一夜情

“Are you interested in discussing this?” asked Zhao Chuchu as she raised her eyebrows.

“Come. Let’s head to the back courtyard,” said Manager Lin. He immediately welcomed Zhao Chuchu and the others inside and ordered the bartender to help them carry their stuff.

Niu An wanted to do it himself but was pushed aside by the bartender, who said, “Bro, allow me to help. You must be tired from the journey to town.”

“Then, sorry to trouble you.”

“Sigh, there is no need to be so polite. This is what I should do.”

“Uncle Niu An, you should come in as well,” said Zhao Chuchu as she turned and gestured to Niu An to follow them.

“Alright.”

He caught up with them.

Zhao Meilan followed Zhao Chuchu. Her heart was beating vigorously.

When they arrived at the back courtyard, only then did Manager Lin ask, “Mrs. Xie, what exactly are these?”

“They are tofu. They are made from soybeans and can be used in cooking,” explained Zhao Chuchu. She pointed at the tofu puffs and continued, “These tofu puffs have been fried in oil. You can eat them right away. Would you like to try them?”

Upon hearing this, Manager Lin immediately tasted some.

“Wow, it tastes delicious. It is really aromatic. Mrs. Xie, let’s cut to the chase. We do not know how to make this tofu. If you want to sell this to us, shouldn’t you give us a few pointers on how to prepare it?”

Manager Lin did not beat around the bush.

Zhao Chuchu smiled and said, “Naturally. I will certainly not put you at a disadvantage. Don’t underestimate tofu. There are many ways it can be consumed. Why don’t we head over to the kitchen right now? However, I am only good at giving instructions. I cannot do it myself.”

“That won’t be a problem. The chefs of Visitor’s Aroma have decades of experience. As long as you tell them how they will certainly be able to make any dish for you!”

Manager Lin brought Zhao Chuchu to the kitchen.

She explained to the chefs a few tofu dishes and the rough steps of making them.

They were all home-cooked dishes, so they posed no problem to the chefs. The latter soon completed the dishes.

After Manager Lin tasted them, he could not stop praising them, saying, “I never imagined that such small pieces of tofu could make so many dishes!”

“Yes, it is marvelous. If you buy our tofu, I can provide you with even more recipes.”

“Mrs. Xie, why don’t you sell us the method of making tofu? I can offer you this figure.”

Manager Lin lifted one finger.

“1,000 Taels.”

He could tell that although tofu seemed insignificant, once it took off with their customers, it would be worth this amount!

Upon hearing this, Zhao Meilan immediately looked at Zhao Chuchu nervously.

Zhao Chuchu rejected his offer and said, “I am not selling the method of making tofu.”

“Why not?”

“I can make more than just 1,000 Taels by making tofu. Manager, even if you only buy tofu from us, you will definitely make more than this. Doing business requires us to focus on the long term. I can look for other buyers if you do not want my product.”

Manager Lin immediately said, “Mrs. Xie, don’t be so anxious. I did not say that I did not want your tofu. May I know the prices for this tofu?”

The price that Zhao Chuchu gave him was three cents more than the price she offered the villagers of Lengshui Village.

Manager Lin wanted to bring the price down.

“Mrs. Xie, business is not done in one go. You have to leave me some room to earn a profit.”

“Manager, the process of making tofu is very complicated. The money I am earning covers my manpower. Once it reaches the table, aren’t you the ones who determine the price?”

“Can you make it cheaper? We might sell less than one or two catties a day.”

“I have not set a high price. If I opened my own stall, I would sell it at an even higher price than what I offered you.”

The tofu was indeed a rare sight. For a tavern, the novelty of their dishes was essential. Otherwise, how would they attract customers?

Zhao Chuchu continued, “I came to you first, Manager. To be frank with you, if tofu becomes popular, there is another soybean product that can also be cooked in a variety of ways.” She delivered the final blow when she saw Manager Lin beginning to consider her offer.

Manager Lin thought for a while and then told Zhao Chuchu, “Mrs. Xie, hear me out. I will first buy half of your stock. At noon, I will try it out with my customers. If they like the dishes, we can negotiate further. How about it?”

He was a businessman. He naturally did not want to do business at a loss.

Before he knew that tofu was popular with the masses, he would not act rashly.

“That is fine. Then, we will weigh some for you,” agreed Zhao Chuchu as she nodded her head.

Zhao Meilan was somewhat discouraged.

She knew that selling a product wasn’t so easy.

After Zhao Chuchu divided half of the tofu and gave it to Manager Lin, the latter paid her.

Zhao Chuchu pocketed the money and left the tavern.

Once they were out of the door, Zhao Meilan asked, “Sister Chuchu, shall we set up a stall to sell the rest of the tofu?”

“We shall. It is inconvenient to bring the rest back home,” replied Zhao Chuchu as she nodded. “Don’t despair. Doing business isn’t easy. If succeeding on the first try was that easy, lots of people would be rich.”

“Hmm, I know. We can also set up a stall and slowly sell them,” said Zhao Meilan. Zhao Chuchu’s words reassured her.

Niu An helped to load the tofu back on the ox cart. He followed Zhao Chuchu and Zhao Meilan to the market area in the city and set up a simple stall.

“Tofu! Tofu! It is a new food product. Come have a look and taste it for yourself.” Zhao Chuchu immediately began promoting.

She was good-looking, and her voice was clear and crisp. Soon, she caught the attention of the people around her.

A woman asked, “Is this tofu? What is it made of? Is it edible?”

...

“Madam, this is made from soybeans. It is very delicious. This has been fried in oil and can be eaten right away. Here, try some.”

Zhao Chuchu picked up the chopsticks they had prepared beforehand and picked a piece of fried tofu for the woman to try.

After the woman tried it, she could not help but nod. She said, “Hmm, it is very aromatic. Young lady, how much does it cost?”

“White tofu is 17 cents a block. Tofu puffs cost 45 cents a catty. This soft tofu is worth 22 cents a catty.”

Soft tofu was solid and had a high water content, so it was heavy.

“They are quite pricey.”

“Madam, you have tried it yourself. We fry this in oil until it is dry. Take a look. This is all oil. If your family isn’t big, half a catty is enough. Why don’t you buy a block of white tofu first? It tastes delicious when cooked in soup.”

The woman preferred tofu puffs.

After deliberating for a while, she bought half a catty of tofu puffs.

“Meilan, weigh half a catty for this madam.”

“Aye!”

...

After selling their first batch of tofu, Zhao Meilan was elated. She quickly weighed out the tofu.

Zhao Chuchu specifically found dried lotus leaves to wrap the tofu. Once the woman paid, she gave her another two pieces.

The woman immediately beamed and said, “Thank you, young lady.”

“Don’t mention it. I hope you like the tofu.”

With the first customer, there would be a second and a third. This was due to herd mentality.

Zhao Chuchu was good with words. In less than an hour, the remaining tofu was all sold out.

Zhao Meilan was so happy. She never imagined that tofu would sell so well.

“Sister Chuchu, it seems that what you said was true. Tofu sells really well. Are we coming into town to sell tofu in the future?”

“It’s up to you. However, it would be best to choose a fixed day to come into town.”

If they came every day, their tofu would lose its novelty!

Seeing that it was still early, Zhao Chuchu planned to leave town soon. They could still make it back home before dark.

“Mrs. Xie, I finally found you!” Just then, someone called out while rushing over. The person was panting.