Chapter 31 - Another Pretty Boy (1/2)

Yu Xiaocao finally recognized the waiter in front of her. He was originally a staff in the kitchen. When she made the oyster sauce last time, he was the one who assisted her.

“Oh, it’s Young Brother Li! You actually still remember me!” With the ceramic pot in her hands, Yu Xiaocao smiled, revealing her shallow dimple.

The waiter tactfully took the earthenware jar from her hands and smiled until his eyes appeared like a line, “Of course I recognize you. How can I not?! Our young boss and Head Chef Wang mentions you multiple times every day, so there’s no way I could forget about you. Are you… sending abalones over again?”

“Do you think it’s that easy to obtain abalones? This is a type of wild fish caught in the mountain. Whether it is boiled in soup or fried, it will still be very delicious. It’s rare that I have the chance to come to town, so I brought some over for Third Young Master to try.” Since he had missed her so much, she should return his concern with a gift. Yu Xiaocao turned the wild fish she was going to sell into a gift for Third Young Master Zhou.

The server grinned happily, “Well, this is such a coincidence. Today, our young boss is hosting a banquet for several of his friends at noon. We were just troubled that there wasn’t a new dish to present. Miss Yu is really sending coal in the snow—a timely assistance.”

“Xiaocao, you’ve been here before?” Zhao Han was quite surprised inwardly when he saw the waiter’s change in attitude.

The server interjected, “Yes, of course! Our restaurant’s signature dishes, ‘stir-fried choy sum [1]’, ‘fresh mushrooms in oyster sauce [2]’, and ‘oyster sauce braised eggs [3]’ were all created by Miss Yu! Oh, so this little brother came with Miss Yu. Please come in! Please come in quickly!”

The server guided the sister and brother pair to the side entrance to enter Zhenxiu Restaurant’s rear court. Zhao Han hastily carried his basket filled with game and followed them.

“Teacher——Teacher, quickly come see who came!” The waiter had already started shouting before he even entered the rear court.

Head Chef Wang’s loud voice was accompanied by the clanking of a spatula, “Stinky brat, why are you being so noisy? Can’t you see that your teacher is busy? Hurry up and come over to help!”

The waiter’s voice wasn’t inferior to that of Head Chef Wang’s, “Teacher, Miss Yu came! She also brought over a lot of game and a jar of small fish!”

As soon as he said that, Head Chef Wang’s plump figure rushed over like a cannonball, and then abruptly stopped in front of Yu Xiaocao. He patted the little girl’s shoulder with his chubby hand and spoke in a booming voice, “I have been hoping to see you again and you finally came! Did you know that our Zhenxiu Restaurant has completely defeated Fulin Restaurant with the help of your oyster sauce? Little girl, let Old Wang know if you have any more new recipes.”

Yu Xiaocao grimaced in pain after being smacked by his big palm, which was like a bear’s paw. She stepped back to maintain a safe distance and said, “I taught you how to make oyster sauce last time as a complimentary gift for the success of my first business deal. I’m not going to give out my secret recipes!”

The meaning within her words were very clear, ‘Of course I have new recipes, but don’t even think about getting them for free!’

“Hey! Miss Yu, we meet again! I forgot to ask where you are from when we met last time. It was very rude of me!” Today, the handsome young boy of the Zhou Family wore a moon-white colored brocade robe, a white jade crown, and a pair of patterned soft-soled boots. He looked like such an elegant and beautiful young man!

Yu Xiaocao smiled faintly and said, “Third Young Master, how have you been? We caught some game while hunting in the morning. Would your restaurant be interested in taking them?”

Her skin was as delicate as the snow, while she had big eyes that were dark and clear. Her eyelashes were thick and curly… Although her clothes were old and shabby, it was unable to conceal the confidence and glow that she radiated. Within his heart, Zhou Zixu faintly felt that even the noble ladies in the town might not be comparable to the graceful demeanor of this fisherman’s daughter in front of him.

“We’re taking them! Of course, we’re taking them! Our restaurant is pretty busy today, so we are worried that there might not have enough game! Li Qiang, aren’t you going to hurry up and settle the payment?” Zhou Zixu hinted at the waiter, who was just foolishly standing on the side.

Zhao Han put down the carrying basket and took out the game inside. There were nine plump wild hare and six pheasants, with eight of the game still alive and kicking.

Third Young Master Zhou instructed the waiter, Li Qiang, “The market price for wild hare is twenty copper coins per catty, while pheasants are fifty copper coins each. However, the price for live game is even higher. Let’s just calculate it based on the weight, so twenty-five copper coins per catty.”

Fifteen game weighed a total of seventy-eight catties, but the young server tactfully rounded it up to eighty catties. Thus, the fifteen game were sold for a total of 2,000 copper coins.

The server gave Zhao Han two ingots, which were worth one tael each. After receiving the money, Zhao Han turned toward Yu Xiaocao, who was still speaking with Third Young Master Zhou, and stuffed the ingots into her hands.

“Brother Han, the game were all caught in the traps that you set. Why are you giving all the money to me?” If he just gave her one or two hundred copper coins, then Yu Xiaocao would had accepted it with no qualms. After all, didn’t she also contribute? However, he was giving all the money to her. Although she loved money, she would never take the fruits of another person’s labor.

Zhao Han saw that Xiaocao had hid her hands behind herself, refusing to accept the money. He couldn’t just force it into her hands, so he tried to explain, “If I wasn’t teaching you guys how to set traps today, I would not had planned on entering the mountains. I have a good idea of how much game I usually catch with my traps. I probably got lucky today because of you siblings, so the game should belong to you guys… Quickly take the money!”

“I’m not taking it! Today, most of the traps were set by Brother Han. I’m already very grateful that you’re willing to teach us how to catch rabbits. Furthermore, we’re always eating the game you caught, so how can we take the money that you earn from selling game?” Yu Xiaocao shook her head like a rattle-drum and refused to accept the two ingots.