Chapter 556: Huge Business Opportunity
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Lin Zhengs eyes widened as he watched Su Binglan’s actions. He was curious how she would use pork ribs to make soup. He also wondered if she could use tofu.
He knew there were many ways to make tofu but did not know he could use it to make soup. After all, he had never eaten such a dish before.
At the thought of being able to eat his master’s cooking, Lin Zheng became excited and looked forward to it. He got hungry whenever he thought of his master’s delicacies and felt motivated to start the fire.
He put some firewood into the furnace and took two flint stones to start the fire.
Su Binglan noticed his actions and said, “Don’t be so eager. You can start the fire when I tell you to.”
“All right.” Lin Zheng nodded. After all, he would do whatever his master said. He continued watching Su Binglan’s movements, his eyes full of curiosity.
Su Binglan crushed the ribs into small pieces and said, “If you have questions, feel free to ask.”
Lin Zheng chuckled and asked, “Um, can you use ribs to make soup, Master?”
If it were anyone else cooking, he would suspect the food would not be delicious. However, he believed his master’s cooking would be delicious, no matter what.
Su Binglan knew Lin Zhengs thoughts. She answered, “Of course, I can use pork ribs to make soup. You can use many things to make soup, you know?”
Her hands continued to move as she spoke. Everything she did was swift and clean. After crushing the ribs into small pieces, Su Binglan cut the winter melon and tofu into even pieces.
Lin Zheng was shocked. ‘Was Master already holding the tofu and winter melon?! Why didn’t I see them earlier? I can understand there are winter melons here, but what about tofu?’
The tofu looked fresh, so Lin Zheng wondered where his master got it in a remote place like the border.
‘No one can preserve tofu for that long, right?’
One could store various tofu products like stinky tofu, tofu cubes, and other finished products for a long time, but not fresh tofu. Lin Zheng felt his eyes were playing tricks on him and found it unbelievable.
After cutting the tofu into pieces, Su Binglan placed them on a plate. Only a few utensils and plates were in the kitchen, so she placed the pieces of ribs into a bowl.
As she busied herself with cooking, she continued, “One can use many ingredients to make soup as long as they’re fresh, light, and nutritious. I can teach you to make a few soups if you want to learn.”
“Thank you, Master. It would undoubtedly be popular if you opened a restaurant with your culinary skills. In any case, many customers will have a good time.”
Although Lin Zheng was Su Binglan’s disciple, he rarely ate her delicacies. He had only tasted the dishes his master often sold.
Drunken Cloud Restaurant’s sour and spicy potato pancakes and spicy chicken had become their specialties. Many merchants from all over would go to Tenghe Town for its delicacies.
Everyone wanted to visit Tenghe Town to eat delicious food. The most famous among the people were hotpot and stinky tofu. Even Lin Zheng enjoyed those two dishes.
When Zhou Shan and Li Shi still worked in the dessert shop, they sometimes ate at the hotpot restaurant together. However, they had started managing the two hotpot restaurants, making it more convenient for them to eat there.
Lin Zheng also ate hot pot with his family every month. His parents loved it and enjoyed eating hot pot with him. In addition, he could bring his family to the restaurant’s second floor to eat without waiting in line.
Still, Lin Zheng typically waited in line to not cause trouble for his master. He only skipped the line occasionally when it was not too busy or made a reservation.
Not lining up was a benefit the trio had earned from working for Su Binglan, and everyone envied them. Whenever their families mentioned them, they would look proud.
Lin Zheng and his family also enjoyed eating stinky tofu. If someone were going to the prefecture, Lin Zheng would get that person to send food to his twin sister and brother-in-law.
His brother-in-law’s family was influential, but he was a concubine’s son—an illegitimate child of the family. Hence, his status in the family was insignificant. Even so, Lin Zhengs brother-in-law was highly knowledgeable.
Since Lin Zheng often sent delicious food to his twin sister, she would offer some to her husband’s family. Lin Qin’s mother-in-law liked her most because of this. Lin Qin’s husband’s status even rose.
Some time ago, Lin Qin and her husband visited Lin Zheng and the rest of the family, even bringing gifts Lin Qin’s mother-in-law had prepared.
Lin Zheng remembered his sister saying her mother-in-law had a lousy appet.i.te but improved after eating the food he sent. She also seemed much healthier.
Lin Zheng was delighted for his sister when he saw her smile and how well his brother-in-law treated her. He did not expect the food he sent to have such a significant effect. Therefore, he was most grateful to his master.
Su Binglan could not help but laugh when she heard Lin Zhengs words. “You just want to eat the delicacies I make, right?”
Lin Zheng rubbed his hands together and said embarra.s.sedly, “As expected. I can’t hide anything from you, Master. It’s not my fault your cooking is so delicious.’
Su Binglan considered what Lin Zheng said. Although the border was remote and barren, she felt there was significant potential here. After all, it connected Chu and Beishao, creating incredible business opportunities.
Moreover, there was plenty of unoccupied land here. Although ordinary crops could not grow, Su Binglan knew the crops in her pocket dimension had more robust survivability and adaptability to the environment. Therefore, she felt she could plant many things here.
Nonetheless, she would need manpower to grow crops here and had to consider things carefully. She could develop a food industry here with more people, When the economy developed, she could open fast-food restaurants here.
She could also transport many things from Tenghe Town to the border and profit from the people of Beishao Country.
The border was not small, to say the least, and did not belong to Chu or Beishao. It would be great if it could develop into a place that belonged to them.
In any case, there was already internal strife in Chu Country, and many had begun to form their own territories. Many other places were also at war, and they could secretly nurture their forces.
Su Binglan considered the village’s location. She figured training an army and more Shadow Guards here was perfect. Moreover, it was not easy for other forces to discover them.
She felt at ease thinking of all the possibilities here. However, these were only preliminary ideas, and she still needed a well-thought-out plan to implement them. She also wanted to discuss these things with Luo Jin’an and Lan
Ruozhu.
Su Binglan did not stop cooking as she pondered. She placed the ingredients she had prepared into a pot and added water. Then she told Lin Zheng, “You can start the fire now.”
“Yes, Master.” Lin Zheng quickly used his flint to start the fire..