The carriage took Ye Jiayao to Tianshang Residence. Xia Chunyu ordered Manager Zhao to go to Datong to collect 80,000 taels of silver notes. He also told Song Qi that he must invite the young lady home before dinner, and then he left.
Ye Jiayao knew where he was going without having to guess. In the morning, Xiao Jing said that the military situation was not optimistic and he must have gone to find He Lianxuan.
She couldn't take care of national affairs, so she took care of the small restaurant.
The cooking competition is about to start. Zhong Xiang is the only chef competing in Tianshangju. Tianshangju has high hopes for him and opens the door for him. All the ingredients needed are provided by the restaurant. Deng Haichuan and Wang Mingde are responsible for most of the restaurant's work. The two grew up very quickly.
"How are Zhong Xiang's preparations?" Ye Jiayao asked Deng Haichuan.
Deng Haichuan said: "Brother Xiang is very distressed. He doesn't know what to do. The second young lady asked him to come up with something new, and his head is almost broken."
"Go and have a look." Ye Jiayao went to the kitchen.
Zhong Xiang and Wang Mingde are busy.
As soon as Ye Jiayao entered, she smelled a strong fragrance, which seemed to be the fragrance of Buddha jumping over the wall.
"doing what?"
Zhong Xiang was overjoyed when he saw Ye Jiayao coming: "Second Young Madam, I just made a bowl of cat ears, and Wang Mingde gave me the broth. How do you like it?"
Wang Mingde hurriedly went to fill a bowl.
Cat's ears are a kind of pasta popular in Shanxi and Shaanxi. They are called cat's ears because they look like cat's ears. They are mostly served as staple food in the north, but are usually served as snacks and snacks in the south.
Ye Jiayao took a bite and found that the noodles were very chewy and a little too hard, but the taste was very delicious. She was sure that Wang Mingde's soup was based on Buddha Jumping Over the Wall and incorporated seafood and delicacies. People will not overwhelm the guest.
Wang Mingde is a talent!
"You made it with Xiaonoodles?"
"Yes! Xiaonoodles are easy to knead and shape."
Ye Jiayao thought: "For your craftsmanship, molding is not a problem, so let's use white flour instead. The white flour in Yangzhou is the finest and has a sweet aftertaste."
"But white noodles are not chewy enough."
"Add some egg whites in."
Zhong Xiang slapped his forehead and suddenly realized: "Yeah, why didn't I think of it? I'll try again later."
"So, how about this soup?" Zhong Xiang asked again.
Wang Mingde also looked at her expectantly.
Ye Jiayao smiled: "Wang Mingde has made great progress! I can only say that this soup is perfect."
Wang Mingde smiled sheepishly: "Second Young Madam, I borrowed your Buddha Jumping over the Wall, but changed some materials."
"What did you replace?" Ye Jiayao tasted it just now. It seemed that the pork belly, lamb elbows, hoof tips, tendons, chicken and duck gizzards were removed, but the soup had the aroma of chicken and beef, and the mutton was gone.
"I used sea cucumbers, scallops, beef tendon, beef tenderloin, shredded chicken breast, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoot tips, yam... If offal such as pork tripe and chicken and duck gizzards were added, the flavor would be too strong and would not complement the cat ears. The smell." Wang Mingde said.
Ye Jiayao sincerely praised: "You are very thoughtful and have clear priorities. Green leaves are lined with red flowers. You are also particular about being a green leaf. You can't overwhelm the guest. Wang Mingde, you work hard and strive to be the number one soup king."
Wang Mingde blushed and said shyly: "I will work hard."
Zhong Xiang added: "For dumplings, I have put a lot of effort into the fillings, but the dumplings always come in the same shape. The Sixi dumplings we have here are outstanding, but I believe that the people who make Sixi dumplings There are many people here.”
Ye Jiayao said: "A dumpling is just a layer of dough wrapped with stuffing. How to knead it is not up to you? I think most people will make a fuss about the shape. You have Wang Mingde as a capable assistant. The soup is a highlight. You Why not make soup dumplings?”
"As for pastries, your pea yellow is one of the best in Jinling, so just make this."
This is Zhong Xiang’s strength, no problem at all.
"But, there must be one more thing."
"There is one more thing, I have to think about it. This one, I have to think of something that no one else can do, that is unique to this family."
In fact, Ye Jiayao had an idea in mind. She wanted to make a cake, but she didn't have an oven, so she had to figure out the making tools.
"Okay, then Wang Mingde and I will study the soup dumplings tonight." Zhong Xiang was very convinced of Ye Jiayao and heard her right.
After coming out of the kitchen, Manager Zhao also returned from Datong, and the 80,000 taels of silver notes were handed over to Ye Jiayao.
Ye Jiayao put it away and asked Manager Zhao to take a look at the ledger.
As soon as she opened the account book, Ye Jiayao was shocked by the data above.
That's awesome. During the half month she left, Tianshangju's business not only did not decline, but actually increased steadily. Autumn is over, there is no champion banquet, but every private room is full.
Previously, when shopkeeper Zhao said that the daily profit was 6,000 yuan, she thought it was an exaggeration, but now it seems that it is just a lot more.
Damn, I made nearly 200,000 yuan a month. Just thinking about it makes me feel heartbroken for Lao Li. I don’t know how much money Chun Su spent to buy the restaurant.
Fortunately, she didn't know. If she did, she would probably vomit blood.
Uh, why is there still a bookkeeper here? Chunyu's name is still in charge. Didn’t Chunyu eat at home these days? Looking further forward, there are actually several more places. A rough estimate is that there are about 2,780 taels.
"Manager Zhao, what's going on? Is the prince treating you here?" Ye Jiayao asked.
Manager Zhao said angrily: "It's not the prince who invited me. It's the eldest young master. He knows that this restaurant is owned by the prince. He brings people here every now and then, orders the most expensive dishes and the best wine, and never pays the bill." , recorded in the name of the Crown Prince. Sometimes when I meet an acquaintance, he will be generous and say that he invited me and keep the accounts. It is hard for us servants to say anything. The third young master occasionally pays for the treat himself. The younger one said that he didn’t need the third young master but he still refused. This man is better than others... "
Manager Zhao shook his head.
"Does the prince know about this?"
"The young prince has passed away, and there is nothing the prince can do about it."
An unknown fire arose in Ye Jiayao's heart. Do you think they were taken advantage of? Just come and eat for free and use their money as a favor. Are there any people who are so overconfident? unacceptable.
"Let the guys keep their eyes open. When he comes, he will say that it is full and all the seats are reserved."
Manager Zhao said: "The young master always sends people to reserve seats in advance. I'm afraid this trick won't stop him."
Damn, you eat for free and still eat in such a high-profile manner. This problem needs to be cured.
The key is how to treat it. This kind of person is probably very thick-skinned, and it won’t help even if you click on it.
"I'll think of another way!" Ye Jiayao said depressedly.
After leaving Tianshangju, Ye Jiayao asked Song Qi what kind of person Xia Chunli was.
Song Qidao: "The eldest young master has a writing position in the Hanlin Academy, and his wife arranged it for him. The old man of the You family was once a bachelor of Longtuge. The eldest young master likes rare and rare stones and spends a lot of money on them. , however, I often ask the Master for money, ranging from a few thousand taels to a few hundred taels. I say it is a loan, but I have never seen him pay it back. Last month, I asked the Master to borrow ten thousand taels of silver. Well, it’s said that the eldest young lady doesn’t have enough capital to open an embroidery workshop.”
Ye Jiayao was speechless. It seemed that Xia Chunli was a match for the third uncle he had not yet met!
"Second Young Madam, you have to talk about the eldest son. The eldest young master is accustomed to this problem. The eldest son and the old prince have the same temper. They are very irritating outside. They can't show off their face in front of their brothers. He is not as good as the third young master. , Third Young Master never talks much, just one sentence, I have no money." Song Qidao.
Isn't it? He even wanted to give away the money to repair the house at his third uncle's house. Ye Jiayao felt that this matter had to be dealt with from the source. Xia Chunyu must be allowed to unite with her, otherwise she will not be able to please both sides.
Chunyu didn't come back for dinner, and the old Marquis wasn't there either. He said he was invited there by some general, probably because of Simon's war.
After dinner, Ye Jiayao and Mrs. Qiao sat there and listened to Mrs. Xia You's instructions to Butler Zhong.
"First let the fourth young master move to the west side courtyard and renovate it. Open up the two courtyards. Then tear down the fence in the backyard and build a new fence to surround Baoyuexuan."
Butler Zhong was surprised: "Madam, that would enclose half of the back garden, and Bao Yuexuan is the prince..."
Xia Youshi interrupted him: "Just do as I say. The prince will not have any objections. The marriage is urgent and it is too late to rebuild. After much deliberation, this is the best way."
Butler Zhong agreed: "I'll hire carpenters and plasterers to come in tomorrow."
"Well, all entrances and exits must be made through the east side gate, and must not disturb the tranquility of other courtyards."
"yes!"
"There is also the purchase of items. I have already drawn up the list and asked Lin Kun to complete it as soon as possible. I want to review them one by one."
"yes."
"Let Lin Kun's family pick some careful girls and bring them to me for a look."
"yes."
"That's it for now! I'll talk about other things when I think of them."
Mrs. Qiao immediately suggested: "Mom, do we still need to build a small kitchen?"
Xia Youshi thought for a while and said, "Let's repair it."
The Queen Mother dotes on Liuli in every possible way, and she might even get a royal chef.
Ye Jiayao wondered in her mind, should she also build a small kitchen in her yard? She also had to study the dishes, and it was not good to go to the big kitchen all the time. If she got hungry at night, it would be convenient to make a midnight snack.
But there is no need to talk about this now, Xia Youshi herself is very busy.
"Okay, you all go down, Jinxuan stays." Xia Youshi said.
Mrs. Qiao looked at Ye Jiayao, with a suspicious look in her eyes, and stepped back.
After everyone left, Xia You said, "I heard that Chunyu bought Tianshangju?"
Ye Jiayao replied calmly: "Yes."
Xia Youshi snorted coldly: "He is really rich."
Ye Jiayao smiled: "It cost a lot of money and even borrowed some, but my wife is confident that this business will only make money and not lose money."
Xia Youshi was just dissatisfied with her son's generosity for a woman. However, if you think about it, Tianshangju is now the best-selling restaurant in Jinling. It would be good if it could keep up.
"Since the restaurant belongs to you, what I mean is that Chunfeng's wedding banquet will be prepared by your restaurant." Xia You said calmly.
(End of chapter)