Now the two kids had gotten used to working at the restaurant during their winter and summer breaks, and Gong Mingxia fully supported them in doing so. She happily paid them wages to help them save money.
By 2004, the restaurant’s business had built a solid reputation in the surrounding commercial district—mainly due to the high quality, affordable, and varied dishes they offered. She had switched to a fast-food style assembly line model with an entrance and an exit. Customers would pay at the exit, passing by numerous display areas featuring bowl-like dishes from which they could choose during the process.
The two private rooms upstairs were also opened when crowded, usually occupied by groups from the same workplace, maximizing the use of space.
Once, she discovered a market surplus of small potatoes and bought loads of them. She then developed spicy small potatoes and sweet and sour tomato sauce small potatoes. These snacks, once placed on the assembly line, quickly became a hit and sold exceptionally well.
Thanks to everyone’s support for their small establishment, they invented a new dish almost every week. Customers sensed their sincerity, naturally boosting the business. Key to their success was the service model favoring time-pressed white-collar workers who preferred quick meal solutions without waiting in lines.
She also distributed many promotional business cards. If delivery was requested, they would package the food and employ part-time workers for delivery, similar to modern food delivery services.
Thus, in the spring of 2004, her small shop’s monthly income surpassed ten thousand yuan, and in April, it broke twenty thousand yuan, a promising sign.
By June, she distributed a bonus of twenty thousand yuan. She felt like she had gotten a bargain, beaming with pride.
In mid-June, the kids were on vacation, so she gave them five thousand yuan and sent them off by car to Beijing to explore and stay with Xiuying. Newest update provided by ɴovelfire.net
Speaking of Xiuying, her book "Daqing Concubine" had taken off. It concluded its serialization in the first half of 2004, earning over 230,000 yuan just during the serialization phase. Initially, piracy was not as severe, and the official reader support rate was high. Being a well-established author, the website heavily promoted her work. Even with a fifty-fifty royalty split, Xiuying had made a remarkable 230,000 yuan, leaving her stunned.
She insisted on splitting the profits fifty-fifty with Mingxia for this book. For the next one, Mingxia requested only a twenty percent share, arguing that writing was laborious and providing merely an outline wasn’t justified for a larger cut. Seeing Mingxia’s insistence, Xiuying agreed without further persuasion.
Though the publishing fee for the first two books wasn’t much, combined, they had made a hundred thousand yuan. In the first half of the year, Xiuying had transferred a total of 170,000 yuan to her, of which fifty thousand was to repay debts. Possibly buoyed by renewed confidence, Xiuying chose to repay her debts first, which significantly eased her financial pressure. Believing she could continue to earn at this rate, she was optimistic about buying a house.
Indeed, even though "Concubine" had concluded, the website’s ongoing recommendations ensured sustained income. According to the site’s promotional strategies, the old work would keep getting recommended until the sequel was published, guaranteeing continuous revenue exceeding the initial 230,000 yuan.
"General’s Daughter" went online in March after a few months’ travail, and since its April launch, it had continued soaring, even outperforming "Daqing Concubine" with a promising start. After the first book’s sensational success, the website had signed a celebrated contract with Xiuying, offering her a sixty percent royalty which could potentially increase to seventy or eighty percent based on her points.
This was indeed thrilling news. It also meant Xiuying was getting closer to purchasing her house.