What happened to Xu Ji was not a big deal, but it did give Xu Qinyu some other thoughts.

The matter is related to the owner of the shop that Xu Ji rented.

Fourth brother left after having breakfast in the morning, and Xu Qinyu came over in the morning to fry crispy pork intestines for him.

The diners eating breakfast were overwhelmed by the smell and asked Wen, "Boss, have you made something new? It smells so delicious."

Wen smiled and said, "Isn't my wife Yu Niang planning to open a restaurant in Raozhou City? She's been trying out new dishes lately. The dish she's making today is called Crispy Pork Intestines."

The diners couldn't help but ask, "Can we serve this new dish at dinner?" The taste was really tempting. They were all old diners of Xu's and knew how good Ms. Xu's cooking skills were. This fresh dish she made would definitely taste as delicious as always, even if it was made with offal.

Wen just smiled and said, "I'm afraid we can't have any new products yet. We have to wait until the restaurant opens, and then we can have them both available at the same time."

The diners were naturally disappointed, but the aroma was so overpowering that they couldn't forget it even while having breakfast.

When Xu Qinyu saw her fourth brother off, the diners couldn't help but ask, "Ms. Xu, are you really not going to serve this fresh food? We're already ravenous just by smelling it."

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "You're all regular customers of Xu's. The crispy pig intestines we fried today were originally meant for my husband. He's going on a long trip, and there's quite a bit left in the kitchen. I'd like to give half a sausage to each of the diners having breakfast today. It's not much, but everyone can try it. How about giving us some feedback?"

She suddenly thought that in the future, she could let diners taste the new dishes for free. Since they were all Xu Ji’s regular diners, they could help her taste and see if there was anything that needed improvement.

The diners laughed and said, "That's a good feeling."

Xu Qinyu went to the kitchen and asked someone to give each of the diners in front a small portion to try.

There weren't many indeed, only about one per person, about the length of a palm, or one half cut in half, but no one was disgusted at all, and the color was very tempting, like amber.

"Oh my, this is so crispy that it almost falls apart when you put it in your mouth. It's fragrant, crispy, chewy, and not greasy. It tastes very delicious. As expected, the food made by Miss Xu never disappoints us."

"It smells really good, but there's too little. It's really not enough to satisfy my craving. Oh, I hope the boss's restaurant opens soon. Even though we can't go to Raozhou City to show our support, we will definitely all come to Xu's restaurant."

“Delicious, delicious…”

All the diners raved about the crispy pork intestines.

After serving the breakfast guests and cleaning the kitchen, everyone started to rest.

Xu Qinyu was also sitting by the window in front, writing and drawing. In addition to the newly drafted menu, she also wrote down some small details about the restaurant, fearing that she would forget. Not long after, she heard footsteps coming from the restaurant door. She turned around and saw a middle-aged man who was looking inside.

Xu Qinyu naturally recognized him; he was the owner of the shop she rented.

The owner of the shop she rented was named Yao. She was in her thirties and had a daughter. Her husband died early, so she remarried to the middle-aged man in front of her and gave birth to a daughter with him.

Madam Yao has a small house of her own and this shop, which has a rent of several dozen taels every year. She can't say she lives a wealthy life, but she is definitely better off than most. She also does some embroidery work on weekdays. However, her husband is idle and does not do any work. He eats and drinks at home all day, and likes to wander around after eating and drinking.

Xu Qinyu didn't like him very much. He liked to take advantage of her occasionally. When he came over for breakfast, he would ask for one of the roujiamo sold outside. The staff in the restaurant all knew him and felt embarrassed to refuse him. Even if they gave him something, he wouldn't pay for it. He also said that the restaurant was rented by their family to the landlord and the price was cheaper than the market price.

Or if I see fish heads and fish balls being sold at the door during dinner time, I’ll order a portion.

They were just a few cents, so Xu Qinyu didn't care too much.

Fortunately, Madam Yao knew the seriousness of the matter. Every time she found out that her man was trying to take advantage of her, she would come and apologize to Xu Qinyu and pay her back the money.

But Xu Qinyu didn't want any of them. The man was right. When she rented the shop, the annual rent was indeed a few taels cheaper than the market price. But that was because the shop was rented to two food businesses in succession, and both of them lost money, causing the previous tenants to cancel the lease early. Then the shop was left for several months and was difficult to rent out, so it was rented out at a few taels of silver cheaper.

Moreover, if Xu Qinyu had not rented it, it is not certain that anyone else would be willing to rent it. After all, two businesses had suffered losses before, and everyone would think that this shop was not popular and had no business.

Xu Qinyu thought of this and looked at the man again.

Wen had already walked over and said with a smile, "Little Brother Shi, why are you here at this time? The breakfast has just been sold out. If you want to eat something, you can come over during dinner time."

After all, he was the owner of the shop, so Wen was polite to him.

The man smiled and said, "It's okay. Come over and see, boss, is your daughter-in-law here? I have something I want to talk to her about."

He also knew that the person who really managed Xu Ji was Xu Qinyu.

Xu Qinyu stood up and asked, "Is there anything wrong with the Shi family?"

The man's surname is Shi, and everyone seems to call him Shi Lao Ba.

Shi Laoba then noticed Xu Qinyu sitting by the window. He walked in, rubbed his hands, and said with a smile, "Ms. Xu, this is what's going on. You know, we originally rented this shop to you at a lower price than the market price. We've been renting it for almost three years now. Look, your business is so good, isn't it time to raise the rent a bit?"

Xu Qinyu asked, "What's the appropriate increase, Mr. Shi?"

Although the signed contract also states that the rent cannot be increased without reason, Shi Laoba always comes to ask for a rent increase.

In fact, Shi Laoba came here last year and wanted to discuss the account rent.

But at that time, Madam Yao was standing nearby. As soon as she heard Shi Laoba speak, she quickly pulled the man away.

More than a year has passed, and Shi Laoba still hasn't given up.

Xu Qinyu felt that it was normal for people to want to raise the rent. They saw that they had made money, and the rent was originally cheaper than the market price, so it was okay to raise it back. It would just be a few more taels of silver every year.

Shi Laoba smiled and said, "That's what happened. The annual rent is cheaper than outside. I was thinking that since we've rented this shop to you for almost three years, and you're kind-hearted, we won't charge you rent from now on. We can even add some money to the mix. Isn't Miss Xu still building a restaurant in Raozhou City? If we can get more money, we'll definitely help you with two hundred taels of silver. From now on, we won't charge you rent for Xu's Restaurant, and you can keep it for Miss Xu. It's Miss Xu's restaurant in Raozhou City. Can we get half of the profits from now on? What do you think, Miss Xu?"

Xu Qinyu couldn't help but glance at Shi Laoba.

He was really bold. He wanted to get shares of her restaurant for just 200 taels of silver.

Even if Madam Lu and Mrs. Dong were willing to lend her 10,000 or 20,000 taels of silver, they would never mention the matter of investing.

Just building the restaurant would cost 50,000 to 60,000 taels of silver, not counting the subsequent investment.

Once the restaurant opens and starts to make profits, it will make at least several thousand taels of silver per month, and it may even be more in the future.

This Shi Lao Ba only gave her 200 taels, and wanted to take a few hundred taels from her every month. What kind of calculation is he making? This is too shameless.

Xu Qinyu couldn't help but ask, "Is this the Shi Dong family's idea, or Miss Yao's idea?"

Shi Laoba smiled and said, "Mother Yao also agreed."

In fact, Yao did not agree at all at the beginning. She did not mean to pay two hundred taels of silver, but nearly two thousand taels of silver. She invested all her net worth in Xu Qinyu, but it was not the share of the restaurant, but the share of Xu Ji Restaurant in Yuanbao Town, and she would get a share of the profits every month.

But Shi Laoba felt that two thousand taels of silver was indeed a lot, and the restaurant in Raozhou City would be more profitable. Moreover, everyone was not optimistic about the restaurant now. He felt that the food made by Xu Qinyu was delicious, and even if it was opened outside the city, it would probably be crowded with guests. It would be better to pay some silver now to get a share, and wait until the restaurant could make a lot of money in the future, and then he would get a great deal.

Wen was listening nearby with a frown on his face, wondering if this man was just daydreaming.

Xu Qinyu nodded and said, "I understand. Mr. Shi, please let me think about it."

Of course she couldn't agree to such an unreasonable request, and she didn't even plan to

Although it was all stated in the deed, she was unhappy and didn't want to continue renting the Yao shop.

She planned to see if there were any other shops for sale in Yuanbao Town. She wanted to buy a shop directly. Otherwise, if she rented one, there would always be some landlords who would see that your business was doing well and would want to raise the rent or drive you out, and then keep the shop for their own business.

Such things are common in later generations.

Xu Ji Restaurant in Yuanbao Town is the first restaurant she opened. She is reluctant to give up and wants to continue running it. If she opens branches in other places in the future, Yuanbao Town will be the first founding store.

Shi Laoba thought Xu Qinyu would agree after considering it, so he smiled and said, "Then Miss Xu, please think about it first. I will go back and wait for Miss Xu's news."

Xu Qinyu nodded, her expression remaining unchanged.

After everyone left, Wen couldn't help but say, "This Shi Laoba is really going too far. He wants to buy into the restaurant that you, Yu Niang, built with tens of thousands of taels of silver for just two hundred taels of silver. What kind of grandiose dream is he? Yu Niang, don't be afraid. Our contract clearly states that the rent of this shop cannot be increased without reason for at least ten years, and we cannot stop renting it to you. If he really wants to take advantage of you so much, we will show him the contract. We are not afraid even if we report him to the government."

Xu Qinyu shook her head and said, "There's only a thief who can steal for a thousand days, but there's no such thing as a thief who can't be on guard for a thousand days. If I don't agree, it wouldn't be good if he did something bad in the restaurant. So don't worry, mother. I have other plans."

Wen couldn't help but ask, "What are Yu Niang's plans?"

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "We rented this Xuji Restaurant when we were short of money. It's a little small, and it's a bit crowded for the diners to sit. Fortunately, our diners don't mind it, so I thought we might as well take advantage of this opportunity to buy a larger shop, a three-story attic shop, and reopen Xuji Restaurant. Then the diners will be able to sit much more comfortably."

The shop in the three-story attic in Yuanbao Town is much cheaper than that in Raozhou City. It is only a matter of an extra two thousand taels of silver. It just so happens that her fourth brother gave her five thousand taels of silver, which she will use first. If the money is still not enough for the restaurant in Raozhou City later, she will borrow some from Madam Lu or Madam Dong.

Wen also thought it was good.

"Okay, then we'll buy a big shop."

Xu Qinyu did not hide this matter from Xu Ji's employees and kitchen helpers. They had been with her for almost three years, and Xu Ji would discuss any matters with them.

Everyone also thought it would be better to buy a big shop. Who made Shi Lao Ba such a disgusting person? He wanted to take advantage of others with just two hundred taels of silver.

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "Since everyone thinks it's okay, I'll check out some three-story attic shops for sale in Raozhou City these next few days."

Yuanbao Town is much smaller than Raozhou City, and it is not easy to find three-story shops. Anyway, most of the small shops are for sale. At least there are no three-story loft shops for rent or sale on South Street.

…

When Dongqian returned home in the evening, his family had already had dinner, but he still went to accompany his mother.

Ever since his father's incident, his mother's personality has become more easy-going. Almost all the family businesses, big and small, have been left to the two brothers to manage. Donglai Ju has also been completely handed over to his younger brother.

My younger brother also changed his name back to Dongxi, and got married to his fiancée two months ago. He has become much calmer now.

It's true that Donglai Ju's business has been affected, and there are fewer diners than before. However, my mother doesn't care much. She thinks that as long as they are safe and sound, it doesn't matter how much money they make. She says that the Dong family is no longer short of money. Although they don't have hundreds of thousands of silver notes, they still have tens of thousands of silver notes.

In addition, my family members are not the type to like to squander money, so a few hundred thousand yuan is enough to live a rich and leisurely life.

Dong Qian went over and chatted with Dong for a while, and also told his mother what happened at Xu Ji.

After hearing this, Dong was a little surprised. "Is this Shi Lao Ba crazy? How dare he ask for a share of the restaurant for only 200 taels of silver? How dare he do that? How could Yao let him ask for that? Yao is not that kind of person."

Even with 20,000 taels of silver, she didn't dare to talk to Miss Xu about opening a restaurant together.

Although outsiders were not optimistic about Xu Xiaoniang's restaurant, she was very optimistic. She believed in Xu Xiaoniang's craftsmanship and vision. Such a large project was not just a simple restaurant. There must be other things to attract diners.

Dong Qian said, "So Master plans to buy another three-story attic shop and move Xu's business there."

When Dong heard this, her heart suddenly moved, and she had some ideas.

It is currently difficult to find shops in three-story attics in Yuanbao Town.

She thought, why not just go into business with Miss Xu and give the Donglai Ju restaurant to Miss Xu to run as Xu's Restaurant.

However, Donglai Ju was left to her by her father after all, so some of Donglai Ju’s characteristics and signature dishes must be retained. A small signboard can also be hung next to it, but the main focus must still be on Xu Ji’s signature dishes and recipes.

Moreover, the business of Donglai Ju is actually average now, and she doesn't really want to take care of the family business, so she handed it over to Xi Ge'er. Xi Ge'er is still too young to run a restaurant. When Xi Ge'er is able to run a restaurant in the future, she will let him go to other states to open Donglai Ju.

As for how to operate it and how to divide the profits in the future, it all depends on what Miss Xu wants.

Of course, it still depends on whether Miss Xu is willing. You know, Xu's family has no shortage of diners. Even if she gives Donglai Ju to Miss Xu, she will be getting a great deal.

She also believed that Xu Ji's reputation would spread further and further, and more people would be willing to come and taste Miss Xu's cooking skills.

So we still have to see what Miss Xu wants.

If Miss Xu is willing, the restaurant doesn't even need to be renovated. Just change the sign, or ask Miss Xu to see if there is any place in the restaurant that needs to be renovated. Then we can do it all at once. No one else has to pay for it, because the Dong family will pay for it all.

Dong told her eldest son about her thoughts.

Dong Qian was surprised and couldn't help asking, "Mother, are you willing to let Donglaiju take the throne?"

In fact, he had this idea when he heard his master talk about it in the afternoon, but Donglai Ju was left by his grandfather after all, and was passed down from generation to generation in the Dong family. In addition, his younger brother is now in charge of Donglai Ju, so it is not easy for him to intervene. He never thought that his mother had the same plan.

Dong smiled and said, "Why should I be reluctant to give it up? Although Donglaiju was left by your grandfather and has been passed down from generation to generation, it is only famous in Yuanbao Town. No one knows about Donglaiju outside. Donglaiju is just like this in our hands. What's more, you are still learning cooking from Miss Xu. In the future, many of Donglaiju's recipes will definitely be Miss Xu's dishes. It would be nice to run a restaurant now. However, your younger brother is the manager of Donglaiju now, so we have to ask his opinion first. If he is willing, Brother Qian, how about you go and talk to Miss Xu?"

Dongqian nodded.

Dong didn't delay and went to her youngest son's yard.

The youngest son just got married and loves his wife very much. He comes home every day to accompany her.

The second daughter-in-law was also very nice. Knowing that she had been in a bad mood recently, she always tried to find ways to make her happy. She and the eldest daughter-in-law even invited a troupe to perform and accompanied her to watch the show and appreciate the flowers.

Dong found her second son and told her about her plan.

Dong Xi agreed as soon as he heard it. In fact, he knew that Donglai Ju's business was declining, and he was also worried that Donglai Ju would fall into decline in his hands. It would be better for him to open a restaurant in partnership with Xu Ji.

Seeing that the youngest son agreed, Dong went to talk to the eldest son.

Dong Qian planned to go to Xu Ji early tomorrow morning and discuss it with his master.

…

After Shi Laoba returned, Yao Shi couldn't help but ask, "Master, have you told Miss Xu? What did Miss Xu say?"

Shi Laoba said, "She said she would think about it. If she doesn't agree, we won't rent the restaurant to her. Her business is doing well now, so she might move to another place. Maybe our shop will bring her good luck." He actually knew in his heart that Xu Qinyu was a good cook, and he was just talking nonsense.

Yao glared at Shi Laoba. "What nonsense are you talking about? It's because of their good cooking skills that their business is booming. If they really don't want to rent our shop and move away, our shop will be vacant again. Master, I still think we are doing something wrong. Even if it is two thousand taels of silver, it is definitely not a big deal for Miss Xu. We don't want more. Xu Ji's profit of two or three cents a month is enough. Master, did you really tell Miss Xu that two thousand taels of silver would be her share of Xu Ji? You are not talking nonsense, are you?"

She didn't want to do this at first, but Shi Laoba kept saying that the rent should be raised, saying that Xu Ji's business was so good because his shop was prosperous. He raised the rent to twenty taels of silver every month. She thought the master was a little crazy. The rent was less than five taels a month, and now he wanted to raise it to twenty taels. If she told others about it, she would be scolded.

Later she thought, why not spend some money to buy food in Miss Xu's restaurant.

Two thousand taels of silver was all the sincerity she could offer. She had no intention of getting involved in any other matters of the restaurant. She just wanted to share some dividends every month and let the master collect the dividends every month. Maybe he would not think about the rent increase, so as to prevent the master from losing control and really going to talk to Miss Xu about the rent increase, which would make things awkward.

Shi Laoba said nonchalantly, "Don't worry, I've already said it, it all depends on what she thinks."

Yao was still a little worried.

But I was too embarrassed to go to Miss Xu in person to talk about this, so I just waited a few days to see how Miss Xu responded.

…

The next morning, Xu Qinyu went to the restaurant and planned to go to several other markets after breakfast was sold to see if there were any shops for sale. She remembered that there were no three-story attic shops for sale some time ago, but she didn't know if there were any during this period.

But before he finished selling breakfast, Dongqian came to Xu Ji and said to her, "Master, I have something I want to discuss with you."

Xu Qinyu asked Dongqian to speak frankly.

Dong Qian told his master what he had discussed with his mother yesterday.

When Xu Qinyu heard this, she was also moved.

Not to mention that she trusted Dong Shi and Dong Qian. Even Dong Shi's second son, Dong Xi, had shown growth and responsibility during his father's previous incident. The character of the Dong family was impeccable, and cooperation was definitely possible.

Moreover, Donglaiju is not only the largest restaurant in Raozhou City, but also has many chefs and assistants, and she is in need of assistant chefs.

What's more, if they really want to open a restaurant together, the Dong family will mainly use Xu's brand, and the rest is to negotiate the shareholding ratio.

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "How about I talk to Madam Dong about the specific matters?"

Dong Qian smiled and said, "Okay, during the lunch break, I'll send someone to invite Mother over, and then Master can talk to Mother."

At noon, Dong Qian sent someone to pick up Dong. Xu Qinyu chatted with Dong. She could see that Dong was now in a more laissez-faire attitude towards the Dong family's business and let everything go with the flow.

Finally, the two discussed and decided to merge the two businesses into one. At that time, the main menu would still be Xu Ji's existing recipes, while retaining some of Donglai Ju's signature dishes. However, it is certain that most people would still like some of Xu Ji's dishes.

Xu Qinyu plans to build the restaurant in Raozhou City for half a year. She can hand over the dishes of Xu Ji to the chef and kitchen helpers of Donglaiju. At that time, some people will be left in Raozhou City, and the rest can be transferred to the restaurant, which will also solve the shortage of staff in her restaurant.

As for any other renovations or matters related to the restaurant, Xu Qinyu didn't have to worry about anything else. She just had to customize the menu and change the signboard. After deducting the monthly salary for the chef, the kitchen assistants and the waiters, the net profit would be divided according to the ratio of 20:80, with Xu Qinyu getting 80% and the Dong family getting 20%.

Xu Qinyu felt that the share that Dong family wanted was too low, and since she was the one who got the upper hand, a 50-50 split would be fine.

But Dong was unwilling to do so, and felt that she was taking advantage of him until she knew that Xu's recipe was the most valuable. Finally, Xu Qinyu insisted, and the two of them divided the shares in a 30:70 ratio.

Of course, the Dong family only holds 30% of the shares of Xu Ji in Raozhou City.

Of course, Dong couldn't bring herself to speak up about the restaurant. She could see that the restaurant was more than just a place to eat, and she was afraid that no matter how much money she offered, it would not be enough to buy shares.

After the two of them decided, they signed the contract.