As night fell, customers gradually entered the tavern.
Lu Chaoyang rushed over as soon as he finished his shift, holding a golden toad as a congratulatory gift.
"Wishing you booming business and abundant wealth," Lu Chaoyang said with a congratulatory gesture.
Yuan Doudou smiled and accepted the golden toad. "Thank you, Lord Lu. Please have a seat, Lord Lu. I'll have An Rong serve you some wine."
Lu Chaoyang has a low alcohol tolerance and usually prefers to drink rice wine.
"No need to trouble yourself, I can do it myself." Lu Chaoyang picked up a bowl from the table and scooped some out with a wine spoon.
Seeing that he was not polite at all, Yuan Doudou simply let him be and went inside to prepare some side dishes for him.
"Lu Xi, take this plate of cold pig's snout to Lord Lu." Since Lord Lu is coming, it's natural to prepare some good snacks to go with his drinks.
Lu Xi was holding peanuts in one hand and a pig's snout in the other. As soon as she went out, she saw Lu Chaoyang dressed in official robes.
"My lord, please enjoy your side dishes." Lu Xi took a deep breath and stepped forward respectfully.
Lu Chaoyang looked at Lu Xi meaningfully, unable to understand why Lu Xi wanted to come out and suffer like this. He had clearly told him that he didn't have to do anything in the manor, and that he could just ask for whatever he wanted to eat, and that he would definitely satisfy him.
This kind of carefree life is what many people dream of, but when it was offered to him, Lu Xi refused it.
"Lu Xi is not bad. She can help your sister Dou Dou with chores. She's better than me." Lu Chaoyang is used to being pampered and has never done these kinds of rough work before. He took the initiative to buy wine just now because he wanted to show off in front of Dou Dou.
Lu Xi walked away shyly, afraid that Lu Chaoyang would scold him for being ungrateful.
An Rong pushed a cart full of wine back from outside, carrying it in jar by jar. When there wasn't enough room in the front hall, he put it in the woodshed in the backyard.
"An Rong, business is good." Lu Chaoyang looked up and saw him, and quickly went up to him.
An Rong chuckled, "Thanks to your blessing, we had quite a few customers on our first day of business."
Lu Chaoyang smiled, feeling smug inside.
DouDou and the others have no idea that he really deserves credit for the large number of people who came today.
Although he was physically at the Ministry of Revenue, his mind was at the tavern. He took care of everyone in the Ministry, informing them that DouDou's Tavern at No. 50 Heping Street was opening today.
These public officials don't have many hobbies. After get off work, many of them have a drink to go with their drinks before going home to rest.
Where we go for a drink doesn't matter; how could Lord Lu's recommendation be wrong?
When Lu Chaoyang came in, he ran into five or six colleagues. They tried to greet him, but he stopped them with a look.
"Not at all, it's you and DouDou who are so capable. The snacks with the drinks were absolutely amazing. I still wanted more after we finished eating." The peanuts were fried until crispy, and the sauce for the pig's snout was incredibly fragrant, making it even more delicious.
An Rong laughed and said, "This is all thanks to Dou Dou."
An Rong felt very proud. Dou Dou was quite knowledgeable about spices. Her braising liquid was different from others. When pig's head meat and pig's ears were put into her braising liquid, the aroma could be smelled for miles away as soon as they were cooked.
The key is that brine has many uses; it can be used to braise meats and vegetables.
Within three days of opening, DouDou Tavern's braised dishes became famous in the town.
Three days later, the promotion of buying wine and getting free food will still be available, but in limited quantities, and you will have to pay extra for the second dish.
A few people are unwilling to spend more money; they are content with a bowl of wine and some free side dishes.
Customers who are not short of money not only order more dishes, but also pack them up to take away when they leave.
The takeaway service is also a specialty of DouDou Tavern. Dried vegetables are wrapped in oil paper, while those with juice are packed in bamboo tubes.
The bamboo tubes are still ordered from Zhao Defa. Every month on the 15th, Zhao Defa would come to town to sell bamboo products, and he would always stop by Dou Dou's place first.
A month later, DouDou's tavern business gradually stabilized. At noon, there were usually ten tables occupied, so there was generally no need to turn over the tables. But it was a different story in the evening, when there were at least three table turnovers.
In the middle of the night, Yuan Doudou sat at the table, her lower abdomen slightly protruding. She held an abacus in her hand, looking at the account book and fiddling with the beads.
"Today's gross profit is 1,580 coins. After deducting costs, the net profit is 980 coins."
An Rong sat opposite her, watching Dou Dou diligently keep accounts.
"There aren't many people here today because of the rain, so this income is acceptable."
Yuan Doudou remained silent. It was normal for the business to be affected by the weather. When the weather was good, the net profit was around 1,800 coins.
Profits can drop by nearly half if it rains.
"DouDou, once the baby gets bigger, you can stay in front and collect the money. I'll take care of the kitchen."
Since the tavern opened, An Rong has gained a deeper understanding of Yuan Doudou. He once suspected that Yuan Doudou was someone else in disguise and that the real Yuan Doudou was no longer around.
If it weren't for the peach blossom birthmark still on her shoulder, he would have been certain of his guess.
Almost all the customers who come to the tavern are there for the side dishes made by DouDou. There are more than 20 taverns, and they all use the same wine. Now, their tavern is one of the more successful ones.
This credit all goes to DouDou.
She not only knows how to cook, but also keeps researching new dishes. With more choices for customers, they can eat and drink to their heart's content, so they are naturally more willing to come.
When business is booming, it naturally attracts envious eyes.
As soon as the shop opened, a man came in and ordered three jars of wine and ten side dishes.
An Rong had to push the two tables together to barely fit the dishes.
"Sir, are you alone?" An Rong asked.
The man's surname was Li, and his given name was Fu. He lived in Ping'an Town and his family also ran a tavern. He came today at his wife's request to come and find out what was going on at DouDou Tavern.
Their tavern is located on Hening Street, behind DouDou Tavern.
Business was originally decent, earning five or six hundred coins a day, but since DouDou Tavern opened, customers have been decreasing, and the daily income is only one or two hundred coins.
Li Fu has elderly parents to care for and three sons to raise, so the pressure he faces is unimaginable. His wife, seeing the business struggling, fell ill from worry and repeatedly told him to come to DouDou Tavern to learn the trade.
Li Fu looked at the table of dishes, which were of various shapes and colors. Except for the preserved egg tofu and hawthorn cake, which were presented in a more elaborate manner, the others were served rather casually.
"I'm waiting for someone; they'll be late." Actually, there wasn't anyone there; Li Fu just made up a lie.
Yuan Doudou sat in front of the counter. From the moment Li Fu came in, she had a feeling that he wasn't there to eat for real.
Li Fu poured three bowls of wine. He first tasted the rice wine, then a sip of strong liquor, and finally a sip of tiger penis wine.
The wine tasted exactly the same as the wine at his home, so it must also be from the All Seasons Winery.
Li Fu picked up his chopsticks and took a piece of preserved egg. He had never eaten preserved egg before. It looked dark and probably tasted terrible.
To my surprise, one bite revealed a smooth and delicious flavor, with a tangy and salty sauce and minced garlic on top to cut through the richness.
Even if he wanted to learn, it would be very difficult; he had no idea how preserved eggs were made.
"Boss, the preserved egg in your preserved egg tofu has a very unique flavor." Li Fu tried to get the recipe for the preserved egg.
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