"Your boss is here?" Jiang Hua asked, somewhat surprised, noticing the suddenness of the visit.
"Yes, Miss Jiang, our boss just arrived this morning. He just got off the carriage and wanted to see you," Manager Bai explained as he stepped forward.
"Auntie, you and Ayi sit here and wait for me. I'll be right back," Jiang Hua said to Aunt Liu.
"Okay." Aunt Liu nodded somewhat nervously, then followed Sun Nian to a table to sit down and wait.
"Ah Yi, when did Hua Hua get to know the owner of Mingyue Tower?"
After Jiang Hua followed the shopkeeper up to the second floor, Aunt Liu looked at Jiang Jingyi and asked in a low voice.
"My stepmother's cooking is delicious." Jiang Jingyi remembered Jiang Hua cooking at Mingyue Tower before, so he told Aunt Liu about it.
"I see. Working as a cook at a grand restaurant like Mingyue Tower can earn you a good amount of money." Aunt Liu nodded.
"However, it's quite a distance from Xujia Village to the town, both ways."
Jiang Jingyi shook his head, only finding out when his stepmother returned.
"Master, Miss Jiang has arrived."
When Manager Bai pushed open the door, Jiang Hua saw a man dressed in white silk clothes resting on a soft couch in the private room.
Upon hearing Manager Bai's voice, the man immediately opened his eyes and looked at Jiang Hua. He then got up from the soft couch and gestured for her to sit down.
"Miss Jiang, please have a seat," Shen Qingchuan said.
“Master Shen, please have a seat.”
Soon, Manager Bai also brought in tea.
"Miss Jiang, I'm sure you understand why I asked you to bring this over today. So I'll get straight to the point," Shen Qingchuan said, taking a sip of tea.
“I’m not one to beat around the bush either, Mr. Shen, just say it directly,” Jiang Hua replied calmly.
"The two dishes you had Manager Bai send over before were quite popular in the capital, and with your secret blend of spices, many customers enjoyed them," Shen Qingchuan said, putting down his teacup.
"I heard from Manager Bai that you have a lot of cooking recipes, and the only way to get them is to share them."
"Then, Miss Jiang, how about we split it 20/80?" Shen Qingchuan asked Jiang Hua.
"Not good?" Jiang Hua said leisurely, "My requirement is a 30/70 split, I get 30% and you get 70%, and all the dishes I provided at Mingyue Tower at that time were made in this way."
"Including those secret spices?" Shen Qingchuan pondered for a moment, then asked.
"Seasoning? Then let's go for 40/60," Jiang Hua said directly.
"Miss Jiang's appetite is a bit too big?" Shen Qingchuan's expression hardened, and he chuckled as he spoke.
“Master Shen can choose to cooperate or not. I think Guangfulou across the street is also very interested in my recipe.”
"Miss Jiang, please don't be impulsive. Let's talk this over." Manager Bai immediately spoke up to ease the situation when he saw that things were getting out of hand.
"Go and fetch the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone," Shen Qingchuan said in a deep voice.
"Mr. Shen, cooperating with me won't be a loss for you," Jiang Hua said with a calm smile.
"If I have any good business opportunities in the future, I can ask Mr. Shen to cooperate with me."
"Do you have any other good business opportunities?" Shen Qingchuan asked dismissively.
"Of course there are. There are so many delicious foods in the world, and opening a restaurant isn't the only business option. There are barbecue, hot pot, and pastries, for example," Jiang Hua listed.
"There are products like rouge and lipstick, skincare products, and soap. Women's money is the easiest to earn. I'm sure Mr. Shen would agree with that."
A hint of surprise flashed in Shen Qingchuan's eyes as he looked at Jiang Hua. Had he underestimated this woman?
“Then if Miss Jiang does any business in the future, please include me as well,” Shen Qingchuan said quickly.
That's natural. The Shen family was a powerful and influential family in the capital, but in the end, they were outmaneuvered by the Ye family and wiped out. All their wealth ended up in the hands of the Ye family and the female lead.
“Definitely. After all, Young Master Shen is a straightforward person, and I don’t like to beat around the bush,” Jiang Hua said slowly.
"Since that's the case, it's settled then. I'll write this clause into the agreement later, stating that you can no longer do business with anyone outside the Shen family," Shen Qingchuan added.
"Sure," Jiang Hua readily agreed.
"Does Miss Jiang trust me so much?" Shen Qingchuan paused in writing the agreement, looked at Jiang Hua, and his eyes were full of scrutiny.
"Jiang Xingzhou mentioned me to you?"
"You know Jiang Xingzhou?" Jiang Hua asked in return.
Shen Qingchuan's expression hardened. It seemed as if Jiang Hua had come prepared, but judging from her expression, she didn't seem to be lying.
"That's all." Shen Qingchuan wrote out another copy of the agreement and handed it to Jiang Hua for review.
"What about funding for future business development?" Jiang Hua asked again.
"Our Shen family has that much money," Shen Qingchuan said dismissively.
"When the time comes, just ask Manager Bai for anything you need."
"Then thank you very much for your trust, Mr. Shen." After reading the agreement, Jiang Hua signed her name and pressed her fingerprint on it.
He then picked up the pen on the table, wrote down the recipes for four dishes, and handed them to Shen Qingchuan.
“You’ll need time to travel back and forth to the capital. When you do, I’ll write down the recipes for four dishes, and you can have Manager Bai deliver them to you later,” Jiang Hua said.
"Okay." Shen Qingchuan accepted it, glanced at it, and handed it over to Manager Bai to handle.
"I heard that the food that Miss Jiang sells at the market is very popular," Shen Qingchuan suddenly said.
"It's just some cheap food, not up to the standards of Mingyue Tower," Jiang Hua replied.
"However, we can try it with the same old trick but in a different form."
"Then, is that brine recipe also included in our cooperation?" Shen Qingchuan asked quickly.
"Guangfulou across the street has already got its eye on the braising liquid recipe before you have it," Jiang Hua said calmly.
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingchuan's eyes turned cold as he looked at Jiang Hua.
When did this happen?
"It's been a little over a month. I haven't set up my stall these past two days; I guess I've given up," Jiang Hua said casually.
“It’s impossible for him to give up. Guangfu Tower and Mingyue Tower have been fighting each other for so many years, and they’ve already both suffered heavy losses. There’s no point he’ll give up on. I guess he’s already sent a message to Ye Moumou,” Shen Qingchuan explained.
"They've gone to such lengths for a recipe for braised dishes," Jiang Hua said, taking a sip of tea.
"Then guess why I rushed here from the capital?" Shen Qingchuan said coldly.
"Then guess why I chose Mingyue Tower instead of Guangfu Tower?" Jiang Hua countered.
"Why?" Shen Qingchuan asked.
"The name of Mingyue Tower sounds better than that of Guangfu Tower," Jiang Hua said casually.
"Alright, that's enough for today. I'll talk to you about any good business opportunities I come across in the future."
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