CHAPTER 44: CHAPTER 44 EARNED MONEY

At noon, students bought fried skewers, and office workers came to buy zongzi and dumplings.

Luckily, Ye Family’s parents came to help; otherwise, Gu Yi and the others truly wouldn’t have managed at noon.

In the afternoon, when it wasn’t busy, Gu Yi first went to Li Gang’s place.

Based on the quantity from yesterday and today, she estimated how many vegetables and eggs were needed daily and asked Li Gang to deliver them every morning, settling the payment every ten days.

Then she went to the meat stall, gave the owner her required quantity, and agreed to have deliveries every three days.

This time, Gu Yi’s order was a bit larger than before. If business improves, she will inform them to increase the order.

Having arranged these, Gu Yi felt much relieved.

Given the business from these two days, it seems it shouldn’t get worse in the future.

In addition to doing business every day, she has to shop for groceries, and after buying, she needs to wash them.

Gu Yi doesn’t ride a bike, so she has to walk everywhere, carrying groceries back and wasting time, leaving her no time to rest.

In the future, having them deliver will save her much trouble.

With these matters settled, Gu Yi went directly to the commercial street to see if there were any foldable beds for sale.

She and Ye Qian had visited the commercial street many times and thought they had seen beds for sale, but couldn’t remember the specific location.

Gu Yi searched for quite a while on the commercial street and eventually found a bed store deep inside.

She bought a 1.2-meter-wide foldable bed and asked the seller to deliver it to the store. She accompanied the delivery vehicle back to the store.

As Gu Yi was nearing the store, she spotted customers from afar. She checked her watch; it was only a bit past four.

Students from Yizhong finish school at five, and nearby office workers get off work at 5:30.

Gu Yi found it quite odd that there were people in the store already.

Entering, she saw that it was filled with elementary students, all coming to buy fried skewers.

She overheard the students saying many people thought her family’s fried skewers were tasty, so they came together after school.

Gu Yi asked the delivery man to unload the bed, paid him, moved it into the kitchen herself, and hurried out to help.

Ye Fu was also due to head home.

Before leaving, he said he’d be busy weeding the fields these days, unable to come by.

Gu Yi and Ye Qian both told him to focus on his work as there were three of them handling the shop now.

Once this batch of elementary school students left, Yizhong had let out for the day.

The shop got busy again.

After nearby workers got off, seeing the store was crowded, many bought takeout.

Not until after six did the store quiet down, and Gu Yi and the others began preparing dinner.

With Ye’s mother around today, Gu Yi didn’t close the shop door, wanting to see if there was still business after the evening classes ended.

If business was still good, they’d consider closing later in the evening.

While the students were still in class, Gu Yi and the others quickly prepared for the next day.

After the evening classes ended, many students strolled out of the school gate.

Seeing Gu Yi’s store still open, some ventured in, hoping to get some fried skewers.

Once one came in, others followed.

Soon, Gu Yi’s store was packed again.

It was only busy for half an hour before the store emptied.

Students had to return to their dorms by ten as the lights would turn off, so they couldn’t linger outside.

After closing, Gu Yi counted the cash and found they’d earned over 20 yuan in that short time.

She decided to keep the store open at night to earn as much as possible.

That night, Ye’s mother, alongside Gu Yi and Ye Qian, cleared a space in the kitchen.

After washing up, Gu Yi unfolded the foldable bed in the cleared space and laid out the bedding.

"I’ll sleep outside tonight. You and Qianqian still sleep inside."

Ye’s mother looked at the bed and thought that perhaps she should sleep outside.

After all, she slept less and could get up early to work without disturbing Gu Yi and the others.

"Mom, how could I let you sleep out here? Tonight, please sleep inside with Qianqian; I’ll sleep out here."

Gu Yi couldn’t bear to let Ye’s mother sleep outside, fearing she’d catch a cold; plus, she was used to sleeping alone.

Though Ye Qian had no bad sleeping habits, Gu Yi still felt uneasy sleeping at night.

"Mom, you can sleep with me. Let Sister-in-law sleep outside; I haven’t been sleeping well these days, disturbing her rest."

Ye Qian had noticed that Gu Yi often stayed up late, likely due to discomfort with the new environment, and felt guilty for disrupting by being there.

"Alright then."

Ye’s mother agreed it was better to sleep with Ye Qian, given how busy the shop was, they needed good rest.

"Mom, it’s not Qianqian’s fault. Maybe I’m just not used to the new place. You go ahead and get your rest. I’ll try sleeping outside tonight."

Since Ye’s mother arrived, she had been preparing the morning porridge and heating zongzi and eggs.

In the morning, with no fried skewers being bought, Gu Yi and the others prepared the vegetable and meat skewers needed for lunch and dinner.

In the evening, they cooked the spiced eggs for the next day’s sales.

With dumplings running out, they made more during the quieter afternoon periods.

Over the weekend, they prepared a week’s worth of zongzi, taking advantage of the quieter times when students were on break.

Busy days passed quickly, and soon it was the end of the month.

That day, during a lull, Gu Yi took out her ledger.

After subtracting rent and daily costs, she realized they had netted 2,352 yuan.

She called Ye’s mother and Ye Qian together.

"Mom, Qianqian, I’ve calculated the accounts. After deducting costs, we’ve made a profit of 2,352 yuan. I think we should leave the 352 yuan as the shop’s working capital this time."

Gu Yi said as she put the 352 yuan into the money box.

"As for the remaining 2000 yuan, we’ll distribute it as previously discussed with Qianqian: I’ll take 1200, Qianqian takes 600, and Mom takes 200."

Gu Yi counted 600 for Ye Qian and 200 for Ye’s mother.

"I also get money?"

Ye’s mother hadn’t been present when Gu Yi and Ye Qian discussed this previously, so she was surprised that Gu Yi had included her share as well.

Knowing Gu Yi’s straightforward nature, Ye’s mother accepted it without hesitation.

Holding the 200 yuan, Ye’s mother felt immensely happy.

Even though it was given by her daughter-in-law, it felt like her own earnings, and it was the most she’d ever made.

"Mom, I hope you don’t mind it’s small. I’m still saving up for future endeavors."

Gu Yi worried Ye’s mother might find it stingy, but she had many plans that required money.

In future, she and Ye Hao would continue to take good care of their parents.

"Yiyi, don’t say such formal words. It’s actually the most I’ve ever earned, so how could I not be happy? I understand your intentions!"

Ye’s mother knew this was her daughter-in-law honoring them, otherwise she couldn’t have earned so much.

"Qianqian, save this money well and don’t spend it recklessly."

Ye’s mother advised Ye Qian, despite having no intentions, with a gentle reminder.

"Yes, Mom, I understand. It’s the most money I’ve ever seen. I will save it cautiously, hoping it will grow."

Perhaps due to spending so much time with Gu Yi, Ye Qian too was influenced by her, aimed to earn more, and sought financial independence for her future.

Ye’s mother and Gu Yi both laughed after hearing Ye Qian say this.