Qin Wu originally didn't know how to cook. After the original chef left, he was forced to learn a few signature dishes and briefly learned the restaurant's dishes. Before he could master them, Zhou Zifang forced him to take on the task.
Zhou Zifang used them for one reason only: they were his own people, so he didn't have to worry about them leaving.
You should know that all those workers were poached by Shuangxi Restaurant with high prices because the restaurant's business was not good.
The three of them, master and servants, stood together at the door, looking at the endless stream of people, sighing and lamenting.
Lin Shu: "Young master, let's go back. What's there to miss about this shabby county town?"
Qin Wu: "Yes, young master, now that things have come to this, there is no room for maneuver for this restaurant."
Zhou Zifang glanced at the two of them sideways and gave each of them a flick on the forehead. "If you don't reply, believe me, if either of you says anything negative again, I'll sell you out."
Lin Shu rubbed her head, which was still sore from being hit, and said, "You say that every time. We're tired of hearing it."
Qin Wu looked utterly dejected. "Sell it then. After you sell it, you'll be all alone."
Zhou Zifang: "Look how spoiled you all are. You'd think you were the masters."
Lin Shu: "How dare I?"
Zhou Zifang glared at Lin Shu, "I think you're pretty bold. Now get to work!"
When Qiu Yan and Li Zheng arrived on their donkeys, all they heard was the scene of the three of them bickering.
When Li Zheng parked the donkey cart at the entrance of the restaurant, Zhou Zifang also noticed the two of them.
Qiu Yan jumped off the donkey cart under the watchful eyes of the three people. "Little shopkeeper, how's business lately?"
Zhou Zifang paused for a moment, glanced casually at Li Zheng, and nodded with a smile, "Miss Qiu Yan, it's you again. Don't mention it, you're still the same as always."
His eyes lit up when he saw the wild game stacked in the basket on his back. The same merchant had come again last time and eaten the remaining wild rabbit that Qiu Yan had brought.
Perhaps the restaurant could make wild game its signature dish. "Is this your father?"
Qiu Yan shook her head and smiled, "He's my neighbor's uncle."
She explained her purpose for coming, and the two hit it off immediately. Zhou Zifang told Lin Shu and Qin Wu to do their own things, while he personally led Qiu Yan and Li Zheng through the back door of the restaurant and began to weigh the wild game one by one.
The price is the same as last time: three pheasants weighing seven and a half catties and five rabbits weighing twenty catties, totaling two hundred and sixty coins.
These live animals couldn't be sold in the short term, so Zhou Zifang readily accepted that they would be kept alive. However, he certainly didn't want that much roe deer meat and wild boar meat.
"Qiu Yan, Uncle Li, we have too much wild boar and roe deer meat. With our restaurant's business, we can't sell it all in a short time. How about this, I'll keep half of the roe deer meat, and we'll keep thirty catties of wild boar meat for now."
Qiu Yan hadn't expected Zhou Zifang to accept everything, and she was already very satisfied with the outcome.
Both wild roe deer and wild boar meat were priced at fifteen per catty. Half a wild roe deer weighed twenty-five catties. He paid Li Zheng a total of six hundred and thirty-five coins and Qiu Yan four hundred and fifty coins.
Although Li Zheng didn't say anything after receiving the money, the way he looked at Qiu Yan changed.
Normally, he sells these wild animals individually, never by weight.
He'd ever sold a pheasant for a maximum of ten coins. A wild rabbit would only fetch a dozen or so coins, just enough for a pound of pork.
Others may not know, but he doesn't know how to weigh things; this seven-foot-tall strong man simply doesn't understand the ways of buying and selling.
Qiu Yan had already planned to set up a stall in front of the restaurant and sell meat there.
She told Zhou Zifang her idea, and Zhou Zifang agreed without hesitation. He immediately asked Lin Shu to bring over a square table, a short knife, and a scale.
"Qiu Yan, shouldn't we be going to the market to sell meat?" Li Zheng asked.
Qiu Yan glanced at the surrounding food shops and then turned to explain, "Uncle Li, the grass market is mostly frequented by ordinary people, while this street is frequented by high-ranking officials and dignitaries who are probably willing to spend money here. Let's try here first, and if it doesn't work out, we can go to the grass market."
Before selling the meat, Qiu Yan made sure to weigh the pork at Xingyuelou Restaurant. Then, she went to a wonton shop to deliver a few pounds of pork and two pig trotters to her aunt.
"Xiaoyan, where did you get so much meat? Keep it for yourself, no need to send it to your aunt." Qiu Yumei was full of questions.
"I found a wild boar in the mountains, it's a risk-free business. Auntie, Uncle Li is still waiting for me, you go ahead with your work, I have to go now..."
The aunt was busy greeting guests, so the aunt and nephew didn't sit down to talk.
Qiu Yan gave a brief explanation and was about to leave when Qiu Yumei reminded her to come back to the wonton shop to find her when she had time.
Qiu Yan quickly returned. The meat stall had just been set up when it immediately attracted some customers, who were all curious about who had set up the meat stall in front of Xingyue Tower.
Li Zheng looked unusually unnatural. He never expected that his trip today would lead him to set up a meat stall on the street with Qiu Yan.
Looking at the crowd of onlookers, Qiu Yan raised her voice a few decibels, "Uncles and aunties, we only sell freshly killed wild boar and roe deer meat, fresh and clean, honest and trustworthy..."
There were no customers at Xingyue Tower, so Zhou Zifang leaned against the door frame, watching Qiu Yan sell meat with great interest.
This girl piqued his curiosity.
Li Zheng stood quietly to the side, his face ashen, speechless and unable to utter a word. Usually, when he sold wild game, customers would ask him about it.
After Qiu Yan shouted that, even more people gathered around.
This is wild game, something they don't usually see.
"Miss, how much is it per pound?" A noble lady who had just come out of a dessert shop asked, accompanied by a maid carrying two bags of pastries.
As soon as the noble lady arrived, the people around her made way for her.
Qiu Yan's smile remained unchanged. "Madam, wild boar meat and roe deer meat are both sixteen coins per catty. Which kind of meat would you like?"
When the others heard the selling price, they craned their necks to examine the meat closely. The meat was bright red and firm.
The noble lady examined the meat carefully and said, "Give me five catties of pork tenderloin and two catties of pork belly."
"Yes, madam, please wait a moment."
As the meat stall opened its first business, Li Zheng picked up a short knife and began cutting meat, his movements swift and precise.
Qiu Yan weighed the pork and handed it to the maid beside the noble lady, saying, "Madam, it will cost one hundred and twelve coins in total."
The lady was also a straightforward person. She quickly took out her money pouch to pay for the meat, and the two of them, one after the other, left the meat stall.
Li Zheng secretly observed Qiu Yan. Most ordinary people were illiterate and didn't know how to do accounting, but Qiu Yan could state the selling price directly without using an abacus.
How come he didn't notice Qiu Yan's unusual behavior before?
The meat stall business opened smoothly, and the two merchants who had eaten wild game last time came again.
Upon hearing that Qiu Yan was selling authentic wild game, one of them squeezed into the crowd and said, "Girl, you know how to find a spot. Give me a pound each of wild boar and roe deer meat, just enough for the chef at Xingyue Tower to cook."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
