While waiting, she didn’t dare to look up. Today was too embarrassing. She was just a caregiver. If the client she served hadn’t insisted on eating here, she would have definitely turned around and left.
Lately, customers have been relatively stable, with lunchtime generally keeping to around ten people. Business is better in the evening, serving three kinds of porridge, each in a small pot, usually completely sold out.
Lin Wan usually puts the day’s earnings into the cross-body bag she made herself and returns home with Mom. Then she takes out the money and counts it penny by penny.
Calculating today’s revenue.
Earned nine yuan and six dimes at the morning market, and the restaurant’s revenue was considerable today, totaling thirty-two yuan and eight dimes.
After subtracting costs of twelve yuan and three dimes, the net profit today was twenty yuan and five dimes. Various tickets were also obtained, especially food tickets and fabric tickets.
When Liang Hongmei came back after handling the leftover meat, she saw her daughter laughing silly over there.
"Why are you laughing so silly? Is today better than the previous days?"
"Mom, today we’ve earned as much as the previous days combined."
"The main thing is that you had a good idea today, bringing quite a few people to the restaurant."
"Yes, I didn’t expect it. Tomorrow we’ll continue with special dishes. At this rate, the annual income should be considerable. By the end of the year, who knows, maybe we can even buy a house here."
"What house? I’m just hoping to earn enough to support you all till you’re settled down. I don’t ask for anything else." Liang Hongmei’s biggest fear was trouble, being new here and just the two of them.
"Mom, don’t worry. We’ll just have to be careful." Lin Wan wanted to say everything would be fine, but she knew, in this era, society was unstable, with many people with connections.
After making money today, Liang Hongmei rarely put down her book and took out the money earned from a box these past few days, counting it.
After more than a week of operation, nearly a hundred was earned. At this rate, the costs spent will be recovered within a month.
The mother and daughter were so happy and excited that they laughed all night.
Early the next morning, before the sky lightened, Liang Hongmei got up to prepare food and went to the morning market.
Because there was no time to wash clothes during the day, Lin Wan got up early every day to do laundry, before helping Mom sell food at the market.
Finishing shopping for food didn’t delay buying vegetables needed for the restaurant today either.
"Big sis, do you want these cucumbers? This is all that’s left. You can have them for fifty cents," said the vendor brother who knew Lin Wan buys a lot of vegetables daily.
As Lin Wan passed his stall, he quickly promoted, "Garden-end cucumbers, just a bit unsightly."
Lin Wan glanced at a pile of crooked cucumbers on his stall, some with big heads and skinny tails, others shrunk tiny and thin; the appearance was indeed not great.
Looks like there are seven or eight jin of cucumbers.
"Alright, big brother, I’ll take these cucumbers," Lin Wan didn’t even think before agreeing.
"Great," the brother said, quickly finding an old woven bag to pack them for Lin Wan.
Summer vegetables are indeed cheap; come winter, they’ll be much more expensive.
Back at the store, Lin Wan quickly wrote out today’s promotion card, adding a new item: free chilled side dishes with evening porridge.
Today’s a rest day. Brother came to the restaurant early this morning.
Today’s special dish was potato chicken chunks. As soon as lunch hit, people from the hospital came straight to their store. With brother around, the mother and daughter found it much easier.
Lin Wan didn’t have to keep an eye on the front while also minding the back for dishwashing.
Around two in the afternoon, while the family of three was having a meal in the store, Lin Yinghui said to the two, "Why not hire a helper? That way, you wouldn’t have to work so hard."