That evening, upon returning home, Liu Chen saw his mother soaking her feet on the sofa. Before Liu Chen could pry, Liu Fang said with a beaming smile,
"Fortunately, we started recruiting last week. The first batch of people making hand-grabbed pancakes today all brought their apprentices to restock. If Sister Li's husband hadn't come today, Sister Li and I would have been exhausted!"
"So, our family's output volume should continue to increase from now on?"
"Yes! Yesterday your aunt said she'd take you to Beijing next month, and I'll give you three thousand yuan too! Our family can afford it now!" Liu Fang's smile grew even brighter as she said this.
In the evening, after showering, Liu Chen sat in front of his small desk after drying his hair. He sat quietly for a few minutes, then initiated a ten-consecutive draw.
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received one temporary increase in sales assistant quota voucher (valid for one week).'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received one bottle of moisturizing face cream (can maintain facial moisture after use).'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
'Received cash 1,100 yuan.'
He took out the bottle of moisturizing face cream. Its appearance was identical to the children's face cream sold locally in C City. He placed it on the countertop of the washbasin, then returned to his studies until eight o'clock before lying down on the princess bed, which his mother had just changed with new sheets.
A night of good sleep.
The cicadas' chirping in the midsummer grew louder day by day. With one more person hired, Liu Fang's daily steady sales had gradually increased from two hundred pieces to around two hundred and fifty. Liu Chen's college entrance examination mock test scores had also risen from 450 points all the way to 600 points. The tutoring school had even signed an agreement with Liu Chen: if she could get into a first-tier university in next year's college entrance exam, they would refund the entire tutoring fee.
Moreover, for every point she scored above the first-tier university line, she would receive one hundred yuan!
After finishing the last session of cram school, Liu Chen walked out of the tutoring school and stood on the steps, looking at the fiery orange-red sunset in the distance. Before she could sigh in admiration, she heard Ren Mo babbling from behind her,
"Sis, what time is our flight to Beijing tomorrow? Tell me the time, my grandma is making a fuss about wanting to pick us up and meet her god-granddaughter."
That's right, Liu Chen had accidentally revealed a few days ago that she was going to Beijing to watch the Olympics. Ren Mo had thrown a fit then, insisting on going with her. If Liu Chen refused, he threatened to run away from home and go to Beijing to find her!
Was this the kind of threat an eighteen-year-old boy should be saying out loud? Ren Mo dared to say it, and Liu Chen was genuinely worried about his safety, so she grudgingly agreed.
"The flight is at twelve-thirty tomorrow afternoon, and we should arrive in Beijing around three in the afternoon. Don't trouble the elderly so much; we'll take a taxi ourselves. Besides, Aunt and Wang Dong are coming too."
That's right, Aunt Hu Min and Wang Dong were currently in the early stages of getting to know each other. Primarily, Liu Fang had thoroughly investigated Wang Dong's background under the guise of understanding the factory owners, and only then had she given her consent and introduced Hu Min to Wang Dong.
As a result, Wang Dong had fallen head over heels for the slightly plump Aunt Hu Min. Even though his factory was in the county town, he insisted on coming to C City every day to pick up and drop off Hu Min from her company dormitory to her workplace. His reason was:
"Miss Hu Min is so beautiful; what if she's targeted by perverts on the bus or confessed to by other men? I'm not handsome, so I should be diligent and let Miss Hu Min see my sincerity!"
When Liu Fang and Liu Chen heard this, they were both dumbfounded. Although Liu Chen felt her aunt, despite being a little plump, was the prettiest among the Hu family, still… she wasn't *that* beautiful to the extent Wang Dong described, was she?
Thinking about it, this was probably a classic case of "beauty is in the eye of the beholder"?
Therefore, when it came to Hu Min taking Liu Chen to Beijing to watch the Olympics, Wang Dong quickly offered to act as her escort.
"I'm in my thirties and have never been to Beijing. It's a good chance to see the world. I'm a bit nervous because it's my first time flying out of the province, so please don't laugh at me."
Ren Mo heard Liu Chen's words, shrugged his shoulders, and walked down the steps with Liu Chen, grumbling stubbornly,
"It can't be helped; my grandma is really looking forward to seeing you. Besides, what I say doesn't count. If I don't tell my grandma the exact time, she'll really wait outside the airport from morning till night."
Liu Chen desperately missed the quiet little brother she had met when they first met.
"Alright, alright, whatever you say. Then we'll have dinner at your grandma's place and then go to a hotel. Otherwise, with so many of us, your grandma's place won't be able to accommodate us!" After all, people say Beijing is big and it's hard to live there. It's also my first time meeting my godmother's family, and I'm quite nervous!
That evening, Liu Fang, as promised, slipped three thousand yuan into Liu Chen's hand. Then, she tucked another five thousand yuan into a hidden pocket of her luggage, saying as she did so,
"Wang Dong is treating you to meals and such. He treats once, you treat once. After all, your aunt isn't officially dating him yet, so you don't want to take advantage of him and make it difficult for your aunt to refuse. Buy whatever you want. Mom is making money now, we can afford it!
In my pocket are some gifts for your godmother's family. It's cordyceps from our hometown, freshly harvested. Unlike the ones bought outside, which can easily exceed lead limits. I brought a hundred roots. Old people can just soak this in plain water and drink it. Don't forget to give it to them!"
Liu Fang, who had now lowered the price of the hand-grabbed pancakes by five yuan, still managed to achieve daily sales of thirty to forty thousand yuan. Liu Fang hadn't calculated her exact profit because she was too tired; after getting home from work, she just wanted to soak her feet comfortably in hot water and then go to bed. However, she felt the profit should be substantial.
"I know, I know. Drive carefully when you go by yourself in the morning. Deposit the money at the bank before coming home at night. Call the police if anything happens…"
"I know, I know. Weren't you the one guarding the shop alone when I went to school? Besides, Sister Li is working the morning shift with me now. Don't worry. Take more photos in Beijing and show them to Mom when you get back. What does the capital look like."
"No way! You're getting old. Why spend money on that? I'll take you to the capital during the National Day holiday!"
Liu Fang shook her head repeatedly, "I'm an old lady; what's the point of spending this money? You go visit a couple more places and show me the photos when you get back."
Recalling that Liu Fang had never left S Province in her life and her hair had turned white prematurely, Liu Chen secretly resolved to take Liu Fang out of the province during the National Day holiday!
Thinking about it, Liu Chen also packed the two cans of honey she had received as a reward from the system into her suitcase. It's always good to bring more gifts!