You are unlucky and I am tough

Chapter 227: Cooperation

Thinking about it, Xie Zhiyou was still a little excited, so he picked up the chopsticks and took a piece of the black bean duck in front of him into his mouth.

"Hmm, this tastes really good." Xie Zhiyou nodded repeatedly as he ate. "What is this black thing? The fragrance is so unique and mellow."

"Fermented black beans," Wei Qinglang replied. "They're made from soybeans. They can be used directly to flavor dishes, or you can add chili peppers to make a fermented black bean sauce."

Xie Zhiyou was surprised at the two people's creative ideas. If this fermented black beans fell into the hands of his Taibai Tower chef, he would definitely be able to make many new dishes.

"Master Xie must be hungry. Most of the dishes on the table are spicy. Have a bowl of porridge first." Cheng Shuang took three small bowls and poured a bowl of century egg and lean meat porridge into them.

"This porridge is so unique." After taking a few bites, Xie Zhiyou liked the taste very much.

Cheng Shuang handed a bowl of porridge to Wei Qinglang and asked with a smile, "How does it compare to the top scholar porridge?"

"I actually prefer this flavor. If it's released, it will definitely be a big hit, no worse than the Zhuangyuan Jidi porridge."

Xie Zhiyou looked at the contents of the spoon and asked, "Is this what you call preserved egg?"

"Well, it's made with duck eggs. It can be used to make porridge, soup, stir-fry, stew, and there are dozens of ways to eat it."

Cheng Shuang said as she reached out and moved the preserved egg over, "Thank you, Master, for trying this preserved egg."

Xie Zhiyou looked at it curiously for a while before picking up a piece with his chopsticks. He frowned at first, then relaxed his brows with a look of surprise.

He tasted another piece and nodded, "It's delicious, but a little spicy. Although the taste is a little strange at first, it's a taste experience I've never had before."

"Master Xie, can't you eat spicy food?" Cheng Shuang was already hungry, so she sat down and drank some porridge to fill her stomach.

“I really can’t eat much.”

Cheng Shuang looked to the side, and the two exchanged glances. Wei Qinglang said, "Today's highlight is the two crayfish dishes in the middle. They're both spicy. If Brother Xie can't handle spicy food, why don't we ask someone we trust to taste it?"

Xie Zhiyou looked at the dried chilies in the pot of lobster in the middle. Last year, Manager Meng sent him a sack of dried chilies. The dishes cooked with them were very spicy and the customers loved them.

But he didn't have much on hand, and the chef had been saving it, and it was almost gone now. He didn't expect them to put so much in one dish, so they must have a lot of stock.

Having made up his mind to negotiate the supply of chili peppers, Xie Zhiyou turned around and said to his attendant, "Go and call the Third Young Master over."

Xie Shuyu was in the building today. Although he had been unwilling to go to the academy to study for the past two years, it did not stop him from meeting his former classmates to drink, listen to music, and discuss the academy examination.

The follower nodded and retreated.

"This lobster looks really scary. It still has a shell. How do we eat it?" Xie Zhiyou asked, staring at the lobster.

"This requires practice." Wei Qinglang picked up a lobster and put it in the bowl, and began to demonstrate how to peel the crayfish himself.

After peeling the shrimp, he didn’t eat it himself and put the shrimp meat into Cheng Shuang’s bowl.

Cheng Shuang looked up and saw the smile in Master Xie's eyes. She stuffed the shrimp into her mouth awkwardly.

"I want one more, peel one and braise it in oil."

If he likes peeling so much, let him peel as much as he wants. She is too lazy to get her hands dirty.

Wei Qinglang stretched out his chopsticks, picked up the largest one from the plate of braised prawns, and continued to peel it.

Xie Zhiyou smiled at the two of them, then picked one up and imitated Wei Qinglang. After peeling it, he took a bite and immediately started coughing because of the spicy taste.

"Ahem... This is too spicy. No, I can't eat it."

Seeing his face flushed, Cheng Shuang stood up and went to the small table at the back to get a teapot and poured a glass of water. "Actually, you can make it non-spicy. It tastes just as good steamed without the chili peppers. We were inconsiderate."

It turns out that Mr. Xie is so afraid of spicy food. He must be missing out on such a great meal.

"Thank you." Xie Zhiyou quickly drank some water to relieve the spiciness.

Wei Qinglang wiped his hands and served him another dish, "Come and thank you, brother. Try this meat-stuffed bitter melon."

"I know bitter melon." Xie Zhiyou said after recovering, "Last year, Shopkeeper Meng sent me a basket of various ingredients I had never seen before. My family's cook has made stir-fried beef and scrambled eggs with this bitter melon."

Xie Shuyu arrived quite quickly, and soon he walked into the courtyard, fanning himself and acting like a scholar.

"Brother, what's the matter that requires me to come here? I'm planning to go boating in the lake soon."

"Eh...it smells so good, what smells so good?"

As he walked to the door and looked up, his eyes suddenly lit up when he saw Cheng Shuang.

"Sister Cheng, long time no see. So it was you who wanted to see me."

Mr. Xie's scholarly appearance was instantly ruined. He closed his fan and raised his eyebrows at Cheng Shuang.

Cheng Shuang: “….”

This playboy still looks like he deserves a beating. The two holes on his face only show the girl.

Wei Qinglang frowned and really wanted to find an opportunity to put a sack on this kid and beat him up.

"Are you itching for trouble again?" Xie Zhiyou glared at him.

"That's right, there's such a big table of food, it smells so good."

Xie Zhiyou strolled in and his eyes were attracted by the dishes on the table. When he saw the lobster, he showed a look of disgust.

"Hey, what is this? It looks scary."

"Sit down and taste it."

Xie Zhiyou pointed to the position opposite and told him the purpose of calling him over.

When Xie Shuyu heard what was going on, he sniffed it and thought it smelled quite fragrant, so he asked how to eat it.

Wei Qinglang demonstrated again, and he began to peel the shrimp and eat them.

Xie Zhiyou likes spicy food, he ate one after another and couldn’t stop at all. All that was left in his mouth was the delicious taste and the hissing sound from the spiciness, he kept saying it was so satisfying.

Xie Zhiyou didn't expect him to give any comments. This younger brother was picky about food. The fact that he could eat so much without caring about his image already showed the value of this dish.

There were still many dishes on the table that he hadn't tasted yet. Xie Zhiyou took a small bowl, stood up, and tasted each dish one by one.

There were two large plates of crayfish. Cheng Shuang and Wei Qinglang ate some, and the rest all went into Xie Shuyu's stomach.

After eating the lobster, the attendant brought in a plate of water for him to wash his hands. After washing his hands, Xie Shuyu picked up the plate of mashed potatoes with sauce and ate with a spoon.

After eating, I continued to mix the rice with the tomato sauce on the pork chop. I listened to the three people opposite me talking, and my mouth never stopped eating. I tasted every dish.

After everyone had eaten, the attendant called a few people in to clean up, and they moved to the yard outside to sit and drink tea.

"Brother Wei, I understand what you mean. I want all your ingredients and recipes. I'll take as many as you have." Xie Zhiyou went straight to the point.

Xie Shuyu nodded in agreement, "With these ingredients, you don't have to worry about Taibailou's business anymore, big brother."

Wei Qinglang smiled and said, "Brother Xie, you guessed wrong. I'm not here to sell ingredients."

"If you're not here to sell ingredients, then why are you here?" Xie Zhiyou was puzzled.

If you don't sell the ingredients, why spend two hours preparing a table of dishes for him to taste?

Wei Qinglang looked to the side and saw Cheng Shuang nod. He said, "We want to invest in Taibai Tower. We will cooperate. My family will be responsible for providing ingredients and researching dishes, and your family will be responsible for business management."

"Ah?" Xie Zhiyou was stunned. He didn't expect them to make such a request.

Wei Qinglang continued, "We've inquired about the rules of the Chamber of Commerce in the city. Opening a restaurant requires complicated application and reporting procedures, and the Chamber of Commerce also needs to consider many aspects, such as the qualifications of the person in charge, financial resources, industry experience, staffing, reputation, and connections, etc.

We don’t have any of these, and we’re too lazy to bother. Your Taibailou has been around for decades, so if we just open a new store and add a partner, it should be pretty easy.”

"Build a new store?"

Wei Qinglang nodded. "The current Taibai Building won't work. It's too small. If you're willing to cooperate, I want to buy some land and build a new one. It has to be at least three times bigger than the current one."

Xie Zhiyou's breathing became heavier. "Three times?"

"Yes, three times as much. I've almost finished the blueprints for the restaurant. I can bring them to you someday." Wei Qinglang said, "It has to be big enough to accommodate the required number of guests. Otherwise, how can we make a fortune?"

Xie Zhiyou smiled when he heard her so confident. "Brother Wei, can I ask you first, what will you do if I don't agree?"

"As soon as we get out of the door, we'll go find the next restaurant to continue the discussion." Wei Qinglang spoke frankly, "I chose you because I think you're a good person. We've worked together on branches in Qushan County before, and Taibailou has a good reputation, so I chose you as my first choice."

Xie Zhiyou took a deep breath. The things these two people took out today, plus the sauerkraut and braised meat from before, were enough to shock him. Maybe there were more things they hadn't taken out yet.

Moreover, the drawings are almost finished, which means they have made up their minds to find someone to cooperate with.

If he really turned around and looked for another restaurant, the business in his building would be even worse if a restaurant like this one opened.

"According to your cooperation model, how is the profit sharing calculated?" Xie Zhiyou asked after pondering for a moment.

"We'll each split the money to buy the land and build the new building in half," Cheng Shuang said. "And the split will be the same, 50-50 for the new Taibai Building."

"Wow..." Xie Shuyu leaned back in shock, "Sister, are you trying to seize my Xie family's property?"

He blinked and said, "Why don't you divorce your husband and marry me? Then you don't have to go through so much trouble."

"Xie Shuyu, what nonsense are you talking about?" Xie Zhiyou slammed the table in anger and said sternly, "Apologize to me immediately."

Wei Qinglang narrowed his eyes and looked at him with murderous intent.

Cheng Shuang looked up at the sky and rolled his eyes speechlessly.

Seeing that Wei Qinglang seemed really angry, Xie Shuyu stuck out his tongue, stood up and bowed to the two people opposite him. "Brother Wei, Sister Cheng, I was wrong. I was too blunt. I was just joking, please don't be angry. From now on, I will treat you as my own sisters and brothers-in-law. If you tell me to go east, I will never go west. If you tell me to chase a dog, I will never chase a chicken. Please be magnanimous and forgive me."

Xie Shuyu is the best at apologizing and admitting mistakes. He has been doing it since he was a child and has become very proficient at it. He can say it with ease.

Wei Qinglang's expression softened, "Thank you, brother. Let's get back to business."

Xie Zhiyou was almost pissed off by his brother. He pointed at the door and chased him away, "Get out of here! Stop being an eyesore."

Xie Shuyu curled his lips, stood up and turned to leave. He was not willing to stay here.

After the troublemakers left, Wei Qinglang continued, "Brother Xie, the 50-50 split I mentioned only applies to the new store. The other Taibailou branches in Dongzhou will still be yours. And if you need our ingredients, we can also sell them to those branches. But this does not include crayfish, preserved eggs, fermented black beans, chili sauce, or any new dishes we'll develop for the new store."

Xie Zhiyou fell into deep thought after hearing this. After a moment, he said, "Brother Wei, please bring me the blueprints of the new restaurant you drew some other day."