Xu Shaoyan has been a little anxious recently.

The family wanted to open up new business avenues, but they had nothing to stand out from the crowd. The Xu family was considered a wealthy family in Pingchuan County, but there were more wealthy families in Guangning Prefecture than just the Xu family. If placed in Shangjing, they would be even less likely to rank.

The clan used the newly discovered iron ore to break into the army and win some grain business for the family. The clan immediately opened several grain stores in various counties and prefectures.

But he was not the only one supplying food and grass to the army. The Xu family had a small share, and others might not remember that there was a Xu family. How could he stand out and get a bigger share?

Previously, the clan wanted to close down the bakery shops in various places in order to collect funds. Unexpectedly, a young lady named Su Qingyu sold him two techniques for 200 taels, which made Jixiang Bakery the first in Guangning Prefecture.

The title of the number one store was not something that could be won easily, and the family was reluctant to close the stores down.

Xu Shaoyan was deeply impressed by everyone he had worked with, especially those who had taken money from him.

He has always been paying attention to the lady from the Su family.

Seeing her open a vegetable shop, he initially thought she had given up her pastry skills and chose to open a vegetable shop instead of doing pastry business. He couldn’t understand why she would give up big money for small money. With the price difference of one or two cents per pound, how much would she have to sell to earn back the rent of the shop?

At first, Xu Shaoyan didn’t take it seriously, thinking that the Su family was just collecting the vegetables and selling them together. They didn’t put them on the ground like in the vegetable market, but at most on the shelves, which was cleaner.

Later he slowly figured out that Su’s company wanted to enter the mid-to-high-level and sophisticated markets.

Not only did she sell the meat in pieces, but she also washed and cut the vegetables, peeled the skin, and even plucked the feathers from the chickens and ducks that customers bought from other places for two or three cents. Since people came to the store, how could they not buy some vegetables and fruits?

She also delivered to the door of special customers who could not go out conveniently. Later, she also produced semi-finished products such as dumpling skins and took the service to the extreme.

Others wanted to share her market and compete with her on price, but the profit was less. If she wants to catch up with the service, the labor cost has to increase. If the various costs increase, the store will not make money. Can it continue to operate? If it continued to operate, the price of the dishes would have to be raised, and if the price was raised, there would be fewer customers. If the price was not raised, some costs would have to be reduced here and there, and the dishes may not be fresh.

The newly opened shop took away her business, and she sold less meat. Not wanting to compete on price, she immediately changed her mindset and started selling cooked chickens and ducks. She also changed her cooking methods every day, making it difficult for other shops to imitate her.

No one else had figured out the crispy and fragrant young chicken, so she started selling soy sauce chicken. When others had just imitated soy sauce chicken for 50% or 60%, she stopped selling it and started selling beggar’s chicken instead. After the customers had eaten it for a few days and still hadn’t gotten tired of it, she changed to a new variety to whet their appetite. How could she not attract people to come in after whetting their appetite? Would they leave empty-handed after coming in?

This woman was something. She has a lot of ideas!

So Xu Shaoyan gradually put away his contempt for Su Qingyu.

He secretly calculated the accounts for her.

If she did well, it would not be a problem to earn one or two hundred taels a month. With the chicken and duck meat she later sold, she might earn even more. Although four vegetable shops were opened in the town later, none of them looked good.

They only imitated the form, but not the spirit. Other families could not learn the various methods of the Su family. They only learned four different things. Over time, others would still become loyal customers of the Su family shop. The current impact on her was just a short-term temporary shock.

He thought she must have other ways to make money. The vegetable shop might just be a hook, just to bring her customers.

He gradually began to understand why Su Shi would rather spend a small amount of money than a large one.

To do other businesses, you needed a lot of capital, a strong background, wide connections, and loyal bosses and clerks. If there was a problem with any link, you would not only not make any money, but also be stuck in it and unable to get out.

For example, if she wanted to open a bakery, it might be difficult to find a baker. A baker with a special skill may not be willing to sign a contract. Even if he signed, he may not be loyal.

How could you trust someone who didn’t sign a contract and wasn’t loyal? How dare you teach him your skills?

Moreover, any business that required capital and connections was supported by a family. Small families were easily coveted and squeezed out. Once squeezed out, the business would not be able to continue.

Big stores ate up small stores, and small stores were squeezed out every day. His Xu family was one of the most powerful families in Pingchuan County, but they were also squeezed out.

In the end, they might not even be able to keep the money they earned. They might even lose their lives.

He had seen too much over the years. Sometimes he felt discouraged.

The more he looked at Su Shi, the more he felt that she was a smart person.

The vegetable shop was not conspicuous, and the wealthy families looked down on her business, so they would not compete with her for it. Without being coveted by wealthy families, she could continue her business and make a little money quietly. There were not so many troubles.

Even if something unexpected happened, there wasn’t too much loss if she stopped in time.

Xu Shaoyan admired this young lady more and more. Seeing her endless tricks, he wondered if she could give him some advice.

Xu Shaoyan sat in the backyard of Jixiangpu, listening to the voices of people coming and going in the front shop, with a happy expression. Thinking of Miss Su who had brought such a big change to the shop, he wondered if she had any other ideas to sell to him.

How about going to her house and asking?

No, no, no, it was a bit embarrassing for him, a young man from a wealthy family, to go to a young lady and ask her for money-making ideas.

Xu Shaoyan sat upright in the chair, holding the tea steadily in his hand, hiding the turmoil in his heart.

“Boss, I’m the owner of Huimin Vegetable Shop. I want to find your young master. I wonder if you can help me pass on a message?”

Hey, that voice?

Xu Shaoyan sat up straight and pricked up his ears to distinguish it.

The person who came was Su Qingyu.

She looked at the daily flow in the account book and found that it was gradually unable to support the outgoing expenses. She was about to spend more than she earned and became a little panicked.

She hadn’t settled accounts with Da Hu for a while. He used his own money to collect goods every day and sold them to Su Qingyu when he came back, but he didn’t let Su Qingyu settle the bill for him. He probably knew that the store was short of funds.

Su Qingyu didn’t want to owe anyone money, so she tossed and turned in bed at night and couldn’t sleep.

Although she wanted to keep it for a while longer and sell the dried vegetables out when the weather got cooler, she couldn’t face Su Dahu and didn’t want to owe him more.

Su Qingyu thought of Xu Shaodong, the owner of Jixiang Shop. That man had good taste and was willing to give money. She wondered if he was willing to do the dried vegetable and fruit business.

“Madam Su, I know you.”

The fat manager of Jixiang Shop had been transferred to Pingchuan County to reunite with her husband and son. She was replaced by a thin and shrewd manager, and Su Qingyu had little dealings with him.

The two were about to exchange a few pleasantries when Xu Shaoyan confirmed it and immediately said, “If Madam Su doesn’t mind, we can go to the backyard to chat.”

(End of this chapter)