At this moment, in the box, a group of people who originally came to discuss business were now just busy eating, as if they had forgotten that they were just using the meal as an excuse to discuss business.
"Old Yan, you are amazing! Where did you find a place with such delicious food? The cooking skills are better than those at Tianxiaju." said one of the elders who came with the old man. The Tianxiaju he mentioned is the largest and best restaurant in town. The county magistrate always goes here to eat.
"That's right." Old Master Yan responded with a smug look. "You all know me. I have no other hobbies in my life except eating. I have tried all the food in this town, but I can guarantee that no one can cook as well as that girl just now. I have eaten the food made by that girl for several months in a row and I never get tired of it. I want to eat it every day, but I have never tasted her cooking before. I didn't expect it to be so amazing."
Everyone present nodded in agreement. To describe the dishes on the table as exquisite was no exaggeration.
Another old man said, "I've been to all over the country in my business, and I've eaten at all kinds of restaurants, big and small. I've even been to Baiweiju in Beijing several times. Not to mention Tianxiaju. I dare say that even the dishes made by the chef at Baiweiju are not as good as those made by this girl."
The others were surprised when they heard this. If it tasted better than Tianxiaju, they could accept it, but if it was better than Baiweiju? You know, Baiweiju in Beijing is famous all over the world. The taste is said to be unforgettable, even three-year-old children know it. Now they say it is not as good as this girl's? So the dishes made by this girl are still rare in the world?
"You still don't believe what I said? It really tastes better than Baiweiju in Beijing. You will know if you try it next time you go to Beijing."
This seems to be true now. One man said, "It seems that we will have a place to choose when entertaining distinguished guests in the future. Come to this table and we can conclude any business!"
The others laughed when they heard this and agreed, "Yes, yes, that's right. From now on, we should entertain guests here. It will definitely satisfy them."
Da He heard these words between dishes. On the surface, he acted calm, but in fact, he was so happy that he almost flew away. As soon as he left the private room, he ran downstairs like a wild horse, rushed to Li Hehua and said, "Aunt Hehua, the guests upstairs are all praising your cooking. They say it's better than Baiweiju in Beijing and hard to find in the world. They also said that they should come to our place to entertain guests in the future. Then we won't have to worry about business in the future! Haha..."
When the other people in the kitchen heard what Dahe said, they also became happy and their excitement was beyond words.
As expected, Li Hehua raised the corner of his mouth and patted Dahe on the shoulder, "Okay, you are happy, but you have to be more cautious in front of guests. Go to the second floor and wait, in case the guests want to call for help."
Daha let out an "Ah" and hurried upstairs.
The people at a table upstairs were so busy eating without talking that they finished all the dishes on the table. Only some soup and cooking oil were left on their plates. They all had full stomachs and lay on their chairs burping. They didn't act like a boss at all. They looked at each other and laughed.
"I am very happy with my meal today. I haven't had such a good meal in a long time."
"Who said it wasn't? I had a feast today. I didn't expect there is such a good restaurant in our town. I guess we have to make an appointment next time and come again."
"Come again, come again, I'll eat here from now on."
A few people just sat there and talked, looking very contented.
Seeing this, Da He hurried into the box and asked, "Can I help you remove the plates and serve some tea?"
Upon hearing this, Old Master Yan laughed and said, "Let's go, let's go. Now we need some tea to help digest our food. It's good for your family to do this. Great."
Dahe swiftly cleared the dishes from the table, wiped the table clean, served a pot of tea to help digestion, and then left.
Everyone in the box was very satisfied with this. Each of them held a cup of tea in their hands and talked about business while digesting their food. Before they knew it, most of the afternoon had passed. When they finished their conversation, they realized it was getting late. Mr. Yan hurriedly took them downstairs to settle the bill.
There were not many people on the first floor at this time, and those who came to eat had already finished their meal and left.
Old Master Yan smiled and said, "Girl, your cooking skills have made us old guys forget to go home."
Li Hehua smiled and said, "Grandpa, thank you for your compliment. If you think it tastes good, I'll come back next time."
Old Master Yan stroked his beard and said, "I'll make sure you see me often in the future. Okay, girl, pay me the bill. We really have to leave."
Li Hehua took the handwritten bill and said, "Old man, I've removed the change for you, a total of four taels of silver. Today's opening is half price, so you only need to pay two taels of silver."
Grandpa Yan and his companions were stunned when they heard this. Four taels of silver for a table of dishes, this price was considered very expensive. Even in a big restaurant in the capital, a meal would cost about this much. But in this small town, this amount of money was too much. Other restaurants in the town could charge no more than one tael of silver at best.
However, when they thought about the eight dishes they had just eaten, they felt that the prices were very reasonable. Those dishes were hard to find in the world, and any one of them could be sold at a high price. If they didn't have so much money, it seemed like they would be letting down the taste.
Old Master Yan stroked his beard and laughed, took out two taels of silver and placed them on the counter, then left with his men.
Li Hehua calmly put the silver into the drawer behind the counter and asked Zhang Tieshan to write it down in the account book. She didn't think two taels of silver was too much at all. If it were in a place like the capital, she could ask for ten taels of silver for the table of food just now, and four taels of silver was already the least.
The people present were not as calm as Li Hehua. Except for Zhang Tieshan, who felt that the craftsmanship of his family's cakes was fully worthy of four taels of silver, everyone else was shocked by the asking price.
Wow, a table of food costs four taels of silver, which is more than the money an ordinary family saves in a year. If a table costs four taels, and there are ten or eight tables a day, how much money can one earn in a year?
Sister Xie clicked her tongue twice and couldn't help but admire, "Sister Hehua is so capable, few men can compare to her." After saying that, she saw Zhang Lin who was drinking water next to her and her eyes rolled.
She knew that the person next to her was Sister Lotus' ex-mother-in-law, and she also noticed that the ex-mother-in-law didn't like Sister Lotus very much. She wanted to save face for Li Hehua, so she pretended to talk to herself and said, "Women, if they were half as capable as Sister Lotus, all the men in the world would be scrambling to marry her. Whoever marries someone as capable as Sister Lotus would have a great blessing. Sometimes I think, if I were a mother-in-law, I would want a daughter-in-law like Sister Lotus. It's a pity, I don't have that blessing." After she finished speaking, she sighed heavily.
When Zhang Lin heard this, her eyes flashed. She lowered her head and took another sip of water to suppress the shock in her heart.
Originally, she thought that her Tieshan was a very capable man, and no other man in the village could make as much money as her Tieshan. In her heart, a woman like Li Hehua was not worthy of her Tieshan at all, and marrying such a woman would be a great loss. But now, her thoughts were impacted.
She could earn three or four taels of silver from a table of dishes, and at least ten taels of silver a day. That was too much in a year. Even her family member Tieshan couldn't earn that much in a year.
Zhang Lin had to admit that most men really wanted to marry such a capable woman. Even if she was divorced, there were still many men who wanted to marry her. Besides, which mother-in-law didn't like a daughter-in-law who could make money? Therefore, Li Hehua really had no worries about being unwanted.
Zhang Lin secretly looked up at Li Hehua who was standing by the counter. Seeing her current face, her heart skipped a beat again. She couldn't help but think of what Zhang Tieshan said about him being so persistent that he got close to Li Hehua. She didn't believe it before, but now it seems...
Sister Xie, who was secretly observing Zhang Lin's expression, curled her lips and felt relieved. Sister He's ex-mother-in-law actually looked down on Sister He. She really didn't treat her as a treasure. She really thought she had to marry your son? A smart person should treat Sister He well. If you still find fault with her, don't even think about marrying such a good daughter-in-law.
Li Hehua had no idea that the money for a table of food had already triggered a psychological war over there. If he had known, he would definitely be in no choice but to laugh or cry.
She put away the account book and looked at the sky. It was almost time for Shulin to finish school, so it was time to pick up the little guy and take him home.
Li Hehua said to Zhang Tieshan, "You look after the store. I'll go to the back to change clothes and then go to the college to pick up Shulin after school."
Zhang Tieshan raised his eyes and said "hmm".
Seeing Li Hehua walking to the backyard, Zhang Tieshan waved to Luo Erzhao and said, "Please help me watch for a while. I'm going to the back to relieve myself." Then he came out from behind the counter and went to the backyard.
Luo Er looked at the back of his good brother and smiled meaningfully.
Li Hehua took off her clothes that smelled of oil smoke, changed into clean ones, and opened the door to go out. Unexpectedly, a tall figure was standing at the door, which scared her.
After taking a closer look, he saw that it was Zhang Tieshan. Li Hehua breathed a sigh of relief and gently punched him on the chest. "Why are you standing here? You scared me to death!"
Zhang Tieshan didn't say anything, but just glanced at Li Hehua's clothes. She was wearing a light blue silk dress with flowers on it and a circle of tassels around her waist that served as a belt, which made her waist look particularly slender. Her bulging chest was particularly attractive against the backdrop of her slender waist. She was truly slender and graceful.
Zhang Tieshan's eyes darkened.
Li Hehua felt his face inexplicably hot, as if his body was about to catch fire under his gaze. He slapped him awkwardly, "What are you looking at! Go to the front and watch, or I'll deduct your wages."
Zhang Tieshan let out an ambiguous laugh, and as Li Hehua finished speaking, he hugged her, turned around and went into the house. At the same time, with a "click", the door was closed.
"Zhang Tieshan, what are you doing - woo -"
Before he could finish his words, he was kissed.
Zhang Tieshan was like a hungry beast that came across a delicious prey. Once he caught it, he would bite it hard, wishing to suck all the blood and flesh from the prey's body, and would never give the prey any counterattack.
Li Hehua was the poor prey. He had no way to resist and could only let him do whatever he wanted.
When he was finally released, his legs were so weak that he could not stand and he had to rely on Zhang Tieshan to hold him.
Li Hehua gritted his teeth in hatred, "Zhang Tieshan, you big beast——"
Zhang Tieshan was amused by the word "beast" and simply picked up Li Hehua and placed her on the table. He stood in front of her, holding her waist tightly with both hands and laughing, "Is this a beast? Huh?"
Li Hehua stretched out his leg and kicked him, which made him laugh again, which was quite pleasant.
Li Hehua was so angry that she snorted and twisted his waist hard. This time, she finally made Zhang Tieshan gasp with a hiss, but he didn't move at all and let her twist him.
"What are you doing? I have to pick up Shulin from school. It will be too late if I don't go now."
Zhang Tieshan hummed, raised his hand to tidy up her messed up hair, and said, "Change your clothes, this one doesn't look good."
Li Hehua was puzzled and looked down at the clothes she was wearing. These clothes were newly made by her. They fit her very well and were also the most popular style now. They were not like the fat, big and messy ones she had worn before. She was very satisfied with the way she looked.
She thought that she couldn't dress too casually when she was going to pick up Shu Lin, otherwise it would embarrass the child, so she changed into this formal and nice-looking outfit, but she didn't expect Zhang Tieshan to say it didn't look good.
If her man says her clothes are ugly, any woman would care. Li Hehua also cared and asked as if to confirm, "Is it really ugly? I think it's okay."
Zhang Tieshan lied with his eyes open, "It really doesn't look good. Change it, or I can help you choose it, okay?"
Li Hehua thought about it and nodded, "Okay, then I'll change it." Since he didn't like it, it would be okay to change it. There was no need to argue about it.
Zhang Tieshan followed Li Hehua to the closet, looked at her clothes, and finally picked one out. "Let's take this one, it's pretty."
Li Hehua looked at the dress. Although it was quite new and the style was okay, it was a bit fat and did not fit her figure at all. She did not want to wear it out when going out.
Seeing this, Zhang Tieshan hugged her, kissed her on the forehead, and coaxed her, "Be good, this one looks good, just wear it, okay?"
Li Hehua pursed his lips and said, "Okay then, get out." Then he pushed his back and drove him out.
This time, Zhang Tieshan cooperated and went out obediently.
When Li Hehua came out again, she had indeed changed her clothes. This time, she definitely didn't look as seductive as before. Zhang Tieshan was satisfied and patted her head. "Okay, go quickly, and be careful on the road."
Li Hehua nodded, and seeing that it was getting late, he hurried out the door and rushed to the academy.
When they arrived at the academy, school had indeed ended and many children had already been picked up. Shulin was standing at the door, held by Gu Zhijin's hand, looking towards the road, waiting for her to pick him up.
Li Hehua quickly ran over and hugged Shulin, "Shulin, I'm sorry, mom is a little late today."
Shulin shook his head, put his arms around Li Hehua's neck and rubbed it, then called out in her ear: "Mom——"
Li Hehua rubbed his back and said, "Okay, okay, Mom will take you home soon."
After that, she said to Gu Zhijin who was looking at her: "Master Gu, I'm sorry to bother you today. I'll take Shulin home."
Gu Zhijin nodded, and when he saw her turning around and leaving with Shulin, he suddenly called her, "Shu--Shulin's mother--"
Li Hehua was stunned for a moment, then realized that Master Gu was calling him, and turned around quickly, "Master Gu, what's wrong? Is there something wrong?"
Gu Zhijin pursed his lips and said, "Your restaurant is opening today, and I haven't congratulated you yet."
Li Hehua smiled and said, "Thank you, Master Gu. If you have time, bring Jinzhao to my place for dinner. You don't have to pay for meals."
Gu Zhijin smiled slightly, looking at Li Hehua's bright smile, he really wanted to ask her if she was really together with Shulin's father again, but the words turned around and around in his mouth, he swallowed and spit out, and finally did not say it out.
What right did he have to ask such a question? It was too unethical. Besides, what happened that day was obvious enough. Was there any need to ask? What was the point of asking?
Gu Zhijin secretly exhaled, "It's okay, Jin Zhao and I will go to support you when we are free. It's getting late, you should take Shulin home quickly."
Li Hehua nodded, "Then we'll go, Shulin, say goodbye to the Master."
Shulin waved his little hand towards Gu Zhijin and said goodbye.
Gu Zhijin also waved his hand, and then watched Li Hehua and Shu Lin's figures gradually walk away until they were out of sight.
"Second uncle, please stop looking. The person has disappeared long ago and you can't see him back even if you look." A little head popped up from behind the gate of the academy, looking at Gu Zhijin with its black eyes.
Gu Zhijin came back to his senses, looked at Gu Jinzhao, and said seriously: "What nonsense are you talking about? Be careful or I'll spank you."
Gu Jinzhao came out from behind the door and made a face at him, "I'm not talking nonsense." Then, with his hands behind his back, he began to lecture him seriously, "What did I say at the beginning? I asked you to marry Shulin's mother back to be my second aunt. You didn't listen and said I was talking nonsense. Now, it's too late, right? Look how beautiful Shulin's mother is now. She still cooks so deliciously and is still so gentle. Shulin's father has regretted it and married Shulin's mother back. You have no chance. You, if you had known this would happen, you would not have done it in the first place." He had just learned this sentence recently. It was used by his second uncle when he was lecturing him. Now he has successfully used it and used it to teach his second uncle a lesson.
Gu Zhijin frowned and slapped Gu Jinzhao's head hard, "Don't talk nonsense, such words will affect Shu Lin's mother's reputation. When did Second Uncle plan to marry Shu Lin's mother? What would others think if they heard this? If you talk nonsense again, I will put you in solitary confinement!"
Gu Jinzhao knew that his second uncle was really angry. He pouted in dissatisfaction and stomped his feet fiercely. "Okay, okay, you say I'm talking nonsense, then I'm talking nonsense. Anyway, whoever feels the pain will know it. I don't care about you. You will be alone in the future. When I grow up and marry a beautiful lady, you can envy me. Humph..." After saying that, he left angrily without looking back. He decided that he would ignore his second uncle for five days, no, two days would be better, to let him have a taste of his power.
Gu Zhijin looked at Gu Jinzhao's energetic little figure for a long time, then lowered his head and sighed, feeling empty in his heart. He knew that something had been completely lost. Because of his slow realization and his lack of initiative, he had no chance.
He was destined not to have this blessing. From now on, she would be just the mother of his disciple... nothing more...
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