Buy Recipe
"Ding! You have redeemed five elixirs. 50 points will be deducted from your account. Your current points are 58."
He Yingchun put the five elixirs into a small porcelain bottle and held it in his palm until he was sweating.
Before dawn, He Yingchun took the bag, which contained dried meat, meatballs, fried fruits, some warm clothes, some bandages and wound medicine. "These should be enough." She checked again and again.
"That's enough, definitely enough." Wen Jingzhao held the bundle in his hand, which was quite heavy.
"This medicine can save your life if taken in an emergency, but it will only work for you." He Yingchun handed the porcelain bottle to Wen Jingzhao, who put it in his arms.
"Remember to take one if you are fatally wounded." There was worry on He Yingchun's face. Swords and knives have no eyes, and you may be hit if you are not careful.
"Okay." Wen Jingzhao said solemnly. He put his arm around He Yingchun, cupped her cheek, and squeezed it gently. "Don't worry, I'll be back in a few days."
He Yingchun saw Wen Jingzhao off. The two held hands tightly, sweating from the grip. "Don't see me off. It's inconvenient for you to go to the military camp. Wait for me at home."
Wen Jingzhao asked her to go back. He Yingchun pretended to turn around, but she turned around after taking two steps. Wen Jingzhao looked at her with his arms folded.
"You go first, I'll watch you go!" said He Yingchun.
Wen Jingzhao smiled helplessly, "Okay, come back soon." He walked away, his back becoming blurry. He Yingchun wiped her eyes and quickly returned. On the way, she ran into Liu Xia, "Hey, Yingchun, why are you here so early? Didn't you go to the stall?"
He Yingchun nodded, "Yeah, I'm going out to do something. Auntie is out so early?"
Liu Xia nodded, glanced around, and whispered, "Oh, by the way, I have to tell you something. Mrs. Liu and her family are also going to set up a stall in the East Market. I guess they saw that you are selling well, so you should be careful not to tell them the recipe."
"Okay, thank you, Auntie! I'll be careful. We don't see each other that often on weekdays. I'll go back first. Auntie will still come to your house to get the eggs tomorrow!"
"Okay, I'll wait for you!"
Sure enough, Liu Xia was right. He Yingchun went out to set up a stall during the day, and when she came back in the evening, she saw Liu Pozi at the door with a basket of eggs.
"Hey, Yingchun is back!"
"Grandma Liu, why are you outside in such a cold day? Is something wrong?" He Yingchun and her mother were pushing the cart. Grandma Liu kept looking into the cart. He Yingchun was afraid that the ingredients would be dirty by the dirt, so she covered them with a thick cloth. Her mother pulled the cloth, and Grandma Liu embarrassedly looked away.
"Is there something wrong?" He Yingchun didn't open the door. She had heard a little about what Mrs. Liu said behind her back, but she didn't want to get too close to her. So she stood at the door and asked, "We have a dog at home, and it's a bit fierce."
"Hey, didn't I hear that you set up a stall in the East Market? I heard that business is pretty good, so I wanted to ask you how you make your roujiamo. My daughter-in-law also wants to set up a stall there, and as a neighbor on our street, we can help out." She handed the egg to He Yingchun.
"These eggs are different from other eggs. They're big and have double yolks! I've saved up quite a few these days and brought them all over!"
There was straw under the eggs, which looked like a lot, but if you looked closely, there wasn't much at all. She acted like you guys were getting a great deal.
Why is your face so big?
Mum sneered and took Mrs. Liu in her arms. "Ah, Aunt Liu, you have so many eggs! It's a pity that our family recipe is inherited from our ancestors and cannot be passed on to outsiders. Aunt Liu, we can't accept these eggs."
"No! It took me a lot of effort to get this." Mrs. Liu pushed it to give it to them.
"Look, it's getting late, let's go back first!"
Mrs. Liu didn't get the recipe, and was turned away. She stomped her feet with the egg in her hand and spat at the door, "Pah! It's an heirloom, but who knows where you got it from? You old fool!"
If one day doesn't work, try two days. Mrs. Liu tried to persuade He Yingchun several days a year, but she never succeeded. The main reason was that the mother was the best at dealing with such shameless people. You just followed her words and beat around the bush, but she just wouldn't agree.
He Yingchun gave her mother a thumbs up, saying, "You are awesome."
"Don't you see how many years your mother has worked in the General's Mansion?"
I don’t know what’s going on these past two days, but someone comes to ask for the recipe every few days.
He Yingchun was about to close the stall when a tall and thin man, not very old, with a pale face and a somewhat frail appearance, came in. Next to him was a slightly plump middle-aged man with a very respectful look.
A master and a servant, He Yingchun judged, "Two roujiamo, please?"
"We want to..."
"Yes, give me two roujiamo." The young man stopped the middle-aged man.
These two people look a little familiar, He Yingchun thought as she made roujiamo.
"Your roujiamo, 16 cents!" He Yingchun took the money.
The two men did not leave. The young man did not eat a single bite, but the middle-aged man was eating with relish.
Seeing He Yingchun looking at the two people, the middle-aged man swallowed a mouthful of meat and said, "He doesn't eat outside. It's not that your food is not tasty."
He Yingchun used to think that eating out was tasteless, but after going hungry a few times, all the problems were gone.
"It's okay, come back if you're satisfied with the meal!"
Two more groups of guests came and left, but the two men were still there. He Yingchun looked at their backs and felt that they looked more and more familiar. Her eyes fell on the pattern on the young man's sleeve.
I remember it!
During those two days, she saw someone staring at this side. One was tall, one was short, one was fat, one was thin. They were exactly these two people.
"I'll go and talk to him." Zhuang Rui took a step forward and Heng Yusheng nodded.
"My dear, you're selling roujiamo here, working from dawn to dusk. How much can you make in a day?"
He Yingchun wiped his hands and said with a smile, "It's a business secret."
"My dear lady, this is Heng Yusheng, the owner of Jiangyue Tower. My name is Zhuang Rui. I came here today sincerely to discuss business with you." Zhuang Rui explained his purpose in a low voice.
"Today we want to buy your Roujiamo recipe. We're offering you 500 taels for the recipe, but on the condition that you don't sell it to anyone else, and you can't resell it yourself."
500 taels, to He Yingchun now, it really sounds like a good price. Prices in Zhuyi are lower than in the capital. This price is not enough for a luxurious life, but it is more than enough for an ordinary family to live a stable life.
"What do you think, young lady? Do you want to consider it?" Zhuang Rui saw He Yingchun's eyes light up when she heard 500 taels, and thought there was a chance.
He Yingchun was only tempted by the money for a moment. She carried the cutting board into the car and said, "You are too kind to me. It seems that my roujiamo is really delicious."
Zhuang Rui nodded, "Yes, it's delicious!"
"But I'm not selling it," He Yingchun added.
Zhuang Rui's smile froze on his face.
"800 taels." Heng Yusheng spoke behind him. His voice was clear and as gentle as raindrops falling on the water. His name was as his as his name, Yusheng.
He just spoke weakly and looked malnourished. Zhuang Rui pulled him back when he heard this, as if he felt it was too much.
800 taels? It seems that running a restaurant is really profitable.
He Yingchun smiled and waved her hand, "No, I really won't sell it."
"No, young lady, if you miss this opportunity, you will never get it again." Zhuang Rui said in a threatening tone.
Mom pulled He Yingchun, and she also felt that this was something worth considering.
He Yingchun shook her head and covered the cart with a thick cloth.
"1,000 taels." Heng Yusheng said, his voice was not loud, but it was loud and clear.
He pulled the cart and looked at He Yingchun.
"Boss!" Zhuang Rui felt that the price he offered was too high. He thought 500 taels was too much.
"I'm not refusing. I only have one secret recipe for this Roujiamo, from rolling the dough to stewing the meat. I can tell you right now."
"What?" Zhuang Rui asked impatiently.
"I do it myself." Everyone's cooking has their own flavor. Even the pie crust made by her mother is different from hers. What's more, she has to put half a bottle of spiritual spring water in every pot of meat. He Yingchun spread her hands. Does she have to give them a wave of spiritual spring water every once in a while? The cost is too high for her.
"No, that's all. You young lady don't want to sell it. Do you think it's fun to play tricks on people like this?" Zhuang Rui was a little annoyed. They have been running the restaurant for so long and have bought some recipes, big and small. As long as their boss takes a look at it, they can restore it 1:1.
"Forget it, Uncle Zhuang, let's go." Heng Yusheng coughed and bowed to He Yingchun, "Sorry to bother you, boss." He looked polite, but not like a businessman.
"It's okay!" He Yingchun returned the greeting.
Zhuang Rui bowed and followed Heng Yusheng reluctantly.
A small episode, He Yingchun lamented that he had missed out on 1,000 taels, and then continued to set up a stall to sell roujiamo.
After that day, Zhuang Rui came to see He Yingchun alone and waited for her for a long time. This time his attitude was much more sincere than last time, and he was very humble.
"Boss, I'm telling you the truth. We, the owner, want to sell Roujiamo in Jiangyuelou and show the production process. In simple terms, we want to move your set here to Jiangyuelou and let customers see the process."
He Yingchun nodded. Isn't that an open kitchen? Heng Yusheng really has some ideas.
"The dishes in this area are changed regularly. The owner has selected many dishes. One day, he passed by here and smelled the aroma of roujiamo, so he asked someone to buy one. He tasted it and praised it highly, so he wanted to make roujiamo the first dish... It's not really a dish... Anyway, you understand what I mean." Zhuang Rui said as he bought a roujiamo.
After taking the roujiamo home and eating it with great praise, He Yingchun thought about the sick young man that day and shook her head. She couldn't remember the man, she really couldn't remember the man.
"Forget it. If you change your mind, just come to Jiangyue Tower and ask for roujiamo. Someone will take you to see the boss and give me two more roujiamo to take away." He ate one and then put another one in his arms.
He Yingchun reasonably suspected that he came to buy the recipe in order to eat roujiamo every day.
"Hey, I see that guy has come several times. What does he want to see you for?" Fatty Liu came to buy Roujiamo and asked casually.
"It's okay, come and buy some roujiamo." He Yingchun didn't say much.
"That seems to be the manager of Jiangyue Tower. Jiangyue Tower was almost bankrupted by Zhuanmei Pavilion, but he still has the mind to buy Roujiamo." Fatty Liu smacked his lips.
"What broke down?" He Yingchun asked him curiously.
"It's Yuzhuantang. Jiangyuelou was originally a long-established place, but a new restaurant called Zhuanmei Pavilion opened up. The prices are low and the portions are large. Anyway, many of Jiangyuelou's customers have gone to Yuzhuantang. I heard that they even poached their chef. I heard that the owner of Jiangyuelou is so anxious that he wants to renovate and spruce up the place."
Fatty Liu had been in Zhuyi for many years and had a wide network of contacts and a lot of gossip. The two chatted for a while, and then he hurried back because he had a guest.
He Yingchun wondered if Heng Yusheng's focus on this open stall was due to her desire to turn the tide, perhaps relying on her roujiamo (Chinese roujiamo)? He Yingchun nodded and smiled, her vision was good.
Originally, the matter was over here, but one day it snowed and He Yingchun struggled to get up from the kang. After all, she was going to make money, so no matter the wind or snow, she could not stop him.
Not long after arriving at the food stall, three burly men came over. He Yingchun took a quick look and wondered if they were the men from the gambling house. Why were they released so quickly?
"Roujiamo, right?"
He Yingchun nodded.
"I heard that Heng Yusheng has been here?" The leading man looked at He Yingchun with a scoundrel look.
He Yingchun felt that something was wrong and that he was here to cause trouble.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
