Guan Xiyue suddenly realized—it was the young master who had argued with her the other day.
She pursed her lips and started walking away, saying casually, “I’m here to help you all achieve common prosperity. Since you’re the young master, I won’t pick a fight with you today.”
The restaurant manager looked puzzled: “I don’t know what misunderstanding there is between the young master and this young lady. I just bought her new recipe for a dish.”
He Ziming took the contract and glanced at the signature. His teeth gritted in frustration: “Guan Xiyue… what a woman. Young lady? She’s a concubine! Who would bring such a concubine into the household?”
The manager was shocked—this ‘young lady’ was actually a concubine. Why would a concubine openly sell a recipe?
He Ziming continued eating the remaining braised pork, admitting it was indeed delicious.
Meanwhile, Guan Xiyue was still in the kitchen, personally teaching the head chef how to make the dish. This was a secret recipe, and the thought of creating such delicious braised pork excited the chef immensely.
When the time came, Xiao Yun arrived to find Guan Xiyue. She was surprised to see everyone in Dongkang Restaurant—from the manager down to the helpers—treating her auntie with respect.
Even the young master who had argued with her earlier was there. His expression was strange but not angry—more like an awkward reconciliation.
Guan Xiyue took Xiao Yun back to the Zhou residence, brushing off the girl’s questions with hums and “uh-huhs.”
Passing a snack shop, Guan Xiyue bought some candied fruits and seeds to keep Xiao Yun quiet.
Back in the small courtyard of the Zhou residence, Guan Xiyue exhaled in relief. She now had money again—a total of twenty-two taels of silver.
She repaid ten taels to the elf and stored twelve taels in her space, feeling satisfied.
The little elf, clearly pleased, praised her: “Master, you’re amazing!”
Guan Xiyue planned her next move: “Little elf, I’ve found a way to make money. Star anise is scarce here. I can buy it from you and sell it to Dongkang Restaurant. I’ll make a fortune quickly!”
The elf immediately wilted: “Master, why are you always coming up with such wild ideas? If it were that easy, where’s the challenge or fun? I have no star anise left; the last batch was all sold to you. Other spices are gone too.”
Guan Xiyue’s good mood deflated. She regretted not selling the half jin of star anise for more—Dongkang Restaurant would have bought it anyway. She even considered exploiting this merchant talent but quickly dismissed the thought.
Having repaid the elf, her next goal was gaining her freedom.
Little did she know, the first deal she signed would cause a huge stir.
He Ziming invited his classmates for a gathering. The restaurant prepared a fine table, and Zhou Zhengye was also invited.
Other dishes were tasty but familiar; it wasn’t until the rich, tender, and visually appealing braised pork arrived that everyone’s discerning palates were conquered, earning unanimous praise.
The He and Zhou families were long-time rivals—fathers competing in business, sons in achievements. They had to maintain appearances while secretly competing.
He Ziming felt proud: “Brother Zhou, I heard you were ill recently, now you seem fully recovered. But although this braised pork is delicious, having just recovered, perhaps you shouldn’t overindulge.”
He praised the dish while subtly mocking Zhou Zhengye’s health.
Zhou Zhengye, fully recovered, took a piece, intending to critique it professionally.
Being the young master of a family who had tasted countless dishes, he knew how to judge. Yet, after the first bite, he instinctively reached for a second. Seeing the others praising it, deliberately criticizing seemed petty.
He could only weakly remark, “The taste is indeed good, though slightly greasy.”
He Ziming seized the opportunity: “Perhaps, Brother Zhou, your stomach is still weak after illness.”
Flustered but unable to explode, Zhou Zhengye could only endure. He Ziming continued boasting: “Friends, this is our restaurant’s new dish. Innovation is key in our business; we cannot stagnate.”
In this county, He Ziming and Zhou Zhengye were equally affluent and generous, holding high status among classmates.
The two families’ rivalry meant they looked for opportunities to mock each other. Zhou could only weakly respond: “Seems your head chef had ten years to finally create something new.”
Craftsmanship was usually taught by masters—rarely did anyone innovate. He could only subtly mock that Dongkang’s chef had studied ten years to produce one new dish.
He Ziming, now a bit tipsy, revealed the secret: “Actually, our chef is good, but not innovative. This recipe came from a young lady—surprise! She’s a concubine, struggling, forced to sell her recipe publicly.”
That evening, Guan Xiyue was summoned upstairs to face the Zhou family’s anger.
Zhou Zhengye saw her in the orange-red dress, round and plump, and couldn’t believe this bumbling, fat concubine could have such a secret recipe.
But Master Zhou, hearing about the braised pork, confirmed: “It must be her. I asked the kitchen’s Lao Wang. I’ve been busy the past few days and didn’t get around to handling it—someone took advantage of that.”
Mrs. Zhou first questioned: “Did you sell the braised pork recipe to Dongkang Restaurant?”
Guan Xiyue hesitated a moment, then admitted: “Yes, that’s true.”
Master Zhou sighed: “If you have the recipe, why didn’t you give it to me?”
Guan Xiyue frowned: “You never asked.”
She felt that at least Dongkang Restaurant paid twenty taels for it. Master Zhou acted as if he deserved it for free.
Zhou Zhengye saw her still talking back and scolded coldly: “You didn’t think to give it to my father proactively, yet expect him to intervene personally?”
Guan Xiyue rolled her eyes inwardly—this family was unreasonable, taking by force yet acting high and mighty.