inside. I've used this bowl, so you don't have to wash another one."
"I want a bowl too, with beef! I'll use this bowl."
"I don't think it's expensive. I want a bowl, also with sirloin."
The others couldn't sit still any longer and handed their bowls to Zhou Jie.
Is it worth it?
Need even ask? Absolutely worth it!
The soup is indeed delicious. They'd accept an extra ten cents just for the taste. Adding Chinese herbs and spices increases the cost, which is understandable.
But add another ten cents for four slices of sirloin.
Is there any need to hesitate?
How tender are those perfectly cooked, pinkish-white sirloin slices? Who wouldn't want to try them?
The scene instantly reversed.
From initial angry questioning become a group of people stood with empty bowls, eager to order.
This stunned the nearby vendors and passersby.
A sixty cents bowl of soup pot, so popular?
But that sirloin looks really good!
Several passersby immediately came over to order.
"I've collected the bowls, everyone come inside and sit down. The Cross-legged Beef is freshly cooked and served immediately; it tastes the best." Zhou Jie collected the bowls and placed them directly in the wooden bucket beside him. He gave the bowl of cross-legged beef to the uncle first, smiling, "Uncle, if you're in a hurry, you eat first."
"Okay, you're a good businessman, kid." The uncle happily took the bowl of Cross-legged Beef and sat down, nodding as he ate, "The sirloin is really tender, sliced thinly enough, and cooked just right. With the dipping sauce, the taste is simply unbeatable."
"Boss, give us two bowls of Cross-legged Beef too, sixty cents a bowl."
"One bowl here, I want to try it too."
In no time, the eight small tables were almost full, all ordering the sixty cents a bowl.
Zhou Jie was busy serving customers while also cutting beef intestines and cooking tripe with Zhou Hai.
"Zhou Yan is amazing! Following his method, the customer immediately accepted the price." Zhou Hai exclaimed, beaming.
"That's right, Zhou Yan is so much smarter than us. Work hard, we'll make big money with him in the future, we can't hold him back." Zhou Jie added in a low voice, his mouth practically stretched to his ears.
...
"No, is this right?"
"Why is it sixty cents a bowl? Even at the dock, people are fighting over it!"
"Are you guys acting in front of me?"
Zhou Liangliang clutched his head, looking utterly bewildered.
"How about we add twenty cents?" Wu Guihua whispered.
Zhou Liangliang rolled his eyes at her: "Silly woman, why should you add more?"
"Silly woman? You think I'm being nice to you?!" Wu Guihua jumped up and headbutted him!
"Hiss..."
...
Zhou Yan, unaware of the situation at the dock, was currently busy cooking.
"One serving of Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts!"
"Another serving of Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts!"
"Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts..."
Zhao Hong kept going back and forth to the kitchen, bringing out the newly ordered dishes.
Today's newly added Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts has already become a favorite among guests, a must-order dish for large tables.
The king of Sichuan cuisine, truly deserving of the title!