CHAPTER 169: CHAPTER 169: DELIBERATE DIFFICULTIES

Mrs. Jiang was just about to stand up and check on her eldest son when she heard Zheng Shaochen speaking, so she didn’t make any further moves.

Zheng Shaochen asked the head chef about those dishes right in front of her, successfully bewildering the head chef.

Zheng Shaochen looked at Gu Nian, "I can boast a little, Qinglin Restaurant has dishes that other restaurants might not have, and it absolutely has the ones other restaurants offer. Little girl, I’m seriously doubting now whether there are really any Hibiscus Pork or Drunken Shrimp dishes in the world. Are you deliberately making things difficult for me?"

"Ha!" Gu Nian chuckled lightly, "Little brother, saying something like that reveals your lack of exposure, doesn’t it? There’s a saying that someone is always better than you, and the sky is the limit. Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist?"

"But that doesn’t necessarily mean it exists, does it?" As a child from a business family, even if he’s easy-going, Zheng Shaochen isn’t foolish.

"What if I can prove it exists?" Gu Nian raised an eyebrow, asking him.

Zheng Shaochen chuckled, calmly extending a finger, "One recipe for a hundred taels of silver, what do you say?"

Gu Nian shook her head, "No deal. I’m here to eat, not to sell recipes. Since your restaurant doesn’t have these dishes, just serve some of your signature dishes."

Zheng Shaochen was then even more convinced that these two dishes were mentioned by Gu Nian just to make things difficult for him, and partly to show off, so he deliberately ordered, "By the way, our restaurant’s head chef has just come up with a new dish, called Braised Pork, which has been selling like hotcakes here. Let’s start with that, and then prepare a few of our signature dishes..."

Zheng Shaochen didn’t notice that when he mentioned Braised Pork, the head chef’s body suddenly tensed up.

Even Gu Nian managed a discreet smile.

Luckily, no one revealed that the Braised Pork dish was actually created by Gu Nian.

Dahu followed along, not even having a chance to greet Mrs. Jiang and Gu Nian before being pulled away again.

When they returned to the kitchen, the head chef, busy as he was, began to chat with Dahu warmly, "Dahu, your master has treated you well lately, right? Although I used your Braised Pork recipe, I’ve been diligent in teaching you, so you shouldn’t feel short-changed."

Dahu’s gratitude was genuine, "Master, I know all the good you’ve done for me. That Braised Pork recipe was also bought by you, saying you took it would be unfair to me."

The head chef saw Dahu’s sincere demeanor, shook his head, sighed, and pulled out the wages he had just received today, handing all the money to Dahu, "Dahu, I won’t hide it from you. I told the shopkeeper that the Braised Pork was my invention, which has brought me some benefits at the restaurant. Don’t feel uneasy about it. The reason I can benefit from a single dish is because I’ve worked here for many years. You’ve just started and haven’t mastered the skills yet. Even if you personally took the recipe to the shopkeeper, he might not value it. Take this money as compensation from your master. You absolutely must not reveal to anyone that the recipe is yours, or else I won’t be able to continue working at this restaurant. If a new head chef comes, they might not be willing to teach you wholeheartedly..."

After the head chef explained the situation emotionally and logically, Dahu, not being a fool, naturally understood the matter at hand.