The two of them wrote and signed the deed. Dong thought about it in great detail, with many rules and regulations, and tried to take almost no advantage of Xu Qinyu. The right to use the Donglaiju restaurant was decided by Xu Qinyu. If any of the Dong family members had any ill intentions, they would compensate Xu Qinyu with a large sum of money.
After signing the contract, the two of them went to Donglaiju together.
Xu Qinyu went over to check if there was anything that needed to be changed in Donglai Residence.
Donglai Ju is a four-story building, which has one more floor than the three-story attic shop she originally wanted to find.
The halls on the first and second floors are much larger than Xu's.
The third and fourth floors are wing rooms.
Donglaiju was renovated two years ago. The reception hall and the side rooms remain unchanged and are decorated in an elegant and grand style. The windows are large and bright.
Xu Qinyu went to take a look at the kitchen again. It was also very clean and tidy. The only thing that needed to be modified was the cooking table.
The stove is a bit insufficient, but Xu Ji has more stoves and steamers, so we can move them over when the time comes.
The cooking table has been changed into a long L-shape with a connected sink, making it more convenient to cut, wash and prepare vegetables.
In addition, we can build three baking ovens like Xu’s, so that we can use them for dishes such as grilled lamb chops and drying food in the future, which is very convenient.
Xu Qinyu talked to Dong about it.
Dong said, "This change can be made quickly, in just ten days. That's a good ten days to get the signs for Xu's Restaurant and Donglaiju up. During these ten days, Donglaiju will put up a sign saying it's temporarily closed for ten days while it undergoes renovations."
By then, a large signboard with the words "Xu's Restaurant" will be hung on the main entrance of the restaurant, and a small signboard with the words "Donglaiju" will be hung next to it.
Xu Qinyu nodded and told Dong how to build the oven, and Dong took note of it.
Dong added, "There's no need to alert anyone else during these ten days. Madam Xu, just open your business as usual and move in directly when the time comes."
Xu Qinyu also thought it was a good idea. Xu Ji had many old customers. She could tell them when she moved and then hang a sign outside Xu Ji to clearly state the address. Then the customers would know where to eat.
Xu Qinyu explained the details of the cooking table and the water oven to Dong, and then went back.
After Xu Qinyu left, Dong also told the chef, assistants and servants of Donglaiju that she wanted to renovate the kitchen and asked them to go home and rest for ten days. Then she discussed with Dong Xi the specific areas that needed to be changed.
Dong Xi also nodded, "Okay, then mother, go back and rest. I'll take care of this."
Dong also felt a little sorry for her son, because because of Yue Youwei's incident, Xi Ge'er grew up almost in an instant.
After Xu Qinyu returned, she talked about the merger of Xu Ji and Donglai Ju when she had dinner with Xu Ji's kitchen helpers and the three waitresses. Naturally, everyone listened to her and thought that the Dong family was very kind. This condition could be said to be giving Donglai Ju to Xu Ji for full use, as well as the chefs and helpers of Donglai Ju, without charging any money.
The reason why Xu Qinyu agreed to merge with the Dong family was that after she moved to Raozhou City, she would not be able to take care of Xu Ji in Yuanbao Town and it would have to be taken care of by other people. Now that she had the Dong family, she could hand over Xu Ji to them in the future.
As for the profit share, she hardly had to pay anything because the recipe accounted for 70%, which was indeed a great bargain for her.
After the restaurant opens and is handed over to the Dong family to manage, we can discuss the profit sharing with the Dong family again. A 50-50 split would be fairer to the Dong family.
Afterwards, Xu Qinyu told this matter to her family, but not to anyone else. She continued to do what she was supposed to do every day, and didn't even tell the diners.
At Donglaiju, the next morning, Dongxi had someone hang a sign outside saying that the business would be closed for ten days, and began looking for craftsmen and tilers to renovate the kitchen, and also to find someone to build the kiln.
A few days later, Shi Laoba came to see Xu Qinyu again and asked her what she thought.
This time, Xu Qinyu refused directly, saying, "The Shi family is trying to embarrass me. The restaurant in Raozhou City requires a minimum investment of 50,000 to 60,000 taels of silver just for the initial construction. You're trying to take over my business share for 200 taels of silver. I'll be laughed at if I tell anyone, so I'm afraid it won't work. Besides, the Shi family said they want to raise the rent, but the contract I signed with Madam Yao also states that there will be no rent increase. Even if I sue the government, the Shi family won't give me a reason to raise the rent. Since things have come to this, I'm thinking that when the shop's lease expires at the beginning of next year, I won't renew it."
When Shi Laoba heard this, his face changed and he couldn't help but say, "Ms. Xu, this is not very kind. You have rented a shop from me for three years, and the rent is cheaper than other shops. Why are you still throwing a tantrum?"
Xu Qinyu frowned, "Is it considered a temper if I don't want you, Mr. Shi, to take over my restaurant business shares worth tens of thousands of taels of silver for just two hundred taels of silver?"
Shi Laoba said angrily: "This is my shop. I can raise the rent if I want. Since you don't want to rent it, my shop is a prosperous shop."
Wen, who was listening from the side, saw him glaring at Yu Niang and became a little anxious. She couldn't help but step forward to stop Yu Niang and said, "How can you be like this? How did this shop become so popular? It's because my Yu Niang's cooking is good, which attracts many diners to eat here. That's why your shop has become so popular. And if you are so unreasonable and want to raise the rent, it should start from next year. After all, the rent is due at the beginning of the year."
Previously, rent was paid annually, so it was not due until the beginning of the year.
"In that case, the rent next year will be twenty taels of silver per month." Shi Laoba said directly.
Wen was stunned, unable to believe her ears. How could he dare to ask for twenty taels of silver a month? The rent for a shop like this was usually five taels of silver a month, which was considered high. It was usually an annual rent of around fifty taels of silver, but he was asking for two hundred and forty taels a year. Wasn't it obvious that he thought Xu's business was booming and was asking for an exorbitant sum?
Xu Qinyu said, "I said I won't rent it next year. It's up to you, boss, to decide how much you want to raise the rent."
Shi Laoba said directly, "If you don't want to rent it anymore, then move out now."
He didn't believe that Miss Xu would give up the profit of several hundred taels of silver every month. If she wanted to move, she would not be able to find a suitable shop for a while. By the time the shop was renovated, most of the diners would have left and gone to other restaurants and hotels to eat. It would not be easy to attract diners again.
He still felt that his shop was a little unlucky for Xu Qinyu. Although Miss Xu's cooking skills were indeed good, luck was also very important.
Xu Qinyu said, "The lease won't start until next year, so I won't move now. If you, Mr. Shi, continue to make trouble, I'll report you to the police."
Shi Laoba was a little angry and was about to continue arguing with Xu Qinyu when he saw someone walking by. He looked up and saw it was Xu Kongmu, who should be coming to Xu's Restaurant. Shi Laoba didn't dare to offend Xu Kongmu. He glanced at Xu Qinyu and said, "Okay, wait a few days and I will talk to Miss Xu about it." After that, he left in a hurry.
After he had run away, Xu Kongmu had just reached the door of Xu's. Seeing Xu Qinyu pursing her lips and Wen Shi also looking angry, he couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"
He came to pick up the soup. It was noon now and Mr. Xu was taking a break. He had ordered soup from Miss Xu yesterday.
The weather is getting cold, so Xu Ji made a soup, pork tripe and chicken soup. The soup base is rich and sweet, and you will feel warm after drinking it. His daughter-in-law gave birth to a little granddaughter a few days ago, so he, who is usually serious, has been smiling unconsciously recently.
His daughter-in-law is still in confinement after the birth of her baby. Now everyone in the family is taking care of her and she rarely goes out. The family is also quite frugal on weekdays and only comes to Xu Ji to eat occasionally. Because his daughter-in-law had just finished the confinement after the birth of her baby, he ordered pork tripe and chicken soup from Miss Xu and brought it back for his daughter-in-law to eat in the evening.
As soon as he came over, he saw Shi Lao Ba running away in disgrace, and saw that Miss Xu and Wen both looked a little angry, so he asked.
Wen couldn't help but say, "Xu Kongmu doesn't know that Shi Laoba is really a bully. He wanted to invest two hundred taels of silver in Yu Niang's restaurant in Raozhou City, but Yu Niang didn't agree. Now he proposed raising the rent, demanding twenty taels of silver a month. My Yu Niang doesn't want to rent this shop anymore and said she won't rent it next year. Now he wants to kick us out now." In fact, she also knew that Shi Laoba was just saying that out of anger and would not really kick anyone out. She also thought they were joking and didn't really want to move out.
Xu Kongmu frowned upon hearing this. "I remember you two signed a contract, Miss Xu. If he comes to harass us again, go to the government office and report him. I will come and take him to the government office immediately."
Because the contract was signed, it had legal effect, so Shi Laoba was violating the law and would be punished with a beating.
Xu Qinyu nodded and said, "Thank you, Xu Kongmu, but it won't be long. In a few days, Xu's Restaurant will move to Donglaiju."
Xu Kongmu was stunned for a moment, "What does Miss Xu mean..."
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "Yes, from now on, Xu's Restaurant will merge with Donglaiju into one. When we reopen, we will invite Xu Kongmu to our restaurant for a banquet."
Xu Kongmu. "Congratulations, it will be over in due time."
Xu Qinyu also said: "I am very happy. I heard that your daughter-in-law gave birth to a daughter, and you got a little granddaughter."
Xu Kongmu couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips again, it seemed that he really liked his little granddaughter.
After a few more words, Xu Qinyu returned to the kitchen and brought out the stewed pig stomach and chicken soup, handing it to Xu Kongmu. Naturally, she did not accept any money, and said, "I have a good relationship with Yunlan. Yunlan's sister-in-law is also my sister-in-law. My sister-in-law is in confinement after childbirth, and I am busy and cannot visit her. I would like to ask you to bring this pig stomach and chicken soup to her. If she wants anything else, please come and tell me."
She has been with Xu Kongmu's youngest daughter Xu Yunlan for three years and now they have become very good friends.
After Xu Kongmu thanked him, he left with the soup.
When he returned, he gave the chicken soup to his wife Xiang.
The chicken soup is still boiling hot. Take it to the kitchen and serve some to your daughter-in-law.
Xu Kongmu told Xiang about Shi Lao Ba's affairs. Xiang frowned and said, "Is Shi Lao Ba crazy? What does he think? His wife lets him do this?"
Xu Kongmu said, "The Yao family probably doesn't know that he is making such a fuss."
You have to know that the shops were all owned by the Yao family. When Shi Laoba married Yao, he was an old bachelor without a penny and only had a shabby house in the village, not Yuanbao Town.
Xiang couldn't help but say, "Why doesn't Miss Xu talk to Yao and explain things clearly?"
Xu Kongmu said, "She knew her husband's moral character, but still did not persuade him to do so. She also bears some responsibility. If Miss Xu continues to rent her shop, there will definitely be trouble in the future. So Miss Xu plans to move Xu's to Donglaiju, seemingly merging the two families into one."
Xiang was a little surprised when he heard this. "Isn't Donglaiju a century-old brand in Yuanbao Town? They're actually willing to merge with Xu's? Will it be Xu's or Donglaiju in the future?"
"It should be Xu's signboard." Xu Kongmu also felt that the Dong family was quite courageous. They could even merge the century-old brand left by their ancestors. Donglaiju might have a different future in the future.
The Xu family was chatting about family matters, and Shi Laoba also went back. Seeing this, Yao Shi hurriedly asked, "Master, has Miss Xu agreed?"
Shi Laoba cursed, "She agreed to nothing and even threatened me that she would not rent our shop anymore."
"How could that be? Miss Xu shouldn't be that kind of person..."
Yao felt something was not right.
Shi Laoba cursed loudly, "I just think you're easy to talk to. If it were me, you should have a tougher temper. Why are you apologizing to her all day? We rented our shop to her at a few taels of silver, and it's okay for us to go to her to get some food occasionally. You still have to apologize to her and give her money. This makes her think we're easy to bully. If the rent is slightly increased, she threatens to stop renting to us. If she really dares not rent to us, I will take her surname. She is just threatening us."
Yao said, "Why don't I go over and talk to Miss Xu. Since you're not willing to invest two thousand taels of silver in Xu's business, we certainly won't raise the rent."
Shi Laoba said, "Why not raise the rent? We have been giving her a discount for three years. It's time to raise it. Okay, stop talking. I'll decide this."
"Master!" Yao still disagreed with the rent increase. "We can't go back on our word. We've already signed the contract. If we raise the rent, Miss Xu will sue us at the government office and we'll be beaten with a stick."
Shi Laoba was stunned for a moment, and couldn't help cursing: "We can set any rent for our shop as we want. Why do you have to beat us with a stick?" But his tone was still a little weak.
It is obvious that he has no understanding of the law and thinks the deed is just for show.
Yao said, "I didn't try to trick you, sir. The deed has been signed, and the government has stamped it with its official seal. It's a legal obligation, and we certainly can't just raise the rent as we please."
Shi Laoba was speechless now.
But Yao was too embarrassed to go to Xu Qinyu's house to apologize, so it was delayed for a few days.
However, before Yao arrived, a few days later, the kitchen of Donglai Residence had been repaired.
The day after tomorrow would be pretty good, it would be an auspicious day. Xu Qinyu planned to move all of Xu’s things to Donglaiju the day after tomorrow.
So when entertaining the guests the next day, the waitresses told them, "Dear guests, our restaurant will be moving tomorrow. From now on, please eat at the new restaurant."
The diners were a little surprised, "Why so sudden?"
Yuan smiled and said, "The restaurant is a bit small after all, so our shopkeeper is thinking of moving to a bigger restaurant."
"So where did it move to?"
Yuan said, "We've moved to Donglaiju. Xuji Restaurant will merge with Donglaiju into one, retaining all of Xuji's food and Donglaiju's signature dishes. Whether you want to eat Xuji's food or Donglaiju's signature dishes, it will be the same. It will be more convenient. The place is large and spacious, so you won't have to squeeze as much as you did at Xuji. There will be more chefs and kitchen helpers there, so the food will be served faster and you won't have to wait in line."
When everyone heard this, they were delighted.
Among them are many gentry and wealthy people. They like to eat at Xu Ji, but they think Xu Ji is too small and a bit crowded. If the food at Xu Ji was not really delicious, they really would not be willing to eat at such a small place.
If they move to Donglaiju, it will indeed be much more convenient. The space alone is spacious enough. Many of them used to be diners at Donglaiju and are used to eating there.
"That's great, let's move quickly. We can go over and eat tomorrow."
Yuan smiled and said, "Yes, we'll move tomorrow. Our boss said that the food for the first three days will be 80% of the price."
Everyone was naturally happier. Xu Ji’s food usually didn’t have discounts, but since the store was moving tomorrow, it was rare for it to be cheaper.
Xu Qinyu was still making tiger skin peanuts in the back.
This is also a fresh food. It can be used as a snack before meals, as a separate snack, or as a side dish with wine. However, it is currently in the trial stage and will be a menu item at the restaurant in the future.
This is quite troublesome to make, but you can make a lot at a time, which can save a lot of effort. The process is relatively complicated. You need to make the seasoning paste first, then make the syrup, and then sprinkle the paste with powder. That is, pour the peanuts into the boiling pot, coat them with syrup, and then sprinkle with glutinous rice flour. This is the most difficult part. The powder on the peanut skin must be well coated without sticking. Finally, the rolled peanuts have to be dried and then added with the seasoning paste made at the beginning and stirred. The seasoning paste is evenly coated and can be taken out of the pot when the color is uniform.
This tiger skin peanut tastes crispy, sweet and is a sweet peanut.
She also made another kind of tiger skin peanuts with a strange flavor. The process was the same, but she did not use syrup, but a strange-flavored syrup.
After making tiger skin peanuts with strange and sweet flavors, each table is served a stack of sweet and strange flavors for dinner, so that diners can help taste them.
This was her first time seasoning, so naturally she had to ask the diners to help her taste it.
But diners who have tried it just think it is delicious. Even ordinary peanuts can be made to taste so different and delicious by Xu Ji.
Xu Qinyu could still sense that something was not quite satisfactory about the taste. The crispiness was sufficient, but the ratio of sweetness to the strange taste was a little off. She would make two more pots after moving to Donglaiju tomorrow.
As for the two flavors, some people like the sweet taste, while others like the strange taste. In fact, both taste good, but depending on your own taste, you will prefer the sweet or salty taste.
While delivering peanuts, Yuan and the others also told Mu's diners that the restaurant was going to move to Donglai Ju and merge with Donglai Ju, and asked everyone to help spread the word. Naturally, everyone agreed.
After finishing their evening meal, Yuan and the others cleaned the kitchen, and Dong Xi also sent people over to move away Xu's stove, pots, pans, all the kitchen utensils, as well as tables, chairs and benches.
The shop was empty at first, and now that Xu Qinyu was moving out, she naturally moved all the things inside with her.
Even after moving all the things away, Xu Qinyu asked someone to clean the shop thoroughly before leaving.
After finishing the work here, Xu Qinyu wrote a sign and hung it at the door to inform everyone that Xu Ji had moved and merged with Donglai Ju.
As for the braised fish, fish head and fish balls, Xu Qinyu still has no intention of giving them up even after moving to Donglaiju. This can be regarded as a signature dish of Xu Ji. Even those diners who are not short of money like them very much and occasionally order a braised fish or fish head and fish balls to eat.
After doing all this, Xu Qinyu, Wen and Ning Jie'er returned home.
Xu Ji will reopen tomorrow. Xu Qinyu is still a little excited, but she is still very confident in her skills and the apprentices she taught. Tomorrow, the chef and the assistant chef at Donglai Ju will also have to learn the skills from her and try to learn how to cook Xu Ji's food as soon as possible so that she can take care of the restaurant.
Dong has also talked to the chef and kitchen helpers of Donglaiju, telling them that Donglaiju will merge with Xuji, and the restaurant will no longer be called Donglaiju, but Xuji. If they are willing to stay in Xuji, they can naturally learn cooking from Miss Xu, but at least within five years, they cannot leave Xuji and cannot sell the dishes they learned from Xuji to others.
The chef and kitchen helpers of Donglaiju were naturally very willing to do so. They also knew about Miss Xu's cooking skills. If it weren't for the fact that they had worked in Donglaiju for many years, they would also want to learn those cooking skills from Miss Xu. Now that they don't have to become her apprentices, and she is willing to teach them so many dishes, how could they not be willing, especially since they only have five years.
Later they learned that no matter whether they wanted to open a snack stall or a restaurant, no one would stop them. This was a great opportunity, so naturally they were reluctant to leave.
Xu Qinyu returned to Laixi Lane and fell asleep quickly that night.
If the business opens tomorrow and everything goes well, she will have to start making cured ham after a while.
Last year, she pickled 800 fish, which had been pickled for a year and were almost ready to eat. She planned to keep 300 fish and eat them raw for another year. However, she kept a small portion of the 100 fish pickled in the first year, which had also been pickled for two years. The fermentation conditions were better and they were almost ready to be eaten raw. She planned to eat one raw to taste the flavor during the Chinese New Year.
We will definitely have to pickle more this year because the restaurant will open next year.
In the future, this ham might be able to be made into a business like wine. If there is enough, it can be shipped to other states for sale.
But she has to wait until the restaurant opens, otherwise she will have too much to do.
This year she plans to make more than a thousand hams, half more than last year.
The next morning, Xu Qinyu got up, washed, and went to Donglai with Wen.
Donglaiju has a dedicated shopkeeper, so Wen won't have to run around anymore. But Wen is used to following Yu Niang around, so she plans to go to Donglaiju to see if there's anything she can do to help.
When I drove the donkey cart to Donglaiju, I saw that the sign of the four-story attic Donglaiju had been changed to Xu Ji Restaurant. There was another vertical sign "Donglaiju" next to it, which was almost half the size of Xu Ji Restaurant's sign and was hanging next to it.
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