Jiang Yanyi said, “This story was written by an old gentleman with the surname Cao. Although I have read his book, my understanding is still shallow, and I cannot convey the depth of his words.”

The old scholar quickly asked, “What book is it? I would love to read it if I get the chance.”

Jiang Yanyi shook her head. “I can’t find his book anymore.”

The old scholar automatically assumed it was a work from a previous dynasty, later banned and burned by the court, and he could only sigh in response.

He said, “Let me tell the story, and see if there are any details I might miss.”

Jiang Yanyi nodded.

The old scholar clapped his hands on the wooden board, and instantly, he was in the zone.

Even though Jiang Yanyi had seen this story countless times on television before, she was still captivated by the way the old scholar told it.

He had a great way with words, and his emotions were well-timed.

Listening to him was a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

For this skill alone, Jiang Yanyi paid him a generous wage, but the old scholar insisted on taking only half.

He said, “After my mother passed away, I had no intention of telling stories again. But as I’ve grown older, this tongue of mine is all I have left. When my late mother was buried, it was the neighbors who helped with the funeral. If I were to pass one day, I would still trouble them. Now, I only want to earn some money for my coffin, so I won’t cause trouble for my neighbors in the future. When one gets old, the storytelling isn’t as good as it used to be. Since you, boss, are kind-hearted, I think this half will be enough.”

The old scholar had a stubborn nature. Unable to persuade him otherwise, Jiang Yanyi had Mrs. Chen from the clothing shop next door make him three outfits to wear while telling stories.

---

The day before Jiang Yanyi’s shop reopened, the Xizhou government issued a verdict regarding the dead cat incident at her shop.

There were also rumors that the food at her restaurant was unclean and that three brothers had been scamming customers, all of which were the doing of the Hu family.

The notice was posted on the government’s bulletin board for an entire day.

Not only did it clear all the slanders, but it also served as free advertising for Jiang Yanyi’s hot pot restaurant.

However, Laifu Antique Soup was making a big effort to suppress Jiang Yanyi’s restaurant.

When Jiang Yanyi went to the butcher to buy mutton, the butcher told her that all the sheep had been bought by Laifu Restaurant.

Without mutton, how could she sell hot pot the next day?

Jiang Yanyi quickly sent Yang Xiu and Ping Shao to other meat shops in the city, but the answers were all the same: all the sheep had been bought by Laifu Restaurant.

Mutton was a delicacy that only wealthy families could afford, and the major meat shops stocked according to market demand.

Therefore, they generally had very little mutton in stock.

Since Laifu Restaurant was now the largest antique soup shop in Xizhou, wealthy families were eager to buy from their imperial chef, choosing not to buy mutton for their own kitchens.

Thus, Laifu Restaurant was in a position to sell all this mutton within two days.

Jiang Yanyi noted this down and sent Yang Xiu and Ping Shao outside the city to search, and they finally managed to buy two sheep from a farmer outside the city.

Just when she thought Laifu Restaurant’s operation of buying up all the mutton in the city was outrageous, on the day of her opening, Laifu Antique Soup boldly staged a performance demonstrating their wealth and disregard, selling their hot pots at half price.

After Jiang Yanyi’s shop reopened, some loyal customers wanted to eat at her place, but they were also attracted by Laifu’s move.

As a result, her shop was nearly empty at noon compared to the bustling crowd in front of Laifu Antique Soup.

Who doesn’t know how to be malicious?

Jiang Yanyi had Yang Xiu go to Laifu Antique Soup to order a hot pot and requested a full four sheep’s worth of mutton, saying it was for takeout.

The waiter couldn’t handle it and hurriedly called the boss of Laifu Restaurant.

Yang Xiu had a fierce appearance and an intimidating demeanor.

Moreover, he didn’t say he wouldn’t pay; it was Laifu Antique Soup’s own promotion of half price, regardless of how much one ate.

However, he ordered mutton for four sheep but only paid for two.

When the quantity was small, reducing the price by half wasn’t too painful, but with this larger order, he felt uncomfortable.

The boss of Laifu Restaurant realized that Yang Xiu was clearly looking for trouble and attempted to have the restaurant’s bouncers “persuade” him, but they all ended up getting knocked down instead.

After taking down the bouncers, Yang Xiu began to play the victim, loudly exclaiming, “Why does Laifu Restaurant go back on its word? You said half price, so why won’t you sell me the four sheep?”

Although such a large order for mutton was clearly unusual for a normal person, the patrons who had come in hearing the commotion began to hesitate, and even those currently dining in the restaurant changed their expressions, asking Manager Xu, “Isn’t the hot pot half price in your restaurant?”

Manager Xu was in a panic and could only reassure the customers, “Yes, yes, half price, all half price.”

Yang Xiu quickly said, “Why won’t you sell me the mutton?”

Manager Xu slickly replied, “It’s only half price if you eat in the restaurant.”

Yang Xiu’s fierce look intensified: “Oh, you’re adding conditions on the spot? Everyone, judge for yourselves! You said the hot pot is half price today, but now you’re saying it’s only half price if you eat here. Next, are you going to say that it has to be lunchtime in the restaurant to count as half price?”

Yang Xiu’s tirade hit on many of the diners’ concerns, and several people shook their heads and left.

Even those who initially intended to order a hot pot, upon hearing that takeout wouldn’t be half price and seeing that they would have to wait so long at Laifu Antique Soup, went directly to Jiang Yanyi’s restaurant instead.

Manager Xu’s deep discount today was meant to suppress Jiang Yanyi’s restaurant, leaving her with no power to retaliate.

Seeing the current situation, he feared that if Yang Xiu continued to cause trouble, he would scare off the customers in his own restaurant.

He had no choice but to painfully sell the four sheep at the price of two.

Yang Xiu naturally borrowed a cart from them to transport lamb and requested two waiters from Laifu Antique Soup to help deliver it.

When Manager Xu saw that Yang Xiu was bringing lamb to Jiang Yanyi’s shop, he was so angry that his face turned green.

In a fit of anger, he rushed to Jiang Yanyi’s shop, wanting to scold her.

However, before he could speak, Jiang Yanyi, with a smile, said, “Ah, today I must thank you, Manager Xu. Yesterday, I went to various butcher shops, and they all said you had bought up all the lamb. Who knew you bought the meat to do such a good deed today? With the money for two lambs, we ended up buying four from you, and I feel quite embarrassed.”

Manager Xu, having lived this long, finally experienced what it means to have one’s words cut to the heart!

What Jiang Yanyi did was indeed not very fair, but from the perspective of the law, one couldn’t find any fault.

It was just like his blatant imitation of the displays in other shops.

Manager Xu knew well that arguing in the street wouldn’t bring him any good; instead, it would only make the onlookers laugh at him, so he left in disgrace.

However, with Yang Xiu’s stunt, many who had previously eaten at Laifu Antique Soup started to follow suit, asking for half a lamb or a whole lamb.

What made Jiang Yanyi both amused and exasperated was He Xingniang.

He Xingniang previously did not know that her family’s dividend did not include Laifu Antique Soup.

Now, seeing Jiang Yanyi buy four lambs with the money for two, she closed her shop and ran to demand to buy two lambs herself.

After all, if they bought more lamb than they could eat, they could make smoked lamb to serve guests during the New Year, which would add to their prestige!

Only a fool wouldn’t take advantage of such a good deal.

Laifu Antique Soup ended up suffering the consequences of its actions; with so many people buying lamb, the little bit of lamb they had in stock was barely enough.

They had no choice but to announce that they would no longer sell at half price today.

Those who missed out on the deal couldn’t help but grumble.

Even the diners who originally came for the hot pot felt uncomfortable.

Although they could afford the full price, they had initially come for the half-price offer, and then they were told it was no longer available.

Were they playing with them?

Furthermore, those who were demanding excessively high prices had it coming.

However, some diners had only ordered normal portions; they had come just for the half-price discount.

Suddenly canceling that was something that could lead to serious complaints.

With the malicious consumerism from Laifu Antique Soup removed, things proceeded much more smoothly for Jiang Yanyi.

Laifu Antique Soup learned everything from her and set up a grill outside the shop to roast meat.

But Jiang Yanyi not only set up a grill, but she also placed a dry pot at the entrance, with vegetables at the bottom and meat layered on top.

At first glance, it was all meat, creating a huge visual impact, and the spicy aroma wafted far away in the north wind.

There was also a small stove underneath to keep the pot warm, so it wouldn’t get cold no matter how long it was left out.

Passersby had never seen such a novel pot, and as long as they had money in their pockets, most of them were tempted to come in and try it.

Whenever a customer ordered a dry pot, Jiang Yanyi had to rush into the kitchen, leaving Yang Xiu to take care of things at the door.

Upon entering, the diners found that the shop had set up long counters with wake-up blocks, and they were somewhat curious, thinking that this little shop had even invited someone to tell stories.

As the shop filled with customers, the old scholar stroked the wake-up block, and as he began to speak, the shop fell silent.

His voice was penetrating, drawing a crowd outside the door.

Thanks to the old scholar’s storytelling, the diners became so engrossed in listening to the story that they ate slowly, and the tables didn’t clear out, so Jiang Yanyi didn’t have to keep busy in the kitchen.

She stretched her sore neck and back and went to check on the shop, discovering that the diners were eating quietly, afraid of covering the old scholar’s voice.

Satisfied, Jiang Yanyi pulled a small stool into a corner and prepared to rest for a while, but then she noticed that Feng Shuo had somehow arrived at the shop.

He seemed to prefer the soup pot, with a copper pot boiling and a plate of sliced lamb on the table.

In the public eye, Jiang Yanyi didn’t dare to approach openly, so she silently inquired with her eyes about why he was at the shop.

Feng Shuo also gave her a look, but after staring at him for a while, she still didn’t understand what he wanted to express, her brows furrowed in confusion.

As more customers arrived, she had to rush back into the kitchen.

The advantage of a lamb soup pot compared to a dry pot was that you could keep eating indefinitely.

Jiang Yanyi noticed that Feng Shuo had been sitting there since noon until evening without leaving.

Not just Yang Xiu and Ding Shao, even Qiu Kui stole glances at Feng Shuo several times, wondering how he still hadn’t eaten enough.

The popularity of the dry pot exceeded Jiang Yanyi’s expectations, and many people requested to take leftovers back to their residences.

She was only able to steal a moment during lunch, and the rest of the time, she was busy in the kitchen, wielding the spatula until her hands ached, relying entirely on Yang Xiu and Ding Shao to help with the accounting.

After a day of this, Jiang Yanyi felt exhausted and determined that she had to find a chef specifically to make dry pots.

Fortunately, on the first day of resuming operations, business was still booming.

The newly launched dry pot sold well, and the old scholar’s storytelling of “Dream of the Red Chamber” was being recounted by diners everywhere, creating quite a buzz.

Jiang Yanyi was very pleased.

---

Feng Shuo had been sitting in the shop for an afternoon, seemingly wanting to say something to her, but Jiang Yanyi got busy afterward and didn’t pay attention to him.

Therefore, after dinner that evening, Jiang Yanyi ran to Feng’s residence again.

By now, she was quite casual about entering his room; her first words upon entering were, “Why did you sit in the shop for the whole afternoon today?”

Feng Shuo sat in a round chair, his aura somewhat gloomy.

Hearing Jiang Yanyi’s voice, that gloom lifted.

He raised his exquisite eyebrows, draping a brocade cloak over his shoulders.

The dark robe threaded with gold and silver thread glimmered with a faint light, giving him an ethereal presence like the moon enveloped in mist.

He stared at Jiang Yanyi for a long time before saying, “I wanted to see you.”

Jiang Yanyi’s heart skipped a beat for no reason.

She forced herself to suppress her shyness and muttered, “Don’t we see each other every day?”

The room was already somewhat dim, and Feng Shuo’s expression became less distinct in the twilight.

Jiang Yanyi couldn’t quite see his expression clearly.

She walked over to him and asked, “Where’s the fire stick? Why don’t you light the lamp?”

As she searched for the fire stick on the table, Feng Shuo turned his head and kept staring at her profile, his expression focused and somewhat obsessive.

It seemed he had something to say, but ultimately, everything got stuck in his throat.

Just as Jiang Yanyi found the fire stick and was about to light the candle, he suddenly grasped her hand.

Perhaps due to the medicinal meals and baths he had been taking lately, Feng Shuo’s hand was no longer as cold as before, but Jiang Yanyi was still startled, turning to look at him: “What’s wrong?”

Feng Shuo said, “Can you stay tonight?”

Jiang Yanyi was so startled that her hair nearly stood on end, doubting she had heard wrong: “Wh… what?”

Her hand trembled, almost dropping the fire stick, but fortunately, Feng Shuo caught it in time.

The moment the candle was lit, the surroundings brightened up.

It was then that Jiang Yanyi noticed a scratch on Feng Shuo’s forehead, as if it had been cut by a piece of debris. Even though he had tried to cover it with his hair, it was still very obvious, and the blood was fresh.

Feng Shuo clearly didn’t care about the injury on his forehead; he was a bit lost as he said, “In the last few hours of my birthday, I wanted to spend it with you.”

Jiang Yanyi stood frozen in place.

Today… is his birthday?!!