CHAPTER 419: CHAPTER 419: A CULINARY DELIGHT ON EARTH

His smile was so charming that it captured the attention of several women ahead.

However, the attention and care he showed toward Shu’er broke those women’s hearts.

Shu’er felt that Tang Zan was doing it on purpose, but what he did undoubtedly gave her enough sense of security.

Shu’er walked over with a smile, placing her hand on Tang Zan’s outstretched palm. Tang Zan held Shu’er’s hand, feeling very assured.

Shu’er looked at Tang Zan amusingly.

"I didn’t expect my husband to be so charming."

Tang Zan brought Shu’er to the corner of the wall.

"Haven’t you always known about my charm?"

Shu’er cleared her throat with a laugh, "Of course, my husband is the most charming man in the world."

When others complimented Tang Zan, he didn’t usually react.

But when Shu’er complimented him, he couldn’t be happier.

Their reason for this outing was to check out the few restaurants Lin Yu found that were up for sale, to pick the one most worth buying.

In the end, they chose a restaurant in the west of the city. This restaurant had to close down, but among the ones for sale, it was the lease prominently located.

It was a three-story restaurant, but fortunately, it had a large area, and the decor was decently traditional.

The owner noticed Shu’er’s young age and still spoke up.

"Miss, do you really want to buy this restaurant?"

Shu’er nodded, and the owner sighed.

"Miss, this location is too remote, and my cooking skills aren’t bad, yet it made no difference. Each time I opened, other restaurants would hold activities to push me out."

"I can’t outlast others like this, young lady; I advise you to consider carefully."

Shu’er smiled and said, "Alright then, this restaurant for four hundred and fifty taels of silver, correct? I think four hundred would be reasonable."

The owner was taken aback, but then clenched his teeth and nodded, "Deal?"

Hongye said, "Young Madam, isn’t it a bit expensive? Should we look around more?"

Shu’er understood Hongye’s reasoning.

When Pei’s setup shop in Jingzhou City, just the storefront cost three hundred taels of silver, as it was a street-facing, centrally located premise.

Although they have been holding sales, profits have come in daily, but they have not yet covered the original cost.

This time, if Shu’er opens a restaurant in Jingzhou City, purchasing a property alone would cost four hundred taels of silver, plus further expenses for ingredients and staff.

Adding in the ostracism from the Jingzhou Chamber of Commerce, they could easily lose everything.

At that point, they might lose five to six hundred taels.

Shu’er chuckled, "Let’s settle with this one; I think it’s quite good."

She wasn’t afraid of the distant location.

The location for Pei’s Pastry Shop in Su County was initially the most remote. Now it’s become the busiest area in Su County.

This area might be remote and sparsely populated now, but the aroma of food is much stronger than that of pastries.

Moreover, Shu’er will even hire people to advertise on the streets and create an advertising effect herself.

The owner gave Shu’er a peculiar look, but he had already pointed out the issues. If she insisted on buying, he had no reason not to sell.

Shu’er looked at Lin Yu, "Lin Yu, pay up."

Tang Zan took out four hundred taels of silver, "I’ll handle it."

Shu’er glanced at Tang Zan, a smile tugging at her lips.

"Indeed, a man looks his best when spending money on a woman."

Tang Zan chuckled, tapping Shu’er’s nose lightly.

"Since I’m yours, what’s a little money?"

Shu’er admitted, she was charmed by Tang Zan’s words.

He was handsome, rich, spoke sweet words, was willing to spend money on her, and also provided ample security.

After purchasing the restaurant, Shu’er set about having it renovated and also sent people to buy ingredients.

The renovation was straightforward, just replacing the old tables and chairs with more luxurious solid wood ones.

Once the ingredients were purchased, Shu’er took the opportunity to swap them with items from her own supplies.

If she wanted to make a name for herself in Jingzhou, she had to make this restaurant uniquely special.

First of all, the quality of the ingredients had to surpass others.

The previous day, they hired a few women from Deserted Mountain, all skilled cooks.

She immediately designated some signature dishes for the restaurant, like Boiled Fish, Spicy Fish, Pickled Fish, Clear Soup Fish, as well as Braised Pork, Stewed Ribs, Sweet and Sour Ribs.

All these are common in the modern era, but haven’t appeared in this ancient one.

Once Shu’er had established these dishes, she began organizing people to wash and cut vegetables, and then took charge of cooking herself.

They adopted yesterday’s method, starting to teach everyone.

Since there were no customers yet, and these chefs had no other tasks, they picked it up quickly.

Everyone was responsible for one or two dishes, which wasn’t too complicated.

The kitchen was sizable enough; otherwise, there wouldn’t be room for so many chefs.

Once their operating steps and flavors were up to standard, Shu’er had them keep practicing on the side.

At this point, the first guests arrived.

It was a family of five—an elderly couple, their son and daughter-in-law, and their grandchild.

Their clothing indicated they had some money, but weren’t exceedingly wealthy.

The man handed a piece of paper to the staff.

"We got this when buying pastries at Pei’s. It says it’s a coupon for a 500 wen discount if used at Pei’s Restaurant?"

They had followed the elegant street signs here just now.

Smiling, the staff nodded, "That’s right, here’s our menu, the dishes and prices are listed."

They glanced at the menu and found the prices to be moderate for Jingzhou’s restaurants, with the dish names prominently displayed, even illustrated.

Just looking at it was appetizing.

The old man ordered a few dishes, realizing they only cost one tael of silver in total, and after thinking, ordered a Braised Pork for 100 wen.

The staff had just recommended it as a signature dish.

When the dishes were served, they were immediately drawn in by the aroma.

How fragrant!

They sniffed the air, saliva instinctively starting to form.

The dishes looked just as appetizing as in the pictures.

The old man picked up his chopsticks, took a bite, and praised the taste.

"You all must try this; it’s excellent! Compared to this, those large restaurants are nothing."

They had ordered many dishes, anticipating some waste, given the coupon.

But as they ate, they found themselves full, yet still eager to eat more.

They couldn’t stop.

In the end, the plates were licked clean; the child even used the leftover sauce to mix with rice.

After finishing, the whole family sighed contentedly.

"It’s so delicious... truly a gourmet’s delight."