Chapter 356 Confidence
Manager Fu had already prepared a rather spacious courtyard for Xia Mingyue and the other two to live in, and he also provided them with a maid named Zhuang and a young servant named Yinqiao to do chores and needlework.

With the help of Zhuang's mother and Yin Qiao, Xia Mingyue and the other two quickly settled down that night.

Xia Mingyue lived in the main house, Zhuang Cui and Jiang Zhuguo lived in the east and west wing rooms respectively, and Wu Jin stayed under the crabapple tree in the yard for the night, waiting to find someone to help him build a house tomorrow.

Everything was settled. Xia Mingyue and the other two were exhausted after a whole day of travel and were very sleepy. After having a simple bowl of chicken noodle soup made by Zhuang's mother, they went to bed early.

The next day, the three of them got up early as usual.

Mother Zhuang and Yinqiao have already prepared breakfast.

Pan-fried dumplings with thin skin and large fillings, refreshing cold side dishes such as cucumber, black fungus, enoki mushroom, etc., plus soft and delicious rice porridge.

Simple and refreshing, comfortable to drink.

"Mother Zhuang's cooking skills are good." Xia Mingyue praised.

"Madam Xia, you are really embarrassing me by saying this."

Mrs. Zhuang had heard from Manager Fu that Xia Mingyue was an excellent cook. She was flattered by the compliment. “I used to serve in the kitchen when I was working in someone else’s house. I learned a little from the cook. I’m grateful that Madam Xia doesn’t despise my skills.”

"Home-cooked dishes are the most comfortable to eat. Mother Zhuang has a good control of the saltiness. They are delicious no matter how they are cooked." Xia Mingyue said with a smile.

"As long as Madam Xia likes it." Mother Zhuang smiled, a stone in her heart fell to the ground.

People who are good at cooking are the most picky about food. When she came to do the work, she was very nervous, fearing that her little cooking skills would be looked at by others with eyelids squinting, which would make her feel very uncomfortable. Now it seems that this Madam Xia is a person with a gentle personality.

It probably won’t be that tiring to serve him from now on.

Mother Zhuang breathed a sigh of relief and thought about what vegetables and meat to buy for the next meal and what kind of meal to cook.

After Xia Mingyue and the other two finished their breakfast, Manager Fu came and took Xia Mingyue and the others to see the Xia Ji Central Kitchen set up in Changzhou City.

The central kitchen is not far from the house where Xia Mingyue lives, only separated by an alley.

This place was originally several houses adjacent to each other. After Manager Fu bought them, he rebuilt them, leaving enough warehouses for storing items, a kitchen for preparing various foods, and houses for the servants to stay.

Overall, the place is large and bright, with everything you need.

In the central kitchen, there are more than ten workers hired by Manager Fu.

These people were carefully selected by Manager Fu. Most of them were women and young girls. They all came from poor families and were hardworking and conscientious. In addition, there were two young men around 11 or 12 years old who did heavy work such as carrying things.

Xia Mingyue took a quick look at it and thought it was quite good.

"There is also a guy who is in charge of various purchases..." As soon as Manager Fu finished speaking, the sound of cows "mooing" came from far away and soon arrived in front of Xia Mingyue.

"Madam Xia." He Shunzi jumped off the ox cart and greeted them one by one, "Madam Jiang, Madam Zhuang, Manager Fu." "I was just talking about you, and you're back." Manager Fu smiled at Xia Mingyue, "Purchasing is a very important matter, with many things to do, and we can't be careless. Shunzi does his job well and often supplied Madam Xia with goods in the past. I think if he can work here, it may save Madam Xia some worries."

Indeed, temperament and way of doing things often affect the connection between work. Xia Mingyue and He Shunzi have been working together for a long time. She only needs to give a simple description of what she wants, and He Shunzi can describe it, and what he provides is quite in line with her thoughts.

With such a capable helper, she would feel more at ease in Changzhou City, and many things could be done more quickly.

"Thank you for your concern, Manager Fu." Xia Mingyue bowed to Manager Fu.

"Madam Xia, you are embarrassing me." Steward Fu said hurriedly, "These are all my duties and I should do them."

"Brother He, please take care of the purchases here in the future." Xia Mingyue said with a smile.

"Leave it to me, Madam Xia, don't worry." He Shunzi wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I arrived here more than a month earlier than Madam Xia, and during this time I have already gotten to know the towns and villages near the city thoroughly."

"We can basically determine which village can provide what kind of vegetables, which village can sell eggs and meat in large quantities, and which one can supply bamboo sticks. We have also found several backup places for emergency use to prevent any place from raising prices for the sake of profit."

He Shunzi considered all these matters very carefully. Even Manager Fu couldn't help but praise him, "With Shunzi here, I really have to worry less."

"Yes, I followed Manager Fu. I was very motivated. It was also thanks to Manager Fu's willingness to give me a hand. Otherwise, I would not be able to worry about Manager Fu and Madam Xia."

He Shunzi's words were very tactful and even contained some flattery.

But such words are pleasant to the ears and make one feel very comfortable.

After all, who doesn’t like to hear nice words?
What's more, when this person is doing something down-to-earth, people naturally like to listen to him more!
After talking for a while about the staffing of the central kitchen and various food supply channels, it was already noon.

Manager Fu asked someone to book a private room at Shunyi Restaurant in Changzhou City and invited Xia Mingyue and her group to have lunch there.

Shunyi Restaurant is one of the most prosperous restaurants in Changzhou City, and it is close to the clock tower. If we walk along the way, we can take Xia Mingyue to see the general situation of Changzhou City.

The group did not take a carriage, but went on foot. Along the way, Manager Fu introduced Xia Mingyue to the general situation of the entire Changzhou city.

Changzhou Prefecture City is a city much larger than Jinqiu County City. Due to its special geographical location and adjacent to the border, it is a place for trade with various countries on the western border.

In the previous dynasty, the prosperity and bustle of Changzhou Prefecture was comparable to Suzhou and Hangzhou, and many things were even more novel than those in the capital.

However, after decades of war, the city of Changzhou became devastated after several battles. Many merchants fled from here to avoid the war, while many civilians in the border areas had to come to the city of Changzhou where the war was settled in order to avoid harassment by the wandering army and seek a way to survive.

Therefore, the population of residents in Changzhou City at this time is not less than before, but in terms of purchasing power, it is a level lower than the previous Changzhou City.

However, such a situation is more suitable for the development of chain snack stalls like Xia Ji.

Clean, delicious, cost-effective, diverse in style, and available everywhere.

Seeing this, Xia Mingyue became more confident about developing Xia Ji's food stall business in Changzhou City.