At seven o’clock in the evening, just as Li Yi had finished preparing the meal, he saw Tang Xue return with Second Sister and Third Sister.
And following right behind them were Dongzi, Qiangzi, Shitou, Xiaogouwa, and the others!
Clearly, these young men had just finished helping out at the new house.
As soon as they walked in, Third Sister sniffed the air and asked, “Xiao Yi, what delicious food did you make? It smells so good!”
“Braised cabbage with cured pork, and steamed buns for the main dish!” Li Yi replied.
“Sounds delicious!” Third Sister said with a smile.
“Alright, go wash your hands. We’ll eat once you’re done!” Li Yi said.
Tang Xue saw that her in-laws hadn’t returned yet and immediately asked, “Shouldn’t we wait for Mom and Dad to come back and eat together?”
Li Yi smiled and said, “You know how it is during harvest season—Mom and Dad won’t be back before ten o’clock!”
Tang Xue had been living in the village for the past few years, so she naturally understood the situation. She nodded immediately and said, “Well then, let’s eat first. After we finish, can we take some food out to the fields for Mom and Dad?”
“Sure!”
While everyone was washing their hands, Li Yi scooped the stewed vegetables from the pot into an enamel basin, arranged the steamed buns from the steamer onto a plate, and carried both to the kang!
Then, some climbed onto the kang, while others sat on stools; everyone took their bowls and chopsticks and got ready to eat!
Before they began eating, Li Yi said with a smile, “Actually, I’ve been wanting to treat you all to a meal for a long time, but I just haven’t had the time lately. Since everyone’s here today, I figured it’s better to seize the moment!”
“But I came back in a hurry today and didn’t have time to go shopping for ingredients, so I just threw something together. Please make do with what we have!”
No sooner had he finished speaking than Dongzi chimed in with a laugh, “Brother Yi, this meal has meat, vegetables, and even Bai Shenshen’s steamed buns—how can you call this just ‘making do’?”
“Exactly! We only get to eat this well at home on the Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese New Year!” added Xiaogouwa.
“Brother Yi, I think this meal is just fine!”
Li Yi smiled and said again, “I called you all here not just to get together, but more importantly, because there are a few things I need to discuss with you!”
Hearing this, not only did the younger brothers stop eating, but even Tang Xue, Second Sister, and Third Sister put down their chopsticks and bowls, eager to hear what Li Yi had to say.
“The first thing I want to say is that our mushroom business is about to come to an end!”
As soon as he said this, Dongzi and the others’ expressions changed instantly, and their moods grew somber.
They’d made a decent amount of money working with Li Yi over the past few months. From the very beginning, Li Yi had looked out for them in particular—while the other kids got two yuan a day, they received five.
That came to 150 yuan a month!
They’d been working since June—almost four months now—and each had earned at least five or six hundred yuan.
If the business shut down, that huge income would be gone!
“Brother Yi, is it because it’s getting colder?” Dongzi asked.
“Yeah, the temperature drops fast around here. By early October, there’ll be frost on the ground, and the mushrooms won’t be able to grow anymore. So our mushrooms only have three to five days left!” Li Yi said.
“If it’s not meant to be, then it’s not meant to be. There’s nothing we can do about it!” Dongzi said.
Qiangzi glanced at the others, then smiled and said, “Why are you all looking so glum? Think about how much money we’ve made lately. My mom and dad don’t make as much in a whole year as I’ve brought home in just a few months!”
“Hahaha, exactly! I’ve got real clout at home now—my mom doesn’t even beat me anymore!” Shitou chimed in.
“You bet. My dad’s actually worried I’ll sleep in now…”
Seeing that the guys’ spirits had lifted, Li Yi continued, “Even though the mushroom business has stopped, we can’t just sit around and live off our savings. So the second thing I want to talk about is what we’re going to do next!”
“Right, Brother Yi, what are we going to do next?” Dongzi asked immediately.
“We’ve got two things to do next. First, help me pack up all those dried mushrooms at home and get them ready for buyers!”
Li Yi continued, “The second thing is to go out and talk to your parents. If they’re willing to follow me, then we’ll set off together!”
“Where are we going, Brother Yi?” Qiangzi asked.
“Beijing!”
At those words, not only the young lads, but even Tang Xue and Li Yi’s two older sisters were stunned!
They truly never expected that Li Yi would actually go to the capital—and take these greenhorns along with him!
“Little Yi, what made you decide to go to the capital?” Li Lan asked in a grave tone.
“Exactly. What are you going to do in the capital? Don’t tell me you want to start a business—don’t you dare get into any trouble!” Li Na said with a frown.
Li Yi smiled and said, “Sis, I heard there are plenty of people running small businesses in the capital these days. Plus, the city government is drafting policies to liberalize individual businesses. I want to take the guys there to try our luck!”
“Individual businesses? I’ve never heard of that. You’re not pulling my leg, are you?” Li Lan said, a hint of skepticism in her voice.
“Why would I lie to you? Besides, I’m not entirely sure myself. If it’s true, we’ll make our mark in the capital; if it’s not, we’ll just treat it as a chance to broaden our horizons!” Li Yi said with a smile.
In fact, Li Yi had already thought this through long ago—he’d even had a plan in mind back when they were in Chang’an.
As far as he knew, the capital’s municipal government had decided to allow individual business owners to engage in catering, small commodity trade, and other business activities starting next month.
To be precise, the date was November 4th!
This was definitely a rare opportunity for Li Yi!
In fact, the capital already permitted the existence of individual businesses, but with certain restrictions—not everyone could operate one.
These individual entrepreneurs played a role in “filling the gaps” by compensating for the shortage of state-owned commercial outlets and making life more convenient for the people. Yet even so, ordinary people still found it “difficult to get food,” “difficult to have clothes made,” and “difficult to buy things.”
At the same time, the return of many educated youth from the “Old Three Batches” to Beijing had created a large pool of idle and unemployed people in the capital.
Against this backdrop, the municipal government decided to allow individual entrepreneurs to operate small food and sundry businesses to address these two issues.
“Even if they let you run a business, what exactly do you plan to do?” Li Na asked.
“I haven’t decided yet. I’ll go check it out first!” Li Yi said with a smile.
That said, Li Yi knew that the first wave of individual entrepreneurs in Beijing had all struck it rich; very few had actually lost money.
Come to think of it, doing business right under the shadow of the Imperial City walls meant the profits were absolutely guaranteed!
As the nation’s capital, the city had a thriving market and a developed economy—it was a natural hotbed for commerce.
Never mind other ventures—even selling tea eggs or scallion pancakes could make a fortune.
Moreover, Li Yi was quite familiar with the capital. In his previous life, after leaving home, he had spent over eight years there and made his first fortune.
However, due to a lack of capital, he could only work for others at first, missing out on the first wave of the capital’s economic boom.
Now that he’s been reborn, he doesn’t want to miss out again.
More importantly, barring any surprises, Tang Xue would be taking the college entrance exam next year, and Li Yi hoped she could get into a prestigious university in the capital.
Li Yi was confident that, given his wife’s academic abilities, she would certainly succeed.
So, now is the time to plan ahead and prepare for his wife and child’s move to the capital!