The pastries were exquisitely presented in a porcelain dish that Gu Yaoniang had bought from Lu Zhaoan. The flawless white jade container perfectly showcased the colors of the pastries.
Lu Zhaoan pointed to the golden-yellow, translucent, and soft cake-like pastry and asked, "What is this?"
That fragrance, which I had never smelled before, seemed to originate from this thing.
Gu Yaoniang glanced at it and replied with a smile, "Shark fin cake."
Seeing Lu Zhaoan's confusion, she said, "Shark fin cake is a new dessert that Jin Yu Lou will be offering next month. It is made by grinding the finest coconuts from the southern border into coconut milk, which is then mixed with eggs, brown sugar, and tapioca flour, fermented, and baked over a low flame."
Jinchuan, would you like to try some?
Lu Zhao'an picked up a piece with his chopsticks and saw that the shark fin cake lived up to its name, covered with holes resembling the pattern of shark fins. It was golden and soft, with one piece sticking to the next, making it extremely elastic.
He gently shook the chopsticks, put a piece of shark fin cake into his mouth, and a rich aroma burst in his mouth.
He looked at Gu Yaoniang: "How do you know so many strange and delicious foods?"
Gu Yaoniang chuckled softly: "Jinchuan, you're in business, and you've expanded into restaurants. As for me, I'm a foodie, so I started my business in restaurants."
She pointed to the shark fin cake on the plate and said, "Coconut milk is precious. A serving of shark fin cake consists of four pieces and is priced at five hundred coins."
Lu Zhaoan remained silent. Although the price wasn't very expensive, it didn't seem to have anything to do with Gu Yaoniang's claim that Jinyulou was going to be an affordable restaurant.
But he didn't say anything, only saying, "One hundred portions is still a bit too few."
Gu Yaoniang feigned surprise, covered her mouth with her fan, and whispered, "Really?"
After thinking for a moment, he said, "Well... it's fine now, but as Jin Yu Lou produces more and more dishes in the future, a total of only one hundred servings is indeed a bit too few."
"Only one hundred servings in total?"
Lu Zhaoan found it unbelievable, and his voice rose.
Gu Yaoniang nodded, and seeing that Lu Zhaoan's expression seemed genuinely unpleasant, she said seriously, "It's not that I'm intentionally making things difficult, but Jin Yu Lou can only produce so much each day. Naturally, there's less that can be sold to you. Even so, if you want it, you'll have to let me know two days in advance."
At this moment, she showed no trace of the teasing she had been deliberately making earlier, and was very sincere: "Boss Lu, I know you have helped me a lot. If you want it, I can make it and even earn your money. It's a win-win situation, so why would I make things difficult for you?"
She said this for two reasons: firstly, she was indeed a little unhappy earlier and wanted to say something sarcastic; secondly, Jin Yu Lou really couldn't make that many pastries.
Lu Zhaoan pondered in silence for a long while before asking again, "Yaoniang, I really want to do this business with you. I do have an idea, would you like to hear it?"
Gu Yaoniang nodded naturally.
"I know you want Jin Yu Lou's pastries to always sell out, so that people in the city will crave them every day, isn't that right?"
Gu Yaoniang nodded.
Lu Zhaoan continued, "Since you release new products every month, it's right that you keep them for yourself to sell."
Gu Yaoniang was speechless. Did men always start acting like teachers after a few words?
Lu Zhaoan did not see what Yao Niang was thinking at this moment, and continued, "You will not sell it next month, give it to me at Zuiyuelou."
The beautiful woman stopped waving her fan and sat up straight: "Impossible."
Lu Zhaoan reasoned with her: "If you sell it to me, I'll buy it back at three times the price. Wouldn't you make a much bigger profit?"
Yao Niang naturally knew that this statement made sense. But she didn't believe that Lu Zhao'an would do something so thankless and arduous.
Seeing her disbelief, Lu Zhaoan did the math with her: "Think about it, take this ham pastry for example. If your cost is fifty coins, you can only make fifty coins per pastry when you sell it to customers; but if you sell it to me, you can make two hundred and fifty coins. And even if I do as you say, I can make two hundred coins. Isn't that a win-win situation?"
Gu Yaoniang thought it made sense. But she still felt that Lu Zhaoan must have set a trap.
Lu Zhaoan patiently explained, "If you want everyone to be able to enjoy delicious food, then for the first month, those who want to eat it can do so at a reasonable price. After that, it's not that you can't eat it; you can eat it at my place, it just costs a little more. This is beneficial for me, for you, and for our customers. Isn't it?"
Gu Yaoniang couldn't think of anything wrong with it or how to refute it, so she could only nod.
Seeing Yao Niang nod, Lu Zhao'an pressed his advantage: "Then what are you hesitating for? From now on, I'll definitely support Jin Yu Lou's new pastries, and I guarantee that I'll order no less than a thousand portions every month, ensuring you make a profit. However..."
He paused, seemingly hesitant.
Gu Yaoniang couldn't stand hearing someone say something only half-finished, so she pressed on, "But what?"
"However, could you sell it only to me? Please don't sell it to any other restaurants in the city. After all, we're all here because this dessert is unique in the city."
Lu Zhaoan was very good at understanding the psychology of negotiation. At this moment, he had already taken the position of the two-person alliance and began to make plans.
Yao Niang gritted her teeth: "Okay, but it has to be for more money. Fifty taels more per month."
Lu Zhaoan's previously confident expression cracked – fifty taels a month, they really dared to ask for that much!
Seeing his hesitation, Gu Yaoniang mimicked his tone: "Actually, it doesn't necessarily have to be more money. Jinchuan, you can just send me some wine every month."
What kind of wine?
"It's those signature wines from your Zuiyuelou. Not many, just twenty jars of each kind per month, that'll be fine."
Now it was Lu Zhaoan's turn to grit his teeth. He quickly did a mental calculation: it would be better to just take fifty taels of silver!
He decisively replied, "I'll give you the money."
Gu Yaoniang shook her head at this moment: "I just want wine."
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