As soon as they decided, the next day their family went to the county town to survey the market. After visiting many shops and tasting food from many establishments.
Lin's father also gained some confidence. He felt his soup base would be better than many hot pot restaurants, as many soup bases were made from powder.
After trying many places, Lin's father and mother both felt that opening a hot pot restaurant was a better choice. It was simpler and didn't require many staff.
Just as Lin Yan had said, she could handle it alone on normal days, and during holidays when there were more people, Lin Yan and Lin's mother could come to help.
As for other options, Lin Yan had also prepared some information for them. The most convenient was franchising, which was easier but required a larger investment and had more restrictions.
The other options were either too tiring, like a barbecue stall, which required operating until late at night and was seasonal.
Or they were too risky, as with the emergence of a new product, there was no guarantee it would be liked by everyone.
Conventional shops were too common, so they needed to open something unconventional. But such novelty items would inherently appeal to a smaller audience.
For instance, those famous for their smell, like snail noodles and stinky tofu, definitely had a market, but it might be a short-lived trend, and business would fade over time.
So, after much consideration, they decided to open a small hot pot restaurant and consider other options when they had more money.
Lin's father and mother were not as optimistic as Lin Yan, believing they could quickly earn enough to open another store.
The shop was also selected. Several locations were good, but Lin Yan persuaded them to choose one inside the supermarket. This shop had the highest rent and was the smallest, but Lin Yan convinced them.
This shop had the most stable foot traffic, and most importantly, the environment was the best. Shops at school entrances were good, but they catered to students whose schedules were similar to Lin's mother's, making it impossible for her to help.
Another shop was large but had low foot traffic and many surrounding restaurants, leading to intense competition.
Once the lease was confirmed, the Lin family sprang into action: applying for business licenses, finding a renovation team, purchasing equipment, display cabinets, and accompanying small pots and tableware.
While the renovation was underway, they worked together to perfect the soup base. After buying all the hot pot base ingredients from the supermarket, Lin's father finally finalized the restaurant's signature soup bases.
On the second weekend of the new semester, the Lin family's revolving hot pot restaurant opened. As it was the weekend, the Lin family's soup base immediately attracted many customers.
The restaurant was packed that day due to a three-day opening promotion. The prepared ingredients were insufficient, but fortunately, being in a supermarket, Lin Yan went down to buy more.
As ingredients were replenished, seeing everyone happily eating, Lin's father's worries completely dissipated.
After cleaning up in the evening, the Lin family sat in the restaurant to tally the day's earnings. Seeing the money collected, Lin's father's smile never faded.
"Dad, today is the first day of opening, and with the promotion, there were many customers. Tomorrow, being a weekend, there should still be many people. So, prepare more ingredients. However, after tomorrow, the crowd will likely decrease."
Lin Yan gave Lin's father a heads-up.
"I know, but everyone who came today said it was delicious. I expect many repeat customers in the future. I think this business can go on for a long time."
Lin's father was quite pragmatic. He knew that good business at the beginning didn't mean much. To see the true profit, they would have to look at future performance.
"Dad, after a few days, see how business is. If it's really busy, hire another person to help," Lin Yan still didn't want Lin's father to work too hard.
"Alright! Our little manager, your dad isn't a child. If he really can't handle it, he'll definitely hire more people," Lin's mother said with a smile.
Seeing Lin Yan's concern for her husband, Lin's mother felt deeply gratified.
"Yan Yan is young but concerned about many things, whether it's their little hot pot restaurant or family matters. She even took the time to write to the Fu couple to check on them.
She learned to make braided bracelets and even braided one for each of them. The 500 yuan she received at the end of the term was all used to buy gifts for the four of them. They didn't know what the Fu couple thought, but she and Old Lin really liked it.
Thinking of Yin Yin, who hadn't sent any news, she understood why the Fu family was reluctant to return Yan Yan to them.
While they were enjoying harmony, the relationship on the Fu family's side was no longer as cold as before.
Fu Yin's etiquette training was showing initial success. She was now completely different from when she first returned to the Fu family.
Her movements were slow and elegant. Since she had only been studying for a short time, she deliberately slowed down her actions to do her best.
As she learned more, her personality was no longer as driven by self-interest as it was at the beginning, and she became much more serene.
After nearly half a year of study, Fu Yin seemed to begin to understand why Lin Yan was so outstanding. After all, the Fu family did not value academic achievements as much as these talents.
With such a tight schedule, she had to concentrate at all times, as her etiquette teacher was constantly by her side.
If she made any inappropriate move, she would be corrected immediately, whether she was in class or resting.
Therefore, she now understood Lin Yan's seemingly perfect demeanor in everything in her past life.
After all, with such a teacher watching you all the time, these etiquette skills would surely be ingrained.
Through intense study, Fu Yin also discovered her talent. She had a good appreciation for art and painted well, not in oil painting, but watercolor.
This was the first time in her two lives that she realized she had a talent in this area.
After the new semester began, she transferred to the private middle school that Lin Yan had previously attended.
She started from the first year of middle school. Avoiding Lin Yan's classmates, she quickly made many friends and integrated into the group.
She also realized that what her assistant had said was true; everyone was learning these things, and the school even offered such courses.
If she hadn't had half a year of intensive training, she would have felt out of place at this school. However, this also gave her a sense of superiority, directed at Lin Yan.
Fu Yin felt that she still needed to reconnect with the Lin family. When Lin Yan went to university, she would invite her to attend banquets for the second and third generations.
She wanted Lin Yan to see her old friends and classmates and to feel as lost and out of place at such banquets as she had in the past.
The hardships she had endured should surely be shared by Lin Yan too.