Chapter 110: 3 Ways to Cook Green Mussels

Chapter 110: Chapter 110: 3 Ways to Cook Green Mussels

Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant, Location #3.

After signing the contract with the landlord, Xu An returned to the shop to assess its layout and figure out what equipment he needed to buy.

He wandered around the store and found that aside from the tables, chairs, and benches, everything else had to be bought new.

Location #1 already had two rice steamers, one large and one small, and Location #2 had a large one as well, so he wouldn’t need to purchase a new one for this.

Based on the past two days of braised food sales, Zhang Dezhen had come to a conclusion: noodle boilers were the best for making the braised dishes. Therefore, Xu An needed to buy two more—one for the braised items and another for making soup.

A high-flame stove was a must, or else the cooking speed would be too slow. He also needed to buy various other miscellaneous items.

Xu An had saved the contact information for the equipment store from his last purchase.

This time, he didn’t plan on going to the store in person. He just called to order the products he needed, getting everything in one go.

When the owner of the equipment store learned that Xu An needed to buy more new equipment, he was overjoyed. He even promised to help Xu An procure some smaller items that his store didn’t carry and gave him a 5% discount.

A 5% discount didn’t sound like much, but it would save him a few hundred yuan, which left Xu An quite satisfied.

The equipment problem was easy to solve, but hiring was a real headache.

Zijing Garden hadn’t been completed and sold yet, so the foot traffic hadn’t returned. The few surrounding restaurants were also fast-food places with limited reputations. Many potential job seekers had no idea Xu An was hiring.

It wasn’t that Xu An hadn’t considered using a recruitment agency, but their fees were too high!

It was basically one month’s salary per person. For six people, that would be over ten thousand yuan. For the current Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant, that was no small expense.

However, Location #3 wouldn’t be opening so quickly anyway. He would wait until the construction site announced it would be providing meal subsidies to the workers before opening for business.

Even if he opened now, not many customers would come. Location #1 could easily handle the current demand, so there was no need.

So, Xu An decided to once again use the all-powerful social media method. If he still couldn’t find anyone by the time he was about to open, then he would turn to an agency.

He opened QQ, went to his profile space, and published a new status update.

"Xu’s Fast Food Restaurant is hiring two cooks and four general helpers. Interested parties, please contact for an interview."

After handling these matters and closing the doors to all three shops, Xu An suddenly felt a wave of emotion.

Two months ago, he only had a hundred yuan in his pocket from selling vegetables. He was just thinking of starting a small business to supplement the family income, hoping to at least put some meat on the dinner table.

Now, only two months later, not only did they have meat with every meal, but he also had three shops to his name. The daily revenue was as high as thirteen or fourteen thousand yuan, with a net profit of four to five thousand.

Forget the him from two months ago; even the him from his past life would never have dared to dream of something like this.

Xu An couldn’t help but give himself a thumbs-up in his heart. ’You’re amazing!’

Back home, Xu An felt a bit lazy, so he played Gomoku with the two little ones. It was quite fun, except the two kids were chronic cheaters.

Never mind taking back moves; they would often blatantly push away Xu An’s black pieces, place their own white ones, and then logically complete a five-in-a-row, claiming under the fine-sounding excuse that this was how the game was played!

But when Xu An tried to copy their tactics, he would be met with a flurry of shy but firm punches.

’Two little rascals!’

They played until five o’clock, when Xu An finally stopped and prepared to make dinner.

"Alright, you can order what you want today. Kangkang, Lele, what do you two want to eat? You can each pick one dish!"

Hearing this, the two little ones’ eyes lit up. They put their heads together and began discussing in ’low’ voices, leaving Xu An with a view of two fluffy little heads.

After a good while of whispering and muttering, and after hearing them discuss more than a dozen different dishes, the two finally decided what they wanted for dinner tonight.

"Brother, I want to eat braised chicken wings!"

"Brother, I want to have pork patty and egg soup!"

Tsk, just as he expected, they were both meat dishes.

Ever since the family’s financial situation had improved, the two little ones couldn’t go a single meal without meat. They practically ate meat as if it were rice.

However, they were both very thin to begin with, so eating more meat wasn’t a bad thing. Xu An didn’t stop them. If they wanted to eat it, they could. It wasn’t like the family couldn’t afford it.

"Okay, I’ll go make it right now." Xu An pinched their little noses, stood up, and was about to head to the kitchen when there was a knock on the courtyard gate.

He opened the gate and was surprised to see Fourth Uncle standing outside.

"Anzi, want some mussels?" Fourth Uncle pointed to the half-full burlap sack of mussels at his feet. "My friend just got them from the sea. They’re super fresh."

It had been a long time since he’d had seafood, and Xu An really was craving some. So, he didn’t hesitate and accepted the bag graciously. "Yes, I do. Thanks, Fourth Uncle."

"Heh heh." Seeing Xu An take the bag, Fourth Uncle gave a simple laugh and left.

After watching Fourth Uncle leave, Xu An carried the half-sack of mussels to the kitchen.

The half-sack of mussels weighed about ten pounds in total. It looked and sounded like a lot, but in reality, the shells were large and heavy, creating that illusion.

Once cooked, they would probably only yield about two or three pounds of meat.

He rinsed them twice with well water, and after making sure there was no sand or debris, he poured them into a pot, added water, and lit the firewood to start cooking.

There are many ways to eat mussels, but Xu An only liked two.

One was to simply steam them in plain water and eat them as is, enjoying their original flavor. The other was to remove the meat from the shells and stir-fry it with garlic leaves, which had its own unique taste.

With a full ten pounds of mussels today, he could make them not just two ways, but three or four.

And with Kangkang and Lele as two little free laborers, Xu An decided to prepare them three different ways.

One plain, one stir-fried with garlic leaves, and the last would be a cold salad.

With the help of his two little laborers, dinner was ready in no time.

The evening was cooler, so Xu An moved the square table under the longan tree. They turned on a small lamp and enjoyed the delicious dinner together.

Xu Kang and Xu Le remained devoted to their meat, eating one bite after another without stopping. If it weren’t for Xu An and Granny Xu keeping an eye on them, they probably wouldn’t have eaten a single vegetable.

After eating and drinking their fill, they continued to lounge under the longan tree, enjoying the breeze and playing on their phones.

’Ah, life doesn’t get much better than this!’

「Lin Xu Yang’s Home.」

After more than half a month of stakeouts, he had identified the entire supply chain for the expired food products and rooted it out completely.

But that wasn’t the end of it. A series of reports, meetings, and other tasks followed. Having been busy until today, Lin Xu Yang was finally free.

Because the reports were all written, the meetings were all concluded—this time, it was really over! From now on, he could go back to a normal nine-to-five schedule!

’I’m so moved!’

Dragging his exhausted body home, he entered the password, opened the door, and stepped into the entryway to change his shoes.

"Bro~ you’re back~ You must be tired from work~ Are you hungry? Thirsty? Is there anything you want to eat? Your little sister can help you~!"

Her voice arrived before she did. The utterly fawning words, paired with that incredibly gentle tone, made Lin Xu Yang shiver violently. He instinctively clutched his wallet with his right hand and looked at his sister in terror.

This series of actions and reactions predictably infuriated his sister. But just a second before the volcano erupted, she forcibly suppressed her anger, revealing a standard eight-toothed smile, her two faint dimples appearing on her face.

"Bro~ It’s not like I’m asking you for money~ Don’t be so tense~" As she spoke, his sister took a step toward Lin Xu Yang.

"Stop! Lin Xinyue, stay right where you are and don’t move!" Lin Xu Yang made a halting gesture and asked cautiously, "Just tell me, what is it you want?"

Lin Xinyue brought her hand out from behind her back and passed a large envelope to Lin Xu Yang, her dimples deepening. "Take a look and you’ll know~"

Somewhat puzzled, he took the envelope. He saw it was still sealed, so he picked up a small utility knife from the shoe cabinet nearby and carefully slit it open. He pulled out a thick stack of documents, the most conspicuous of which was—an acceptance letter from Hongxi University!

’Dear Student Lin Xinyue, congratulations on your admission to the School of Economics and Management’s logistics program... Signed: Hongxi University!’

Lin Xinyue leaped forward, landing in front of Lin Xu Yang. With her hands behind her back, she leaned in, her eyes squinting from smiling so much. "Bro! I got in! It’s a 985 university!"

"As long as you got in, that’s what matters. As long as you got in." Lin Xu Yang repeated these words over and over.

Back when that young man had told him that one might be able to snag an overlooked spot in this university’s program, he had only mentioned it casually to his sister.

He never expected that his sister would actually apply to this school and this major, and that she would actually succeed in snagging an overlooked spot!

’What a stroke of luck!’

If Xu An hadn’t told him about this university, he might have overlooked it because of its small enrollment numbers, causing his sister to miss the chance to attend a 985 university.

’I have to go thank him in person!’

’That kid’s business seems to be doing well now, so he probably isn’t tight on cash. In that case, I’ll start with his younger brother and sister.’

’Two sets of everything—clothes, shoes, bags, hats. And I’ll buy some picture books and toys. I heard they’ve never been to an amusement park. How about I get them three tickets so the three siblings can go and have some fun together.’

’And since they’re going to the amusement park, it’s only natural they’d have a meal there, right?’

’It’s not good for kids to wait in long lines, so getting a VIP pass for express access is perfectly normal, right?’

’That’s the plan!’

’As for the money... of course, I’ll just put it on my sister’s tab. After all, this is all for her sake.’