1996: Starting from a bankrupt farmhouse restaurant

Chapter 115 Return

On the way to his maternal grandfather's house, Lu Yuan told his parents about his idea to help his uncle open a lamb offal soup shop, and they unanimously agreed.

Especially for Wei Yinghong, now that she's doing well, she certainly can't neglect her parents.

But her current good life has nothing to do with her; it's purely because Lu Yuan is capable.

So whether or not Lu Yuan can help his own family, and how to help them, is something that Lu Yuan needs to figure out.

But Lu Yuan has been so busy lately, and he hasn't even gotten his hands on the money yet. How could she possibly talk to Lu Yuan about such unrealistic things?

Wei Yinghong was pleasantly surprised when her son suddenly decided to return to Weijia Village today.

On the way, her son surprisingly offered to help his good-for-nothing brother open a shop, which delighted Wei Yinghong.

Although this was done to help my younger siblings earn money, good intentions may not receive a positive response if done too hastily.

So Lu Yuan and Wei Yinghong's strategy was that Lu Yuan would first make a dish of lamb offal soup that everyone would never forget, and then Wei Yinghong, the eldest sister, would bring up the idea of ​​opening a shop.

As expected, everyone was stunned when Wei Yinghong mentioned opening the shop.

Opening a restaurant was something these honest, hardworking farmers had never even considered.

Opening a shop these days isn't as casual as it is in later years, where you can just rent a place and start, and if you lose money, you can just find another job.

Anyway, their parents or online loans will cover their losses.

But that won't work now. Opening a shop means you have to have a skill, otherwise the people in the surrounding villages will curse you behind your back.

Moreover, the cost of opening a store is hard-earned money, earned stroke by stroke; if you lose money, you're completely finished.

For a moment, everyone looked at each other, unsure how to respond.

Seeing this, Wei Yinghong suddenly became anxious and said, "Didn't you all say that Xiao Yuan's mutton offal soup is better than the ones at the market? Wouldn't it be a safer option for us to open a shop?"

"But, eldest sister, we don't know how to open a shop..." the second aunt replied softly, not daring to look up at Wei Yinghong.

My aunt also said hesitantly, "If we open a shop, what will happen to the land? Miao Miao's dad can't manage to farm it all by himself."

Wei Yinghong was almost dizzy when she heard her sisters' excuses.

These days, through constant exposure, she has gained a completely new understanding of making money.

That means farming is nowhere near as profitable as trading.

Potatoes that cost 2 cents a pound, sliced ​​and skewered, can be sold for 1 cent a skewer at a mala tang (spicy hot pot) restaurant.

Wei Yinghong can now do the math: one pound of potatoes can make 10 skewers.

This is the price at a mala tang restaurant. If you put it at Xiao Lu's farmhouse restaurant, it would scare people to death.

Wei Yinghong, who is usually eloquent, didn't know how to explain it to them at this moment.

Lu Yuan stopped his mother from continuing and took over the conversation, saying, "Second Aunt, Little Aunt, how about this, you and Uncle come to my shop tomorrow and take a look around. Then you'll understand what it's like to run a shop."

At this point, Grandpa made the decision: "Okay, let's go to Xiaoyuan Store together tomorrow. The child meant well, so let's not disappoint him."

Lu Yuan had actually anticipated that it wouldn't be so easy to get his second aunt and the others to open a shop together.

Even though my uncle had told them before that he was making a lot of money, they probably didn't believe him completely.

Just a month ago, Lu Yuan had ruined his restaurant, and it was on the verge of collapse.

A month later, he suddenly wanted to help his aunt and the others open a shop. How could that be possible?

Since they had to open for business early the next morning, Lu Yuan and his family did not choose to stay overnight. Instead, they rushed back to Luwangtan Village before dark.

They remained silent the entire way, and Wei Yinghong seemed rather sullen.

She was eager to help her family, but didn't receive a positive response.

Although she knew the reason, she just couldn't be happy.

When the motorcycle reached Luwangtan Village, it could be vaguely seen a car parked in front of Xiaolu Farmhouse Restaurant.

Lu Yuan was a little curious. There was no private banquet today, and the store had closed long ago. Whose car was parked in front of the store?

As the motorcycle drew closer, Wei Yinghong suddenly broke into a bright smile, pointing at the vehicle against the night sky and exclaiming, "Teacher Xiao Zhao is back!"

Lu Yuan looked at the vaguely visible car outline with some surprise, then looked at his smiling mother.

How did she recognize her?

After the motorcycle stopped in front of the store, Lu Yuan finally saw clearly that it was indeed the Jeep with the Beijing license plate.

To be honest, Lu Yuan has been so busy these past few days that he almost forgot about Zhao Yan, the beautiful teacher who came to teach in the rural area.

Counting the days, it's already the end of August, and school will start in a few days.

Upon seeing Lu Yuan's family return, the Jeep door opened, and the tall and graceful Zhao Yan, sporting a vibrant high ponytail, jumped out of the car.

"Hello Aunt Wei, hello Uncle Lu, hello Lu Yuan!" Zhao Yan greeted them sweetly.

"Teacher Zhao, you're finally back!" Wei Yinghong was overjoyed; her earlier low spirits vanished upon seeing Zhaoyan.

Wei Yinghong affectionately took Zhao Yan's arm and said to Lu Yuan, "Xiao Yuan, quickly open the door, let's go home and talk!"

Lu Yuan said "Oh," and took out his keys to open the door. At that moment, the passenger door also opened.

A curly-haired girl got out of the car. She was very pretty and had a completely different style from Zhao Yan.

After getting off the bus, the curly-haired girl greeted everyone warmly: "Hello Aunt Wei, hello Uncle Lu, hello handsome Lu Yuan! I'm Chen Nuo, Zhao Yan's good friend."

Hearing an odd remark mixed in with Chen Nuo's greeting, Zhao Yan turned her head and glanced at Chen Nuo out of the corner of her eye.

Chen Nuo acted as if he hadn't seen anything, moved closer to Wei Yinghong, and put his arm around her, saying, "Aunt Wei, Zhao Yan has been saying all the way that you've been so good to her, just like her mother!"

Zhao Yan was completely bewildered. She thought to herself, "I only stayed for two days. When did I say such a thing?"

Although Aunt Wei was indeed very kind to her, Chen Nuo's words clearly indicated that she had ulterior motives.

She desperately wanted to buy a plane ticket for Chen Nuo to go back immediately; she deeply regretted bringing Chen Nuo along.

Chen Nuo's sweet talk pleased Wei Yinghong greatly, and she hadn't stopped smiling since she met him, but now her face was a little stiff.

Lu Yuan opened the door, pushed it open first, and turned on the light. Only then did he realize how much Zhao Yan had changed.

Under the lamplight, Wei Yinghong finally saw Zhao Yan's face clearly and exclaimed in surprise, "Teacher Zhao, did you go on vacation to Africa? You're so tanned!"

Compared to her fair complexion before her trip, Zhao Yan's skin has now turned wheat-colored.

Chen Nuo is the same, just like Zhao Yan, with wheat-colored skin and delicate features, a kind of beauty that doesn't conform to traditional definitions.

"Aunt Wei, the sun in the Gobi Desert is so scorching! If it weren't for your watermelons, we might not have made it out alive!"

Chen Nuo recounted his experiences with great emotion, embellishing the story quite a bit.

Zhao Yan was completely overwhelmed by what she heard. She tried to interrupt several times, but couldn't find an opportunity.

Chen Nuo was incredibly eloquent, leaving Wei Yinghong completely bewildered.

After hearing this, Wei Yinghong patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she said to Lu Yuan, "Xiao Yuan, quickly make a bowl of noodles to welcome these two girls back."

"Auntie, isn't it troublesome to cook so late? I've heard Zhaoyan say all the way here that Lu Yuan, the handsome guy, cooks delicious food. Today I finally have the chance to feast!"

Wei Yinghong replied with a smile, "No trouble at all. We'll have dumplings on the way up and noodles when we get off! Everyone has to have some noodles eventually."

Chen Nuo was polite in words, but he wasn't polite at all, and his tone was full of eagerness.

Zhao Yan felt an urge to punch her best friend as she listened.

Listening to Chen Nuo's Beijing accent, Lu Yuan felt a sense of familiarity, like when he was an apprentice in Beijing and listened to people chatting idly in the alleys.

Instead of immediately going to the kitchen to cook, he went out through the back door to get some cooked beef and beef broth from the central kitchen.

"Lu Yuan!" Zhao Yan's voice rang out behind Lu Yuan. She quickly ran to his side and said, "Chen Nuo doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut, don't mind him!"

Lu Yuan shook his head and said, "No, she wasn't wrong."

"Huh?" Zhao Yan was stunned for a moment, and after thinking for a few seconds, she realized what Lu Yuan meant by "he was right".

Lu Yuan is handsome...

Zhao Yan blushed slightly. She hadn't expected Lu Yuan to speak so openly. How come she hadn't noticed it the first time she came?

Lu Yuan led Zhao Yan from the main courtyard to the small courtyard, then out the back gate of the small courtyard, and arrived at Uncle Lu's backyard.

As Zhao Yan walked along, she noticed that the backyard had changed drastically, completely different from when she had visited before.

Although there were only dim streetlights in the courtyard, it didn't feel like a courtyard in a rural area of ​​northern China at all; it felt more like a leisure farm on the outskirts of Beijing.

,