Xiao Youzhi couldn't refute Meng Zhao's words. Because of the presence of starch, Chunfenglou had introduced many new dishes. In the beginning, other restaurants couldn't easily imitate them, giving them plenty of time to promote their products.

Nowadays, not only is Chunfenglou's business booming and gradually widening the gap with other restaurants, but even Xiao's Grain Store has benefited a lot from starch.

Moreover, starch is still in its expansion phase and is not yet widely known to the general public. If it can enter every household in the future, the benefits it will bring will be immeasurable.

This starch has a wide range of uses, and she must have many clever uses that she hasn't revealed yet that he doesn't know about. Logically speaking, he only needs to introduce her to her, which would be considered a favor, and he wouldn't lose out no matter what. But when he thought of that Lord Wang, he couldn't help but hesitate.

After thinking it over, he asked, "Why do you insist on seeing that Lord Wang?"

"What reason could I have? I just wanted to broaden my horizons," Meng Zhao replied with a laugh, his eyes darting around.

He could tell she wasn't telling the truth as soon as he heard it, and Xiao Youzhi couldn't help but get angry. He snorted coldly and said, "Hmph, you won't tell me, but you want me to help you. What do you take me for, a ladder to climb over the wall?"

Meng Zhao quickly put on a sincere expression, "How could that be, Young Master Xiao? Doing business requires making many friends, especially high-ranking officials like imperial envoys. I just wanted to take this opportunity to show my face and leave an impression."

Xiao Youzhi's eyes held a hint of scrutiny and consideration. After a moment, he changed the subject and said, "It's not impossible to help you this once."

As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Zhao looked at him with bright eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips, and continued teasingly, "But first, wash off all that makeup from your face."

Meng Zhao frowned, inwardly criticizing Xiao Youzhi for having poor eyesight, and unconsciously muttered to herself, "I didn't wear any powder. I just drew my eyebrows, applied some rouge, and dabbed some lip rouge."

Many ancient cosmetics contained excessive levels of heavy metals. She had only dared to use some balm to moisturize her skin before, and never dared to use those cosmetics. For today, she had specially gone to the rouge shop to pick out several products and spent a lot of money. Who knew that she would have to wash it off before she could even look beautiful for long.

Although she spoke very softly, Xiao Youzhi heard her very clearly and naturally sensed her dissatisfaction.

Previously, he had never valued a woman's appearance. Even when he encountered beautiful women that were usually favored by others, he would only glance at them briefly and not pay much attention to them.

But ever since he saw Meng Zhao step down from the carriage, his gaze had been fixed on her face. After seeing her bright eyes and white teeth, he couldn't help but want to take a look. Now, hearing what she said, he suddenly realized that his behavior was a bit inappropriate.

"Ahem." He quickly covered his sleeve and coughed lightly, then his face turned cold again. "Do you still want to see Lord Wang?"

Meng Zhao quickly raised his hand to beg for forgiveness, "I understand, I'll go wash it off right away, please don't be angry, Young Master Xiao."

When she returned, she resumed her usual simple and plain appearance. Xiao Youzhi stared at her intently and, for some reason, felt that there wasn't much difference between her appearance and when she had dressed up earlier.

It was almost time for the banquet to begin, and Meng Zhao followed Xiao Youzhi to the small kitchen. Chunfenglou had plenty of ingredients, so there was no need to prepare in advance.

Upon arrival, she immediately removed her outer robe and handed it to Shen Yun, leaving only the red and white dress she was wearing. She then tied an apron around her waist, and in the blink of an eye, she transformed into a skillful cook ready to show off her culinary prowess.

Today's visitor is an imperial envoy, who has tasted all sorts of delicacies in his daily life. Therefore, this time, Meng Zhao is not concerned with rare ingredients, but only with exquisite and unique dishes.

First, I selected a fresh fish weighing about three pounds, removed the scales and the dirt from the fish's belly, and made a vertical side cut to the fish bone closest to the head. Then, I continued to make sloping cuts to the fish bone at intervals of two fingers. I used the same cutting method on both sides of the fish, except that I made seven cuts on one side and eight cuts on the other.

Then use scissors to cut open the gills, and cut off the irregular parts on the tail to trim it into a delicate scissor tail.

Then add scallions, ginger, pepper, salt, and a small cup of white wine, and evenly coat the fish inside and out.

After she finished processing the fish, she noticed that Xiao Youzhi was still watching from the side, and she was immediately puzzled: "Young Master Xiao, Lord Wang will be here soon, aren't you going to entertain him?"

Xiao Youzhi smiled and said, "What, are you afraid I'll steal your skills?"

Why can't you speak properly? Meng Zhao chuckled awkwardly, ignored him, and continued working on the fish in her hands.

Xiao Youzhi's gaze followed Meng Zhao's figure closely. She was wearing a fashionable dress and delicate hairpins. Her sleeves were rolled up, revealing a small section of her fair arm. She was holding a fish by the tail in one hand and spreading the prepared batter little by little on the fish's body.

I didn't find it vulgar at all; on the contrary, I found her earnest and focused expression extremely moving and beautiful.

Meng Zhao instructed Shen Yun to heat the oil in the wok. Holding the fish by the tail with one hand, she used the other hand to pry open the fish by its gills and belly, allowing each slice to separate. She then slowly placed half of the fish into the wok.

The gradually rising oil temperature made Meng Zhao feel a little uncomfortable, but he still didn't let go. He waited until the fish meat started to set before slowly letting go and putting the whole fish into the oil from head to tail.

Chen Xiaowu rushed in from outside and reported to Xiao Youzhi, "Young Master, Lord Wang has arrived. Mr. Li and Steward Sun have gone to greet him. Would you like to go and take a look as well?"

Xiao Youzhi did not move, but instead asked him to fetch something.

At this moment, Meng Zhao had already taken the fried carp out. Because of the different number of cuts on both sides, the fish body had a natural curved shape. Each piece of fish was covered in batter and opened up, making it look like it was flying upwards.

Meng Zhao was about to turn around to mix the sauce when Xiao Youzhi called out to her. Because her hands were still wet, she held up both hands and looked at him, as if asking, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Youzhi was about to raise his hand, but then paused, handed the thing in his hand to Shen Yun beside him, and leaned down to say a few words.

Shen Yun was completely confused, but she still picked up what he handed her and touched Meng Zhao's forehead.

Meng Zhao had already clearly seen what Shen Yun was holding—a wooden stick dipped in ink—and immediately asked, "What is this for?"

"Don't worry about that, just remember not to wipe it." With that, he left the small kitchen with his hands behind his back.

Meng Zhao felt something was off, but she couldn't worry about that now. The banquet was about to begin, and she had to get the dishes ready quickly.

Xiao Youzhi first changed his clothes before going to the private room of Chunfeng Tower. At this time, in addition to Mr. Li, who had been following him, and the manager of Chunfeng Tower, there was a man in his forties with a slightly plump figure sitting in the center of the room. This man was none other than today's distinguished guest - Lord Wang.