"System, help me take out all the edible things from the space!" said Qi Huan.
As her words fell, the kitchen counter was filled with a dazzling array of ingredients. From snail noodles to instant noodles, a profusion of various foods that she had gradually collected.
Qi Huan picked out some instant noodles, self-heating hotpots, and compressed biscuits, and carried them over to Li Shuchen.
"Li Shuchen, these are all very convenient foods. The Yunying Caravan often travels far and wide, not knowing when they might be without stores or villages. Selling these to them would greatly improve their meals on the road, wouldn't it?"
Li Shuchen nodded lightly, took out a stack of silver notes, and simply said, "Sold."
After receiving the silver notes, Qi Huan bought a large quantity of instant noodles, self-heating hotpots, and compressed biscuits, stacking them in the hall to await the Yunying Caravan's later collection.
After preparing the goods, she counted the silver notes in her hand, surprised. "Li Shuchen, why did you give me so much? These don't cost a thousand taels..."
"The rest is for my, He's, and the others' meal expenses."
"That's still too much..."
"He eats a lot."
Seeing him shamelessly fabricating excuses with a straight face, Qi Huan stuck out her tongue and muttered, "Nonsense, you clearly eat the most."
After saying that, she dared not look at Li Shuchen's expression and quickly retreated to the kitchen.
Various ingredients were still laid out on the cutting board. Qi Huan took a little of each, making all the dishes she had planned.
There were vegetable dishes like tomato scrambled eggs, sour and spicy shredded potatoes, and braised eggplant with green beans, as well as fragrant meat dishes like braised pork, twice-cooked pork, stewed chicken, and four-happiness meatballs.
While stir-frying the dishes, she also steamed a large pot of white rice.
Just as she finished cooking, Yan Qinghe and the other two entered the courtyard.
"Ahhh, what delicious food has Ahuan made again? It smells so good!" Yan Qinghe sniffed the air and rushed into the kitchen. After hastily washing his hands, he began helping to serve the dishes.
In no time, the dining table was crowded with an array of delicacies.
Xiu Wen couldn't help but praise, "Miss Qi, this table is even more sumptuous than the Lu's Residence's luncheon. I've truly fallen into a den of good fortune..."
As he spoke, Li Shuchen, Yan Qinghe, and Yan Wu had already picked up their chopsticks, eating with elegant yet rapid speed.
Xiu Wen quickly stopped talking and joined the fray.
After finishing dinner, Qi Huan looked at the empty plates and asked, "Please give me your thoughts, everyone. How were the flavors of these dishes? Were they too salty or bland?"
"Delicious!" Yan Wu answered first, a rarity for him.
"Delicious!" Yan Qinghe wiped his mouth and agreed.
"Delicious!" Xiu Wen gave a thumbs up and sincerely praised.
Then everyone turned to look at Li Shuchen.
"Very delicious," Li Shuchen elegantly and gracefully wiped the corners of his mouth, took a sip of tea, and earnestly said, "Ahuan's cooking is always delicious."
"!"
"!"
"!"
Yan Qinghe and Xiu Wen and Yan Wu never expected Li Shuchen to suddenly become so articulate, speaking such pleasant words. Not to be outdone, the three of them racked their brains, heaping praises on Qi Huan's culinary skills one after another.
Qi Huan, having been praised to the skies, lamented, "You all are not being helpful for my improvement. You're treating this like a tasting session at Qi's Restaurant. Don't you have any critiques at all?"
The four shook their heads in unison.
Feeling helpless at their thick filter of affection, Qi Huan sighed.
The next day, she brought ingredients and arrived early at the not-yet-open Qi's Restaurant's kitchen to start working.
As she cooked, Tao Su and the newly-hired chefs Da and Niu observed and learned by her side. Once the restaurant opened, all the dishes would be the responsibility of the three of them, so Qi Huan taught them diligently.
She wasn't afraid of them leaking the recipes, partly because some ingredients were only available to her, and partly because the three had signed non-disclosure agreements.
Additionally, she gave them rather generous compensation, so she believed it would be difficult for them to be poached away.
Bringing her thoughts back, she dished out the last plate of sweet and sour ribs from the wok and handed it to the three to taste.
"How is it?"
"Delicious!" Tao Su mumbled her praise through a mouthful of meat.
The sweet and savory taste surpassed any dish she had ever eaten before. Tao Su even thought to herself that this was better than the Beijing Tao Su pastries her mother had described!
At least Da and Niu were slightly more objective than Tao Su. They pointed out issues with the heating time, seasoning amounts, and so on. With their efforts, they finally adjusted all the dishes to their optimal flavors.
After finalizing the menu and pricing, and the new signboard carved by Li Shuchen was completed, Qi's Restaurant was able to open just before the eve of the new year.
As the firecrackers popped and crackled, Qi Huan untied the red cloth hanging from the signboard, smiling as she announced, "Following tradition, on our opening day, one dish is free for tasting. Our restaurant specializes in various rice bowls and stir-fries, and we also have private rooms on the second floor. Please come and support us, fellow villagers."
"Manager Qi is so generous! From the noodle shop to the spicy snack stall to this restaurant, she has always offered free tasting on opening day. We'll get to enjoy the perks again today, brothers!"
"Right, Manager Qi's food has always been delicious, which gives her the confidence to let us try it. I'm sure the dishes at Qi's Restaurant will also be excellent. Let's go and have a taste!"
Soon, the main hall of the restaurant was filled to capacity with no empty seats.
The servers shuttled back and forth between the front hall and the backyard, calling out orders, fetching dishes, and delivering meals.
Among the diners, the fired Ding Accountant and the former manager and chefs of Ruyi Restaurant sat together. Seeing the once deserted restaurant now bustling with activity, they couldn't help but feel resentful.
They were the veterans of this establishment. How dare Qi Huan fire only them?
Ding Accountant twirled his mustache and sneered, "Miss Qi's restaurant has such a small-time feel, hiring all these impoverished beggars to freeload. How much money could they possibly make in a year? Real high-class patrons would see the low-quality of this place and who would dare come?"
Just as he finished speaking, the chef beside him elbowed him and nodded toward the entrance. "Look quickly! The thousand-tael young lady from the Lu's Residence and the magistrate's son have arrived!"
"Hmph!" Ding Accountant's face instantly flushed with anger.
Unfortunately, no one cared about his feelings.
Qi Huan merrily led Lu Yueming and Chen Jinyou upstairs, giving them each a private room.
"Miss Qi, I heard from Xiu Wen that your restaurant has opened, so I came to show my support. Thank you for listening to me last time. We're friends now, right? Can I call you Ahuan?" Lu Yueming asked with a charming smile.
Qi Huan's smile deepened. "Of course."
Lu Yueming became even happier and continued, "You can also call me Yueming. Also, Xiu Wen said your cooking is absolutely delicious! I must try it properly today."
With that, she began studying the menu intently.
Qi Huan was slightly surprised. Last time they met, Lu Yueming had been filled with sadness. How had she recovered her energy so quickly in such a short time?
Even more strangely, since entering, Lu Yueming had only said two sentences, both mentioning Xiu Wen.
Before Qi Huan could ponder further, a server knocked on the door and whispered in her ear, "Manager, Young Master Chen next door insists that you go over personally."
"Understood." After nodding, Qi Huan explained to Lu Yueming, "Yueming, I have something to attend to first. Feel free to tell the server if there's anything you'd like to eat."
Bidding farewell to Lu Yueming, Qi Huan knocked on the neighboring room's door.
"Enter."
Having received the response, Qi Huan pushed open the door and walked in, only to see Chen Jinyou sitting at the head seat of the round table, with an arrogant-looking young servant standing behind him. The order-taking server was crouched in the corner like a quail.
No matter how she looked at it, the situation seemed ominous.
