Moh Li, as always, said little and then there was no more. Ouyang found it very normal, why? Because this was just who Moh Li was. As long as it didn’t involve him, he would stay silent.
Stiff as an elm knot and not to be relied upon, you just tell him what to do, and that’s all; that’s no problem, he’s in charge of searching, and he’ll just play around. After searching for ten days to half a month, he could return.
Bai Zhi and the others quickly finished their meal, Bai Dan and Great Grandpa were drinking together, reminiscing about the past. Bai Zhi and her companions were not idle either.
Bai Zhi had already bought some lemons and made a few Hawthorn Cakes, not many, just enough for a taste test, thinking about having Bai Xiang introduce them.
The sour and sweet flavor was very good; even Bai Fei, who didn’t like sour foods, managed to eat several cakes, but they were not easy to package.
"These are hard to package, they tend to stick together."
Bai Xiang couldn’t stop eating them either, but found them less convenient than Shumai, at least with Shumai, you just set the pot up and steam them as you sell.
As for pan-fried dumplings, he actually thought they were a bit of a waste of time, a pot only cooked about eight or nine. Shumai was better in comparison.
Bai Zhi felt he was right. A single pot of Shumai held two layers, so nearly 45 pieces, and if they didn’t sell, they could stay in the pot without cooling down.
Everyone goes from not knowing to knowing. From being utterly clueless to gradually finding a method, hence, she didn’t feel she was wrong before, but it’s always about finding the simplest and most profitable method.
Plus, while making Shumai, they could also make Lumpy Potatoes, which was convenient. However, she did not want to give up on pan-fried dumplings either, especially since there was not much time left.
Because they were about to start school soon, should they just give up?
"Cousin, if we live at school, we basically have no way to sell. But if we don’t board at night, I won’t have time to make them at all. What do you think I should do?"
Bai Zhi thought that her cousin must have a way, as shown by his canned foods.
Her cousin was definitely a platinum-level salesman; no matter how much they made, he could sell it all with a calm face.
"Cousin, are you thinking that we should..."
Bai Xiang’s eyes lit up, in fact, he had been pondering this matter too. He had the connections, and his cousin had the skills. If the two of them didn’t team up to make money when there was an opportunity, it’s as if they were inviting a lightning strike.
So he quickly moved closer to Bai Zhi.
"What I mean is, cousin, do you have a way that allows us to keep making money while also focusing on our studies?"
Bai Zhi had thought it over; if they made Shumai, it actually took less time and could also be paired with soy milk. But the problem was the same, soy milk was not convenient to package.
If it were later, they could just use a cup, but here, with such little time, she couldn’t find a supply channel right away.
"Cousin, let me tell you, missing out on making money is asking to be struck by lightning. Let me do some calculations with you. Right now, your tuition fee is 80, but I heard it’s going to increase to 280, and later on, there’s junior high school. Junior high tuition is 380, plus living expenses.
Junior high won’t let you bring a lunchbox to warm up your meal. That means, you have to get your own food, a yuan for bland soups, two yuan for greens, canteen food, three yuan if you barely want some meat. But that’s just two pieces of fat, no juices, that’s three yuan a day, sixty a month, plus other fees for materials, books, you’ll have to participate in some activities, right?
Then there’s high school, which I heard is even more expensive, and you’ll eventually want to attend university, right? Without tens of thousands, you can’t get through, let alone the costs for food, drink, clothes, shoes, etc.
So, we are a bottomless pit, and our parents’ money is theirs, not ours. If they don’t give it to us, what can we do other than complain? So having your own money is the real deal, get it?"
Bai Xiang spoke all this in one breath without pausing, while Bai Zhi just watched, astonished and impressed. How could he speak so much without even needing to catch his breath?
Then came the admiration. Such insights, such ideas, honestly, it would be unjust if he didn’t succeed in the future. Success comes through effort,
The connections Bai Xiang had today, he had built up over time. Now that he has this insight, his future success was inevitable. So, not everyone can become what people call a ’nouveau riche.’
It’s just that you don’t see their efforts, just their sudden wealth, and think they’re ’nouveau riche.’ Simply put, it’s an unwillingness to acknowledge someone else’s excellence.
However, in Bai Xiang’s mind, he believed his cousin must be astonished by his brilliance, thinking he was really amazing.
It’s undeniable, he was rather narcissistic.
Of course, Bai Zhi did in fact think Bai Xiang was very impressive. It’s just, could he focus on the main point...
"Cousin, I agree with what you’re saying, but can we focus on the main point? What exactly should we do?"
"Snap," Bai Xiang felt as if he heard the sound of his own heart breaking, because he did not see the admiration in Bai Zhi’s eyes, no praise for him, she just went straight to asking.
"Cousin, you’ll have no friends if you carry on , you know?"
Couldn’t she just clap, offer some praise after all he had said, after all the logic, all the essence?
"I know." Whether it was the original owner or herself, there weren’t many friends to speak of.
"Well, all right..." Bai Xiang felt a bit helpless; he had figured out that his cousin was someone who didn’t beat around the bush. In the future, he would handle these kinds of issues; the two sisters just needed to work.
Ahem, of course, he would work too.
"What I mean is, we should rent a house!"
Bai Xiang adjusted his attitude, looking seriously at Bai Zhi.
He had asked before; even though junior high was far from the town elementary school, it was not an issue. He had a bike and could help out by delivering, sneaking it in with his backpack.
Plus, the business at the elementary school would definitely be good, and actually, Second Grandpa could help by selling directly there; they would pay him a salary.
As for why it wasn’t his own grandfather – forget it, his granddad had said he wouldn’t leave the village in his lifetime, he didn’t want to go, or else their family would have moved long ago.
Even the rent had been inquired about; it turned out they could rent a whole yard directly opposite the town elementary school from a friend of his, so everyone could live there, and the rent was six hundred a year.
Bai Xiang never fought battles he wasn’t sure of winning, and likewise, he wouldn’t speak to Bai Zhi about it without having all the details. It was precisely because he saw a profit in it that he brought it up. Their canned goods could also be sold individually, and even if Second Grandpa didn’t help out, they could make fewer and sell what they could. Holidays and weekends were the best times,
And that place actually had quite a lot of foot traffic, meaning, they were likely to keep cooperating in the future. At least, in this matter, he didn’t know if Bai Zhi was willing or not.