Chapter 386: Chapter 386
"But, if you expand the scale, the silver earned is definitely not a small amount, and what I earn naturally increases."
Mu Shuangshuang spoke while observing the expression of the young master Zheng Zhi.
Seeing no ripple on his face, she confirmed that she could continue speaking.
"Of course, there are risks in doing business, ups and downs are common! I’m not greedy, if it’s just selling popcorn in Jiu Si Xuan in town, the base price is ten wen or less, I can take only ten percent of the Jiu Si Xuan’s income, which means if you sell items worth a hundred wen, I earn ten wen."
A portion of popcorn, Mu Shuangshuang estimated that it would sell for up to ten wen in Jiu Si Xuan, after all, being paired with refreshments, even if it’s special, not everyone would buy it.
If Jiu Si Xuan could only accommodate sixty to a hundred people watching opera or listening to storytelling in a day, she calculated that she wouldn’t earn much in a day.
However, since the owner of Jiu Si Xuan approached her, it seemed not just to do business there, but aiming for a larger venue.
Zheng Zhi didn’t expect Mu Shuangshuang to be so clever. According to her calculation, from the full earnings, she takes ten percent, even if Jiu Si Xuan earns merely one or two silver a day, she could earn three taels a month.
If it’s a year, then thirty taels, and at most three years she would exceed the hundred taels silver he initially invested.
"What if I want to expand the scale?" Zheng Zhi showed interest.
"It depends on how much you want me to earn. More or less, it doesn’t matter, as long as there’s income." Mu Shuangshuang smiled warmly.
"If agreed upon, I can give you the recipe directly."
The recipe for popcorn is certainly important to Mu Shuangshuang, but if it’s really as the young master in front of her said, pursuing a bigger picture, then she couldn’t afford the cost in raw materials, nor had the capital.
Mu Shuangshuang gave Zheng Zhi enough autonomy, and this satisfied Zheng Zhi quite a bit.
"Miss Shuangshuang’s terms sound good, but I wonder if Miss Shuangshuang can tolerate our restaurant’s operating method; we start accounting for dividends at the end of each year.
This year has already passed more than half, so logically, we can only start counting at next year’s end, according to ten percent of ten percent."
While the man spoke, Mu Shuangshuang started calculating in her mind.
If this man earns one tael, she earns ten wen; if he earns ten thousand taels, she only gets a hundred taels; the question is, can this man make ten thousand taels a year.
She quickly ran the calculations, over and over, there was still some risk.
Zheng Zhi seemed to understand what Mu Shuangshuang was worried about, he said, "Fortune favors the bold, why doesn’t Miss Shuangshuang take a risk and try?"
"Then let’s sign the contract today."
Mu Shuangshuang knew, business is such a thing, no one can predict. Whether money is made this time or not, at least she made a connection with the man in front of her.
In case one day, her uncle strikes it lucky and passes the exam, this man might help her in a significant way.
Mu Shuangshuang was quite straightforward, so was Zheng Zhi. After asking someone to draft the contract, they signed it and had it registered in town immediately.
The red-clothed girl, Zheng Xiu, seemed uninterested in what Mu Shuangshuang and her brother were discussing, but there were only a few people in the room, so she simply chatted with Lu Yuanfeng.
"Hey, what’s your relationship with this sister? She seems to like discussing everything with you."
Before making a decision, Mu Shuangshuang had asked Lu Yuanfeng for his opinion. Lu Yuanfeng was not good at business, but since Shuangshuang agreed, he had no objections.
Lu Yuanfeng originally wanted to say Shuangshuang was his future wife, but feared ruining Shuangshuang’s reputation, so he altered his words a bit, saying, "We have a good relationship."
"You’re really a taciturn person. I know you have a good relationship, but what’s the specific relationship? Like how me and my brother are siblings, that’s how you should answer!"
Zheng Xiu was evidently dissatisfied with Lu Yuanfeng’s response, especially his lukewarm attitude toward her.
Clearly, he smiled at Shuangshuang, but he wouldn’t smile at her?
Does she not compare to this village girl?
Lu Yuanfeng didn’t pay attention to Zheng Xiu, ignored her chatting attempts, waited until the contract was brought back by the attendant, and then things finally concluded.
"Miss Shuangshuang, before you have been sending popcorn to our Jiu Si Xuan, this amount hasn’t been accounted for, just according to your initial saying, we earn one tael, you earn a hundred wen. I’ll ask the shopkeeper to give you the silver later."
"Okay!" Mu Shuangshuang wasn’t foolish; the money she could get in her hands was truly hers.
"Also, you continue to send it for another month. This month, I want to spend more effort to make the name recognizable and then send it to different shops."
By this time, Mu Shuangshuang had not yet given the recipe to the people at Jiu Si Xuan, since the cooperation was to start in September this year.
Right now, it’s only early July, and she estimated that by then, her uncle’s exam results should be out.
Sometimes Mu Shuangshuang was really conflicted, hoping her uncle would pass and take away those annoying leeches from the Old Mu Family quickly.
But she also felt her uncle didn’t deserve to be an official. Besides harming the people, Mu Dade probably couldn’t do anything else.
It’s really troublesome as long as it involves Old Mu Family matters.
She hoped Mu Dade, the pest, wouldn’t harm the people from the Third Branch of the Mu Family in the future.
Far away in Qianzhou Prefecture, Mu Dade suddenly sneezed, and Mrs. Jin was instantly scared out of her wits, calling for the doctor and medicine.
"Dan Dan’s mother, don’t worry, it’s just a tickle in my nose, no harm done."
Only then did Mrs. Jin relax and nod in relief.
Ever since buying the test questions in the county, Mu Dade went to Qianzhou Prefecture, initially setting out with a hundred and ten taels of silver, seventy taels were given to the seller of test questions.
Money was needed for lodging and meals in the county, and since Mu Dade’s family insisted on eating and drinking the best, twenty taels quickly vanished, leaving them only twenty taels by the time they reached Qianzhou Prefecture.
Currently, they’ve rented a quadrangle courtyard in Qianzhou Prefecture, one person per room, costing two taels of silver monthly rent. Plus, during this period, his family of four ate at big restaurants outside, and the twenty taels silver had dwindled drastically.
Mrs. Jin hesitated a moment before speaking, "Da De, the silver we have now can at most last until the end of this month, but next month is the Autumn Examination, what should we do?"
Mu Dade was worried too, but helplessly, they couldn’t earn money, not like Shuangshuang who could do business in town to get money.
"Why not write a family letter and ask my dad to send another twenty taels of silver?"
Twenty taels, spending frugally, would be enough for the four of them until the Autumn Examination is over.
Only by doing so, they wouldn’t be able to shop and buy things in Qianzhou Prefecture.
"That’s fine, but do you think your parents would agree?"