Chapter 86: The Master Is Brother Dong

A security guard with forty years of experience would never easily fall for some scam gang. At least, before the temptation of beauty was deployed, his principles and sobriety held firm.

If he couldn't shake them off, he would simply observe.

A few days later, he even told the beauty point-blank, "Look, here's what I think: If Stone learns to drive from me, and the three of you take the chance to kill me outside and dump my body in the wilderness, this ten-thousand-yuan car would be yours, wouldn't it? My business, my assets, wouldn't you just snatch them away the same way? So what's a little stab now? The profit-to-cost ratio is astronomical. Don't bother putting on these acts for me."

Shen Cuiyue responded academically, "Understood. I'll consider how to gain your trust. But please, Brother, look after my two younger brothers. Guide them in all things, and this life will surely go smoothly for you."

Wei Dongcai could only drive back to Shangzhou with a face full of suspicion, wondering what trick she was playing this time.

The truth was, the malatang business was booming so much that he had to head back to recruit more help.

That very evening, someone from next door who had ordered food came over and asked if they could just dip it in their broth and pay to eat it!

Old Let, being tongue-tied, couldn't explain, so a more outspoken girl had to stress that the soup base gets diluted by day's end, and today's flavor was already spent—better to come back tomorrow.

The intention was to avoid trouble, but word spread that they cared a great deal about taste, as befits an old and reputable establishment.

When Wei Dong returned, his father scolded him for working himself to death, and he shot back, "Why not let Gou Dan and the others take turns cooking? What's so high-tech about it? How many secrets could there be?!"

Everyone joined in the ruckus.

The lively atmosphere left the three siblings watching in fascination.

Back at the factory district, selling seventy or eighty yuan a day was already remarkable; even the hotpot place nearby only took in about a hundred yuan a night.

Here, they sold three hundred and twenty!

They sold out all the vegetables stored upstairs.

Wei Dong started berating everyone for being fools—was the vegetable market that far? Just a block or two away. The main reason the food street thrived here was because the city’s largest produce market was nearby.

If you run out, go buy more.

But no one listened; they only cared where the vegetables he brought back had come from, as they tasted so good Gou Dan almost swallowed his tongue.

Shen Cuiyue simply sat down and explained things in whispers to her brothers.

In the end, Wei Dong casually assigned her to the group of girls, telling her to stay with them: "Do whatever you like, but you'd best keep the dockside stall—have someone cover for you if needed. I'll need a base at the dock in the future."

Then he took the two younger brothers back to the guesthouse to rest.

Luckily, the sofa bed outside was perfect for the two of them, and when they bumped into Qin Jianjun, Wei Dong explained they were his little brothers visiting from his hometown.

The guesthouse manager didn't care about that; what mattered was the rumor about the restaurant’s booming business. Did they still need servers—preferably in military uniform?

Wei Dong found it all a bit absurd and told him he’d think about it.

The main thing was to quietly integrate these three siblings into the group.

After work, Let would even ride back with Gou Dan in his big truck.

So, the next morning, he and Gou Dan swept through the factory district's ferry area, buying up all the fresh meat and vegetables they could find.

He even personally led the way to the vegetable plots to harvest, filling up more than half a truckload.

Using the fresh-picked, lower-priced produce from the urban-rural fringe to shock the city center market, their ingredients were both fresh and cheap, and their competitive edge soared again.

Even his mother was dragged in to help, but everyone exchanged gossipy glances, convinced she was only there to check out the city girl.

Wei Dong, meanwhile, had to figure out how to buy a freezer or refrigerator.

In an era of rationed supplies, it was very difficult.

Especially in big cities, where everything ran by the book, things became far harder.

In reality, the manufacturers had stock and the consumers wanted to buy, but the commercial system was ossified, either too lazy to do the work or demanding bribes.

They'd changed the name to something like "Industrial Goods Trading Center," but it was the same old system.

As long as the state-run system controlled trade, everyone was just eating from the communal pot.

This made it clear why You Qili's trading business was so effective—they could flexibly source goods directly from the manufacturers and sell them themselves, breaking through the current restrictions of a planned economy.

Wei Dong did want to continue this model at the dock.

But it would mean competing with Jiangzhou’s newly-promoted industrial goods trading center—would he get in trouble for that? He decided to let the “big boss” test the waters.

In the end, Qin Jianjun “sold” him two used refrigerators from the guesthouse.

Though just over a hundred liters each, they were enough to store plenty of frozen meat.

By noon, they were selling even more crazily than the night before.

They had started early, preparing soup and prepping ingredients, and many foodies—especially office workers nearby—had already heard and come to try something new.

Malatang turned out to be the best lunch for hard workers.

Simple, delicious, perfect with rice, and only a couple of mao per skewer—eat and go.

The whole shop was a whirlwind of activity. Shen Cuiyue, masked and silent, directed this person here, that one there. Just her city-girl bearing made the country boys and girls obey without a word.

Efficiency was leagues above the previous night’s headless-chicken chaos.

She could also serve tea or light a cigarette for Old Let at any time, or invite Wei Dong’s mother to rest while she filled in.

It was said that when she was selling, the whole shop would unconsciously become much more crowded!

With the refrigerators sorted, Wei Dong spent a couple of hours playing ball with the young soldiers at the guesthouse. Stone and Mao’er were busy helping out.

He still only came after having lunch with Qin Jianjun at the hotpot place, then went off to window-shop in the clothing street behind.

Shen Cuiyue called her brothers to go with him.

They were indeed handy—Stone was clever, Mao’er diligent.

Wei Dong didn’t hesitate to buy them new clothes and shoes. Stone even hesitantly suggested buying something for their sister, and got scolded but just grinned cheekily.

So, fully prepared, they sold over twelve hundred yuan of malatang that evening!

Because the average spend per person broke a yuan—many diners ordered five or six skewers of meat, several vegetable sticks, plus a beer, and left thoroughly satisfied.

From dinner at five or six till ten at night, they kept selling—only stopping when the flavor faded and it was time to close, even though diners were still coming in.

No factory district could ever have a thousand customers flowing through.

But for a food street in the city center, it was all too easy.

The only limiting factor was shop size.

So Shen Cuiyue suggested opening up the second floor for customers.

Wei Dong agreed, but, thinking outside the box, went to buy a pile of small stools and benches for tables and chairs.

He’d seen this on short videos before—typical of Jiangzhou’s “bench meals,” using two sizes of plastic stools to save space and add character.

With no plastic stools available, wooden benches would do.

Immediately, Shen Cuiyue set up benches and stools right on the curb outside.

If the neighboring restaurant could put tables out, why couldn’t they?

It was basically free advertising.

Passersby saw this dining setup and the place became a de facto speed bump—everyone stopped to eat and drink.

Finally, they moved tables and chairs to the second floor, inviting parties of three or more upstairs for a semi-private experience.

The ground floor was all bench seating—many could squeeze in, and turnover was lightning fast!

Who would linger on a little stool after eating, gossiping?

Hurry up and leave!

Unwittingly, they were aligning with later industry best practices—restaurant profitability depends on high table turnover; only by constantly swapping new customers into the same limited seats can you maximize revenue.

This was already the prototype of fast food.

By the fourth day, word had spread within several hundred meters; even sales staff from the department store came in groups for lunch. They sold over eight hundred yuan at midday, despite the low prices.

In the evening, they shot straight to two thousand!

So Wei Dong decided to head back to Shangzhou to recruit more help, or else the crew and his parents would be worked to death!

More importantly, he felt oddly at ease leaving the whole operation to Shen Cuiyue.

Let’s see if she’ll really try to seize the family business. After all, the building was owned by Dongsheng Trading—he was curious to see what tricks she could play.

Naturally, the older sister left her two younger brothers in his care.

Just the three of them—the atmosphere in the car was unlike anything Wei Dong had ever experienced.

The two had never left Jiangzhou before; once on the road, they were so excited they started doing somersaults in the back seat.

Their sister hadn’t left either: “We have some old enemies, so usually we can’t travel. It was said that in a year or two, we’d relax and go back to Ludong to pay respects at the ancestral graves—who knew this would happen?”

Stone reminded his brother, “Why talk about unhappy things? From now on, with Big Brother, we’ll always be free.”

Wei Dong chuckled, “You’re just sweet-talking me, but this is what modern wandering is like. When we came to Jiangzhou after Spring Festival, we were even robbed on the way.”

Hua Ge leaned on the seat, listening intently.

Wei Dong thought to himself how nice it was to have well-behaved kids. Back in the tax bureau’s compound, the kids from the neighboring primary school were the worst.

Then he remembered—these two were little thieves!

But then again, if they truly gave up their pickpocket ways, they’d be worth their weight in gold.

Under the rear seat was a wooden frame that could be pulled out, turning the backrest into a mattress—enough for two to sleep on. Perfect for a couple on a cargo run.

But Wei Dong hadn’t thought of this; he planned to let the kids sleep there at night and would curl up in the cargo bay on straw and blankets himself.

He hadn’t expected how different the double cab would feel on the highway.

With SUV-like off-road capability, more comfortable seating than a sedan, the height and view of a truck, and most importantly, a 2.5-liter engine—big power for a small truck—strong and with a sturdy transmission, it was fast!

Previously, the Dongfeng truck could barely do eighty kilometers in a morning; now, even on winding, hilly highways, they averaged over forty kilometers per hour.

Without detouring past the Xishan factory, they reached their planned overnight county by midday.

Wei Dong didn’t linger—he hurried the boys to eat quickly and get back on the road.

Stone was lively, sitting in the front passenger seat clutching the big atlas, learning to read maps, learning to drive, and playing with the tape deck.

Mao’er, on the other hand, sat quietly in the back, sometimes spotted sitting cross-legged in meditation.

They managed to reach Shangzhou before dark, though a stretch of roadwork had delayed them.

Unable to drive into the old alleys, Wei Dong parked near the dock, grabbed two big bags from the cargo bay, told the boys to watch them, and went to get help.

Who could have guessed that even in such a short time, trouble would find them.