On the sixth day of the second lunar month, Qi Zhenzhen and Lin Ruixue rose early. Today, they had to send Qi Yi and Li Hu to the academy. Besides new clothes and stationery, Qi Zhenzhen had also prepared a jar of braised meat, a large bag of seasoned dried meat, a jar of five-spice crispy rice, and a bag of fried sesame balls for them. Since the weather was still cold, these items would keep well and could serve as snacks if the boys got hungry while studying at night.
The academy allowed students to return home for two days every month, around the middle and end of the month. This arrangement seemed quite reasonable.
Qi Zhenzhen and Lin Ruixue babbled a lot of advice before finally letting the two boys go.
"Alright, Auntie, they've always been sensible boys. They can take care of themselves, and they'll look out for each other. You don't need to worry so much," Qi Zhenzhen said, pulling the reluctant Lin Ruixue back. "You should focus your energy on tomorrow's opening."
Lin Ruixue put aside her reluctance. "Everything is ready. We just need to prepare enough dough tomorrow morning. The braised meat also needs to be sliced tomorrow morning. It's convenient to slice it now, but the slices are thin. If we prepare them now, they'll be dry and stale by tomorrow, affecting the taste. Oh, and how's the flyer you were drawing?"
"It's almost done. Tomorrow morning, I'll have someone distribute them on every street to let everyone know that Mian Mian Ju Dao is opening. Oh, and how about we have a lucky draw?" Qi Zhenzhen suddenly had an idea. In her past life, shop openings often featured lucky draws. Many people were drawn to the chance of winning, and sometimes they would participate even if they didn't intend to buy or eat anything, just for the excitement of the draw. If they happened to like what they won, they might become regular customers. Qi Zhenzhen mused that regardless of the era, human curiosity remained the same. It would be a good gimmick to attract more people to their noodle shop.
Lin Ruixue looked at Qi Zhenzhen blankly. "Lucky draw? What lucky draw? What do you mean?"
Qi Zhenzhen explained the lucky draw in detail to Lin Ruixue, who listened in a daze. After a while, her eyes lit up with surprise. "This is a great idea! The winning rate is fifty-fifty. Anyone who buys something in the shop can enter the draw. If someone doesn't want to buy anything, they can spend two coins to enter. If they don't win, we profit. If they do win and taste our noodles, they might like the flavor and become a regular customer."
And so, with a fifty-fifty winning rate, they prepared thirty prizes: ten bowls of signature braised meat noodles, ten portions of assorted braised delicacies, five *roujiamo* (meat sandwiches), and five grand prizes. Those who won a grand prize could come to the shop for a bowl of the day's signature noodles for free for the next half month.
Qi Zhenzhen taught Lin Ruixue all her noodle-making skills, along with the secret sauces. Coupled with the strong dough kneaded by Zhang Erniu's powerful hands, the noodles were chewy, and the broth was flavorful. Qi Zhenzhen was confident that anyone who tasted them would love them. With the addition of various braised dishes, business was bound to be good.
On the seventh day, Zhang Erniu set off a string of firecrackers at the entrance early in the morning, attracting quite a crowd.
Qi Zhenzhen, Lin Ruixue, and Yingzi held red papers with drawings of steaming bowls of noodles, surrounded by cute, simple Q-version cartoon figures eagerly gazing at the noodle bowls. This was designed with the majority of illiterate people in mind, making it easy to understand at a glance.
"Everyone, our Mian Mian Ju Dao is officially opening today! We're holding a lucky draw with thirty prizes. Anyone who dines in the shop is eligible to enter. If you don't wish to come in, you can spend two coins to enter the draw. If you win, you'll definitely get your money's worth. If you don't win, consider it a bit of fun," Zhang Erniu announced loudly. "Our shop serves lunch and dinner. Fellow villagers, if you don't want to go home for lunch, you can come and check out our little shop."
Several neighboring shopkeepers, familiar with Zhang Erniu, shouted that they would come for lunch. Others were interested in the lucky draw he mentioned and were rubbing their hands together, wondering if they could win something for free.
After creating this buzz, the three of them cupped their hands to the crowd and turned to enter the shop. They had to get ready to welcome customers at noon.
Qi Zhenzhen went directly to the backyard. Two young boys stood there. Their features were quite delicate, but they were so skinny that they looked pitiful.
These two boys had been found with the help of Granny Lu. They were orphans and survived by begging. However, they were different from those who relied solely on begging. Most of the time, they would help those who gave them alms by doing some work. Strictly speaking, they were earning their meals through their labor.
"I've told them everything. These flyers need to be distributed, but not randomly. They should be given to potential customers who might come to eat noodles, and they should also be told the name and location of our shop," Qi Zhenzhen instructed earnestly.
The older boy, named Da He, thumped his chest. "Miss Qi, please rest assured. My brother and I have grown up observing people's expressions. We have some skill in understanding people. You are a friend of Granny Lu, and we brothers have also received much kindness from Granny Lu. We guarantee this task will be done beautifully."
After sending the two boys off, Qi Zhenzhen went to the shop. She and Yingzi stayed at the counter, while Lin Ruixue and Zhang Erniu were busy in the kitchen.
A little past the hour of *si* (9-11 AM), the first customer arrived. It was an acquaintance, the owner of the wine shop across the street. "Miss Qi, I didn't have breakfast this morning, and I'm already hungry. What do you have?"
Behind the counter was a half-wall displaying a menu with black characters on white paper, accompanied by illustrations, all done by Qi Zhenzhen.
Those who could read could order by looking at the text. Those who couldn't read could also order by looking at the pictures and asking a few questions.
In addition, various braised dishes and *roujiamo* were also depicted.
"Boss Du, please feel free to order. Today, our signature dish is braised meat noodles," Qi Zhenzhen said with a smile.
"Alright, then I'll have a bowl of braised meat noodles and a platter of assorted braised delicacies." Boss Du replied.
A short while later, Yingzi brought out the platter of assorted braised delicacies: braised dried tofu, braised meat, braised chicken feet, and chicken gizzards.
Boss Du took his wine gourd from his waist, took a sip of his wine, and picked up a piece of braised delicacy.
He had some acquaintance with Zhang Erniu, so he came to eat today with the intention of supporting their business. If there were too few customers on the opening day, it would be difficult to sustain the business later.
These braised delicacies were authentic! They tasted even better than the ones from the shop in the county town that claimed to be a century-old braised recipe. This shop truly had real skill.
With a bite of braised delicacy and a sip of wine, Boss Du ate with great satisfaction.
Qi Zhenzhen approached Boss Du with a bamboo tube. "Boss Du, would you like to draw one?"
"Is this the lucky draw that Brother Erniu mentioned? Never mind, never mind. We know each other, so we don't need to do this. Leave it for other customers," Boss Du waved his hand dismissively. In his opinion, such small tricks were meaningless.
"Although we know each other, today you are a guest in our shop. Please draw one," Qi Zhenzhen insisted.