Chapter 58
There were still many diners in the evening, so I won’t go into details. The silver sold was completely beyond Su Guoer’s expectations, and she made two taels of silver more than originally expected.
At this moment, the lights were just coming on, and Su Guoer had already ordered people to set up the braised meat stall and the pot sticker stall, and let Chunniang and Cui Niangzi look after them.
There were still a few tables of diners in the restaurant, and Li Si and she were busy serving them. As for the two apprentices, they were sent back first. They were not the shop assistants, so there was no need for them to stay in the shop like everyone else.
Now that all the dishes have been served, no one is ordering anymore. Most of the diners are sitting in the restaurant drinking tea, chatting and eating peanuts.
It seems that they regard this place as a place for them to communicate their feelings.
It's inevitable. People can only have some free time after the sun goes down. Who doesn't want to take a break?
Su Guoer and Li Si stood aside, doing their duty, and asked Li Si to come over when a guest needed more water.
"What is the shopkeeper selling in that big flat pot?" asked a round-faced cook.
Su Guoer recognized him. Just now, this man inadvertently revealed that he was also a cook and criticized the dishes of Su Guoer's family.
Cook, although he is a cook, he is very different from a cook.
It generally refers to a mobile chef who does not have a fixed place to cook. He will be invited to cook for any family that needs him, so as to make some profit.
Although she didn't know how good his cooking skills were, Su Guoer still rolled her eyes in her heart.
She thought this person was too arrogant, but she didn't show it on her face. After all, she was the shopkeeper. Those who came to give her money were all good people!
Su Guoer replied: "Mutton pot stickers can be eaten with wine, or with some pickles."
Su Guoer said this when she saw that their table was already filled with pickled vegetables she had made herself.
The round-faced cook frowned: "Pot stickers?"
"Why does it sound like the same name as the dumpling-like thing that Li Laoer has? How about trying a plate?"
Yunniang quickly brought over a plate and took the money.
The round-faced cook looked at it and said, "Hey, they look alike! I wonder which of you copied whom?"
Then he asked Su Guoer, "Do you know Li Laoer, the guy who sells mutton soup in the morning across from Mingyue Tower? The pot stickers he sells are exactly the same as yours!"
Others: "It's a bit similar, but I remember that Li Laoer's pot stickers were made with meat balls hanging next to the dumpling skin. They were not as complete and not as good-looking as this."
He took another bite. His eyes widened as he asked Su Guoer, "How long have you been selling these pot stickers?"
Su Guoer smiled and replied, "It's been at least five days." She didn't argue or say much.
The round-faced cook said, "Oh, now I know who copied whose. It turns out it was Li Lao Er who stole the trick? And he learned it in a weird way!"
He took a bite as well.
Commented: "Not only does it look different, it tastes a lot worse too!"
"Haha, now I know which shop to buy pot stickers from next time. That old Li is so arrogant, saying that these pot stickers are his own creation and can't be bought anywhere else. He's so arrogant!"
After that, they laughed and started talking about the interesting stories about Li Laoer.
It turned out that Li Laoer was also a cook in the past, and he and the round-faced man learned from the same master. However, Li Laoer had no talent for cooking, so he was kicked out by the master.
He was also unwilling to accept it and was jealous of the money he could make from selling snacks, so he started to study mutton soup on his own. Soon after, he opened a mutton soup and bun shop on the bank of the Bian River.
The food was so... not bad, just not tasty.
"But, this Li Lao Er really has a good vision. I remember when the Bian River was not yet open, there were not many people coming and going. He opened a soup shop here, and I laughed at him for being stupid! But later on, the Bian River was opened to boats."
"After goods from outside could be brought in, this intersection would be crowded with trackers and other laborers every day. With all this coming and going, he really had to guard the restaurant, didn't he?"
The round-faced man was talking, and Su Guoer was listening without interrupting, but she could hear a lot of gossip.
For example, the men at the east table were talking about the rising prices of eggs and mutton in the west of the city, while the men at the west table were talking about whether there were any new ways to get rich in Bianjing City.
Su Guoer also listened to it.
"Hey? I heard that Master Qi is still in jail?"
Another person said, "Of course not! The new commander of the Imperial City Bureau is incredibly powerful. He's determined to suppress someone even without sufficient evidence. Master Qi's second son is so angry that he's going to the palace gates tonight to beat drums and complain to His Majesty."
"Hehe, if we can't find any more evidence... Commander Pei will probably be dismissed from office."
"It's a pity that he won the third place in the imperial examination at such a young age, and was entrusted with important tasks and was highly valued by the government. If he is dismissed from office, I'm afraid Lord Qi and those he has offended will not forgive him."
"Isn't that possible? He is the prince of the Duke's Mansion after all."
"Who cares if you're the prince? You've offended so many people, so you can just find a pretext to get rid of them." "The problem is you can't necessarily find out who did it, and who to seek revenge on."
"Ah, then what should Prince Pei do?"
"What should we do? Of course, we must find evidence of Mr. Qi's smuggling."
The two of them had a great time talking and ordered another bottle of wine.
Su Guoer went over to serve them some wine, but the two men drank until their faces were red and their necks were thick, and they didn't care at all that she had passed by.
"Guess how much silver Lord Qi embezzled? Hiccup! At least... 200,000 taels!"
The man opposite held up two fingers and said, "Ah? 200,000 taels? So much? That Master Qi is really evil!"
"Black? So what? The people from the Imperial City Bureau went to investigate personally. They have all the evidence, except for the account book and the two hundred thousand taels of silver notes. But these two are the key evidence. Without them, no one can convict Master Qi! Not even the gods can do that!"
“………”The person opposite sighed.
He added, "People like this should be struck by lightning, but why is God so blind? He let them embezzle so much silver, and the people below are having a harder time. No wonder the price of mutton has gone up!"
Su Guoer: Hmm? There's no necessary connection between them, right? But if they say there is, then there is.
Su Guoer was satisfied with the gossip, so she turned around and walked outside, standing outside for a while.
There didn't seem to be as many people lining up to buy braised pork today as usual? Su Guo'er was a little puzzled. However, seeing that most of the braised pork had been eaten, she didn't think much of it, just thinking that it was the wrong time to come out and the crowd had already dispersed.
Anyway, no matter what, Su Guoer privately felt that her braised meat sold well and there would be no shortage of diners after it became famous.
She doesn't need to worry too much.
There are also pot stickers. After two days, they have actually attracted some diners. All the people who come to buy them are neatly dressed and have a dignified and polite demeanor. They look like servants and maids from wealthy families.
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