The single-storey Yuebin Restaurant is hidden in a shabby hutong- a typical lane in the center of Beijing, which sharply contrasts with the fancy shops around it. But anyone who judges the place based on appearances alone would be making a mistake. The first private restaurant in China, it still has a daily turnover of 10,000 yuan, or more than 1,400 US dollars.
Its 76-year-old owner Liu Guixian remembers the scene when the restaurant was opened 28 years ago.
"Hundreds of people queued up at my restaurant, cramming the hutong. On the first day, I only had enough money to buy four ducks as my basic ingredients, which was far from enough. They were sold out in a minute."
Liu Guixian was born in 1932 in a small village in North China's Hebei Province. After getting married in Beijing, she worked as a chef at an office canteen.
But it was hard for her to support her big family. The going was so rough that seven people shared two quilts in her home during winter.
Liu Guixian decided to change all this. In the autumn of 1980, she resigned from her "iron rice bowl", which means a lifelong job, and planned to open her own restaurant.
Ensconced in an old-fashioned wooden armchair, Liu Guixian recollects the life-changing decisions.
"I went to the industrial and commercial bureau to ask for permission to open a restaurant, but got turned down. Officials burst into laughter and said: 'You sure are daring!' They thought my idea was ridiculous."
At the time, there were a limited number of cafeterias in Beijing, all owned and operated by the state. No one even dreamed of owning a private business. But as a mother of five, Liu Guixian chose to insist, because otherwise, she and her children would starve. Over the following month, she paid more than a dozen visits to the authorities, who finally granted her clearance.
But that was only the beginning of the adventure.
Because the family's only property was a one-storey house, they had to renovate it before converting it into a restaurant. Liu Guixian built a shelter on the roof and lived there with her family for several weeks.
Then came the biggest problem. How to get enough ingredients for the restaurant? During the early 1980s, food was in short supply and the main distribution channel was through coupons, which Liu Guixian didn't have. The only place that accepted banknotes were open-air markets in suburban areas. Liu Guixian had to walk hundreds of miles to get there.
"Everyday, I left home at 5am for the markets. I had to walk because there was no bike, let alone a car. It took me hours to get there. Around noon, I took back three sacks of vegetables, meat and other items. No matter how fast I rushed back, I could never be in time to prepare lunch. So we could serve only one meal everyday."
Resolving tough problems one by one, Liu Guixian put her heart and soul into the business. She set reasonable prices - less than one yuan, or about 15 cents, for a fancy meal consisting of a meat dish, vegetable dish and a bowl of rice. It was an instant hit. Yuebin quickly became a hotspot in Beijing, attracting people from all walks of life, and a lot of foreigners working at nearby embassies. At one point, the restaurant was fully-booked for 68 days.
Since the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, the country followed an economic path of state or public ownership and opposed the idea of private property.
Inevitably, Liu Guixian's business ran into "political trouble", a tag feared by most Chinese in the early 1980s.
The outspoken Liu Guixian recalls her experience at the time:
"People gossiped behind my back and depicted me as 'a daring vanguard of capitalism'. To tell you the truth, I was afraid. But I tried to appear calm and resolute. I'm not the type of capitalist who has an insatiable desire to expand my business. I care about doing my work with sincerity and satisfying the appetite of my customers. It's that simple."
The following Spring Festival, the then vice-premiers of China, Yao Yilin and Chen Muhua, who were in charge of economy and trade, visited the restaurant and encouraged Liu to proceed. This put her mind at ease.
With only 36 yuan or 5 US dollars as a primary fund, it never occurred to Liu Guixian that the opening of Yuebin would reverberate throughout China, even the world. Journalists from 77 different countries have interviewed her so far.
Soon, she acquired a second establishment barely 100 meters away from Yuebin. They used it as another restaurant and called it Yuexian after Liu Guixian's name.
But the restaurant never extended beyond the hutongs. Over the past 28 years, Liu Guixian stuck to the cuisine her restaurant originally served up, that is spring-rolls and braised pork leg. Neither has her management style changed. Due to deteriorating health, Liu Guixian has retired from the kitchen, but still manages the restaurant and visits it every two days.
"A business won't last long unless managed with kindness. To attract customers, you must cook with meticulous care and serve quality dishes. I insist on working myself to make sure the two restaurants go well because they cost a lifetime's devotion."
20 employees help Liu Guixian in taking care of the two restaurants, with 30 tables and covering an area of 100 square meters. Catering to the common man remains Liu Guixian's pleasure. Proving that she has a heart of gold, she donated 20,000 yuan, or 3,000 US dollars, to Sichuan quake relief funds.
Today, Liu Guixian, her husband and five children live comfortably in a suburban village in Beijing. She firmly believes that the restaurant was worth fighting for, worth all the agony and the sweat. And now, it's part of her family's legacy.
Source: CRIENGLISH.com
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