Someone from the Chamber of Commerce suggested, "Boss Qiu, why don't we go to Zuixianlou for dinner? After dinner, we can also go to the Liyuan Opera to listen to some opera. What do you think? I heard Zuixianlou has invited a group of exotic dancers, and their dance is quite good. It would be a good opportunity to go and see them."
Master Qiu smiled and said, "How about we go to Zuixianlou some other time to admire the dancers? To be honest, it was Madam Lu who invited my daughter-in-law there for dinner. When she came back, she brought back a dish of crispy suckling pig. It was absolutely delicious. Otherwise, I wouldn't have bothered to go. I've been dining at restaurants for half my life, and you know how discerning my taste is. I think that crispy suckling pig is a true delicacy, absolutely impeccable. I had my servant run over yesterday and made a reservation, so you can enjoy it tonight. They also have accommodations there, and I heard they're quite unique. It's perfect for a couple of nights to give it a try. Just trust me, for once. If it weren't really good, I wouldn't have invited you to try it."
"Okay, then we'll follow Mr. Qiu's instructions. But if the food doesn't taste good, we'll have to decide where to eat and drink from now on."
The two people in the Chamber of Commerce heard this and laughed and joked.
Mr. Qiu smiled and replied yes.
The three of them rode out of the city in a carriage and headed towards Xu's Restaurant.
Old Mrs. Qiu also got on another carriage with her old sister, Old Mrs. Jin, and followed her son.
Arriving at the entrance of Xu's Restaurant and seeing the large rock, the people from the Chamber of Commerce couldn't help but say, "It does look quite rustic."
The other person sniffed and couldn't help but say, "What a nice smell! Could it be the aroma of food being cooked at the restaurant? It's quite a distance away, and the aroma is wafting through."
Mr. Qiu also swallowed his saliva and said, "This is the aroma of the crispy suckling pig. It's not just fragrant, the taste is absolutely amazing. Once you try it, you will know. It will definitely make you linger."
The two owners of the Chamber of Commerce didn't have much expectation at first, but they didn't want to refuse Master Qiu's kindness. Now that they smelled the rich fragrance, they finally began to look forward to it.
The two carriages soon arrived at the restaurant.
Xu Qinyu had also been waiting nearby. When everyone came down, she smiled and said, "Guests, please come in. The food is ready."
She knew that Old Mrs. Qiu was the mother-in-law of Yu from a few days ago.
The two old ladies were specially invited to the private room on the second floor, while Mr. Qiu and the people from the Chamber of Commerce went to the private room on the third floor.
After the guests on both sides sat down, a pot of hawthorn drink was served first, and then the waiter came with a large wooden tray with bright-colored crispy suckling pig on it.
In addition to the crispy suckling pig, there are also Longjing shrimp, eight-treasure rabbit cubes, quail soup with yuzhu and lily, sweet and sour river lotus root and almond tofu.
As for the staple food, Xu Qinyu thought that no one could eat rice and noodles, so she served them with brown sugar rice porridge.
The two old ladies had, in addition to crispy suckling pig, Longjing shrimp, and almond tofu, which was brown sugar rice porridge. There was no eight-treasure rabbit cubes, yuzhu lily quail soup, or sweet and sour river lotus root, otherwise the two old ladies might have eaten too much and their stomachs couldn't handle it. Now it's just right.
The most eye-catching thing is of course the whole crispy suckling pig.
After Xu Qinyu helped chop it into pieces, she gave each of the two old ladies some sugar and dry sauce for dipping.
Mr. Qiu was being served by the waiters.
Mr. Qiu had eaten it once, but he was still amazed this time.
The other two had never eaten it before and were shocked at the first bite. No wonder Master Qiu was so concerned about it and insisted that they come over. They made the right decision.
The two of them didn't say anything and just buried their heads in eating. After they had eaten several pieces in a row, they let out a long sigh and said to Master Qiu, "Master Qiu really didn't lie to us. We were narrow-minded. We didn't expect that there would be such delicious food in the world." In comparison, the food they had eaten in the most famous restaurants in other state capitals was just so-so. Compared with Xu's, it was really nothing.
I thought this crispy suckling pig, which costs six taels of silver per portion, tasted the best.
But after trying the remaining dishes, I was a little stunned, because not a single dish was bad, and all the dishes were amazing enough.
The best shrimps for making Longjing shrimps are river shrimps. Xu Qinyu chooses the largest river shrimps. The shrimps are tender and sweet, with the fragrance of tea leaves in the freshness. The aftertaste is mellow and fresh, making people want to eat one after another.
Eight Treasure Rabbit Cubes are spicy and appetizing.
Sweet and sour river lotus root has a crispy and tender texture, with a moderate sweet and sour taste.
Almond tofu is white, tender, smooth, refreshing and sweet, and melts in your mouth. It is a perfect dessert.
Finally, drink a bowl of Polygonatum, Lily and Quail Soup, a traditional Chinese soup that nourishes and strengthens the bones.
There is also the brown sugar rice porridge, which is soft, glutinous, fragrant and thick, with a light aroma of dates and the slight sweetness of brown sugar.
The three of them couldn't help but eat all the dishes cleanly.
However, the dishes and soup Xu Qinyu prepared for them were just right. The soup was only two small bowls per person, and the same was true for the porridge. But after eating it all, they would definitely still feel bloated.
The three of them were so exhausted that they didn't rush to Zizhu Garden to rest. Instead, they sat in the private room, looking out the open window, watching the gentle breeze and the slowly setting sun.
Old Master Qiu looked out the window at the scenery and said with a smile, "What do you two think?"
The two laughed and said, "Not bad, I didn't expect that not only is the food delicious, but the scenery is also so pleasant."
It is indeed more comfortable than eating and drinking in a restaurant and then going to listen to opera as usual. Even those exotic dancers are forgotten.
The main thing is that the food is really too delicious.
The two even planned to bring their family over to play for a few days every month when they have time.
This way you can relax and cultivate your body and mind, which is really good.
The three of them couldn't help but chat.
"This crispy suckling pig dish, which costs six taels of silver, is already as delicious as ever. I heard there's also a clear bird's nest soup for two taels of silver, and a can of Fu Shou Quan for fifty taels of silver. How delicious are these two dishes?"
Mr. Qiu smiled and said, "That clear bird's nest soup can only be made after ten bowls are filled. I heard that it has to be ordered five days in advance because the preparation of this dish alone takes five days. As for the Fu Shou Quan, it will take even longer to wait. It seems that the ingredients are hard to find. It requires thirty or forty ingredients and they have to be shipped from the south. Would you two like to try it? If you want to try it, I will make an order with Mr. Xu, but it may take a month or two."
He actually wanted to try it. The crispy suckling pig that cost six taels of silver already impressed him, so how delicious would this Fu Shou Quan dish that cost fifty taels of silver be?
Fifty taels of silver could support ordinary people for several years, but for wealthy businessmen like them, it was nothing.
The two shopkeepers of the Chamber of Commerce nodded, "Okay, then make a reservation."
In fact, there are not only these, but also Wensi tofu and some traditional old-fashioned soups, and the prices are basically between one or two taels of silver.
Xu Ji’s new menus are all quite distinctive, and even the simplest vegetarian dishes are impeccable.
On the other side, Mrs. Qiu and Mrs. Jin also ate very happily and contentedly.
Xu Qinyu waited by their side the whole time, and smiled as she introduced the cooking methods and taste of these dishes to the two old ladies.
Old Mrs. Qiu couldn't help but ask, "Did you make all this food, young lady?"
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "Yes, because there are not many customers now, I cook all the food for the guests in the kitchen."
Old Mrs. Qiu couldn't help but praise: "Ms. Xu's cooking skills are really amazing."
When she heard her daughter-in-law say that before, she didn't believe it at all. But when she came here in person and tasted these delicious meals, she found that there was nothing she disliked. She liked every dish very much and they were delicious.
After eating, Mrs. Qiu and Mrs. Jin went to Jinxiu Garden to rest first.
The two old ladies were not as restrained as the younger girls and wives. They went directly to the hot spring pool to soak in the hot spring. After returning, the old ladies lit incense, applied cream, and called two young ladies to massage their muscles and bones.
Two old ladies lived in the same room and could even talk to each other.
Several guests stayed in the garden and played there for three whole days.
Mr. Qiu still had business dealings to discuss with the owners of two chambers of commerce, so he couldn't stay there any longer.
Old Mrs. Qiu was also willing to spend money. Not only did she eat well every morning and evening, but she also lit incense and applied cream every day to loosen her muscles and bones.
Three days later, Master Qiu came to call his mother back home. Old Mrs. Qiu was reluctant to go back and told her son, "My dear, you still have things to do, so you should go back to the city first. Your Aunt Jin and I plan to stay for a while. When you go back, tell your daughter-in-law that she's been busy with household chores lately and she's worked hard. When I get back in a few days, if she wants to go out and play, she can continue to do so."
Because her daughter-in-law found such a good place for her this time, Mrs. Qiu also planned to be gentler to her daughter-in-law in the future.
This is also what she has been thinking about these days. She is almost dead, so why not enjoy taking care of the household chores all day long? She is too lazy to get involved in the household chores and the affairs of her daughter-in-law and son. Her daughter-in-law will be the mistress of the house in the future, and she can't always scold her. She will not take care of the household affairs in the future.
Mr. Qiu smiled and said, "Okay, then you and Aunt Jin can have fun here."
When Mr. Qiu and the two managers of the Chamber of Commerce left, he also gave Xu Qinyu some advice.
"The hot springs are nice, but it would be nice if there were some place where we could listen to opera troupes and storytelling. After relaxing in the hot springs, we could go and listen to some opera and storytelling."
They are not people who like fishing, they just like watching plays and listening to books.
Xu Qinyu thought about it and felt that the opera troupe was a bit difficult, but storytelling was easy. She just needed to write some scripts and hire a storyteller.
As for the story of the book, she can write it.
There are dozens of types of novels in later generations, which are varied and flourishing, and they are as exciting as they can be. It just so happens that she has a few ideas and can try to write them.
She remembered that among the Fengtiao Yushun brothers, Shun seemed to like reading storybooks the most. She would ask Shun later to see if he was willing to write for fun.
After Master Qiu and the others left, Madam Lu also came with her luggage, intending to stay at the restaurant for ten days and nights. This time she didn't bring anyone with her and came alone. He and Yu were both mistresses of the house, and they had a lot of chores to do at home, so they were definitely not as good as her, who was alone at home and could have fun as long as she wanted.
In addition to Mrs. Lu, Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan also came to Xu's Restaurant.
Xu Qinyu was very happy to see them, "Why are you here?"
Yang Zhizhi's eyes curved with a smile. She went over and hugged Xu Qinyu. She couldn't help but jump for joy and said, "Qinyu, it's so good to see you. We haven't seen each other for a long time. When I heard that your restaurant was opening, I begged my parents for a long time before they agreed to let me come."
Yang Zhizhi was the most precious daughter of the county magistrate and his wife, so they were naturally worried about her coming to Raozhou City alone.
Later, Xu Yunlan also wanted to stay at the restaurant for a few days, so she made an appointment with Yang Zhizhi.
The county magistrate then had two people sent over.
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "What do you want to eat? I'll prepare it later."
Yang Zhizhi said, "Crispy suckling pig!"
Xu Ji in Yuanbao Town has launched many fresh dishes at the same time as the restaurant. The crispy suckling pig is the most popular. Even though it is expensive, many people eat it every day because when it is roasted, the aroma can spread for several blocks and no one can stand such a fragrance.
However, Xu's Restaurant can only serve about ten crispy suckling pigs every day, and reservations must be made in advance.
Even if Yang Zhizhi was greedy, there was nothing she could do because the crispy suckling pig at Xu Ji was booked for ten days later.
Xu Yunlan laughed and said, "Qinyu, you don't know how difficult it is to get this crispy suckling pig at Xu's Restaurant right now."
In fact, she was also very tempted, but it was too difficult to make a reservation.
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "This is easy. I'll grill it for you tonight. The restaurant has just opened, so there aren't many customers yet."
Yang Zhizhi said: "Don't worry, Qinyu, there will definitely be more and more customers."
The two were very confident in their good sister's cooking skills, knowing that Xu Ji would never have to worry about customers in the future. As long as they came to eat, they would definitely become repeat customers of Xu Ji.
Although their fathers were both officials in the county government and their mothers owned shops, they were still quite frugal in their daily lives.
In order to save money, the two of them lived in a private room.
In addition to the discounts offered by the restaurant, Xu Qinyu also gave them a lot of discounts. In fact, she didn't want to accept any money from them. She moved to Yuanbao Town because of the help of Xu Kongmu and County Magistrate Yang. She saved herself a lot of trouble and was able to open the restaurant smoothly.
After eating the crispy suckling pig she had been craving for, Yang Zhizhi almost cried, "Woo woo, it's really delicious."
She weighs just over 100 pounds now, and is not very thin, but has a perfect figure, a bit plump and smooth, with fair and tender skin. Many mistresses like Yang Zhizhi and want to get engaged to her in the Yang family, but the county magistrate and Wei are not in a hurry to marry their children off. They plan to arrange the marriage slowly. They don't want to find a man with a good family background for Zhizhi, but he must have good character, and the mother-in-law must have a gentle temper. They have to pay attention to all aspects.
Yang Zhizhi, Xu Yunlan and Xu Qinyu are all of similar age, with only one year difference between them. Xu Yunlan has also started looking for marriage recently, but Xu Kongmu and Xiang are not in a hurry either.
Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan stayed at Xu's for six or seven days before the county magistrate sent someone to take them back.
The two were reluctant to go back because it was so much fun here. Every day after breakfast they would stroll around the restaurant, go to the lake to look at the lotus leaves and flowers, and go fishing.
On the other side of the lake, the lotus leaves also began to grow wildly, almost changing every day, and the lotus flowers also revealed tiny buds. In another half a month, these lotus leaves will grow very tall and the lotus flowers will bloom. Once the lotus flowers bloom and gradually wither, you can eat lotus rice.
Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan also like fishing.
There were not many customers in the restaurant, so Xu Qinyu would go with them to the lake to fish and enjoy the scenery during the day.
Old Mrs. Qiu and her old sisters also liked to come to the lake during the day to enjoy the scenery and watch the little girls fishing. The two old ladies also tried it.
On the edge of the lake, Xu Qinyu specially built a number of wooden pavilions with curtains around them. It is so pleasant to sit in them and enjoy the flowers and drink tea.
Xu Qinyu likes to come here on weekdays, stay inside to drink tea, enjoy the scenery, and write and draw.
It just so happened that she started writing a storybook these days.
I want to write a story about cultivating immortals. It is a story about a boy from an ordinary family who, after going through countless hardships, finally achieves enlightenment and becomes an immortal. There are setbacks, golden fingers, adventures, love and hate, and it is a refreshing story. I have only written the beginning and showed it to Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan. They both said it was good and wanted to know how it would develop next.
Xu Qinyu planned to hire a storyteller as soon as she finished writing the first volume, and tell stories like this in the restaurant on weekdays.
After Yang Zhizhi and Old Lady Qiu left, only Mrs. Lu was left at the restaurant.
As a result, the restaurant has been open for almost half a month, and there are only a few waves of customers.
Xu Qinyu couldn't help but feel a little suspicious in her heart, because something really didn't seem right.
The customers who come to Xu Ji are just a few waves of regular customers, and there hasn't been a single customer from the city. Logically, some people should be curious, wondering about the restaurant's origins and whether the food is delicious, and come to try it. If it's not worth the price, they may just make a fuss or never come again. But now it has been open for almost half a month, and there hasn't been a single curious customer.
Xu Qinyu told Chef Wang and Dong Qian that she wanted to go for a walk in the city.
Because there are not many customers on weekdays, only the staff meals and some food ingredients are delivered to the door, and not much is delivered. The poultry, eggs, duck eggs and vegetables we eat on weekdays are all collected from nearby villages. They are cheaper than in the city, and they are all raised by feeding them insects and wild vegetables in the mountains. The taste of the ingredients themselves is impeccable.
Even these roast suckling pigs were collected from nearby villages.
Xu Qinyu bought it at the price of thirty coins per catty.
Even if a pig is raised to adulthood, it still only weighs about 100 jin (approximately 200 kg) by the end of the year. The butcher would take it away for eight to ten wen (approximately 1 liang), or just over one or two taels of silver. But the owner of Xu's Restaurant would buy a suckling pig weighing around 20 jin (approximately 200 kg) for 30 wen (approximately 200 kg). They wouldn't have to feed it all year, as piglets grow quickly and can reach over 20 jin (approximately 200 kg) in less than two months. Such a suckling pig could be sold for 600 to 700 wen (approximately 200 kg), making it much more cost-effective than raising a full-grown pig.
There are many families living nearby who bought a lot of piglets to raise, intending to supply them to the restaurant in the future.
So these days, Xu Qinyu felt it was strange that there were no customers coming to the restaurant, so she planned to go to the city to have a look.
Xu Qinyu went to the city.
After a walk around the city, she found out the reason.
It turned out to be because of Zuixianlou.
Zuixianlou and Xuji Restaurant are of similar quality, and the guests they receive are all wealthy businessmen in the city or dignitaries from prominent families.
Ever since Xu Ji opened, Zuixianlou knew that Xu Ji Restaurant would definitely take away some of its customers, so naturally they were not happy about it.
So Zuixianlou also organized a wave of activities.
At Xu Ji's side, Xu Qinyu was offering 20% off on all dishes because of the grand opening, while Zuixianlou was offering 30% off. Not only that, tea was free, and dancers were invited to dance at Zuixianlou, which naturally attracted all the customers, so no one went to Xu Ji.
After Xu Qinyu knew the reason, she felt a little helpless, but this was also a normal fight.
In later generations, it was normal for many restaurants to offer discounts on dishes and various recharge activities in order to attract business.
Xu Qinyu must also think of a way to deal with it.
After knowing the reason, she returned to the restaurant.
The restaurant was very quiet at the moment, and everyone was relaxing inside to rest.
When Dong Qian and Chef Wang saw Xu Qinyu coming back, they hurried over and asked, "Master, did you see anything?"
Chef Wang also followed Dong Qian in calling Xu Qinyu "Master". He did not feel embarrassed at all, because he really admired Xu Qinyu's cooking skills and sincerely regarded Xu Qinyu as his master.
Xu Qinyu told the two of them about what happened at Zuixianlou.
The two men couldn't help but frown after hearing this. They had all opened restaurants or worked as chefs in large restaurants. They knew in their hearts that this kind of thing was very common. It was just a simple competition between restaurants and food stalls.
There is nothing wrong with Zuixianlou.
Dong Qian asked, "Master, what should we do then? Should we just wait for customers to come?"
In fact, they all knew very well that as long as customers came to the restaurant to eat, they would come often in the future. But now there were no customers coming, and this was the most important thing. Not to mention that Xu Ji had so many waiters, the food expenses were several hundred taels of silver every month, and the various flowers and plants in the garden also cost two or three hundred taels of silver to take care of.
In addition, the monthly wages of all the servants, the chef's assistants and the guards amounted to more than one thousand taels of silver.
Every month, just these fixed and necessary expenses cost more than two thousand taels of silver.
Even with the support of Xu's Restaurant in Yuanbao Town, the restaurant here couldn't continue to suffer losses like this. If there were no customers, it would have a bad reputation. People would say Xu's Restaurant had no customers and the food must be bad. At most, it would last six months before it had to close down.
Zuixianlou knew very well that if a food business had no business for two or three months, it would not work. He also knew that Xu Ji could only last about half a year at most.
If Zuixianlou keeps organizing some activities in the next six months, or comes up with some new dishes to keep customers for another month or two, then Xu Ji will be really finished.
Xu Qinyu shook her head. "Of course not. We can't wait for customers to come. Zuixianlou won't give us this opportunity, so we have to think of other ways."
The solution is actually very simple. The restaurant is having no business now because the customers don’t know how delicious Xu Ji’s dishes are. All we have to do is let them know.
Xu Qinyu whispered a few words to Dong Qian and Chef Wang, then packed up her things and prepared to take Dong Qian to Raozhou City.
When Wen learned that Yu Niang was going to stay in Raozhou City for a few days, she was worried and wanted to go with her. Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "Don't worry, mother. With Dongqian accompanying her, nothing will happen. You still have to take care of the restaurant."
Wen is now the owner of the restaurant and usually stays here.
Wen must still be worried, so Xu Qinyu finally brought a maid named Lianhua from Jinxiu Garden with her, and only then did Wen feel at ease to let her go to Raozhou City.
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