Chapter 124: Soliciting Guests
But Jian Xingxia truly didn’t know anyone in Jinmen Town aside from the villagers.
As for the handful she did know, well, she had already gone through the list and extended invitations.
Yet the system’s reward was simply too enticing. Employment quota +1—who could resist that!
Jian Xingxia weighed her options, then handed the manor over to Lin Sanniang. “Sanniang, double-check all the affairs and arrangements again. We must ensure the trial run of our guesthouse goes smoothly!”
Lin Sanniang hurriedly pledged, “Rest assured, Miss… Oh, I mean, rest assured, Manor Owner! I will definitely inspect everything carefully.”
Jian Xingxia patted Lin Sanniang’s shoulder. “If I successfully complete this mission, I’ll get you a helper!”
With Lin Sanniang’s assistance, Jian Xingxia headed to the greenhouse and harvested a massive pile of assorted cherry tomatoes and snack cucumbers, along with strawberries and blueberries.
Having tested it over the past few days, she found that the smart greenhouse provided by the system was indeed incredibly intelligent.
As long as the fertilizer was sufficient, it could continuously yield fruit. The various farmyard and compound fertilizers she had experimented with applying could sustain the continuous output of the fruits inside the greenhouse.
Furthermore, it could maintain a remarkably long freshness period—even if left unpicked for several days, the fully ripened fruit would maintain its ripe state without rotting.
It would stay that way right up until it finally dropped cleanly onto the cultivation soil below and turned into fertilizer.
Therefore, Jian Xingxia and Lin Sanniang managed to harvest a massive pile without much effort.
Seeing this greenhouse, Lin Sanniang didn’t know how many times she had marveled at it in her heart. But she kept it all inside; if the young mistress didn’t mention it, it meant it was either inconvenient to explain or unnecessary, so she wouldn’t pry.
Time was tight. Jian Xingxia used thick straw and the bubble wrap she had saved from unboxing packages to carefully wrap the fruit, then rushed straight toward the town.
There was still time. She would do a sweep of the market first, then hit up the Jiahe Garden residential complex.
She had been to both places before. The foot traffic was decent, and having sold roasted chestnuts there previously, she had likely accumulated a wave of repeat customers.
She didn’t have roasted chestnuts this time, but thinking about these fresh fruits, they were likely items everyone would enjoy.
Jian Xingxia felt incredibly grateful that she had bought the electric tricycle early on. Otherwise, having to scramble to borrow one now would be a hassle, and she might not even have enough time.
Speeding like the wind, Jian Xingxia drove the small tricycle with the flair of a sports car. If she wasn’t trying to keep the fruit steady and prevent bruising, she could have gone even faster.
Arriving at the market, Jian Xingxia set up the fruit. “Four-colored cherry tomatoes, 15 yuan a catty. Snack cucumbers, 10 yuan a catty. Strawberries and blueberries, 60 yuan a catty.”
The prices were fairly standard, but the presentation of the fruit was exquisite, and soon people came over to take a look.
“Oh, how did you grow these tomatoes? Why are there so many colors?”
“Why are your blueberries sold loose by weight? Are they freshly picked? We don’t produce blueberries around here.”
“Where did strawberries come from in the middle of summer? They look gorgeous!”
Jian Xingxia smiled. “My undergraduate major was in agriculture, and I built a pick-your-own orchard in the mountains. These were grown in a greenhouse with meticulously controlled temperature, humidity, and lighting. Please, have a taste—”
“Also, my pick-your-own orchard begins its trial run tomorrow and will last for three days. If you’d like to bring your kids to wander the mountains and pick fruit during the summer holidays, you can go check it out. It’s in Lu’an Village, a half-hour drive away.”
Jian Xingxia unleashed her ultimate move: “During the trial run, all fresh fruit picking is 20% off!”
Setting up at the market entrance for an hour yielded mediocre results. The foot traffic was too massive, and since she wasn’t selling roasted chestnuts this time, very few people recognized her.
Fortunately, the small farm business cards she had custom-ordered online had arrived. Jian Xingxia had taken a moment to pick up the package and enthusiastically handed them out to the customers buying fruit.
Afterward, she decisively changed venues and headed to Jiahe Garden.
Jiahe Garden had a stable resident population, and having sold roasted chestnuts nearby many times, she had already earned the title of “Chestnut Sister.” Sure enough, repeat customers quickly approached.
Thank the heavens and the earth!
Today was Saturday!
Many homeowners in the complex weren’t working, and the kids on summer vacation weren’t at school. Even right at noon, the entrance of the complex was quite bustling.
Most importantly, quite a few people in the complex recognized Jian Xingxia. The moment they saw “Chestnut Sister” had arrived, they frantically sent messages to the homeowners’ group chat.
“Chestnut Sister is here again! This time she’s Fruit Sister! She brought a ton of fresh fruit!”
Accompanied by a photo: [Fruit Tricycle.jpg]
News spread fast in the homeowners’ group chat. In less than five minutes, people were rushing toward the complex entrance.
“Chestnut Sister! You haven’t been here in a long time. Why aren’t you selling roasted chestnuts anymore?”
Jian Xingxia offered the same explanation and warmly invited everyone. “The trial run begins tomorrow. Fruit picking and farmhouse meals are all 20% off! Accommodation is also at trial run promotional prices. Suites are 220 a night, and standard rooms are 150 a night. Four rooms have already been booked, leaving only two available. If you’d like to come, you can call in advance and pay a deposit to enjoy a 20% discount on accommodation!”
Jian Xingxia’s pricing wasn’t expensive; she had reverse-engineered it based on the system’s upgrade mission.
[Current Manor Status: Simple Farmhouse, Level: 1. Fulfill the following three conditions to upgrade to Level 2.
- The manor receives 200 customer visits (Current Progress: 0/200);
- The manor’s reputation score exceeds 80 points (Current Score: 0 points);
- The manor’s operating revenue reaches 50,000 yuan (Current Operating Revenue: 0/50000).
Upgrade Rewards: Manor Operating Points *30, Formal Employee Quota *1, Operating Gift Pack *1.]
Calculating Conditions One and Three together meant the average spending per person needed to be around 250 yuan.
Jian Xingxia did the math. If calculated based on guests staying overnight, accommodation would run about 70-80 yuan per person per day (a standard room could house two people, and a suite three to four).
For meals, factoring in lunch and dinner at 35 yuan per meal featuring specialty farmhouse dishes, that would be 70 yuan per person per day.
Breakfast was free, offering a self-serve spread of coarse country grains, eggs, millet porridge, and plain congee.
The rest would come from the pick-your-own orchard. With tomatoes at 15 yuan a catty, cucumbers at 10 yuan a catty, and strawberries and blueberries at 60 yuan a catty, assuming an average picking spend of 70 yuan per person, the total would just cross the two hundred mark.
Adding in the retail of some beverages, loose fruit, and the handcrafted items woven by the scholar earlier, estimating around thirty yuan per person.
In theory, reaching an average spend of 250 yuan per person was achievable.
Of course, there would definitely be people who didn’t go picking, just as there would be people who stayed in a 150-yuan standard room alone. There would be some fluctuations in the amounts, but based on this pricing, it wouldn’t be too far off the mark.
This price point was something Jian Xingxia had researched over several days, comprehensively formulating it based on the prices of hotels, guesthouses, agritainment farmhouses, and pick-your-own orchards in Jinmen Town and the surrounding villages.
The best hotels in town ran four to five hundred a night, mid-range ones were two to three hundred, and there were many cheap small inns around eighty to one hundred and twenty, though looking at the photos and reviews made it clear the environment was poor.
Although the old house was remote, the second-floor guest rooms—having been upgraded by the system—boasted absolute quietness, impeccable hygiene, excellent soundproofing, ventilation, scenery, bedding, and mattresses… they could rival the best hotels in town.
Meals were the same. Generally speaking, because agritainment farmhouses weren’t professional breeding farms or plantations, the cost of raising their own livestock and purchasing farmhouse ingredients was relatively high. The average price for dining at an agritainment farmhouse was around 50-80 yuan per person.
Jian Xingxia had deep faith in the auntie’s culinary skills, and charging an average of only 35 yuan per person was entirely a concession to Lu’an Village’s remote location.
As for the pick-your-own orchards—she hadn’t known until she checked, but once she did, the prices were truly staggering.
Nearby strawberry picking orchards charged 60 yuan a catty during the off-season, and around 100 yuan a catty around the New Year. Ordinary tomato and cucumber picking never dipped below 10 yuan a catty either.
The quality of the fruit from the smart greenhouse was excellent, and Jian Xingxia didn’t want to lower the price too much. Firstly, she didn’t want people to think her fruit wasn’t up to par. Secondly, she didn’t want to undercut and disrupt the business of guesthouses and farms in neighboring villages.
Therefore, she settled on a middle-ground price.
Paired with the promotional discount, it became highly enticing.
Sure enough, the Jiahe Garden homeowners quickly responded. “Lu’an Village, is it? Just in time, my two little rascals have too much energy to burn. I’ll take them there tomorrow.”
“20% off for the trial run? So the snack cucumbers are only eight yuan a catty? That’s cheaper than the supermarket; the ones I bought yesterday were nine-ninety a catty.”
“Chestnut Sister’s farm? We’re definitely going! My darling loves Chestnut Sister’s roasted chestnuts. I wonder if there’s chestnut picking.”
Jian Xingxia answered each question one by one, her heart finally settling down a bit.
Even if only a fifth of the people who said they would go actually showed up, combined with the guests she had explicitly confirmed through her previous individual invitations, it should definitely be enough.
However, Jian Xingxia still left a stack of business cards in the security guardhouse. The property management didn’t allow advertising, but a young security guard said he would help distribute them to the homeowners he was familiar with.
Following the navigation on the cards, they could reach Lu’an Village. In the village, Hu Da and the others had already made arrangements. A group of elders and kids on summer vacation—like Fangfang and Hu Ming—would be waiting at the village entrance to offer a simple reception and provide directions.
Jian Xingxia warmly invited the young security guard, “When you have a day off, give me a call, and I’ll treat you to some fun in the mountains!”
The young security guard agreed happily, looking a bit shy. “Can I bring my girlfriend along?”
“Of course! You’re both warmly welcome. And if you don’t have time during the trial run, just pick a day later and call me in advance. I’ll reserve a 20% off promotional spot for you.”
Having the young security guard help her distribute flyers and cards saved her a massive amount of hassle. This 20% discount was absolutely worth giving!
After a busy morning and early afternoon, Jian Xingxia hadn’t even eaten lunch. Upon returning, without a second thought, she summoned the plump auntie first.
A-Feng had already been trained. Today, she needed to bring the auntie over and train her a bit more.
After all, there was nothing easier for securing individual customer revenue than through food.
