A week later, Li Zhi received a call from Mu Xiaomei and reluctantly left Yutou Island Village to go to the city.
The factory was managed by Dong Xiaorou, while the Happy Fish Ball Shop was managed by Sophie. With nothing much to do, Li Zhi spent his days strolling by the seaside. He even joined the village's boats to go out to sea and experience the life of a fisherman for two days.
According to Dong Xiaorou, it was purely leisurely.
The fish meatballs produced by "Xiaorou Food Factory" are priced at 35 yuan per pound. A 20-pound bag was sold to the Happy Fish Ball Shop for 700 yuan. For the time being, the fish meatballs produced by Xiaorou Food Factory were only sold to the Happy Fish Ball Shop and were not available for general sale.
Both the fish ball shop and the factory belonged to Li Zhi, and the funds were simply transferred back and forth. Sophie did not oppose this, and Li Zhi was unsure of how Dong Xiaorou and Sophie communicated. With a factory price of 35 yuan per pound and selling to "Happy Fish Ball" for 50 yuan per pound, both the factory and the fish ball shop made a profit.
When Li Zhi arrived at the university city at ten in the morning, the crowd outside the fish ball shop was still bustling as usual. From the outside, the sign had not changed, but the windows and doors of the shop had been replaced, giving it a more grand appearance.
Inside, there were ten sales service personnel, five cash registers, brighter lighting, and the sales staff were now wearing clothing with the "Happy Fish Ball" logo. In addition to electronic signs and rest chairs, there were also self-service ordering kiosks and various payment methods, such as scanning codes, all available for transactions.
In addition to boiled fish balls, there were also fried and grilled options.
The paper cups used to hold the fish balls were no longer the ordinary ones Li Zhi had originally bought; instead, they were specially made with only the "Happy Fish Ball" logo on them. There were also small packaging bags that could be taken away, perfectly fitting the paper cups.
The paper cups came in large and small sizes, with four fish balls in the large cup and two in the small cup.
Customers who entered the Happy Fish Ball Shop typically purchased a minimum of two fish balls.
Upon entering the shop, Li Zhi immediately noticed that although the size of the shop remained the same, the decor had changed significantly, giving him a distinct feeling.
Hmm, it had a strong Western restaurant vibe.
With five sales windows, the waiting time for purchasing fish balls was significantly reduced, and the transactions were very fast.
When Li Zhi arrived at the fish ball shop, he did not see Sophie; instead, he saw Li Qing. Li Qing had become Sophie's capable assistant, making it nearly impossible for her to return to Yutou Island Village to sell fish balls. Sophie did not let her leave, so Li Qing had to stay in the fish ball shop.
"Boss, you're here!" Li Qing looked very happy to see Li Zhi.
Li Zhi smiled and asked in confusion, "Where's Sophie?"
"She usually doesn't come; at most, she checks the accounts in the evening." Li Qing thought for a moment and asked softly, "Do you want to come in?"
Entering required passing through a door, and customers were absolutely prohibited from entering!
Li Zhi shook his head and said with a smile, "I won't go in." Just give me two fried fish balls to taste!
"Okay!" Li Qing handed Li Zhi a paper cup, blinked, and said, "That will be ten yuan in total." Thank you!
Li Zhi smiled wryly and asked, "Do I still have to pay?"
Li Qing raised her chin proudly and said, "Of course, even the boss has to pay if she wants to eat fish balls." This is the company's policy, and we must also purchase food if we want to eat. "Also, our fish balls are now sold in limited quantities—only ten thousand a day." "Once they're sold out, they're gone!"
Ten thousand? Isn't that a thousand pounds!
"Will they sell out?" Li Zhi asked.
Li Qing explained with a smile, "No problem, they will probably be sold out by three or four in the afternoon!"
In other words, the revenue of the fish ball shop had stabilized at around 50,000 yuan per day.
However, after deducting the share from the factory and various expenses in the shop, the net profit per day would not exceed 15,000 yuan.
Li Zhi didn't know what Sophie's plan was, but he was certain that she would not be content with this profit.
"Do you plan to open more branches?" Li Zhi asked with a smile.
Li Qing blinked and smiled, shaking her head, "It's a company secret; I can't reveal it!"
Li Zhi teased her, "Even the boss dares to be evasive." "I'll make sure to deduct your salary when I tell Sophie." After the threat, he turned and left. The customers waiting in line to buy fish balls were already unhappy, and if he didn't leave soon, a "war" might break out.
After coming out, Li Zhi tried the new product at the fish ball shop - the fried fish balls. He didn't know how they were made, but they were seasoned with cumin and other spices, and they tasted much better than the simply boiled ones. At least, Li Zhi didn't mind eating them himself.
Without rushing to contact Sophie, he checked the time and realized it was almost noon. He took out his phone and called Mu Xiaomei, wondering why she insisted on coming to the city herself.
"Hello?"
Li Zhi rolled his eyes. Mu Xiaomei must have saved his number, and he smiled wryly, "Miss Mu, I'm already here."
"Are you at the school gate?" Mu Xiaomei asked with a coquettish smile.
"Yes!"
Mu Xiaomei hesitated for a moment before saying, "Then, come to the bottom of the girls' dormitory building to pick me up!"
Should I go to the ground floor of the girls' dormitory building to pick her up?
Mu Xiaomei had never made such a request before. At most, she would ask Li Zhi to wait for her at the school gate!
Perhaps afraid that Li Zhi would refuse, Mu Xiaomei added with a hint of playfulness, "Don't object, you must come to pick me up at the bottom of the girls' dormitory building!"
There was a hint of coquettishness in her voice!
"Okay!"
Li Zhi hung up the phone and went to the bottom of the dormitory building to pick her up. Since he owed her, he had to do it!
Li Zhi was not familiar with the campus of Hai University. He had never studied here, and his visits had been limited.
"Excuse me, where is the girls' dormitory building?" Li Zhi stopped a student and asked for directions. Although he didn't understand what Mu Xiaomei meant, he couldn't make things difficult for her since he had arrived. Li Zhi also considered a possibility. Since Mu Xiaomei asked him to pick her up at the bottom of the dormitory building, perhaps her roommates already knew about his existence. Regardless of how Mu Xiaomei introduced him, since she now saw him as a good friend, he couldn't let her lose face.
It was just a little trouble. Youth is full of time, and not causing trouble is a waste of time.
"Hasn't Mu Xiaomei's 'relatives' already left?" Out of the blue, this thought suddenly crossed his mind.
Li Zhi shook his head with a wry smile and cursed silently. What kind of person was he? They had agreed to be good friends, so why did he have such inappropriate thoughts?
At the same time, a little devil with wings appeared in his mind, smirking and tempting him, "What's the big deal?" After all, she won't reject it, and it's not the first time. Last time, Mu Xiaomei was very proactive. Maybe she really wants it!
"..."
Had he been holding back for too long that even such inappropriate thoughts had entered his mind?