Ten slots might not seem like many, but with the five-tael fee acting as a barrier, they weren't so easy to fill.
It took about a week, but the slots were finally filled.
Hu Liang asked Ji Huan why, if she had anticipated this, she hadn't set the fee lower. That way, more people would have signed up, and she would have earned more from the franchise fees.
Ji Huan, of course, had her reasons for doing so.
Running a stall selling hot and spicy soup involved waking up early and going to bed late. It was exhausting, and the profits were slim.
Since the Hu Family could no longer continue, and Ji Huan had no intention of taking over the business herself, she had come up with this "pseudo-franchise" idea.
She called it a "pseudo-franchise" because, unlike the chain franchises of later generations, she wouldn't be providing market strategies or research, nor would she be involved in advertising, brand imaging, promotional plans, or site selection.
