Chapter 176 - 132: Yan, You’re Quite a Talent
Huang He hurried over, ushered Huang Bing into a nearby private room, and shut the door.
"Did you bring the braised meat?" Zhao Shulan asked.
"I did. I even had Li the Third standardize the slicing and plating. I let everyone try some, and they all loved it." Huang He couldn’t hide the excitement on his face. "Even the Chef couldn’t stop praising it. When we introduce this braised meat, our customers are going to be thrilled!"
Zhao Shulan smiled when she heard that. She was just as confident about the braised meat and asked, "How should we price it?"
Huang He relayed everyone’s suggestions.
Zhao Shulan took out a pen and paper, calculated for a moment, and said, "I think we should price the braised pork head meat at 1.6 yuan and the braised pork ears at 1.8 yuan per serving. That way, the individual prices won’t seem too steep."
"We’ll focus on selling it for dine-in. If customers want it to go, we’ll still sell it by the serving, not by weight. Our gross margin can be over fifty percent that way."
After a moment of thought, Huang He nodded. "Sounds good. We’ll do it your way."
"At that price, you’re doubling your money?" Huang Bing, who had been listening from the side, asked in surprise.
"If a restaurant’s gross margin is under fifty percent, it’ll be out of business in two weeks." Zhao Shulan rolled her eyes at him. "Do you have any idea how many employees we have? How much the monthly wear and tear on tableware, kitchenware, tables, and chairs costs? Not to mention maintaining connections and retaining customers..."
Huang Bing was starting to doze off. As soon as Zhao Shulan finished, he asked eagerly, "So, I was thinking of setting up my own stall to sell the braised meat. What do you think?"
Huang He shot him a disdainful look. "With those Knife Skills of yours? You’d better not waste good food. You slice the pork ear as thick as the cutting board. It’s a criminal waste."
Huang Bing glared. "Dad! You’re even meaner than Huang Ying!"
"It just shows your sister and I are on the same page," Huang He laughed.
"Ugh! I’m going to find Sun Zhou and practice my Knife Skills! I refuse to believe I can’t even slice a damn pig’s head right!" Huang Bing stormed off.
Huang He and Zhao Shulan exchanged a look, both a little surprised.
"Did hell freeze over? That kid is actually going to practice his Knife Skills on his own initiative?" Huang He wondered aloud.
"The fact that he wants to sell braised meat to earn his own money is even stranger," Zhao Shulan said with a smile. "Has he had a change of heart? Maybe seeing Zhou Yan, who’s the same age, already earning and spending his own money spurred him on?"
"You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. He’s never succeeded at anything we’ve told him to do. I wonder if he’s really serious this time." Huang He stroked his chin, a hint of anticipation on his face.
...
After the lunch rush ended, Zhou Yan placed a packet of braised meat and a book in his bicycle basket and leisurely pedaled toward the library.
At the library entrance, Wang was leaning back in a lounge chair with his eyes closed, rocking gently.
A storyteller’s voice drifted from a nearby tape recorder: "Shan Xiongxin clapped him on the shoulder. ’I’ll offer three hundred taels! And I’ll gift you, my friend, this sable coat to ward off the cold!’ Amid the crowd’s uproar, Qin Qiong looked up at this hero he had just met by chance. The wind and snow blurred his vision, but he felt the golden mace in his arms grow faintly warm..."
Zhou Yan stopped his bike.
"Finished Siege?" Wang asked without opening his eyes, already knowing it was Zhou Yan.
"Yes, I finished it. I’m here to borrow a new book." Zhou Yan listened to the tape recorder and asked with a smile, "Is that Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties?"
"That’s right. It’s an interesting telling, and listening saves me the eye strain." Wang sat up and smiled at Zhou Yan. "You’re quite well-read yourself, recognizing it from just a few lines."
"Just a guess," Zhou Yan chuckled. ’I haven’t heard many episodes of the Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties storytelling, but I’ve loved watching Sui and Tang Heroes since I was a kid.’
"I brought you some braised meat to have with your drink," Zhou Yan said, handing over a packet wrapped in wax paper.
"This braised meat of yours really is excellent. The last batch you brought had me drinking four glasses of wine; I can usually only manage two." Wang took the packet and asked with a smile, "How much is it? I insist on paying you."
"Grandmaster, your picking out a couple of books for me is payment enough. Knowledge is priceless, after all." Zhou Yan smiled and waved dismissively. He took the copy of Siege from his basket and added, "My dad wants to read Water Margin, so he asked me to borrow it for him."
Wang smiled at that. After a moment’s thought, he said, "Water Margin is in the second bookcase from the entrance, on the third shelf, the fifth book from the right. For you, try the book at the very end of the second shelf of the fifth bookcase. It’s by a young author. I think it’s something you young people should read."
"Will do." Zhou Yan went inside, holding the book he was returning. He first put Siege back in its place, then found Water Margin. Following Wang’s directions, he located the last book on the second shelf.
On the mostly light-blue cover was a simple flower and four words:
Life — by Lu Yao.
A slender little book.
Zhou Yan came out with the two books and put them in his bicycle basket.
Wang had already opened the wax paper packet and now had a cup of wine at his side. He looked at Zhou Yan and asked with a smile, "Have you learned how to make braised beef yet? Of all of Zhang’s braised dishes, the braised beef is the one I remember most fondly."