Before Emperor Kangxi, Yinzhi and Qingyan clashed with Consort Yi. Qingyan's face was devoid of any smile. Consort Yi had gone too far. Yinzhi was not as good at business as her; was she really going to give up the achievements she had built up over nearly a decade?
Yin and Qingyan sat in the carriage on their way back. Qingyan looked sullen, so Yin reached out and pinched her cheek.
"Little darling, is it worth getting upset over something unrelated to you?" Yin asked Qingyan.
Yin had never had any affection for Consort Yi. Yin's temper was somewhat like Consort Yi's, very flamboyant and selfish. Yinqi was raised by the Empress Dowager, and although he was a bit slow in temperament, he was not like Consort Yi's child.
"Fourth Prince, why do you think Consort Yi is making trouble now?" Qingyan felt that they had overlooked something.
Yin looked at her: "Is something wrong?"
In the business world, Yin Fang had relatively few informants; it was mostly Qingyan's people who relayed messages.
Qingyan nodded, recalling the recent developments in the Beijing business community. There shouldn't be anything particularly unusual, right?
"Wait, I was wondering why so many shops were planning to close during the Chinese New Year!" Qingyan remembered that many of their partners had notified Yuelai Inn and Linglong Pavilion in advance that they were not planning to open during the Chinese New Year. That's why the managers said they would all take a holiday together.
"Does this have anything to do with the Ninth Prince?" Yin didn't understand what Qingyan was trying to say.
"Oh dear! The raw material supplier has closed down, so Ninth Master's shop definitely can't stay afloat. He'll be gone for more than ten days during the New Year, so there will definitely be shortages of this or that!" Qingyan said, leaning against Yin.
"Hurry up to Tiger Hill, I'll show you something fun!" Yin had specially ordered someone to investigate the business situation of Yin's shop. "Ninth Brother's shop has been imitating yours all along?!"
Recently, the chef from Yin's shop went to dine at the newly opened buffet area of Heyuelai Inn, which is what's giving Yin the biggest headache.
No way!
Qingyan stared blankly at Yin. If it really was an imitation, how could the business be so dismal?
"Fourth Brother, you can't just say things like that carelessly. It might be someone else's idea!" Qingyan was clearly not confident.
Yin realized that Qingyan didn't want to believe it, so he simply stopped saying anything. When the carriage stopped in the courtyard, Yin quickly grabbed her little hand and walked towards the study.
"Look!" Yin showed Qingyan what was recorded in the report he had gathered from outside, leaving her stunned.
"Old Ninth is really persistent!" Qingyan was stunned. He actually sent two chefs over. She wondered if they could finish all the dishes.
Qingyan kept glancing at Yin, preparing to give him a proper explanation.
"Isn't this unreasonable?" Yin also felt that something must be wrong.
Qingyan nodded. If that's the case, then someone must be eyeing the business of Yuelai Inn!
"Where did you hire those two cooks from?" Qingyan asked curiously.
It is said that if a chef tastes the dishes at one restaurant, he should be able to tell the difference. Therefore, the dishes at Yuelai Inn should be able to be tasted very quickly.
Yin shook his head: "Abnormal behavior is a sign of evil."
"Let's go take a look!" Qingyan suppressed her curiosity and prepared to go and see for herself.
Seeing that his task was not demanding, Yin readily agreed to Qingyan's request!
The two boarded the carriage and headed straight for the Yuelai Inn!
At the Yuelai Inn, during a break, the innkeeper noticed that several other restaurants had been coming to sample the food. He was initially worried because the chefs from those restaurants frequently came to eat there, and none of them had any similar recipes.
The knock-off dishes just don't taste as good as the authentic ones. Some diners were initially attracted by the low prices, but after eating there once or twice, they found the food unpalatable and returned to Yuelai Inn.
The carriage arrived at the gate, and Qingyan and Yin went in through the side door, worried that it would alert those people.
"Sisi, look at that table on the first floor, that person should be from Yin's shop, right?" Qingyan glanced around, activated the space's person recognition system, and directly found the chef of Yin's shop.
"Master, this person has been coming to our shop frequently since the Laba Festival. He's been there every day before mealtime. I've had someone keep an eye on him. There's something strange about him; he only eats one or two dishes." The shopkeeper had seen other chefs taste-testing dishes, and Jin Kele had basically tried all the dishes, hoping to find some suitable ones for the shop.
What? !
The innkeeper announced the names of the two dishes, and Yin secretly thought to himself that something was wrong.
"If I remember correctly, these two dishes are Yin's favorites. Why does the chef only make what Yin likes?" Yin didn't believe that the chef could still come and go from Yin's residence. These people were basically sent to shops and would no longer have the opportunity to serve their master.
Qingyan blinked, wondering if the other person hoped to get a chance to return to the mansion.
etc!
"Eru, quickly investigate the identities of these two people!" Yin hurriedly ordered.
He asked the shopkeeper a few more questions before letting the man go.
"Fourth Prince, what are you worried about?" Qingyan asked Heyin.
"It shouldn't be what I guessed. These two aren't loyal; someone must have deliberately sent them there. They might try to harm Yin!" Yin explained helplessly. "Bayan, go and fetch Yin!"
Yin planned to have Yin persuade Yin, since the tenth prince had a good relationship with Yin before, so he was easier to talk to than Yin.
"You mean you're planning to harm Yin?" Qingyan asked in surprise.
Yin nodded: "It should be!"
Qingyan took a sip of tea, inwardly laughing at the news he was hearing. It was too shocking; how could it be possible?
"You can't believe it?" Yin glanced at Qingyan's expression and understood that Qingyan thought the statement was too absurd.
“That’s right, Yin was standing behind Yin Si. If these two cooks hadn’t gotten Yin Si’s permission, would Yin have been able to put them in the shop?” Qing Yan disapproved of Yin Si’s behavior and way of doing things, and was quite annoyed by some of his actions, but she had to admit that Yin Si was quite shrewd.
"So, Yin Si might have 'interfered' in this matter?" Yin asked, looking at Qing Yan.
Qingyan nodded; otherwise, there would be no way to explain these things.
"This is a big problem!" Yin rubbed his heart, hoping that Qingyan's premonition was wrong. It would be good if Yin could give him a warning, which would preserve the brotherly bond.
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