In the Ming Dynasty 1498, my restaurant connects two worlds.

Setting the opening time at 9:00 AM, which is actually only two hours later, was a last resort. The materials were all in his own space, but Song Xiaoyi couldn't take them out; they had to be delivered in an orderly manner.

"Brother Mou, after you've given the notice, go to the collapsed house and the market and have the vendors send firewood, rice, oil, salt, and our own bowls and chopsticks here. As for vegetables, have them send a pork hock and ten chickens today..."

The work here is finished ahead of schedule, but the modern takeout containers haven't arrived yet. I need to go back and make a call to check on them.

Back in the modern era, Song Xiaoyi gets his phone back and sees four missed calls!

Prioritizing, oh, there's a fast food box manufacturer. Song Xiaoyi called back last night. Great! Their first batch of fast food boxes was loaded onto trucks and shipped out last night. According to the schedule, they should have arrived at Taoye Ferry parking lot by now.

The second missed call was from He Dayu. When I called back, Dayu had already arrived home. She had wanted to talk to me last night, but no one was at the store and she didn't answer the phone.

I arranged a time with He Dayu to go see him in the afternoon.

The third missed call was from the fat guy. What does that fatso want now? Reporting on work? He didn't call a second time, which means it's not urgent, so I'll ignore it for now.

The fourth call was from a landline. I checked the area code and found out it was the military unit I had previously served in!

He quickly dialed back, "Hello! Where is this!" His voice was loud and clear, full of energy.

"Greetings, sir! This is Song Xiaoyi. This call came to my cell phone at 8:15 this morning. Who is looking for me?"

"Oh, Song Xiaoyi, Wu Huai just made the call from here, wait a moment."

Wu Huai! Sure enough, it was my classmate and comrade-in-arms who was assigned to the XX Corps. I heard his distant shout over the phone. It seems that Wu Huai hasn't gone far.

"Hello! Xiao Yi! Is this Song Xiao Yi?"

"Yes! It's me, Wu Huai. What do you want? You even used your superior's phone, which is beyond your authority."

"You can't just say things like that; I got the commander's approval first."

"What do you want?"

"Oh, sigh, Xiao Yi, you know our production and construction corps, those rows of potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, and corn are all ripe, but it's too hot, so sales are a bit of a problem. Our comrades are almost sick of eating them..."

"What do you mean? You want me to eat some for you? I only run a small restaurant, how much can I possibly eat?"

"That's what I said too, but when I talked to Panzi yesterday, he said he'd give you a try. You've contracted a mountain with him to grow traditional rice and raise fish in the paddy fields. It seems like your business is doing quite well?"

"Hey! You know what," Song Xiaoyi said, his mind racing as he made the call. "Wu Huai, it's quite a distance from there to my Nanjing. Air freight isn't cost-effective, and I don't think it's worth it for trains either. If you can solve the toll problem for road transport, I might actually be willing to buy up the excess production capacity of our Corps."

"We can even bring along the excess production capacity of other corps in the surrounding area." After saying the first sentence, Song Xiaoyi heard no response from the other end, so he added another sentence.

"What did he say? Can we bring along the surrounding corps too?" came the voice of the same commander from before on the phone.

"Xiao Yi, are you sure you can eat that much? Do you even know how much that is?"

"How much?" Song Xiaoyi hesitated for a moment. He wanted to be generous, but then thought it best to keep a low profile. If it really was too much, it would be troublesome. "Five tons a day?"

Based on the calculation that one ton of vegetables can produce 2000 meals, five tons a day would require 10000 meals to process, which may be difficult at the moment. However, if we take a long-term view, why not establish a pre-production base near the Corps and produce ready-made meals directly, which can then be transported by refrigerated trucks?

Not enough money? With Zhu Yunming and Wen Zhengming behind me, Tang Bohu on my right, and Qiu Shifu on my left, how could I be afraid of not having enough money?

Someone's causing trouble? I'm not after money. I have the support of the Production and Construction Corps. Why should I be afraid?

That opened my eyes instantly!

"Just the collection by our one corps alone amounts to about five or six tons a day."

"Wu Huai, this isn't a big problem. I have an idea that might require us to sit down and discuss it in detail, but I really can't leave right now. Five or six tons a day can be handled by one refrigerated truck. If the distance is long, I can just buy a few more refrigerated trucks and build a transportation fleet, but that can only solve the short-term problem. In the long run, it's not a solution."

Ultimately, Song Xiaoyi and Wu Huai agreed that they would complete the formalities as soon as possible and come to Jinling for a face-to-face meeting.

While making the call, an unknown number called on Song Xiaoyi's phone. She hung up, but as soon as she did, another unknown number called. When she answered, she learned that the fast food delivery truck had arrived.

Money makes things easier. At 200 yuan per person, Song Xiaoyi found six casual laborers on the roadside to help unload the goods and carry them all to his doorstep.

After everyone had left, Song Xiaoyi quickly moved the fast food box downstairs. Mu Bin then notified the staff to transport it to the "Song's Fast Food" production base. Fortunately, they made it in time and didn't cause any problems.

Back at the Song's Fast Food base, all the staff had arrived. Song Xiaoyi personally demonstrated how to prepare pork and chicken pieces, and everyone followed their assigned tasks: some started the fire, some carried firewood, and some washed vegetables...

The working people of the Ming Dynasty were very quick learners and could learn many things in no time. Song Xiaoyi quickly taught several cooks how to cook and add seasonings. In the end, they cooked a large pot of stewed radish and meat, braised chicken with cabbage, and stir-fried winter melon with dried shrimp. With two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, they would cook one pot and then take it out to cook the next one.

For ordinary people at the bottom of the Ming Dynasty, such a meal of two meat dishes and one vegetable dish might not be available even once a month. But now, such a meal, including the box, costs only seven coins. If you bring your own box when you get your food, you can save one coin.

"Brother Xiao Yi, such a beautiful box, and you only charge one coin?"

"It's not that the box only costs one coin, but that the boxed meal costs seven coins in total, and the box is not sold separately."

"Furthermore, we've designated a specific area. Within a three-mile radius, our delivery personnel will charge an extra one coin; between three and five miles, the charge will be two coins. Understand?"

"Of course I understand, this extra charge is for the brothers' errand running fees."

"And this big box is for carrying the small boxes and delivering food. We're fine with it, but outsiders who take this box need to pay a deposit of thirty coins. The deposit will be refunded if it is returned in good condition."

......

The base was in operation for the first time, and everyone was in high spirits. They cooked a lot of food and rice. Song Xiaoyi asked the packers to practice how to pack the food. In the end, they packed four boxes and found two of their own "deliverymen" to deliver them to the restaurant.

Back at the eatery, Song Xiaoyi packed the four boxes of boxed meals into his spatial storage and took them upstairs to the second floor. He then found a tricycle and rode to the market, where he found Grandpa Chen, who sold vegetables. "Grandpa Chen," he said, "these four boxes of boxed meals are my shop's first attempt. Could you take a look? We'll put up a sign outside that says 'Boxed Meals 10 Yuan Each,' and see if we can sell some. If we don't sell them by tonight, you can give them to any uncles or elders passing by for dinner."

"Hey, Xiao Yi, your box is nice, an eco-friendly wooden box. These boxes must cost three or four yuan, right? Only ten yuan for a boxed lunch? Let me see... hey, two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, only ten yuan? Don't lose money!"

"We're not losing money; it's all about small profits but quick turnover."