After Shen Qiyue left, Yan Xiao looked at the steward whom Zhao Qian had arranged to guard Yuanyi Hall and asked:

"Has anyone come today?"

Upon hearing this, the man quickly replied:

"Reporting to Madam, Manager Ma from Juewei Restaurant came by earlier. I was going to inform him, but he said he forgot to bring something and then left in a hurry."

"Forgot to bring something?"

Yan Xiao was puzzled and was about to ask if he had forgotten something when the gatekeeper came to report that Ma Youcai had arrived.

Since the person had already arrived, there was nothing more to ask. She put on her cap first, and then had someone bring Ma Youcai in.

Ma Youcai looks much more energetic today than he did yesterday.

As soon as he came in, he grinned from ear to ear.

"Dr. Yan, am I not too late?"

To Yan Xiao, Ma Youcai is now like a hen that lays eggs, so her attitude towards him is still quite warm.

"It's not late at all. Manager Ma's presence here is already a great honor. Someone, bring Manager Ma some tea."

As the servants poured tea, Yan Xiao glanced at Manager Ma and the servants behind him, and noticed that the man behind him was holding a small wooden box.

She guessed that this must be what Ma Youcai had gone back to get, and thus became somewhat interested.

After the servants finished pouring the tea, she asked directly:

"I heard from the servants that Manager Ma came earlier, but said he forgot to bring something and hurriedly turned back. I wonder what it is that is so important?"

Ma Youcai chuckled upon hearing this, then gestured for the man to give him the wooden box. He then placed the box on the table, opened it, and pushed it towards Yan Xiao.

Yan Xiao followed his movements and looked into the wooden box, where she saw a ginseng root tied with a red string.

Strictly speaking, Yanxiao is a fake doctor; he's not good at recognizing medicinal herbs.

Even so, just by looking at the quality of this ginseng, you can tell it's no ordinary thing.

She raised an eyebrow slightly, a guess forming in her mind, but feigned ignorance as she looked at Ma Youcai and asked:

"Manager Ma, what is the purpose of bringing this item here?"

Ma Youcai is a businessman who does everything for profit, which is something he shares with Yan Xiao.

He's willing to offer good stuff, naturally in order to gain greater benefits.

Hearing Yan Xiao's question, he didn't beat around the bush and said directly:

"Dr. Yan, let's be frank. I've already finished the crayfish that you sent yesterday, and I have a pretty good idea of ​​what kind of business you're trying to do with me."

I run a restaurant business; I can tell whether there's a market for this product just by tasting it. Naturally, I wouldn't want to miss such an opportunity.

He frowned slightly, looking troubled, and glanced at Yan Xiao before continuing:

"Unfortunately, the reputation of this thing is already known to Doctor Yan, so it's not easy to get people to accept it."

Moreover, this stuff is rampant outside the city, but almost nonexistent inside. We can't leave the city freely at all, and even if we could, with those vicious vagrants around, we wouldn't dare leave unless absolutely necessary. The supply is a huge problem.”

Yan Xiao watched Ma Youcai's performance, a knowing smile playing on her lips.

She picked up her teacup, showing no intention of responding, but simply gesturing for him to continue.

With the cap obscuring her view, Ma Youcai couldn't observe Yan Xiao's expression at all, so he didn't know what her attitude was.

But since he had already come all this way and was determined to win, he naturally wouldn't back down so easily.

After laying the groundwork, he finally revealed his true purpose:

"Dr. Yan, since we're discussing business, we naturally hope that the deal will go through."

"And if this deal is to be done, I've thought about it all night, and the conclusion I've come to is that the General has to step in."

As Ma Youcai spoke, he observed Yan Xiao's reaction. He noticed that even after he mentioned the general, the person opposite him was still leisurely drinking tea, so he felt that the matter was probably going to succeed.

He suppressed his excitement and continued:

"Given the general's current prestige in Jiangbei City, as long as he says that these crayfish are edible and not poisonous, the people will surely believe him."

Moreover, with the general's involvement, getting crayfish will no longer be difficult for us.

"In this way, if this crayfish business succeeds in Jiangbei City, we'll be the only ones doing it, no one can imitate it, and no one will dare to imitate it. Business will definitely be booming."

As he spoke, he pushed the wooden box containing the ginseng toward Yan Xiao and said with a smile:

"Doctor Yan, this is a top-grade ginseng that's a hundred years old. Consider it a small token of my sincerity."

"If Doctor Yan can get the General to agree to this deal, I will offer a generous reward and am willing to take only 20% of the profits."

Those who do business, and those who can make their business big, are all cunning.

Just listening to what this person said, it all made a lot of sense, and the share he asked for wasn't high either, so he seemed very sincere.

In reality, the benefits he received from doing what he said were far greater than those mere fractions of the profit.

Yan Xiao did not answer his question immediately, nor did she touch the wooden box containing the ginseng.

She slowly finished her tea, then slowly poured herself another cup, not in a hurry at all.

Her reaction made Ma Youcai feel uneasy, so he couldn't help but probe:

"Dr. Yan, do you feel there's something amiss?"

"No."

Yan Xiao shook his head slightly, his smile seemingly harmless, but his words caused Ma Youcai's expression to change.

"I just felt that I didn't need to say anything. I was the one who discovered the business opportunity, and I was also the one who invited Manager Ma to discuss business."

But judging from Manager Ma's appearance, he doesn't seem to be here to discuss business with me; he seems more like he's here to discuss business with the general.

"In that case, what's the point of talking to Manager Ma? Wouldn't it be much easier for Manager Ma to just take this century-old, top-grade ginseng to see the general?"

Yan Xiao's words revealed Ma Youcai's true intentions. Rather than saying he was interested in the crayfish business, it would be more accurate to say he was interested in the opportunity to climb up to Shen Muzhi.

Once he gets close to Shen Muzhi, he can do whatever he wants in Jiangbei City.

Moreover, crayfish are indeed a good thing. As long as an agreement is reached with Shen Muzhi to monopolize this business, it can also boost his restaurant's original business when crayfish are accepted.

In this way, the division of crayfish becomes less important.

He thought about it all night and was too excited to sleep. He felt that this was a golden opportunity. The green ruyi was worth it. Why would anyone think of him first when there was something good?

So he came as soon as it was light, but when he arrived, he remembered how greedy Yan Xiao was, so he hurriedly went back and selected the best medicinal herbs from his own family, thinking that he could bribe her by catering to her tastes.

But the person who was so desperate for money yesterday suddenly changed tactics today, catching him completely off guard.