Lu Qi had also never left the estate since that day, and he had drugged everyone who had discussed it in the mansion... They were all unhappy in the end. The most wretched man, though, was Du Xin, who had not left his bed in three days. No one would be able to tell you why he couldn't get out of bed.
Apart from hotpot, there were also porridges and pancakes for "Good deed in a day".
The porridge was nothing special, but the pancake was something no one had ever had before. However, aside from the drama of the Master of Yanzhou, the daily food at the city's entrance had also become the second most popular issue as a result of this. It was always a topic of conversation after tea.
Yan Chuan took advantage of Xu Ran's fame and sought him a suitable house. It was a stall downstairs in a little two-story building. It's ideal for Xu Ran to start his business, and the family could live upstairs if they wanted to.
After some consideration, Xu Ran concluded that he still needed a small yard. Because this structure isn't particularly large, it's preferable to use the upper floors to create a private space. Furthermore, the fragrance of hotpot was very strong, and they might have to smell it all day if they didn't want to sleep here.
The money, on the other hand, was already going to be spent. Xu Ran was not stingy with his money. Yanzhou's residence was reasonably priced. A modest yard would cost only 100 taels, which was even less than their previous dwelling in town.
This small building was also in a good location. Purchasing it would cost around 500 taels. A total of 600 to 700 taels would be required in addition to the decorations. Xu Ran also planned to purchase a yard for around 300 taels.
He'd made some money from the fruit trees, so a thousand tael of silver wouldn't be an issue. He evaluated the cost of running a hotpot restaurant and predicted that he would soon be able to make ends meet. When the weather grew hot, he'd turn the hotpot restaurant into a dessert shop, effectively making it a multi-purpose store.
He hasn't told anyone about it yet, though. These were things he had wanted for for a long time. He merely wanted a house at this point.
Yan Chuan spent two days searching for a small yard that met Xu Ran's requirements. This yard had only recently been repaired. After Yan Chuan returned and informed Xu Ran, Xu Ran accompanied his family to inspect the residence.
There were lots of rooms and two entrances in the yard, which was quite large. A well was located in the garden, as well as a separate shed in the back. It has the potential to be utilized to raise chickens and ducks. On both sides of the front yard, there was an empty space that could be used to put flowers or vegetables. It was all up to them.
The room had good ventilation, and though the kitchen was a bit far away from their bedroom, they could smell anything that came out of it. They were pleased with the outcome in general.
Xu Ran asked Yan Chuan, "How much is the house?"
Yan Chuan stretched out three fingers. He had been looking for the house according to Xu Ran's budget.
Xu Ran could also accept it, but he still wanted to save a little more money, so he asked Yan Chuan, "Can I get a discount? Even 10 or 20 taels less would do, Butler Yan."
Yan Chuan was shocked by the way Xu Ran called him for a moment. How could he refuse him? So he said, " Second Brother, I'll try my best, but I can't promise you how much of a discount you'll get."
Xu Ran said, "That's fine. I just wanted to give it a try. It's fine if it doesn't work. If it's okay, then it'd be the best. We want this house, and you can meet the person selling the house later!"
Seeing that he was so straightforward and decided, Yan Chuan couldn't help but ask once again, "Second Brother, don't you want to look at it again?"
Xu Ran shook his head and said. "It's okay. It's not easy to choose if you see too much. It's better not to look at it anymore. I can live with the price, plus it's close to the small building. That's perfect. And thank you, Butler Yan."
Hearing Xu Ran's thanks, Yan Chuan hurriedly waved his hand and said. "Second Brother, please don't say so. This is what I should do. I'm glad you two like this place. I will ask the owner of the house tomorrow to deal with the contract of this house."
Xu Ran nodded and stopped saying thank you again.
After he returned, Xu Ran began to consider how he could decorate these two locations. How long it would take, where to get the extras, how much it would cost, and so on are all questions that must be answered.
Xu Ran knew he couldn't handle it on his own, so he wrote it down and broke it into three parts. He kept one for himself and gave Guoguo and Tangtang the other two to inspect on the street. In any situation, the ultimate decision must be made based on the best price and quality.
Every day, Xu Ran had been running outside. In addition, Liu Tong had sewn gloves and backpacks. In the case of the scarves, Xu ran was too preoccupied to teach him how to manufacture them, so he had not begun.
On the second day, Xu Ran met the house's owner and proceeded to Yanzhou's office to change the name of the house's title deed. In the end, the transaction was settled for a total of 272 taels. Yan Chuan has put in a lot of effort to achieve this.
That small building, by coincidence, also belonged to this person. He talked about the price with Xu Ran and bought it for 400 taels because he was here and Xu Ran wanted it as well. His one thousand taels had been spent in large part, and the price had remained the same after the discount. Xu Ran couldn't stop himself from sighing.
The only thing left to do now that they'd bought the house was to decorate it. Xu Ran was referring to the fact that they were only able to find two masters for the decorations and had to leave the rest of the work to the beggars outside the city. He would also provide them with food, so it was a win-win situation for them.
King Yan was very happy to hear that. He said that he would pay for the decoration of the house. Xu Ran accepted his offer, so he could save some money.
Xu Ran has been giving advice to his neighbors on how to decorate his house. They needed to purchase numerous tables, stoves, and, most critically, coals. The table and stove were inexpensive, but coals were difficult to come by. Xu Ran had searched practically every corner of Yanzhou and was still unable to find any coal that was free of smoke. That wouldn't work with smoke, for sure.
If he couldn't find it, Xu Ran had no choice but to roll up his sleeves and make it himself. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to pull it off. When he was younger, he learned it on his walk home from school. Because of his good memory, he observed someone else make it and memorized all of the methods and ingredients.
Xu Ran despised how little he had learnt in his prior life every time he needed to use his head. He would have forced himself to study harder if he had known about the transmigration earlier.
Honeycomb briquet was the name Xu Ran recalled. It reminded me of Honeycomb since it had circular holes in it. It was constructed with raw coal, soil lime, and other materials. In Yanzhou, there were a lot of these things.
Everyone in the mansion opened their mouths in shock when they heard that Xu Ran wanted to make coals himself.
They've even put a damper on Xuran's enthusiasm on several occasions. Xu Ran wasn't sure he'd be able to make it, but he wanted to give it a shot. It wouldn't bother me if he didn't show up. However, after being discouraged by these people, Xu Ran became even more motivated to succeed.
However, none of the people who had dampened him expected it to turn out like this, which aroused Xu Ran's fighting spirit.
Xu Ran began by looking for materials and then creating a model, according to his memories. He would pay someone on the street to assist him if he didn't know how to accomplish it. Xu Ran's early preparation was completed after a few days of hard labor, and the final step was all that was left. This phase determined whether or not he would succeed.
He had proportionally dispersed all of the materials before mixing them together. Then he shaped it into a honeycomb with the model and waited for the Honeycomb briquettes to dry. It means he made it if it may burn when it dried.
In the mansion's yard, there were rows of Honeycomb briquettes. He had put forth all of his efforts, and now all he could do was wait.
Xu Ran, on the other hand, did not wait in the yard. He continued to go outside because he wanted to open the hot pot restaurant as soon as possible so he could capitalize on the current trend of supplying hot pot to beggars at the city gate.
At the same time, the courtyard they lived in also had to be decorated. Apart from large furniture such as beds and cupboards, everything else was still needed.
The entire family went shopping at the same time. They bought goods that they liked. Everything they had picked up will be delivered the next day to their home. When they were nearly done buying, Xu Ran instructed Liu Tong and Shao Yu to take care of the kitchen.
Shao Yu and Gao Quan were considered family members by Xu Ran, yet King Yan was more obligated to look after them. After all, they were under his father's orders, and living in King Yan's house must have made them feel terribly restricted. It was more convenient for them to stay here. When Xu Ran asked for their thoughts, they accepted without hesitation.
Xu Ran reasoned that having two more people at home would make things more lively than usual. In addition, he and Liu Tong would be insufficient for the hotpot restaurant. Shao Yu and Gao Quan were more suitable because hiring employees was difficult at start. King Yan understood exactly what they were thinking because they were willing to leave with Xu Ran.
So he wouldn't do anything useless.
The décor of two locations took place at the same time, with the location where they lived being speedier. They should only open the hotpot restaurant after they've moved in.
After three or four days in the yard, Honeycomb briquettes were virtually dry. Xu Ran took one to the kitchen to try it out. It had the potential to burn, but it was quickly extinguished. At the time, Xu Ran considered it a failure. He would be sad after such a massive amount of work. He was so angry that he wanted to toss the remaining Honeycomb briquettes into the yard.
Liu Tong immediately stopped him, "Ran, don't be like this. It's most likely because they aren't dry enough to be burned. Wait a couple more days, don't worry. Yanzhou is cold, and there is still frost on the ground in the morning. It'll certainly dampen the coals. Put it on the fire for a while. And let's see if it can burn up after it's dry. Okay?"
Xu Ran was embarrassed to conduct rash actions after hearing Liu Tong's gentle encouragement. He agreed to place the Honeycomb coals beside the fireplace. Xu Ran went to retrieve two stools for Liu Tong and himself, then sat down beside to the fire to wait for the Honeycomb coals to dry.
Xu Ran took them with tongs to burn after they had roasted for a while, but it wouldn't burn no matter what, even if it was placed in the midst. After almost an hour, Xu Ran couldn't sit still. He hurled the tongs into the trash and stormed out of the kitchen, angry.
Liu Tong did not pursue him. He simply sat in silence in front of the stove, watching the Honeycomb briquettes roast. Liu Tong had no idea how long he had been sitting because time had passed him by. The Honeycomb in the fire suddenly caught fire.
Liu Tong hurriedly removed the honeycomb briquettes from the fire, only to discover that it had not yet died out. He was delighted since this meant Xu Ran had made it. Liu Tong tossed the Honeycomb coal back into the fire to keep it going, then dashed out of the kitchen to fetch Xu Ran.
The courtyard where they dried Honeycomb coals was the first place Liu Tong went. He noticed Xu Ran, who was holding his chin in a trance, but the Honeycomb coal in the yard remained unharmed.
Liu Tong breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to grab Xu Ran's hand. Xu Ran shook his hand away. "Tongtong, I'm not cold, and I don't want to move. I need to figure out what went wrong so I can fix it."
Liu Tong said, "Ran, there's no problem. Honeycomb coal is fine. It's already done. If you don't believe me, you can go to the kitchen to have a look." Liu Tong looked at him expectantly.
Xu Ran was stunned and asked, "Tongtong, are you serious?"
Liu Tong nodded and said seriously, "Of course I am."
Xu Ran shook his head instinctively, then rose up, as if he was thinking of something. He stepped into the kitchen holding Liu Tong's hand. Xu Ran was shown how the Honeycomb coal burnt by Liu Tong. Xu Ran's smile became more visible the more he spoke. It was a success.
Xu Ran asked Liu Tong, "Tongtong, did you see it burning? Was there any smoke?"
Liu Tong thought about it seriously and shook his head. "No, Ran, I didn't feel any smoke. I didn't even notice it."
Xu Ran said, "That's good. It's good that you don't have smoke."
It might be able to burn without producing any smoke. That was the final step. He didn't have to come up with a solution to make it better. This made Xu Ran extremely happy. The Honeycomb coal was still glowing in the stove when they returned to the kitchen. It had began to shift color from black to yellow. When the coal was burned away, the loess inside was exposed.
Xu Ran was so happy and he could not even hide his smile on his face.
To prove that there was no problem, and not just a coincidence, Xu Ran went to pick a few more and put them on the fire.
It was considerably faster this time than the last one, and it lit up almost immediately. They tried three or four times in a row and all of them were burned out. Only then was Xu Ran able to unwind and drag Liu Tong from the kitchen. He kissed him fiercely in a place where no one was around, "Tongtong, thank you. If you hadn't been there today, I would have really destroyed those honeycomb briquettes."
Liu Tong touched his eyebrows and said, "Ran, you've been too tired recently, so you were in such a hurry. You should have a good rest. We just came here and weu're not in a hurry. Do not get too tired."
Xu Ran smiled and kissed Liu Tong's forehead again. "Tongtong, I'm confident that my health has improved significantly in recent years, and that I won't be exhausted. I need to find a place to live in Yanzhou as soon as possible so that I can feel comfortable being here. Tongtong, I believe you should be aware of the situation. It's what you're thinking, isn't it?"
Of course, Liu Tong agreed. He recognized King Yan, although he was still a distance away. He couldn't make the mansion his home because he wasn't free there. They may have to stay in Yanzhou for a long time, and only his own home can help him relax.
He was aware of how busy and exhausted Xu Ran was these days, and he despised himself for being useless and incapable of assisting him. For a time, they quietly made out in a place where no one was there, spoke some sweet love words, and then held each other's hand until they had to head back to work.
They had a simple wish, to have a home that belonged to them as soon as possible.
The success of Honeycomb coal was a very big deal, and the happiest person was King Yan.
Even the poor can utilize Honeycomb briquettes because they are simple to create and inexpensive. This year, King Yan believed, there should not be as many people frozen to death. Xu Ran was indeed a lucky star in his life.
However, Xu Ran said, "This can't be burned in the house since it needs to be ventilated. It is simple to become poisoned and die. When it is burned, it must be kept in a ventilated area. As a result, I disagree with allowing ordinary people to utilize it. Someone will come up to me and inquire when my hotpot restaurant opens. It won't be too late at that point to sell it."
King Yan thought about it and felt that it made sense. After all, he didn't dare to say such words about the a case involving human life.
King Yan said, "When will your hotpot restaurant open? Are you ready? And is this hotpot restaurant only selling hotpot? It was fine when it was cold. If it gets hot, there would be no business. Do you have any other plans?"
Xu Ran said, "Of course, there is. I won't have time to prepare until the next year. Now, the decoration is a little hurried. I have to wait until I could make end meet before I can decorate it. I'm not in a hurry now."
Xu Ran remained silent about his plans for the coming year. Despite having a basic notion in his head, he had to wait until next year to tell them the specifics. Who knew if things would turn around.
_____
It was soon December, and the New Year was approaching. The hot pot restaurant of Xu Ran was almost ready. Xu Ran proceeded to choose the dates, and the day was finally set for December 5th. The name of the hot pot restaurant was Red Tower, which was inspired by the color of the hot pot bottom and the little building. The outside of the building was painted red, which was very good-looking.
The verses atop the Red Tower were penned by King Yan himself. His floating typefaces were carved into the crimson template, making the magnificent structure more free and easier to construct.
King Yan and King Yan's husband were the ones who cut the ribbon for Xu Ran's Red Tower that day. The sound of firecrackers injected some life into Yanzhou, which had been quiet for some time.
The furnace had been ignited long ago, and the hotpot condiment on the table was starting to boil slowly. Xu Ran shouted loudly at the door, "First day, 20% off, limited materials, first come, first served!"
The bystanders were perplexed by the 20% discount and inquired of Xu Ran, but the smell drew in even more people. Xu Ran anticipated being busy on the first day, so he requested that King Yan borrow extra people to assist him.
Every person who entered would be served, making the guests feel that he was valued. First of all, this first impression was very good.
"Many modern stores are no longer selling food or anything else. They are selling services. They must insist that the customer is the Master, so they must treat them well."
This is what Xu Ran said when he was training these servants, although it was expected that they would only be here for a short time. There will be no need for so many people once the population has stabilized.
The first floor was already packed with people when Xu Ran described what 20 percent off meant. There were few reservations for the private room on the second level. Xu Ran had previously stated that the atmosphere of hotpot required a large number of people to gather, and there were plenty of people on the first floor. As a result, eating on the first floor was ideal.
And these receptionists also said that to the guests, so no one paid attention to the second floor.
On the first floor, however, there were only so many spots available. And because the hotpot took at least two hours to prepare, there were a lot of people waiting. These people, on the other hand, were not simply waiting. They could sit around the stove since Xu Ran had prepared stools and there was a stove in the centre. There was also melon seeds and candies next to them. Xu Ran even asked Lu Qi to tell stories there.
In the end, they were able to keep these people. On such a frigid day, no one would want to wait two hours, and there was nothing else to do. The table would be wiped up shortly after someone had done dining. Those with the elderly and children would be the first to enter and eat. Others would wait so that they wouldn't have to wait two hours.
Xu Ran asked Tangtang to be the cashier and Guoguo would go wherever he was needed.
Liu Tong and Shao Yu were busy cooking in the kitchen.
It was supposed to open at noon, but it was already past lunchtime. In Yanzhou, there existed a significant disparity between the rich and the poor. Coming for a fresh dinner was not an issue for the wealthy.
People were rushing back and forth; the day had never stopped since it began, and it had continued till dark. They'd probably still be busy if it weren't for the paucity of ingredients. When several individuals arrived at the door, Xu Ran stopped them and ordered them to come back tomorrow. He promised to make amends by offering them a 20% discount.
They had no choice but to accept the lack of ingredients. After all, it was too late to throw them out into the street. Plus, if they came to eat tomorrow, they'd get a 20% discount, so they didn't have any other emotions than disappointment, and they all stated they'd come back the next day.
Everyone's backs ached as they shut the door, and they were still hungry. Xu Ran and Lu Qi had been shouting for the better part of the day and were quite thirsty. They allowed Liu Tong and the others to prepare dinner with the remaining ingredients so that everyone could eat.
All of the people from the Mansion left when they finished packing everything, leaving only Xu Ran and his family.
07.25.21