"When I first heard about the whole fish feast, I thought I would definitely go home hungry today, but I didn't expect to be so full, it was so delicious."

"I didn't know that fish could be prepared in so many ways until today. This is the best banquet I've ever had."

"I've never had such delicious stew before, especially the fish soup, it's absolutely amazing with rice!"

"And this longevity peach bun is beautiful, delicious, and very fitting for the occasion. The chef is really skillful."

...

The guests all praised Xia Chunmei's culinary skills and were all very impressed with the meal.

Hearing these praises, Liu Changgui and Lin Qianhong felt quite uncomfortable.

However, it must be admitted that these dishes are indeed very delicious. To be able to make dishes of this quality from a large batch is truly impressive.

He was reluctant but had to admit that his skills were not as good as others'!

“Little Zhang, where did you find your cook? My mother’s 50th birthday is next month, and I would like to ask her to cook for me.”

"My son is getting married next month. I wonder if the chef can cook other dishes. I'd like to invite her too."

"It won't matter. These dishes are decent enough. She'll also be cooking a whole fish feast for your wedding banquet. I'll definitely give her a bigger red envelope and bring my whole family to eat, hahaha."

...

Upon hearing these words, Liu Changgui and Lin Qianhong became anxious, their sense of crisis overwhelming them!

If it were just a longevity peach bun, they wouldn't be too worried, since longevity peach buns only appear at birthday banquets.

But Xia Chunmei's fish-cooking skills were so good that they instantly won over everyone's palates. Who would hire her for banquets in the future?

If we don't ask him to host the banquet, how will his whole family survive?

Liu Changgui felt he had to learn how to cook these dishes to ensure his continued wealth.

At this moment, Xiao Zhangshi replied with a smile, "The cook is a young girl from Yijia Village. I think her name is Xia... Xia Chunmei. She's in the backyard right now. You can go find her directly."

"What did you say that girl's name was?" asked Fan Jiangshi at the next table, her face full of shock.

"Her name is Xia Chunmei, from Yijia Village."

Fan Jiangshi was Fan Baowen's mother.

Upon hearing this news, Madam Fan was utterly shocked!

Xia Chunmei actually has this skill!!

"I heard she's your eldest son's fiancée. Your family is in for a treat!"

Upon hearing this, Madam Fan smiled insincerely and said, "Chunmei has always been a sensible child."

In Fan Jiangshi's opinion, no matter how good Xia Chunmei's cooking skills are, she is still not good enough for her son!

His own son was destined to become an official!

However, she could use Xia Chunmei's excellent cooking skills to get Xia Chenshi to take action against Xia Chunmei as soon as possible...

………

"Which one of you is Miss Chunmei?"

"I am Xia Chunmei. Are you two ladies looking for me?" Xia Chunmei put down her work, stood up, and looked at the two people in front of her.

The two women in front of her sized her up: "Oh, what a young girl! Did you make the longevity peach buns and the whole fish feast today?"

"I made it. Did you two ladies enjoy your meal?"

"Satisfied, satisfied! Girl, how much do you charge?"

"Does the old lady want me to cook for her?"

Upon hearing Xia Chunmei's question, Xia Mingshi, Aunt Lihua, Xia Ping, and Xia Qiumei all looked at the woman in front of them expectantly.

"That's the idea."

"If everything is done according to today's standards, a red table is worth sixteen."

"So expensive!"

"Girl, don't ask for too much. I know you only paid ten coins for cooking a meal for the Wang family today."

Xia Chunmei smiled and said, "Auntie, I don't know where you heard the news, but the Wang family gave me twelve tables. Moreover, the Wang family is my first guest and gave me a platform to showcase myself, so it is only right that I charge them a little less."

In addition, the pots and pans for the banquet were all prepared by the Wang family themselves; I only brought a few kitchen knives.

If you two bring your own pots and pans, and don't need me to make longevity peach buns, I'll give you a discount: ten coins per table. If you make longevity peach buns, it's twelve coins per table. Making longevity peach buns is quite troublesome, especially in hot weather; they need to be made fresh daily, so we have to come over before dawn. Therefore, if you want longevity peach buns, the price can't be lowered.

"Liu Changgui brought his own equipment and only charged twelve tables."

"But he doesn't know how to make longevity peach buns. Longevity peach buns are a unique craft. And you've tasted my cooking skills today, they're not bad, are they?"

"Your food tastes good, but it's still too expensive."

Xia Mingshi stepped forward and said, "You get what you pay for."

Aunt Lihua chimed in, "Yes, Chunmei's skills are worth the money. Every customer today said that Chunmei's skills are excellent."

"You two ladies can go back and think it over first. It's still early, so there's no rush. When you've made up your minds, just come find me in Yijia Village. The price will definitely be as low as it can be."

Once prices drop, it's difficult for them to rise again.

My skills are better than Liu Changgui's, and my peach-shaped buns are unique, so it's perfectly normal for them to be more expensive.

………

The Liu family.

When Liu Changgui and Lin Qianhong returned home, their son and daughter-in-law surrounded them.

"Father, Mother, how are you?"

"That young girl's cooking skills are quite good. Many people at today's banquet wanted to entrust her with the preparations," Liu Changgui said.

"Oh no, what should we do? Isn't this stealing our business?" Liu Songlin exclaimed excitedly.

"She's just a little girl, nothing to be afraid of." Liu Songyuan didn't take Xia Chunmei seriously at all.

Upon hearing this, Liu Changgui immediately reprimanded him, "You brat, don't do anything reckless. Xia Chunmei is Fan Baowen's fiancée."

"What's there to be afraid of about Fan Baowen?"

“There’s nothing to fear about the Fan family and Fan Baowen, but don’t forget, Fan Baowen and Wang Fuming are fellow disciples!” Liu Changgui said sternly. “So, I’m warning you, don’t mess around!”

Wang Fuming is Wang Dagui's youngest son. He is twenty-three years old this year and passed the imperial examination last year, becoming the youngest scholar in the surrounding area. Moreover, his wife is the niece of the county clerk, so most people wouldn't dare to offend her.

"Then let's just let her steal our business," Liu Songyuan said, looking displeased.

“I’ll go talk to her tomorrow and learn the trade from her. Once we learn the trade, we won’t have to worry about her stealing our business,” Lin Qianhong said.

Will she be able to teach?

"Let's talk first, and if we can't reach an agreement, we'll see." Actually, Lin Qianhong wasn't very confident either, because if it were her, she wouldn't know how to teach.