Chapter 31

(Just changed the time, still not quite used to it, but it will be better next time, please recommend!)

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"Does Sanlang want to name this set of chairs?" The carpenter Pan recalled Chen Ke's previous words.

"Why not call it 'Upright and Righteous'?" Chen Ke smiled and said, "There are three reasons for this. First, the official hat chair conveys the dignity and solemnity of the sitter, giving a sense of uprightness. Sitting on such a chair for a lifetime, one would be upright and righteous to the end; second, setting the price at one guan, if others lower their prices in the future, you don't have to, and lowering it would mean a loss of uprightness; third, customers must buy the set, and buying them separately would mean a lack of uprightness. No one would care about the money, but they wouldn't want to be seen as lacking uprightness, right?"

"Brilliant, truly brilliant!" The carpenter Pan was entranced and at a loss for words, "Sanlang, Sanlang, I don't know how to thank you!"

"The kid is too cunning! In a blink, he comes up with a whole plan!" Even Chen Xiliang couldn't help but laugh and scold.

The carpenter Pan was genuinely grateful to the Chen family. He immediately asked Chen Xiliang to write the trademark, and Chen Xiliang happily wrote four seal script characters: 'Upright and Righteous.'

Holding the calligraphy carefully, the carpenter Pan was overwhelmed with emotion, "Great kindness needs no thanks. From now on, for every set of 'Upright and Righteous' sold in my shop, the Chen family will get a share!"

"No need for that," Chen Ke smiled and stood up, "The eighty guan just now already included the money for the inscription, in black and white. One must be as good as one's word, don't make us lose credibility."

Chen Xiliang nodded repeatedly, praising, "That's right, that's right!"

Hearing this, the carpenter Pan had no choice but to give up, but he had already made up his mind to send generous gifts during every festival from now on.

After the carpenter Pan left with a thousand thanks, Chen Xiliang stared at Chen Ke for a long time, making him feel uneasy, "Is there something on my face?"

"No," Chen Xiliang clicked his tongue, "I find you have great talent. Others struggle to earn money, but you can make people happily give it to you, as if not giving you would be a great sin."

"Is that bad?" Chen Ke glanced at him.

"Being your father is stressful..." Although he said this, Chen Xiliang couldn't hide his pride.

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From the carpenter Pan, the Chen family only took a thousand coins to repair the leaking house. They had intended to replace the rotten doors and windows, but found that only the carpenter Pan's shop could do it. The Chen family didn't want to seek him out at this time, so they decided to make do for the summer to avoid the appearance of seeking repayment for a favor.

The remaining money, after discussion, was all lent to Chuanfu. Laifu was reopening, and even without redecorating, they needed to stock up on sufficient meat, vegetables, oil, and seasonings... Moreover, the first day was free, and the first ten days were half-price, which required a substantial amount of money.

In fact, Chuanfu hoped they would invest the money and give the Chen family a 10% share, but the Chen family still refused to seek repayment for a favor and insisted on treating it as a loan.

Besides lending money to Chuanfu, from the menu and pricing to the quality control of the dishes and the training of the staff, there was nothing Chen Ke didn't worry about... Although he was young, he didn't slack off with his apprentice, so no matter how much he scolded, Chuanfu always smiled.

The last grain of sand in the hourglass fell, and it was the hour of Chen.

Chuanfu, with a stiff face, looked at Chen Ke. Seeing his master nod calmly, he turned to the three newly hired waiters and said, "Open the door... um, welcome the guests!" He had meant to say "open the door to welcome the guests," but in his nervousness, he used a phrase from the entertainment industry.

"Ha..." Everyone burst out laughing, but the tense atmosphere was also lightened.

The shutters were removed, and the guests who had been waiting outside filed in, quickly filling the room. When they saw Chuanfu come out, the noisy hall suddenly fell silent.

"Thank you, everyone, for your support," Chuanfu, who usually spoke fluently, was stuttering today, "The shop is reopening, offering various stir-fried dishes, the menu is on the wall..."

"Little Cai boss, is this stir-frying really the divine skill of Bianliang City?" someone asked with ill intent, "Could it be that you went to the capital to learn for the past two months?"

"Two months, even for travel, isn't enough," Chuanfu said slowly, "I learned from my master."

"Where is your master from, a famous chef?" people asked curiously.

"My master... it's a secret," Chuanfu teased them.

"Gentlemen, listen to me," the specially dressed boss Lu and his cronies occupied the best table, drawing attention. He said calmly, "Don't make it hard for my nephew Cai. He is not good with words, but that's fine. Our chefs don't rely on their mouths, but on their dishes. A good cook is a king! If the food is bad, the shop must close, and he must leave the restaurant business, not disgracing our ancestors!"

"Right, very right!" The crowd naturally sensed the hostility in his words but still cheered, making Chen Ke, who was watching from the side, sneer: 'It seems that in any era, no one sympathizes with the weak.'

"..." Hearing the jeers and boos, Chuanfu's face turned red like a shrimp, and his back bent like a shrimp. Unable to bear it, he suddenly lifted the curtain and turned into the kitchen.

Boss Lu and his cronies, who had come to cause trouble, naturally wouldn't let a chance to kick a man when he's down pass. They echoed each other, exaggerating the jokes Chuanfu had made in his early days of cooking... What had originally just made people sick to their stomachs became, in their mouths, vomiting and diarrhea, almost costing lives.

Hearing these rumors, the guests naturally lost their appetite, and many stood up, preferring to skip the free meal rather than risk their lives.

"If you don't go out and stop them," Chen Ke stood behind the curtain, his voice cold and chilling, "all the guests will leave, and you will have no chance to turn things around!"

"Master..." Chuanfu, like a child, pulled on Chen Ke's sleeve, "Please help me, I know you can do it."

"Of course, I can keep them, but you are now the boss and the head chef," Chen Ke shook off his hand, "Do you still need others to protect you?"

"Just this once, Master," Chuanfu pleaded.

"Not even once!" Chen Ke said coldly, "Do you want to be a stinky dog or the best chef in the world? It's your choice."

"Of course, I want to be the best, but I, I am not good with words, and I can't handle such a big scene..." Chuanfu said pitifully.

"..." Chen Ke took a deep breath, turned around, and pinched Chuanfu's chubby cheeks, "I heard you used to be a street thug?"

"Yes..." Chuanfu nodded.

"How did you become so timid?" Chen Ke pinched his cheeks, angry at his lack of resolve.

"Because I have sworn to reform," Chuanfu's face was comically distorted, his voice tinged with tears, "I want to do business well, and harmony brings wealth!"

"I see." Chen Ke breathed a sigh of relief, "Bow your head."

Chuanfu obediently bowed his head, and his left cheek received a solid slap. Before he could react, his right cheek was slapped again. He looked at Chen Ke in surprise, hearing his master say, word by word, "Listen, you fool, doing business and being a thug are the same. You must repay kindness with kindness and repay evil with evil! If you are weak, people will step on you; if you are strong, they will fear you. A spineless person deserves to be trampled into the mud!"

"Ha... ha..." Chuanfu, after being hit and scolded, began to breathe heavily, his eyes turning red.

"Yes, get angry! This is your place, and now someone is trying to ruin it. What are you going to do?" Chen Ke almost shouted, "Get your weapons! Whoever dares to challenge, crush them!"

"Damn it!" Cai Chuanfu roared, lifting his kitchen knife and rushing out.

The noise in the hall suddenly stopped. Boss Lu, who had been spouting off, saw Chuanfu charging at him with a knife, and his teeth chattered. His cronies also fell silent.

"Hey!" Cai Chuanfu charged over, his eyes wide, and shouted, "You, Lu Fishhead, are you here to eat or to talk nonsense!" He slammed the gleaming kitchen knife on the table and roared, "Speak up!"

Boss Lu fell into his chair, trembling, "Of course, I'm here to eat..."

"Then shut your mouth and order your food!" Chuanfu said, lifting the kitchen knife and looking around, "Don't keep me waiting!" He then turned back to the kitchen, looking fierce.

Boss Lu's table was completely silenced, and the world became much quieter. People wanted to leave but felt a pair of sinister eyes watching them from behind the curtain, so they focused on the dishes.

They then noticed that the dishes, such as 'stir-fried something, slippery stir-fried something, small stir-fried something, oil-burst something,' used familiar ingredients, but the cooking methods were unknown.

Everyone tentatively ordered a few dishes per table... afraid of overloading Chuanfu and triggering his temper, they didn't order too many, just four or five dishes per table.

Boss Lu's table didn't order much either, but he couldn't save face and insisted, "With just one chef, this meal will last until nightfall..." but no one echoed him because the first table's four dishes were already steaming hot.

These dishes were all brightly colored, fragrant, and beautifully presented... even before they were tasted, they had already captivated the entire hall.

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