Chapter 194: Opening a Teaching Class
Chapter 194: Opening a Teaching Class
Breaking the old path to forge a new one.
The new path has already opened up the market, a path to wealth holding the secret recipe, where both production and sales can be determined at will.
Yu Fugui and the others were extremely excited, and their perception of Xiao Cheng's social status had already been refreshed to the highest.
In just one night, there was a massive change in Nan City.
They truly witnessed the saying, "Things can change drastically overnight."
Amidst the awe-struck gazes, Bai Lu spoke again, "We will provide a supply channel for chestnuts. After you've learned, Ah Cheng and I will take you to the countryside to discuss the long-term procurement of chestnuts with the villagers."
"Don't worry about the quantity of chestnuts; even if a hundred more stalls open, it will be enough. There won't be any shortage before the off-season sales end."
With a stable and high-quality supply channel established, Yufugui and the others had no worries.
Before, they were curious about where Bai Lu sourced her chestnuts. Despite dealing with a significant amount daily, there had never been any shortage, and all the chestnuts were plump and free of defects.
Unfortunately, they didn't know how to make candied chestnuts, and knowing wouldn't have made much of a difference. So, they didn't think much about it.
Now, not only did they unexpectedly learn a profitable skill, but also, under the guidance of Bai Lu and Xiao Cheng, they secured a long-term and stable procurement collaboration with the villagers, ensuring a constant supply even if competitors emerged.
Bai Lu's teaching not only included mastering the skill but also opening up the candied chestnut market, guaranteeing a steady profit.
Meng Youliang and the others didn't hesitate; they immediately paid for the class. Being even a second late would be disrespectful to the opportunity of making big money.
Upon receiving a brief explanation from Bai Lu about the tuition fees for the recipe teaching, everyone, based on their trust in Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu, handed over the money without asking too many questions.
Bitterly, they realized that the money they earned from cooperating with Bai Lu in selling candied chestnuts during this period was not enough to cover the tuition fees. They had to dip into their savings to make up the difference.
It felt like working for Bai Lu for free, and they were not even breaking even.
However, the prospect of learning a money-making skill outweighed their unease.
Fortunately, coming to Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu's home, their trust was not betrayed. Xiao Cheng had already solved all the tricky problems.
They could now comfortably hand over the money to learn the skill.
Only Wang Cuihua, who was confused, had a question: "What if our stalls get overturned again?"
Chen Dafu thought she had a playful mind, "Didn't you watch the news on TV? Can't you understand human language? Bai Lu said those people who overturned the stalls are too busy dealing with their own problems. They won't bother us anymore. Why worry about being overturned? If you want to overturn something, do it to your own head and save yourself from asking such brain-dead questions all day long."
Wang Cuihua, embarrassed, glared at Chen Dafu.
After glaring, she quickly switched to a worshipful look at Xiao Cheng, "Big Brother Xiao Cheng is indeed the most powerful. He can handle anything."
Aunt Fangli completed the tuition payment and made a pointed remark with a smile, "Indeed, Xiao Cheng is amazing, and Bai Lu is clever. The two of them are a perfect match."
Wang Cuihua's hidden thoughts were exposed, and she choked for a moment before finding words to counter, "Big Brother Xiao Cheng is very clever too."
Wu Xiuyun nodded in agreement, "That's right. Smart people together can discuss common topics, support each other, and go further. Bai Lu and Xiao Cheng are truly well-matched."
Wang Cuihua was successively rebuked and chose to remain silent.
Being mentioned twice, Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu looked at each other as if they had a tacit understanding.
After a moment, one seemed unperturbed, and the other pretended to be nonchalant, once again avoiding eye contact.
The husband and wife, Zhang Huiru and Zhang Wanjun, jointly operated a fruit shop. They currently had no plans to open a branch, but since both of them came, it was only natural to inform Bai Lu. They decided that if they could learn, they would learn together; if not, Zhang Huiru would learn alone.
As a gesture of goodwill, the couple brought two boxes of the best-selling local pastries from the city, presenting them to Bai Lu.
Since Bai Lu had already set a precedent by accepting gifts from Wu Xiuyun and Yu fugui, she naturally accepted these as well.
Everyone had brought fruits and local specialties as gifts for Bai Lu when they took the candied chestnuts. This time was no exception, except for Wang Cuihua, who brought nothing.
Living next door to Xiao Cheng's house, she often saw Bai Lu receiving gifts, and her heart was full of envy and jealousy.
She thought Bai Lu wouldn't care about those small gifts, so she felt justified in not bringing any.
Seeing everyone else paying the tuition fees, Wang Cuihua reluctantly took out money from her pocket, "This is all I have left in my entire fortune. Bai Lu, you have to teach me how to make candied chestnuts."
"Even with on-site teaching, you won't learn. You might as well go home and farm," Chen Dafu mercilessly commented.
Wang Cuihua's face turned red, "You're the one who can't learn!"
"Alright, everyone, come with me to the kitchen." Bai Lu began the teaching after collecting the tuition fees.
The three electric chestnut roasting machines in the kitchen had already been dismantled by Xiao Cheng yesterday afternoon and placed in the firewood room.
The remaining empty stoves were equipped with large pots for manual roasting.
As Bai Lu explained the precautions for selecting sand, she lit the firewood in the hearth.
After lighting the fire, she picked up the spatula and started turning the sand in the pot. "Choose sand that is uniformly sized for even heating of the chestnuts. If the size difference is too big, some chestnuts will be cooked while others are still raw, leading to failure."
"So, we need sand for this... no wonder..."
Everyone finally realized why their candied chestnuts turned into a sticky mess when they mixed sugar with chestnuts while roasting.
No matter how many times they adjusted the ratio or changed the malt syrup, white sugar, brown sugar, or any edible sugar available in the market, it never worked.
It still turned out sticky.
Boiling chestnuts with sugar was a success, but it lacked the delicious, perfectly balanced taste of sugar-roasted chestnuts.
It turns out they needed to add sand while roasting.
"Where did this sand come from? I feel like I've seen it somewhere." Wang Cuihua thought hard but couldn't remember.
"It was sieved out during the construction of houses, the unwanted coarse sand and gravel." Yu fugui recognized it at a glance.
Their new house was built not long ago, and the memory was vivid.
Meng Youliang also nodded, "This should be the sand from the riverbank, polished smooth by water erosion."
"Exactly."
Bai Lu handed the spatula to the nearby Chen Dafu, "Choose sand with a smooth surface; too rough or damaged sand is unusable. When pouring sugar syrup, it will stick to impurities, and when chestnuts are added, they will stick to the surface, resulting in uneven color, making it look dirty and unappetizing, and it's prone to scorching, making it unappetizing."
Everyone quickly took out notebooks to jot down the key points.
Xiao Cheng originally planned to go to the city but, seeing that Chen Dafu struggled to learn how to roast sand for half a day without success, Bai Lu was about to demonstrate it herself. Xiao Cheng immediately changed his direction and went over.
"I'll do it."
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