Although Lin Dan left in a hurry, he had handled all the things that needed to be handled. Not only did he sell the store to Qin Erniang, he also asked someone to send a letter to Chef Qiu to explain the whole story. After reading the letter, Chef Qiu was so angry that his fingertips were shaking. He never expected that the Yan family could be so despicable that they even bullied orphans and widows and set fire to their store. This was simply lawless!
Seeing that he looked unhappy, the old shopkeeper asked him what happened. He shook his head and was unwilling to elaborate. After all, this was Lin Dan's private matter and should not be publicized. As if remembering something, he frowned and said, "Are there any guests in the front hall? Go out and take a look."
After a while, the old shopkeeper came back and reported: "Five or six tables of guests have arrived, and they are all waiting for Shopkeeper Lin." Nowadays, Qiaoyuan Restaurant has an unwritten rule: whoever arrives first will put a number plate on his or her table and then wait quietly. The diners with the first five numbers will definitely be able to taste the cooking of the mysterious chef, while the diners with the last five numbers may occasionally be able to taste it if they are lucky. Despite this, those diners who failed to grab the first ten numbers were reluctant to leave. They ordered some dishes and sat in the restaurant, smelling the aroma and looking at the dishes at other tables, which was a feast for the eyes, right?
Because of this, a large group of people would come to the store early in the morning, all trying to grab a seat. Once they got one, they would stick their butts on the stools and would not leave no matter how anyone tried to persuade them.
Little Chef Qiu lowered his voice and asked, "Has Prince Cheng arrived?"
"He's here, sitting in the store since early morning. I invited a few singers to serve him in the front." In fact, it would be strange if Prince Cheng didn't come. Ever since he had eaten Lin Dan’s food, he had been reporting to Qiaoyuan Restaurant on time every day. Later, he found that Qiaoyuan Restaurant was becoming more and more popular, and he was afraid that he would not be able to taste Lin Dan’s cooking if he came on time, so he specially sent a servant to live in the inn opposite the restaurant. As soon as the door was opened, the servant rushed in, took the serial number plate first, and then firmly occupied his seat, waiting for his own prince to come for dinner.
These gourmets in the capital are all very individual people. It is not easy to please them, but if your cooking skills can whet their appetite, they will protect you like a treasure. Without talking about distant events, let’s just talk about the Marquis of Yongding. It is said that he used to have a cook whom he loved very much and took him with him wherever he went. Later, the cook died. He had no appetite for several months and became very thin due to hunger. Now he no longer stays in the capital, this sad place, but has gone to the border to fight.
Chef Qiu used to think that the rumor was a bit exaggerated, but now, knowing that the chef was Lin Dan's father, he suddenly understood Marquis Yongding. Lin Dan’s cooking skills are so extraordinary. As a master, how superb are Lin Baotian’s cooking skills?
But the person is already dead, no matter how much he yearns for her, it is in vain. The most important thing now is to seek justice for Lin Dan. Thinking of this, Chef Qiu whispered, "Go tell the diners that the chef has left and will not cook at Qiaoyuan Restaurant anymore. Let them all go."
The old shopkeeper turned pale with fright. Without Lin Dan, how will the Qiaoyuan Restaurant continue its business?
Little Chef Qiu pushed the old shopkeeper and sighed, "Go, go, tell everyone not to wait."
The old shopkeeper left in a daze, and before he finished speaking he caused complaints from everyone. The one who reacted most violently was naturally Prince Cheng. Not only were his hands shaking, but even his beard was shaking. His old face was wrinkled as if he had eaten arsenic. He ignored the old shopkeeper and the waiter's obstruction and strode into the kitchen, which he had never set foot in before. He caught up with the young chef Qiu and asked, "Is that chef really not coming? Tell me where she lives and I will go and invite her in person!"
In the past, he had thought about inviting Lin Dan back to be his private chef, and even asked his housekeeper to lobby him, but he never even met Lin Dan. He especially respects people who are good at cooking. If he doesn't want to, then he doesn't want to. I will just eat wherever you cook. Is that okay? But it turns out that this isn't possible, people just leave without even saying goodbye! If I had known this would happen, I should have kidnapped the person right away!
Prince Cheng was filled with remorse and grabbed the young chef Qiu and forced him to tell him the whereabouts of the chef. Chef Qiu then pretended to be reluctant and told the whole story of the dispute between Lin Dan and the Yan family.
Unexpectedly, Prince Cheng's eyes widened, his mouth opened wide, his expression as if he had lost his parents, and even his voice trembled with overwhelm: "Are you saying that the chef who cooks here is the owner Lin of the hometown restaurant in South City? They, they are the same person?"
Chef Qiu thought Prince Cheng’s reaction was a little strange, but he nodded anyway.
"Since they are the same person, if your chef leaves, your Hometown Restaurant will not be able to continue operating?" Prince Cheng gradually revealed a painful expression. Coincidentally, a noble like Prince Cheng usually wouldn't go to South City to hang out, but his servants would often go to the dock in South City to get goods. Out of greed, they would always bring back some braised food made by Lin Dan. Once, they met Prince Cheng at the door. The overbearing aroma captured Prince Cheng on the spot. After tasting it, he became even more obsessed and asked his servants to buy some for midnight snack every night. He can't sleep without a midnight snack, as if he is addicted.
Hearing that the chef of Qiaoyuan Restaurant was not coming, he originally thought that at least he could still eat the braised food from Nancheng. The cooking skills of the shopkeeper Lin were also very good, not worse than that of this chef. But what is the result? It turned out that these two people were the same person, which meant that the only two chefs who could satisfy Prince Cheng's picky appetite had left, and he would never be able to eat there again!
As a gourmet who would rather starve to death without delicious food, one can imagine the thunder and lightning and turmoil in Prince Cheng's heart.
He gritted his teeth and said, "Imperial Chef Yan is so arrogant. This is the first time I heard that other people can't eat the dishes presented to the emperor. Isn't that disrespectful every day? Why don't you drag me out and execute my entire clan? Bullshit! I saw all the disputes from beginning to end. The Yan family reversed right and wrong and twisted what was right. Not a single good person among them!" He left angrily after he finished speaking.
Prince Cheng had not yet gotten tired of the divine boneless fish. He had been waiting for the whole morning with great anticipation, but received such bad news. Naturally, he was in a bad mood. Then he thought: I won’t be able to eat Shopkeeper Lin’s dishes in the future. Wouldn’t life be difficult? So he became even more furious and shouted, "Come on, follow me to the Yan Family Restaurant to have a look."
The accompanying guards originally thought that he was going to eat at Yan's Restaurant, but they saw him walk a few steps to the door, without even looking at Lin Lao Er who was squatting on the steps, and pointed at the plaque on the beam and said, "Tear this sign for me!"
The guards were stunned for a moment, then came to their senses, poked the sign down with bamboo poles, and crushed it with their feet. Lin Lao Er was confused, but he didn't dare to step forward to stop them. He could only cry out pitifully: "Your Majesty, why are you destroying my family's sign? We have never provoked you! I kowtow to you and apologize, please have mercy on me!"
In the past there was Marquis Weiyuan, in the middle there was the Prince of Dianqian, and now there is Prince Cheng. Their titles are higher than each other, and their backgrounds are greater than each other. What did Yan's Restaurant do to offend anyone? Lin Laoer was confused and anxious at the same time, and his heart felt like it was frying in a frying pan.
“Hmph, as long as Shopkeeper Lin doesn’t return to the capital, I will not allow you to hang up your sign. If you don’t agree, you can try again!” Prince Cheng pointed at the broken plaques on the ground, his tone very vicious. He is the brother of the late emperor, who helped him seize the throne. He is also the uncle of the current emperor, who helped him ascend the throne. He is in charge of the Lifanyuan and the Imperial Clan Bureau. He has power and prestige. How could a mere imperial chef dare to mess with him? He personally spoke up for Lin Dan, and even if the emperor came, he would not dare to ask Yan's Restaurant to put up the sign back. Yan's Restaurant is bound to suffer this loss.
The people of West City are the most powerful. After seeing several big shots coming to Yan's Restaurant one after another and causing scandals of fake wine and poisonous soup, they have completely denied the reputation of Yan's Restaurant in their hearts. They stood on the street and watched the excitement for a while, then gradually dispersed, whispering as they walked: "I don't know what Yan Shouye did that angered the heavens and the people, and required several nobles to personally take action to deal with it. Don't come to this store anymore. If you come, you will offend these three stores. It's not worth it, not worth it!"
After hearing such words many times, Lin Laoer became more and more desperate. He never thought that these people would stand up for Lin Dan. She has only been back in Beijing for two or three months, how could she end up like this?
On the other side, Yan Shouye was dragged into the government office by the steward of the Prince of Yunnan and Guizhou to fight a lawsuit. Although it was only a dog that died, the dog died for the little princess, and the little princess would enter the palace to become a queen in two months. The imperial edict had already come down, and the government naturally did not dare to be negligent. They caught Yan Shouye, who kept crying out for injustice, and gave him a good beating.
Although Yan Shouye usually looks very majestic, he is nothing in front of nobles like the Prince of Yunnan and Guizhou. He was beaten so hard that he cried for mercy and almost died. In the end, he paid the prince one hundred thousand taels of silver as compensation, and was dragged to the gate of the mansion to kowtow and admit his mistake to the little princess, and only then was the matter settled.
When he returned home half-dead, he learned that the sign of Yan's Restaurant had been smashed by Prince Cheng, who also said that they would not be able to open the restaurant until Lin Dan returned. Yan Shouye finally couldn't bear it anymore and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Yesterday, Zhou went to her hometown restaurant to cause trouble in a show of strength, but today she is like a frost-bitten eggplant, anxiously asking: "What should I do? We have caused so much trouble. Can our restaurant still be opened?" She has lived in wealth and glory for too long, and she is more afraid of being reduced to her original state than anyone else.
"Yes, of course not. Lang Qing is still working as a chef in the palace. Just ask the emperor to ask for a favor. The emperor is interested in her. As long as she asks, she can be a chef or even a queen." Yan Shouye gritted his teeth and said, "Someone, give Lang Qing a message. Tell her that her family is in trouble and ask her to come back."
The servant did not dare to delay and immediately took the silver note to deliver the letter to the palace gate. It’s a pity that the Yan family still underestimated Lin Dan’s connections. She is not competitive, but that doesn’t mean those who care about her won’t fight for her.
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