Business for Jiang Yan and her sister got better and better. On the first day, they earned one tael of silver and three hundred coins; in the following days, they consistently earned over five hundred coins per tael of silver.
This really made the other vendors green with envy.
When they were packing up to go home, just less than three miles outside the city, several burly men blocked their way.
“What do you want!”
Jiang Xiaoxia glared at them.
The leader of the men gave them a once-over and said, “What do you think? Want to leave safely? Hand over all the money you’ve made.”
“In your dreams!”
Jiang Xiaoxia grabbed a ladle.
Jiang Yan jumped off the oxcart and walked towards the men.
One of the men, seeing how pretty Jiang Yan was, got an idea: “Boss, this chick looks good, how about we…”
The leader, who hadn’t thought of this initially, now got interested: “Young lady, we don’t want your money anymore, just have some fun with us, and we’ll let you go.”
Of course, he had different plans in mind, thinking to take advantage of them and then take their money.
“Yeah…”
The other men chimed in.
“Fun, you say.”
Jiang Yan kicked towards the leader with all her might, making him stagger and fall with a thud.
The leader angrily shouted, “Bitch, how dare you kick me! What are you all standing there for? Get her!”
The other men all rushed at Jiang Yan.
Jiang Xiaoxia, worried for her sister, got off the oxcart with the ladle to help fight them off.
She would hit and then run, then come back to hit again, managing not to get caught.
This made it much easier for Jiang Yan to deal with them.
Two quarters of an hour later, Jiang Yan looked at the men she had beaten black and blue and said, “Still want to have fun?”
They all shook their heads like rattles.
Jiang Xiaoxia couldn’t help but laugh.
Jiang Yan was surprised by her sister’s courage and continued, “Are you here to rob us on your own, or were you sent by someone?”
The men’s expressions changed slightly, and they all said in unison, “We came on our own.”
“Not honest!”
Jiang Yan grabbed the ladle from Jiang Xiaoxia and hit them on the head a few times.
“Speak up!”
Jiang Xiaoxia stood with her hands on her hips, looking fierce.
Unable to withstand the beating, the men finally confessed that they were sent by Li Er who sold shrimp cakes, Zhang Shi who sold pancakes, and Yang Shi who sold noodles.
In other words, many people were unhappy with them, so they pooled money to have them dealt with.
Jiang Yan was never one to endure silently. She made them go to the magistrate’s office to testify for her, promising leniency if they cooperated, or else she would beat them until they couldn’t take care of themselves.
Faced with such ferocity, they had no choice but to agree.
Soon after, Li Er and the others were summoned to the magistrate’s office, where they were all sentenced to fifteen days in jail, a fine of two taels of silver, and a beating with the rod.
After this incident, no one dared to easily provoke Jiang Yan and her sister when they set up their stall in town.
…
As the weather got hotter, Jiang Yan didn’t want to be exposed to the elements anymore. She discussed with Jiang Xiaoxia about renting a shop.
After searching, Jiang Yan found a decent shop in the east of the city and rented it for three taels of silver per month.
The reason it was so expensive was due to its good location.
After cleaning up the shop, Jiang Yan hired seven people.
Why so many?
Because she didn’t want to do everything herself, she wanted to spend time with her child, and she was preparing to find a market for her shrimp paste.
Once she found an outlet for the shrimp paste, Jiang Yan planned to set up a workshop in their village, allowing her to stay at home and take care of her child while earning money.
Originally, she wanted Liu Xu to help her, but Jiang Xiaoxia said he liked fishing, so she didn’t ask him.
Jiang Yan walked around the town and decided to sell to Baiwei Zhai there.
She got off the oxcart, parked it, and entered Baiwei Zhai.
Jiang Yan specifically chose the afternoon to visit, so there were no customers, only the shopkeeper and a waiter.
Seeing her enter, the waiter initially thought she was there to eat, only to realize she was there to sell something after asking.
Upon inquiring what she wanted to sell, the waiter informed the shopkeeper.
Shopkeeper Wang immediately came to greet Jiang Yan: “Young lady, please come this way.” Before Jiang Yan could speak, Shopkeeper Wang eagerly asked about the shrimp paste she wanted to sell and how it should be eaten.
Jiang Yan looked at Shopkeeper Wang and began to explain.
“Shopkeeper, as the name suggests, shrimp paste is made from shrimp. It can not only be used in cooking but also spread on potatoes, steamed buns, and other foods. Additionally, it can be used in noodle dishes.”
Their restaurant specialized in dishes.
Shopkeeper Wang was most concerned about the dishes, so he said with a beaming smile, “Miss, could you please go to the kitchen and make a few dishes with this shrimp paste?”
His attitude surprised Jiang Yan quite a bit.
Without hesitation, Jiang Yan agreed, “Sure!”
In the kitchen.
Jiang Yan selected some ingredients and made four dishes: Shrimp Paste Tofu, Shrimp Paste Stir-fried Eggs, Steamed Pork Belly with Shrimp Paste, and Shrimp Paste Braised Pork Knuckles.
As the enticing aroma spread.
Shopkeeper Wang and the kitchen chefs eagerly picked up their chopsticks to taste.
Each one praised the dishes without exception.
They found that not only did the dishes look appetizing and smell delicious, but they were also incredibly flavorful.
To be able to create such delicious dishes with such simple ingredients.
They all admired her skill.
However, Shopkeeper Wang’s focus was on the shrimp paste. After tasting all the dishes, he invited Jiang Yan to the back hall for a talk.
This time, he was even more enthusiastic than before.
Offering tea.
And pastries.
Jiang Yan knew exactly what Shopkeeper Wang was thinking. She got straight to the point, “Shopkeeper Wang, I approached your restaurant because I think it’s quite good. Since you like the shrimp paste, why don’t you make an offer?”
He was supposed to make an offer?
Shopkeeper Wang was momentarily stunned, then asked, “Miss, will you always package your shrimp paste like this in the future?”
“Yes!”
Jiang Yan nodded.
Shopkeeper Wang pondered for a moment and said, “Let’s do this. I’ll make an initial offer. If you’re not satisfied, we can negotiate further. How does that sound?”
He said this because he was afraid Jiang Yan would leave if they couldn’t agree.
“Alright!”
Jiang Yan had no objections.
Shopkeeper Wang proposed a price, “Three hundred and fifty coins per jar, what do you think?”
Jiang Yan had been thinking of selling each jar for three hundred coins.
She hadn’t expected.
That Shopkeeper Wang would offer more than what she had in mind.
Jiang Yan happily agreed, “I’m satisfied with this price, let’s go with that. However, if you want to buy it out, it would be pricier.”
“Miss, of course, we would buy it out. Don’t worry about us needing so much; our owner has several restaurants all over the place.”
Shopkeeper Wang stated directly.
Is their owner that impressive?
Jiang Yan looked at Shopkeeper Wang and said, “Alright, let’s go with the buyout then. As for the price, I’ve thought of a figure. Shopkeeper Wang, what do you think? I plan to sell it to your restaurant for four hundred coins per jar.”
Fifty more.
To Shopkeeper Wang.
This wasn’t considered expensive.
He agreed immediately.
Without waiting for Jiang Yan to say anything.
