Border Cook

Chapter 209 Prepare for a rainy day
Manager Xue smiled and said, "I saw that the master was happy, so I took the opportunity to ask the master to reward Shopkeeper Zou. The master readily agreed. I think someone will send the reward over in the next few days. Shopkeeper Zou just needs to wait to receive the reward."

"Thank you, Manager Xue, for your kind words." Zou Fuquan cupped his hands, but a hint of impatience flashed across his eyes.

The reward from his master was a reward from his master, so he was naturally happy.

But what did Manager Xue bring up?

Do you want him to be grateful to you?

"Manager Zou, you're too polite." Manager Xue reached out and patted Zou Fuquan on the shoulder. "You and I both work for the master, and we're old acquaintances, so we should naturally take care of each other."

"Speaking of which, Manager Zou and I have known each other for many years. In the past, we were just assistants in a business under the master. We have been working hard for so long. Now you are the head manager of the restaurant, and I am the right-hand man of the master. I can't help but sigh that time flies."

Manager Xue had a look of melancholy and deep emotion on his face.

But these words sounded extremely harsh to Zou Fuquan's ears.

Indeed, both of them were former assistants and could be considered good friends at first. However, when Zou Fuquan discovered that Manager Xue was accustomed to flattery and trying to please his superiors, he felt that he had a bad character and was unwilling to have close relations with him.

But now, Manager Xue works for his master and is in charge of the supply of military supplies and medicinal materials, and his status is clearly above his.

Such hypocritical remarks about how time flies and old acquaintances are nothing more than a way of showing off that he is in a higher position now.

This Xue guy...

Zou Fuquan almost bit his back teeth to pieces, but he still had a smile on his face. "Manager Xue is right. In the blink of an eye, so many years have passed. Fortunately, you and I have worked hard for the master, and we can still sit together and talk."

"Yes." Manager Xue smiled and nodded. He lifted the curtain with his hand and looked around. "Is the Yueran Restaurant still in front?"

"It's on East Street." Zou Fuquan replied, "Of the four districts in Jinqiu County, East District is the most prosperous, and this Yueran Restaurant is located on the most prosperous and bustling street."

"Manager Zou has a unique vision and good management." Manager Xue laughed and raised his hand to open the curtain on the side of the carriage.

There were not many pedestrians on the street after the snow. There was a food stall wherever I passed by, and there were many diners, making it very lively.

And on the sign hanging on the stall were two big characters "Xia Ji" written on it.

There is a shop next to it, which is quite busy with people coming and going. There is a plaque at the door that reads "Xia Ji Braised Meat Shop".

A little further ahead, there is a snack cart, steaming and fragrant. There are actually four or five people lined up in front of the cart. The food sold is all skewered on bamboo sticks and served in oil paper cups, which looks quite novel.

The wooden sign hanging on the snack cart also had the two big words "Xia Ji" written on it.

Continue walking forward and you will reach East Street. You will still see Xia Ji’s snack cart and Xia Ji food stall…

"Who exactly is this Xia Ji? Why did it open so many stalls?" Manager Xue was a little surprised. "Or are there many people with the surname Xia in your Jinqiu County?"

"These stalls are not opened by the person surnamed Xia, or to be exact, they are not opened by the same person, but belong to different people."

Zou Fuquan explained, "It was a man named Xia who made all kinds of food at home and then sold it to others. He also gave it a novel name, called franchise." "The people who join the franchise don't have to know how to make all the food. They just need to steam and sell it and attract customers. So they attracted some people to do business. These people buy goods from the man named Xia every day and use the Xia's signboard, so it feels like Xia's can be seen everywhere."

"I see." Manager Xue nodded slightly, "This is a good idea. This Xia is also a smart man."

"But the Xia Ji has already grown to this size. If things continue like this, its size will definitely exceed that of the Yue Ran Restaurant. Manager Zou doesn't even want to take care of it?" Manager Xue asked with a smile.

"We are all running a business, and we all rely on our own abilities. Why should we care about others? Besides, Xia Ji is just a snack stand business, and there is nothing presentable. There is no conflict with Yue Ran Restaurant."

Zou Fuquan showed a hint of mockery on his face. "Since Manager Xue said this, could it be that in Manager Xue's eyes, anyone who is stronger than himself must be cleared out as soon as possible?"

Like you, Manager Xue, trying hard to climb up?

Tsk, he, Zou, is a serious businessman who does things down to earth. He would definitely not do trouble behind people's backs like you, Xue.

Zou Fuquan's blatant sarcasm and questioning made the smile on Manager Xue's face fade a lot, and he even felt a little unhappy.

But after a moment, he still had a smile on his face, "Shopkeeper Zou, what you said seems a bit too much, but we have been friends for so many years, I have to consider Shopkeeper Zou more."

"Xia Ji is indeed doing snack stand business now, but people are greedy. As the snack stand business grows, their wallets get fatter and fatter, so they will naturally think about doing bigger business."

"We are all in the food business, so it's inevitable that we will want to open a restaurant and compete with Shopkeeper Zou's Yueran Restaurant. If it really comes to this, can Shopkeeper Zou still say such relaxed things?"

"For some things, it is better to prepare in advance, otherwise it will be too late to do anything."

After Manager Xue finished speaking, he reached out and patted Zou Fuquan on the shoulder, his face full of a meaningful smile.

Zou Fuquan pursed his lips.

He hated Manager Xue, but at this moment, Manager Xue's words made some sense.

If viewed individually, Xia Ji is just a small food stall with a daily turnover of no more than a few thousand yuan.

But little by little, a pile of sand can eventually become a tower. If Xia Ji continues to develop like this, then all the food stalls you see in the streets and alleys of Jinqiu County will belong to Xia Ji?

By that time, Xia Ji would be truly known to everyone, and its reputation would be even more famous than Yue Ran Restaurant.

And as Manager Xue said, everyone is greedy and ambitious. In the future, after the Xia family has accumulated a certain amount of money, will they open a restaurant like the Yueran Restaurant?

Judging from Xia Ji’s future popularity, once the restaurant opens, it will definitely steal many customers from Yue Ran Restaurant.

Speaking of which, didn’t Jinbao from Dexinyuan say that the dishes made by the Xia family were quite delicious?
That Xia’s cooking skills should not be underestimated!
Things like preparing for a rainy day...

After thinking for a while, Zou Fuquan still drooped his eyelids and said to Manager Xue, "Manager Xue, you are too kind."

"It is true that I said too much." Manager Xue smiled, "Manager Zou, just pretend that I never said those words."

I wrote this chapter the day before yesterday, but it seemed wrong no matter how I looked at it. I pushed it back three or four times. This is the tentative version. I'm sorry for the late update today.