Given that Mother-in-law was coming and Ning Ge was a bit under the weather, Cheng Su went to the Jam Company early in the morning to get things in order. She had packed all the jam from the past two days and was just about to send it to the partnered freight company when Ning Ge arrived.
"I’ve temporarily moved my things to the room I used to sleep in at the Southeast Ladder, but I won’t be staying there these next couple of days. I bought a train ticket to Beijing for tonight before I came," Ning Ge said.
"You’re leaving just as the goods are about to be sent off?" Cheng Su frowned slightly.
"Yeah, get there early to take care of things," Ning Ge replied, his complexion not looking too well.
Cheng Su had hoped that with her mother-in-law coming, Ning Ge could stay and provide more company. Now it seemed that wouldn’t happen.
"Alright then," Cheng Su had no choice but to say, "My mother-in-law and Elder Sister will probably arrive around noon. I need to go to the bus station to pick them up. I’ll ensure the goods are delivered with Shunfeng Freight. Why don’t you just stay at the company for today?"
Ning Ge nodded.
"Still, you look really pale. Have you still got a headache?" Cheng Su asked.
Ning Ge forced a smile: "It’s nothing. There’s not much going on today anyway, so I’ll just rest in the office for a bit."
Cheng Su gave him a wary look and, noticing there wasn’t much time left, left.
After dispatching the batch of goods, Cheng Su went back to the restaurant to help through the lunch service. At one o’clock, Qi Taiguo came over. They had lunch, and then the two of them pedaled to the bus station on their bicycles.
The bus station was right across from the train station, and because it was a station, there were many people coming and going. Cheng Su carefully surveyed her surroundings and suddenly had an idea.
"Hey, what do you think about me opening a branch here? Specializing in fast food!" Cheng Su nudged Qi Taiguo who stood beside her.
A fast food place in a location with heavy foot traffic was bound to be profitable, and with people constantly coming and going, selling a few scores or hundreds of servings a day, making a dime or two on each item was profitable too.
Upon hearing this, Qi Taiguo looked around and said, "The restaurant has just expanded. Not to mention the financing, but can you even spare the staff? Your Jam Company isn’t fully operational yet either. Opening another fast food restaurant - how will you manage it?"
That was indeed a problem, but once the idea had taken hold in Cheng Su’s mind, she couldn’t stop thinking about it. It would be such a waste to not seize the business opportunity simply due to a lack of staff.
But Qi Taiguo was right. She couldn’t rush into it. The last thing she needed was to fail to get the restaurant going and stress herself out to death in the process.
"This really is a great spot for a fast food outlet!" Cheng Su stared at the small diner near the bus station, feeling a persistent itch in her mind.
"Even if you open it, I won’t let you be there all the time. You’d have to find someone to manage it," Qi Taiguo suddenly said.
"Why?" Cheng Su was puzzled.
Qi Taiguo’s brow furrowed deeply as he said, "This area is just too chaotic. Look, those are street thugs, right? I don’t feel comfortable with it!"
Following his gaze, Cheng Su saw several idle young men with dyed yellow hair leaning against the railing and smoking. They whistled frivolously at women who passed by.
This reminded Cheng Su of train stations from the nineties in her past life, where these types of hooligans, involved with the Underworld, thieves, robbers, and con artists, were rampant — no place was more chaotic!
High foot traffic at bus and train stations, but at the same time, it was messy. Cheng Su’s enthusiasm dampened by half, and she said, "Let’s wait and see then."
Seeing her disheartened expression, Qi Taiguo was about to speak when his eyes caught sight of two people, changing the subject, "Hey, mother and Elder Sister are coming out!"