The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Seeing that they were silent, Min Xi said, "If it's too expensive, we can still negotiate the price. But since I'm going to do it, I'm going to make sure the customers get their money's worth."

Brett thought about his words and said, "This price is not bad. As long as the food is delicious, I think some people will still be willing to spend this money."

"Then let's wait until we open the restaurant. I wonder if there are any restrictions for foreigners to open restaurants in London?" Min Xi asked.

Bright shook his head: "Not really. Her Majesty the Queen encourages merchants from all over Europe to do business in England."

It seems that the Queen of England is indeed far-sighted and is actively attracting foreign investment.

"That's good. Let's find a store first and decide on the address of the restaurant. The area doesn't need to be very large, and it doesn't have to be a first-floor store facing the street. The environment should be more beautiful and the transportation should be more convenient. I wonder if Mr. Brett has any suggestions?" Min Xi asked.

Brett thought for a moment and said, "Since it is a privately-designed restaurant with certain requirements for the environment, why not rent a private house with a beautiful environment in the suburbs?"

Min Xi's eyes lit up: "This is indeed a good idea. Does Mr. Bright have any suitable house to recommend?"

Brett said, "You want to find a house in the suburbs. I can recommend a lot for you."

"Thank you very much!" Min Xi thanked him hurriedly, "When is Mr. Bright free? Come with us to see the house, and I'll treat you to dinner."

Brett smiled and said, "Is this meal not counted?"

Min Xi laughed: "This is just a simple meal. If you want to invite people to dinner, you must prepare a table of dishes to show your sincerity."

Brett ate a forkful of noodles. "I'll have to look forward to it then."

Min Xi turned around and asked Yun Ji excitedly: "Do you understand? We are going to open a private restaurant."

Yun Ji said, "I understood part of it. You said it should be sold for at least 1 pound."

Min Xi grinned, "That's what I was planning, but they think it's a bit expensive. Let's look at houses first and decide on the address of the restaurant. Mr. Bright suggested that we rent a house in the suburbs to run the restaurant. I think it's not bad. The environment in the suburbs is good, but it's not very convenient to buy food."

Yun Ji asked doubtfully, "Is it impossible to rent a suitable house in the city?"

"Do you think the suburban house is not good?" Min Xi asked.

Yun Ji frowned. "If the restaurant is located in the suburbs, the only source of customers is word of mouth, which is too limited. We don't have many connections. Do you think we can achieve your goals by relying on Mr. Hopson and Mr. Bright alone?"

Min Xi thought about it and it made sense: "Yes, I just thought about the good environment and how we could live more comfortably, but I ignored the issue of customer source."

Min Xi said to Brett, "My brother and I discussed it. The environment of a house in the suburbs is indeed good, but for a new restaurant like ours with no foundation and connections, customer source will be a big problem, so we should rent a house in the city."

Bright said: "The problem of customer sources is actually easy to solve. Now is the social season, and many aristocrats in London will hold parties and dinners. If you can find an opportunity to show off your skills at a party and promote your restaurant through the party, I think you will not lack customers."

Min Xi thought, isn't this similar to when he hosted a birthday party for Duke Fernando? The problem is that he knew Baron Fernando at the time, so he had the opportunity to host a birthday party. Who does he know now?

"Mr. Brett, can you introduce me to someone?" He had no choice but to turn his eyes to Brett.

Brett said: "I can indeed introduce some people to you, but whether they are willing to use you depends on your ability."

When Min Xi heard that he was willing to recommend her, he felt relieved and said, "As long as Mr. Bright is willing to provide me with an opportunity, I will definitely seize it."

"Okay, then wait for my news," Brett said.

Yun Ji had a limited vocabulary and only half understood what he heard. He asked Min Xi, "How do you say that?"

"Mr. Bright said he would like to introduce us to organize a banquet for a noble gathering, so we should have guests."

Yun Ji understood immediately: "Like Duke Fernando's birthday party?"

"Yes."

Yun Ji nodded: "That's an idea. I just don't know what the British taste is like."

"Actually, we can test the waters this way. If it works, we can open a restaurant. If not, forget it. But I think it's not a bad idea to rent a house in the suburbs. We can afford it, and we can live more comfortably. The cost may be cheaper than staying in a hotel. We can stay here and wait for the Baron and the others." Min Xi has made up his mind to rent a house, whether he opens a restaurant or not.

Yun Ji thought about it and decided that it was not a bad idea. Living in a hotel was certainly convenient, but it would cost a lot. Renting a house in the suburbs of London would definitely not cost more than here: "Okay. Let's rent a house first."

Min Xi smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Qi, for supporting me."

"As long as it is a reasonable request, I will naturally support it unconditionally." Yun Ji looked at him gently.

Min Xi looked away with a bit of blush. He was not blind and could not see the affection in Yun Ji's eyes. He coughed lightly and said to Brett, "Mr. Brett, we still plan to rent a house. When you are free, take us to the suburbs to look at houses."

Brett said, "Of course, you can go tomorrow."

"Once the house is rented, I will treat Mr. Bright and Mr. Hopson to an authentic Chinese meal," said Min Xi.

Both of them expressed their great anticipation.

A bowl of shredded chicken noodles successfully connected me with Brett. Who says it’s not profitable?

The next morning, Brett drove a horse-drawn carriage to the store. He came here on an empty stomach just to see if he could have a free breakfast. As expected, he was not disappointed. Min Xi got up early in the morning and made omelets in a frying pan, and even reserved a portion for him. Brett felt that these two Chinese people were quite knowledgeable about the ways of the world and did not disappoint him.

Hopson also had breakfast with them, and of course he paid for it, but he had something to do today and couldn't go with them to see the house.

On the way to the suburbs, Brett said, "As far as I know, there are several banquets to be held recently, and they are quite large in scale. Duke Carlos is going to hold an unprecedented banquet in his castle, and Her Majesty the Queen will also be present. If you can attend a banquet of this scale, you won't have to worry about your source of customers. However, Duke Carlos and I have no friendship, so I am powerless."

Min Si asked curiously, "Will Her Majesty the Queen also attend the banquet?"

Bright smiled and said, "Her Majesty the Queen loves to be lively and likes to attend grand banquets, but she herself is afraid of spending money, so she always goes to the houses of princes and nobles to bother them and make them spend money."

Min Xi couldn't help laughing when he heard this. It turned out that the queen was so stingy.

"What about the other parties?"

Bright said: "Mrs. Comstock will also hold a party in the near future. She is keen on matchmaking, so she holds a large dance every year and invites unmarried men and women of marriageable age to create opportunities for everyone to get to know each other. She feels particularly accomplished when she sees young people get married. I have some friendship with Mrs. Comstock, but I don't think she will have meals at her parties, only snacks and drinks."

Min Xi said: "I can also make desserts. But if I don't cook, it won't do much to promote the restaurant."

"Not necessarily. Mrs. Comstock is a kind-hearted person. If your dessert satisfies her, she will definitely help you promote it," said Brett.

"Then please Mr. Bright introduce me to Mrs. Comstock. I'll make some dessert and bring it over."

"it is good."

London is very small. It took less than half an hour for the carriage to get out of the city. The scenery in the suburbs is very different from that in the city. There are lush trees and green lands everywhere, and the houses are looming among the trees. It is exactly the rural scenery in European love movies in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is very fresh and beautiful.

Soon, Brett took them to a house with a stone wall outside. The house looked a bit old, but it was well maintained. Brett said, "How is this house? It's not far from the road, just outside the city, and the transportation is extremely convenient."

Min Xi also felt that the transportation here was very convenient. The only thing he was not very satisfied with was that there were very few trees around the house, only three or two fruit trees, which lacked the artistic conception of a winding path leading to a secluded place.

Min Xi walked around the house without going in and asked, "Anything else?"

"Yes. Let's go to the next one."

The three of them got on the carriage and drove for a few more minutes before seeing a rooftop hidden in the lush woods. Brett said, "This house can also be rented. Let's go over and take a look."

This was obviously a manor. The garden was full of fruit trees, including hawthorn, cherry and apple trees. Now was the season when cherries were ripe, and many trees were full of small red fruits. As soon as the carriage entered, the sound of birds fluttering in the air could be heard.

Min Xi was surprised and asked, "There are so many cherries, why is no one picking them?"

"There's a bumper crop of cherries this year, and we can't eat them all, so no one's picking them," Brett said.

To be honest, before he even got to the house, Min Xi had an idea. If nothing unexpected happened, he would rent this house. He asked Yun Ji, "Seventh Brother, what do you think of this house?"

Yun Ji said: "It looks good outside, the environment is good."

"I think it's good too. If the price is right, how about we rent this?"

"Okay!" Yun Ji's answer never disappoints him.