After the separation, I took my whole family to eat delicious food and drink spicy

Ever since Xiangmanlou introduced the crayfish delicacy, the restaurant's business has been even better. This has also led to a significant decline in the business of Fuxinglou across the street, with diners all going to Xiangmanlou.

The owner of Fuxinglou sent someone to Xiangmanlou to order two servings of crayfish, wanting to see if it was really as delicious as the rumors said. Naturally, he was full of praise, but he couldn't help feeling a little anxious and unwilling.

Li Fusheng, the owner of Fuxinglou, sat in the accounting office with a frown on his face and his fingers tapping the table, thinking about how he could make a comeback with the crayfish dish.

"Boss, we can't just sit there like this!" Old Zhang, the accountant, anxiously warned, "If this continues, our Fuxinglou's regular customers will be snatched away by Xiangmanlou."

"Well, you go to the market tomorrow to see if there are any hard-shell shrimps for sale, buy a few pounds, and then let our restaurant's chef try to make it by comparing it with the taste of Xiangmanlou." Li Fusheng arranged.

The next morning, Lao Zhang arranged for someone to go to the market early in the morning. After searching for a long time, they finally bought five or six kilograms of hard-shell shrimp.

Li Fusheng immediately called over two chefs and had them try to recreate Xiang Man Lou's crayfish. But after all their efforts, the crayfish either had a strong muddy smell or didn't taste as good as Xiang Man Lou's. Even Li Fusheng himself wasn't satisfied, let alone the customers who had already tried Xiang Man Lou's crayfish. It seemed he had to find another way out, Li Fusheng thought.

In the afternoon, Li Fusheng went to the accounting office to find Lao Zhang again, ready to discuss a solution with him. The two of them plotted for a long time, and it was Lao Zhang who suggested that they try to steal the recipe from Xiang Man Lou.

Li Fusheng sighed, his eyes penetrating. "I know that, but this crayfish recipe is clearly Xiang Man Lou's unique secret. How can we get it so easily?"

Old Zhang rolled his eyes and lowered his voice, "Boss, I know a waiter at Xiangmanlou. He's from a poor family and loves to get a small bargain. Maybe we can start from this aspect and see if we can..."

Li Fusheng heard this, and a gleam of light flashed in his eyes: "I'll leave this matter to you. Otherwise, I'm worried that if this continues, both you and I will be in danger. You also know our boss's temper."

"Yes, I'll arrange it right away." Old Zhang was obviously frightened by Li Fusheng's words. He reached out to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead and hurriedly left the accounting office.

Old Zhang was secretly calculating in his mind. He knew that although this path was not very glorious, for the survival of his Fuxing Building, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and do it.

In the evening, he asked Li Shen, Li Xiaoxiao's cousin, to come out.

"Li Shen, how have you been recently?" Old Zhang pretended to be friendly and pulled Li Shen aside, handing him a pot of good wine and some side dishes.

Li Shen's eyes lit up when he saw this. He took the wine jug and gulped down a few mouthfuls. Then, with a wide smile on his face, he asked, "Mr. Zhang, you're so unlucky. Do you have something good to offer me?"

Old Zhang smiled slightly and lowered his voice, "I heard your family is short of money lately. I have an opportunity to make some quick money. Are you interested?"

When Li Shen heard the phrase "make quick money," his ears perked up immediately. He quickly asked, "What opportunity? As long as it makes quick money, I'll do anything!"

Old Zhang pretended to be mysterious and leaned close to his ear, whispering softly, "You should know the recipe for crayfish from Xiang Man Lou, right? If you can help me get it, I promise you'll never have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of your life."

Li Shen's face suddenly changed when he heard this. He hesitated and said, "This... This is Xiangmanlou's secret. If I do this and get discovered, then..."

Seeing Li Shen's hesitation, Old Zhang quickly added, "Don't worry, I'll arrange everything and make sure you don't get caught. Furthermore, after the deed is done, I'll give you a generous reward, enough to provide for you for the rest of your life."

After repeated attempts at enticement from Lao Zhang, Li Shen finally gave in. Thinking of his family's current situation and how his parents would complain about their poverty every time he went home, he gritted his teeth and agreed.

Over the next few days, Li Shen, taking advantage of his job at Xiang Man Lou, began to secretly observe the chefs preparing crayfish, trying to memorize every step and detail. However, cooking crayfish is not a one-time thing; the seasoning ratios and heat control involved are extremely delicate, and it is difficult to fully master them through observation alone.

His abnormal behavior also attracted the attention of Manager Zhao. He remembered that his subordinates had reported to him before that Li Shen had been in frequent contact with the accountant of Fuxing Building recently. When he thought about Li Shen's current behavior, it became clear. Manager Zhao arranged someone to keep an eye on Li Shen directly.

Seeing that Lao Zhang was pressing him, Li Shen had no choice but to take a risk. One night, when everyone was asleep, he secretly got up, saying he was going to the toilet, and then sneaked into the account office and carefully searched there.

He tiptoed around and looked in many places, but couldn't find the recipe. He was getting anxious. Suddenly, he bumped into a small vase on the bookshelf. With a "click," Li Shen was startled. He looked closely and saw a secret compartment the size of a book next to the cabinet he had just searched. He hurried over, squatted down, and took a look. Wasn't that the crayfish recipe he was looking for? He quickly hid the recipe on his body, then pushed the secret compartment back into place. After doing all this, he happily went back to his room to sleep. Li Shen thought he had done it perfectly, but he didn't know that everything had been seen clearly by Shopkeeper Zhao's men hiding in the dark. As soon as Li Shen left, he hurried to report to Shopkeeper Zhao.

"Hmph, you're so bold that you actually dare to covet the crayfish recipe. Fortunately, I have replaced the recipe. I know about this matter. You can leave first." The subordinate took the order and left.

The next morning, Li Shen asked Manager Zhao for half an hour's leave, saying that he was not feeling well and wanted to go to the pharmacy to buy some medicine. Manager Zhao approved it.

Li Shen walked out of Xiangmanlou quickly, carrying the crayfish recipe. He looked left and right, and after making sure that no one was following him, he slipped into Fuxinglou, found Lao Zhang, and handed him the crayfish recipe. Seeing that he had received the crayfish recipe, Lao Zhang also readily gave him fifty taels of silver as a reward.

Li Shen felt like he was dreaming when he held the fifty taels of silver. It was fifty taels, he had never seen so much silver before.

Li Shen was so excited that his hands were shaking as he held the silver. He hid the silver on his person and, just in case, he went to the nearest pharmacy and bought two doses of cold medicine. Only then did he feel at ease and return to Xiangmanlou to continue working.

Shopkeeper Zhao looked at Li Shen and said nothing, but continued to work on his task. However, his subordinates who knew the truth looked at Li Shen's smug look and wanted to rush up and punch him twice.