Chapter 73
Chen Lanjun staggered to the door and gently turned the doorknob: "Oh, it's Mr. Ming."
The wooden door opened, and "Mr. Knowingly Asking Questions" stood in the glow of the orange sunset.
The weather was not too cold even though it was almost December. Shao Qinghe was wearing a camel-colored woolen suit, through which the green shirt underneath could be seen slightly.
He bowed slightly and, with the gesture of a male English ballroom dancer inviting a female partner, extended his hand toward Chen Lanjun:
"Then, Miss Chen, would you be so kind as to have dinner with Mr. Ming?"
"You may have the honor."
The dense leaves of the camphor trees cut the sunset into pieces of golden fragments. Chen Lanjun and Shao Qinghe walked side by side. They could smell the aroma of food coming from a room in a nearby small building. At least one family was making fried river fish. The aroma of fried fish filled the alley.
Chen Lanjun asked: "What are we eating today?"
Shao Qinghe probably knew that she loved to eat, so he took her out to eat the two times they met. They went to a small restaurant that looked ordinary, but the food was authentic and delicious. I don't know where this Hong Kong guy got the information from.
"The food at the restaurant we are going to today may not be delicious," said Shao Qinghe.
"Oh, what's so special about that?"
"I heard it's a new type of restaurant here, called a music teahouse."
Musical teahouses… So it was already there at that time. Chen Lanjun was a little nostalgic. The so-called musical teahouse is a bit similar to the later hybrid of a bar and a teahouse. Its predecessor was the folk art teahouse that was once very popular in the province. Some famous actors and actresses would perform on stage in the teahouse, which was extremely lively. Now that folk art is not popular anymore, it has been changed to a music model.
Walking out of the alley under the camphor tree, the Shao family's car was parked on the side of the road. As the children looked on curiously, the two got in the car and headed for the Dongfeng Music Tea House.
This music teahouse is a garden restaurant in the Dongfeng Hotel. As soon as she got off the car, Chen Lanjun smelled a faint smell of new paint. "Has it just been renovated?"
"Yes," Shao Qinghe closed the car door for her, "Their manager is quite courageous. He borrowed 20 million from a bank in Hong Kong to upgrade the house."
Chen Lanjun looked at him with a smile and said, "Your word '也' is very spiritual."
"Of course, after all, there is another brave and resourceful Madam standing in front of me."
In any case, judging by the large number of guests present, the Dongfeng Hotel's big gamble will definitely pay off.
As Chen Lanjun walked in, she reflected on herself, wondering if she was too conservative. The state-owned hotel dared to borrow tens of millions of dollars and accepted it.
No, I have to go to the bank to borrow more money! That little interest can be regarded as nothing in the golden age of making money. Borrowing is equal to earning.
There were waiters waiting at the entrance of the Garden Restaurant, politely asking each incoming guest: "Hello, do you have any foreign exchange coupons?"
Chen Lanjun tilted her head slightly and asked Shao Qinghe in a low voice: "Can we only use foreign exchange certificates?"
"For now."
So basically the guests who come here are all foreign affairs personnel. Chen Lanjun had an idea in her mind, probably because it has just been opened, and the main attraction is still the venue for guests from both places and foreigners.
However, this is the attitude on the surface. In practice, the restaurant will not check the documents seriously, which will cause trouble for itself. For example, Chen Lanjun gave foreign exchange coupons and the waiter did not stop her.
The weather is fine tonight and the outdoor seats in the garden are open. Because it is autumn and winter, there are few mosquitoes, which is a good time.
Chen Lanjun and Shao Qinghe sat down next to a rose bush in the garden and looked around.
The people who came were all dressed very fashionably, with well-tailored suits and flowing skirts. There was even a lady wearing a cheongsam. Was this lady from Hong Kong? Chen Lanjun thought. It had been a long time since she had seen anyone wearing a cheongsam here. When she had time, she would also go get a cheongsam to try on.
There is no way, she is born to be a beauty lover. She likes delicious food, beautiful clothes, and...beautiful people.
Chen Lanjun looked around and the beauty opposite her coughed lightly: "What would you like to order?"
Chen Lanjun came back to her senses and looked at Shao Qinghe: "You order, your taste is always good."
Although this music teahouse is in a restaurant, it is not really a place for eating, so most of the food you can order are snacks.
Chen Lanjun didn't expect these snacks to be more delicious than those in those unique little shops.
Shao Qinghe waved to the waiter and ordered seven or eight baskets of dim sum, and a pot of Da Hong Pao. The waiter wrote down everything and said with a smile, "You two came at the perfect time. When the dim sum is served, the show will start."
While waiting for the food to be served, Shao Qinghe asked about Chen Lanjun's recent situation.
"What have you been busy with lately?"
"The Fourth Food Factory that I went to with you before, I contracted a workshop through a friend to make candies. I was thinking of selling some candies before my sister got the machine."
Chen Lanjun held her chin with her hand and said, "The candy needs to update its packaging design. I'm in college now, so I held a college student design competition. I want to select the first place winner to be the new packaging design for our candy."
"College Student Design Competition?" Shao Qinghe thought for a moment and said, "You're killing two birds with one stone."
There are no advertising design companies in the mainland these days. If you want to have innovative and non-outdated packaging design, it is difficult unless you are a large factory with experienced employees.
It doesn't cost much to organize such a competition, but you can get good product packaging design. The students of Mingde University are carefully selected, so their level is definitely not bad. They are young people, so the things they design are naturally full of vitality, which is in line with this era. This vitality is also in line with the wishes of customers.
More importantly, such a novel activity, with many college students participating, youthful and energetic, is extremely valuable. Wouldn't it be easy to get it on the news? Once it's on the news, the candy brand she contracted will be widely known, which is equivalent to a big free advertisement.
In terms of popularity, through such a groundbreaking competition, Mingde University will naturally gain an excellent reputation and achieve a good cooperation with her brand. It will be very convenient for future exchanges. In addition, Chen Lanjun's company's generosity has also left a good brand impression among college students and other groups that are destined to have great spending power in the future, which can be regarded as customer cultivation.
"Hey, what are you daydreaming about?" Chen Lanjun said.
Shao Qinghe raised his head and looked at her with a half-smile: "I was thinking, I really have good taste."
"What?" Chen Lanjun looked confused, not understanding why he was bragging.
"The girl I like is really extraordinary."
After hearing this, Chen Lanjun smiled and shook her head: "You are such a jerk."
As they were talking, a man in a suit came over and greeted them warmly: "Mr. Shao, is it really you? I thought I was seeing things just now."
This is Mr. So-and-so, who seems to be a well-known figure in Hong Kong.
Shao Qinghe nodded, returning to the cold look he had when Chen Lanjun first met him, and exchanged a few words with the visitor.
There were many Hong Kong businessmen present, and they all knew the famous Mr. Shao. When they saw someone coming to say hello, they would seize the opportunity to chat with him and make their presence felt in front of Shao Qinghe, hoping to leave an impression in front of the future leader of the Shao family.
Someone also asked Chen Lanjun who was sitting next to him: "This lady has such a good temperament, I wonder which family she is from."
Chen Lanjun was leisurely eating snacks when she was suddenly mentioned. She didn't say anything but just smiled.
"Excuse me, this is my distinguished guest." Shao Qinghe said coldly.
The man didn't dare to ask anymore and quickly changed the subject.
Chen Lanjun ate the water chestnut cake while observing Mr. Shao's expression. Tsk, how come such a good-looking person looks good even when angry.
It was not until the lights dimmed and the colorful lights on a small stage in the center of the garden were lit up that the originally chaotic noises finally quieted down.
A handsome man walked towards the stage, holding the microphone cord in his hand. "Hello, I am Ayang, the manager of the Oriental Hotel. I am very glad that you have come to the music teahouse. On behalf of all the hotel staff, I welcome you all. Now our performance is about to begin. Please return to your seats and enjoy the music tonight comfortably."
The people surrounding the seats of Shao Qinghe and Chen Lanjun finally left reluctantly.
Shao Qinghe tugged at his tie and said, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you."
"It's okay." Chen Lanjun moved a basket of chicken feet towards him. "I have tried the taste of these snacks. These chicken feet are not bad. You see, I am also a very conscientious and ethical person. I also left two chicken feet for you."
Shao Qinghe burst out laughing: "Thank you so much."
The musical performers who come on stage should all be from professional art groups such as art troupes, and they should be very good at presenting music.
Chen Lanjun was listening to music when suddenly a man came over quietly. It was the manager of the hotel.
"Mr. Shao, these snacks are our new products. Please enjoy them with this distinguished guest."
Shao Qinghe glanced at his watch. Today's performance was more than half an hour earlier than usual. He knew that it was the manager who helped him out, so he nodded and said, "Thank you."
"Then I won't bother you anymore." The manager left quietly.
Chen Lanjun leaned over and whispered in his ear: "You didn't come here just for food, or for me."
"What do you mean?"
"I think it won't be long before your hotel will have music teahouses or dance halls."
In the dim light, Shao Qinghe's light-colored pupils looked like amber.
"I don't believe you didn't think about it."
"What?"
Shao Qinghe said quietly, "Will there be a music teahouse in the restaurant you own in Pengcheng City in the future?"
Chen Lanjun smiled: "Tsk, never mind, same to you."
As the music played, the two of them smiled at each other knowingly, put away their other thoughts, and focused on listening to the music.
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