The rise of the poor

Chapter 823 Preparing for Opening
Not far from the stall selling shark fin is the stall selling pork. It is a small meat case. Behind it is a 1.6-meter-long and short shelf fixed by wooden pillars. On the shelf, there are pork of different sizes hanging on the shelf. There were two pig heads on the shiny meat case.

A wooden rectangular butcher's stall signboard was hung on the wooden pillar, with four big characters "Zhang Fei's Butcher's Shop" written on it. The simple and magnificent seal script seemed to be written by a famous artist, which immediately attracted Zhu Ping'an's attention.

This signboard was handed down from his ancestors, and it is now the third generation. It is said that his ancestors hit the big luck. An official forgot to bring money when buying meat, and wrote this to his ancestors. Shop sign.

"Fat and thin, healthy and long life." "Stir-fried lean meat, husband and wife love." "Bone soup, good health."

Standing behind the meat case is a shirtless butcher, who looks like a standard ancient butcher, with a fat head, big ears and beard, a towel on his shoulder, and a meat knife in each hand, one is a bone-cutting knife and the other is a meat-chopping knife With a thick knife, he solicits business energetically, and laughs heartily from time to time when answering people.

"Zhang Tu, bring me three catties of pork belly and wrap it in lotus leaves. Today is my father-in-law's birthday, and I want to take it home for a family visit." A man in his forties came to the meat stall with two fish and said to him Butcher Zhang said.

It turned out that the owner of Zhang Fei's butcher's shop was really named Zhang. Zhu Ping'an couldn't help smiling when he heard this, and stopped in front of the butcher's shop.

"Hehe, that's good. Brother Liu often comes to take care of my business. Today, I, Lao Zhang, will give you two extra taels. It is my kindness." Butcher Zhang responded, talking to the man surnamed Liu with a smile, One hand kept moving, and a piece of pork belly was cut with a single stroke.

After cutting, butcher Zhang hooked the meat with a weighing scale, and the scale was just right.

Then he skillfully wrapped it in lotus leaves, tied it up with fine hemp rope, and handed it to the man surnamed Liu.

"Then I will thank Zhang Tu on behalf of my father-in-law, and I will come to you next time I buy meat." The man surnamed Liu took the meat and thanked him.

"That's a good relationship. Thank you Brother Liu for taking care of the business." Butcher Zhang smiled and sent the man surnamed Liu away.

"Young master, what kind of meat do you want?"

After the man surnamed Liu left, Butcher Zhang enthusiastically recruited Zhu Ping'an and his party who were standing in front of the meat stall.

"How do you sell pork now?" Zhu Pingan asked.

"Pork belly is 20 renminbi a catty, and the front and rear legs are 18 renminbi a catty. If you want more, it can be cheaper by one or two renminbi per catty." Zhang Butcher explained.

Well, Zhu Ping'an nodded slightly. It was similar to what he knew. A catty of pork belly was equivalent to 12 yuan, and the front and rear legs were about 11 yuan, which was generally much cheaper than the modern price.

However, the price of pork parts is very different in ancient times and modern times. In modern times, the price of pork belly is cheaper, and the price of front and rear legs is more expensive. However, in ancient times, it happened to be reversed, and pork belly was more expensive than front and rear legs. more expensive.

That is to say, in ancient times, fatty meat was more expensive than lean meat. Whether it was pork, mutton, or beef, fat meat was more expensive than lean meat.

"Water Margin" recorded such a scene: the three brothers of the Ruan family once invited Wu Yong, the military adviser, to a meal in a small tavern. It looks like good fat." When Ruan Xiaoer heard about the fat, he immediately slapped the table excitedly, and told the waiter: "Cut a big piece into ten catties!"

The recipes of the emperor and concubines recorded in the "Archives of the Qing Palace" generally record ingredients such as fat chicken, fat sheep, fat duck, fat goose, etc. Basically, the famous imperial meals on the menu are inseparable from fat meat.

In addition, the "Book of Rites" records the way of hospitality: "In winter, the right plump, in summer, the right fin."It is said that in winter, the belly of the fish has a lot of fat and meat, and the belly of the fish should be facing the guests; in summer, the fins of the fish are full of fat, and the fish should be facing the guests.

There are many such records, all of which show that the ancients valued fat meat.

This is because the eating habits of the ancients were different from those of modern people. The ancients liked to eat fatty meat and believed that fat meat was more valuable than lean meat.This has a lot to do with the living standards of the ancients. It's not that the old people didn't pay attention to health preservation, but because the living standards in ancient times were not high and supplies were relatively short. Most ordinary people were struggling with food and clothing, so naturally they would not consider health preservation and weight loss. high-level pursuits.In terms of taste, fatty meat is more fragrant than lean meat, and it is more satisfying, so the ancients favored fatty meat.In terms of calories, fatty meat contains more calories than lean meat. Eating a pound of fat meat requires more calories than eating a pound of lean meat, which is more effective against hunger.

Another point is that fat meat can produce meat. The ancients liked to buy fat meat. The market determines the price, so fat meat is naturally expensive.

"Well, okay, give me four catties of pork belly and one catty of hind legs." Zhu Pingan nodded.

"It's cheaper for you." Liu Dadao said to Butcher Zhang, "We will be big customers in the future. If you are affordable, we will often come to take care of your business."

"Okay. Pork belly will be 1 cent cheaper for you per catty, and hind legs will be 2 cents cheaper for you?" Butcher Zhang responded readily.

"So-so." Liu Dadao said casually.

"One catty of pork belly is 19 Wen, four catties of 80 minus four is 76 Wen, and a catty of hind legs is 16 Wen, which adds up to 92 Wen. This is the first time you have taken care of my old business, so I will erase the change for you. I’ll charge you 90 Wen.” Butcher Zhang was slower to calculate the accounts, but he was very accurate, and after the calculation, he wiped off the change of the two Wen.

Hearing that the change of the two papers was wiped off again, Liu Dadao was very satisfied, and said to Butcher Zhang, "We will take care of your business in the future."

Zhu Pingan also nodded with a smile.

"Thank you." Butcher Zhang thanked him with a big smile, then turned around and cut off a large piece of pork belly and a piece of lean meat on the hanging meat fan.

Weigh the cut meat and turn the scale to Zhu Ping'an and the others.After confirming that it was correct, Zhang Tuhu skillfully wrapped it in lotus leaves. Zhu Pingan was about to take it over, but Liu Dadao and Liu Dachui took it one step ahead, and said with a smile that the rough work would be left to them.

There was no one else at the butcher stall, and chatting would not delay the business. Liu Dadao praised Butcher Zhang's knife skills. Butcher Zhang smiled proudly and said that he had practiced cutting meat for 20 years.

When Liu Dadao and the others were chatting with Zhang Butcher, Zhu Pingan observed Zhang Butcher's meat stall. There was a pile of big bones piled up on one side of the meat stall table, and the meat on them was picked clean. , a pile of pigs were spread out into the water, apparently thrown down casually.

"How do you sell this big bone?" Zhu Pingan asked, pointing to the big bone on the meat case.

"It's not worth a lot of money. Originally, I used this bone as a head, and there was no meat on it. It's good enough to make soup. My son bought so much meat from me. If you like this bone, take a few more." That is, the money will never be collected." Butcher Zhang shook his head and said straightforwardly.

A few are not enough, and the soup made with big bones tastes very good. In the future, there will be more big bone soups in fast food restaurants.

"I want a lot, and I will come here often in the future, so I can't take advantage of you." Zhu Pingan shook his head slightly.

"Young Master, you think this is good. If you come to Lao Zhang to sell meat and this big bone in the future, you only need to pay ten coins, and all the big bones on my stall will belong to you. You think it is good." Zhang said the butcher again.

Well, this is fine. Zhu Ping'an is very satisfied with Zhang Butcher's proposal. It is very cost-effective to buy all these big bones on Zhang Butcher's stall for ten renminbi. If you buy it normally, it will definitely be much more expensive than this.

Of course, butcher Zhang also made a small profit, and the bones that were originally used for the head were also sold for ten yuan.Although it is not much, but the price is long-lasting. Over time, this is also a fortune.

"Ten cents back, it would be cheaper." Liu Dadao interjected from the side.

Zhu Pingan was very satisfied with Zhang Butcher's proposal, but he didn't express his opinion in a hurry. He pretended to have seen Zhang Butcher's pork case inadvertently, and asked casually, "How do you sell the pig?"

"Well, how about this, you can give me fifteen yuan for a pair of pigs, and I will give you all the big bones in my butcher's shop for nothing. To be honest, pork liver and pig heart are better, and they are usually sold as meat. It can be sold, but the pig intestines are too difficult to clean up, no matter how clean it is, there will be a smell of pigs, basically no one wants it, and it is usually thrown away if it cannot be sold." Butcher Zhang thought for a while and said.

"Zhang Tu, you are not serious. You can sell pig offal as much as pork hind legs. What's so good about pig offal? Pork liver and pig heart have no taste. As for the smell of pig intestines, who will eat it? .” Liu Dadao shook his head.

"Look at what you said, brother, so how about this, I charge you 10 cents for a pair of pigs, and I give you all the big bones at this stall?" Butcher Zhang smiled embarrassedly, and then said.

Liu Dadao still had to negotiate the price, but Zhu Ping'an on the side was already very satisfied, which was far beyond expectations.

Almost all free.

The ten pennies alone can basically support the meat dishes of fast food.

Everyone earns money, and Zhu Ping'an has a good feeling for Zhang Tuhu, and he will be a long-term partner in the future.

"That's it." Zhu Pingan nodded.

Butcher Zhang tied up the big bones with ropes for Zhu Pingan and the others with a smile on his face, wrapped the cut pigs in lotus leaves and put them into the water, tied them up with ropes again, and handed them to Zhu Pingan and the others.

In order to prevent accidents, Zhu Ping'an also proposed to sign a quality agent contract under the witness of the small officials at the gate of the vegetable store.Butcher Zhang is very happy to cooperate, because this is a guarantee of his power, and it can guarantee that he will sell pigs that he could not sell before.

Therefore, under the witness of the small official, the two parties made an agreement of 10 Wen a pair of pigs and all the big bones for free. The contract also specifically stipulated Zhu Pingan's right of first refusal.

　Thanks to all the book friends for your help today, the tigress successfully completed the task, thank you all.

　
(End of this chapter)