While drawing, Lin Cheng explained to the two men in front of him, “The processing area can be designed according to the concept of a ‘transparent kitchen’. The left side of the wall can be made into an internal cabinet, which can serve both support and storage functions. The rest of the area can be directly partitioned with heat-resistant glass to save space and keep it clean and moisture-proof.

“Semi-automated soybean grinding and tofu processing can be displayed in this area, and then a dry and wet area partition can be added here. 

“The innermost area behind the glass window is closest to the water inlet pipe, and can be used as a primary processing room. This part can be the sink, here is the operations table, and the stove can be installed here….

“The overall space utilization of the dining area outside needs to be improved. The entrance should be kept as bright as possible so that customers can see everything clearly at a glance. This way, customers will not feel hesitant on whether to enter the store.

“The cash register and on-site sales of pre-processed products and ready-to-eat foods can all be arranged on the left side of the store. This will not only preserve the display cabinet’s effect, but also make it convenient for passers-by from the outside to buy….”

Huang Yang listened carefully to what Lin Cheng said and nodded.

“This arrangement is completely feasible. The remaining area can be used as the dining area. It is quiet and spacious enough, and will not affect the movement of other people in the store. But…” Huang Yang thought for a moment and raised a new question, “After dividing it this way, this area is actually not very big. Will it be a bit crowded if we put tables and chairs there?”

“You don’t have to put up the usual movable tables and chairs. You can install a round of tabletops against the walls to serve as tables, and instead of chairs, just use wooden benches,” Lin Cheng said.

“That’s a good idea!” Huang Yang said. He then pointed to the floor plan and added excitedly, “This area is far away from both water and fire sources, it’s dry and well-ventilated. If we put a row of seats here, we can also put a row of lockers on the top.”

“Okay,” Lin Cheng said affirmatively.

After some more discussion among the three, they quickly decided on the design layout of the entire store.

The only matter left was the budget issue.

When it came to the issue of money, Hu Mao and his wife Yang Fang showed worried looks on their faces.

“We only have so little money, and it may not be enough to turn the store into this,” Hu Mao said with a frown, looking down at the design.

Yang Fang added, “If it’s not enough, I’ll go back to my hometown to get some money.”

At this moment, Lin Cheng said in a positive tone, “No, the existing money should be enough.”

“Enough?” Hu Mao looked at Lin Cheng in disbelief.

“Let’s do the math so you can see,” Lin Cheng said. 

He handed the floor plan to Huang Yang standing beside him and asked him, “Can you estimate how much material is needed?”

“I can only try to make a rough estimate.” Huang Yang buried his head down, writing and drawing on paper.

After a while, Huang Yang gave a rough figure, “For a store this big, 1 cubic meter of sand is definitely enough. We need 7 or 8 bags of cement, and 3 4-meter water pipes and 5 elbow pipes for the processing room are enough. And if the tables, sales counters, and wall panels are all made of carbonized wood boards as you said, then…”

“Replace this area with anti-corrosion wood,” Lin Cheng said, “Increase the surface cement grade of this part. Replace the floor tiles here with 45 bluestone slabs. Leave an 8 cm interval in the middle.”　　

“Then half a cubic meter of sand is enough,” Huang Yang said. 

“We can just go to some nearby houses and collect any unused sand they still have after they finished renovation. Six bags of cement should be enough. As for the wood, it’s…”

Huang Yang calculated the increase and decrease in area and materials according to what Lin Cheng said.

After getting the final list of materials from Huang Yang, Lin Cheng wrote down the unit price of each material next to it.

Seeing this, Huang Yang and Hu Mao were a little surprised, “Do you know the prices of the materials?”

“When I went to the construction materials market to sell soya dregs cakes, I also bought some materials. Coincidentally, I also learned about the prices of common materials,” Lin Cheng explained.

… …

Lin Cheng said this calmly, but the audience who heard this were not calm:

[Coincidentally?! ]

[What a nice coincidence…]

[Why didn’t I think of doing this ‘coincidentally’?]

[I suspect Momo’s father is in Versailles¹.]

[Haha, Lin Cheng probably wanted to reinforce and decorate the shabby house they lived in, and then he learned about these things, maybe it really was just a coincidence.]

[After all, a good brain is still a must.]

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

Lin Cheng quickly calculated the approximate cost of the renovation materials.

Surprisingly, after careful calculation, the estimated total price of renovation materials was less than 7,000.

“From what I heard from my fellow villager, the labor cost for decorating this kind of store is about 30% to 50% of the material cost. If you want to save money, you can try to do some of the rough work yourself,” Huang Yang suggested.

This proposal was immediately approved by Lin Cheng and Hu Mao.

“I don’t know how to do high-end technical work, but I can move things, nail things down, and paint the walls. I have a fellow villager who is a plasterer. It should be no problem to ask him to come over and give me some guidance in the evening,” Hu Mao said. “Also, old master Yang who lives in the back used to be a rough carpenter. If the nailing requirements for the wood are not detailed, asking him to help should save a lot of money.”

Huang Yang at the side also said, “I have done wiring and welding before when I worked in the repair shop. The principles are similar. If you don’t mind, you can buy the materials and borrow the tools, and I will do the wiring and installation of ceiling fixtures for the store.”

The three of them quickly divided the work: Lin Cheng was responsible for purchasing materials and controlling costs; Hu Mao was responsible for finding carpenters and plasterers; and Huang Yang was responsible for connecting water and electricity and installing some facilities and equipment.

Serve as Contrast Team in a ‘Dad with Baby’ Show translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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Chapter 90.3 — Bargaining
Chapter 91.1 — Buy, Buy, Buy
Chapter 91.2 — Buy, Buy, Buy
Chapter 91.3 — Buy, Buy, Buy
Chapter 92.1 — Opening

1. Versailles here refers to the Palace in Versailles which is known for its grandeur, but it basically means to humble brag. It’s one of those memes that grew on its own out of the original context. ↩︎