Hiring Someone

Hotpot was nothing unusual on Old Zhou's family table.

Any unsold beef offal would be made into hotpot, and any unsold hotpot would be brought home for the family to finish.

But today's hotpot seemed a little different.

The chuck was sliced thin and pink, blanched just until cooked and then lifted out. Curled tripe and translucent beef tendon dotted the clear broth, and everyone had a dish of dry chili dipping powder.

"It smells so good. Why doesn't it taste quite the same when I make it?" Zhao Tieying was puzzled. She had made hotpot plenty of times. Ever since marrying into the Zhou family, she had learned the dish from her mother-in-law. But why did her broth never smell as good as Zhou Yan's?

"Try the soup first." Zhou Yan used a ladle to serve everyone a bowl.

Zhao Tieying took a sip, and her eyes immediately lit up. Her brows rose as she slapped Zhou Miao on the shoulder. "You're talking nonsense with your eyes open! How is this anything like mine? This tastes so much better!"

"I think they're about the same. Yours is just as good," Zhou Miao said with an innocent smile.

"Forget it. You don't know how to appreciate food." Zhao Tieying rolled her eyes at him, though the corners of her mouth lifted unconsciously. After taking two more sips, she nodded repeatedly. "It's even better than Zhou Jie's stew. So fresh, and the seasoning is just right."

Zhou Momo said nothing, merely lowering her head and drinking the soup. Her little cheeks puffed out as she blew on it, then she took tiny sips.

After a bowl of soup, a light sheen of sweat formed on her forehead. Her whole body felt warm, and much of the fatigue from working had faded.

"Gulp."

Zhou Momo had long been eyeing the meat in the pot. She swallowed, her little hands twitching impatiently as she looked at Zhou Yan.

"Here, have some meat." Zhou Yan smiled and picked up a slice of beef for her.

"Ah-woo!"

The little one opened her mouth and caught it in one bite.

The meat was soft and tender, with a faint milky fragrance!

The meat was so delicious!

Meat was her favorite!

"So yummy! More meat!" After swallowing the bite in her mouth, Zhou Momo coquettishly asked in her soft, childish voice.

All three adults laughed.

Zhou Yan directly filled a bowl with meat for her, piling the little bowl high with beef and offal so she could try everything.

"So tender!" Zhao Tieying picked up a slice of beef and tasted it, her face full of shock.

How could beef be cooked so fresh and tender?

After cooking beef for over twenty years, she was questioning herself for the first time.

"This chili powder smells amazing!" Zhou Miao took a bite of tripe and praised it repeatedly. "The tripe is so crisp..."

Zhou Miao had eaten hotpot his entire life, from the kind his mother made to the kind his wife made. But if he had to name the best, it was this pot made by his son.

The first broth was so fresh it felt like his eyebrows might fly off. The tripe was crisp and refreshing, the beef slices were large, thin, and tender, the beef tendon was braised until wonderfully soft, and the cabbage was crisp, tender, and sweet. With the fragrant, spicy dipping sauce, it completely overturned his understanding of hotpot.

Zhou Yan went to bring out the rice he had cooked in advance.

A basin of rice and a pot of Qiaojiao Beef were devoured clean by the family of four. Not even a single leaf of cabbage remained.

"This hotpot of yours is absolutely fantastic. Those young women at the Textile Factory will definitely love it too. I think selling hotpot at the restaurant will work!" Zhao Tieying was brimming with confidence.

All her earlier doubts had completely disappeared.

"I think so too!" Zhou Miao echoed. "After drinking this soup and sweating a little, I feel much better. It really can cure illnesses. If we advertise that, even more people will come to eat."

"The meat is yummy!" Zhou Momo chimed in.

"That's good, then. This afternoon, I'll find someone to build the stove. We'll get the preparations done over the next couple of days and start selling hotpot soon." Zhou Yan smiled. This pot of Qiaojiao Beef had exceeded even his expectations. The broth was fresh, the meat was tender, and the dipping sauce was fragrant, spicy, and delicious.

"Alright, we'll listen to you." Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao nodded together.

Zhou Yan had become increasingly reliable these past few days, making everyone feel at ease.

Old Zhou had been escorted upstairs by Auntie Zhao to rest. While Zhou Yan was clearing the bowls, someone arrived outside and knocked on the door. "Comrade Zhou Yan, I'm here to collect the rent."

The visitor was a delicate-looking young woman in a white shirt and black trousers. She wore her short hair neatly, black leather shoes on her feet, and a brown handbag over her shoulder. She looked exceptionally capable.

Wang Wei, twenty years old, worked in the Textile Factory's finance department. She was responsible for collecting rent from the shops owned by the Textile Factory and came by on the twentieth of every month.

"Alright, come in first." Zhou Yan answered with a smile, then went behind the counter to get the money. She was practically half a landlady.

"Fifteen in total. Count it." Zhou Yan handed Wang Wei a stack of bills: one ten-yuan note, with the rest in one-yuan bills.

"Mm." Wang Wei accepted the money and counted it through. She carefully checked the ten-yuan note before putting the money into her bag. Then she wrote a receipt, tore off a copy, and handed it to Zhou Yan. Only then did she tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear and smile. "I heard you switched to selling noodles, and business has been very good."

Comrade Little Zhou was tall and handsome, making him quite popular among the young women and young wives at the Textile Factory.

Wang Wei had collected rent three times and chatted with him a few times. She was efficient and capable, leaving a good impression on Comrade Little Zhou.

"It's alright. I can barely scrape together the rent." Zhou Yan put away the receipt and sighed. "It would be nice if the factory could lower the rent a little."

"I can't make that decision." Wang Wei smiled, then offered him an idea. "Didn't you save Deputy Factory Director Lin's niece? Why not talk to him? Maybe he really could lower it for you."

"How could I bother him over such a small matter?" Zhou Yan firmly shook his head.

If he could steadily sell one hundred bowls of noodles a day, fifteen yuan in rent was not expensive at all. And he would soon be selling Qiaojiao Beef, so there was still room for his revenue to rise. By then, he just hoped the factory would not raise his rent.

"Alright, then I'll go collect rent from the next place. I'll come try your noodles next time." Wang Wei said with smiling eyes, then left with her bag.

"Take care." Zhou Yan called after her and continued clearing the bowls.

"I'll wash the bowls. Go take care of your business." Zhao Tieying came downstairs and took the bowls from his hands.

Zhou Yan did have important business to handle, so he first counted his money.

Of the hundred bowls of noodles prepared today, eighteen remained unsold. After deducting the cost of ingredients, he had made a profit of 31.9 yuan. Including the money he had saved over the past few days, he had 74.2 yuan. After paying the rent just now, he had 91.1 yuan left.

Zhou Yan went out to find a mason and arranged for him to build the stove tomorrow. He also contacted suppliers for the blue bricks and other materials he needed, then asked Zhou Jie to help order a one-meter-diameter cast-iron pot.

The pot alone cost fifty yuan. Zhou Jie had to call in favors and give away two packs of Yuxi cigarettes just to get it.

Resources were scarce in those days, and many things could not be bought with money alone. Otherwise, Zhou Yan would have wanted an even larger pot, planted right outside the entrance. It would catch more eyes than any signboard.

Labor and materials would cost around another twenty yuan.

Just building the stove would cost seventy yuan.

Money was hard to earn, but so easy to spend.

Still, Zhou Yan was not worried. Zhou Erwa Restaurant's noodles had already become well-known at the Textile Factory, and its reputation was rapidly rising. As for its biggest competitor, he was currently behind bars.

Selling one hundred bowls of noodles a day could bring in sixty yuan in revenue. After costs like firewood and seasonings, nearly half would be profit.

He could earn eight or nine hundred yuan a month.

At that rate, he could repay all his debts in two months, including the five hundred owed to his parents.

Noodles were the foundation. Once Qiaojiao Beef built up a reputation, he would earn even more.

But just selling noodles already kept him and Auntie Zhao spinning like tops. With another pot of hotpot added in, unless the system gave him the ability to clone himself, they definitely would not be able to keep up.

For dinner, they reheated the leftover beef bone soup from noon and ate it with the remaining beef offal. The family still enjoyed the meal immensely.

Old Zhou, who had slept all afternoon, had recovered completely. He repeatedly praised Zhou Yan's hotpot for being highly effective, saying it worked even better than medicine.

"I'm planning to hire someone," Zhou Yan said.

"Hire someone?" Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao looked at him in surprise.

"That'll be another expense. We'd have to pay at least ten yuan a month, right?" Zhao Tieying pondered. "Why don't I just work a little more?"

"Mom, you already do enough. Next, I'm planning to have you handle the hotpot, so I need someone to serve dishes, clear tables, and wash bowls. Otherwise, we definitely won't manage." Zhou Yan smiled. "We need to make sure the food is both good and fast, so customers will leave satisfied. Once business improves, the labor costs will be covered, and we can earn even more."

"I think Zhou Yan makes sense," Zhou Miao nodded in agreement.

"Alright, then let's hire someone!" Zhao Tieying nodded. After thinking for a moment, she added, "What about asking Zhou Fei's wife to help? She's strong, quick with her hands, and both her children are in school, so she does not need to worry over them as much. She's dependable too."

"Sure! Let's have Sister-in-law give it a try. If she can do the job, she'll definitely be more suitable than an outsider." Zhou Yan nodded.

Zhou Fei was the son of Zhou Yan's uncle and the eldest among their group of cousins. He was Zhou Hai's biological older brother and currently slaughtered cattle with his father.

His wife, Zhao Hong, came from the same village as his mother. Zhao Tieying had introduced them in the first place. They had two sons: the older one was already in middle school, and the younger one started elementary school this year. Their life was still under some pressure.

Zhou Yan had a good impression of this sister-in-law. She had a gentle temperament and was excellent at work.

"I'll go talk to her tonight when I get home. How much do you plan to pay her each month?" Zhao Tieying looked at Zhou Yan.

After a brief moment of thought, Zhou Yan said, "Twenty yuan a month. Does that sound appropriate?"

"It does." Zhao Tieying nodded. "That's a very high wage. Even servers at state-run restaurants only make a little over twenty yuan a month, and people have to fight tooth and nail to get into those places."

"Then it's settled." Zhou Yan made the decision.

Twenty yuan a month was indeed considered high pay in a small town, but it was within Zhou Yan's means. What he cared about more was the worker's stability and whether she would have any crooked intentions.

Besides, she was family. When Little Zhou opened the restaurant, their family had lent him eighty yuan to get started. That was no small sum for them.

The next day, before dawn had fully broken, Master Little Zhou went out early to buy groceries.

By the time he returned to the restaurant with Zhao Tieying, someone was already waiting at the entrance. She stepped forward with a smile. "Fourth Aunt, Zhou Yan, you're back."

"Zhao Hong, why did you come so early? Couldn't sleep last night?" Zhao Tieying teased.