I've been possessed by a culinary genius, and I've turned Shaxian snacks into a rip-off!

Wen Ran breathed a sigh of relief after hanging up the video call.

Fifteen pieces.

She told her mother that the wontons cost 15 yuan, but actually she spent 150 yuan.

She deliberately lied because she didn't want her mother to worry.

The family was already struggling financially. My mother worked as a cashier at a supermarket in our hometown county, earning only two thousand yuan a month. My father worked as a laborer on a construction site, earning only hard-earned money. If she were to say that she couldn't even afford a meal at a Shaxian snack shop, my mother probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

"It's okay, just like that aunt said, things will get better."

"Go Wen Ran!!!"

Wen Ran gave herself a pep talk at the entrance of Shaxian County, and then used her phone to hail a ride-hailing car.

While she was waiting for her ride, her company WeChat group started buzzing with messages.

Her mood, which had just started to improve, instantly soured again after seeing the message in the group chat.

That stupid work group at the company called "Dream Takes Flight".

The group name was chosen by the boss himself. Every time Wen Ran saw this name, she felt that her dream was indeed taking off, but it was heading towards the underworld.

The first message was sent by her supervisor, who also tagged all the members.

[Manager Liu: @Everyone, to avoid disrupting your valuable work time, tomorrow morning's meeting will be moved to 7:30 AM. Everyone must attend on time. Late arrivals will be dealt with according to the attendance policy. Received.]

Wen Ran broke down again after seeing this message.

What does it mean to move the meeting time to 7:30 so as not to delay everyone's work time?

So, meetings aren't considered work hours?

Are you out of your mind or a complete animal?!

The meeting is at 7:30 tomorrow morning, which means she has to get up at 5:30, leave home at 6:30, and then squeeze onto the subway for an hour just in time to get to the company.

Wen Ran became increasingly angry as she thought about it, and opened a private chat window with a colleague she had a fairly good relationship with in the group.

[Xiao Ran: Sister Lili, why is the meeting suddenly earlier tomorrow? Weren't meetings usually after we got to work?]

[Lily: Is there even a need to guess? It's obviously that idiot supervisor trying to impress the boss, to make himself seem more hardworking and diligent.]

[Lily: You're both working-class people, how come he's so good at sucking up to people?]

[Xiao Ran: I'm going crazy! If only someone could punish this idiot manager! He's so awful! I want to kill him!!!]

[Lily: Sigh, what can we lowly underlings do when the boss values ​​him so much? Let's not think about it too much and go to sleep early; we have to get up early tomorrow.]

[Xiao Ran: Mm, goodnight, Sister Lily!]

Wen Ran put down her phone, and the ride-hailing car arrived just then.

After getting in the car, she became angrier and angrier, and spent more than half an hour cursing the stupid boss and the stupid manager.

The ride-hailing driver almost thought the girl was going crazy. He drove with his heart pounding the whole way, afraid that she might do something drastic and take him down with her.

.............

It was past midnight.

After cleaning up the kitchen, Li Zhibai poured himself a glass of water, sat behind the cashier, and began calculating today's accounts again.

Su Su and his group ordered a meal that cost about 6500 yuan, with an average price of over 2000 yuan per person.

The sanitation worker and her colleagues ordered 750, and the intern girl ordered 150, which made a total of 900.

The total revenue for today is 7470 yuan.

This clearly shows that if you want to make money, you still have to target the rich.

There's a saying, isn't there?

The common people's money is split 30/70, while the rich's money is returned in full....

No, you've got it backwards.

It should be enough to earn less money from ordinary people, but I want all the money from the rich!

Li Zhibai then opened the system panel and took a look at the so-called "Heart of Gourmet Food".

What exactly is this "Heart of Gourmet Food"?

He still doesn't understand it.

The only clue is a statement the system made earlier: "A superficial mindset is detrimental to the growth of a culinary heart."

"A superficial mindset? Do they think I'm trying too hard to rip off customers?"

"No, that's not right. How can you call that superficial? I'm making money honestly and practically, every cut is real and substantial, not superficial at all!"

"If the condition for obtaining the Heart of Gourmet Food is that I have to be a good person and not rip off customers, then I'm doomed."

"When it comes to doing business, I, Li Zhibai, rely on three things: high prices, discerning customers based on their status, and shamelessness!"

system:【......】

The system is greatly pleased that the host possesses such a clear self-awareness.

"I'm so relieved!"

"System, at least give me some hints! How do I obtain the Heart of Gourmet Food?"

[Please comprehend this on your own.]

"That's all the fuck you can say, isn't it?" Li Zhibai was completely exasperated and too lazy to argue with this broken system that could only repeat itself.

Just as he was about to turn off the system panel, he heard the sound of a cart being pushed outside the door.

The woman who runs the stall is back at work.

The woman pushed her tricycle to the entrance of Shaxian snack shop. Seeing that the shop was still open, she immediately apologized.

"Boss, I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were still open. I'll come back later..."

Li Zhibai walked to the door with his teacup, leaned against the door frame, and waved his hand dismissively.

"It's okay, you can set it up."

The woman still hesitated, saying, "Isn't this inappropriate? Won't it affect your business, boss?"

The items sold at Shaxian Snacks are priced similarly to what she sells, such as ordinary fried rice and fried noodles. If she were to set up a stall in front of someone else's shop, wouldn't that be tantamount to openly stealing their business?

This is why her first reaction upon seeing that Li Zhibai hadn't closed yet was to quickly push her cart away.

Li Zhibai shook his head: "It doesn't matter, our customer base is different."

"Because this is a high-end Shaxian."

woman:"......"

High-end Shaxian cuisine? This was the first time she had ever heard of it.

She didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just an excuse the boss made out of kindness.

"Thank you, boss! You're such a kind person!"

Li Zhibai was stunned when he heard this.

This is really something new. It's been so many days since we opened, and this is the first time anyone has praised us.

Those customers used to call him "boss" before entering the store, but after seeing the menu, they called him a shady shop and even gave him the nickname "Li the Black-faced." They were very impolite.

Look at this lady, how polite she is!

"Don't mention it, you go ahead with your work, I'll head back to the shop first." Li Zhibai turned and went back into the shop with his teacup in hand.

The woman thanked her again, then set up her stall, lit the gas stove, heated the iron pot, and got to work.

Soon, some passersby and office workers who were working overtime passed by and stopped when they saw the fried rice stall.

"Hey ma'am, a plate of fried noodles, with an egg and sausage, please."

"Okay, twelve pieces."

"I want fried rice, with an egg."

"Ten yuan."

"Stir-fried rice noodles, with whatever you want added."

"Twelve pieces."

"....."

Business at night stalls isn't actually that good. Although some passersby and overtime workers do pass by, the number is ultimately limited.

From a little after 12 o'clock to a little after 1 o'clock, the woman only sold seven or eight servings of fried noodles and fried rice, earning a meager income.

Li Zhibai sat behind the cashier, scrolling through his phone. He yawned, then checked the time; it was already past 1 a.m.

He figured if no one came to eat after a while, he would prepare to close up shop.

Just then, a very unpleasant swearing sound suddenly came from outside.

"What the hell are you cooking?! Is this even fit for human consumption?!"

Li Zhibai suddenly jolted awake, his drowsiness vanishing instantly.

He stood up and walked to the door, where he saw a bald man with a thick neck and a face full of fat, wearing a floral shirt, pointing at the woman selling goods and cursing loudly.

Behind the bald man were two thugs who looked like hooligans.

"I had fried rice at a fancy restaurant for lunch today, and that was real fried rice! Every grain was separate, golden and shiny, and it smelled amazing!"

"Look at what you've cooked! It's a sticky, mushy mess, and it's so salty it's unbearable even for pigs!"

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! Can I make you a new one?" the woman apologized repeatedly, her posture humble.

The bald man persisted, "You think making another one will solve everything? I ate this lousy fried rice, and now my stomach is upset. You have to pay my medical bills!"

"Not much, five hundred yuan. Not a penny less and you're not leaving today! Otherwise, I'll call and report you!"

The woman's face turned pale instantly upon hearing his words.

five hundred.

She could sell fried rice and noodles all night until dawn and still not earn five hundred dollars!

"Brother, I...I really don't have that much money. Please, I beg you, I really didn't mean it."

"No money? You'll just have to wait, I'll make a call right now." The bald man said, reaching for his phone.

The woman was so desperate that she knelt down before him.

"Brother! Please, please don't report me... I just want to make some money..."

But the bald man ignored him and continued making the phone call.

"Hey! That's enough!"

Just then, a lazy voice came from behind.

The bald man turned his head while holding his phone and saw a young man wearing an apron standing at the entrance of Shaxian Snacks, looking at them.

"A plate of fried rice is only eight yuan, what more could you want?"