CHAPTER 652: EPISODE 346 ANOTHER HIM

The folks from Daoxiang Garden had a lively ruckus at Master Tan’s home and didn’t leave until the end of the Hai hour. Before they left, Master Tan specially packed two large bags of freshly made wild chicken meat and taro dough balls for Wang Zhanrui to bring to the staff at Zhenwei Garden to try.

"Having stayed in Sauce Garden for so long, I indeed have imposed on them. I should have invited them over for a meal, but it’s been raining all this time, and my home really cannot accommodate so many people," he said, rubbing his hands merrily, "Taking some food back is also a way to show my goodwill. Master Wang, please convey my message; when the weather clears up, I will invite them over to gather at my home."

Ever since his wife and child arrived in Fire Knife Village to reunite with him, Master Tan seemed to have regained his vitality, wearing a smile on his face all day. Seeing this, the bachelor Wang Zhanrui felt a tinge of envy and grudgingly responded, taking the taro dough balls. He then called Qing You over and explained how to phrase things when meeting Old Man Xue and what to inquire about.

The next day, Qing You packed his bags and immediately headed to Tong’an City. He didn’t delay there, met with Old Man Xue, clarified his purpose, and asked about all the details of the Eight Treasures Conference clearly. After staying for two nights, he hurried back to Fire Knife Village.

"They say that this year’s competition has many participants and the rules have changed,"

he explained clearly to Hua Xiaomai, "The topics are not announced in advance; they are revealed on the day itself. This way, fairness is ensured and it better showcases the chefs’ true skills. Old Mr. Xue said that every food establishment participating in this year’s Eight Treasures Conference has to contribute twenty taels of silver for buying ingredients. The organizers won’t embezzle this money; afterward, they will disclose the accounts, and any excess will be returned to everyone."

Twenty taels wasn’t a significant amount for Daoxiang Garden, and Hua Xiaomai naturally had no objections, yet she gained a bit more understanding.

This year’s Eight Treasures Conference, though claimed to invite all the restaurants in Tong’an Prefecture, essentially still had a barrier. Those smaller diners might not be willing to casually fork out twenty taels, which ultimately excluded many food establishments from the competition.

This approach was not really blameworthy, after all, too many participants would make coordination excessively troublesome, and it was only right for each restaurant to bear the cost of ingredients. However, Hua Xiaomai still felt a bit of regret that the so-called fairness often came with conditions.

Since she had decided to participate, she didn’t bother thinking too much about it and told Qing You to go to the account room to get the silver, and make another trip to the Provincial City. To ensure everything was handled thoroughly, this time she had Wang Zhanrui go with him.

"Look out for an inn in town called ’Dong’an’; I’ve stayed there in previous years. It’s clean and spacious, and your brother Yuhuai’s Escort Agency is also well-acquainted with it. If it’s suitable, let’s secure our accommodation first to avoid last-minute problems,"

Qing You scratched his head, puzzled: "That’s no problem, leave it to me, but... how many people from Daoxiang Garden are we planning to take, do you have an estimate, Boss?"

Hua Xiaomai hadn’t actually considered that yet. She was momentarily at a loss for words, pondering for a moment before she could speak, when suddenly there was the sound of cart axles outside, followed by Li Yingchun’s loud shouting.

"Sister-in-law, Brother Yuhuai sent me to pick you up."

He didn’t even care about the heavy rain and jumped down from the cart, rushing into the restaurant’s lobby, cheerily saying, "Brother Yuhuai sent me to fetch you to see something exciting."

Hua Xiaomai was briefly stunned, then immediately understood, and glanced outside.

The sky was as if it had been punctured, the rain fierce, forming thick, dense lines that pattered loudly onto the ground.

This kind of weather...

She pulled Li Yingchun aside and whispered, "Could it be that people from Shenglong Escort Agency have arrived? How many came?"

Li Yingchun appeared utterly unconcerned, nonchalantly said, "Dong Deyou and Lv Bin..."

As he said "Lv Bin," there was a hint of clenched teeth: "Both of them came, brought along... maybe about three to five people, all big and strong—psh, no matter how many he brings, we’re not afraid of him! Brother Yuhuai said... Hehe, you must see this spectacle; if I hadn’t told you, you would surely be annoyed. The rain is too heavy today, so he sent me in a rented cart to pick you up, sister-in-law. Do you really want to go now?"

Nonsense, how could I not go? I’ve already planned in my heart to openly spit in the faces of those two!