Cute Wife Gourmet

Chapter 168 Freeloader
The carriage sent Ye Jiayao to Tianshangju. Xia Chunyu ordered Manager Zhao to go to Datonghui to get 80,000 taels of silver notes. He also told Song Qi to make sure to invite the young lady home before dinner, and then he left.

Ye Jiayao knew where he was going without having to guess. Xiao Jing said in the morning that the military situation was not optimistic, so he must have gone to find Helian Xuan.

Since she couldn't take care of national affairs, she just took care of the small restaurant.

The cooking competition is about to begin. As Zhong Xiang is the only chef from Tianshangju participating in the competition, Tianshangju has high hopes for him and makes things very convenient for him. All the necessary ingredients are provided by the restaurant, and most of the work in the restaurant is done by Deng Haichuan and Wang Mingde, who are growing very fast.

"How is Zhong Xiang's preparation going?" 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 he is almost racking his brains."

"Go and take a look." Ye Jiayao went to the kitchen.

Zhong Xiang and Wang Mingde are busy.

As soon as Ye Jiayao entered, she smelled a rich fragrance, which seemed to be the scent of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.

"doing what?"

Seeing Ye Jiayao coming, Zhong Xiang was delighted: "Second Young Madam, I just made a bowl of cat ears, with the soup prepared by Wang Mingde. How about you try it?"

Wang Mingde hurriedly served a bowl.

Mao'erduo is a kind of pasta popular in Shanxi and Shaanxi. It is called Mao'erduo because it looks like cat's ears. It is mostly used as a staple food in the north, but usually as a dessert and snack in the south.

Ye Jiayao took a bite and found the noodles very chewy, although a little hard, but very delicious. She was sure that Wang Mingde's soup was inspired by Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, combining seafood and other ingredients. It was rich but not greasy, and fresh and fragrant without overwhelming the main flavor.

Wang Mingde is a talented person!

"You made it with Xiao noodles?"

"Yeah! Xiao noodles are easy to knead and shape."

Ye Jiayao thought, "With your craftsmanship, shaping is not a problem. You should use white flour instead. The white flour in our Yangzhou area is the finest and has a sweet aftertaste."

"But white flour is not chewy enough."

"You add a few egg whites."

Zhong Xiang slapped his forehead and suddenly realized: "Yes, why didn't I think of it, I will try again later."

"Well, how about this soup?" Zhong Xiang asked again.

Wang Mingde also looked at her expectantly.

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "Wang Mingde has made great progress! I can only say that this soup is already perfect."

Wang Mingde smiled embarrassedly: "Second Young Madam, I borrowed from your Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, but just changed some of the ingredients."

"What did you change?" Ye Jiayao tasted it just now, and it seemed that the pig stomach, lamb elbow, hoof tip, tendon, chicken and duck gizzards were removed, but the soup still had the aroma of chicken and beef, but the lamb was gone.

“I used sea cucumbers, scallops, beef tendons, beef tenderloins, shredded chicken breasts, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and yam… If I added pork stomachs and chicken and duck gizzards, the flavor would be too strong and would not complement the taste of cat ears,” said Wang Mingde.

Ye Jiayao praised sincerely: "You have considered it very carefully, and you have clearly distinguished the main from the secondary. Green leaves set off the red flowers, and there are also rules for being green leaves, and they cannot steal the show. Wang Mingde, you should work hard and strive to become the number one soup ingredient king."

Wang Mingde blushed and said shyly, "I will try my best."

Zhong Xiang added: "As for dumplings, I put a lot of effort into the fillings, but the dumplings are always the same shapes. Our four-happiness dumplings are considered outstanding, but I believe there are many people who make four-happiness dumplings."

Ye Jiayao said, "Dumplings are just a layer of dough wrapped around a ball of filling. How to knead it is up to you. I think most people would focus on the shape. You have Wang Mingde as your capable assistant, and the soup is a highlight. Why don't you make soup dumplings?"

"As for pastries, your pea yellow is already one of the best in Jinling, so let's make this."

This is Zhongxiang’s strong point, there is absolutely no problem with that.

"But there must be one more."

"There is one more thing I need to think of. For this one, we need to come up with something that no one else can do and that is unique to us."

In fact, Ye Jiayao had an idea in her mind. She wanted to bake a cake, but she didn’t have an oven, so she had to figure out the tools to make it.

"Okay, then Wang Mingde and I will study soup dumplings together tonight." Zhong Xiang was very convinced of Ye Jiayao and it would be right to listen to her.

Coming out of the kitchen, Manager Zhao also came back from Datonghui and handed a silver note of 80,000 taels to Ye Jiayao.

Ye Jiayao put it away and asked Manager Zhao to show her the account book.

As soon as Ye Jiayao opened the account book, she was shocked by the data on it.

It was amazing. In the half month she was away, the business of Tianshangju not only did not decline, but it steadily increased. The autumn examination was over, and there was no champion banquet, but every private room was full.

Before, when Manager Zhao said that the daily profit was 6,000, she thought it was an exaggeration, but now it seems to be more than enough.

Damn, a profit of nearly two hundred thousand a month, it makes me feel heartbroken for Lao Li just thinking about it. I wonder how much money Chun spent to buy the restaurant.

Fortunately, she didn't know. If she knew, she would probably vomit blood.

Uh, why is there an account here, and it's Chunyu's name. Didn't Chunyu eat at home these days? Looking back, there are actually several more. A rough estimate is about 2,700 to 2,800 taels. "Manager Zhao, what's going on? Did the prince invite guests here?" Ye Jiayao asked.

Manager Zhao said angrily, "It wasn't the prince who invited us, it was the eldest young master. He knew that this restaurant was opened by the prince, so he brought people here every now and then, ordered the most expensive dishes, and asked for the best wine. He never paid the bill and put it in the name of the prince. Sometimes when he met people he knew, he pretended to be generous and said he treated them, and he also kept the bill, so we servants couldn't say anything. The third young master occasionally came to treat us and paid for it himself, but when I said it was okay, the third young master wouldn't agree. He's really a person..."

Manager Zhao just shook his head.

"Does the prince know about this?"

"I have reported this to the prince, but there is nothing he can do."

Ye Jiayao felt a surge of anger in her heart. Were they being taken advantage of? It was fine if he came here for free, but was there anyone who was so ignorant as to use their money to do favors? This was too much.

"Let the guys keep their eyes open. When he comes, he will say that the place is full and all the seats are reserved."

Manager Zhao said, "The eldest young master always sends people to reserve seats in advance. I'm afraid this trick can't stop him."

Damn, eating for free and yet eating so ostentatiously, this problem needs to be treated.

The key is how to treat this kind of person. I guess they are very shameless and it’s useless even if you point them out.

"Let me think of another way!" Ye Jiayao said depressedly.

After leaving Tianshangju, Ye Jiayao asked Song Qi along the way what kind of person Xia Chunli was.

Song Qi said, "The eldest young master has a position as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, and it was arranged by the madam. The old master of the You family used to be a university scholar in Longtu Pavilion. The eldest young master likes rare treasures and precious stones, and spends a lot of money on them. However, he often asks the prince for money, sometimes a few thousand taels, sometimes a few hundred taels. He said it was a loan, but I have never seen him pay it back. Last month, he asked the prince to borrow 10,000 taels of silver, saying that the eldest young lady did not have enough capital to open an embroidery workshop."

Ye Jiayao was speechless. It seemed that Xia Chunli was comparable to the third uncle whom she had never met!

"Second Young Madam, you have to talk about the Young Master. The eldest young master's bad habits were caused by the Young Master. The Young Master has the same temper as the old marquis. He is a ruthless person outside and cannot save face in front of his brothers. He is not as good as the Third Young Master. The Third Young Master never says much. He just says one sentence: I have no money." Song Qi said.

That's right, he even wanted to give money for the renovation of the house of his uncle. Ye Jiayao felt that this matter had to be dealt with from the source. Xia Chunyu had to be united with her, otherwise she would not be able to please both sides.

Chunyu didn't come back for dinner, and the old marquis was not there either. He said he was invited by some general. I guess it was for Simon's war.

After dinner, Ye Jiayao and Mrs. Qiao sat there listening to Mrs. Xia You's instructions to Butler Zhong.

"First, let the fourth young master move to the west courtyard, renovate it, connect the two courtyards, then tear down the wall of the backyard and build a new wall to enclose Baoyuexuan."

Butler Zhong was surprised: "Madam, that would include half of the back garden, and Bao Yuexuan is the prince..."

Xia Youshi interrupted him and said, "Just do as I say. The prince won't have any objections. The wedding is urgent. It's too late to rebuild. After thinking about it, this is the best way."

Butler Zhong agreed: "I will invite carpenters and masons to come in tomorrow."

"Well, everyone must enter and exit from the east side door, and must not disturb the peace of other courtyards."

"Yes!"

"As for the purchase of items, I have already prepared the list. Ask Lin Kun to complete it as soon as possible. I want to review it one by one."

"Yes."

"Ask Lin Kun's family to pick out a few careful and thoughtful maids and bring them to me for a look."

"Yes."

"That's all for now! I'll think of other things later."

Qiao immediately suggested: "Mom, do we need to build a small kitchen?"

Xia Youshi thought for a moment and said, "Let's fix it."

The Queen Mother dotes on Liuli in every way, and maybe she will even assign a royal chef to her.

Ye Jiayao wondered in her heart, should she also build a small kitchen in her yard? She also needed to research dishes, and it was not good to always go to the big kitchen. In case she was hungry at night, it would be convenient to make some midnight snacks.

But there is no need to talk about this now, as Xia Youshi is already very busy.

"Okay, you all go down, Jinxuan stays." Xia Youshi said.

Mrs. Qiao looked at Ye Jiayao, a suspicious look flashed in her eyes, and she retreated.

After everyone left, Xia Youshi asked, "I heard that Chunyu bought Tianshangju?"

Ye Jiayao replied calmly: "Yes."

Xia Youshi snorted coldly: "He is really rich."

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "It cost a lot of money, and I also borrowed some, but I am 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 she thought about it carefully, Tianshangju was now the most popular restaurant in Jinling. If it could maintain its popularity, it would be good.

"Since the restaurant is yours, what I mean is that Chunfeng's wedding banquet should be prepared by your restaurant." Xia Youshi said lightly.

(End of this chapter)